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Initially, the crew was unclear as to whether the controller had told them to take the first or third exit. The Tenerife airport disaster occurred on March 27, 1977, when two Boeing 747 passenger jets collided on the runway at Los Rodeos Airport (now Tenerife North Airport) on the Spanish island of Tenerife. The transmission from the tower in which the controller passed KLM their ATC clearance was ambiguous and could have been interpreted as also giving take-off clearance. At 12.30h a bomb explodes in the Las Palmas passenger terminal. This crash killed 583 people onboard the two flights. The passenger had jumped off the aircraft, and others had landed on top of her. However, several passengers later died of their injuries, bringing the final total to 583 dead. The tower and the Pan Am were using the same frequency, which meant when they spoke at the same time, it created a hetrodyne, meaning that nobody in the KLM could hear either sentence. This is his story of survival, recovery and return to flight. Sonneveld, Assistant Purser A.TH.A Van Straaten; and Flight Attendants H.W. 1,806 Tenerife Disaster Photos and Premium High Res Pictures - Getty Images Images Images Creative Editorial Video Creative Editorial FILTERS CREATIVE EDITORIAL VIDEO 1,806 Tenerife Disaster Premium High Res Photos Browse 1,806 tenerife disaster stock photos and images available, or start a new search to explore more stock photos and images. KLM flight 4805 take-off without clearance and collide with the Pan American Boeing 747 in the same runway, this is the major air disaster in 1970's. 583 passengers and crew lost their lives. I seem to be more resilient and able to recover more quickly if something bad happens. For other crashes, see, Wreckage of the KLM aircraft on the runway at Los Rodeos, Aviation accidents and incidents in Spain, (now Tenerife North Ciudad de La Laguna Airport), CAP 413 Radio Telephony Manual (Edition 15), chapter 2 page 6, CAP 413 Radio Telephony Manual (Edition 15), chapter 4, page 6, paragraph 1.7.10, Comisin de Investigacin de Accidentes e Incidentes de Aviacin Civil, International Federation of Air Line Pilots' Associations, International Tenerife Memorial March 27, 1977, List of accidents and incidents involving commercial aircraft, "580 killed in history's worst air disaster", "How KLM accepted their responsibility for the accident", "The Cockpit, the Cabin, and Social Psychology", "The Tenerife Airport Disaster the worst in aviation history", "List of Dead and Survivors on Pan American Plane", "Wreck of 747's Sets Back Cause Of Insurgents on Canary Islands", "Enige overlevende KLM-toestel vliegramp Tenerife blikt na veertig jaar terug", "Cockpit Voice Recorders: Transcripts: KLM 4805", "Advertisement: KLM. Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. But the staircase, high up on the mountain, also makes minimal contact with the sky above, with the infinite star-spangled heavens which it appears to touch ever so briefly. The Tenerife airport disaster was a fatal collision between two Boeing 747 passenger aircraft on Sunday, March 27, 1977, on the runway of Los Rodeos Airport (now known as Tenerife North Airport), on the Spanish island of Tenerife, one of the Canary Islands. Tenerife Airport disaster, which happened to be in 1977 / 3/ 27, involving the two jumbo jets, Boeing 747, the most iconic jet in the history. Is he not clear, that Pan American?, Captain Van Zanten simply replied Oh, yes and continued down the runway. Get off!as they immediately applied full power and turned sharply to the left in a vain attempt to avoid a collision. He travelled with Howard Harper, who was killed. It is a monument of which we can be proud, and which honors the victims. This particular aircraft had operated the inaugural 747 commercial flight on January 22, 1970. One of the inbound passengers, Robina van Lanschot, who lived on the island with her boyfriend, chose not to re-board the 747, leaving 234 passengers on board.[11][12]. Dorothy Kelly was hit over the head by a piece of aircraft and forced through the cabin floor into the Cargo bay. Crash of the Century: Directed by Chantal Hebert, Phil Comeau. Flames, one survivor said, did most of the damage. With her injuries treated, Dorothy and her colleagues continued to assist her passengers: So we started our hospital life. I went back and started pulling people away from the airplane. There were 61 survivors who included four flight attendants, three cockpit crew members, and two cockpit observers who weren't injured at all. WEVE GOT TO JUMP. It was the worst crash in aviation history. [Many of the quotes for this article were taken from the incredible bookFasten Your Seat Belts! [42], Los Rodeos Airport, the only operating airport on Tenerife in 1977, was closed to all fixed-wing traffic for two days. Because of warnings of a possible second bomb, the airport was closed. May GOD bless them all. Video, 00:02:12Isabel