Air Florida Flight 90
Boeing 737-222 | |
Operator | Air Florida |
---|---|
IATA flight No. | QH90 |
ICAO flight No. | FLA90 |
Call sign | PALM 90 |
Registration | N62AF |
Flight origin | Washington National Airport (today known as Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport) |
Stopover | Tampa International Airport[1] |
Destination | Fort Lauderdale–Hollywood Int'l Airport[2] |
Occupants | 79 |
Passengers | 74 |
Crew | 5 |
Fatalities | 74 (initially 73) |
Injuries | 5 (initially 6) |
Survivors | 5 (initially 6) |
Ground casualties | |
Ground fatalities | 4 |
Ground injuries | 4 |
Air Florida Flight 90 was a scheduled U.S. domestic passenger flight operated by
Striking the bridge, which carries
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) determined that the cause of the accident was pilot error. The pilots failed to switch on the engines' internal ice protection systems, used reverse thrust in a snowstorm prior to takeoff, tried to use the jet exhaust of a plane in front of them to melt their ice, and failed to abandon the takeoff even after detecting a power problem while taxiing and having ice and snow build up on the wings. On March 5, 1982 the Washington Post described possible de-icing solution and mixture problems.
Aircraft
The aircraft involved, a 13-year-old Boeing 737-222, registered as N62AF, was manufactured in 1969 and previously flown by
Cockpit crew
The Captain, Larry M. Wheaton, aged 34, was hired by Air Florida in October 1978 as a
Wheaton was described by fellow pilots as a quiet person, with good operational skills and knowledge, who had operated well in high-workload flying situations. His leadership style was described as similar to those of other pilots. On May 8, 1980, though, he was suspended after failing a Boeing 737 company line check and was found to be unsatisfactory in these areas: adherence to regulations, checklist usage, flight procedures such as departures and cruise control, and approaches and landings. He resumed his duties after passing a retest on August 27, 1980.[4]: 10–11 On April 24, 1981, he received an unsatisfactory grade on a company recurrent proficiency check when he showed deficiencies in memory items, knowledge of aircraft systems, and aircraft limitations. Three days later, he satisfactorily passed a proficiency recheck.[4]: 11
The first officer, Roger A. Pettit, aged 31, was hired by Air Florida on October 3, 1980, as a first officer on the Boeing 737. At the time of the accident, he had around 3,353 flight hours, 992 with Air Florida, all on the 737. From October 1977 to October 1980, he had been a fighter pilot in the US Air Force, accumulating 669 hours as a flight examiner, instructor pilot, and ground instructor in an F-15 fighter unit.[4]: 90
The first officer was described by personal friends and pilots as a witty, bright, outgoing individual with an excellent command of physical and mental skills in aircraft piloting. Those who had flown with him during stressful flight operations said that during those times, he remained the same witty, sharp individual, "who knew his limitations." Several persons said that he was the type of pilot who would not hesitate to speak up if he knew something specific was wrong with flight operations.[4]: 11
Alternating the role of "primary pilot" between the
Background
Weather conditions
On Wednesday, January 13, 1982, Washington National Airport (DCA) was closed by a heavy snowstorm that produced 6.5 inches (16.5 cm) of snow.[4]: 13 It reopened at noon under marginal conditions as the snowfall began to slacken.
That afternoon, the plane was to return to
Improper de-icing procedures
The Boeing 737 was
Events of crash
Flight
The plane had trouble leaving the gate when the ground-services tow motor could not get traction on the ice. For roughly 30 to 90 seconds, the crew attempted to back away from the gate using the reverse thrust of the engines (a powerback), which proved futile.[4]: 59 Boeing operations bulletins had warned against using reverse thrust in those kinds of conditions.[4]: 59
Eventually, a tug ground unit properly equipped with snow chains was used to push the aircraft back from the gate. After leaving the gate, the aircraft waited in a taxi line with many other aircraft for 49 minutes before reaching the takeoff runway. The pilot apparently decided not to return to the gate for reapplication of deicing, fearing that the flight's departure would be even further delayed. More snow and ice accumulated on the wings during that period, and the crew was aware of that fact when they decided to take off.[4]: 80 Heavy snow was falling during their takeoff roll at 3:59 pm EST.
