United Air Lines Flight 521
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Accident | |
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Date | May 29, 1947 |
Summary | Pilot error |
Site | LaGuardia Airport, New York City, United States 40°46′06″N 73°53′05″W / 40.7683°N 73.8847°W |
Aircraft | |
Aircraft type | Douglas DC-4 |
Aircraft name | Mainliner Lake Tahoe |
Operator | United Airlines |
Registration | NC30046 |
Flight origin | LaGuardia Airport, New York |
Destination | Cleveland Municipal Airport, Cleveland, Ohio |
Occupants | 48 |
Passengers | 44 |
Crew | 4 |
Fatalities | 43 |
Injuries | 5 |
Survivors | 5 |
United Air Lines Flight 521 was a scheduled
It was the
Investigation
The Civil Aeronautics Board concluded the report on the accident by citing pilot error. The report read: "The Board determines that the probable cause of this accident was either the failure of the pilot to release the gust lock before take-off, or his decision to discontinue the take-off because of apprehension resulting from rapid use of a short runway under a possible calm wind condition."
Although the board came to the conclusion that pilot error was likely the cause, the May 31, 1947, edition of The New York Times told a different (albeit preliminary) tale:
"The United Air Lines DC-4 that crashed and burned at La Guardia Field Thursday night never got into the air and the
It seemed, at least early on, the cause may have actually been wind shear (although it is referred to as "wind shift" in the article).
References
- ^ a b "RUNWAY 18 Air Safety, May-June 1947 Chapter 197". Daily News. September 21, 2000. Retrieved May 16, 2009.[permanent dead link]