The Worst Aviation Disaster in US History Happened at O’Hare | Air Disasters | Smithsonian
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 12 มิ.ย. 2022
- American Airlines 191 is in trouble shortly after take-off from O’Hare Airport, on May 25, 1979. By the end of the day, the DC-10 has crashed and all 271 people on board are dead. It's the worst aviation disaster in US history.
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My girlfriend at the time, her roommate, she lost her mother, father and brother on that flight. This was a couple of years only after the accident. You could see the loss in her eyes, she finished college at the University of Miami. Strong person, strong woman. Still thinking about you Katie.
Loss is a tough thing to go through. I can't imagine losing her mother, father and brother
Wow that is one of my greatest fears. I can’t even imagine the pain she must have felt.
Wow... how old was she when it happened? Did she have other siblings, or did she lose her entire family? Where were they going and why was she not with them?
Sorry for all the questions.
It's So Sad Story You Girlfriend
Rest in peace 🫡
My Aunt Nancy Sullivan was a stewardess on that fateful flight. It literally took the life out of my grandparents. She was covering for her friend on that flight. Dad said her friend was in therapy for quite awhile. I still remember hearing my mom and dad crying upstairs like it was yesterday. The pain never goes away 💔
No words for such a loss.
My God Mark I am So Very Sorry!!!!!
It Feels Like Yesterday When it Happened.
I'll NEVER forget that day.
Condolences
🌹🥀🌺🌷🌸💮🏵️🌻💐🌼🌹🥀🌷💮
Wow, I couldn’t imagine the pain and grief involved in such a tragedy. God bless your family Mark. Such a tragic incident that took hundreds of lives 😢
My dad traveled for work back then 100% and was headed home. My aunt called my mom to ask if she had heard from my dad and to turn on the news. My other aunt kept calling the airline and learned his name WAS on the flight list. But, due to her persistence she also learned he missed his flight because a meeting was delayed. When he took off he saw the flames below not knowing it was his flight he narrowly missed. When my dad got home I hugged him extra long and never took him for granted again.
He lived for another 27 years, thank God.
You lost your pops 2017
@@TRPL6Sorry for your loss, much more recent for you. I lost my dad in 2006. I think of him often. Best to you
Wow your dad got really lucky. Missing that flight and having the meeting get delayed saved his life. I’m sorry you lost your dad after 27 years but that delayed meeting sure sounded like an inconvenience at the time but then to learn the flight he missed crashed killing all on board is crazy. If I ever missed a flight and then learned the flight I missed crashed I would feel like the luckiest person on the planet.
@@diveloopthrills7613 thanks, yes like winning the lottery! I can imagine him being so frustrated with a meeting that made him miss his flight. Best mistake ever made!
My dad was supposed to be on this flight. He was bumped last minute. To think I wouldn't be here if he had been onboard is a mind-numbing thought. Bless those 271 people that were onboard.
Wow!!!
Sounds like final destination
Hard to be bumped on a flight that wasn’t full. Gotta call bs.
@@concentrationmusic6192 That's a low blow.
and i’m sure there’s many people that could’ve been born but never were because young men died in that crash.
be grateful you weren’t one of them
It's difficult to even imagine the accumulated terror taking place in the cabin when every passenger knew it was their last few seconds of life.
Yup.
Do you think they knew? This one happened so quickly they probably had no idea what was going on other than something was definitely wrong
Imagine having to poop during that. That would be awful to be honest
You have to remember.... This plane had a new technology for passengers.
The ability to view the take off and landings on a video screen at the front of each cabin section. So they actually saw what their fate was going to be. Airlines immediately stopped this feature AFTER this accident.
@@GCNMMA some of them KNEW , it's said their was a close circuit camera
Aboard !
Horrifying fact: one of the victims who perished on this flight was a man named Leonard Stogel, who's parents also died in a plane crash, (AA flight 1) both crashes were due to improper maintenance...
who were his parents?
Ah, American airlines, good ol improper maintenance. The classic
what are the odds.
@@showspotter same odds as winning the Texas lottery
@Hamza Alkayyali I have no idea what you wrote.
I was a responding firefighter to that scene on that day. When we arrived on scene, minutes after the crash at the Chicago Police Department dog training property, there was absolutely nothing to do (other than removing deceased bodies). No one to medically treat. Complete devastation of man and machine.
I cannot imagine what kind of things you had to see all in the name of your work. And I cannot imagine the feelings the pilots experienced knowing what was coming and knowing they didn't even have chance to say goodbye.
Is it true that plane crash scenes are horrified its not just body's everywhere but body parts heads arms legs all over body's implied on objects its something if you saw you will never forget and need to have a strong mind to cope with something like that
Are the bodies still recognisable? After that?
People's lives were put at risk. It was all about greed for profits. That's why these horrific accidents occur. It's an utter disgrace all those souls lost their lives so that the greedy airline could make a few extra bucks.
As a Police Chaplain I have been to many horrible scenes, but not one that bad. Thank you for your service.
My wife of 7 months was killed with this crash. Thankfully lessons were learned and no one else had to die from a similar situation. After all these years it still hurts so much 😢😢😢😢😢😢
I’m so sorry for your loss. I was only 6-7 years old when this happen and I still have a fear of flying because of it. Sadly, this was not the last plane to crash on take-off. In 1987 a Northwest Airlines jet taking off from Detroit met the same fate. One passenger survived-a four-year-old girl.
@@losangelesrams3472 Thank you, flying is still the safest mode of transportation until they have another big one
@@losangelesrams3472 Yep. Within the past few years, she revealed herself. As I recall, there was considerable stormy weather around for that flight. Seems the pilots became more distracted by the weather than taking care of their pre-flight checklist. Forgetting to extend flaps on takeoff is more often than not a deadly mistake.
Oh my. My sincere condolences to you, sir. I can't imagine your shock and grief.
