Saturday, March 27, 2004
On This Day 1977: Runway collision kills 583
The Tenerife Disaster, which happened over 30 years ago (see our feature for the 30th Anniversary on March 27, 2007), still attracts dozens of readers from all over the world, each and every day. Please do us a favor and let us know in the comments below, why you found this topic interesting and, more importantly, so we can continue to improve our coverage, does this article answer the questions you had about the disaster?
Tenerife disaster: Collision between KLM and PanAm Boeing 747's at Tenerife. Sunday, March 27, 1977.
Los Rodeos, Tenerife's North airport is, unfortunately, famous for the fateful accident which occurred on March 27, 1977, in which 583 people died when KLM and Pan Am 747s collided on a crowded, foggy runway in Tenerife, Canary Islands. The incident remains the world's worst aviation accident in history.
Many contributing factors, lead up to the crash, but the probable cause, cited by the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA, 1978), was the KLM pilot taking off without takeoff clearance.
The wreckage of KLM Boeing 747 PH-BUFWhat happened on the Tenerife runway?
Quite simply put, the KLM attempted takeoff, even though the Pan Am was still on the runway and the KLM had not received clearance for takeoff. The Pan Am tried to get out of the way and the KLM tried to climb over, but the latter ended belly up after dragging it's tail on the ground. The lower fuselage of the KLM plane hit the upper fuselage of the Pan Am plane, ripping apart the center of the Pan Am jet nearly directly above the wing.
Pan Am 1736 ablaze after its collision with KLM 4805Whilst I have no intention of quoting chapter and verse - you can check all the background information I've used to write this summary, via the links cited below - here is quick rundown of the various possible contributing factors:
1. Neither plane should have been at Los Rodeos in the first place, which was not used to handling the traffic it had that day. They should have been in Gran Canaria, but a terrorist bomb attack by Canary Island separatists, The Canary Islands Independence Movement, closed the airport there.
2. There was fog with poor visibility at Los Rodeos. That didn't help anyone, least of all the Pan Am who was looking for a suitable exit off the runway. The one they had been advised to take, seems an impossible turn for a 747.
3. The pilot of the KLM, Captain van Zanten, their "top man", seems to have been in some considerable hurry to get going and appears to have held a level of authority that subordinates did not dare challenge with the necessary strength.
4. Analysis of the cockpit voice recorder (CVR) transcript showed that the KLM pilot was convinced that he had been cleared for takeoff, while the Tenerife control tower was certain that the KLM 747 was stationary at the end of the runway and awaiting takeoff clearance.
5. Reading the transcript of the radio transmissions, exchanges between the tower and the planes were ambiguous at best. One contributing factor to the accident at Tenerife was the involved parties’ use of non-standard phraseology during the critical moments leading up to the accident.
6. The crucial communication that might have prevented the KLM from taking off was lost in radio squelch. The congestion that results from using a single channel radiotelephone system can also lead to communications which are either missed or blocked by the transmissions of other users (Kerns, 1991, 1999). This problem of blocked transmissions was apparent in the runway collision at Tenerife in the Canary Islands, when the air traffic controller and the Pan Am pilot both tried to contact the KLM pilot at the same time.
Another article, from Wikipedia, which discusses the causes in more detail, also highlights one of the positive things to come out of the Tenerife air disaster: sweeping changes made to international airline regulations.
With no small amount of irony, commercial aviation is safer today because of that terrible day in 1977, because, "It was made a worldwide rule that all control towers and pilot crews had to use English standard phrases." Actually, I found it surprising that was introduced so recently. My father had trained RAF pilots in communications during WWII, but they would all have been British and probably flying Spitfires, i.e. men for whom standard English phrases were already their everyday language.
The other positive move, of course, was building Reina Sofia airport on the south of the island of Tenerife, which started operating in 1978. It was already under construction when the Pan Am/KLM crash occurred and, it should be highlighted, therefore, was not built merely out of the aftermath. Previously, passengers had faced a very rough two hour journey by coach from Los Rodeos to the south, so it was more a tourism concern to build the Reina Sofia airport.
My reason for researching this disaster in detail, is because I think that being aware of the facts takes away much of the fear - fear of the unknown - that can lead, ultimately, to a fear of flying. Fortunately, it is a fear I have never had.
In 1980, I had flown from London's Heathrow International Airport to New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport on a Pan Am Flight 103. Yes, the same flight that was blown up over Lockerbie in 1988. In fact, I am almost certain that we flew on the same plane, "Maid of the Seas", so, I am aware to a small extent of the feeling of "There, but for the grace of God, go I".
