San Diego International Airport - Accidents and Incidents

Accidents and Incidents

• On June 2, 1942, the first British Consolidated LB-30 Liberator II, AL503, on its acceptance flight for delivery from the Consolidated Aircraft Company plant at San Diego, California, crashed into San Diego Bay when the flight controls froze, killing all five civilian crew, CAC Chief Test Pilot William Wheatley, co-pilot Alan Austen, flight engineer Bruce Kilpatrick Craig, and two chief mechanics, Lewis McCannon and William Reiser. Craig, who had been commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in the U.S. Army Reserve in 1935 following Infantry ROTC training at the Georgia Institute of Technology where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in aeronautical engineering, had applied for a commission in the Army Air Corps before his death. This was granted posthumously, with the rank of 2nd Lieutenant, and on August 25, 1941, the airfield in his hometown of Selma, Alabama was renamed Craig Field, later Craig Air Force Base. Investigation into the cause of the accident caused a two month delay in deliveries, so the RAF did not begin receiving Liberator IIs until August 1941.

• On May 10, 1943, the first Consolidated XB-32 Dominator, 41-141, crashed on take-off at Lindbergh Field, probably from flap failure. Although the bomber did not burn when it piled up at end of runway, Consolidated's senior test pilot Dick McMakin was killed. Six others on board were injured. This was one of only two twin-finned B-32s (41-142 was the other) - all subsequent had a PB4Y-style single tail.

• On November 22, 1944, Consolidated PB4Y-2 Privateer, BuNo 59544, on a pre-delivery test flight by company crew out of Lindbergh Field, took off at 1223 hrs., lost its port outer wing on climb-out, and crashed one quarter mile further on in a ravine in an undeveloped area of Loma Portal near the Navy Training Center, less than two miles (3 km) from point of lift-off. All crew were killed, including pilot Marvin R. Weller, co-pilot Conrad C. Cappe, flight engineers Frank D. Sands and Clifford P. Bengston, radio operator Robert B. Skala, and Consolidated Vultee field operations employee Ray Estes. A wing panel came down on home at 3121 Kingsley Street in Loma Portal. Cause was found to be 98 missing bolts; the wing was only attached with four spar bolts. Four employees who either were responsible for installation, or who had been inspectors who signed off on the undone work, were fired two days later. A San Diego coroner's jury found Consolidated Vultee guilty of "gross negligence" by vote of 11-1 on January 5, 1945, and the Bureau of Aeronautics reduced its contract by one at a cost to firm of $155,000. Consolidated Vultee paid out $130,484 to the families of the six dead crew.

• On April 5, 1945, the prototype Ryan XFR-1 Fireball, BuNo 48234, piloted by Ryan test pilot Dean Lake, on a test flight over Lindbergh Field, lost skin between the front and rear spars of the starboard wing, interrupting airflow over the wing and causing it to disintegrate. The pilot bailed out and the airframe broke up. Wreckage struck brand new Consolidated PB4Y-2 Privateer, BuNo 59836, just accepted by the Navy and preparing to depart for the modification center at Litchfield Park, Arizona. The bomber burns and the Navy crew of pilot Lt. D. W. Rietz, Lt. J. E. Creed, and Aviation Machinists Mates G. R. Brown and J. H. Randall, evacuated the burning PB4Y, with only Randall suffering injuries of first, second, and third degree burns and minor lacerations.

• April 30, 1945: Just before midnight this date, first production Consolidated PB4Y-2 Privateer, BuNo 59359, was being prepared on the ramp at Lindbergh Field for a flight to NAS Twin Cities, Minneapolis, Minnesota. A mechanic attempted to remove the port battery solenoid, located 14 inches below the cockpit floor, but did so without disconnecting the battery. Ratchet wrench accidentally punctured a hydraulic line three inches above the battery and fluid ignited, setting entire aircraft alight. The mechanic suffered severe burns. Only the number four (starboard outer) engine was deemed salvageable. Cause was an unqualified mechanic attempting a task that only a qualified electrician should undertake.

• On the morning of September 25, 1978, a Boeing 727–200 operating flight PSA Flight 182 on the Sacramento-Los Angeles-San Diego Route collided in mid-air with a Cessna 172 while attempting to land at San Diego Airport. The two aircraft collided over San Diego's North Park, killing all 135 people on Flight 182 and the two people on the Cessna, along with 7 people on the ground.

• On October 21, 2009, Northwest Airlines Flight 188, an Airbus A320, flying from San Diego International Airport to Minneapolis-St Paul International Airport flew over the Minneapolis airport and continued to fly off course by 150 miles, leaving air traffic control to think the flight had been hijacked. The pilots originally stated they were in an argument regarding airline policy and did not notice that they had flown off course, but later admitted to having been using their personal laptop computers at the time. The pilots contacted air traffic control after they realized their mistake and arrived safely in Minneapolis about one hour late. The pilots' commercial flying licenses were subsequently revoked by the FAA.