Air Indiana Flight 216

Air Indiana Flight 216
Accident
DC-3 similar to accident aircraft
Date	December 13, 1977
Summary	Rudder and right aileron control locks not removed before takeoff
Site	Evansville Regional Airport, Indiana, United States
Aircraft
Aircraft type	Douglas DC-3
Operator	Air Indiana
Registration	N51071
Passengers	26
Crew	3
Fatalities	29
Survivors	0

The Air Indiana Flight 216 crash occurred on December 13, 1977, at 19:22 CST, when a Douglas DC-3, registration N51071 carrying the University of Evansville basketball team, the Evansville Purple Aces, crashed on takeoff at the Evansville Regional Airport in Evansville, Indiana. The aircraft lost control and crashed shortly after lift-off.^[1] The plane was on its way to Nashville International Airport, taking the team to play the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.^[2]^[3]

The National Transportation Safety Board blamed the crash on the pilot's failure to remove gust locks on the right aileron and the rudder before takeoff, as well as an overloaded baggage compartment. The NTSB report said that the plane might have been able to stay airborne had only one of the problems existed. As it was, the extra baggage shifted the plane's center of gravity to the back end, and the locked rudder and aileron made it impossible to control the overweight aircraft.

Head coach Bobby Watson was the only coach on board the flight as his assistant coaches were on scouting assignments at the time. Athletic director Jim Byers had planned to board the plane but stayed behind to interview a candidate for the baseball program. Four of the passengers were still breathing when found by rescuers, with three dying on the scene and one dying hours after the accident. ^[4]^[5] The only member of the Purple Aces who did not die in the crash was 18-year-old freshman David Furr; he was out for the season with an ankle injury and thus was not on the plane that day. Two weeks after the crash, Furr and his younger brother Byron were killed in a car accident near Newton, Illinois, leaving the entire 1977 Evansville team dead.^[6] After consideration, the rest of the season was cancelled.

A memorial has been constructed at the University of Evansville known as the "Weeping Basketball." On stone slabs are engraved the names of the players who were killed, including Furr (the final name on the monument is that of Charles Goad of the Goad Equipment Company, invited on the flight by his friend Bob Hudson). Also engraved is an excerpt from the eulogy delivered by school president Wallace Graves at a memorial service: "Out of the agony of this hour we will rise." A memorial is also at the Ford Center, where the Purple Aces currently play their home games. ^[7]

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Flight crew

Airplane crew:^[8]
- Pilot - Ty Van Pham (aged 42)
- Copilot - Gaston Ruiz (aged 35)

References

^ "ASN Aircraft accident Douglas C-53 (DC-3) N51071 Evansville-Dress Regional Airport, IN (EVV)". Aviation-safety.net. December 13, 1977. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
^ "Team plane crashes in flames". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. December 14, 1977. p. 1.
^ "Air crash ends Evansville's dreams". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). wire service reports. December 14, 1977. p. 1D.
^ https://mccutchanvillefiredepartment.org/ue-plane-crash/
^ Johnson, Dave (December 15, 1977). "Evansville Fans, Community Took Watson to Heart". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 30, 2020.
^ "Last Evansville player dies in auto accident". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. (Florida). UPI. December 29, 1977. p. 1E.
^ "Sunday marks 43 years since UE plane crash". 14 WFIE. (Indiana). NBC. December 13, 2020.
^ "30 Years After 90 Seconds". September 9, 2011.

External links

Final report from the NTSB. Copy from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.

38°2′11.89″N 87°31′7.61″W / 38.0366361°N 87.5187806°W / 38.0366361; -87.5187806

v t e University of Evansville
Located in: Evansville, Indiana
Athletics	Evansville Purple Aces Baseball Men's basketball Women's basketball Men's soccer Charles H. Braun Stadium Ford Center
Awards	Richard Wilbur Award
Related	Men's basketball team plane crash Harlaxton Manor
Founded: 1854

v t e Evansville Purple Aces men's basketball
Venues	Roberts Municipal Stadium (1956–2011) Ford Center (2011–present)
Culture & lore	1977 team plane crash
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders
<span style="color:#FFFFFF">Seasons</span>	List of seasons 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24
NCAA national championships in bold

