Pan Am Flight 292
Pan Am Flight 292 was operated by a Boeing 707-120B that flew into Chances Peak on the island of Montserrat on 17 September 1965 while on a flight from Fort-de-France - Le Lamentin Airport in Martinique to Coolidge International Airport in Antigua and Barbuda. The aircraft was destroyed, there were no survivors among the 30 passengers and crew on board.
A Pan Am Boeing 707, similar to the aircraft involved in the accident | |
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | 17 September 1965 |
| Summary | Pilot error, controlled flight into terrain |
| Site | Chances Peak, Montserrat |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Boeing 707-121B |
| Aircraft name | Clipper Constitution |
| Operator | Pan American World Airways |
| Registration | N708PA |
| Flight origin | Fort-de-France - Le Lamentin Airport, Martinique |
| 1st stopover | Coolidge International Airport, St. John's, Antigua |
| Last stopover | San Juan, Puerto Rico |
| Destination | New York City |
| Occupants | 30 |
| Passengers | 21 |
| Crew | 9 |
| Fatalities | 30 |
| Survivors | 0 |
Aircraft
The aircraft, bearing the registration N708PA and named Clipper Constitution by its owner Pan American World Airways (Pan Am),[1] was the first Boeing 707 built that had made the first flight of the type on 20 December 1957. It had been used by Boeing on test flights prior to delivery to Pan Am in November the following year.[2][3]
Crash
The aircraft departed Fort-de-France's Le Lamentin Airport on a scheduled flight to New York City via St. John's, Antigua and Barbuda and San Juan, Puerto Rico.[4] There were 21 passengers and a crew of nine on board. While on approach to Coolidge International Airport in stormy weather, at an altitude of 2,760 ft (841 m), the aircraft hit the 3,002 ft (915 m)-high Chances Peak and caught fire.[1] The cause was determined to be pilot error: the crew made a navigational error and descended below the safe minimum altitude while unsure of their position.[5]
References
- ^ a b Aviation Safety Network N708PA accident synopsis retrieved 2010-06-13
- ^ Dorr, p.49
- ^ "Boeing marks the 50th anniversary of the 707 first flight" flyerguide.net[permanent dead link] retrieved 2010-06-13
- ^ "Montserrat’s September 17 Anniversary of Disasters", montserratreporter.org retrieved 2010-06-13
- ^ . Archived from the original on 2012-10-14. Retrieved 2010-06-13.
- Dorr, Robert F. Air Force One, MBI Publishing Company, St. Paul Minnesota, 2002. ISBN 0-7603-1055-6
Coordinates: 16°42′40″N 62°10′38″W / 16.711111°N 62.177222°W(approximate location)