1964 — Mar 1, snowstorm, Paradise Air 901A crash, Lake Tahoe approach, Genoa Peak, NV-85

lornajarrettblanchard January 1, 1964

–85 AirDisaster.Com. Accident Database. Accident Synopsis 02251964.
–85 Aviation Safety Network. Accident Description. Paradise Air Flight 901A, 01 Mar 1964.
–85 CAB. AAR. Paradise Airlines…Near Zephyr Cove, Nevada, March 1, 1964.
–85 Eckert. “Fatal commercial air transport crashes, 1924-1981.” AJFMP, 3/1, Mar 1982, Table 1.
–85 Gero. Aviation Disasters: The World’s Major Civil Airliner Crashes Since 1950 (2nd. Ed.). 1996, 59.
–85 Notable California Aviation Disasters. “The 1960s.” Oct 23, 2008 update.

Narrative Information

CAB: “A paradise Airlines Lockheed L-049, N86504, Flight 901A, crashed nine nautical miles northeast of the Tahoe Valley Airport at 1129 P.s.t., March 1, 1964. All 85 occupants of the aircraft perished in the crash and the aircraft was destroyed.

“N86504 was en route to the Tahoe Valley Airport from Oakland, California, with intermediate stops at Salinas and San Jose, California. The aircraft made an unsuccessful approach to the Tahoe Valley Airport and was last seen proceeding in northerly direction out over Lake Tahoe where it disappeared in a snow storm….

“The wreckage was located at 0730, March 2, 1964, from a U. S. Air Force search and rescue helicopter. The wreckage area was nine nautical miles northeast of the Tahoe Valley Airport near the crest of a ridge of Genoa Peak, Nevada. The crest was approximately 8,900 feet m.s.l. in the wreckage area. This mountain forms the north side of Daggett Pass… The elevation of the top of the pass is approximately 7,300 feet m.s.l. and it is several miles wide in this area. The aircraft initially struck several trees on the west slope of the ridge, at approximately 8,675 feet m.s.l., slightly right-wing-low in a nearly level flight attitude. First ground contact, 120 feet beyond the initial impact point, was at an elevation of 8,695 feet m.s.l….

“The Operations Specifications for Paradise Airlines daytime flights into Tahoe Valley Airport required that the weather be at least a 4,000-foot ceiling and the visibility not less than ten miles. There were no navigational aids or instrument approach systems installed to serve the airport and instrument approaches were not authorized.

Analysis

“The dispatcher did not properly evaluate and analyze the weather situation during his preflight activities on the date of the accident…. the dispatcher did not notify the crew when information was made available to him which indicated that the Tahoe Valley Airport was below company minimums….

“The flight crew’s decision to proceed from the VOR to the airport either without, or despite, knowledge of the existing weather was in violation of the company’s operating procedures.

“If the crew were aware of the weather at Tahoe Valley Airport they should have remained at the VOR awaiting better weather or diverted to Reno. They had been informed of the icing situation encountered by Flight 802 that had departed the airport about one hour earlier. They knew their aircraft was neither authorized nor equipped to fly in any icing condition. It is apparent that after the crew arrived in the vicinity of the Tahoe Valley Airport they were either unable to locate it or if they located it they decided not to land. The decision not to land could have been based on the weather as they observed it or on the below minimum weather reported to them at 1127 by the company agent at the airport. The dispatcher’s negligence played a part in this sequence also. He did not recommend or urge a diversion of the flight to Reno when he first had the 1100 Tahoe Valley Airport weather available, shortly after 1100….

“When the crew decided to abandon the approach, they took up a heading which they must have known would take them towards the high terrain east of the lake… It is very likely that from their position over the Tahoe VOR they were able to observe the VFR conditions that existed east of Lake Tahoe on the leeward side of the mountains. Additionally, it is assumed that the first officer was aware of the existence of Daggett Pass and considered it an access to VFR conditions beyond the pass. It is further assumed that he knew an altitude of 9,000 feet would provide about 1,500 feet terrain clearance through the center of the pass. Further, an easterly heading from the south end of the lake would take the aircraft through the pass which is several miles wide.

“The heading and altitude suggest that the crew established an easterly heading and climbed to an altitude of 9,000 feet. Then, either because they believed they had sufficient altitude to clear the terrain or because they were unable to climb higher due to structural ice, the aircraft leveled off. At that time they struck the first trees and were unable to avoid the final impact with the mountain. Had the flight been 300 feet higher, or 300 yards farther south, they would have cleared the existing terrain and proceeded into VFR conditions….

“The Board determines that the probable cause of this accident was the pilot’s deviation from prescribed VFR flight procedures in attempting a visual landing approach in adverse weather conditions. This resulted in an abandoned approach and geographical disorientation while flying below the minimum altitude prescribed or operations in mountainous areas….

