Grand Canyon Aviation Archaeology Galleries

Introduction to Grand Canyon Aviation Archaeology : AVIATION ARCHAEOLOGY IN GRAND CANYON The Grand Canyon National Park in Northern Arizona extends over 277 miles in length, 18 miles wide, and has a depth of over one mile (6,000 feet). With extreme changes in elevation, climate, and topography, the canyon presents considerable challenges for any type of archaeological research or exploration. In addition, the Colorado River flowing through the bottom of the canyon creates a formidable barrier that further restricts foot travel. The history of aviation in the Grand Canyon region began in 1922 when R.V. Thomas landed a Standard bi-plane on Plateau Point nearly 3,000 feet below the rim of the canyon. Soon after, commercial air tours began to operate from an air strip located near Red Butte on the canyon's south rim. During the 1940's and 50's, airlines operating coast to coast flights utilized routes that crossed over vast scenic stretches of the canyon. In 1967, a new airport was built 7 miles from the south rim. The Grand Canyon National Park Airport remains one of the busiest airports in the state of Arizona catering to commercial, military and civilian air traffic. Today, Grand Canyon National Park Airport and Grand Canyon West Airport operated by the Hualapai Indian Nation are the main air travel hubs in the region. Over the years, Grand Canyon has become a popular international attraction and destination and because of this, when an aircraft accident does occur (particularly air tour aircraft), it garners the top news story worldwide. Without regard to technical research, the news media and environmental groups often portray aircraft accidents at Grand Canyon as "mysterious" and "sinister". The causes have ranged from pilot error to mechanical failure or a combination of both. The vertical topography, thin high altitude air, and sudden adverse changes in weather have all contributed to many of these mishaps. To be positive though, most of the accidents have been survivable and with increased air space regulation and advances in air safety technology, the accident rate at Grand Canyon has been reduced dramatically. I have included this special section of aviation archaeology on this website to profile this unique area which is unlike any other place in the world. The introduction of early aviation pioneers and often tragic aircraft accidents that have taken place here all leave behind a legacy of history. A resource often overlooked that needs to be preserved. Thank you for visiting.

Introduction to Grand Canyon Aviation Archaeology

AVIATION ARCHAEOLOGY IN GRAND CANYON The Grand Canyon National Park ...

Updated: Aug 19, 2012 9:57am PST

June 30, 1956: Trans World Airlines / United Air Lines, Lockheed L-1049 (N6902C) / Douglas DC-7 (N6324C) Mid-Air Collision, Grand Canyon, AZ : ACCIDENT SYNOPSIS: June 30, 1956. Two transcontinental airliners departed three minutes apart from Los Angeles International Airport in California. Trans World Airlines Flight 2, (N6902C), a Lockheed L-1049 Super Constellation en-route to Kansas City, MO and then continuing to Baltimore/Washington D.C. TWA Flight 2 carried 70 passengers and crew, many of which were TWA employees and families traveling on company passes. United Air Lines Flight 718 was a Douglas DC-7, (N6324C) bound for Chicago, IL with 58 passengers and crew. Based on their destinations and routes, both aircraft would be flying converging courses to their destinations; however a request for altitude change by TWA Flight 2 due to weather brought both aircraft to fly at a cruising altitude of 21,000 feet. At 1030 AM (PST), both aircraft collided over eastern the Grand Canyon in Northern Arizona. There were no warnings, no alerts, and no survivors among the 128 persons. Only a garbled distress call received from United flight 718 would give any hint of a problem. After an hour of repeated calls from air traffic control, the two flights were officially reported as missing and overdue. A search for the airliners was initiated by several military and state agencies, but it was Palen Hudgin and his brother flying an air tour with Grand Canyon Airlines that would later recall seeing smoke near Temple Butte earlier in the day. The two returned before dark and confirmed the impact site of the TWA Constellation on the northeast slope of Temple Butte. Not far from the burning wreckage was the Constellation's distinctive triple tail smashed against the boulders. Authorities acted quickly on the Hudgin's report of the downed aircraft and the following morning a military helicopter would not only confirm the brother's sighting, but also discovered the smoldering impact site of the DC-7 atop a 1,000 foot ledge of Chuar Butte. At the time it was the worst air disaster in the history of civil aviation. *********************************************************************************************************************************** HISTORICAL SUMMARY: The following photos depict this historical but tragic event in aviation history. As a result of this accident many improvements were made to the national airspace system such as nationwide radar coverage and ATC transponder requirements. After a series of congressional hearings, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) was also created as a result of this tragedy. Since 1990, I have made five trips into the Grand Canyon to map and document the impact sites and remaining wreckage. Each examination visit required a 6-7 day backpacking trip (40+ miles) as well as a solo crossing by raft of the Colorado River to reach the sites.

