1970 — Oct 2, Golden Eagle Aviation charter crash, WSU FB team, w. of Silver Plume, CO-32

— 32 Aircraft Crashes Record Office (Geneva, Switzerland). Colorado, USA, N464M.
— 32 AirDisaster.Com. Accident Database. Accident Synopsis 10021970.
— 32 Aviation Safety Network. Accident Description. Golden Eagle Aviation, 02 Oct 1970.
— 32 NTSB. AAR File No. 3-1127. Martin 404…Silver Plume Colorado, October 2, 1970. P. 1.
–30 At the crash site.
— 2 Later from injuries.
— 31 Ferrara, Grace M. The Disaster File: The 1970’s. New York: Facts on File, 1979, p. 4.
— 31 Wichita State University. “Memorial ’70.”
–29 At the scene.
— 2 “…died later after receiving medical attention for their injuries.”
— ? Not mentioned is the death of flight captain Danny E. Crocker.
— 31 Wikipedia. “Wichita State University football team plane crash.” 5-14-2020 edit.
— 30 Brainerd Daily Dispatch, MN. “Wichita State University lost much of…” 10-6-1970, 13.
— 30 Cornell, James. The Great International Disaster Book (Third Edition). 1982, p. 374.
— 29 Logansport Pharos-Tribune & Press. “Federal Disaster Crew Seeks…” 10-4-1970, 12.
— 29 Redlands Daily Facts, CA. “29 die when football team plane crashes.” 10-3-1970, p. 1.

Narrative Information
NTSB:

“Synopsis: On October 2, 1970, Martin 404, N464M, was operated for the purpose of transporting the Wichita State University football team from Wichita, Kansas, to Logan, Utah. Following a refueling stop at Denver, Colorado, the flight proceeded via a ‘scenic route up Clear Creek Valley, toward Loveland Pass (elevation 11,990 feet mean sea level) and the Loveland ski resort area. The mountains on either side of the flightpath ranged from 12,477 feet m.s.l. to 13,234 feet m.s.l. At approximately 1300 m.d.t. [mountain daylight time], the aircraft crashed into the base of Mount Trelease, 8 miles west of Silver Plume, Colorado. The elevation of the crash site is 10,750 m.s.l.

“Of the 40 persons on board, 30, including the captain and a stewardess, received fatal injuries. Two of the surviving passengers later succumbed to injuries received in the crash…. [p. 1]

“The Board determines that the probable cause of this accident was the intentional operation of the aircraft over a mountain valley route at an altitude from which the aircraft could neither climb over the obstructing terrain ahead, nor execute a successful course reversal. Significant factors were the overloaded condition of the aircraft, the virtual absence of flight planning for the chosen route of flight from Denver to Logan, a lack of understanding on the part of the crew of the performance capabilities and limitations of the aircraft, and the lack of operational management to monitor and appropriately control the actions of the flightcrew….

Investigation:… On October 2, 1970, two…aircraft…were to be used to transport the Wichita State University football team and associated personnel to Logan, Utah. Both aircraft were owned by the Jack Richards Aircraft Company, Inc., of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The flightcrews for each aircraft were provided by Golden Eagle Aviation, Inc., also with headquarters in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The first officer for N464M, Mr. Ronald G. Skipper, was the president of Golden Eagle Aviation, Inc. The captain for N464M, Danny E. Crocker, had been hired by Golden Eagle Aviation, Inc., as a mechanic, and was used only occasionally as a pilot on an ‘individual contractor’ basis….

“Both aircraft proceeded toward Denver, Colorado, for a planned refueling stop. En route to Denver, the first officer of N464M, while visiting with passengers in the cabin, advised some of them that the flight would take the ‘scenic route’ from Denver to Logan and that he would point out the ski resorts and significant points of interest.