Oakeshott: Why I leaked Hancock's messages, Tears of relief after man found in Amazon jungle. In March 1977, two jumbo jets collided at Tenerife Airport killing 583 people. confessionsofatrolleydolly.com by Dan Air. The plane immediately went into a stall, rolled sharply, and hit the ground approximately 150m (500ft) past the collision, sliding down the runway for a further 300m (1,000ft). On March 27th, 1977, a Boeing 747 of KLM Royal Dutch Airlines collided fatally with a 747 of Pan American Airlines on the runway of Los Rodeos International Airport on the Canary island of Tenerife. Eight hours after the crash, police, soldiers and firemen had recovered 522 bodies, and an airport official said that. The loss of life from the Tenerife Airport disaster was horrendous. For a moment, the sculpture appears to move endlessly upwards, but the spiraling movement of the steps has been abruptly interrupted. She then came across a woman lying under the wing. These were the 2 cockpit observers who may as well be considered passengers, 2 flight attendants, and 12 passengers. Instead, departing aircraft needed to taxi along the runway to position themselves for takeoff, a procedure known as a backtaxi or backtrack.[4]. March 27, 1977. The PanAm had also survivors, before the names of the survivors appears a * Content of the page: Crewlist of the PanAm. The aircraft was a Boeing 747-121, registration N736PA, named Clipper Victor. The air traffic controller did not simply respond, Ok to the First Officers We are now at take-off. A few hours later, Las Palmas re-opened and Captain Van Zanten and Captain Grubbs were keen to get their aircraft and passengers to the neighbouring island. 02:32 PM. On March 27, 1977, two Boeing 747 passenger jets, KLM Flight 4805 and Pan Am Flight 1736, collided on the runway at Los Rodeos Airport (now Tenerife North Airport), on the Spanish island of Tenerife, Canary Islands, killing 583 people, making it the deadliest accident in aviation history. The creeping TikTok bans. Lost in translation and unable to see the runway, the controller simply responded: Ok. Why did 918 people die because of this man? Video, 00:04:17, Why did 918 people die because of this man? How the deadliest plane accident happened? The tragedy served as a textbook example of how a chain of events including environmental conditions, organisational influences and unsafe acts can lead to disaster. Dutch investigators emphasised this fact, but ultimately KLM admitted their crew was responsible and the airline financially compensated the victims relatives. Airline Disaster: Crash of the Century. [51] The Netherlands Department of Civil Aviation published a response that, while accepting that the KLM captain had taken off "prematurely", argued that he alone should not be blamed for the "mutual misunderstanding" that occurred between the controller and the KLM crew, and that limitations of using radio as a means of communication should have been given greater consideration. "[34] Captain Grubbs applied full power to the throttles and made a sharp left turn towards the grass in an attempt to avoid the impending collision.[4]. The sudden fog greatly limited visibility and the control tower and the crews of both planes were unable to see one another. The KLM 747 went first, followed by the Pan Am. The Pan Am aircraft was unable to maneuver around the refueling KLM in order to reach the runway for takeoff, due to a lack of safe clearance between the two planes, which was just 3.7 meters (12ft). Because the PanAm passengers remained on aboard it was possible to leave Tenerife at once. It remains one of the worst disasters in aviation history. It happened more than four decades ago, but the Tenerife airport disaster in Spain is still the deadliest plane crash of all time. If he hits us, you wont feel a thing.. Analysis of the CVR transcript showed that the KLM pilot thought that he had been cleared for takeoff, while the Tenerife control tower believed that the KLM 747 was stationary at the end of the runway, awaiting takeoff clearance. Of the 380 passengers (mostly of retirement age, but including two children), 14 had boarded in New York, where the crew was also changed. Seeing some of her colleagues in the carnage, she ran over and got them to check how serious it was. Disoriented and in shock, some of those who had jumped stood around chatting. A study carried out by the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) after the accident concluded that making the second 148 turn at the end of taxiway C-3 would have been "a practical impossibility". Read about our approach to external linking. The crash killed 583 people, making it the deadliest accident in aviation history. Takeoff was delayed by an extra 35 minutes, allowing time for the fog to settle in; The increased severity of the fire caused by the additional fuel led ultimately to the deaths of all those on board. In desperation, the pilots prematurely rotated the aircraft nose upward and