@@42lookc Sure makes you grow up at 21.
I hope they never stop calling passengers on flights "souls." It sounds respectful, reverential, precious.
Well, because we all have souls. YOU, the real you isn't the body you pilot around, it's your soul inside. You are a spirit having a human experience.
Funny... I think it's dehumanizing. Never did like it.
When they did the maintenance, they removed both the engine and the pylon as a single unit to save time. The actual procedure was to remove the engine first and then the pylon. That is what led to the left engine separating from the pylon and it went upwards and then it fell onto the runway. This damaged one of the hydraulic systems as well as electrical power. Because of asymmetrical thrust, the plane banked to the left and crashed. There was nothing the pilots could do. All 241 on board were killed.
i thought it was because they were stalling and didn't realize because the stall alert was connected the engine that flew off
Wow it said 271 in the videos description
@@among_usfan_oh_lol Yes, that’s how many people were on board the plane at the time of the crash.
Some of the passengers actually saw the engine flip over the wing and fly away .. can you imagine the thoughts that went through their heads?? 😳🤯🥺
@@among_usfan_oh_lol Just to note the official death toll was 273 which was not mentioned as two people on the ground were also killed
I was an ER nurse in a nearby hospital when the crash occurred. We put our disaster plan into effect. There was so much conflicting information about the plane... We first heard that maybe it was a cargo plane & we weren't sure what to expect. I remember standing on the ambulance doc and seeing the smoke from O'Hare field. We then heard from our firefighters who used to frequent the emergency room that there were no survivors & heat was so intense they couldn't get near the crash site for quite a while. I'll never forget that horrific day.😢
Thank you for sharing your experience as nurse during this tragedy.
So so sad! God rest the souls of the people on board. So tragic!
My grandpa died in this crash. My mom was only 17 years old and lost her father. My grandma lost the love of her life she had been with since she was 15 years old. I never got to meet him. It haunts my mom to this day. Its so heartbreaking and horrific, i cant imagine what everyone and my grandpa went through in thoselast moments. Im so sorry to everyone who lost someone. I'll meet you one day, grandpa❤
I was driving home on Oakton Avenue when I saw the massive black cloud of this crash in the distance. A friend of mine who was a nurse at Alexian Brothers Hospital in Elk Grove Village, IL said the Hospital went on red alert, and they had the medical staff ready and waiting for survivors. Then the word came that there were NO survivors. She said the entire nursing staff and doctors broke down and started crying.
I worked at a factory on Lee Street in Des Plaines, about a block away from Oakton, and my boss and I stood on the dock and watched the black smoke rise in the sky.
I was on Touhy and Wolf going West when that happened, I stopped before the tracks and could not go further, Des Plaines cops turned me back so I went. If you still in the area there is a memorial of sorts at Touhy and Lee, by the little park made up of 272 stones, one for each victim, I was there when they opened it, by the way, my niece was born at Alexian Bros in 1977, this happened in 78!
It's very similar to what happened at many NYC hospitals on 9/11. 😔
In my younger days cameras were usually only on birthdays, graduations, weddings, so to see that shot of an airplane sideways, so close to the ground was the most horrifying thing I'd ever seen photographed.
Remarkably, the plane was photographed other times as well, just before it crashed.....including by another plane passenger, on another arriving DC-10 (not Mike Laughlin, who took the 2 famous hots) . Makes you wonder.
What are the ODDS that all of the cockpit readings and displays went out, but they still had the FREAKING cameras working for these POOR people to see their doom coming directly toward them. What a shame 😢
I remember cutting the photo out of the newspaper and just being so horrified and couldn’t stop looking at it. To this day, I’m surprised that I still got on an airplane after seeing that…..
@@djtommyboy100 cause the electric generator who provided power to the captain's instruments (and also stall warning system) was located on engine no. 1.
Exactly.
I was there that day working the ramp at Eastern Airlines. It was a beautiful Spring day and I remember standing there outside enjoying the sunshine. All of a sudden I felt the ground tremble and heard an explosion off in the distance. Shortly thereafter we could smell the jet fuel and learned that Flight 191, an American Airlines DC-10 had crashed right after takeoff. One of our guys working the ramp with us that day said, " I have to get to that gate where Flight 191 departed from because my parents were on that plane." He took off like a sprinter never slowing down. When he arrived at the gate he was shocked to see his parents there. They were pass riding and were bumped off the flight by an American Airlines employee. Godbless those 271 souls on board. May they rest in peace.
i wonder if you'd be so quick to invoke god if your father WAS on that flight. . . santa claus isn't real you know.. no matter how much you wish it were
@@silverfox5319 may God bless the people who died on Flight 191
@@aljay2955 he never mentioned his parents, wtf are you talking about?
Finally, someone that knows the ramp and tarmac are not the same thing.
@@silverfox5319 huh? Can you read? I was talking to Alan Jay. It literally says @Alan Jay at the beginning of the sentence.
In Tulsa hangar 6-C I spoke with a member of the maintenance crew still working in 1999.The crew chief committed suicide.The engine -pylon combination was being lifted into place and attached at one point when the forklift ran out of fuel.Shift change didn't realize the forklift hydraulic cylinder had "bled down"allowing an impingement of the mounts and when the engine -pylon combination was installed no-one could see the crack developing, it was hidden.The airline shamelessly fought the families.
Finally someone who knew what happened, Thanks from a TUL AAer.
The FAA was where the blame actually lay. This procedure was proscribed by both MacD and GE for the reason you stated: micro cracking in the engine truss. This didn’t matter to FAA personnel; saving American time and money did.
I remember the Airline Spokesman saying that the Aircrew was trained in how to handle losing an engine. What they meant was having an engine shut down and not fall off as this one did.
Yeah! All hydraulics along with the redundancies were destroyed! They had no chance!