“On arrival at Stapleton International Airport, Denver, Colorado, at approximately 1119…First Officer Skipper purchased aeronautical sectional charts for the contemplated scenic route. He made the decision to purchase these charts after departure from Wichita. According to First Officer Skipper, the decision to proceed via the scenic route was made without benefit of any discussion with Captain Crocker. Captain Crocker, however, was aware of the intention to depart from the previously prepared flight plan and to proceed on a southwesterly course from Denver. While on the ground at Denver, he had advised Captain Everett [2nd plane] and one of the passengers that they were planning a scenic flight via Loveland Pass.

“On departure from Denver, N470M proceeded northbound according to the original flight plan and subsequently landed safely at Logan, Utah.

“N464M, with First Officer Skipper at the controls and occupying the left side pilot seat, departed from Runway 35 at Stapleton International Airport at 1229. When N464M was approximately one-fourth to one-half a mile beyond the departure end of Runway 35, the Air Traffic Control Specialist who cleared the flight for takeoff observed that it appeared to be at a fairly low altitude and that an unusual amount of black smoke was coming from the right engine. He advised N464M of his observation and asked if there was a problem. The reply was “no, we’re just running a little rich, is all.’ This was the last communications contact with N464M….

“Mr. Skipper testified that in the vicinity of Dry Gulch, “we were in the valley…it began to look to me as if we were not going to climb so as to have clearance, sufficient clearance, over what I now know to be the Continental Divide ahead of us. I said something to the effect to Captain Crocker that maybe we should reverse course and gain some altitude. I initiated a turn to the right. We were to the left side slightly of the valley.’ In continuing testimony, Mr. Skipper said: ‘I initiated a turn of approximately 45 [degrees] change in heading, a medium bank turn which in my mind is somewhere between 20 and 30 degrees, and as I was rolling out of this turn, Captain Crocker said ‘I’ve got the airplane.’ He initiated a left turn, the aircraft began vibrating, he put the nose down, and shortly thereafter we crashed.’….

“Ten persons and First Officer Skipper survived the impact and fire, and were subsequently transported to hospitals in Denver, Colorado….

“…[A] witness, a pilot familiar with the Loveland Pass area, observed the aircraft as he was driving eastward on U.S. Highway 6 about 2 miles east of Dry Gulch. He stated, ‘Thinking it must be in trouble, I stopped the car to get out and look and listen. My initial and firm feeling was that the plane was in serious trouble as it was below the level of the mountains on either side that form the valley, and I didn’t see how it could possibly turn around. Also, it was in nose high attitude and flying at a low rate of speed, obviously straining to gain altitude, but barely keeping up with the rise of terrain. I have driven over this route countless times and know that the steepness of the slope increases radically in only 3 or 4 miles from where he was and that the plane could never make it.’ He also said that both engines sounded good as the aircraft passed over him, and he did not observe any sign of smoke from either engine….

“Analysis

“Mr. Skipper several times testified that Captain Crocker was the pilot-in-command of the trip and that it was Captain Crocker who made the decisions relating to the flight….While Captain Crocker may have been distinguished as the pilot-in-command by virtue of the fact that he held a type rating on the aircraft and Mr. Skipper did not, it is the Board’s opinion that Mr. Skipper, in his capacity as president of Golden Eagle, was in fact the person who decided the route to be traveled….

“All ground witnesses describe the aircraft as being extremely low over the mountainous terrain, and many described engine sounds as being similar to cruising power rather than to climb power. From Idaho Springs to the point of crash, the aircraft was continuously below the mountain-tops. Operation at such a low altitude could have been for sightseeing purposes only, since the aircraft was capable of climbing at a much greater rate than was actually accomplished. By best estimates, the total time from departure at Denver to the time of crash was 25 to 30 minutes. In one-half that time, the aircraft was capable of reaching an altitude of 15,000 feet m.s.l, or more, if maximum continuous power had been used. In the event that the crew did not wish to use any setting higher than the regular en route climb power that Mr. Skipper testified he was maintaining, a climb maneuver could have been executed which would have produced a safe altitude before the flight proceeded westbound toward the Continental Divide. Either procedure not only would have resulted in ample clearance over the mountain ranges along the flightpath, but would have provided the capability to reach a safe landing place in the event of an engine failure….

