Pan Am Flight 806

Pan American Flight 806
	Honolulu International Airport
Destination	Los Angeles International Airport
Occupants	101
Passengers	91
Crew	10
Fatalities	97
Injuries	4
Survivors	4

Pan Am Flight 806 was an international scheduled flight from

approach to Pago Pago International Airport

, killing 87 passengers and ten crew members.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) determined the probable cause of the accident was the flight crew's tardy identification of microburst-induced wind shear. Other factors included poor visibility, a lack of altitude, and airspeed callouts by the aircrew.

Aircraft and flight crew

The aircraft involved was a

Third officer was James Phillips, 43, with 5,208 total pilot hours of which 4,706 were on the 707 and the flight engineer

was Gerry Green, 37, who had 2,399 total hours as both a Flight Engineer and reserve first officer of which 1,444 were on the 707.

Although Gaines was scheduled to act as First officer on the flight, he had become ill with Laryngitis and as such was replaced by Third Officer Phillips, who acted as First Officer whilst Gaines stayed in the cockpit in the jumpseat.^[2]^[1]

Accident

At 20:14 Flight 806 departed Auckland with 91 passengers and 10 crewmembers on board with an instrument flight rules (IFR) flight plan to Pago Pago.^[2]

At 23:34 the flight had descended to 5,500 feet (1,700 m) and captured the 226 degree radial of the Pago Pago VHF omnidirectional range (VOR) and were flying the reciprocal heading of 46 degrees. Pago Pago Approach Control reported winds zero one zero degrees at one five gusting two zero.^[2]

The flight was receiving signals from the Localizer and was using the Instrument landing system (ILS) for runway 5. At 23:38 the approach controller informed the flight of a bad rain shower at the airport, then at 23:39 stated the wind is zero three zero degrees at two zero, gusting two five. The flight transmitted "Eight zero six, wilco" at 23:39:41. This was the last communication received from Flight 806.^[2]

The Cockpit voice recorder (CVR) recorded normal cockpit conversation during the last minute of the flight. At 23:40:22 the co-pilot reported "You're a little high" and at 23:40:33 "You're at minimums." At 23:40:35 the first officer stated "Field in sight" then "Turn to your right" followed by "hundred and forty knots." No further conversation was recorded by the CVR.^[2]

At 23:40:42 the 707 came in contact with trees 3,865 feet (1,178 m) short of the runway 5 threshold. The aircraft first impacted the ground 236 feet further and plowed through dense vegetation for another 539 feet (164 m) before crashing into a three foot high rock wall. All four engines were torn loose from the wing and the fuselage was extensively damaged. A post-impact fire consumed most of the aircraft.^[2]

Aftermath

The crew of 10 and 87 passengers ultimately died as a direct cause of the accident. Notably, all the passengers and crew survived the initial impact. Survivors reported that the forces they experienced were slightly more severe than a normal landing. After examination the cabin interior was found to be undamaged by the crash.^[2]

Nine passengers and one crew member, Third Officer Phillips, survived the initial crash and post-accident fire. One passenger died the day after the accident. Three days after the accident, the remaining crew member and three passengers died. One passenger died nine days after the accident. According to NTSB 49 CFR part 830, fatalities occurring more than seven days after the accident shall not be attributed to said accident.^[2]

Investigation

The NTSB's final report dated October 6, 1977 determined that the probable cause of the accident was:^[2]

The flight crew's late recognition, and failure to correct in a timely manner, an excessive descent rate which developed as a result of the aircraft's penetration through destabilizing wind changes. The winds consisted of horizontal and vertical components produced by a heavy rainstorm and influenced by uneven terrain close to the aircraft's approach path. The captain's recognition was hampered by restricted visibility, the illusory effects of a "black hole" approach, inadequate monitoring of flight instruments, and the failure of the crew to call out descent rate during the last 15 seconds of flight.

References

^ ^a ^b ^c "Accident description January 30 1974". aviation-safety.net. Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved April 22, 2017.
^
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
.

v t e Aviation accidents and incidents in the United States and U.S. territories in the 1970s
1970	Cornfield Bomber Eastern Air Lines Shuttle Flight 1320 Trans International Airlines Flight 863 Wichita State University football team plane crash Southern Airways Flight 932 Capitol International Airways Flight C2C3/26
1971	B-52C Lake Michigan crash Colorado Aviation Aero Commander 680 crash Hughes Airwest Flight 706 Allegheny Airlines Flight 485 Pan Am Flight 845 Alaska Airlines Flight 1866 Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 305 (see D. B. Cooper)
1972	Mohawk Airlines Flight 405 Delta Air Lines Flight 9570 American Airlines Flight 96 Prinair Flight 191 Lake Winnebago mid-air collision Pacific Southwest Airlines Flight 710 Delta Air Lines Flight 841 Sacramento Canadair Sabre accident Southern Airways Flight 49 United Air Lines Flight 553 Chicago–O'Hare runway collision Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 Puerto Rico DC-7 crash
1973	DeKalb–Peachtree Airport Learjet crash Ozark Air Lines Flight 809 Delta Air Lines Flight 723 TWA Flight 742 World Airways Flight 802 Texas International Airlines Flight 655 Pan Am Flight 160 National Airlines Flight 27 Iberia Flight 933
1974	Commonwealth Commuter Flight 317 Pan Am Flight 806 Delta Air Lines Flight 523 Eastern Air Lines Flight 212 TWA Flight 514 Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 6231
1975	Golden West Airlines Flight 261 Eastern Air Lines Flight 66 Wien Air Alaska Flight 99 Overseas National Airways Flight 032
1976	Alaska Airlines Flight 60 American Airlines Flight 625 Air Manila Flight 702 TWA Flight 355
1977	Japan Air Lines Cargo Flight 1045 Southern Airways Flight 242 Delta Air Lines Flight 1080 Encino helicopter crash Lynyrd Skynyrd plane crash Air Indiana Flight 216 United Airlines Flight 2860 Vieques Air Link crash
1978	Continental Airlines Flight 603 United Airlines Flight 696 National Airlines Flight 193 Pacific Southwest Airlines Flight 182 Air Caribbean Flight 309 TWA Flight 541 United Airlines Flight 173
1979	TWA Flight 841 American Airlines Flight 191 Downeast Airlines Flight 46 Air New England Flight 248 American Airlines Flight 293 American Airlines Flight 444
This list is incomplete. ALM Flight 980 ditched in waters near St. Croix. Flying Tiger Line Flight 45 occurred in the United States Civil Administration of the Ryukyu Islands