attempted to clear the Pan Am by lifting off, causing a 22m (72ft) tailstrike. [26], The Pan Am crew found themselves in poor and rapidly deteriorating visibility almost as soon as they entered the runway. Photo: Martin Lewison via Flickr There were 61 survivors Badly damaged, the KLM jumbo lands back on the runway and skids for a thousand feet before bursting into flames before any of the 248 passengers and crew could escape. Video, 00:04:59, Up Next. [11] The refueling took about 35 minutes, after which the passengers were brought back to the aircraft. Meurs read the flight clearance back to the controller, completing the readback with the statement: "We are now at takeoff. Los Rodeos, renamed Tenerife North Airport (TFN), was then used only for domestic and inter-island flights until 2002, when a new terminal was opened and Tenerife North began to carry international traffic again. Youre getting too close. With passengers already on board and enough fuel for the short hop, the Pan Am Clipper was ready to leave. tenerife airport disaster survivors. KLM Flight Engineer Schreuder heard this statement and expressed his concern. She was greeted with complete carnage. A woman who survived the worst aviation disaster of all time has recalled how she saw a fellow passenger sliced in half by her seatbelt. Feathers, who had been flying from Los Angeles to the Canaries to begin a Mediterranean cruise added: All my rings had come off my fingers. At the end of C-3, the Pan Am would have to make another 148 turn, in order to continue taxiing towards the start of the runway, similar to a mirrored letter "Z". After the March 1977 smash, which killed 583, her then-boyfriend Jack Ridout tried to help a stewardess trying to deploy an escape raft only for an explosion to decapitate the Pan Am worker. At 2:00 in the afternoon, a thick fog rolled into the usually quiet Los Rodeos Airport in Tenerife, in the Canary Islands. The emergency procedures Dorothy had been so well-trained were impossible to follow. Video, 00:01:37, Thanks, but no big speech, in Ken Bruce's sign off, Tear gas fired at Greece train crash protesters. About two months before the accident, he had conducted the Boeing 747 qualification check on the co-pilot of Flight 4805. The Tenerife disaster remains a watershed moment for the aviation industry, one that transformed safety, not only in the air but on the ground. Rudi van de Wint once said: people either like or dislike a monument, but a monument is about so much more. Keulen, J.M.L. The airport quickly became congested with parked airplanes blocking the only taxiway and forcing departing aircraft to taxi on the runway instead. Its amazing what one will do to save their fellow man. She spotted a tiny amount of light above her which she headed towards and climbed out into the front of the plane. Schuurmans-Timmermans, M. Mey-Lefeber, M.E. [32], A simultaneous radio call from the Pan Am crew caused mutual interference on the radio frequency, which was audible in the KLM cockpit as a three-second-long shrill sound (or heterodyne). From the people who made punctuality possible", "San Jose Inside Dutch Hamann Part 2", "Canary Island Separatist Says Group Planted Bomb But Did Not Cause Crash", "Experts converge on Canaries to probe plane crash", "Desert Sun 29 March 1977 California Digital Newspaper Collection", "30 Mar 1977, Page 4 - The Naples Daily News", "The Deadliest Plane Crash - The Final Eight Minutes", "B742 / B741, Tenerife Canary Islands Spain, 1977 - SKYbrary Aviation Safety", "Final report and comments of the Netherlands Aviation Safety Board", "The Vulnerable System: An Analysis of the Tenerife Air Disaster", "CIAIAC | Publications | Relevant reports | A-102/1977 and A-103/1977 2.1 Analysis", "World's deadliest airline disaster occurred 36 years ago today", "Tenerife Disaster 27 March 1977: The Utility of the Swiss Cheese Model & other Accident Causation Frameworks", "The Evolution of Crew Resource Management Training in Commercial Aviation", "Tenerife North airport will get a new control tower, more than 30 years after world's biggest air disaster", "Around the Ranch: All about Battle Mountain", "Rancho Bernardo cross undergoes repairs", "COMUNICADO: Monumento International Tenerife Memorial donado al Cabildo; avanzan los trabajos de cimentacin en la Mesa Mota", "Monumento Conmemorativo Internacional March 2, 2007 + Foto-Video", Survivor remembers deadliest aviation disaster in Tenerife, Official Spanish and Dutch accident reports, English translation of Spanish report and Dutch response, A-102/1977 y A-103/1977 Accidente Ocurrido el 27 de Marzo de 1977 a las Aeronaves Boeing 747, Matrcula PH-BUF de K.L.M. Passengers and crew from the Pan Am aircraft escaped onto the intact left wing and jumped to the ground. The accident had a lasting influence on communication between aircraft and ATC. Carla and I and Bob Bragg made rounds, Bob in a wheelchair or on crutches. Trapped when flooring had given way beneath them, Donovan