What they meant to say is pilots are not trained to handle the ridiculous actions of idiots maintenance people on the ground.
the leading edge slats we’re torn off by the engine causing the stall on the left wing .
Wow, I can't even imagine being on a plane and looking out the window and seeing the engine fall completely off!
@@eddielewis2350 Exactly! Then realizing you have 20-30 seconds to live! Rough way to exit this world!
On May 25th, 1979 I was working the Ground Control position in LaGuardia Tower when we got word, without explanation, to hold all O'Hare-bound departures. LaGuardia is geographically a very small airport so I cursed as I struggled to find places to park the aircraft. After word trickled back to us about this disaster, my heart was heavy with sorrow. I still think about American 191 to this day.
Props to you for working LG ground control. That airport is rough in terms of its geography so props to you for your focus that job required
@@GCNMMA Thanks. There were 8 positions in the Tower that everyone had to qualify on and Ground Control was the hardest.
"Over Macho Grande?"....."No, I don't think I'll ever be over Macho Grande."
I worked on that flight. I put water in the plane. I lost a few friends on that flight that were crew members. I remember playing with a couple of puppies that were in cargo since the flight was late in departing. One of the stews that was on that flight parked next to me in the employee parking lot. We talked a bit on the way to the terminal. Horrible knowing she was never coming back to her car. One of the worst days of my life. It hits me like it happened yesterday. I remember that guy took a photo of the plane sideways over the terminal received $5,000 for that photo. Hope everyone involved has worked themselves through this tragedy.
My condolences.
Like my house shaking when the Pentagon was hit ... The next day I realized someone I worked with was on the plane, and I felt the moment she was killed. You never get over it. So sorry for you.
Utterly heartbreaking, i am so sorry for your loss , I can't imagine the shock you must have gone through learning that the flight went down , May they rest in peace and those puppies too .
@@yaasmiinn you never forget. I remember it like it was yesterday. Those two baby collies were so cute. It’s all so surreal. It was everyone’s time to depart this earth. I’m sure their all having a great time in heaven. Good on them and their families.
@@dennisgallas8300 I am so sorry! How tragic and upsetting it must have been for you to have dealt with this. 😞😞However I am not clear on something. You mentioned something about puppies. Were those puppies on the same flight or a different cargo plane that you mentioned?
At that time I worked for United Foam Corp. One of our top salesmen and a nice guy, Bill Knooihausen, was set to be on that plane. That morning, his secretary, Camille was is tears telling the office Bill had just called from the terminal stating he missed the flight and watched the jet he was supposed to be on, turn on its side, then drop from sight. We all gasped and suggested to Bill he take the train back to LA.
That crash still haunts me since my dad had finished a meeting earlier and was trying to make that flight. He was told that the flight was fully booked and that he would have to fly on his flight later. I really didn't understand about him not making this flight until years later, when I saw the documentary on this (not this documentary, but one much older than this). I just felt I had to watch this to get the haunting feeling out of my system. Since that crash, my dad (even I) make it a point not to rush to catch a flight.
Exactly. You get it.
My dad missed his flight which turned out to be the Potomac River plane crash in 1982. He has never flown since
That is really chilling.
My dad and I were scheduled to visit my brother in Jerusalem and our flight was the evening of 9/11 but the trip was canceled one month prior.
It makes you wonder sometime what could’ve happened if we took that trip and 9/11 could’ve happened at a different time that day.
@@ericbarash6842 depends on the airline and type of plane. what type of flight was it, if you don’t mind?
A kid a year ahead of me in high school, he was a senior and I was a junior, was on that flight coming back to California. His name was Kerry Tims. He was a fine athlete, very tall and slender and well conditioned. Man could he play basketball. I still have yearbooks with some great pics of him taking jump shots during games. He was a good football player as well. I really think he could have played no problem at most big name colleges. Maybe he would have even gone into the pros or perhaps become a doctor etc.. He was just that kind of kid. We weren't really friends because back then the inter-class rivalries were very intense where I went to school, but I always respected him as an accomplished person for his age and admired his athleticism and prowess on the court and football field. I wonder sometimes why he died. What purpose did it serve? I am still here and doing well enough, but I really think Kerry might have done something special in life. I think about his last seconds on occasion. Not an easy way to go out.
Rest assured, that God had a plan in place that day. Every person on the flight that day was called to a better place. 🙏🏾
Thoughtful and heartfelt reminiscence. Our school year had flown on an end of term break earlier that day and people were discussing the accident the next day. The fates seem so random.
Sad as it is you have to look at the bright side. When it's your time it's your time and truthfully what a way to go, The best roller coaster in the world right to God's front door.... Talk about making an entrance🙏
Farther along....
@ berneski,
Nice tribute to a young soul who was gone too soon.
43 years later and your comment recalls Kerry Timms' potential and positive life direction very clearly.
Hopefully all the victims did not suffer, just gone in one split second.
For the families, I think their grief would be the hardest kind.
RIP.
I saw the crash. From what I remember it was like 3:10 in the after noon. The amount of black smoke that rose up from all that fuel was hard to comprehend, it filled up so much of the sky. Terrible sight and loss of life.
In 1978 my father was honored by American Airlines with a huge party ( AA ) for 42 years of service at O’Hare as the city manager and lastly Regional Vice President. Not even year into his retirement I found him sobbing as he watched the first reports of this horrific crash. We hardly saw him for nearly three weeks as he stayed at the airport to help grieving families, forensic doctors, and anything else that was needed of him. Seeing this video brought back memories of that day I thought I had stored away forever. God welcomed all of the valiant souls who were needlessly lost.
With the greatest of respect, if God really exists then why would such tragedies occur in the first place? It really isn't my intention to offend nor be insensitive to one's beliefs and/or followings , however, it is just something I have never been able to rationalise when it comes to such inexplainable occurrences. Why would God allow the innocent victims of 9/11 to perish in the way they did? Please forgive me but none of it makes any sense. How is it that so many people are able to put their faith into God when we live in such an unpredictable and somewhat imperfect world? If God really does exist then why are babies being murdered and innocent people being blown up by terrorists every day?
