1945 — Jan 10, American 6001 missed approach crash in fog, Verdugo Mts. ~Burbank AP, CA–24
Compiled by Wayne Blanchard for: http://www.usdeadlyevents.com/ Last edit 12-15-2023.
— 24 Aviation Safety Network, Accident Description, American Flight 6001, January 10, 1945
— 24 Civil Aeronautics Board. AIR, American Airlines-Burbank-January 10, 1945.
— 24 Notable California Aviation Disasters. “The 1940s.”
— 24 Port Arthur News, TX, “Pilot’s Error Is Blamed For Plane’s Crash,” January 11, 1945, p. 8
Narrative Information
Civil Aeronautics Board, Accident Investigation Report, File No. 119-45:
“Summary
“Following a night instrument approach to the Burbank Airport American Airlines’ Flight 6001 crashed against the nearby Verdugo Hills. All of the 21 passengers and the three crew members were killed and the Douglas DC3 was destroyed by impact and fire.
“After making the standard instrument letdown approach to the Burbank Airport the airplane was observed to cross the airport at the ragged base of the clouds and was seen to start a left turn as if circling for a landing. Soon after making the turn the captain radioed the control tower that he
could not maintain visual contact with the ground and as proceeding to his alternate, Palmdale. The United States Weather Bureau observations disclosed that below minimum weather conditions existed at Burbank at the time. The pilot had not been properly advised of the latest weather reports. The plane was not heard from or seen again until after daylight at which time the wreckage was sighted in the nearby foothills approximately 2-3/4 miles northeast of the airport.
“It is evident that after making this left turn the pilot decided to execute the standard ‘missed-approach’ procedure but in so doing failed to modify the procedure in keeping with his position and heading. As a result he made a climbing turn toward the nearby foothills instead of away from them as would have been the case had the standard ‘missed-approach’ procedure been executed from the normal position.
“The possibility of an accident became a potentiality when the company ground personnel failed to obtain and transmit important weather information to the pilot. Failure to obtain and transmit this information to the pilot constitutes negligence on the part of the company. This, however, did not relive the pilot of his responsibility to conduct a safe flight although at did place him in a disadvantageous position. Had lie properly executed the “missed-approach” procedure it is unlikely that the accident would have occurred. The Board, therefore, determines that the probable cause of this accident was the pilot’s attempt to use the standard ‘missed-approach’ procedure after having followed another course up to a point where it was impossible to apply this procedure safely’.” (CAB. AIR, American Airlines-Burbank-January 10, 1945)
Aviation Safety Network, Flight Safety Foundation, Database, 1945:
“Date: Wednesday 10 January 1945
“Time: 04:10 [a.m.]
“Type: Douglas DC-3 277B
“Operator: American Airlines
“Registration: NC25684
“MSN: 2215
“First flight: 1940
“Total airframe hours: 14888
“Crew: Fatalities: 3 / Occupants: 3
“Passengers: Fatalities: 21 / Occupants: 21
“Total: Fatalities: 24 / Occupants: 24
….
“Location: near Burbank-Hollywood, CA (USA)
“Phase: En route (ENR)
“Nature: Domestic Scheduled Passenger
“Departure airport: Phoenix-Sky Harbor International Airport, AZ…USA
“Destination airport: Hollywood-Lockheed Air Terminal, CA…USA
“Flight number: 6001
“Narrative
“After making the standard instrument let-down approach to the Burbank Airport the airplane was observed to cross the airport at the ragged base of the clouds and was seen to start a left turn as if circling for a landing. Soon after making the turn the captain radioed the control tower that he could not maintain visual contact with the ground and as proceeding to his alternate, Palmdale. The U.S. Weather Bureau observations disclosed that below minimum weather conditions existed at Burbank at the time. The pilot had not been properly advised of the latest weather reports. The plane was not heard from or seen again until after daylight at which time the wreckage was sighted in the nearby foothills approximately 2 ¾ miles northeast of the airport.” (ASN, American Flight 6001, January 10, 1945.)
Notable California Aviation Disasters:
“Date / Time: Wednesday, January 10, 1945 / 4:10 a.m.
“Operator / Flight No.: American Airlines / Flight 6-001
“Location: McClure Canyon, near Burbank, Calif.
“Details and Probable Cause: “Flagship Douglas,” an American Airlines twin-engine Douglas DC-3 (NC25684), departed New York City on the morning of Tuesday, January 9, on a cross-country flight designated “The Sun Country Special” and bound for the Lockheed Air Terminal at Burbank, with stops along the way at Washington D.C.; Cincinnati, Ohio; Memphis, Tennessee; Dallas and El Paso, Texas; and Phoenix, Arizona.
