Fifty years ago: in memoriam.

June 30, 1956

Two of the most powerful and luxurious aircraft flying in the US at the time collided in midair over the Grand Canyon, killing 128 crew and passengers - at that time the worst aviation tragedy in the USA. I remember clearly the movie newsreels and newspaper articles, and as an airline passenger, I felt a sense of shared loss.

Both aircraft had departed LAX eastbound within minutes of one other on June 30, 1956: TWA Flight 2, Lockheed L-1049G Super-Constellation N6902C “Star of the Seine,” departed LAX 31 minutes late at 09:01 AM and took to the sky to MKC, STL and DCA. “Star” was actually TW’s first Super-Connie, and its pilot, though denied 21,000 feet due to the UA DC-7, was ultimately cleared to “1000 feet above the top” of the looming cloud layer, on a direct routing to Painted Desert, estimated arrival 10:34. The TWA captain was notified of the UA traffic, and was obligated to keep searching for it visually.

UAL “the Hollywood” flight 718, Douglas DC-7 N6324C “Mainliner City of Vancouver“ with Red Carpet Service to MDW and EWR, took off three minutes after TW 2, and was cleared to 21,000 feet – also to Painted Desert, ultimately estimated at 10:31. The UA Captain was not notified of the TWA airliner’s presence on the same course at approximately the same altitude (ATC was not required to do so in those days.)

With clouds building up to above 25,000 feet, both aircraft were likely making corrective maneuvers to avoid convective currents. UA 718 overran TW 2, its port wing crashing into the Super-Connie’s distinctive triple tailfin, and engine #1’s propeller chopped into the 1040’s aft fuselage.

The TWA Connie, without its tail and aft fuselage section, took 31 seconds to crash nearly inverted into the Grand Canyon below Temple Butte. The UA DC-7 crew managed to get a signal out – “Salt Lake… United 718… we’re going down!” as the aircraft descended to crash into the walls of Chuar Butte.

The Civil Aeronautics Board investigators were able to determine the accident cause by examining the remote scene, as there had been no witnesses, no radar tracks and no flight data recorders. Blame was targeted at the Civil Aeronautics Agency's Air Traffic Control system initially, but the following year a report blaming the accident both aircrews for failing to maintain visual contact and separation was issued.

The cost of all this was 128 lives – their legacy is a safer aviation environment for you and me. The eventual outcome was a complete reorganization of the CAA into the Federal Aviation Authority, and new separation requirements for aircraft at high altitude under Instrument Flight Rules that remain in effect today were issued.

Michael McComb says "There is little question that the Grand Canyon collision was a catalyst in the creation of an improved air traffic control system and the reform of the CAA into what is now the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The development of both the Mode C Transponder and the Traffic Alert/Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) has been attributed, in part, to the events of June 30, 1956 as well."

McComb is a pilot who has hiked and rafted into the crash site, has published an interesting and poignant article in the August 2006 issue of Airways. I owe much of what is written above to him, and to Trey Brandt.

Michael McComb’s online article published in America’s Flyways

Trey Brandt’s Arizona Aircraft Archaeology online article