And, as with most information about Tenerife, there is more speculation, myth and legend published about this crash than there are plain, hard facts. Whilst I can't claim to know the full story either, I do hope to distinguish here between items that can be verified and those which cannot.
What is certain is that Tenerife doesn't have a specially dangerous airport and, in any case, if you are arriving on a tourist charter flight you are far more likely to come to the south airport, not the north one where the accident occurred.
Further reading on the 1977 Disaster:
Air Disaster by Job, TeschFatefully, PanAm's protesting transmission conflicted with the controller's instruction to KLM.
Fatal Words by Steven Cushing. On March 27, 1977, 583 people died when KLM and Pan Am 747s collided on a crowded, foggy runway in Tenerife, the Canary Islands. The cause, a miscommunication between the pilot and the air traffic controller. Fasten Your Seat Belts! History and Heroism in...
by Valerie Lester. Includes the story about flight attendant, Dorothy Kelley, who survived the collision. An absolutely horrifying experience reading, which describes the disaster in details, before, during and after!
Terror En Tenerife by George Otis
The very chilling account of the crash and the survival of Norman Williams, who was in the accident on the Canary Islands in which two huge 747's crashed on the runway and burned. Only a few people out of 500 or more escaped.
Sources and media on the 1977 Disaster:
- BBC 1977: Hundreds dead in Tenerife plane crash (Note: You may not want to watch the BBC news video unless you can muster up a hard heart & strong stomach.)
- Project-Tenerife.com have the video of the reconstruction of the crash, made by National Geographic, which you can view. They also have history, reports and many photos.
- These articles on the Tenerife disaster: Pair of 747s Collide in Worst Air Disaster of 20th Century and Collision between KLM and PanAm Boeing 747's at Tenerife, explain the fatal chain of events which led to the crash.
- AirDisaster.Com: Special Report: Tenerife
- Pan Am Accidents: Tenerife, Spain
- Aviation Safety Network: 1977 Tenerife Collision
- Air travel's communications killer
- 101Crash.com - Tenerife crash March 27th, 1977
- Airmanship Online - a detailed account of the tragedy
- The Canary Islands Independence Movement
Photos of Tenerife North airport today.
Overview to Tenerife Norte airport and also the city of Santa Cruz de Tenerife This photo is dedicated to Robert Bragg, the copilot of the Pan Am that was involved in the fatal crash.
- Rwy 30 final. Check the characteristic cloud over the mountain at Los Rodeos
- Iberia Boeing 747-357 at Tenerife Norte - Los Rodeos
- Overview of rwy 30 as we were on final. Notice how unleveled the rwy. is!!.
- Landing on Rwy 12 as seen from EC-HSE. Notice how the rwy. has different ups and downs!!
- Departing TFN bound for MAD. Note the lightly snowy covered volcano Teide on the right over the wing.
- Finnair Boeing 757-2Q8 departing Tenerife North
Finally, the Tenerife disaster is mentioned in this article, Psychology of Terror, which, whilst any lives lost is too many, does place things into proper perspective.
"Once you have flown, you will walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward, for there you have been, there you long to return." - Leonardo da Vinci
Labels: Tenerife Disaster
19 Comments:
wrote (on
September 24, 2006)
I was assigned by the USAF to fly to Dover AFB to help Pathologists identify the bodies that were recovered. We tried to determine if peopled died from smoke inhalation or impact as well as identify them from medical records. It was often difficult to tell the differences between sexes due to extensive burning.
I was in New Zealand in 2004 when I saw a show about the final minutes prior to the accident and I was overcome with emotion, visuals and the scent of burnt flesh. oregonmagoo@hotmail.com
wrote (on
December 29, 2006)
I was 10 years old when it happened and remember watching it on the world news. It's one of the first news items I have any memory of.
wrote (on
January 13, 2007)
I'm doing some research into the disaster, that's why I visit this page often. Having said that, it's a terrible tragedy and I feel for the relatives of those who died, even though it's 30 years later. Besides, I want to know if the heterodyne problem has been fixed by modern airlines?
Thanks very much for keeping the page up. It also serves as a memorial for those who died.
wrote (on
February 01, 2007)
Was watching a documentary about it on a cable channel, but didn't see the end because my son wanted another channel. Would like to analyze the disaster in more detail to understand the whole story.
wrote (on
February 19, 2007)
I was reading an article today about the death of Anna Nicole Smith and a number of Playboy Playmates who have died young. The story mentioned Eve Meyer, a 1955 Playmate, who was one of more than 550 people killed when two airliners collided on takeoff at Tenerife in the Canary Islands in 1977. I was too young to remember the accident and wanted to read more about it.
wrote (on
February 25, 2007)
I met Norman Williams, a survivor of the crash, some years after the accident and was impressed by his story of survival. He credits God for not only getting him out of the Pan Am plane but for his continued emotional and psychological health afterwards. He chronicled his experience in a book by George Otis, titled "Terror at Tenerife".
wrote (on
March 06, 2007)
I caught the last 10 minutes of a documentary on cable channel last
month which talked about this
disaster. I was 12 years old
when this happened and remember it
quite well. That summer, my mom
bought the book "Terror at Tenerife" which I read nearly 30
years ago. I still have the book
and am currently re-reading it.
