McChord AFB

The four engine aircraft christened 'Old Shakey' was involved in a flight from McChord AFB to Lawton, Oklahoma, carrying a truck, several jeeps, two trailers and soldiers from Fort Sill who had been taking part in Exercise Lava Plains at the Yakima Firing Center. After a night takeoff, while climbing to a height of 500 feet, the airplane went out of control and crashed in flames in a wooded area located two miles south of the airport. 18 people were killed while four others were injured. The aircraft was totally destroyed.
Crew:
Cpt Warren J. Fair, pilot, †
Cpt Alvin W. Hill, copilot, †
Sgt Robert Wayne Cummins, †
M/Sgt Arnold R. Neldens, †
M/Sgt Raymond E. Overby, †
S/Sgt Ernest T. Landrum,
A2c James M. Smallwood. †
Passengers:
Pvt James Aldrich,
M/Sgt Llewellyn Morris Chilson,
P1c Jimmie R. Hunter,
P1c C. L. Buchanan, †
P1c T. E. Pulliam, †
P1c D. F. Radcliff, †
P1c D. J. Smith, †
P1c O. M. Wellings, †
P1c David Hoskins, †
P1c R. R. Kubik, †
S4c W. M. Gordon, †
S4c W. T. Kelly, †
S4c Joseph Lee, †
Sgt A. G. Neria, †
Sgt Lawrence Harrison. †

En route from Ellensburg to the McChord AFB, the aircraft crashed in unknown circumstances in a mountainous area covered by snow. As the aircraft failed to arrive at destination, SAR operations were conducted but eventually suspended few days later as no trace of the aircraft nor the crew was found. The following summer, walkers found the wreckage in an isolated area.
Crew:
Cpt Wade L. Shankle Jr.
Passenger:
John A. Ardussi.
Source & photos:
http://washingtonwreckchasing.blogspot.ch/2009_06_01_archive.html

The crew was performing a flight from McChord AFB, Washington, to Kodiak, with a load of various goods for a total weight of 34,500 pounds. While approaching the Kenai Peninsula, the crew informed ATC about engine problems and elected to divert to Anchorage. Few minutes later, the captain reported he was unable to maintain a safe altitude when, at an altitude between 3,000 and 4,000 feet, the airplane struck the slope of a mountain located in the Petrof Glacier, about 26 miles southeast of Homer. The wreckage was found a day later and all nine occupants were killed.

The crew was returning to his base in McChord after he took part to an airshow at Ogden-Hill AFB, supplying the Thunderbird's team. While flying in cruising altitude, the airplane went out of control, dove into the ground and crashed in a field located seven miles east of Payette. The airplane was totally destroyed upon impact and all 19 occupants were killed, among them two civilians.

Crashed in unknown circumstances at McChord AFB while completing touch-and-go maneuvers. All three crew members were killed, among them T/Sgt Roy Edwin Craft.

Just after liftoff from Elmendorf AFB, while in initial climb, the crew informed ground about an engine failure and elected to return. The captain realized it could not make it so he ditched the aircraft in the icy Cook Inlet. The airplane came to rest and was damaged beyond repair while all 12 occupants were rescued.

