USAir Flight 1016
USAir Flight 1016 was a US domestic flight between Columbia, South Carolina and Charlotte, North Carolina. On July 2, 1994, the DC-9 operating the flight encountered a severe thunderstorm and microbursts, which induced wind shear while attempting to land, causing the plane to crash into trees and a private residence near the airport. The accident and subsequent fire killed 37 people and injured 16 others.[1]
 N954VJ, The aircraft involved in the Accident in 1991 | |
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | July 2, 1994 |
| Summary | Microburst induced windshear leading to pilot error and spatial disorientation[1] |
| Site | near Charlotte/Douglas Airport, Charlotte, North Carolina, United States 35°13′3.87″N 80°57′33.57″W / 35.2177417°N 80.9593250°W |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | McDonnell Douglas DC-9-31 |
| Operator | USAir |
| Registration | N954VJ |
| Flight origin | Columbia Metropolitan Airport |
| Destination | Charlotte/Douglas Airport |
| Occupants | 57 |
| Passengers | 52 |
| Crew | 5 |
| Fatalities | 37[1] |
| Injuries | 20[1] |
| Survivors | 20 |
Investigation
[change | change source]The NTSB immediately dispatched an investigation team, which recovered the CVR and FDR from the plane's wreckage.[1]: 33 After a lengthy investigation, the NTSB concluded that a microburst generated by the thunderstorm over the airport at the time of the crash was the probable cause of the accident. The NTSB listed these contributing factors:
- The flight crew's decision to continue an approach to an area where a microburst was likely.
- The failure of the flight crew to recognize wind shear quickly (exacerbated by an error in the wind shear alert software; the wind shear alert system should have warned them about 8–9 seconds prior to impact)[1]: 12
- The failure of the flight crew to establish proper pitch and engine power that would have brought them out of the wind shear
- The lack of timely weather information by air traffic control to the crew of Flight 1016
References
[change | change source]- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Aircraft Accident Report, Flight Into Terrain During Missed Approach, USAir Flight 1016, DC-9-31, N954VJ, Charlotte/Douglas International Airport, Charlotte, North Carolina, July 2, 1994 (PDF). National Transportation Safety Board. April 4, 1995. AAR-95-03. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
Other websites
[change | change source]- Sudden Impact — A Flight Attendant's Story of Courage and Survival
- Interview with Richard DeMary, flight attendant aboard flight 1016 (Archive)
- Photo of N954VJ, prior to the crash Archived 2005-11-13 at the Wayback Machine
- Accident description at the Aviation Safety Network
- NTSB investigation docket