1938 – May 24, United Airlines Flight 9 Fire and Crash, near Cleveland, OH –all 10
Compiled by Wayne Blanchard; last edit 11-4-2024 for upload to: http://www.usdeadlyevents.com/
— 10 Bureau of Air Commerce, DOC. Report of Aircraft Accident Investigation. June 10, 1938.
— 10 NFPA. “Fires in Which There Was Loss of Life, 2nd/3rd Quarters, 1938,.” 32/2, p. 186.
Narrative Information
Bureau of Air Commerce: “On May 24, 1938, at approximately 10:17 P. M., at a point approximately 5 1/2 miles east of the Cleveland, Ohio, Municipal Airport, an airplane of United States registry [NC13108], while being flown in scheduled interstate operation, carrying mail, passengers, and express, met with an accident which resulted in death to all on board and destruction of the aircraft….
“The aircraft, a Douglas twin-engine cabin sleeper land monoplane, Model. DST-A, was….owned by United Air Lines Transport Corporation… and at the tine of the accident was being operated by that corporation on Trip No. 9, scheduled from Newark, N. J., to Chicago, Ill., with an intermediate stop at Cleveland, Ohio.
“Actual departure from Newark, N. J., was 7:41 P.M. The weather was favorable and remained so throughout the flight…. The accident occurred at a point between Bedford and the Cleveland Municipal Airport.
“Witnesses who observed the airplane at various points from east of Bedford, Ohio, to the place of the accident aided the Board in tracing the flight path of the airplane from east of Parkman to the scene of the accident…. One witness in Bedford stated that when he first saw the airplane, both engines sounded normal but there appeared to be a fire under the right engine nacelle. Almost immediately after sighting the airplane, the engines were heard to sputter and appeared to stop as the airplane disappeared from view behind high trees. A number of persons between Bedford and the scene of the accident heard and saw the airplane. From the testimony, it is evident that fire occurred in flight and was first observed under the right engine and continued to burn throughout the remainder of the flight. The airplane continued in approximately straight flight at lower than normal altitude with one engine functioning at what witnesses described to be greater than normal R.P.L. The airplane was then observed to strike the trees with the left wing low, come to rest in a wooded ravine and burn….A subsequent search of the area disclosed that the aircraft had broken the top from a high oak tree about 600 feet east of the final resting place of the airplane….
“The right engine, thrown clear of the fire at the time of impact, came to rest in an inverted position and showed signs of only a small fire after impact. It did, however, show evidence of an intense fire prior to impact….
“In reviewing the facts and circumstances surrounding the flight, there was no evidence to indicate that any difficulties were experienced prior to reaching, Bedford, Ohio, where number 3 cylinder barrel of the right engine failed which in this case resulted in a fire in the right engine nacelle. This fire apparently could not be extinguished in flight and grew to such an intensity that it is believed the pilot decided to make an emergency landing rather than attempt to reach the Cleveland Municipal Airport, approximately ten miles ahead. It is further believed that while maneuvering for this landing, the airplane struck the top of the tall oak tree with the result that the pilot was unable to reach the field selected….
“The evidence leaves little or no doubt that the fire resulted from the failure and lifting of number 3 cylinder with the subsequent displacement of parts creating numerous possibilities for the ignition of fuel, oil or their vapors. Exactly how the fire was ignited is indeterminable from available evidence and must remain a matter of conjecture.
“In conclusion, the Board feels that because of the circumstances which obtained, the crew was beyond criticism in any decision that an immediate landing was a safer procedure than to attempt to continue to the Cleveland Airport. A study of the adjacent terrain and the pilot’s familiarity with the country suggests that he was approaching a field in which he believed an emergency landing could be made.
“The Board wishes to state further that immediate steps have been taken both by the Department of Commerce and by the operator to develop a diaphragm for use between the power section and the accessory section of the engine which will prevent any fire from traveling from one to the other under similar circumstances.” (Bureau of Air Commerce, DOC. Report of Aircraft Accident Investigation. June 10, 1938.)
Sources
Bureau of Air Commerce, DOC. Report of Aircraft Accident Investigation. Washington, DC: Department of Commerce, June 10, 1938, 5 pages. Accessed at: http://dotlibrary1.specialcollection.net/scripts/ws.dll?file&fn=8&name=*P%3A%5CDOT%5Cairplane%20accidents%5Cwebsearch%5C052438A.pdf
National Fire Protection Association. “Fires in Which There Was Loss of Life, Second and Third Quarters, 1938.” Quarterly of the National Fire Protection Association, Vol. 32, No. 2, October 1938, pp. 184-186.