Pan Am Flight 816
Accident | |
---|---|
Date | July 22, 1973 |
Summary | Crashed during takeoff; cause undetermined |
Site | Off Faa'a International Airport, Papeete, Tahiti, French Polynesia 17°30′56″S 149°35′10″W / 17.51556°S 149.58611°W |
Aircraft | |
Aircraft type | Boeing 707-321B |
Aircraft name | Clipper Winged Racer |
Operator | Pan American World Airways |
Registration | N417PA |
Flight origin | Auckland Airport, New Zealand |
Stopover | Faa'a International Airport, Tahiti, French Polynesia |
1st stopover | Los Angeles International Airport, California, United States |
Destination | San Francisco International Airport, California, United States |
Occupants | 79 |
Passengers | 69 |
Crew | 10 |
Fatalities | 78 |
Injuries | 1 |
Survivors | 1 |
Pan Am Flight 816 was an
Aircraft and crew
N417PA (serial number 18959, manufacturing serial number) had its maiden flight on February 25, 1966, and was delivered to Pan Am on May 21. It was powered by four Pratt & Whitney JT3D-3B turbofan engines.[1][2]
The captain was Robert M. Evarts of Grass Valley, California, 59, who had 25,275 flight hours, including 8,384 hours on the Boeing 707. Evarts's first officer was Lyle C. Havens, 59, from Medford, Oregon, who had 21,575 flight hours, with 9,248 of them on the Boeing 707. The flight engineer was Isaac N. Lambert, 34, of Danville, California (9,134 flight hours, 4,760 of which were on the Boeing 707). The navigator was Frederick W. Fischer, 32, of Rochester, New York. He had 3,961 flight hours, including 3,945 of them on the Boeing 707.[3]
Preceding events
The first leg of the flight from Auckland to Papeete was mainly uneventful. However, after landing, the flight crew reported a crack in the cockpit windshield. Procedures (at the time) considered this a minor problem and allowed pilots to continue flying. Nevertheless, the crew notified airline officials in New York City about the issue and requested permission to continue the flight, which was granted. Captain Evarts decided to have the aircraft loaded with additional fuel, expecting a lower flight altitude than usual. 156,220 pounds (70,860 kg) of fuel were loaded instead of the planned 121,000 pounds (55,000 kg).[3]
The communication with New York City and the extra refueling delayed the flight past its intended departure time of 20:30 by 90 minutes. The aircraft weighed 316,150 pounds (143,400 kg) from the extra fuel. The engines burned 1,000 pounds (450 kg) of fuel before takeoff, decreasing the aircraft's weight to 315,150 pounds (142,950 kg). The weather consisted of rain (with
- V1 = 143 knots (265 km/h; 165 mph)
- VR = 149 knots (276 km/h; 171 mph)
- V2 = 165 knots (306 km/h; 190 mph)
Accident description
At 9:52 PM the crew contacted
Eyewitnesses reported seeing the aircraft make a sudden 90 degree turn soon after takeoff, along with a flash from the aircraft.
Investigation
The
Due to the flight recorders not being found, no official cause was determined.[3]
See also
- List of sole survivors of airline accidents or incidents
- Other aircraft that crashed shortly after takeoff after pilots lost spatial orientation:
References
- ^ Aviation Safety Network
- ^ "N417PA — Boeing 707-321B — Pan American". Taxiway Alpha Fleet Listings. Archived from the original on 2015-05-18. Retrieved 2013-06-18.
- ^ a b c d e f "Official crash report" (PDF). bea.aero (in French). May 12, 1977. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2011-07-21. Retrieved 2009-10-20.
- ^ "Airliner crashes off Papeete". Canberra Times. 24 July 1973. p. 1. Retrieved 11 June 2022 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "Crash report". Papua New Guinea Post-Courier. 26 July 1973. p. 7. Retrieved 11 June 2022 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "Hope ends for crash victims". Canberra Times. 25 July 1973. p. 6. Retrieved 11 June 2022 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ Gero, David (2000). Aviation disasters : the world's major civil airliner crashes since 1950. Sparkford: P. Stephens. pp. 119–120.
External links
- Final accident report (Archive) (in French)