Northwest Airlines' Flight 8 departed Seattle-Tacoma Airport at 0148, September 6, 1953, for a nonstop flight to Chicago, Illinois. Gross weight on takeoff was 105,839 pounds; maximum allowable for takeoff was 116,740; maximum allowable for landing was 98.500 pounds. The location of the center of gravity was within prescribed limits. Weather at Seattle-Tacoma Airport during takeoff was: ceiling 200 feet and one-fourth mile visibility. Just after the aircraft became airborne No. 3 propeller oversped. Attempts by the flight engineer to correct this condition were unsuccessful and feathering was started one and one-half minutes later. However, the propeller continued to rotate at about 400 r.p.m. The flight's takeoff alternate was Yakima, Washington (a distance of 122 miles), but due to high terrain en route the captain elected to request clearance to proceed to Portland, Oregon (a distance of 132 miles), at 5,000 feet. This clearance was granted immediately. Using METO 2 power the aircraft reached 5,000 feet, well above the overcast, about 14 minutes after takeoff. Near the end of this climb the oil temperature of No. 4 engine was exceeding limits and the oil supply was being rapidly reduced. The flight engineer attempted to lower the temperature by fully opening the oil cooler flap. Temperature, however, remained high and the oil quantity continued to dwindle fast. Accordingly, the No. 4 propeller was feathered at about 0205 at the order of the captain who then declared an emergency and elected to land at McChord Air Force Base. Radio communication was established with McChord and arrangements made for a GCA approach after a short delay in establishing a frequency. No. 3 propeller had not feathered fully and was still windmilling at approximately 400 r.p.m. Meanwhile the captain had requested "takeoff" flaps, but the flaps would not extend hydraulically, and the copilot went to the cabin to crank them down. He stated that he turned the crank about 15-20 turns, at which point he found that it would no longer turn freely, whereupon he backed it to its original position. He was then called back to the cockpit to assist the captain in controlling the aircraft. Control difficulty had been continuously experienced with the aircraft yawing sharply and dropping a wing. The captain had placed the trim controls approximately in neutral, believing that he had a better feel and control of the aircraft without them at the recommended minimum speed of 130 knots. The aircraft, which had re-entered the overcast at about 2,000 feet, was then several miles from McChord Field under GCA direction on its first approach when its position and heading became such that the GCA operator directed a box pattern be flown to establish a proper approach. The second approach was executed in accordance with the directed pattern and the final approach was in line with Runway 34. The landing gear control was not actuated for gear extension until the aircraft broke out of the overcast at an altitude estimated at between 500 and 800 feet on a GCA controlled straight-in approach to Runway 34. At this time the captain ordered that No. 3 be unfeathered but it would not unfeather and continued to windmill. Only the right main gear extended fully and locked, as Indicated by its green light, but the landing was then committed. Shortly after touchdown retraction of the unlocked nose and left main gears allowed the aircraft to veer off the runway to the left. It then skidded sideways to its right, folding the right main gear inward, and the No. 2 engine was torn free. The aircraft came to rest on a heading of 212 degrees some 3,000 feet from the point of touch and about 7,000 feet short of the far end of the 10,000-foot runway. At about that time a gasoline fire started and spread rapidly over the ground below the airplane. Previously alerted fire apparatus, already standing by, kept the fire from spreading while all passengers and four of the crew left quickly by the main cabin door, the door sill being five or six feet above the ground. The flight engineer and the captain left by the cockpit crew door after ascertaining the cabin to be empty. All 32 occupants ware clear within an estimated two minutes. There were no fatalities although several persons were treated for burns at the McChord Air Force Base Hospital.

The aircraft was performing a special flight from Fort Ord AFB (Monterey) to McChord AFB, carrying 19 military passengers and two pilots. En route, the crew cancelled the IFR flight plan and continued under VFR in poor weather conditions. At an altitude of 2,600 feet in foggy conditions, the aircraft hit the slope of a mountain, was totally destroyed by impact forces and a post crash fire and all 21 occupants were killed.