June 30, 1956: Trans World Airlines / United Air Lines, Lockheed L-1049 (N6902C) / Douglas DC-7 (N6324C) Mid-Air Collision, Grand Canyon, AZ

ACCIDENT SYNOPSIS: June 30, 1956. Two transcontinental airliners de ...

Updated: Oct 28, 2012 8:16am PST

December 1, 1978: General Aviation, Piper PA-28-180 (N15899) Grand Canyon, AZ : ACCIDENT SYNOPSIS: Ernest Buntz, age 42 of Tempe, Arizona was a member of Phoenix Flyers Aero Club and earned his Private Pilot Certificate in the club's Piper Cherokee aircraft. Mr. Buntz was familiar with the aircraft, having accumulated 162 of his 164 hours of flying experience in the Cherokee. On the evening of December 1, 1978, Mr. Buntz, his wife June, and his 76 year old father Ferdinand decided at the last minute to fly to Las Vegas, Nevada for the weekend. Any number of commercial airlines could have flown the group from Phoenix that night, but the younger Buntz had been promising his aging father an airplane ride for some time. Ferdinand Buntz of McKenzie, Alabama had been visiting the Tempe couple for a few days. The senior Buntz, also known as "Sandy" by his friends, was a former mayor of McKenzie. As Buntz began to pre-flight the rental plane, the increasing cloudiness from a fast moving cold front should have caused concern from the new pilot or his passengers and perhaps maybe it did. The forecast called for freezing rain and icing conditions along the route. Nevertheless, the aircraft departed Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport just after sunset and made a right turn to the northwest. Approaching the northern Arizona community of Peach Springs, in the weather and total darkness, Buntz probably began to realize he was in deep trouble. With just a few hours of simulated instrument training, Buntz had no instrument rating and the Piper Cherokee he was flying was not equipped to fly in the ice which by now had accumulated on the aircraft at an alarming rate. Mr. Buntz radioed controllers at Las Vegas informing them of his dire situation. At the west end of Grand Canyon near the rim of Quartermaster Canyon, the aircraft loaded well over it's limit with airframe ice stalled and spun from the overcast sky. The iced-up Cherokee impacted the sage and Juniper covered terrain in a flat, almost vertical decent. There were no survivors. *********************************************************************************************************************************** HISTORICAL SUMMARY: I was told about this crash site by a few fellow pilots I know. They mentioned an unknown scatter of wreckage, but little more information than that. A check of the NTSB's online database was not much help without an aircraft model, N-number, or date of accident. To identify this site I would need to visit the crash site and closely examine the remaining wreckage to determine the date range of the accident and aircraft make and model involved. The fact that there was no post crash fire helped in the on-site field identification process. Personal effects were examined and researched and nearly every fragment of remaining wreckage was inspected to determine the aircraft manufacturer and model. Once I determined the date range of the crash site and identified the aircraft model, I re-checked the NTSB's accident database and found the record of this 1978 fatal aircraft accident near Peach Springs, Arizona.

December 1, 1978: General Aviation, Piper PA-28-180 (N15899) Grand Canyon, AZ

ACCIDENT SYNOPSIS: Ernest Buntz, age 42 of Tempe, Arizona was a mem ...

