Continental Charters Flight 44-2
Military C-46 similar to the plane that crashed | |
Accident | |
---|---|
Date | December 29, 1951 |
Summary | Controlled flight into terrain (CFIT) |
Site | Bucktooth Ridge, near Napoli, New York |
Aircraft | |
Aircraft type | Curtiss C-46 Commando |
Operator | Continental Charters Inc |
Registration | N3944C |
Flight origin | Miami, Florida |
Stopover | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
Destination | Buffalo, New York |
Occupants | 40 |
Passengers | 36 |
Crew | 4 |
Fatalities | 26 |
Injuries | 14 |
Survivors | 14 |
Continental Charters Flight 44-2, a domestic non scheduled passenger flight from Miami, Florida to Buffalo, New York, crashed on December 29, 1951 near Napoli, New York. The twin engine C-46 Commando, registration N3944C, crashed approximately 10:25 pm in adverse weather conditions. Of the four crew and 36 passengers on board, three crew members and 23 passengers perished.[1] The flight crew's poor judgment in attempting a flight by visual reference during instrument weather conditions was the cause of the accident.[2]
Pre-accident narrative
Continental Charters (no connection to the former Continental Airlines) Flight 44-2 originated in Miami, Florida where the airline was based. Continental Charters operated without a regular schedule and was equipped with military surplus aircraft, allowing the company to offer discounted fares. After a seven-hour delay due to mechanical problems, Flight 44-2 departed Miami and arrived safely but late into Pittsburgh's Allegheny County Airport. The flight carried a crew of four, 24 passengers bound for Pittsburgh, and a backup crew of three who were to fly the plane back to Miami. The plan was to stop in Pittsburgh, deplane the 24 passengers, then go to Buffalo, return to Pittsburgh, and then return to Miami. The crew opted to board 29 passengers waiting in Pittsburgh for the flight to Miami, fly to Buffalo and then return directly from Buffalo to Miami to make up lost time. The crew also opted to fly VFR direct to Buffalo from Pittsburgh instead of filing a flight plan under instrument flight rules that would take them in a less than direct route to Buffalo. Flying under instrument flight rules would also have required an additional delay for refueling in Pittsburgh. When the crew filed their VFR fight plan, they were advised that stations along the proposed route (Bradford, Pennsylvania and Jamestown, New York) were reporting ceilings and visibility below VFR minimums. The weather briefer further stated that VFR flight was not recommended over their intended route due to low ceilings and poor visibility.[3][4]
Mishap flight
Continental Charters Flight 44-2 left Pittsburgh at 9:47 pm. The direct course to Buffalo (heading 018 degrees true) would take the flight slightly east of Jamestown, New York and into Buffalo. Reports of witnesses on the ground located by accident investigators after the crash indicated that the aircraft began drifting east of the direct route soon after takeoff. The plane was also reported to have been flying very low and that the weather was very poor, with zero ceiling and visibility along the route. The plane's flight path, miles east of the direct course, resulted in the aircraft flying over significantly higher terrain, the foothills of the Allegheny Mountains, than the flight would have encountered on the direct route.[3]
The only surviving crew member, a flight attendant, later recounted that the two relief pilots went forward into the cockpit just before the crash. Loud discussion and cursing was heard among the pilots. Moments later, the crash sequence began.[4]
Crash scene
The crash sequence began about 38 minutes into the flight. The aircraft first struck the top of a tree 60 feet above the ground located about 100 feet below the top of wooded ridge. The ridge, called 'Bucktooth Ridge,' is 2375 feet in elevation. Forward movement continued for 933 feet as the aircraft struck other trees and disintegrated from the impact. All major parts of the aircraft were accounted for. The only part of the aircraft that was not destroyed was the aft passenger compartment, which rolled to a stop at the far end of the debris field. All 14 survivors were seated in this section. There was no post crash fire. The aircraft was later written off as a total loss.[3]
Post crash survival
The ordeal had just begun for the survivors of Flight 44-2. The 14 survivors spent two days and two nights at the crash site in below freezing temperatures waiting to be rescued. Snow was chest high in the area. Two men tried to walk out to get help on the day after the crash but had to turn back. On the second day, one of the men was able to get to a farm house several miles away and get help. All 14 survivors had injuries of varying severity and were taken to hospital.[4]
Accident investigation
