OVERVIEW

In military and civil aviation the ultimate nightmare is a mid-air collision.  MID-AIR offers readers brutally authentic accounts of collisions involving military aircraft and civil transports.  Each of the 62 chapters is a window through which readers re-live the aerial crisis, the voice transcript (where available), the collision, the investigation, and the Probable Cause.

The author is a former military and commercial pilot.  This is his eighth book.  He eliminates the fog of aviation techno-jargon and explains each accident in simple and easy-to-understand layman’s terms, complete with 127 photographs and illustrations. 

We chart our future by relying upon lessons from our past.  MID-AIR is an eloquent and timeless journey into aviation history.  This book is a priceless resource for Aviation Enthusiasts and Aviation Professionals.

                                               TABLE OF CONTENTS 

Introduction................................................................................................. 1

The First Mid-Air Collisions...................................................................... 4

Give the Passengers a Thrill...................................................................... 7
Boeing PW-9 ---- Ford 5-AT TriMotor
21 April 1929 over San Diego, California

We Hit the Airliner................................................................................... 14
Lockheed B-34 Ventura ---- Douglas DC-3
23 October 1942 near Palm Springs, California

The Fatal “Training” Dogfight................................................................. 21
Waco UPF-7 ---- Beechcraft AT-10
22 June 1943 near Adel, Georgia

Crash in a Cotton Field............................................................................. 27
Douglas A-26 Invader ---- Douglas DC-3
12 July 1945 near Darlington, South Carolina

Skyscraper Dead Ahead.......................................................................... 33
North American B-25 Mitchell ---- Empire State Building
28 July 1945 over Manhattan, New York

Acrobatics on the Airway......................................................................... 39
Grumman F6F Hellcat ---- Douglas DC-3
30 July 1949 near Chesterfield, New Jersey

Look Out for the P-38!............................................................................. 45
Lockheed P-38 Lightning ---- Douglas DC-4
1 November 1949 at Washington, D.C.

The Miami-to-Havana Tragedy............................................................... 53
Douglas DC-4 ---- Beechcraft SNB-5
25 April 1951 over Key West, Florida

Tragedy over the Grand Canyon............................................................. 59
Lockheed L-1049 Constellation ---- Douglas DC-7
30 June 1956 over the Grand Canyon, Arizona

Say Goodbye to Everybody...................................................................... 67
Douglas DC-7 ---- Northrop F-89 Scorpion
31 January 1957 near Sunland, California

A Simple Night VFR Flight...................................................................... 72
Douglas C-118 Liftmaster ---- Lockheed P2V Neptune
1 February 1958 over Norwalk, California

Section ADF Approach – IFR at Night.................................................... 78
Fairchild R4Q Boxcar ---- Douglas AD-6 Skyraider
7 March 1958 near Naha, Okinawa, Ryukyu Islands

Fire in the Sky and Metal Rain............................................................... 87
North American F-100 Super Sabre ---- Douglas DC-7
21 April 1958 near Las Vegas, Nevada 

Oh, It Was an Awful Sight!....................................................................... 94
Vickers Viscount 745 ---- Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star
20 May 1958 near Jefferson, Maryland

Turn the Other Way!.............................................................................. 101
Boeing B-52 Stratofortress ---- Boeing B-52 Stratofortress
8 September 1958 near Fairchild AFB, Washington

Two Nuclear Bombs Aboard.................................................................. 108
Boeing B-52 Stratofortress ---- Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker
15 October 1959 over Glen Dean, Kentucky

A Routine Check-Flight.......................................................................... 115
North American F-86 Sabre ---- Beechcraft C-35 Bonanza
15 December 1959 near Cheyenne, Wyoming

Two Planes IFR at the Same Altitude................................................... 122
Douglas R6D ---- Douglas DC-3
25 February 1960 over Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Radar Service Terminated..................................................................... 129
Douglas DC-8 ---- Lockheed L-1049 Constellation
16 December 1960 over New York City

VRF-On-Top?......................................................................................... 138
Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star ---- Lockheed L-18
8 June 1962 near Tallahassee, Florida

Beware of the Whistling Swans.............................................................. 144
Vickers Viscount 745 ---- Flock of Whistling Swans
23 November 1962 near Ellicott City, Maryland

Fatal Optical Illusion.............................................................................. 150
Boeing 707 ---- Lockheed L-1049 Constellation
4 December 1965 over Carmel, New York

Broken Arrow......................................................................................... 158
Boeing B-52 Stratofortress ---- Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker
17 January 1966 near Palomares, Spain

The Flight of the Valkyrie...................................................................... 166
North American XB-70 Valkyrie ---- Lockheed F-104 Starfighter
8 June 1966 near Barstow, California

Helicopter Valley.................................................................................... 173
Boeing CH-46 Sea Knight – Boeing CH-46 Sea Knight
15 July 1966 in the Song Ngan Valley, Vietnam

Traffic – Twelve O’clock – One Mile.................................................... 181
Douglas DC-9 ---- Beechcraft B-55 Baron
9 March 1967 near Urbano, Ohio

Caution, Fifty-Three Directly Overhead............................................... 188
Sikorsky CH-53 Sea Stallion ---- Bell UH-1 Iroquois “Huey”
23 June 1967 at MCAF New River, North Carolina

Death Pours from the Sky...................................................................... 195
Boeing 727 ---- Cessna 310
19 July 1967 near Hendersonville, North Carolina

What’d Ya Hit Up There?...................................................................... 204
Douglas DC-9 ---- Piper PA-28 Cherokee
9 September 1969 near Fairland, Indiana