Updated: Jan 15, 2012 2:03pm PST

November 16, 1979: Nevada Airlines, Inc., Martin 404 (N40438) Grand Canyon, AZ : ACCIDENT SYNOPSIS: November 16, 1979. The Nevada Airlines Martin 404 (N40438) had been chartered to fly 41 French tourists to the Grand Canyon from Las Vegas, Nevada. Flight 2504 departed at 9:35 AM and after an en-route tour of the canyon landed at the Grand Canyon National Park Airport. After deplaning, the passengers proceeded on their four hour ground tour of Grand Canyon's south rim viewpoints. At 2:40 PM, the passengers returned to the airport and boarded the Martin for their return flight to Las Vegas. At 2:50 PM, the aircraft departed from Runway 3 with First Officer James "Newt" Swain at the controls. Immediately after raising the landing gear, a loss of power from the left engine was sensed. Captain William Blewett took control of the aircraft from Swain and noticed that the left engine propeller autofeather light was illuminated and the autofeather button depressed. After passing the end of the runway, the aircraft encountered a downdraft which overcame the single engine climb performance of the aircraft. The airspeed had decreased and the temperature of the right engine cylinder head was rising rapidly toward the maximum limit so Captain Blewett elected to reduce the manifold pressure to avoid a possible engine failure. The inability of the aircraft to climb and the proximity of the rising terrain required the crew to return the right engine to full power and select a forced-landing area. The Martin collided with trees 7,531 feet past the end of Runway 3. The aircraft was destroyed by post-impact fire. The cause(s) for the unwanted autofeather of the left propeller was never determined. By all accounts this accident should have resulted in multiple fatalities. Had the circumstances been less favorable, the accident could have been the second worst aviation disaster at Grand Canyon. However, by luck and to the credit of the entire flightcrew, all 44 passengers and crew survived the crash landing, post impact fire, and successful evacuation. *********************************************************************************************************************************** HISTORICAL SUMMARY: Today the area surrounding the crash site of Nevada Airlines Flight 2504 remains relatively unchanged since 1979. The aircraft came down in one of the very few open areas in the vicinity of the airport. Any other location and the aircraft would have been ripped apart as it descended through the combination of pine trees and rocky terrain. A defined line of small debris marks a path the aircraft made as it traveled across the clearing, smashing into trees and rocks along the way. A few burned tree trunks remain on-site that still contain embedded aircraft structure. A defined burn area is evident where the aircraft finally came to rest and burned. The area is littered with a small amount of passenger personal effects, aircraft structure and components. It is always refreshing to research and visit a crash site in which no one was killed. Unfortunately, there are very few of these "happy landings" in this rugged region.

November 16, 1979: Nevada Airlines, Inc., Martin 404 (N40438) Grand Canyon, AZ

ACCIDENT SYNOPSIS: November 16, 1979. The Nevada Airlines Martin 40 ...