Though the outside temperature was well below freezing and snow was falling, the crew did not activate the engine anti-ice system.[5] This system uses heat from the engines to prevent sensors from freezing, ensuring accurate readings.[4]: 20
While running through the takeoff checklist, the following conversation snippet took place (CAM-1 is the captain, CAM-2 is the first officer):
CAM-2 Pitot heat?
CAM-1 On.
CAM-2 Engine anti-ice?
CAM-1 Off.
[4]: 107
Despite the icing conditions with weather temperature of about 24 °F (−4 °C), the crew failed to activate the engine
Neither pilot had much experience flying in snowy, cold weather. The captain had made only eight takeoffs or landings in snowy conditions on the 737, and the first officer had flown in snow only twice.[7]
Adding to the plane's troubles was the pilots' decision to maneuver closely behind a DC-9 that was taxiing just ahead of them prior to takeoff, due to their mistaken belief that the warmth from the DC-9's engines would melt the snow and ice that had accumulated on Flight 90's wings. This action, which went specifically against flight-manual recommendations for an icing situation, actually contributed to icing on the 737. The exhaust gases from the other aircraft melted the snow on the wings, but instead of falling off the plane during takeoff, this slush mixture froze on the wings' leading edges and the engine inlet nose cone.[4]: 61
As the takeoff roll began, the first officer noted several times to the captain that the instrument panel readings he was seeing did not seem to reflect reality (he was referring to the fact that the plane did not appear to have developed as much power as it needed for takeoff, despite the instruments indicating otherwise). The captain dismissed these concerns and let the takeoff proceed. Investigators determined that plenty of time and space on the runway remained for the captain to have abandoned the takeoff, and criticized his refusal to listen to his first officer, who was correct that the instrument panel readings were wrong. The pilot was told not to delay because another aircraft was 2.5 miles (2.2 nmi; 4.0 km) out on final approach to the same runway.[4]: 5 The following is a transcript of Flight 90's cockpit voice recorder during the plane's acceleration down the runway.
15:59:32 CAM-1 Okay, your throttles.
15:59:35 [SOUND OF ENGINE SPOOLUP]
15:59:49 CAM-1 Holler if you need the wipers.
15:59:51 CAM-1 It's spooled. Really cold here, real cold.
15:59:58 CAM-2 God, look at that thing. That don't seem right, does it? Ah, that's not right.
16:00:09 CAM-1 Yes it is, there's eighty.
16:00:10 CAM-2 Naw, I don't think that's right. Ah, maybe it is.
16:00:21 CAM-1 Hundred and twenty.
16:00:23 CAM-2 I don't know.
16:00:31 CAM-1
V2.— Transcript, Air Florida Flight 90 Cockpit Voice Recorder[4]: 131–132
As the plane became briefly airborne, the voice recorder picked up the following from the cockpit, with the sound of the
16:00:39 [SOUND OF STICKSHAKER STARTS AND CONTINUES UNTIL IMPACT]
16:00:41 TWR Palm ninety contact departure control.
16:00:45 CAM-1 Forward, forward, easy. We only want five hundred.
16:00:48 CAM-1 Come on forward....forward, just barely climb.
16:00:59 CAM-1 Stalling, we're falling!
16:01:00 CAM-2 Larry, we're going down, Larry....
16:01:01 CAM-1 I know!
