United Air Lines Flight 859

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United Air Lines Flight 859
United Douglas DC-8.jpg

A similar DC-8 from United Air Lines
Accident summary
Accident type Abandoned runway and fire from blown tires after landing with asymmetrical thrust
place Stapleton International Airport , Denver , Colorado , United StatesUnited StatesUnited States 
date July 11, 1961
Fatalities 17th
Survivors 105
Injured 84
Fatalities on the ground 1
Aircraft
Aircraft type United StatesUnited States Douglas DC-8-12
operator United StatesUnited States United Air Lines
Mark United StatesUnited States N8040U
Departure airport Eppley Airfield , Omaha , Nebraska , United StatesUnited StatesUnited States 
Destination airport Stapleton International Airport , Denver , Colorado , United StatesUnited StatesUnited States 
Passengers 115
crew 7th
Lists of aviation accidents

In the United Air Lines Flight 859 (flight number UA859 ) crashed on July 11, 1961, a Douglas DC-8-12 of United Air Lines upon landing at the Stapleton International Airport in Denver, Colorado, USA. All 17 occupants on board the machine were killed in the accident and one person also died on the ground.

plane

The aircraft involved in the accident was a Douglas DC-8-12, which was three and a half months old at the time of the accident. The machine was rolled out on March 23, 1961, the DC-8 had the serial number 45307 and it was the 146th machine of this type from ongoing production. The first delivery to United Airlines followed on June 16, 1961, the machine was put into operation there with the aircraft registration N8040U and the fleet number 2240 . The four-engine long-range narrow-body aircraft was equipped with four Turbojettriebwerken type Pratt & Whitney JT3C-6 equipped. By the time of the accident, the machine had completed a total of 124 operating hours.

Passengers and crew

The flight from Eppley Airfield in Omaha, Nebraska, to Stapleton International Airport had taken 115 passengers. There were also seven crew members on board the machine. The cockpit crew of the machine was three people:

  • The flight captain John Grosso flew for United Air Lines since November 5, 1940. On February 16, 1945, he was promoted to flight captain. Grosso had 17,631 hours of flight experience, of which he had completed 168 hours in the Douglas DC-8.
  • The first officer Arthur F. Putz started his employment with United Air Lines on August 18, 1948 and initially worked as a flight engineer. On January 11, 1951, he qualified for the position of first officer, on September 25, 1959 for the position of flight captain. Putz had 9,839 hours of flight experience, 120 of which he had completed with the Douglas DC-8.
  • The flight engineer James M. Beatie was hired on September 11, 1946 by United Air Lines as a mechanic in training. On July 24, 1950, he qualified as a mechanic in scheduled flight operations, and on January 25, 1951, he was appointed flight engineer. He had 8,416 hours of flight experience, of which he had completed around 215 hours in the cockpit of the Douglas DC-8.

There were also four flight attendants on board.

the accident

The burning machine
The wreck after the fire

There was a hydraulic failure in the machine on the flight from Omaha. The incident was not considered serious by the crew. The pilots followed the checklists for hydraulic failures and prepared for a routine landing. The engine touched down normally at first, but when the thrust levers of the engines were moved into reverse thrust, the reversing flaps for the engines on the port side did not extend properly. This circumstance resulted in the motors on the left continuing to produce forward thrust while the motors on the right side producing reverse thrust. The engine immediately began to turn to the right due to the asymmetrical thrust. All of the tires on the right main landing gear burst, whereupon the machine strayed from the runway and landed on a runway that was still under construction. The nose landing gear collapsed and the aircraft hit several airport vehicles and construction equipment. A fuel tank in the right wing tore open. A fire broke out and an immediate evacuation of the machine was initiated.

Victims and survivors

The accident claimed 18 lives - 16 passengers died from carbon monoxide poisoning , and an elderly lady who broke both ankles during the evacuation died of shock. A firefighter from the airport fire department was also killed while fighting the fire. Of the 105 survivors, 84 were injured.

The failure of the first officer to monitor the control lights of the thrust reverser when they were activated was cited as a contributing factor to the accident.

Accident investigation

After the accident, the Civil Aeronautics Board investigated the cause of the accident. During the investigation into the accident it was found that the fire fighting and rescue of the people showed serious deficiencies in terms of organization, equipment and personnel despite previous complaints. The fire fighting and rescue of the people was started from an understaffed and poorly equipped department of the airport. The municipal fire brigade was not called in or a request for help from the nearby US Air Force base was waived. Seven months before the disaster, an inspector found that the airport fire service and emergency equipment were inadequate. In particular, he criticized the insufficient water capacity and the missing foam extinguishing system. Denver city officials nonetheless praised the success and efforts of the airport fire department.

swell

Coordinates: 39 ° 45 ′ 38.6 "  N , 104 ° 53 ′ 31.1"  W.