United States of America

The aircraft had arrived in Honolulu at 0507 hours Hawaiian standard time on 21 July as CPA Flight 323 from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It was departing, the evening of 22 July, as Empress Flight 301 on a scheduled international flight for Nadi (Fiji Islands), Auckland (New Zealand) and Sydney (Australia). The night takeoff was commenced at 22:38 hours local time and approximately two minutes after becoming airborne and during the climbout a fire warning indication for No 1 engine was received in the cockpit. The No. 1 propeller was feathered and the tower controller was advised that the aircraft was returning to Honolulu. As an over-gross landing weight condition existed, fuel jettisoning in the amount of 35000 lb was carried out The jettisoning operation was completed at 23:06 hours following which the flight was vectored west of the outer marker to Intercept the ILS final approach course for runway 08. The three-engine landing approach appeared normal until the aircraft had proceeded beyond the runway threshold and had commenced its landing flare at an altitude of approximately 20 feet above the runway centreline. A go-around was attempted from this position, and the aircraft banked and veered sharply to the left. Initial ground contact was made by the left wing tip approximately 550 feet to the left of the runway centreline and approximately 700 feet beyond the threshold of the runway. The aircraft progressively disintegrated as it moved across the ground, then struck heavy earth-moving equipment parked approximately 970 feet from the runway centreline.

A Continental Air Lines Vickers-Armstrongs Viscount Model 812, N243V, was landed wheels-up, almost immediately following takeoff from the Amarillo Municipal Airport, Amarillo, Texas, on July 8, 1962, at approximately 0706LT. There were no serious injuries to any of the 13 passengers or 3 crew members. The aircraft was destroyed by fire. After normal lift-off and landing gear retraction, the captain was momentarily distracted by rainwater from the window channel falling on his left shirt sleeve and he inadvertently allowed the aircraft to settle until Nos. 2 and 3 propellers struck the runway. No. 4 engine and propeller were damaged by pieces of metal thrown from the No. 3 propeller. Increasingly severe vibration, a rapidly developing right wing heaviness, and sudden and excessive rise of exhaust gas temperatures of Nos. 2 and 3 engines dictated an immediate emergency landing. This was effected, wheels up, in a harvested wheat field approximately 6,930 feet beyond the end of runway 21 and in a direction 21 degrees to the right of its extended centerline.

During the takeoff roll, the undercarriage retracted. The twin engine aircraft sank on its belly and slid for several yards before coming to rest. Both crew members were uninjured while the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.

Shortly after takeoff from Harlingen AFB, while climbing, the aircraft caught fire. All four crew members bailed out and the airplane crashed in flames at Kings Ranch. The airplane was destroyed while all four crew members were uninjured.

A Lockheed Lodestar 18, registered N45W and owned by Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc, departed Montgomery-Dannelly Field, Alabama, at approximately 07:06 on company business flight to Jacksonville, Florida. En route altitude was 8,000 feet. A Lockheed T-33A-1-LO Shooting Star US Air Force jet trainer, serial 51-4532, departed Moody AFB at approximately 07:13 on a local IFR training flight. The T-33 climbed to 20,000 feet following takeoff from Moody and proceeded to the Tallahassee VOR where it was cleared by Tallahassee Approach Control for penetration and an ILS approach to runway 36 at Tallahassee Airport. While under Tallahassee Approach Control, two ILS approaches were completed followed by two ILS missed approaches. After the second ILS missed approach, the flight was cleared at approximately 07:50 by Tallahassee Approach Control, "...from present position direct to the Tallahassee OMNI, maintain 3,000, anticipate routing Victor 22, Greenville, direct to Valdosta OMNI." After that the T-33 reported VFR on top at 4000 feet. The crew continued VFR and requested a climb to 20.000 feet, direct to Valdosta, which was approved. The two aircraft collided in midair at approximately 8,000 feet altitude, approximately 4.3 miles northwest of the Tallahassee VOR Station. The T-33 climbed up into the Lodestar. The Lodestar's right propeller cut through the forward end of the T-33 right tip tank. The Lodestar's fuselage lower surface scrubbed across the T-33's right wing upper surface just inboard of that tip tank at an angle of 14 degrees leftward from the T-33's longitudinal axis. The various impacts on the T-33's right wing caused it to yaw to the right, with the result that its tail assembly ripped through the Lodestar's left wing at a greater angle than that of initial impact. The Lodestar's left wing was severed from trailing edge to leading edge at this time. The impact severed the T-33's tail assembly causing loss of control. The T-33 entered an inverted flat spin in which it remained until contact with the ground. Both crew members of the T-33 ejected safely. The Lodestar crashed, killing all four on board.

On the night of May 22, 1962, a Continental Air Lines Boeing 707-124, N70775, operating as Flight 11 en route from O’Hare Airport, Chicago, Illinois, to Kansas City, Missouri, was flying via Jet Route 26V at an altitude of 39,000 feet. A few minutes after Flight 11 had made a northerly deviation from course to circumnavigate a thunderstorm, in the vicinity of Centerville, Iowa, the radar image of the aircraft disappeared from the scope of the Waverly, Iowa, Flight Following Service. At approximately 2117 an explosion occurred in the right rear lavatory resulting in separation of the tail section from the fuselage. The aircraft broke up and the main part of the fuselage struck the ground about 6 miles north-northwest of Unionville, Missouri. All 37 passengers and crew of 8 sustained fatal injuries. The aircraft was totally destroyed.

Just after liftoff from Loring AFB, the airplane encountered difficulties to climb. The left wing stalled and struck the ground, causing the aircraft to crash and burn 2,500 feet past the runway end. All six occupants were killed.

Following a major overhaul on engine, a test flight was schedule out from Dallas-Love Field Airport. Two mechanics and the maintenance manager took off at 1625 and while climbing to a height of 300 feet, the aircraft stalled and crashed near the runway end. The aircraft was destroyed and all three occupants were killed.

A Lockheed Constellation, model L-1049H, N 6911C, owned by The Flying Tiger Line Inc., and being operated under contract with the Military Air Transport Service, crashed during the hours of darkness at Adak, Alaska, March 15, 1962, at 1214 G.m.t. Impact and subsequent fire destroyed the aircraft. There were seven occupants, all crew members. Six received minor injuries and one, the duty flight engineer, was trapped in the cockpit and died in the fire. This was a scheduled cargo flight, designated by the carrier as Flight No. FTL 7816/14. It originated at Travis Air Force Base, California, for Kadena Air Force Base, Okinawa, with stops planned at Cold Bay, Alaska, Adak, Alaska, and Misawa, Japan. Shortly after departure from Travis Air Force Base, buffeting developed and the aircraft was landed back at Travis. Inspection disclosed an open hydraulic reservoir access door. This was closed and secured and the flight proceeded uneventfully to Cold Bay, Alaska. The flight from Cold Bay to the vicinity of Adak was also uneventful, with the copilot flying the aircraft from the left seat and the captain acting as copilot in the right seat. Instrument weather prevailed at Adak and a ground controlled approach (GCA) was started. The flight was advised several times that it was below the glide slope and then was advised to execute a missed approach. The aircraft’s captain replied that the field was in sight. The approach continued, visually. At a point 328 feet short of the runway threshold and four feet below its level the landing gear struck rocks. The main landing gear was torn off and the aircraft slid about 2,000 feet on the runway coining to rest just off its edge. A severe fire developed.

The crew was engaged in a local test flight when control was lost. The airplane crashed in a field located in Bandera, Texas. All three crew members were killed.