16:01:01 [SOUND OF IMPACT]
— Transcript, Air Florida Flight 90 Cockpit Voice Recorder[4]: 132–133
The aircraft traveled almost half a mile (800 m) farther down the runway than is customary before liftoff was accomplished. Survivors of the crash indicated the trip over the runway was extremely rough, with survivor Joe Stiley—a businessman and private pilot—saying that he believed that they would not get airborne and would "fall off the end of the runway". When the plane became airborne, Stiley told his co-worker (and survivor) Nikki Felch to assume the crash position, with some nearby passengers following their example.[8]
Although the 737 did manage to become airborne, it attained a maximum altitude of just 352 feet (107 m) before it began losing altitude. Recorders later indicated that the aircraft was airborne for just 30 seconds. At 4:01 pm EST, it crashed into the 14th Street Bridge across the Potomac River, 0.75 nmi (0.9 mi; 1.4 km) from the end of the runway. The plane hit six cars and a truck on the bridge, and tore away 97 feet (30 m) of the bridge's rail and 41 feet (12 m) of the bridge's wall.
Of the people on board the aircraft:[4]
- Four of the crew members (including both pilots) died.
- One crew member was seriously injured.[4]: 10
- Seventy of the 74 passengers died.[4]: 10
- Nineteen occupants were believed to have survived the impact, but their injuries prevented them from escaping.[4]: 76
Of the motorists on the bridge involved:[4]: 10
- Four sustained fatal injuries
- One sustained serious injuries
- Three sustained minor injuries
Clinging to the tail section of the broken airliner in the ice-choked Potomac River were flight attendant Kelly Duncan and four passengers: Patricia "Nikki" Felch, Joe Stiley, Arland D. Williams Jr. (strapped and tangled in his seat), and Priscilla Tirado. Duncan inflated the only flotation device they could find, and passed it to the severely injured Felch. Passenger Bert Hamilton, who was floating in the water nearby, was the first to be pulled from the water.
Crash response
This section needs additional citations for verification. (January 2020) |
Many federal offices in downtown Washington had closed early that day in response to quickly developing blizzard conditions. Thus, a massive backup of traffic existed on almost all of the city's roads, making reaching the crash site by ambulances very difficult.[9] The Coast Guard's 65-foot (20 m) harbor tugboat Capstan (WYTL 65601) and its crew were based nearby; their duties include ice breaking and responding to water rescues. The Capstan was considerably farther downriver on another search-and-rescue mission. Emergency ground response was greatly hampered by ice-covered roads and gridlocked traffic; ambulances dispatched at 4:07 pm took 20 minutes to reach the crash scene.[10] Ambulances attempting to reach the crash site were even driven down the sidewalk in front of the White House. Rescuers who reached the site were unable to assist survivors in the water because they did not have adequate equipment to reach them. Water temperature, which was about 34 degrees Fahrenheit,[11] as well as heavy ice made swimming out to them impossible. Multiple attempts to throw a makeshift lifeline (made out of belts and any other things available that could be tied together) out to the survivors proved ineffective. The rescue attempts by emergency officials and witnesses were recorded and broadcast live by area news reporters, and as the accident occurred in the nation's capital, large numbers of media personnel were on hand to provide quick and extensive coverage.
Roger Olian, a sheet-metal foreman at St. Elizabeths Hospital, a Washington psychiatric hospital, was on his way home across the 14th Street Bridge in his truck when he heard a man yelling that an aircraft was in the water. He was the first to jump into the water to attempt to reach the survivors. At the same time, several military personnel from the Pentagon—Steve Raynes, Aldo De La Cruz, and Steve Bell—ran down to the water's edge to help Olian.
He only traveled a few yards and came back, ice sticking to his body. We asked him to not try again, but he insisted. Someone grabbed some short rope and battery cables and he went out again, maybe only going 30 feet (9 m). We pulled him back. Someone had backed up their jeep and we picked him up and put him in there. All anyone could do was tell the survivors was to hold on not to give up hope. There were a few pieces of the plane on shore that were smoldering and you could hear the screams of the survivors. More people arrived near the shore from the bridge, but nobody could do anything. The ice was broken up and there was no way to walk out there. It was so eerie, an entire plane vanished except for a tail section, the survivors, and a few pieces of plane debris. The smell of jet fuel was everywhere, and you could smell it on your clothes. The snow on the banks was easily two feet high and your legs and feet would fall deep into it every time you moved from the water.
