Okla-homey
3/27/2007, 06:27 AM
Mar 27, 1977: 747's collide at Canary Islands airport
Thirty years ago today, two 747's crashed into each other on the runway at an airport in the Canary Islands, killing 582 passengers and crew members.
http://aycu12.webshots.com/image/10891/2000628862374172669_rs.jpg (http://allyoucanupload.webshots.com/v/2000628862374172669)
Both Boeing 747s were charter jets that were not supposed to be at the Los Rodeos Airport on Santa Cruz de Tenerife that day. Both had been scheduled to be at the Las Palmas Airport on nearby Grand Canary Island, but a group of militants had set off a small bomb at the airport’s flower shop earlier that day thus shutting it down over there as the local authorities sorted things out.
Thus, a Pan Am charter carrying passengers from Los Angeles and New York to a Mediterranean cruise and a KLM charter with Dutch tourists were both diverted to Santa Cruz on March 27.
The Los Rodeos airport is known for its sudden fog problems and was not a favorite location for pilots. At 4:40 p.m. on a typically foggy afternoon, the KLM jet was cleared to taxi to the end of the single main runway. The Pan Am 747 was cleared to follow the KLM jet at a discrete distance and had been instructed by the tower to turn off the runway (using a taxiway near the other end) and take up a position on the taxiway holding short of the runway while the KLM jet did a 180 at the departure end and began its takeoff roll.
http://aycu38.webshots.com/image/10637/2000634724979749297_rs.jpg (http://allyoucanupload.webshots.com/v/2000634724979749297)
However, in the fog, the Pan Am pilot was unable to keep the KLM jet in sight and had not cleared the runway by the time the KLM jet did its quick turn-around and began to barrel down the runway. In fact, the Pan Am guys were trying to get off the runway (at point "6" on the above diagram) as the Dutch jet began its take-off. Because the Pan Am flight crew couldn't see the KLM jet, they didn't jump on the radio to warn the Dutch guys that they (Pan Am) were still on the flippin' runway and now in the path of the speeding Dutchmen.
Had the Pan Am guys been able to keep the KLM jet in sight, they could have warned them as they noticed KLM had completed its 180, whereupon the Dutchmen could have pulled power and jumped on the brakes -- thus avoiding catastrophe. No such luck.
The Dutch crew of the KLM jet, apparently unable to understand the heavily accented English spoken by the tower controllers, didn't even know there was another jet following them and potentially blocking their take-off. They were obviously unable to see the Pan Am jet had not cleared the runway.
At the last minute, the Pan Am pilot saw the other 747 coming straight at his own jet and screamed “What’s he doing? He’ll kill us all!” while attempting to swerve into the grass. It was too late.
http://aycu38.webshots.com/image/10637/2000669387198591352_rs.jpg (http://allyoucanupload.webshots.com/v/2000669387198591352)
This would be the "oh sh*t" moment
The KLM 747 t-boned the Pan Am jet and both planes erupted into a huge fireball. The only survivors on either plane were those in the very front of the Pan Am 747. Survivor Lynda Daniel later said of the disaster, “It exploded from the back. Most of the people in the first six rows made it.”
http://aycu08.webshots.com/image/13687/2000605394335850363_rs.jpg (http://allyoucanupload.webshots.com/v/2000605394335850363)
Point of impact
http://aycu02.webshots.com/image/10681/2000600762088289623_rs.jpg (http://allyoucanupload.webshots.com/v/2000600762088289623)
Aftermath
http://aycu15.webshots.com/image/11534/2000056368753175790_rs.jpg (http://allyoucanupload.webshots.com/v/2000056368753175790)
Thirty years ago today, two 747's crashed into each other on the runway at an airport in the Canary Islands, killing 582 passengers and crew members.
http://aycu12.webshots.com/image/10891/2000628862374172669_rs.jpg (http://allyoucanupload.webshots.com/v/2000628862374172669)
Both Boeing 747s were charter jets that were not supposed to be at the Los Rodeos Airport on Santa Cruz de Tenerife that day. Both had been scheduled to be at the Las Palmas Airport on nearby Grand Canary Island, but a group of militants had set off a small bomb at the airport’s flower shop earlier that day thus shutting it down over there as the local authorities sorted things out.
Thus, a Pan Am charter carrying passengers from Los Angeles and New York to a Mediterranean cruise and a KLM charter with Dutch tourists were both diverted to Santa Cruz on March 27.
The Los Rodeos airport is known for its sudden fog problems and was not a favorite location for pilots. At 4:40 p.m. on a typically foggy afternoon, the KLM jet was cleared to taxi to the end of the single main runway. The Pan Am 747 was cleared to follow the KLM jet at a discrete distance and had been instructed by the tower to turn off the runway (using a taxiway near the other end) and take up a position on the taxiway holding short of the runway while the KLM jet did a 180 at the departure end and began its takeoff roll.
http://aycu38.webshots.com/image/10637/2000634724979749297_rs.jpg (http://allyoucanupload.webshots.com/v/2000634724979749297)
However, in the fog, the Pan Am pilot was unable to keep the KLM jet in sight and had not cleared the runway by the time the KLM jet did its quick turn-around and began to barrel down the runway. In fact, the Pan Am guys were trying to get off the runway (at point "6" on the above diagram) as the Dutch jet began its take-off. Because the Pan Am flight crew couldn't see the KLM jet, they didn't jump on the radio to warn the Dutch guys that they (Pan Am) were still on the flippin' runway and now in the path of the speeding Dutchmen.
Had the Pan Am guys been able to keep the KLM jet in sight, they could have warned them as they noticed KLM had completed its 180, whereupon the Dutchmen could have pulled power and jumped on the brakes -- thus avoiding catastrophe. No such luck.
The Dutch crew of the KLM jet, apparently unable to understand the heavily accented English spoken by the tower controllers, didn't even know there was another jet following them and potentially blocking their take-off. They were obviously unable to see the Pan Am jet had not cleared the runway.
At the last minute, the Pan Am pilot saw the other 747 coming straight at his own jet and screamed “What’s he doing? He’ll kill us all!” while attempting to swerve into the grass. It was too late.
http://aycu38.webshots.com/image/10637/2000669387198591352_rs.jpg (http://allyoucanupload.webshots.com/v/2000669387198591352)
This would be the "oh sh*t" moment
The KLM 747 t-boned the Pan Am jet and both planes erupted into a huge fireball. The only survivors on either plane were those in the very front of the Pan Am 747. Survivor Lynda Daniel later said of the disaster, “It exploded from the back. Most of the people in the first six rows made it.”
http://aycu08.webshots.com/image/13687/2000605394335850363_rs.jpg (http://allyoucanupload.webshots.com/v/2000605394335850363)
Point of impact
http://aycu02.webshots.com/image/10681/2000600762088289623_rs.jpg (http://allyoucanupload.webshots.com/v/2000600762088289623)
Aftermath
http://aycu15.webshots.com/image/11534/2000056368753175790_rs.jpg (http://allyoucanupload.webshots.com/v/2000056368753175790)