No Problem, We’ll File VFR.................................................................. 211
McDonnell F-4 Phantom ---- Douglas DC-9
6 June 1971 near Duarte, California

Go Around!  Go Around!........................................................................ 218
Convair CV-990 Galileo ---- Lockheed P-3 Orion
12 April 1973 at NAS Moffett Field, California

I Just Hit Something!.............................................................................. 225
Convair F-106 Delta Dart ---- Piper PA-24 Comanche
11 October 1974 near Saxis, Virginia

Radar Lock-On – Tally-Ho!................................................................... 233
General Dynamics F-111 ---- Rockwell 690 Commander
12 November 1974 near Kingston, Utah

Unavoidable Collision?........................................................................... 241
de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter ---- Cessna 150
9 January 1975 over Whittier, California

Clear Sky and Unrestricted Visibility.................................................... 249
Convair VT-29 ---- Cessna 150
9 January 1975 at Newport News, Virginia

One-Eighty-Two, Descend Immediately!.............................................. 256
Douglas DC-10 ---- Lockheed L-1011 TriStar
26 November 1975 near Carleton, Michigan

We Are Finished!  Goodbye!  Goodbye!............................................... 264
Hawker Siddeley HS-121 ---- Douglas DC-9
10 September 1976 over Vrbovec, Croatia

My Wingman Hit Something!................................................................. 273
McDonnell F-4 Phantom ---- Cessna 414
13 September 1976 near Brighton, Florida

We Are Now “at” Takeoff..................................................................... 279
Boeing 747 ---- Boeing 747
27 March 1977 at Teneriffe, Canary Islands

Ma!  I Love Ya!...................................................................................... 288
Boeing 727 – Cessna 172 Skyhawk
25 September 1978 over San Diego, California

Plain and Simple Bad Luck.................................................................... 297
General Dynamics F-111 ---- Cessna TU-206 Stationair
6 February 1980 near Cannon AFB, New Mexico

Where Are the Skydivers?..................................................................... 303
Handley Page HP-137 ---- Cessna TU-206 Stationair
17 April 1981 near Loveland, Colorado

You’ve Got F-4s on Your Tail................................................................ 310
McDonnell F-4 Phantom ---- Beechcraft D-55 Baron
9 January 1983 over the Atlantic Ocean

Head-On Collision on the ILS................................................................ 317
Beechcraft C-99 Commuter ---- Rockwell 112-TC
24 August 1984 near San Luis Obispo, California

Grand Canyon Scenic Tour.................................................................... 323
de Havilland Canada DHC-6 ---- Bell 206 JetRanger
18 June 1986 over the Grand Canyon, Arizona

Oh, [expletive], This Can’t Be!.............................................................. 329
Douglas DC-9 ---- Piper PA-28 Cherokee
31 August 1986 over Cerritos, California

I’m In Trouble Down Here!.................................................................... 335
Fairchild SA-226 Metro II ---- Mooney M-20
15 January 1987 over Kearns, Utah

No Conflicting Traffic............................................................................. 344
Beechcraft U-21 Ute ---- Piper PA-31 Navajo Chieftain
20 January 1987 near Independence, Missouri

Cleared to Land?  Is that Correct?........................................................ 350
Boeing 727 ---- Beechcraft A-100 King Air
18 January 1990 at Atlanta, Georgia

Lost in Blinding Fog................................................................................ 358
Boeing 727 ---- Douglas DC-9
3 December 1990 at Detroit, Michigan

He Went Up in Flames........................................................................... 369
Boeing 737 ---- Fairchild SA-227 Metroliner
1 February 1991 at Los Angeles, California

Military Low-Level Training Flight....................................................... 378
Panavia GR-1 Tornado ---- Bell 206 JetRanger
23 June 1993 near Kendal, Cumbria, United Kingdom

Cleared to Land...................................................................................... 385
Lockheed C-130 Hercules ---- General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon
23 March 1994 at Pope AFB, North Carolina

There’s An Airplane!.............................................................................. 395
Douglas DC-9 ---- Cessna 441 Conquest
22 November 1994 at St. Louis, Missouri

Give It All You Got!................................................................................ 403
Boeing E-3 Sentry AWACS ---- Flock of Canadian Geese
22 September 1995 at Elmendorf AFB, Alaska

When Giants Collide............................................................................... 410
Boeing 747 ---- Ilyushin Il-76
12 November 1996 over Charki Dadri, Bhiwani, India

Max Reverse!......................................................................................... 417
Beechcraft 1900 Beechliner ---- Beechcraft A-90 King Air
19 November 1996 at Quincy, Illinois

No Traffic Reported............................................................................... 425
Lockheed C-141 Starlifter ---- Tupolev TU-154
13 September 1997 over the South Atlantic Ocean

Woooppps!.............................................................................................. 432
Grumman EA-6 Prowler ---- Mount Cermis ski-lift cable
3 February 1998 near Cavalese, Trento Province, Italy

Chinese Air Force (PLAAF) Intercept................................................... 439
Lockheed EP-3E Aries ---- Jian F-8 II Apollo (Finback-B)
1 April 2001 over the ocean near Hainan Island, China

TCAS versus Air Traffic Control........................................................... 446
Tupolev TU-154 ---- Boeing 757
1 July 2002 near Ueberlingen, Germany

Collision at Flight Level 370.................................................................. 454
Boeing 737 ---- Embraer EMB-135 Legacy 600
29 September 2006 over the Amazon Jungle, Brazil

“Last Words from Airline Cockpits”..................................................... 462

Glossary.................................................................................................. 467 

About the Author.................................................................................... 475