Northwest Airlines Flight 293
| Occurrence summary | |
|---|---|
| Date | 3 June 1963 |
| Summary | Unknown |
| Site | WSW of Annette Island, Alaska |
| Passengers | 95 |
| Crew | 6 |
| Fatalities | 101 (all) |
| Survivors | 0 |
| Aircraft type | Douglas DC-7C |
| Operator | Northwest Orient Airlines |
| Registration | N290 |
| Flight origin | McChord Air Force Base, Washington, United States |
| Destination | Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska, United States |
Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 293 was an American military charter operated on 3 June 1963 by a Northwest Orient Airlines Douglas DC-7C registered N290 which crashed into the sea off the coast of Alaska with the loss of all 101 crew and passengers on board.[1]
Accident
Flight 293 was chartered by the Military Air Transport Service of the United States Air Force to carry 95 servicemen and their families between McChord Air Force Base in Washington state to Elmendorf Air Force Base in Alaska.[1] The DC-7 departed McChord at 07:52 Pacific Standard Time.[1] The last radio contact was at 10:06 when the crew requested a change of flight level.[1] When nothing more had been heard for more than an hour a search for the aircraft was begun at 11:16.[1] It was not until 19:22 that floating debris was seen located 182.5 miles (293.7 km) WSW of Annette Island, Alaska.
Approximately 1,500 pounds of wreckage was recovered, it included life vests still encased in their plastic containers and extremely deformed seat frames.[2] None of the bodies of the crew or passengers were ever recovered.[2]
Investigation
With the wreckage under 8,000 feet of water the accident review board concluded "Because of lack of evidence, the Board is unable to determine the probable cause of the accident."[3][4]
References
Notes
- 1 2 3 4 5 Accident description at the Aviation Safety Network
- 1 2 "United States Court of Appeals Seventh Circuit - Irene Cox v Northwest Airlines, Inc". openjurist.org. Retrieved 2009-11-07.
- ↑ Aircraft Accident Report
- ↑ "Cause Unknown: What brought down these five airplanes?", by Lester A. Reingold, Air & Space magazine (September 2010)
Coordinates: 54°12′50″N 133°51′25″W / 54.2138°N 133.857°W