Aviation accidents and incidents in 1977

Jan 5

Connellan air disaster

Jan 13

Aeroflot Flight 3843

Jan 13

Japan Air Lines Cargo Flight 1045

Jan 15

Linjeflyg Flight 618

Feb 15

Aeroflot Flight 5003

Mar 17

British Airtours Boeing 707 crash

Mar 27

Tenerife airport disaster

Apr 4

Southern Airways Flight 242

Apr 12

Delta Air Lines Flight 1080

Apr 27

Aviateca Convair 240 crash

May 10

Israeli CH-53 crash

May 14

Dan-Air Boeing 707 crash

May 27

Aeroflot Flight 331

Jul 10

Aeroflot Tupolev Tu-134 hijacking

Jul 20

Aeroflot Flight B-2

Aug 1

Encino helicopter crash

Sep 27

Japan Air Lines Flight 715

Sep 27

Yokohama F-4 crash

Sep 28

Japan Air Lines Flight 472

Oct 13

Lufthansa Flight 181

Oct 20

Lynyrd Skynyrd plane crash

Nov 19

TAP Flight 425

Dec 2

Libyan Arab Airlines Tu-154 crash

Dec 4

Malaysian Airline System Flight 653

Dec 13

Air Indiana Flight 216

Dec 17

United Airlines Flight 2860

Dec 18

SA de Transport Aérien Flight 730

Dec 19

1977 Vieques Air Link crash

1976 ◄ ► 1978

v t e Aviation accidents and incidents in the United States and U.S. territories in the 1970s
1970	Cornfield Bomber Eastern Air Lines Shuttle Flight 1320 Trans International Airlines Flight 863 Wichita State University football team plane crash Southern Airways Flight 932 Capitol International Airways Flight C2C3/26
1971	B-52C Lake Michigan crash Colorado Aviation Aero Commander 680 crash Hughes Airwest Flight 706 Allegheny Airlines Flight 485 Pan Am Flight 845 Alaska Airlines Flight 1866 Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 305 (see D. B. Cooper)
1972	Mohawk Airlines Flight 405 Delta Air Lines Flight 9570 American Airlines Flight 96 Prinair Flight 191 Lake Winnebago mid-air collision Pacific Southwest Airlines Flight 710 Delta Air Lines Flight 841 Sacramento Canadair Sabre accident Southern Airways Flight 49 United Air Lines Flight 553 Chicago–O'Hare runway collision Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 Puerto Rico DC-7 crash
1973	DeKalb–Peachtree Airport Learjet crash Ozark Air Lines Flight 809 Delta Air Lines Flight 723 TWA Flight 742 World Airways Flight 802 Texas International Airlines Flight 655 Pan Am Flight 160 National Airlines Flight 27 Iberia Flight 933
1974	Commonwealth Commuter Flight 317 Pan Am Flight 806 Delta Air Lines Flight 523 Eastern Air Lines Flight 212 TWA Flight 514 Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 6231
1975	Golden West Airlines Flight 261 Eastern Air Lines Flight 66 Wien Air Alaska Flight 99 Overseas National Airways Flight 032
1976	Alaska Airlines Flight 60 American Airlines Flight 625 Air Manila Flight 702 TWA Flight 355
1977	Japan Air Lines Cargo Flight 1045 Southern Airways Flight 242 Delta Air Lines Flight 1080 Encino helicopter crash Lynyrd Skynyrd plane crash Air Indiana Flight 216 United Airlines Flight 2860 Vieques Air Link crash
1978	Continental Airlines Flight 603 United Airlines Flight 696 National Airlines Flight 193 Pacific Southwest Airlines Flight 182 Air Caribbean Flight 309 TWA Flight 541 United Airlines Flight 173
1979	TWA Flight 841 American Airlines Flight 191 Downeast Airlines Flight 46 Air New England Flight 248 American Airlines Flight 293 American Airlines Flight 444
This list is incomplete. ALM Flight 980 ditched in waters near St. Croix. Flying Tiger Line Flight 45 occurred in the United States Civil Administration of the Ryukyu Islands

This page was last edited on 8 March 2024, at 21:32

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Transcription

Flight crew

See also

References

External links