“While the plane was en route, company ground personnel neglected to obtain and transmit regular weather updates to the pilot, which would have alerted him to the fact that conditions at Burbank were varying between “marginal” and “below minimums” due to the dense fog and poor visibility present at the Lockheed Air Terminal.
“Upon arrival over Burbank at 4:06 a.m. on the morning of January 10, the cockpit crew attempted an instrument approach to the airport that was unsuccessful due to the foggy conditions. The ‘missed approach’ procedure for the runway the DC-3 was attempting to land on calls for an immediate, climbing right turn over the departure end of the runway and, upon reaching 3,500 feet, radioing a request for further instructions from the company ground station.
“However, upon its missed approach, the plane overflew the runway, made a left turn, and vanished into the fog. The pilot in command then radioed controllers that he could not maintain visual ground contact and would be diverting to an alternate airfield to the north at Palmdale, where weather conditions were improved.
“It was at this point in time that the captain apparently began the standard ‘missed approach’ procedure — but only after the plane had already made a left turn. By deviating from the prescribed standard ‘missed approach’ procedure — making a left turn first — the subsequent right, climbing turn that the plane performed now put it directly on a course into the Verdugo Mountains that rise beyond Burbank.
“Two minutes later, while flying blindly through the thick fog, the DC-3 crashed, exploded and burned on a ridge of McClure Canyon of the Verdugos, approximately 2-3/4 miles northeast of the Lockheed Air Terminal. All 21 passengers — 17 U.S. Army members and four U.S. Navy personnel — were killed, as was the aircraft’s crew of three: the pilot, first officer and stewardess.
“The plane remained overdue at Palmdale and missing until around 9:30 a.m. when the fog lifted and personnel with binoculars in the Burbank control tower sighted the wreckage on the distant mountain ridge approximately 1,034 feet above the elevation of the airport.
“The Civil Aeronautics Board’s report on the accident noted that “the possibility of an accident became a potentiality” when American Airlines ground personnel failed to obtain and transmit important weather information to the pilot — a situation that the board believed “constitutes negligence on the part of the company.”
“But the board also felt that this factor did not relieve the pilot from his responsibility of conducting a safe flight even though it did place him in a disadvantageous position. In its final conclusion, the CAB found the probable cause of the accident to be ‘the pilot’s attempt to use the standard ‘missed approach’ procedure after having followed another course up to a point where it was impossible to apply this procedure safely.’
Actress Donna Reed, 23, narrowly avoided the same fate as those aboard the doomed plane. Reed, who had traveled to Juarez, Mexico, on January 8 to obtain a divorce from her husband, Hollywood makeup artist William Tuttle, was returning to California on the night of January 9 and had boarded the airliner when it made its scheduled stop across the border at El Paso, Texas. However, the actress was bumped from the flight just prior to takeoff to make room for a military officer holding a wartime-travel ‘priority’ pass. “Fatalities: 24.” (Notable California Aviation Disasters. “The 1940s.”)
Newspaper
Jan 11: “A Civil Aeronautics inspector said the pilot, given permission to proceed to a desert emergency field at Palmdale when he hound the Lockheed air terminal fogbound, turned to the left instead of making the usual swing to the right. A turn to the right would have carried the airliner out over the San Fernando valley and given it space in which to gain altitude to clear the mountains to the north. The turn to the left headed it toward destruction in the Verdugo range. Approximately two minutes after the big plane passed over the air terminal field it crashed and was torn to bits on a mountainside five miles away, about 300 feet from the crest. The ship struck with throttle open and at this high speed all aboard were killed instantly. Victims of the tragedy were 17 Army men, four Navy men and the crew of three.” (Port Arthur News, TX, “Pilot’s Error Is Blamed For Plane’s Crash,” January 11, 1945, p. 8)
Sources
Aviation Safety Network, Flight Safety Foundation, Database, 1945, p. 9. American Airlines Douglas DC-3-277B Flight 6001 crash near Burbank-Hollywood, CA, 10 January 1945. Accessed 12-15-2023 at: https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19450110-0
Civil Aeronautics Board. Accident Investigation Report. American Airlines – Burbank – January 10, 1945 (File No. 119-45). Washington, DC: CAB, September 24, 1945. Accessed 12-15-2023 at: http://dotlibrary1.specialcollection.net/scripts/ws.dll?websearch&site=dot_aircraftacc
Notable California Aviation Disasters. “The 1940s.” Sep 25, 2009 update. Accessed 10/17/2009 at: http://www.jaydeebee1.com/crash40s.html
Port Arthur News, TX. “Pilot’s Error Is Blamed For Plane’s Crash,” 1-11-1945, p. 8. Accessed at: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/freepdfviewer.aspx?img=44005440