The Tragic Events That Changed Aviation Forever Aviation has come a long way since the Wright Brothers first took flight in 1903. With advancements in technology and safety measures, flying has become one of the safest modes of transportation. However, there have been instances in history where tragedy struck and lives were lost in devastating…
Monday, 29th of April, 2013, a Boeing 747-400BCF cargo plane, operated by National Air Cargo, crashed on takeoff from Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan. National Airlines Flight 102, a cargo flight from Bagram Air Base (OAI/OAIX), Afghanistan, to Dubai World Central-Al Maktoum International Airport (DWC/OMDW), United Arab Emirates, operated with a Boeing 747-428BCF, registration N949CA, stalled…
On March 12, 2003 Singapore Airlines Boeing 747 suffered a tail strike during take off from Auckland. The effects of the “tail strike” suffered by Singapore Airlines’ Boeing 747-412 9V-SMT (CN / LN 27137/990 – scrapped) during take off from Auckland runway 23L (AKL). The aircraft was performing flight SQ286 from Auckland (AKL) to Singapore…
On December 16, 1960, a United DC-8 plane headed for Idlewild Airport (JFK) collided midair with a TWA Lockheed Super Constellation descending into LaGuardia. Following the crash, the DC-8 spiraled to the ground for a minute and a half. With debris falling over Prospect Park, the plane crashed into brownstones and a church on Sterling…
Thirty years ago a British Airways captain was sucked halfway out of his cockpit when a windscreen blew out at 17,300ft over Oxfordshire. He survived because a steward held onto his trouser belt and legs – and thanks to his co-pilot managing to make an emergency landing. It was June 10, 1990, and the flight…
Ukraine International Boeing 737-800 was not the first civil aircraft to be shot down by military action. Libyan Arab Airline flight On February 21, 1973, a Boeing 727 of Libyan Arab Airline, from Tripoli to Cairo was shot down by the army of the Israeli air above the Sinai desert. 108 of the 112 people…
Former France Boeing 747-100 was blown up at Bruntingthorpe Aerodrome, UK to test the effects of terrorist bombs as a part of the continuing research into the Pan Am Flight 103 disaster over Lockerbie, Scotland. (21December 1988)
The last remaining survivor of the Hindenburg disaster, Werner Gustav Doehner, who suffered severe burns to his face, arms and legs before his mother managed to toss him and his brother from the burning airship, has died. Doehner, the last among 62 passengers and crew who escaped the May 6, 1937 fire, was 90. The…
Qantas has launched a special website to help celebrate it’s 100th year. Qantas was founded 16 November 1920, with operations commencing in March 1921. Qantas is the third oldest airline by years of service, and third oldest continuously operated airline in the world behind KLM and Avianca. The airline was created in the regional Queensland…
Today marks the 30th anniversary of the record breaking London-Sydney flight of QF7441, a record that still stands. The flight was undertaken by the first Qantas 747, registration VH-OJA. Planning for the flight was secretive, had started 2 years previous and involved the cooperation of Boeing and Rolls Royce. The 747 had a range of…
New research suggests that Allied bombing raids during World War II reached the edge of space and temporarily weakened the ionosphere. The find came about when researchers at the University of Reading analysed recordings made at the Radio Research Station at Ditton Park near Slough in England. The station took the “longest continuous set of…
35 years ago today, Air Canada Flight 143 (C-GAUN) was a scheduled domestic passenger flight from Montreal-Dorval International to Edmonton International Airport with a stopover at Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier International Airport, Canada. The Boeing 767-233 was carrying 61 passengers and 8 crew members. C-GAUN taxiing at San Francisco International Airport in 1985. ACCIDENT The cockpit crew…