and Jackson crawled upwards to exit with passengers by working their way forward and down along the exterior of the twisted and constantly shifting fuselage. Tom-Karseboom. Aircraft were packed together on taxiways and limited apron space. Website about the largest aircrash in our history. In support of this part of their response, the Dutch investigators pointed out that Pan Am's messages "No! Both planes involved in the crash had been scheduled to depart from Las Palmas on the island of Gran Canaria. Video, 00:04:00The 'Queen of Chess' who defeated Kasparov, Shuttle disaster: 'Something didn't look right' Video, 00:04:15Shuttle disaster: 'Something didn't look right', The fish that nearly caused a war. Both islands are part of the Canary Islands, an autonomous community of Spain located in the Atlantic Ocean off the southwest coast of Morocco. CRM training has been mandatory for all airline pilots since 2006.[66][67]. In particular, the Dutch response pointed out that: Although the Dutch authorities were initially reluctant to blame captain Veldhuyzen van Zanten and his crew,[5][53] the airline ultimately accepted responsibility for the accident. The international commemoration consisted of two parts: a memorial service and the unveiling of an international monument. By December 1988 she was based at Heathrow (LHR) and living in London with other crew when one of her colleagues asked her to swap flights. After making one final check of the area with Bragg, she was placed into one of the last emergency vehicles to leave the scene. Disaster in Tenerife- 17 march, 1977 at 17:05 at the airport in Tenerife colided two Boeings 747 lines Pan-Am 1736 and KLM 4805. weve taken care of the captain. Video, 00:00:51Australia's 'biggest drug bust' nets $700m of cocaine, Thanks, but no big speech, in Ken Bruce's sign off. Most of the passengers onboard the flight were senior citizens and many injured themselves as they jumped from an opening above the wing. The terrible things she saw on March 28, 1977 scarredDorothy Kelly for life: Ive learned that our emergency training is very good and very necessary. I looked over; it was like looking out of a second floor window about 25 feet down, and I was really scared because my feet were bare and you saw nothing but jagged metal down there and I said to myself Oh, my God, weve survived this and we are going to kill ourselves jumping down on that stuff. [14], Both flights had been routine until they approached the islands. The KLM pilots heard only Ok, but there was more to the sentence. (LogOut/ Slaton was dispatched from Torrejon Air Base just outside of Madrid, Spain. It was only now, as she attempted to use a pair of scissors, Dorothy realised she had broken her arm. The worst aviation diaster in history will no longer escape anybodys notice. The Boeing 747-121 (N736PA) Clipper Victor had stopped in Chicago (ORD) to collect more holidaymakers before a final layover in New York (JFK) to collect the remaining passengers and change crew. To read more incredible stories of heroism from our aviation family click here. Crew list PanAm When they refused, she pushed them before jumping herself. Witness is a programme of the stories of our times told by the people who were there. A large fire immediately ignited. All 234 passengers and 14 crew members in the KLM plane died, as did 326 passengers and nine crew members aboard the Pan Am. A special mention also goes to the other surviving crew members from Pan Am 1736Carla Johnson, Suzanne Donovan and Joan Jackson. I remember people jumping. At 17h06 GMT the KLM 747 began its take off roll. March 27, 1977 is a date permanently etched in aviation history. [7] The captain is no longer considered infallible, and combined crew input is encouraged during aircraft operations.[8]. A Dutch national memorial and final resting place for the victims of the KLM plane is located in Amsterdam, at Westgaarde cemetery. Feathers, who now lives in Dayton Beach and works for the News-Journal said she kept repeating No. This memorial stands at Mount Mesa Mota, Tenerife, Canary Islands. It was really gruesome but the adrenaline was really going and I guess thats how people get through war and similar things. KLM Flight 4805 (a B747-206B, registration PH-BUF, from Amsterdam) and PanAm Flight 1736 (a B747-121, registration N736PA, coming from Los Angeles and New York). My shoes came off. At this point, her training kicked in, and she started to yell:WEVE GOT TO GET OUT OF HERE. Meurs radioed through, informing the tower they were ready for take-off and was given the routing instructions they were to follow after departure. Meurs had 9,200 flight hours, of which 95 hours were on the 747. In memory of the 583 victims of the air crash on March 27th, 1977. One of those survivors was Purser Dorothy Kelly. I knew what I had to do. After much rest and recovery in Tenerife, Dorothy Kelly returned to the United States, and a year and a half later, she returned to the skies for Pan