The Crash of Piedmont Airlines Flight 22: Completing the Record of the 1967 Midair Collision Near Hendersonville, North Carolina

by Paul D. Houle

Overview

Against a backdrop of inadequate funding, misplaced priorities and a lack of manpower, American commercial aviation in the 1960s was in a perilous state. In July 1967, when a Piedmont Airlines Boeing 727 collided with a Cessna 310 over Hendersonville, North Carolina, killing 82 people, the industry was in crisis. Congress called hearings on aviation safety and government and union officials pressured President Lyndon Johnson to request increased funding for aviation safety.

But the National Transportation Safety Board's probe into the crash was flawed from the start. The investigative team was made up of individuals whose companies had certain interests in the outcome. The lead investigator was the brother of the vice president of Piedmont Airlines. In an effort to shift blame from the government and Piedmont, critical conversations recorded on tape never made it into the NTSB's report. Maintenance and training records, as well as industry warnings of the 727's operational limitations, were also omitted. This book reveals the true story of the investigation: what was left out and why.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781476622521
Publisher:	McFarland & Company, Incorporated Publishers
Publication date:	12/23/2015
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	224
File size:	5 MB
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Paul D. Houle is a former traffic accident investigator with the United States Army. His work in the field of transportation has spanned a couple of decades. He lives in Chesnee, South Carolina.
Paul D. Houle is a former traffic accident investigator with the United States Army. His work in the field of transportation has spanned a couple of decades. He lives in Chesnee, South Carolina.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments
Preface
Introduction
1. “I have a flight plan for you”
2. Passenger List
3. “Twenty-two is ready to go”
4. “Twenty-two rolling”
5. “Somebody got an ashtray on fire?”
6. “A large ball of smoke and flame”
7. “We think it might be a big one”
8. “Deliberate, continuous leaks”
9. “This process is conducted entirely in the open”
10. “There is nothing in the budget request for radar systems”
11. “I really think you have been derelict in your duty”
12. “A compromise of aviation safety”
13. Reaching a “Breakdown” Point
14. “Every major FAA air traffic control facility is short of personnel”
15. “A family affair”
16. “Erratic speed control during enroute climb”
17. “That’s just the cigarette that’s on fire”
18. “We’ll turn off, go direct to the VOR”
19. “I did not participate in the NTSB’s investigation”
20. “Since we are in a real budget squeeze, aviation must take its lumps”
21. “We, the public, prefer simple answers”
22. “Poor cockpit discipline”
23. “At the very least, the controller should have requested a ­read-back”
Chapter Notes
Bibliography
Index