God did this to them
@@pauldecartier8348 because God never said we wont suffer
@@michaelellis8726 no, the plane did it because it had improper maintenance. plus, God never said we wont suffer
@@aitwyd You will have to forgive my ignorance on this my friend but your statement seems to lack clarity. Where is it stipulated that God said that we won't suffer? I am not trying to be an ass about this but what about the families of those on board? Why make them suffer too?
This picture has lived in my mind since I was 13 y/o. Rest in peace all victims.
My mom n dad's friend...........We lost Mr Pohlson that day....I was 14 then ....57 now....watching the names appear on the TV as they listed each who was onboard the flight.....I will never forget that day
Same.
Absolutely horrific image.
Never been on one never will don't trust planes or people
@@Stelly669 i am so with you on that don't trust people......people suck big todaY
Holly Jesus christ.
We were flying into O'Hare that day, on an AA DC-10, from LAX, and were put into a holding pattern for an unusually long time. My brother and I noticed smoke on the ground, near the airport, but couldn't tell what it was. We found out after we finally landed. It was still smoldering as we drove past it on the way out. That would have been our return flight the next week. As it was, we still flew an AA DC-10 back. There was some wake turbulence on departure, and quite a few nervous looks around the cabin.
Wow that’s crazy.
omg you got on the same kind of plane to go home? OMG I'd pass out.
@@orangemonster61 The DC-10s hadn't been grounded yet, and we already had our boarding passes. The turbulence on take-off scared a lot of passengers on that flight.
You were very courageous flying on one.! A sinister looking aircraft..
@@woodenseagull1899 My dad, an engineer with GD/Convair, had faith in those planes. (Or, at least, he told us he did!)
I lived in that trailer park and was so happy when I realized our homes were spared. We moved shortly after to another trailer park far away from any airports.
My wife and I were at the airport in Cincinnati when this occurred. Very sad. Everyone in the airport was somber. The pilots of the DC-10 started to get the airplane upright but ran out of altitude and did as good a job as could be expected. To the 273, RIP..
In 1980, I started a job that required me to fly almost every week. This crash affected me so deeply that, after retiring with over 1.75 million flight miles, I never, ever would fly a DC-10.
DC-10 got the worst record in history
@@YeahWhatever1412 mostly due to corporates valueing money over safety
That wasn't the jet's fault, you dope...it was a maintenance error.
@ Jive Miguel
Exactly. People freak for nothing. All types of planes have crashed not just the DC-10.
Me me me ...
My neighbor died on this flight. He was visiting from Malibu I was only 7 years old at the but I remember him
R.I.P What was his name?
Was he the same age as you or was he already grown up?
My mom n dad's friend...........We lost Mr Pohlson that day....I was 14 then ....57 now....watching the names appear on the TV as they listed each who was onboard the flight.....I will never forget that day....
My friend Don Driscoll from high school in Hawaii was on the O’hare flight 191 flight. I could only imagine The terror he must have felt. Too young to die for sure.
💔so sorry
O'hare flight 191? its American Airliens 191, sorry for your loss
Rip to all 271 on board. It’s cool though going through these comments and seeing everyone’s experience with it. Prayers to all those that lost loved ones in this crash.
United used to have the cockpit takeoff cam feed shown in the cabin on their DC-10s as well. Right after this disaster, they stopped that as did all domestic US DC-10 carriers.
Yup that is terrifying. Being able to see your fate of death 20-25 seconds before must have been so awful
Wat
Not really. I was working for AA starting in 1983, and I remember AA still had camera in mid-1980s showing takeoff and landings. I even took photo of the screen on one flight.
Cause: Improper maintenance on left wing's pylon causing detachment of the left engine and hydraulics failure leading to slat retraction, causing the tilt of the plane. It crashes near a RV area....
its not the pilots fault.. 😭
@@travelerforever8849 Yes, you're right
@@JPENDE11_ dude the way the left engine detached, the left wing was also damaged causing a bank. I think i read an article about it.
@@mango_i9_official I watched the episode, it's named Catastrophe at O'hare . The bank was due to the slats not retracting. This was due to the loss of hydraulics
@@JPENDE11_ Oh thank you for correcting me
Watched this happen from my yard, playing catch with a friend @ 7y/o. We lived at a different trailer park that was on same route as one mentioned (later in HS, not at time of crash).
Be 52y/o this year & have never forgotten the sight of that plane twisting in air.
I've been working with cancer patients for a long time, and I'll always remember the time I had a patient who was a retired pilot...he told me his favorite jet to fly, hands down, was the Lockheed L-1011....which was an obvious direct competitor with the DC-10 and MD-11. He just said it was advanced and a dream to fly. I'll always remember I was on vacation in Florida when this Chicago tragedy happened.....can't forget it, even 43 later. 😔
I was outside cutting weeds around the building i used to work in. When the ground shook violently and I heard the explosion. I was about 2 miles from the crash working in Elk Grove village.
Anyone who can remember being alive in 1979 probably remembers seeing that photograph at 2:45
I do remember, Billy
Yup. Was on the news and cover of all the papers. Even at 9 years old I never forgot it
That will be forever etched in my mind. Person submitted that photo got $5,000. I worked on that flight. I filled it with water. Lost a few friends. Terrible time.
Even here in Montreal, we remember
I was only 17 at the time and remember a morbid piece of news from this accident. Sadly, I never forgot it. The report stated that some passengers spilled out at impact and were thrown into and through a chain link fence along the property line with the mobile home park. I'm 60 now and that mental picture is still in my head.
Wow!
It's horrific but they would have surely already been dead by that time.