Updated: Aug 29, 2011 6:00pm PST

August 17, 1983: Las Vegas Airlines, Inc., Piper PA-31-350 (N88LV) Grand Canyon, AZ : ACCIDENT SYNOPSIS: A combination of low clouds and poor visibility were the major factors in the tragic mishap that claimed Las Vegas Airlines (LVA) Flight 88. The scheduled air tour, along with a flight of four other Las Vegas Airlines aircraft originated from the North Las Vegas Airport (KVGT) on the morning of August 17, 1983. The final destination for the flight was Grand Canyon National Park Airport (KGCN). In command of Flight 88 was Captain Wallace S. Gustafson Jr. Known by fellow pilots as "Gus", Captain Gustafson was a retired fighter pilot with the United States Air Force and had well over 8,000 total flight hours. He was hired by Las Vegas Airlines on April 16, 1980. A family of nine vacationing tourists from Italy made up Flight 88's passenger manifest. The flight departed on a cloudy/rainy day at 11:42 AM and proceeded eastbound over Hoover Dam and Lake Mead to the western boundary of the Grand Canyon. At this point, most of the Las Vegas Airlines aircraft in the flight began climbing over the Shivwits Plateau to avoid the deteriorating weather conditions. For reasons unclear, Captain Gustafson decided to fly through the canyon and below the overcast. During this time he was relaying his position by radio using radials off of the Peach Springs VORTAC navigation station. Flying low through the canyon, the flight encountered what other pilots in the area would later describe as a "wall of clouds" that went to ground level. With visibility decreasing, Captain Gustafson may have become confused with his precise location within the canyon. It was later speculated by other tour pilots and the NTSB that Captain Gustafson may have thought he was in the area known as "Twin Peaks" which was six miles to the north and clear of rising terrain. At around 12:27 PM, Captain Gustafson made a final radio call to the other company aircraft; "It's getting too bad in here, I'm getting out". Attempts were made to contact the flight by another company aircraft were unsuccessful. The four remaining Las Vegas Airlines aircraft completed their sightseeing flights by proceeding over the Shivwits Plateau just north of Mt. Dellenbaugh. When it was clear that Flight 88 had not made it to Grand Canyon Airport nor had returned to North Las Vegas Airport, a missing aircraft alert was issued to try and locate Flight 88. With bad weather hampering the search, it was not until noon the following day when two company pilots flying a search mission found the scattered wreckage of Flight 88 on the southwest slope of a remote mesa within the Grand Canyon. There were no survivors. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) concluded that it was too much of a risk to conduct an on-site investigation of this accident. The official accident investigation was made possible through a series of photographs taken by investigators as they hovered by helicopter near the crash site. A majority of the scattered human remains were removed by Coconino County Sheriff Deputies and volunteers from the Hualapai Tribe who rappelled down the cliff face. *********************************************************************************************************************************** HISTORICAL SUMMARY: The crash site of Las Vegas Airlines Flight 88 still rests on the mesa that was posthumously named "Gus's Plateau" after Captain Gustafson. Every year since the accident thousands of people continue to fly over the crash site on air tour flights, but few if any notice the crumpled pile of aircraft metal below. As a pilot flying tourists over the canyon since the early 1990s, I became intrigued by the story of the accident and the challenge of someday visiting the crash site. The site itself is located in a very remote region of the Grand Canyon and because of this had never been visited since August of 1983. There are no trails or roads and there are no water sources. During warm months rattlesnakes are a common sight. The crash site rests on a steep shelf of crumbling igneous rock and shale that is very difficult to hike on. Although the crash site lies within the Grand Canyon, the land itself is governed by the Hualapai Indian Nation and access can only be granted by tribal permission. A hike to this site poses many challenges. Before finally reaching this crash site, I made two previous attempts and both failed due to problems navigating the terrain. When planning my third attempt, I studied a series of aerial photographs and found the best possible route without the use of technical climbing gear. On April 28, 2010, I finally reached the crash site of Las Vegas Airlines Flight 88. **** If you have additional information concerning this accident and/or photos of the those involved and would like to add them to this story please email me at: lostflights@gmail.com ****

August 17, 1983: Las Vegas Airlines, Inc., Piper PA-31-350 (N88LV) Grand Canyon, AZ

ACCIDENT SYNOPSIS: A combination of low clouds and poor visibility ...

Updated: May 06, 2012 9:33am PST

September 17, 1985: General Aviation, Piper J3C-65 (N6566H) Grand Canyon, AZ : ACCIDENT SYNOPSIS: What started out as a multi-day cross-country flight from Eugene, Oregon ended in tragedy in the depths of Grand Canyon. The father and son departed Boulder City, Nevada after a brief fuel stop. With no official flight plan in place, they would keep family members updated of their progress through a prearranged schedule. After a quick stop at the Pierce Ferry Airstrip, Willard Martin and his son Eric turned the vintage 1946 Piper J3 Cub and followed the Colorado River into the deep gorge of the Grand Canyon. The bright yellow aircraft was seen by numerous helicopter tour pilots flying low and just above the river east of Kanab Point. A later review of the pilot's notes indicated the flight was to fly through the eastern portion of the Grand Canyon, making a turn to the north for about 40 nautical miles with a refueling stop at Kanab, Utah. Continuing up to Salt Lake City and Northern Nevada for their return trip to Oregon. The flight never made it to Kanab. After four days, concerned family members notified the Federal Aviation Administration which in turn notified authorities to begin an aerial search operation. The initial search was unsuccessful. Thirteen days after the aircraft made it's final flight, it was located by a military search and rescue helicopter about three miles from where it was last seen by a tour helicopter. The low-level Piper Cub had flown up into Crazy Jug Canyon and hit a steep cliff wall while trying to execute a 180 degree turn. The maneuver known by pilots as a "Widow Maker Turn". Both father and son were killed. HISTORICAL SUMMARY: A visit to this remote canyon site is moderately difficult. The hike requires a series 30-40 foot rappels through Crazy Jug Canyon negotiating the usual vertical pour-offs found in these narrow notch canyons. It appears that most if not all of the aircraft is still present at the site, but some components may be buried by silt due to floods. The preservation of wreckage and the site in general remains in question due to it's location in the seasonal drainage. Although dry most of the year, seasonal flooding has caused erosion damage, movement of wreckage and the burial of a few structural components.