“It must also be presumed that neither Mr. Skipper nor Captain Crocker spent any time examining the charts for the route to be flown, since Mr. Skipper did not return to the aircraft after he purchased them until approximately 15 minutes before takeoff and, at that time, engaged in conversation with the passengers. If the charts had been studied, the pilots could have known that the minimum altitude necessary to clear Loveland Pass at the end of Clear Creek Valley, was 12,000 feet m.s.l. Mr. Skipper was flying the aircraft at reduced power at approximately 11,000 feet m.s.l. when the flight reached Dry Gulch and the crew first discovered that Clear Creek Valley was ending in what has been described as a ‘box canyon’….

“If the crew had been concerned about the aircraft’s ability to clear the terrain ahead less than 1 minute sooner, when the aircraft was still 1½ to 2 miles east of Dry Gulch, a successful turnaround could have been executed with use of maximum continuous power and a bank angle of only 33”. However, at that point on the flightpath, the crew would have been unable to see that the valley ended at Loveland Pass, and thus they proceeded into an area from which an escape was not possible….

“The apparent intactness of the passenger cabin in this accident indicates …a survivable condition. However, two other criteria must be met to insure survival: (1) the occupant becomes involved in the deceleration of his environment and (2) immediate access to a means of escape. According to rescuers, the seats in this aircraft were pushed together in the forward section of the aircraft, indicating that failure of seat tiedowns occurred at some point during the crash sequence. Depending on the failure mode and moment of failure in the crash sequence, such seat failures may make the difference in the survival or non-survival of occupants in an otherwise totally survivable accident….

“[M]any occupants survived the impact. Additionally, the fact that all of the survivors who escaped did not have their seatbelt fastened attests to the low velocity at impact as well as the fact that a lateral force vector prevented them from gaining momentum within the confines of the fuselage. It is reasonable to assume that more occupants than just those who escaped had their seatbelt unfastened. The ones who escaped were fortunate to remain conscious while others did not or were too stunned to effect their escape. The failure of many occupants to evacuate must nevertheless be directly attributed to the seat failures as being the major injury producer….

“Finally, with regard to the problem in this accident concerning the identification of the operator who had the responsibility for compliance with the regulations applicable to the flight.…it is sufficient to conclude from the post-accident denial of the parties that they were the operator with the responsibility for the safe conduct of this flight, that they did not acknowledge such responsibility at the time of the flight. It is the view of the Board that the numerous deficiencies, unsafe practices, and deviations from regulations, involved in this operation, are typical of operations where none of the participants acknowledge responsibility for the safe conduct of a flight….The Board believes that the management required for a safe operation appears to have been absent and was a significant factor in this accident.

“Conclusions….

• There was no failure or malfunction of the aircraft, powerplants, or control systems…
• The aircraft was 5,190 pounds over the maximum permissible takeoff weight at Denver, and 2,665 pounds over the maximum certified takeoff weight at impact..
• The original flight plan was altered to provide a ‘scenic route’ for sightseeing purposes.
• The aircraft was operated over Clear Creek Valley at an altitude always below the mountaintops….
• None of the participants in this flight, the owner of the aircraft, lessee, or the company providing the crew and other services acknowledged that they were the operator and accepted responsibility for the safety of such flight….

Recommendations

“The testimony given during the public hearing held in connection with this accident indicated a widespread misunderstanding by educational institutions and business concern personnel of the problems and regulations involved in the operation of large aircraft, or the responsibilities of lessees of an aircraft. Accordingly, on November 9, 1970, the Board issued a Safety Information release recommending that potential users of large aircraft on short-term charter basis, question providers of such services as to the type of operations for which they have been certificated….” (NTSB. AAR File No. 3-1127. Martin 404…Silver Plume Colorado, October 2, 1970.)