At this point, air traffic controllers/flight controllers were aware only that the plane had disappeared from radar and was not responding to radio calls, but had no idea of either what had happened or the plane's location.
Around 4:20 pm
The helicopter crew lowered a line to survivors to tow them to shore. First to receive the line was Bert Hamilton, who was treading water about 10 feet (3 m) from the plane's floating tail and closest to the helicopter. The pilot pulled him across the ice to shore, while avoiding the sides of the bridge. By then, some fire/rescue personnel had arrived to join the military personnel and civilians who pulled Hamilton (and the next/last three survivors) from the water's edge up to waiting ambulances; rescuers and civilians on the banks had to duck to avoid the helicopter's rotors. The helicopter returned to the aircraft's tail, and this time Arland D. Williams Jr. (sometimes referred to as "the sixth passenger") caught the line. Williams, not able to unstrap himself from the wreckage, passed the line to flight attendant Kelly Duncan, who was towed to shore. On its third trip back to the wreckage, the helicopter lowered two lifelines, fearing that the remaining survivors had only a few minutes before succumbing to hypothermia. Williams, still strapped into the wreckage, passed one line to Joe Stiley, who was holding on to a panic-stricken and blinded (from jet fuel) Priscilla Tirado, who had lost her husband and baby. Stiley's co-worker, Nikki Felch, took the second line. As the helicopter pulled the three through the water and blocks of ice toward shore, both Tirado and Felch lost their grip and fell back into the water. While being dragged through the ice to the riverbank by the helicopter, Stiley broke multiple ribs.
Priscilla Tirado was too weak to grab the line when the helicopter returned to her. A watching bystander, Congressional Budget Office assistant Lenny Skutnik, stripped off his coat and boots, and in short sleeves, dove into the icy water and swam out to successfully pull her to shore.[12] The helicopter then proceeded to where Felch had fallen, and paramedic Gene Windsor stepped out onto the helicopter skid and grabbed her by the clothing to lift her onto the skid with him, bringing her to shore. From the time the helicopter had arrived on scene to Felch's rescue, 10 minutes had passed.
When the helicopter crew returned for Williams, the wreckage he was strapped into had rolled slightly, submerging him; according to the coroner, Williams was the only passenger to die by drowning.[13] His body and those of the other occupants were recovered later.
The inclement weather had caused an early start to Washington's rush-hour traffic, frustrating the response time of emergency crews. The early rush hour also meant that trains on the Washington Metro were full when just 30 minutes after Flight 90 crashed, the Metro suffered its first fatal crash, at Federal Triangle station. This meant that Washington's nearest airport, one of its main bridges in or out of the city, and one of its busiest subway lines were all closed simultaneously, paralyzing much of the metropolitan area.
CVR on Air Florida 90
Source | Content |
---|---|
First Officer | This is a losing battle here on trying to de-ice these things. |
First Officer | It gives you a false feeling of security that’s all that does. |
Captain | That uh, satisfies the feds. |
First Officer | Yeah. |
First Officer | I’ll pull it back to about 155, supposed to be 1.6… |
First Officer | …depending on how scared we are. |
First Officer | (Sound the laughter) |
Background sounds | *Sound of increasing engine thrust* |
Captain | Really cold here. |
First Officer | Yeah. |
Captain | Real cold, Real cold. |
First Officer | Look at that thing right there. |
First Officer | That’s not quite right. |
Captain | Yes it is there’s eighty. |
First Officer | Naw, I don’t think it’s right. |
First Officer | Ah maybe it is. |
Captain | Hundred and twenty. |
Background sounds | *Stickshaker stall warning* |
Captain | Forward! Forward! |
Captain | Easy, we only want five hundred. |
Captain | Come on, forward! |
Captain | Forward! |
Captain | Just barely climb. |
Captain | Stalling! |
Captain | We’re falling! |
First Officer | We’re going down, Larry. |
Captain | I know! |
Crash Sounds | *Sound of impact |
End Of Recording |
Responses in the news media
The first member of the news media to arrive was Chester Panzer of
Charles "Charlie" Pereira, a photographer with the United States Park Police, was in the Chief's office when the call came in that Air Florida Flight 90 had crashed. Charlie ran to the 14th street bridge and captured the only still images from the rescue. He was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for his photography.
