Three Terrible Crashes: Alaska 261, PSA 182 and Valujet 592

[Himerzi]

Was lucky to stumble upon these clips. Lots to learn from them !

Alaska 261 - http://www.ntsb.gov/Events/2000/Aka261/default.htm
This clip is pretty much complete, with all the relevant transmissions.
(from Wikipedia)
"Alaska Airlines Flight 261, a McDonnell Douglas MD-83 aircraft, crashed on January 31, 2000 in the Pacific Ocean about 2.7 miles (4.3 km) north of Anacapa Island, California. The two pilots, three cabin crewmembers, and 83 passengers on board were killed, and the airplane was destroyed."
----------------------------------
PSA 182- One of the deadliest crashes in the History of the United States.  http://www.psa-history.org/museum/NTSBAAR7905.pdf

"Pacific Southwest Airlines (PSA) Flight 182, registration N533PS, was a Boeing 727-214 commercial airliner that collided over San Diego, California with a private Cessna 172 on September 25, 1978. The death toll of 144 makes it the deadliest aircraft disaster in Californian history to date, and it was the first Pacific Southwest Airlines incident involving fatalities. It was also the deadliest plane crash in the history of the United States until American Airlines Flight 191 went down eight months later."
--------------------------------
Valujet 592 - http://www.ntsb.gov/Publictn/1997/AAR9706.pdf

"was a flight that crashed on May 11, 1996 en route from Miami International Airport in Miami, Florida, United States to Hartsfield International Airport (now known as Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport) in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.. The crash destroyed the credibility of the low-cost carrier ValuJet Airlines."


Anyone know what or who the lady is whose voice is repeatedly heard on the PSA recording ? Quite an ominous and scary feel she adds to the recording.

[bphendri]

The ladies voice you hear is an time stamp, that is superimposed onto the ATC tape as it is being recorded, for time auditing/legal purposes.

Sounds like they used the same system MA Bell used to use.. (Before the internet you could call a local telephone number and hear the exact same voice say... "AT THE TONE THE WILL BE NINE FIFTY TWO... AND 10 SECONDS (All the way up to 50, then it would go to EXACTLY.....   BEEEEEEEP."  This is how you set your house clocks, and your watches..

[cessna157]

The Alaska crash is probably the hardest to listen to.  I can't imagine what the Skywest pilots were thinking when they saw an MD80 in a dive then wind up inverted. 

You can just hear it in the controllers voice at the end.  He knew this was going to be very bad, and there was absolutely nothing that he, or anyone else, could do.

I've read the transcripts of the Alaska CVR, and the pilots did a great job with what they had to work with.  They had to learn to fly all over again, except there was one problem.  That aircraft did not want to fly.  Yes, it is the pilots who control the aircraft and tell it where to go.  But if that aircraft doesn't want to go that way, it has the final say.  Its just like riding and animal.

[fholbert]

Sounds like they used the same system MA Bell used to use.. (Before the internet you could call a local telephone number and hear the exact same voice say... "AT THE TONE THE WILL BE NINE FIFTY TWO... AND 10 SECONDS (All the way up to 50, then it would go to EXACTLY.....   BEEEEEEEP."  This is how you set your house clocks, and your watches..

It's really a radio receiver and it uses one track of the tape. They were playing 2 tracks in the  recording.

[laylow]

My grandpa was flying for PSA when 182 went down.  He lost a lot of friends that day.

[Fryy/Avocadoflight]

ASA261 has been discussed previously in the forums, http://www.liveatc.net/forums/index.php/topic,1257.0.html
these are always definitely hard to listen to

[aviator_06]

Nice Post.