The crash was investigated by the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB). The investigation found that the crew, the aircraft and the carrier were properly certified and that the aircraft was properly loaded and fueled. They found that there was no malfunction of the aircraft and the engines were operating properly. The investigation also found that the crew filed a VFR flight plan when instrument weather conditions prevailed over the proposed route and that flight was conducted below the prescribed minimum altitude for VFR night operations. The probable cause was determined to be "the captain's poor judgement in attempting a flight by visual reference during instrument weather conditions."[3]
Implications
The accident occurred just as passenger airline service was developing in the United States. To control public perceptions that air travel was unsafe, the CAB Chairman Donald Nyrop visited the crash scene on January 1, 1952 and reassured the public that the crash had not been caused by a mechanical failure of the airplane. The loss of Flight 44-2 also led to new airline safety rules. The CAB issued a draft regulation on March 10, 1952, requiring that night visual flights on passenger planes in large aircraft be conducted only on designated routes and between airports equipped with radio communications.[4]
See also
- Aviation accidents and incidents
- List of accidents and incidents involving airliners in the United States
- List of accidents and incidents involving commercial aircraft
References
- ^ Plain Crash Information, 1951, accident 69
- ^ Aviation Safety Database, record id=19511229-0
- ^ a b c d The Civil Aeronautics Board Accident Investigation Report File Number 1-0101 March 7, 1952
- ^ a b c d The Buffalo (NY) News, Article 691535
External links
- Accident description at the Aviation Safety Network
- "Investigation of Aircraft Accident: CONTINENTAL CHARTERS: NEAR LITTLE VALLEY, NEW YORK: 1951-12-29". Civil Aeronautics Board. March 7, 1952. - PDF
- Timothy Lake (December 31, 2011). "Crash of Flight 44-2 led to new airline safety regulations". The Buffalo News. Archived from the original on 2012-01-17.
- Timothy Lake (January 14, 2012). "Tragedy In The Sky: 1951 Catt. County Crash Helped Shape Future Of Airline Industry". The Post-Journal.
- "AP Report of the Crash of Flight 44-2 (with pictures of crash site and names of crew and passengers)". The Associated Press. December 31, 1951. Archived from the original on January 17, 2012.
- v
- t
- e
- Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 307 (March 1950)
- Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 2501 (June 1950)
- Fairfield-Suisun Boeing B-29 crash (August 1950)
- National Airlines Flight 83 (January 1951)
- Cubana de Aviación Flight 493 (April 1951)
- United Air Lines Flight 610 (June 1951)
- United Air Lines Flight 615 (August 1951)
- Miami Airlines C-46 crash (December 16 1951)
- Continental Charters Flight 44-2 (December 29 1951)
- American Airlines Flight 6780 (January 1952)
- National Airlines Flight 101 (February 1952)
- Pan Am Flight 526A (April 1952)
- American Airlines Flight 910 (June 1952)
- Mount Gannett C-124 crash (November 1952)*
- Moses Lake C-124 crash (December 1952)
- National Airlines Flight 470 (February 1953)
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- USMC R4Q NROTC crash (July 1953)
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- TWA Flight 260 (February 1955)
- American Airlines Flight 711 (March 20 1955)
- Hawaii R6D-1 crash (March 22 1955)*
- Pan Am Flight 845/26 (March 26 1955)
- MacArthur Airport United Airlines crash (April 1955)
- American Airlines Flight 476 (August 1955)
- United Air Lines Flight 409 (October 1955)
- United Air Lines Flight 629 (November 1955)
- TWA Flight 400 (April 1 1956)
- Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 2 (April 2 1956)
- Grand Canyon mid-air collision (June 1956)
- Trans-Canada Air Lines Flight 304 (July 9 1956)
- United States Air Force Flight 441/13 (July 13 1956)
- Pacoima mid-air collision (January 1957)
- Northeast Airlines Flight 823 (February 1957)
- Northeast Airlines Flight 285 (September 1957)
- Capital Airlines Flight 67 (April 1958)
- Capital Airlines Flight 300 (May 1958)
- Westover Air Force Base KC-135 crash (June 1958)
- Northeast Airlines Flight 258 (August 1958)
- Southeast Airlines Flight 308 (January 1959)
- The Day the Music Died (February 3 1959)
- American Airlines Flight 320 (February 3 1959)
- Capital Airlines Flight 75 (May 1959)
- American Airlines Flight 514 (August 1959)
- Braniff International Airways Flight 542 (September 1959)
- Piedmont Airlines Flight 349 (October 1959)
- National Airlines Flight 967 (November 1959)
- Allegheny Airlines Flight 371 (December 1 1959)
- San Diego F3H crash (December 4 1959)
An asterisk (*) denotes an incident that took place in a U.S. territory.