John Goldsmith, an off-beat reporter for
News media outlets followed the story with diligence. Notably, The Washington Post published a story about the then-unidentified survivor of the crash, Arland D. Williams Jr., who had handed the lifeline to others and drowned before he could be rescued:
He was about 50 years old, one of half a dozen survivors clinging to twisted wreckage bobbing in the icy Potomac when the first helicopter arrived. To the copter's two-man Park Police crew, he seemed the most alert. Life vests were dropped, then a flotation ball. The man passed them to the others. On two occasions, the crew recalled last night, he handed away a lifeline from the hovering machine that could have dragged him to safety. The helicopter crew who rescued five people, the only persons who survived from the jetliner, lifted a woman to the riverbank, then dragged three more persons across the ice to safety. Then, the lifeline saved a woman who was trying to swim away from the sinking wreckage, and the helicopter pilot, Donald W. Usher, returned to the scene, but the man was gone.[21]
The day after the crash, on Washington, DC, radio, WWDC shock jock Howard Stern pretended[22] to call the Air Florida ticket counter to ask about buying tickets to the 14th Street Bridge.[23]
NTSB investigation and conclusion
The 737 had broken into several large pieces upon impact—the nose and cockpit section, the cabin up to the wing attachment point, the cabin from behind the wings to the rear airstairs, and the empennage. Although actual impact speeds were low and well within survivability limits, the structural breakup of the fuselage and exposure to freezing water nonetheless proved fatal for all persons aboard the plane except those seated in the tail section. The NTSB concluded that the accident was not survivable.[4]: 76–77, 82 Determining the position of the rudder, slats, elevators, and ailerons was not possible due to impact damage and destruction of the majority of flight control systems.
The NTSB determined that the probable cause of the crash included the flight crew's failure to enforce a
The NTSB further stated:
Contributing to the accident were the prolonged ground delay between deicing and the receipt of ATC takeoff clearance during which the aircraft was exposed to continual precipitation, the known inherent pitch up characteristics of the B-737 aircraft when the leading edge is contaminated with even small amounts of snow or ice, and the limited experience of the flight crew in jet transport winter operations.[4]: 82
Long-term aftermath
Honors
The "sixth passenger", who had survived the crash and had repeatedly given up the rescue lines to other survivors before drowning, was later identified as 46-year-old bank examiner Arland D. Williams, Jr. The repaired span of the
Civilians Roger Olian and Lenny Skutnik received the Coast Guard's
The Coast Guard awarded a Silver Lifesaving Medal to two crewmen of the U.S. Park Police helicopter Eagle 1. As the
Roger Olian, Lenny Skutnik, Donald Usher, and Melvin Windsor each received the
Regulatory and procedure changes
The investigation following the crash, especially regarding the failure of the captain to respond to crew concerns about the deicing procedure, led to a number of reforms in pilot-training regulations. Partial blame was placed on the young, inexperienced flight crew, who had a combined age of only 65 and had begun their careers as commercial pilots less than five years earlier. Typical of upstart, low-cost carriers, Air Florida frequently hired youthful pilots who worked for less money than veterans, and were for the most part seeking to gain flight experience prior to joining a major airline.[28] It became a widely used case study for both air crews and rescue workers.[29]
In popular culture
This section needs additional citations for verification. (February 2020) |
The
The
The
Aircrash Confidential also covered the accident in one of their episodes.
