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Flying Tiger Line Flight 45

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1970 aviation accident

Flying Tiger Line Flight 45
A DC-8-63F of Flying Tigers, similar to the one involved in the accident
Accident
DateJuly 27, 1970 (1970-07-27)
SummaryControlled flight into terrain in low visibility
SiteNaha Air Force Base, Okinawa, U.S. Civil Admin. of the Ryukyu Is.
Aircraft
Aircraft typeDouglas DC-8-63F
OperatorFlying Tiger Line
IATA flight No.FT45
ICAO flight No.FTL45
Call signTIGER 45
RegistrationN785FT
Flight originLos Angeles International Airport, Westchester, Los Angeles, California, United States
StopoverSan Francisco International Airport, San Mateo County, California, United States
1st stopoverSeattle–Tacoma International Airport, SeaTac, Washington, United States
2nd stopoverCold Bay Airport, Cold Bay, Alaska, United States
3rd stopoverHaneda Airport, Ōta, Tokyo, Japan
4th stopoverNaha Air Force Base, Okinawa
5th stopoverKai Tak Airport, British Hong Kong
Last stopoverCam Ranh Bay Air Force Base, Khánh Hòa, South Vietnam
DestinationDa Nang Air Base, Da Nang, South Vietnam
Occupants4
Crew4
Fatalities4
Survivors0

Flying Tiger Line Flight 45 was a regularly scheduled cargo flight by Flying Tiger Line from Los Angeles to Da Nang Air Base in South Vietnam, with intermediate stops at San Francisco, Seattle, Cold Bay, Tokyo, Naha, Hong Kong, and Cam Ranh. On July 27, 1970, the flight, a Douglas DC-8-63F, crashed on final approach as it was trying to make its 4th stopover at Naha Airport (then Naha Air Base) in Okinawa, which was under US administration at the time.

Aircraft

The aircraft involved was a Douglas DC-8-63F registered as N785FT with serial number 46005. It was manufactured in 1968 and purchased by Flying Tiger Line on November 19. It had logged 6047.2 airframe hours and was powered by four Pratt & Whitney JT3D-7 engines, each generating about 19000 pounds of thrust.

Overview

The aircraft involved in the incident was a Douglas DC 8-63F with the registration number N785FT and serial number 46009, and powered by four Pratt & Whitney JT3D-7 engines. The aircraft was delivered to Flying Tiger Line on November 19, 1968. At the time of the incident, the aircraft had accumulated a total of 6047.2 hours. The aircraft took off from Los Angeles International Airport at 20:53PM on July 25 and after 3 scheduled stops arrived at Haneda Airport at 22:44PM on July 26. The aircraft and crew stayed over at Tokyo for the night before taking off on 9:29AM for Naha Air Base.

The aircraft was making its final approach to Naha Air Base's Runway 18 using precision radar approach at around 11:35AM when the aircraft's rate of descent increased and subsequently crashed 2,000 feet short of the runway. All four crew members died.

Cause

Flying Tiger Line Flight 45 flew from Tokyo to Naha using IFR, and crashed on final approach just as it had passed a low level raincloud.

The investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board concludes that the aircraft encountered a tropical storm while on approach with visibility not reaching 1 mile, only for visibility to increase by 10 to a 100 times once the clouds cleared, blinding the piloting crews and making the approach difficult.

References

  1. ^ AIRCRAFT ACCIDENT REPORT (PDF). National Transportation Safety Board. 1971. pp. 1–3. - Copy at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
  2. "N785FT Aircraft Inquiry". registry.faa.gov. Retrieved October 25, 2024.
  3. "Accident McDonnell Douglas DC-8-63AF N785FT, Monday 27 July 1970". asn.flightsafety.org. Retrieved October 25, 2024.
  4. "N785FT Final Report" (PDF). libraryonline.erau.edu. Retrieved October 25, 2024.
  5. AIRCRAFT ACCIDENT REPORT (PDF). National Transportation Safety Board. 1971. p. 25.
  6. ^ "ASN Aircraft accident McDonnell Douglas DC-8-63AF N785FT Okinawa-Naha AFB (AHA)". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved March 3, 2018.
  7. ^ Miyagi, Masako (1998). 大事故の予兆をさぐる [Explore the sign of major accidents] (in Japanese). Kodansha. p. 128. ISBN 978-406257209-5.
Aviation accidents and incidents in 1970 (1970)
Jan 5 Spantax Convair crashJan 28 Batagay An-24 crashJan 29 Aeroflot Flight 145Feb 2 Cornfield Bomber crash landingFeb 4 Aerolineas Argentinas Flight 707Feb 4 TAROM Flight 35Feb 6 Aeroflot Flight U-45Feb 15 Dominicana DC-9 disasterFeb 21 Swissair Flight 330Mar 14 Paraense Transportes Aéreos Flight 903Mar 17 Eastern Air Lines Shuttle Flight 1320Mar 31 Japan Airlines Flight 351Apr 1 Aeroflot Flight 1661Apr 1 Berrechid crashApr 21 Philippine Airlines Flight 215May 2 ALM Flight 980May 15 Dymshits–Kuznetsov hijacking affairJul 3 Dan-Air Flight 1903Jul 5 Air Canada Flight 621Jul 18 Soviet Air Force Antonov An-22Jul 22 Olympic Airways Flight 255 hijackingJul 27 Flying Tiger Line Flight 45Aug 9 LANSA Flight 502Aug 12 China Airlines Flight 206Sep 2 Aeroflot Flight 3630Sep 6 Dawson's Field hijackingsSep 8 Trans International Airlines Flight 863Sep 26 Flugfélag Íslands Flight 704Oct 2 Wichita State Univ football teamOct 15 Aeroflot Flight 244Nov 14 Southern Airways Flight 932Nov 27 Capitol International Airways Flight C2C3/26
1969   ◄    ►   1971
Aviation accidents and incidents in Japan
1950s
1960s
1970s
1980s
1990s
2000s
2010s
2020s
"*" occurred in the United States Civil Administration of the Ryukyu Islands
Incidents in disputed territory with Russia: Habomai Islands RB-29 shootdown (October 1952)


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