For some reason I've never wanted
to give that book away.
I am moved by Mr. Williams' account
of what happened on that March
day in 1977.
wrote (on
March 06, 2007)
I was recalling events of 3/27/77 while writing the story of our daughter's birth for her 30th birthday. I remember being unable to take my eyes off the 10 p.m. CST news about the crash even as my water broke, so birth and death were very much intertwined in my mind for the next 2 hours. Megan was born at 11:56 p.m., happy and healthy, but coincidentally, she does not like to fly. Anecdotally, we also maintain a friendship with a Dutch exchange student living in our community that year, and who was with my parents that evening.
wrote (on
March 08, 2007)
I also read Terror in Tenerife and have never forgotten it. Am still amazed that anyone survived.
wrote (on
April 07, 2007)
I read this because my great grandparents were in the Pan am plane and they died. My grandparents and mom told me what happened, but i wanted more details. This site provided a lot of information for me.
wrote (on
June 18, 2007)
I wanted to look into this because of a show titled, Modern Marvels, on the History Channel that talked about it briefly.
wrote (on
June 19, 2007)
Re anonymous post on 13 January 2007:
"Besides, I want to know if the heterodyne problem has been fixed by modern airlines?"
The answer is no, not really. See this link
http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2002/03/28/heterodyne/index.html?pn=1
wrote (on
July 21, 2007)
I came to this site after a Google search about the Tenerife Disaster. I was searching for it because it is the first plane accident I can remember (I was about 6 years old at that time, and I remember my parents talking about it, and even seeing a report about it in a magazine at that time. I suddendly remembered this accident because I am still shocked by the TAM airline plane disaster that occoured 3 days ago in São Paulo, Brazil. I am Brazilian, and I live in the city from where that plane took off (Porto Alegre) and many of the fatal victims of that crash were well known people in my city -- a deputy, university teachers, lawyers, and so on ....
Jay wrote (on
August 28, 2007)
I have always been interested in this event. I was born on March 27, 1977. My mother saved the paper from the day that I was born and naturally this is the front page. I just saw a documentary not to long ago on this event on Discovery, I think. If you haven't seen it, I suggest you find it.
ginandtea wrote (on
July 16, 2008)
I have seen this incident featured in the " Air crash investigations" programme on Nat. Geo.
The enormity of this air crash stuns me. I was all of 12 years old when this air crash happened, but so many years later, it is still the worst aviation disaster in the world.
A typical example of how haste makes waste?
And, I too would like to know if the heterodyne problem has been fixed yet or not.I have read somewhere that it has...
ginandtea
pehughes wrote (on
August 11, 2008)
I was 6 years old sitting in my dentists office looking for magazines to look at. I think it was on the cover of time magazine and I picked it up and began to study each image. I couldn't look away; paralyzed with curiosity and horror. Photos were etched in my mind changing my childish views of the world forever.
These feelings scared over until about 7 years ago when I saw a special on greatest air disasters on The Discovery Channel. Reopening the wounds when they got to number one, the feelings came with a flush of adrenaline and weakness in the knees. "Oh God, this is the one" I said.
When you?re a child everything seems larger and scarier but when you grow into adulthood things are smaller by comparison both in size and importance but I realize that this disaster was truly immense on every scale.
God bless those that lost their family and friends that day.
The Ministry Center wrote (on
September 06, 2008)
The story as told by Mr. Norman Williams was outstanding. He came to the church we pastored in Milwaukee and told how God helped him climb through a hole in the ceiling of the plane while all around him many sat belted in their seats cursing God. He did not know how he was able to get up to the top of the ceiling to the hole that the wheels of the other plane had ripped away. But by the grace of God, he was enabled to do so. He then slid down to a wing and jumped to the ground, breaking his ankle...his only severe injury. He hobbled away from the plane and some hero in a VW picked him up and took him to the hospital. He found himself quoting...Isaiah 43:2 When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee?.
God bless and comfort all the families who lost their loved ones that day...
My aunt died in this crash. She was a devoted wife and school teacher. Awesome woman and I find myself almost 3 decades later, missing her! That is my interest on this topic! May they all now rest in peace!!!
Molly