The crash was also dramatized in the 1984 made-for-TV movie Flight 90: Disaster on the Potomac.
Critical Rescue has also dedicated an entire episode to the heroes of the disaster.
The flight has also been shown on the show When Weather Changed History on US-based The Weather Channel.
The National Law Enforcement Museum, which opened in Washington, DC, in 2018, has footage of the crash on display along with interviews of survivors and other first-hand accounts. The display includes the U.S. Park Police helicopter involved in the rescue of Flight 90's survivors.
Arland D Williams, Jr., is commemorated in
See also
- Random Hearts – a novel which was inspired by the disaster
Similar accidents:
- Gander Airportin 1985 due to wing icing.
- Continental Airlines Flight 1713 – crash of a McDonnell Douglas DC-9 on takeoff when having taxied to the runway without clearance, causing confusion for air traffic controllers, leading the flight to sit on the ground for too long after deicing at Stapleton International Airport in Denver in 1987. The copilot then pulled the nose up too severely on rotation, stalling the aircraft.
- Air Ontario Flight 1363 – crashed in Dryden, Ontario, in March 1989 after the flight crew did not deice their jet.
- McDonnell Douglas MD-81 in Sweden by Stefan G. Rasmussenafter ice was accumulated in the engines.
- , in 1992. The crash was caused by icing, improper deicing procedures, pilot error, and unforeseen delays.
- American Eagle Flight 4184 – crashed after flying into unforeseen icing conditions in 1994.
- Comair Flight 3272 – lost control due to icing on the wing near Detroit Metropolitan Airport in 1997.
- China Eastern Airlines Flight 5210 – crashed shortly after takeoff in 2004 after the jet collected a layer of frost overnight and was not deiced.
- Emirates Flight 407 – a near miss in 2009 after the crew incorrectly calculated the takeoff weight and did not apply enough thrust to take off properly. The crew managed to regain control of the aircraft and make an emergency landing.
- Sol Líneas Aéreas Flight 5428 – crashed due to icing in Argentina in 2011.
References
- ^ "Afterward". The New York Times Magazine. [dead link]
- The History Channel.
- History (U.S. TV channel). Retrieved October 30, 2015.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag "Air Florida, Inc., Boeing 737-222, N62AF, Collision with 14th Street Bridge near Washington National Airport, Washington, D.C., January 13, 1982" (PDF). Washington, D.C.: National Transportation Safety Board. August 10, 1982. NTSB/AAR-82-08. Retrieved May 15, 2016. - Copy at Embry–Riddle Aeronautical University.
- Public Broadcasting Service.
- ^ "AirDisaster.Com: Special Report: Air Florida Flight 90". www.airdisaster.com. Archived from the original on June 12, 2015. Retrieved May 30, 2015.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ Kay, Ken (January 10, 2009). "Air Florida disaster still chilling 27 years later". Sun Sentinel. Retrieved November 24, 2010.
- ^ "Disaster on the Potomac". Mayday. December 23, 2013. approximately (with commercials) 10:00 minutes in.
- ^ "Plane crashes into Potomac River". History.com. Retrieved April 27, 2023.
- ^ ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved October 10, 2018.
- ^ "Heated gear aids divers recover crash victims". Southwest Times. Pulaski, Virginia. January 17, 1982. Retrieved November 17, 2023.
- ^ Yoffe, Emily (January 12, 2003). "Dispatches: the survivors of Flight 90". the Guardian. Retrieved October 10, 2018.
- ^ Mcdougall, Christopher (November 26, 2007). "The hidden cost of heroism". msnbc.com. Archived from the original on October 1, 2018. Retrieved October 10, 2018.
- ^ Air Florida Flight 90 CVR Recording (With subtitles)
- ^ National Geographic Channel.