Dave, do some goshdarn research instead of telling lies.
yeah i remember all the crispy critters still strapped in their seats. horrifying
WTF!!! That never happened. These poor souls were still strapped to their seats at the point of impact.
Such a very horrible tragedy and an unforgivable disaster (due to reckless maintenance). May all the 271 victims rest in peace.
Greedy management, NOT 'reckless maintenance'......deflecting
At the time, the cockpit had a camera viewing the windshield. The view was on every passenger monitor. How sad! 😢
People died Mr. Anderson
@Purple PencilGrey-Pink I used to say the same thing
That honestly would be something to watch what happen was tragic. But I couldnt even imagin having to watch plane nose dive into the ground. Seeing these videos ill never fly again. I dont even like riding in a car
Airlines didn't have "passenger seat" monitors at that time. It would have been a projection screen at the bulkhead, like in a theater.
@@arnehovind3596 no, you're thinking of a doctor hut
"DC-10 is one of the most recognizable passenger planes on the runway"
*shows footage of an MD-11*
Play nice 😊 lol
Not true..the port side wing is seen completely and. no wing tip is attached.
However, it's still a bad stock footage selection as the DC-10-10 involved (reg. N110AA) is not even the model -10, they're showing a DC-10-30 model, the center two-wheel bogie is clearly present. No DC-10 models have that.
@@Starboard760:37
A year earlier one of my dad’s colleagues died in the San Diego crash. I was 13 in 79 and had a paper route. When I saw that photo on the front page the next day of the aircraft in a steep, left bank decline I told my parents I’m never getting on a plane again. Suffice it to say I wasn’t thrilled when we flew to CA a few months later. RIP to all those unfortunate souls.
My childhood home was 16 miles southwest of O’Hare. I can still recall seeing the smoke piling high into the sky, after I’d arrived home from junior high. My uncle was with the Chicago Fire Department at O’Hare. He never spoke about that horrific day.
I lived in Chicago the day that happened. My dad was a pilot there as well so I grew up very aviation oriented so this event really stuck out. Turns out the engine under one of the wings actually fell off the airplane causing the load to be unbalanced by a couple of tons instantly which is why the pilots were fighting to level the plane back out of a hard bank so ferociously.
You can design a really great plane, but you can't account for the buttheads who work on it.
The reason they were fighting so hard was because the engine also tore off a small portion of the wing that fed hydraulics to it's systems and so the slats and flaps retracted making the wing useless.
You think he had time to do that? 🙄
@ Jon Hall
Right. “Ladies and gentlemen we are about to crash but could I have everyone move to the right side of the plane.”
@@jogman262 Might have worked if they had more time. Sioux City had time- they were at 30,35,000 feet. These guys were at 350.
I remember this accident. My grandmother knew someone on the plane. It was the first crash I really remember hearing about as a kid, and they definitely happened more often back then.
I remember it too…I was only 9 years old. I grew up and still live about 7 miles from O’Hare. My Dad’s company owned a warehouse just 2 miles from the crash site and he happened to be there at the time. It was such a horrifically tragic accident. How horrible it must have been for your Grandmother to lose someone she knew in that crash .
Well planes were a lot more unsafe in general back then Aviation was still pretty new on the mass commercial side. Not to mention safety regulations were a lot more relaxed too.
My first memory of a crash was the Sioux City accident. It sticks with you.
FYI … onboard that flight was Lindsay Wagner, star of TVs Bionic Woman. She was one of TVs biggest stars of the 1970s. Minutes before the takeoff, she fell violently ill for no apparent reason, so sick she had to deplane and miss the flight, she would have made 272 souls. Absolutely true story, every word of it.
somewhat true, she never actually boarded the flight, due to feeling ill
story I heard, from the get go, was her mom had some dilemma, so she cancelled her flight last minute.
I believe you. There have been stories of people missing a flight only for the flight to end in disaster. There was one such story with the Tenerife collusion where a lady who decided to stay and meet with friends rather than get back plane. She was trying to get her friends to join her and get off the plane but she couldn't convince them and they died while she survived. During 911 they were people who worked in the towers and were scheduled to work and got there late. I wonder if people have a psychic sense about these things or it just simply wasn't their time
@@carolharris2401 she lied. look it up.
@doggylover108 Who lied? If you want me to look up something you need to be clear. I dont read minds. Furthermore it doesn't take away from the main point
One of my childhood friends lost his father in this flight. Incredible to see this so many years later. 😢
The number one engine that detached, was changed in Tulsa approx 7 weeks before the accident. The cracks in the flange, got larger and larger during those 7 weeks of service. Using a forklift to perform this engine/pylon change, was NOT how it was to be done. Sadly that afternoon at O'Hare, the damage became severe enough, that it separated. Very sad. This should not have happened.
Blacks
John 3:16 NIV
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 🙏!!!!!!!!
Actually this was not due to engine failure.loss off centere of gravity
Leave it to “intelligent” southerners…
Yes Fred, unfortunately that forklift used could not maintain hydraulic pressure during the maintenance personnels' lunch break therefore damaging the pylon unbeknownst to the techs. As an aircraft mechanic contractor over 35yrs, 99 contracts, I've seen the videos and heard testimonials from witnesses and maintenance personnel. This was several of the "dirty dozen" as far as maintenance procedures go. Shortcuts are unacceptable. So sad.
This would have to be the most terrifying plane crash ever. Made even worse by visually seeing what is unfolding on the screen in front of you
3:54
“It’s the worst disaster in aviation history” then cheerful music 💃🕺
Smithsonian Channel: It’s Brighter Here 😬
I remember that crash considering I turned around in that trailer park an hour before the plane crashed because I was going back the wrong way to my hometown of Oak Park. When I got home I turned on the news and saw the news about the plane crash. Also, my cousin had just been sworn in as a Chicago police officer and he was assigned to pull the bodies from the wreckage. He told me it was terrible way to start being a police officer 😢
Understandable.