Am. Eventually, most of the survivors on the wing dropped to the ground below. In 1977, a cross in Rancho Bernardo was dedicated to nineteen area residents who died in the disaster. Unable to move, she grabbed his arms and ran away from the plane when the engine finally exploded. She busied herself labelling survivors names, ages, allergies etc. Other major factors contributing to the accident were: The following factors were considered contributing but not critical: The Dutch authorities were reluctant to accept the Spanish report blaming the KLM captain for the accident. Arriving at the hospital, she refused treatment, instead volunteering to help the medical team. This terrible crash came just three Of all of the 61 survivors of Pan Am Flight 1736 (the flight that had survivors come out), only 16 people came out without injuries. (LogOut/ Things were flying around the airplane and everything moved in slow motion. [23], The angle of the third taxiway would have required the plane to perform a 148 turn, which would lead back toward the still-crowded main apron. The ALPA study group concluded that the KLM crew did not realize that the transmission "Papa Alpha One Seven Three Six, report when runway clear" was directed at the Pan Am, because this was the first and only time the Pan Am was referred to by that name. The next cloud was 900m (3,000ft) down the runway and moving towards the aircraft at about 12 knots (14mph; 22km/h).[28]. The creeping TikTok bans, Hong Kong skyscraper fire seen on city's skyline. Cockpit procedures were also reviewed, contributing to the establishment of crew resource management as a fundamental part of airline pilots' training. Get off! It is important that justice is done to this disaster. and Captain Jacob Veldhuyzan van Zanten did not see the Pan Am jet until it was too late because of the bad weather. Metal was flying in the air around us as the plane exploded.' Mrs. Kelly, of Fitzwilliam, N. H., was one of six survivors, including four stewardesses, who returned here last night following Sunday's disaster at Santa Cruz de Tenerife in the Canary Islands in which 577 died. Until that point, aircrew and controllers should use the word "departure" in its place (e.g., "ready for departure"). Change), You are commenting using your Twitter account. The Cockpit crew consisted of Captain Victor Grubbs (56 years old), First Officer Robert Bragg (39 years old), and Flight Engineer George Warns (46 years old). "[35], Captain Veldhuyzen van Zanten was KLM's chief of flight training and one of their most senior pilots. The crew began the taxi and proceeded to identify the unmarked taxiways using an airport diagram as they reached them. Pan Am Flight 1736 had originated at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and was taking tourists to Gran Canaria, where they would begin a 12 day Mediterranean cruise. Video, 00:01:38WATCH: Huge fire burns after Indonesia depot explosion, Australia's 'biggest drug bust' nets $700m of cocaine. The impact and resulting fire killed everyone on board KLM 4805 and most . After the aircraft landed at Tenerife, the passengers were transported to the airport terminal. Jon Ziomek is a former Chicago newspaper reporter and retired Northwestern University journalism teacher and assistant dean. The Tenerife air disaster killed every passenger on board KLM 4805 and all but 61 passengers on the Pan Am flight. Former travel agent Jean Brown has left the retirement. Greater emphasis was placed on using standardised phraseology in communications, thereby reducing any chance for misunderstandings. A large number of flights were diverted to Tenerife, a.o. Get off! Harrowingly she later learned from survivors that some inside the aircraft simply stayed in their seats, waiting to be told what to do. E xactly 40 years ago, at Tenerife-North Airport (formerly Los Rodeos), two Boeing 747s - one belonging to KLM, the other to Pan Am - collided on a foggy runway. Air India Flight 855 (1978) 7. Tenerife was an unscheduled stop for both flights. The crash was caused by many reasons. [49] Facts showed that there had been misinterpretations and false assumptions before the accident. She was not injured and went to Mencey Hotel after the disaster. Still, due to a misunderstanding between his flight crew and ATC, he fully believed they had been given clearance to take off. The authorities reopened Gran Canaria airport once the bomb threat had been contained. The collision resulted in the deaths of 583 of the 644 passengers. Had the plane turned at the third exit as instructed, the collision would not have occurred. The story of the world's worst air . All but five passengers onboard the aircraft were Americans, the non-American passengers were all Canadian nationals. She and Ridout freed themselves from their seats, before jumping two stories from a door of the wrecked jet. The creeping TikTok bans. Whatever life brings all you can do is take precautions. But as the Jumbo Jets neared their