- ^ Goldsmith, John. "John O. Goldsmith". johngoldsmith.com. Retrieved January 31, 2014.
- ^ Statter, Dave (January 16, 2009). "A look back to another river crash. Air Florida Flight 90 in DC had a significant impact on regional cooperation and crew resource management". statter911.com. Retrieved January 31, 2014.
- ^ Snyder, James P. (1998). "WTOP-TV". Archived from the original on September 11, 2013. Retrieved January 31, 2014.
- ^ Mutzabaugh, Ben (January 13, 2012). "Video: 1982 report on Air Florida crash". USA Today.
- ^ "Air Florida Flight 90 Crash: 30th Anniversary | wusa9.com". October 25, 2012. Archived from the original on October 25, 2012. Retrieved April 23, 2019.
- ^ "A Hero – Passenger Aids Others, Then Dies". The Washington Post. January 14, 1982.
- ^ "Stern on Stern: 'I Had a Lot of Rage, and I Was Going to Let It Out.'".
- ^ Ahrens, Frank (1999). "Equal Opportunity Offenders". The Washington Post. Retrieved February 1, 2020.
- ^ Stroud, Rob (August 16, 2003). "Mattoon school honors hero: Arland D. Williams sacrificed himself to save others after 1982 plane crash". Herald & Review. Decatur, IL.
- ^ O'Keefe, Ed (January 24, 2012). "Three decades of 'Skutniks' began with a federal employee". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 26, 2012.
- ^ "Superintendent Don Usher Retires". National Park Service. January 3, 2013. Retrieved February 12, 2013.
- ^ "Search Awardees, Carnegie Hero Award (year: 1982 act performed: water w/ice (Olian), exposure to natural elements (Skutnik, Usher, Windsor)". Retrieved August 21, 2013.
- Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved March 24, 2014.
- ^ Wilber, Del Quentin (January 12, 2007). "A Crash's Improbable Impact: '82 Air Florida Tragedy Led To Broad Safety Reforms". The Washington Post. p. A01. Retrieved April 21, 2008.
- Public Broadcasting Service.
- ^ "Last Man In the Water/Story and Lyrics". Sara Hickman. January 12, 2007. Retrieved December 25, 2023.
Further reading
- Trivers, R. L. & Newton, H. P. "The crash of flight 90: doomed by self-deception?" Science Digest (November 1982): pp. 66–67, 111.
- Shribman, David. "Electronic Sleuths Seek Crash Data". The New York Times. Thursday January 21, 1982. Lake City Final Edition, Sec. A, p. 14, Col. 4 (674 words). Available on ProQuest.
- AirDisaster.Com Special Report: Air Florida Flight 90[usurped]
- Roads to the Future website – 14th Street Bridge, the Air Florida Crash, and Subway Disaster
- Cockpit voice recording transcript for the crash of Air Florida Flight 90
- "Bridge of Sighs" – The Observer (2003 report on the survivors 21 years later)
- "Days of Disaster – 1949 & 1982", Arlington Fire Journal (detailed account of Arlington County Fire Dept. operations at crash site)
- "We're Not Going To Make It", Time
- "The 30th anniversary of the Air Florida plane crash", The Washington Post (photo gallery)
External links
- "Why Did This Flight Crash? Listen to Its Engine..." Smithsonian Channel. February 19, 2015.
- Executive Summary – NTSB Report AAR-82/08 Air Florida, Inc., Boeing 737-222, N62AF, Collision with 14th Street Bridge near Washington National Airport Washington, D.C. January 13, 1982
- Aircraft Accident Report: Air Florida, Inc., Boeing 737-222, N62AF, Collision with 14th Street Bridge, Near Washington National Airport, Washington, D.C., January 13, 1982 – National Transportation Safety Board report (PDF, 140 pages)
- Pre-crash photos of N62AF
- Accident description at the Aviation Safety Network
- Flight 90: Disaster on the Potomac at IMDb