Pan Am Flight 816
Encyclopedia
Pan Am
flight 816 ("Clipper Winged Racer") was an international flight from Auckland
, New Zealand
, to Los Angeles
, United States
, via Tahiti
, French Polynesia
.
On July 22, 1973, at 10:06 P.M. local time, the Boeing 707
took off from Faa'a International Airport
in Papeete
. Thirty seconds after takeoff, the airliner carrying 79 passengers and crew crashed into the ocean.
The aircraft had reached an altitude of 300 ft (91.4 m) and began a descending bank to the left; the bank increased excessively until the 707 crashed and sank into the waters off Papeete. Because the turn was made towards the sea at night, no visual references were available. The Cockpit Voice Recorder
and Flight Data Recorder
are believed to have sunk to a depth of about 2300 ft (701 m), and were never recovered. The cause was not determined, though it is believed that an instrument failure during a turn may have contributed.
The official report from the Bureau d'Enquêtes et d'Analyses pour la Sécurité de l'Aviation Civile
(BEA) indicates that 78 of 79 persons listed on board were killed, with a single passenger, Neil James Campbell, seated in economy class, having survived his injuries.
Clipper 816, a regular flight to Los Angeles originating in Auckland, via Tahiti, was en-route non stop to Los Angeles from Papeete at the time of the accident. Neil Campbell, the lone survivor, was a Canadian citizen. At the time he said he had no memory of the actual crash, but "Woke up" in the water. Many private vessels sortied from Papeete Harbor that night and more at first light, to aid in the search for survivors. The bodies of several of the flight attendants were the only ones recovered. Speculation at the time at Pan Am on the cause of the accident also considered a catastrophic windshield failure, as well as gyro horizon instrument failure. No conclusive cause was ever determined.
Pan American World Airways
Pan American World Airways, commonly known as Pan Am, was the principal and largest international air carrier in the United States from 1927 until its collapse on December 4, 1991...
flight 816 ("Clipper Winged Racer") was an international flight from Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, via Tahiti
Tahiti
Tahiti is the largest island in the Windward group of French Polynesia, located in the archipelago of the Society Islands in the southern Pacific Ocean. It is the economic, cultural and political centre of French Polynesia. The island was formed from volcanic activity and is high and mountainous...
, French Polynesia
French Polynesia
French Polynesia is an overseas country of the French Republic . It is made up of several groups of Polynesian islands, the most famous island being Tahiti in the Society Islands group, which is also the most populous island and the seat of the capital of the territory...
.
On July 22, 1973, at 10:06 P.M. local time, the Boeing 707
Boeing 707
The Boeing 707 is a four-engine narrow-body commercial passenger jet airliner developed by Boeing in the early 1950s. Its name is most commonly pronounced as "Seven Oh Seven". The first airline to operate the 707 was Pan American World Airways, inaugurating the type's first commercial flight on...
took off from Faa'a International Airport
Faa'a International Airport
- Overview :The Faaa International Airport is a relatively small airport. Air Tahiti has flights every day going to all the other islands in French Polynesia while international flights go to different countries such as the United States or New Zealand. The airport is on Tahiti which is an island...
in Papeete
Papeete
-Sights:* Interactive Google map of Papeete, to discover the 30 major tourist attractions in Papeete downtown.*The waterfront esplanade*Bougainville Park -Sights:* Interactive Google map of Papeete, to discover the 30 major tourist attractions in Papeete downtown.*The waterfront...
. Thirty seconds after takeoff, the airliner carrying 79 passengers and crew crashed into the ocean.
The aircraft had reached an altitude of 300 ft (91.4 m) and began a descending bank to the left; the bank increased excessively until the 707 crashed and sank into the waters off Papeete. Because the turn was made towards the sea at night, no visual references were available. The Cockpit Voice Recorder
Cockpit voice recorder
A cockpit voice recorder , often referred to as a "black box", is a flight recorder used to record the audio environment in the flight deck of an aircraft for the purpose of investigation of accidents and incidents...
and Flight Data Recorder
Flight data recorder
A flight data recorder is an electronic device employed to record any instructions sent to any electronic systems on an aircraft. It is a device used to record specific aircraft performance parameters...
are believed to have sunk to a depth of about 2300 ft (701 m), and were never recovered. The cause was not determined, though it is believed that an instrument failure during a turn may have contributed.
The official report from the Bureau d'Enquêtes et d'Analyses pour la Sécurité de l'Aviation Civile
Bureau d'Enquêtes et d'Analyses pour la sécurité de l'Aviation Civile
The Bureau d'Enquêtes et d'Analyses pour la Sécurité de l'Aviation Civile is an agency of the French government, responsible for investigating aviation accidents and making safety recommendations based on what is learned from those investigations. It is headquartered in Building 153 on the grounds...
(BEA) indicates that 78 of 79 persons listed on board were killed, with a single passenger, Neil James Campbell, seated in economy class, having survived his injuries.
Clipper 816, a regular flight to Los Angeles originating in Auckland, via Tahiti, was en-route non stop to Los Angeles from Papeete at the time of the accident. Neil Campbell, the lone survivor, was a Canadian citizen. At the time he said he had no memory of the actual crash, but "Woke up" in the water. Many private vessels sortied from Papeete Harbor that night and more at first light, to aid in the search for survivors. The bodies of several of the flight attendants were the only ones recovered. Speculation at the time at Pan Am on the cause of the accident also considered a catastrophic windshield failure, as well as gyro horizon instrument failure. No conclusive cause was ever determined.
See also
- List of sole survivors of aviation accidents or incidents
- Other aircraft that crashed shortly after takeoff after pilots lost spatial orientation:
- Air India Flight 855Air India Flight 855Air India Flight 855 was a scheduled passenger flight that crashed during the evening of 1 January 1978 about off the coast of Bandra, Bombay , India. All 213 lives on board were lost...
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- Viasa Flight 897Viasa Flight 897Viasa Flight 897 refers to an international scheduled Rome–Madrid–Lisbon–Santa Maria–Caracas passenger service that crashed into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Portugal on , shortly after take-off from Portela Airport...
- South African Airways Flight 228South African Airways Flight 228South African Airways Flight 228 was a scheduled flight from Jan Smuts International Airport in Johannesburg, South Africa to London Heathrow International Airport that flew into the ground soon after take-off after a scheduled stopover in Windhoek, South West Africa . Five passengers survived...
- Air India Flight 855