The C-54G, assigned to the Military Air Transport Service (MATS), 1701st Air Transport Wing at Malmstrom Air Force Base (AFB), Great Falls, Montana, was inbound from Ladd AFB, Fairbanks, Alaska, carrying 32 American servicemen and their dependents, and a crew of seven. At 0030LT, the pilot, Captain Albert J. Fenton, radioed the McChord air traffic control tower for field conditions and was informed that visibility was approximately three-quarters of a mile. Captain Fenton was directed to execute a wide left-hand turn and descend for a ground-controlled landing from the south. As the aircraft neared the field, a thick fog bank, rising 300 feet high, suddenly developed, reducing visibility to near zero. At 0048LT, Captain Fenton, now on final approach, decided to abort the landing and radioed the control tower that he was proceeding to Malmstrom AFB instead. Minutes later, witnesses telephoned the control tower and the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department to report a downed aircraft. The Skymaster crashed into an open field (now Wards Lake Park) approximately one mile north of McChord AFB and one-half mile east of S Tacoma Way between S 84th and S 88th Streets in the unincorporated community of Lakewood. It barely missed the Edgewood Park apartments, 35 four-family units built to ease the military’s housing shortage during the Korean War (1950-1953), and other nearby homes. Several people who saw the accident said the Skymaster was on fire before it crashed. Upon impact, the aircraft broke in two and exploded into flames. Bodies, personal belongings, packages and luggage were scattered around the crash scene for 200 yards. Most of the fire was in the forward section of the fuselage, the tail and aft section remaining almost intact. Some witnesses said they could hear the cries of people caught in the burning wreckage, but were helpless to render assistance. Meanwhile, fire and rescue teams from McChord AFB, Lakewood, and Tacoma rushed to the crash site and extinguished the fires in the fuselage and scattered debris. Using magnesium flares and flashlights, police and sheriff’s officers, firemen, and military personnel searched the smoldering, twisted wreckage, looking for victims. Of the 39 people aboard the C-54G, they found only three survivors: Airman Bobby R. Wilson, age 20, a member of the plane’s crew, Airman Curtis Redd, age 23, and Joseph M. Iacovitti, age 8, both passengers. Wilson, who had third-degree burns, internal injuries, and multiple skull fractures, died at Pierce County Hospital on Saturday, November 29. Redd was taken to St. Joseph Hospital in Tacoma in critical conditions with third-degree burns, but survived. Iacovitti was taken to Pierce County Hospital in serious condition with burns, broken legs and a fractured neck. He lived through the ordeal, but his parents, two brothers, and a sister died in the mishap, leaving him an orphan and the only surviving member of his family. Three other families were wiped out entirely.
Crew:
Benedict, John H., 20, Airman Second Class
Bentley, Patricia, 24, Airman Third Class
Bokinsky, Joseph H., 24, Staff Sergeant
Childers, Wilber C., 21, Airman Second Class
Fenton, Albert J., 29, Captain, pilot
Harvey, James D., 27, First Lieutenant, copilot
Wilson, Bobby R., 20, Airman Third Class.
Passengers:
U.S. Army:
Coons, Robert F., 22, Corporal
Galloway, Calvin, 18, Private First Class
Hockenberry, Denny L., 22, Sergeant
Hockenberry, Elda M., 21, spouse
Hockenberry, Susan E., 2, daughter
Hockenberry, Denise M., 1, daughter
Lebonitte, Joseph T., 23, Private First Class
Zeravich,Christoph, 24, Corporal
U.S. Air Force
Alsbury, Jack R., 21, Airman Third Class
Cook, Robert H., 20, Airman First Class
Farley, Donna L., 20, (spouse of Farley, Glen D., Staff Sergeant)
Iacovitti, Anthony R., First Lieutenant
Iacovitti, Dorothy E., 31, spouse
Iacovitti, Anthony F., 6, son
Iacovitti, John A., 4, son
Iacovitti, Barbara, 2, daughter
Johnson, Dwight P., 23, Airman Second Class
Morris, George E., 33, Master Sergeant
Morris, Anna D., 28, spouse
Morris, George E., Jr., 3, son
Morris, Geraldine A., 5, daughter
Niemi, Edwin, 35, Staff Sergeant
Parlett, Frederick D., 18, Basic Airman
Pickerel, Robert L., 22, Airman First Class
Smith, Raymond D., 24, Staff Sergeant
Swang, Marion E., 41, Major [incorrectly listed as Swann]
Weikum, Elmer, 23, Airman Second Class
Wells, Samuel R., 35, Master Sergeant
Wells, Margaret A., 33, spouse
Wells, Samuel R. III, 3, son
Survivors
Iacovitti, Joseph M., 8, (son of Dorothy and Anthony Iacovitti)
Redd, Curtis, 23, Airman Second Class.
Source:
http://www.koreanwar-educator.org/topics/airplane_crashes/c54_tacoma_19521128/p_c54_tacoma_11_28_52.htm

The four engine aircraft was completing a flight from McChord AFB to Elmendorf AFB, carrying 41 passengers and a crew of 11. En route, the crew was informed about strong winds gusting up to 40 knots from the west. While cruising by night and marginal weather conditions, the aircraft hit the slope of Mt Gannett (9'650 feet high) located about 53 miles east of Elmendorf. As the airplane failed to arrive, SAR operations were conducted but due to poor weather conditions, first rescuers arrived on scene six days later only, on November 28. The wreckage was found on the Surprise Glacier, about 1,000 feet below the summit. The aircraft disintegrated on impact and all 52 occupants were killed. On June 9, 2012, some debris were found and on June 28, 2012, the wreckage was spotted again. Two years later, on June 18, 2014, the remains of 17 of the victims were identified and returned to their respectives families for burial.