Ferrara: “….In direct response to the crash, Secretary of Transportation John A. Volpe Oct. 9 ordered a ‘sweeping investigation’ of the air charter business and an examination of Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) rules to correct ‘any deficiencies which may be discovered.’

“The licenses of the company that flew the Wichita State team and the concern that supplied the crew were rescinded Oct. 8 by the FAA which charged that their business arrangement was a ‘façade’ to evade air safety regulations. FAA Administrator John H. Shaffer announced the actions against Jack Richards, Inc., owner of the plane, and the Golden Eagle Corp., which provided the crew.

“The president of Golden Eagle, Ronald G. Skipper, 34, testified before a federal board of inquiry Oct. 20 that the 20-year-old Martin 404 was used in place of a larger, newer plane that was undergoing repairs. The school, he said, had contracted for six flights in a DC-6. FAA investigators had revealed Oct. 7 that the Martin had received no valid flying certificate when it was removed from storage.” (Ferrara, Grace M. The Disaster File: The 1970’s. New York: Facts on File, 1979.)

Newspaper

Oct 3: “Silver Plume, Colo. (UPI) — Twenty-nine persons, most of them Wichita State University football players and officials on their way to a game with Utah State, were killed Friday when their chartered plane crashed and exploded high in the Colorado Rockies.

“The 11 who survived the crash of the twin-engine Martin 404-1 were taken 62 miles by ambulance to Lutheran Hospital and St. Anthony Hospital in Denver. Tom Reeves, 31, a trainer for the team, was listed in critical condition today and four others were reported in serious condition.

“The dead included Head Coach Ben Wilson and his wife, Wichita State Athletic Director A.C. “Berti” Katzenmeyer and his wife, 13 players, pilot Dan Crocker, two stewardesses and Kansas State Legislator Ray King.

“The rest of the team’s coaches and players were on another plane which landed safely at Logan, Utah, about an hour after the crash….

“Witnesses said the plane, backfiring and trailing black, billowing smoke from both its engines, apparently tried to make an emergency landing on a highway on the east side of Loveland Pass but “zoomed up” to avoid hitting a car.

“It went down in heavy timber 11,000 ft. high in the Rockies, exploding on impact and starting a small forest fire on the snowy, pine-covered mountainside.

“Glen Kostal, the starting right linebacker for the Wichita State Shockers, survived the crash. He said he was chatting with four teammates at the rear of the plane when he realized something was wrong. “The plane took a sharp bank to the left and then another sharp bank to the right and then it hit,’ the 20-year-old Chicago boy said. “The impact ripped the side of the plane wide open and then I heard an explosion.” Then blood was running from a severe gash on his forehead. He was too stunned to fully grasp what was happening. “I saw the hole and heard people telling me to get up. There was dirt and smoke all around. It seemed like the whole side and bottom of the plane had ripped out. We could hear quite a few screams inside. A couple of guys went back to the plane to try to get some of the other players out, but they couldn’t do it.”

“Witnesses on the ground had a clearer view of the crash….Mr. and Mrs. George Grunwald of Huntington Beach Calif., were driving down the east side of Loveland Pass when ”the plane tried to land in the highway in front of us.” “By the grace of God he zoomed up so he didn’t hit us,” Mrs. Grunwald said. “I’m telling you, if we hadn’t been on that highway, he would have tried to land. I couldn’t see the wreck, just a big ball of fire.”

“Another witness, Pat Buckley, 34, had just finished putting gas in the tank of a state patrol car at Silver Plume when he noticed the aircraft in trouble. “One engine was backfiring real bad,” he said. “Both engines were trailing black smoke.” Buckley jumped in his car and tried to catch up with the state patrolman. “I saw a big puff of black smoke in the trees as I was driving up,” he said.

“Rescuers found battered black and gold football helmets scattered along the ground, along with smouldering shirts and ties, shoulder pads, a charred book of football plays and a pair of cleated shoes with No. 63 marked inside.” (Redlands Daily Facts, CA. “29 die when football team plane crashes.” 10-3-1970, p. 1.)

