|
Arrow Air Flight 1285 was a McDonnell Douglas DC-8-63CF jetliner, registered N950JW, which operated as an international charter flight carrying U.S. troops from Cairo, Egypt, to their home base in Fort Campbell, Kentucky, USA via Cologne, West Germany and Gander, Newfoundland, Canada. On the morning of Thursday, 12 December 1985, shortly after takeoff from Gander en route to Fort Campbell, the aircraft stalled, crashed, and burned about half a mile from the runway, killing all 248 passengers and 8 crew members on board. To date, it retains the highest death toll of any aviation accident on Canadian soil and the second-highest of any accident involving a DC-8, behind the crash of Nigeria Airways Flight 2120 six years later. The accident was investigated by the Canadian Aviation Safety Board (CASB), which determined the probable cause of the crash was the aircraft's unexpectedly high drag and reduced lift condition, most likely due to ice contamination on the wings' leading edges and upper surfaces, as well as underestimated onboard weight.〔 A minority report stated that the accident could have been caused by an onboard explosion of unknown origin prior to impact. ==Flight history== The aircraft, a McDonnell Douglas DC-8-63CF, was chartered to carry U.S. service personnel, all members of the 101st Airborne Division, United States Army, from a six-month deployment in the Sinai, where they had served in the Multinational Force and Observers peacekeeping mission, back to their base in Fort Campbell, Kentucky.〔 The DC-8 involved in the accident had been constructed in 1969, and had been leased to Arrow Air by its owner, International Air Leases.〔(Sandford.org )〕 The flight was made up of three legs, the first between Cairo and Cologne, the second between Cologne and Gander, and the third between Gander and Fort Campbell.〔 The aircraft departed Cairo at 2035 Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), and arrived at Cologne on 12 December 1985, at 0121 GMT. A new flight crew (consisting of Captain John Griffin and First Officer John Connolly, both 45, and Flight Engineer Michael "Mike" Fowler, 48) boarded the aircraft before it departed for Gander at 0250 GMT.〔 The aircraft arrived at Gander International Airport at 0904, where passengers departed the aircraft while the aircraft was refueled. Witnesses reported the flight engineer conducted an external inspection of the aircraft, after which the passengers re-boarded the aircraft.〔(Sandford.org )〕 The DC-8 began its take-off roll on runway 22 from the intersection of runway 13 at 10:15 UTC (06:45 NST). It rotated near taxiway A, 51 seconds after brake release, at an airspeed of about 167 KIAS.〔 Witnesses reported the aircraft showed difficulty gaining altitude after rotation. Airborne, the airspeed reached 172 KIAS and began to decrease again, causing the DC-8 to descend. After crossing the Trans-Canada Highway, located about from the departure end of runway 22, at a very low altitude, the aircraft's pitch increased and it continued to descend.〔 Witnesses driving on the highway stated that they saw a bright glow emanating from the aircraft before it struck terrain just short of Gander Lake and crashed approximately feet beyond the departure end of the runway.〔 The aircraft's right wing struck a tree and exploded before the rest of the aircraft pitched nose-down while rolled to the right. The aircraft then struck an unoccupied building,〔(Sandford.org )〕 and exploded, starting a fire which increased in severity due to the large amount of fuel on board for the final leg of the flight. All 248 passengers and eight crew aboard the aircraft perished.〔〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Arrow Air Flight 1285」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|