They didn’t find enough of about 30 people to bury.
My uncle flew a Lear 55 for a corporate flight department. He was not on duty that day. A fellow flight crew was flying the Lear that day, awaiting takeoff clearance a few planes back and watched the whole thing. They eventually departed a different runway and flew right over the smoldering site. He said it messed them up pretty bad for a while.
I remember all of the DC-10s being grounded. Then they all had to be inspected and they found the same cracks on Continental and United planes which all had to be fixed before returning to service. The general population here in the US didn't care for the DC-10. I was a flight attendant on the DC-10 aircraft. I loved it!
My cousin was there. He was originally on a scholarship from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and he was the kindest person to my mother at the time. I was not there, but they had pictures of him. It was sad to lose him.
I'm so sorry
The next day my first plane trip was a DC-10, flown by AA, out of O’Hare. My dad said we flew over the site but I couldn’t see it. 5 y.o. me loved it but I think my dad ,never a good flyer, needed some liquid courage that day.
I lived near O’Hare then and remember this vividly. It was Memorial Day weekend in 1979 and a clear, warm Friday afternoon about 3:15pm. I could see the black smoke out our living room window. I couldn’t drive Touhy Avenue for the longest time. I was eerie for me because it was a green file on the edge of the trailer park and near a tank farm that fueled the airport. There was nothing left and it resembled shards of tin foil. She went out of Runway 32R which angled out over the Northwest suburbs. They decommissioned this runway about twenty years ago due to redesign and new runways to address decades of noise abatement and pollution and the jet fuel was pungent when the wind shifted when I lived there during the 1970’s. Even then they flew them in one after another until 2am. RIP to all as it was very sad.
I was born the following day. Now I’m an American Airlines flight attendant. So sad… may those souls Rest In Peace.
I remember it too, Memorial Day Weekend
My mom n dad's friend...........We lost Mr Pohlson that day....I was 14 then ....57 now....watching the names appear on the TV as they listed each who was onboard the flight.....I will never forget that day
Yes, very vivid memories of that accident. I was 10 and lived in Des Plaines, which is where the crash site is located and it's one of those days that no-one from that area forgets. A friend's father wanted to check out the crash site and took us there when we were headed to a mini golf place nearby. It was long enough afterwards that the debris was mostly cleared out but the ground was still charred black with a few small bits of the plane around. It just felt horrible to be there. I don't think any of us talked at all afterwards. RIP to all the people lost.
Wow.. no curfew?
my family drove by the accident 10 days afterwards on a flight to CA there was a lot of parts all over to this day my older brother still stresses out badly when flying
I was 10 when this happened and really into planes and aviation. The front page image of the plane on its side and smoking right before impact has stayed with me ever since. A year later we were in a DC10 flying over Mt St Helens during the 2nd eruption and all I could think was “Please don’t let an engine fall off!” Only time I’ve ever been scared of flying.
My father's friend on his way to work that day, said that it was chaotic and people were trying to help, but they werent allowed. As a child, hearing this was nightmare inducing.
People weren’t allowed to help? Tell us more!!
🤦♂️🤦♂️🤦♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦♂️🙄🙄🙄🙄
My mom n dad's friend...........We lost Mr Pohlson that day....I was 14 then ....57 now....watching the names appear on the TV as they listed each who was onboard the flight.....I will never forget that day
I did 20+ years on the ground as ramp service, fueler. The saying from mechanics that I heard was "the difference between a car mechanic and an aircraft mechanic is if you royally fuck up an aircraft repair, the plane cant just pull over to the side of the road to see what the issue is".
When you think about it, over a 20-40 year career, everyone screws up at their jobs really badly at least a few times. Welp. All it takes as an aircraft mechanic is one really bad mistake in your career that is not caught to kill a lot of people. No thx.
Currently studying to become an AMT. My mentor says exacly the same thing. "A car mechanic screws up and people get mad. An aircraft mechanic screws up and people get killed. Always get as many eyes on whatever you are working on as you have available."
So many stories here of personal loss, friends and family who perished on this flight. My heart goes out to each and every one of you.
I was a junior at Maine West H.S. And we were in Auto Shop class at the time of the crash. The bay doors were open and we heard what sounded like a loud mortar in the distance. A few minutes later it was announced over the school P.A. System that a plane had crashed near O’hare. A few of us walked passed the open shop doors and looked in the direction of the airport and saw the billowing black smoke. It was an eerie site that I will never forget.
RIP
To the passengers and crew of American Airlines Flight 191 and to the two people on the ground
The flight crew was San Diego based. A memorial to them is at the San Diego Air and Space Museum.
I lived very near O'Hare and was actually on Route 83 (very near the crash site) the date & time of the accident. AA191 flew over Touhy Avenue, directly over a Checker gas station and then crashed into a small field just east of the trailer park (still hitting a few trailers) and west of a Chicago Police Dog Training Facility. I saw Mayor Jane Byrne arrive in her Cadillac. After she got out to walk around the crash site i looked in the back seat of her car and saw a yellow pad of paper with "AA191" written on it. I will never forget that day.
I still remember seeing that photo on the front page of local paper back in ‘79. I can’t imagine the terror those people must have felt knowing it was all coming to an end.
I recall this when I was 19, now 62. Lived in Glen Ellyn Illinois, a west suburb of Chicago, and saw the smoke from the crash to my east. Very sad.
I was in basic training at RTC Great Lakes from the end of March 1979 until May 1979. Just beginning a 20 year career. While there, I came down with pneumonia in both lungs and was hospitalized for a week and then put in a convalescence company for another week. Because of that, I got put into a company that was one week behind my original company. My original company had graduated a week prior to this, but had to remain at RTC for a week awaiting their travel orders. There were a couple of guys from my original company on that plane. I graduated the day it crashed and left O'Hare the next day on another plane going to L.A. . I wonder about that a lot. What if I hadn't gotten sick. What if I hadn't been held back. I was white knuckling it the next day waiting for the plane to take off. Before we even left the gate though; they determined there was some sort of problem with the plane and they disembarked us and put us on another one. Not a real big fan of flying since then.