Oct 4: “Silver Plume, Colo. (UPI) – A federal disaster crew searched Saturday for the cause of a power loss that forced the crash of an ancient double-prop airplane on a Colorado mountainside, killing 29 persons…

“The FBI denied reports that it was investigating possible sabotage and any relation to four bombings in Wichita Friday, the day the plane and the players took their fatal trip across the Rocky Mountains. “There is absolutely no evidence, no indication, that we should investigate the possibility of sabotage,” said John F. Morley, assistant special agent in charge of the Denver FBI office….

“The 20-year-old Martin 404 was delayed 30 minutes during a fuel stop at Denver while work was done on its landing gear. The Wichita State team, coaches and fans were traveling to Logan, Utah, in two planes. The companion plane, a smaller Martin 202, landed safely. The 33 persons aboard that plane returned to Wichita Saturday.

“Apparently, some of the players knew the planes were risky. Mrs. Hollis Bruce of Sherman, Tex., mother of Mike Bruce, 21, a Wichita State tackle who survived the crash, said she once told a group of players she would like to travel with the team. “We can’t let you do that, Mrs. Bruce,” she said one player joked. “If you saw the airplanes we fly, you wouldn’t let us go.”

“The planes — built in the late 1940s and early 1950s were owned by the Jack Richard Aviation Co., of Oklahoma City and leased to Wichita State University….

“I’ve been here a number of years and I’ve never seen an airplane come in here and get below the rims of these mountains and get out again,” said Clear Creek County sheriff Harold Brumbaugh. The red – and – white plane crashed near a ski basin near Loveland Pass, 11,992 feet high in the Rockies. “It just seems when you get down below they tell me there’s a big current comes down over these mountains,” Brumbaugh said.” (Logansport Pharos-Tribune & Press. “Federal Disaster Crew Seeks Air Crash Cause.” 10-4-1970, 12.)

Sources

Aircraft Crashes Record Office (Geneva, Switzerland). Colorado, USA. Accessed 3-3-2009 at: http://www.baaa-acro.com/Pays/Etats-Unis/Colorado.htm

AirDisaster.Com. Accident Database. Accident Synopsis 10021970. Accessed at: http://www.airdisaster.com/cgi-bin/view_details.cgi?date=10021970&reg=N464M&airline=Golden+Eagle+Aviation

Aviation Safety Network. Accident Description. Golden Eagle Aviation, Martin 4-0-4, 02 Oct 1970. Accessed 3/3/2009 at: http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19701002-3

Brainerd Daily Dispatch, MN. “Wichita State University lost much of its football team…” 10-6-1970, 13. At: http://newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=34751845

Cornell, James. The Great International Disaster Book (Third Edition). New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1982.

Ferrara, Grace M. The Disaster File: The 1970’s. New York: Facts on File, 1979.

Find A Grave. “Danny E. Crocker.” Record added 10-15-2011 by David C. Henderson. Accessed 7-6-2020 at: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/78493004/danny-e_-crocker

Logansport Pharos-Tribune & Press. “Federal Disaster Crew Seeks Air Crash Cause.” 10-4-1970, 12. At: http://newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=84027549

National Transportation Safety Board. Aircraft Accident Report. Martin 404…Silver Plume Colorado, October 2, 1970 (NTSB-AAR-70-5; File No. 3-1127. Wash., DC: NTSB, Dec 24, 1970, 55 p. http://libraryonline.erau.edu/online-full-text/ntsb/aircraft-accident-reports/AAR71-04.pdf

Redlands Daily Facts, CA. “29 die when football team plane crashes.” 10-3-1970, p. 1. Accessed at: http://newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=156959384

Wichita State University. “In Memory of…” (Names of 31 people and photos of 29, including Judy Dunn, the flight attendant.” Accessed 7-6-2020 at: https://www.wichita.edu/services/memorial/deceased.php

Wichita State University. “Memorial ’70.” Accessed 7-6-2020 at: https://www.wichita.edu/services/memorial/