|
British Commonwealth Pacific Airlines (BCPA) Flight 304/44 was the scheduled flight from Sydney, to Vancouver, British Columbia in Canada, with scheduled stops at Nadi (Fiji), Canton Island, Honolulu and San Francisco. On 29 October 1953 the flight was conducted by the Douglas DC-6 named ''Resolution'' and registered in Australia as VH-BPE. It crashed during its initial approach towards San Francisco International Airport, killing all 19 people on board, including the American pianist William Kapell.〔("19 Killed in B.C.P.A. Crash In U.S.A." ) ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' – 31 October 1953, p.1 (National Library of Australia) Retrieved 17 August 2012〕 The aircraft was flying the Honolulu – San Francisco leg with a crew of 8 and 11 passengers (10 adults and 1 child). The estimated flying time was 9 hours and 25 minutes. Captain Bruce N. Dickson (aged 34) and his crew took over the plane in Honolulu as scheduled. Dickson and his First Officer, Frank A. Campbell (aged 28), each had several thousand hours of flight time in the DC-6. Both pilots had made more than 100 approaches into San Francisco Airport, many of which were instrument approaches. On 29 October the weather in the San Francisco area did not present adverse flight conditions, but visual reference with the ground was precluded by the overcast foggy conditions so an instrument approach was required.〔(【引用サイトリンク】 BCPA Flight 304 accident investigation report )〕 ==Events leading up to crash== As the flight neared the California coast, the crew contacted San Francisco Air Route Traffic Control (ARTC). At 8:07 am Pacific Standard Time, it was cleared to descend in accordance with Visual Flight Rules and to maintain at least on top of clouds, which the crew acknowledged. At 8:15 am, the flight reported that it was starting descent and at that time was given the San Francisco weather report. Just after 8:21 am ARTC cleared the flight to the San Francisco Instrument Landing System (ILS) Outer Marker beacon via the Half Moon Bay Fan Marker direct to the San Francisco Outer Marker, with instructions to maintain at least above all clouds and to contact San Francisco Approach Control after passing the Half Moon Bay Fan Marker. At 8:39 am, the crew called San Francisco Approach Control and advised that it was over Half Moon Bay, on top of clouds. Approximately three minutes later, the crew reported "Southeast, turning inbound". At 8:45 am, a call to the flight was unanswered as were all subsequent calls.〔 William Kapell, 31 years old, a New York pianist who was returning from a concert tour in Australia, was among the eleven passengers and eight crewmen losing their lives. Kapell was the only United States citizen in the plane. Most of the others were from Australia or the United Kingdom. Many hours after the crash, members of search parties, who had difficulty getting through a dense wood at the base of King's Mountain, said that they could find no survivors. 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「BCPA Flight 304」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|