This show single handedly gave my father the worst fear of planes imaginable 😂
My father, who would’ve been 9 during this flight, told me a few years ago my grandparents and uncles were supposed to get on the flight with him for grandpa’s medical conference. Luckily my grandpa cancelled last minute. Absolutely terrifying to think my family would’ve died and I wouldn’t exist. My heart goes out to all those souls lost, and their families who grieved. Flight 191 will never be forgotten. May everyone rest in peace, even these years later. 🕊️
I worked in the city and lived in Roselle at the time.I just remember tears in my eyes all the way home. To all 271 aboard, RIP.
I had a flight out of O'Hare the next week. It was the first time I had ever been on a "rapid/steep altitude gain" take-off. WTF? We were banking and I looked out the window towards the ground as we passed over the crash site.
You could walk that field where the plane crashed and probably still find little bits and pieces of that plane.
I remember this. At that time my office was a block away and myself and others helped with the search and cleanup. I will never ever forget what I saw
If anybody wants all the technical details about why this happened, Mentour Pilot has a GREAT, detailed video on this accident.
You know that last line would have been so impactful if they had added "at least for now..." Like, would anyone else get chills?
My father was a Captain for American then and flying DC-10's. I was in college in California and was on pins and needles... it wasn't him.
@ Jon Young
Can you imagine the airport authorities that had to gather the family and friends of those people on that flight and have to tell them what happened.
AA still had camera of takeoff and landings in Mid-1980s. I started working for AA AMERICAN AIRLINES in may 1983, and remember seeing the screen in the cabin, showing this. I even took a photo, still have it, of the screen, showing this.
Very unfortunate for this to have happened, I still love the DC-10 and MD-11 and is one of my favorite aircraft to this day. For those wondering, the cause of the crash was due to the left engine falling off of the plane, the sudden change in weight distribution put the aircraft into an uncontrollable spin. No matter what the altitude would have been, even if they were all the way up at 30,000+ feet, it would have been impossible to recover from this and the aircraft would have just been sent into an unrecoverable, never ending barrel roll due to the massive offset in weight distribution. After the accident and after investigations, McDonnell Douglas recalled all DC-10, MD-10, and MD-11 aircraft to have engines inspected and tightened so they wouldn’t fall off again. I hope this helped some of you get a better understanding on what happened and to anyone that may be more educated on the incident and have noticed some inaccuracies in my explanation, please let me know
Absolutely incorrect! The aircraft went out of control not because of the engine loss, but because the departing engine destroyed the outboard slat extension mechanism, causing the slats on the left wing to retract. The loss of lift on the left wing caused a left wing stall with the associated unrecoverable left roll into the ground. Aircraft lose engines all the time and are seldomly catastrophic, they are designed to depart the aircraft with minimal structural damage. Pylon fuse pins see to the safe departure of an engine with the mode of departure being the engine going up and over the wing. Unfortunately, in this accident, the tombstone fitting failed which was NOT a normal failure mode. The resultant failure took the outboard slat mechanism with it causing the loss of lift to the left wing! I was a qualified rigger at United Air Lines on the DC-10-10’s and -30’s. This failure was taught in class and why it happened.
The picture of the jet banking left minus the one engine is forever etched in my head. As a someone who grew up in the Chicago Area not far from Ohare BTW, I was transfixed by that photo in the newspaper. My wife’s father worked for a casket company at the time of the accident and was supplying the caskets. He had to drive to the crash site multiple times and they had all the body parts in a nearby hanger.
I seem to remember the photo of the DC-10 flying knife edge before augering in was printed large on the front page of the Sun-Times.
I have a friend that has worked in maintenance for a major airline for many years. He will not fly certain airlines, because many try to cut costs by having engines repaired instead of replacing them. He said yes engines are expensive, but crash lawsuits can bankrupt an airlines, and one life lost is too many. I have pretty much stopped flying commercial anymore, and yet I love flying.
Wow which airlines cut corners I wonder?
@@SaykredCow from what he said it was more than not. He named one major American carrier that I won’t mention for fear of being sued, but I will tell you it was a well known carrier. I can assure you those in aviation know.
How about telling us names NOT included? Then, nobody can sue you, but we can figure out?
@@lotsofthisandthat9791 look up the 10 top US Airlines and then google which airlines are struggling. Then look up which airlines repair engines or send them out for repairs. I can tell you Southwest Airlines is in the top 10. I know for certain they replace engines, not repair them, or they did at the time I visited the hanger. Can’t tell you today if that’s the policy.
Utterly ridiculous statement. No US airline cuts corners today. The fact that there hasn't been a fatal crash in 12 years proves it. Try driving next time you want to travel. Almost a half million people have died on the road in the same time period.
My father worked for American Airlines for 52 years. His name was on the wall at the AA CR Smith Museum in Fort Worth, Texas. Growing up, it seemed like AA was part of our family; we could arrive at any location in the US and my father would be greeted at the airport by fellow AA people.
On May 25th of 1979 we were in our hotel room in London, listening to BBC radio, when a news bulletin announced the crash in Chicago. Forty-five years later, I still remember the moment; it felt like a loss in the family.
I remember this. The front page of Chicago newspapers had a photo of the plane flying sideways someone took right before it crashed.
My dad and uncle missed this flight due to traffic. They still won't talk about it beyond "we got lucky"
Incredible, but what else would there be for them to say? I bet some/many of us have dodged death in our lives and will never know it. I think traffic accidents more than anything else. Crazy to consider, but it almost has to be the case.