destination, reports came in that a bomb had exploded at Las Palmas Airport (LPA). My book is available on Amazon and there is a link to it on my website: http://www.canaryislandscrash.com Also, the photo of the burning Pan Am 747 is one of mine. Some 583 people died or were mortally injured on March 27th 1977 after two Boeing 747 jumbo jets collided on a runway at Los Rodeos airport, Tenerife, in the Canary Islands, making this the world's worst civil aviation disaster. You just heard a clip from ABC News on . The International Tenerife Memorial March 27, 1977, was inaugurated at the Mesa Mota on March 27, 2007. [11], The following day, the Canary Islands Independence Movement, responsible for the bombing at Gran Canaria that started the chain of events that led to the disaster, denied responsibility for the accident. [39] Among the survivors were the captain, first officer, and flight engineer. The wreckage of Pan Am flight 1736 burns at Los Rodeos Airport as survivors scramble to safety. Indeed one survivor even sauntered about in high heels. The ground staff wouldnt let the passengers disembark because there were so many aircraft at this tiny airport and the terminal was packed. Video, 00:01:03One-minute World News, Isabel Oakeshott: Why I leaked Hancock's messages. Both flights to the Canaries had been uneventful. "[4], The controller, who could not see the runway due to the fog, initially responded with "OK" (terminology that is nonstandard), which reinforced the KLM captain's misinterpretation that they had takeoff clearance. Seeing something so horrible I find that anything bad that happens to me is nothing compared with the big picture. Wow. Joani Feathers also saw another woman in curlers set. Difficulties with communications also meant the pilots were unsure whether the controller had told them to take the first or the third taxiway. A five-year lawsuit against United ensued and eventually, the carrier rehired Dorothy and several other former Pan Am crew. Approaching Las Palmas (02:43) Pan Am flight 1736 is nearing the Canary Islands on March 27, 1977. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Kelly declined as she wanted to spend time with her family in New York. Assisting in the flight deck was First Officer Klass Meurs and Flight Engineer Willem Schreuder; while in the cabin, 11 crew were on hand for the 235 passengers. But when the all clear came to resume their journeys, a combination of bad weather and miscommunication meant that Pan Am Flight 1736 was still on the runway as KLM Flight 4805 attempted take-off. Video, 00:00:36, Tears of relief after man found in Amazon jungle. But whilst preparing the aircraft for departure, a thick fog began to develop and visibility deteriorated, only complicating the situation further. Video, 00:02:12, Isabel Oakeshott: Why I leaked Hancock's messages, Tears of relief after man found in Amazon jungle. Everyone on board perished. WATCH: Huge fire burns after Indonesia depot explosion. Divers search for survivors of the Boeing 737 MAX aircraft operated by Lion Air. The KLM plane had reached the end of the runway, turned and was now ready for take-off. Pan Am Flight 1736 had originated at Los Angeles International Airport, with an intermediate stop at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK). After a while the passengers became restless and thirsty, most of these people had come all the way from California. One of the Pan Ams four engines continued to run after the impact, which had severed all controls in the flight deck. The ritual significance of the location is of prime importance. Passengers were looking forward to vacation and unaware of local terrorists determined to get freedom from Spain. Veldhuyzen van Zanten emphatically replied "Oh, yes" and continued with the takeoff. Five hundred and eighty-three people lost their lives; only 61 survived the air disaster. AIR CRASH INVESTIGATIONS: TENERIFE AIRPORT DISASTER, THE WORLD'S DEADLIEST PLANE CRASH EVER . 583 lives were lost when a KLM 747 collided with a Pan Am 747 at Tenerife's Los Rodeos Airport (TFN). The monument for the victims of Tenerife is a sculpture which is a spiral staircase, and a spiral staircase which is a sculpture. [11][36] KLM had suggested initially that Veldhuyzen van Zanten should help with the investigation, unaware that he was the captain who had been killed in the accident.[37]. Once they confirmed the wound was superficial, she continued her rescue efforts. CONTENTS Flight History Disaster Collision Investigation Safety Response Bibliography. and "We are still taxiing down the runway, the Clipper 1736!" [4] The KLM 747 was within 100m (330ft) of the Pan Am and moving at approximately 140 knots (260km/h; 160mph) when it left the ground. I wasnt in a position where I could see out of the plane and I thought a bomb may have exploded. John Beardmore was among 131 passengers who boarded the ill-fated British Airtours flight 28M scheduled to leave for Corfu on 22 August 1985.