On December 8, 1963, Pan American 214, operating as Clipper Tradewind, departed Isla Verde International Airport in San Juan, Puerto Rico at 4:10pm Eastern Standard Time (EST) for a flight to Baltimore's Friendship Airport (now Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, or BWI), where 69 passengers disembarked. I was 15 at the time when a youngster like me most needed his Dad for guidance and direction. All persons aboard, 73 passengers and eight crew members, perished in the crash and the aircraft was destroyed. [20] Eyewitness testimony later confirmed that the plane had been burning on its way down to the crash site. Although much effort was expended, the physical evidence failed to disclose the precise mechanism of ignition which triggered the explosion in the left reserve fuel tank. I am Edwin Montilla the son of Pan Am Flight Purser Mario Montilla who perished on Pan Am Flight 214 Dec 8, 1963. After the accident fuel samples were taken from the supply sources at Idlewild, Baltimore, and San Juan. He was partners with my grandfather in our family business in which my father and his brother were also employed. He never lost control for an instant. Consequently, there is a direct correlation in time and location between the lightning discharge and start of events which culminated in the accident. These flaps were extended 11/2 to 21/2 degrees. Here we go. A few seconds later: Clipper 214 is going down in flames., 8:59 p.m.: The aircraft crashes outside of Elkton. The exact manner of ignition was never determined, but the investigation yielded information about how lightning can damage aircraft, leading to new safety regulations. See attachment No. However, the story of Pan Am Flight 914, much like other tales published by The Weekly World News, is bogus. Special from the Cecil Whig. [1]:14 The second officer was Paul L. Orringer, age 42, of New Rochelle, New York. The times of frontal passage at certain east coast cities including Baltimore and Philadelphia were also discussed. Pan Am Flight 214 Lightning strikes - RareNewspapers.com 1 reserve fuel tank with resultant explosive disintegration of the left outer wing and loss of control. Regards,Edwin Montilla. 1 engine and pylon assembly was approximately 1,925 feet on a bearing of 13 degrees from the impact crater. Pan Am: The trailblazing airline that changed international travel Able to drive his familys gray station wagon, Hicks, then only 13, drove remains from the crash site to the temporary Red Cross station and morgue set up at the armory. N709PA left San Juan as Pan American Flight 214 at 1610 and arrived at Baltimore at 1935. The most easterly piece of wreckage found along this path was approximately 17,400 feet from the crater. In two small wreckage concentrations separate from the two previously mentioned paths, there were ten pieces, consisting of the Nos. None of the other eight pieces were more than 165 feet from the corresponding engine. Error! The aircraft involved in the crash, N709PA, before being delivered to Pan Am, In-flight explosion and break up caused by. He called Pan Am and the company confirmed his parents were on the flight. Can you list the top facts and stats about Pan Am Flight 214? Even more than 60 years later, the cause of that crash remains a mystery. 1 and 4 reserve tanks an estimated 1.81 gallons of residual fuel, approximately 69 percent Type B; Nos. Seventy-two witnesses indicated that the ball of fire appeared concurrent with or immediately following the lightning stroke. The density of these pieces varied from low to high processing westerly along the 250-degree path.
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