Snapped in two: The wreckage of the Continental flight
Posted on 12/22/2008 7:34:52 AM PST by yankeedame
A Boeing 737 with 115 passengers and crew on board was almost torn in half when it crashed on take-off and burst into flames - but everyone got off the plane alive.
'It was a miracle that everybody survived the impact and the fire,' said assistant fire chief Bill Davis. 'It was just amazing.'
Snapped in two: The wreckage of the Continental flight
Miracle: A gash in the snow shows the plane's path as it skidded out of control
Continental Airlines Flight 1404 was taxiing along the runway at Denver International Airport on Saturday evening when it veered off course.
Debris was scattered on the runway behind the plane which came to rest in a snow-covered ravine 200 yards from one of the airport's fire stations.
The entire right side of the plane was burned...
Horror crash: Fire tore along one side of the aircraft, melting plastic inside the cabin
Wreckage: The shattered remains of the aircraft black against a dusting of snow
A crack encircled much of the fuselage and the left engine had broken loose and ended up 30 feet away.
Passengers and crew members scrambled from the plane on emergency slides and walked out of the ravine. One of those on board...'It was bumpy, then it was bumpier, then it wasn't bumpy.'
Thirty-eight people suffered injuries, including broken bones, with one listed as serious.
Federal aviation investigators said the weather was cold but not snowy at the time of the crash.
An overhead view of the plan shows scattered wreckage and the gash in the cabin tearing it in half
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
How could such severe consequences result from an aircraft merely “taxiing” along a runway?
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That didn’t make sense to me either ,, you taxi on a taxi-way .. he was probably on his takeoff roll... my guess follows the other poster that he saw he didn’t have enough lift when he rotated (guessing due to icing) and tried to stop on the ground which is much better than gaining insufficient altitude and coming back down ,, he was probably heavy with 115 on board and most of them having extra holiday gifts/baggage... I’m not familiar with the B73 max perf takeoff ,, it’s possible he had improper flaps set or something like that ... sure it was cold (good) but it’s still high altitude with a big load..
No icing problems, no taxi problems. I suspect a massive wind shear from the quartering tailwind just as the airplane rotated for takeoff. A sudden reduction of flying speed due to the tailwind gust and with the crosswind factor, the plane was literally slapped back on the runway at an angle. Not much a pilot can do.
Hey, there’s the fire station, let’s head over there.
“Continental keeping us locked up at the presidents club until they can sort everything out. Won’t even serve us drinks :(.
“You have your wits scared out of you, drag your butt out of a flaming ball of wreckage and you can’t even get a vodka-tonic.”
I would have wanted a drink too ... or three!
Surely they had better quotes than this one.
Thanks, and Merry Christmas!
I am thinking that I would hope that in a similar situation I would be helping others get out before I exit.
Guess I am stupid in that regard.
Cheers!
The also redefined the word ravine.
I believe this was written by a Brit.
Update ping.
I saw a report by a numb-nuts MSM type saying icing probably wasn't the problem since it wasn't snowing at the time! Geesh, is there no end to the stupidity of people employed as ‘journalists’ these days.
I didn't see any mention of the conditions at the time other than the discussion about cross winds, confused by other MSM flying experts who were having great difficulty understanding which direction a plane departing runway 08 would be going. But then there was also some confusion as to whether the runway was 08 or runway 34. None of them seemed quite sure.
It's depressing to read press reports, especially early reports, of a major incident like this. Makes you really wonder if they are as inaccurate in other stories as they are with aviation incidents.
Lord, save us from the news media!
looks like when it left the runway it went DOWN an embankment while still on rear wheels...
...across the grass and UP a different embankment, where the road is...still on at least two rear wheels...
...then down the other side of the embankment where the engines bottomed out, scraping along the ground...
...then up ANOTHER embankment, where the left engine got sheered off...and I think the rear wheels got torn off
...then DOWN another bank where is was belly sliding with only the right engine attached...which is also the wing that tore open dumping fuel on the ground adn causing the fire.
I dare say that it is a good thing the left engine tore off early. Or else the left tanks could have ruptured just like the right and the loss of life could have been terrible.
Fortunater turn of events for all.
Prayers for a speedy recovery.
And fercryingoutloud...FREE DRINKS in the CONTINENTAL PRESIDNET’S LOUNGE for ALL, for life...except the pilots...not while on duty anyway.
OH...captain and FO...great job!
“I am thinking that I would hope that in a similar situation I would be helping others get out before I exit. “
You might be making more of a logjam instead of helping. Just get out. The flight attendants are more than capable of ensuring people get out.
This is probably going to be an easy answer to what seems a perplexing accident. It was said the plane left a debris field starting at the 2000 foot marker. I can’t even guess as to why a plane would veer far left, although in primary flight school the command, “Right rudder! Right rudder!”, comes to mind. (Jets don’t have that issue, though.)
I oftentimes wonder if, in a time of crisis I will have the courage and level-headedness to do the right thing, or rather trample the weaker and slower in a bid to survive. I wonder this every time I get on a plane, but sometimes, as I scan the cabin and see a loud, drunk, obnoxious, irritating person, secretly hope I get an opportunity to step on his neck.
Does this make me a bad person?
Me too.
Per Tweet, the engine was already on fire during attempted takeoff. Probably debris into the intake.
Some Bondo and a pint or two of touch up paint.
Wow.
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