I remember that day very well. How horrifying must it have been to watch the ground coming closer closer on the Cabin Monitor and looking out the window seeing the same thing knowing you’re about to be smashed into the ground at 350 miles an hour and then burnt to a crisp. Prayers to all those who died that day.🙏🏽
It was a quick death. I'd rather go that way then hang on for months and months dying of cancer, or something like that.
@@activelow9297 man as bad as that sounds I gotta agree. I’m sure the the pain only lasts a split of a second and you’re out.
Dude the way you worded your comment…dark. 🌝
@@leijarrodsewell4445 and then of course, the added "prayers!" at the end.
😰😰😰
RIP All those Onboard 45 Years ago from today...
One of my Grandfather's Brothers was on this flight. Thereafter my Grandparents refused to fly but only when absolutely necessary, and if they did fly, would fly separately to ensure that one parent would be left alive for their children.
Your grandparents don’t sound very smart.
If they are afraid to fly, they shouldn’t fly. But to create logic defying scenarios in their heads is just infantile.
I hope they never rode in a car together. 🤦♂️🤦♂️🤦♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦♂️
@@sludge8506 you do not sound very smart either. just saying
@@funboy7754 I explained everything I wrote very clearly and intelligently.
You, on the other hand, wrote some insipid nonsense.
The screen showing the flight camera to the passengers is a gruesome detail in this horrific story. .. I'm NEVER flying again.
Can you imagine how people act within last 20 seconds before plane explodes. You're worst enemy becomes best friend. I've heard stories when people thought they were going to crash and didn't. At least for moment best friend
Lived in River Grove when this happened. We were directly under the approach to 32R. Our house shook when DC-10’s came over. I’m certain planes were under 1,000 on their landing while going overhead. Always will remember in warmer months how, if on the phone, we had to pause phone conversations with the plane noise.
River Grove. Home of The Thristy Whale.
I remember this. I was in high school working at the local Kmart maybe 25 miles away. A coworker some how learned about the crash, and we went on the roof of the store. We could see the smoke that far away
We could see it in Elgin.
It's just amazing that someone in the pre-smart phone days happened to be there at that exact time with a camera ready to shoot.
@ pdobos1966
Right. If this had happened in today’s day and age it would probably have at least 20 different photos and videos of this crash.
Airplanes landing and taking off have always been favored subject matter for amateur photographers. Somebody always had a camera out at airports.
Cameras and film were a multi-billion-dollar industry in the 1970s. Everyone had a camera. Nobody would get a photo on their phone today because they're too busy staring down at their dumbphones and wearing out their thumbs on their Tinder and Facebook addictions.
I still think you would have seen more than a few different photos of this tragedy in 2022.
@@jogman262 Nope. 'Smart' phones are navels.
That's rough. Those passengers had enough time to know they weren't going to make it.
Especially the passengers who saw the engine come off.
@@RideAcrossTheRiver But that alone shouldn't have doomed the aircraft. It was the engine taking out the hydraulic lines that gave it no chance.
@@erzug Yes, true, but the passengers who saw the engine rip off ....
@@bishop94z Slightly less dread was felt by the airline and repair crew who carried out that improvised off-manual 'repair' ... when this awful crash happened, THEY knew.
@@RideAcrossTheRiver It impacted everyone in some way, even today.
When companies are more interested in making a quicker buck than engineering integrity and safety really grinds my gears.
That picture became a very graphic image. I flew a DC-10 from O'Hare to Honolulu International and I was amazed at the many seats across.
What makes this the worst is that the people seen what was about to happen from the camera. That was a terrible idea to install it.
I agree not like they would have ever known otherwise not like you could feel such a subtle turn anyway
The crash itself forced people to rethink the idea. Sure the passenger would like to see how the plane takes off and land from the pilots' perspective. But it can also create some panic, especially if a crash like that happened. Those people would be completely terrified to see where the plane is gonna hit and it is also where they are going to die. It is absolutely not comforting at all!!
I remember flying on a TWA L-1011 in the late 80's and they had the takeoff on the screen too. I thought it was very cool. I may have thought differently if I were in these passenger's position.
Cameras today should be for flight controls only, not for the cabin. I don't know why they're not connected to FDR's yet.
well thats an IFE i think, for entertainment purpose. it was cool, but also terrifying
I have heard that if the pilot had raised the slats on the unaffected wing, he would’ve regained some level of control and recovered. Apparently, the affected wing had its hydraulic lines ruptured when the engine ripped off, causing the slats to retract on that wing. But then how were the pilots to know that?!? RIP, everyone that went on that fateful day!!
The pilots were cleared of any blame, they thought they were dealing with a dead engine and followed the procedure for that...as you said.. they didn't know the engine was ripped off and taking the hydraulic lines including the line that feeds the stickshaker ..no warning given to them that the airspeed was dangerously low.. very sad.
@@peteanderson4395 - Without Hydraulics they wouldn't have been able to anyway.
@@goawayleavemealone2880 it would have been a real hard landing if they got it up in the air. It would have been the same situation that the UAL plane that ended up crashing in Sioux City had to deal with. But that airplane had an extra pilot on board. Certainly wouldn’t have really wanted to try to actually land that plane at Ohare. They got real lucky as it was that it didn’t take more out on the ground then they did. Would hate to see it get in the air and then crash into a surrounding neighborhood.
@@TheSjuris - I think the pilots knew that they couldn't save it, so just did what they could to minimise ground casualties.
That's why every pilot hated the dc10 once the engine went it cut all 3 lines every one liked the L 10ll better it had 4 hydraulic lines to control the slats and said they might of had a chance if it was the L10ll aircraft but we will never know
I was just leaving Elk Grove HS about 4miles away& we saw thick smoke- thought factory was on fire in industrial park. Next day or 2 my grandparents flew into O'hare fom NJ- I'll never forget 🙏 🙏 🙏
I was only seven years old but can still vividly remember that day, coming home from school and seeing the black smoke climbing into the sky. A sad day at ORD.