“…the Board concludes that the crew was inadequately briefed on the forecast weather en route to and at the Lake Tahoe area. The crew was released for, and proceeded with, a flight on the basis of a falsified weather report. The crew made an approach to the Tahoe Valley Airport without adequate weather information or despite their knowledge of existing weather. The crew operated the aircraft in an area of forecast and reported icing without required anti-icing and de-icing equipment. And finally, the crew undertook to fly their aircraft over a mountainous area without insuring themselves of the 2,000-foot terrain clearance required by FAA regulations. The possibility exists that there was a heading error, an altimeter error, and a tail wind that had an effect on the flight which was not detected by the crew. The fact remains, however, once having decided to depart the Tahoe Airport area on an easterly heading, the accident would have been avoided had the crew climbed to an altitude of 2,000 feet above the terrain along their intended flightpath.

Notable California Aviation Disasters:
“Date / Time: Sunday, March 1, 1964 / 11:29 a.m.

”Operator / Flight No.: Paradise Airlines / Flight 901A

”Location: Near Zephyr Cove, Nevada*

“Details and Probable Cause: The Paradise Airlines four-engine Lockheed L-049 Constellation (N86504), with four crew members aboard, departed Oakland International Airport at 8:43 a.m. and was ferried to the airport at Salinas, arriving at 9:11 a.m. Eighteen passengers boarded at Salinas for a flight to the Tahoe Valley Airport at Lake Tahoe, with an intermediate stop at San Jose. The Constellation departed Salinas at 9:27 a.m. and arrived at San Jose at 9:46 a.m., where 63 additional passengers boarded the triple-tailed aircraft.

“At 10:40 a.m., with 81 passengers and four crew members on board, the aircraft departed San Jose on a visual flight rules (VFR) flight plan. Once airborne, the flightcrew requested and was granted an instrument flight rules (IFR) clearance to Sacramento, and then to Lake Tahoe. After completing most of the flight under instrument flight rules, and despite the inclement weather, the crew would have to revert to visual flight rules upon arrival over Lake Tahoe because the destination airport had no approved IFR approach procedure.

“At 11:21 a.m. the flightcrew radioed that they were switching to VFR, stating that they could ‘see the south shore.’ However, due to intermittent snow and poor visibility, the controller at Tahoe Valley Airport told the aircraft to call back if they decided to land at Reno, Nevada, rather than at Tahoe. Flight 901A’s crew acknowledged this transmission with ‘will do.’

“Eight minutes later, at 11:29 a.m., the Tahoe Valley Airport controller heard a radio call from the flight but was unable to make contact with the Constellation. This was the last known transmission from Flight 901A. On the ground, a number of witnesses reported seeing and/or hearing the aircraft as it made a clockwise circuit just north of the airport and continued in a northeasterly direction over Lake Tahoe amidst weather that was approaching blizzard-like conditions. The Constellation subsequently disappeared from view in the snowstorm and vanished.

“At 7:30 a.m. the following day, March 2, personnel aboard a U.S. Air Force search-and-rescue helicopter spotted the wreckage of the Constellation on a snow-covered ridge of Genoa Peak, approximately nine nautical miles northeast of the Tahoe Valley Airport and beyond the Nevada state line. The airliner had struck trees at approximately 8,675 feet on the western slope of Genoa Peak and crashed onto a ridge, killing all 85 occupants on board.

“The captain’s decision not to wait until the weather improved, or divert to an alternate airport while experiencing adverse weather conditions, was found to be the primary cause of the crash.

“Additional factors that may have contributed to the accident included a discrepancy in the pilot’s altimeter; a significant error in the readings displayed on the aircraft’s compass system; and strong winds over the lake that could have affected the plane’s course. Investigators subsequently determined that, had the aircraft been flying a mere 300 feet higher or 1,000 feet further south, it would have safely cleared the ridge.

“Fatalities: 85 — 81 passengers and 4 crew members.” (Notable California Aviation Disasters. “The 1960s.” Oct 23, 2008 update.)

Sources

AirDisaster.com. Accident Database. Accident Synopsis 02251964. Accessed 12-23-2008 at: http://www.airdisaster.com/cgi-bin/view_details.cgi?date=02251964&reg=N8607&airline=Eastern+Air+Lines

Aviation Safety Network. Accident Description. Paradise Airlines Flight 901A, March 1, 1964. Accessed 12-23-2008 at: http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19640301-1

Civil Aeronautics Board. Aircraft Accident Report. Paradise Airlines, Inc., Lockheed Constellation L-049, N 86504, Near Zephyr Cove, Nevada, March 1, 1964. Washington, DC: CAB (File No. 1-002), July 15, 1965, 14 pages. Accessed 7-25-2022 at: https://books.google.com/books?id=3eErAQAAIAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false

Eckert, William G. “Fatal commercial air transport crashes, 1924-1981.” American Journal of Forensic Medicine and Pathology, Vol. 3, No. 1, March 1982, Table 1.

Gero, David. Aviation Disasters: The World’s Major Civil Airliner Crashes Since 1950 (Second Edition). London: Patrick Stephens Limited, 1996.

Notable California Aviation Disasters. “The 1960s.” Oct 23, 2008 update. Accessed 10-17-2009 at: http://www.jaydeebee1.com/crash60s.html