September 17, 1985: General Aviation, Piper J3C-65 (N6566H) Grand Canyon, AZ

ACCIDENT SYNOPSIS: What started out as a multi-day cross-country fligh ...

Updated: Aug 31, 2011 1:49am PST

January 8, 1986: General Aviation, Cessna 172N (N2113E) Grand Canyon, AZ : ACCIDENT SYNOPSIS: The evening of January 8, 1986 at Grand Canyon was one of those cold dark moonless nights with temperatures dropping well below freezing. For Michigan natives Ben Blecher, Steve Tabbert, and Jim Robinson, northern Arizona was a welcome change from the snowy suburbs of Detroit. The trio had arrived in Las Vegas, Nevada earlier in the week to attend the annual Consumer Electronic Show. With the Grand Canyon nearby, the group decided to rent an airplane and tour the gorge. Blecher, a licensed low-time pilot had brought along his logbook to receive a quick check flight. With no flight time logged in the preceding year, few area flight schools wanted the liability of renting an aircraft to a non-current pilot. Blecher eventually went to K&M Aviation at Henderson/SkyHarbor Airport (L15) that would rent him a Cessna 172. After an hour or so evaluation flight with an instructor, Blecher was deemed “safe” and the three friends departed later that afternoon for Grand Canyon Airport. The day at the Grand Canyon’s South Rim soon turned into night and the trio returned to the airport well after dark. In a hurry to return the rental aircraft, Blecher completed a quick pre-flight as best as he could without a flashlight. At 7:47PM, the Control Tower had already closed by the time Blecher taxied the Cessna to Runway 03. The takeoff roll was uneventful as the bright landing lights illuminated the runway’s center-line, but as soon as Blecher began to lift the Cessna skyward, a curtain of blackness soon enveloped the windscreen. Continuing to climb, but rolling in a left turn, the non-instrument rated Blecher strained his eyes outside in an effort to see some form of horizon or visual reference. The Cessna, remaining in the left turn, began a deadly descent into the trees and high terrain west of the runway. The aircraft crashed in a 45 degree nose down, 15 degree left bank. There were no witnesses to the accident or the resulting fire which eventually burned itself out. Incredibly, four days passed and the missing Cessna remained hidden in the dense trees and foliage surrounding the airport even though an intense search and rescue effort was in progress. A departing aircraft not connected with the search effort eventually spotted the scattered wreckage and reported it to the Control Tower. HISTORICAL SUMMARY: This crash site was brought to my attention by a fellow co-worker and aircraft mechanic at Grand Canyon Airlines. A few years ago he was on a walk and stumbled upon the wreckage of an aircraft on the west side of the airport. I was intrigued by his find and tried to locate it myself without success. I shelved the find for a year or so until, while on a training flight, I spotted a glint of metal through some trees. Making a rough note of the location, I hiked back into the area and located the crash site on April 3, 2012. Due to a thorough clean-up of the crash site, I literally walked right on it before I noticed any debris. Very little remains of the wreckage, but only a few small pieces and parts scattered in a southeasterly to northwesterly pattern. An area of burned and melted metal and plastic marks the location of the post crash fire. To positively identify the 26 year old crash site, I had to refer my investigation to a previously unknown wreckage debris pile in a meadow nearly 4 miles away. There, I was able to match small bits of wreckage from the crash site to parts found in the debris pile. This was the first time I had the opportunity to apply these forensic techniques to determine the identity of an aircraft involved in an accident.

January 8, 1986: General Aviation, Cessna 172N (N2113E) Grand Canyon, AZ

ACCIDENT SYNOPSIS: The evening of January 8, 1986 at Grand Canyon w ...

Updated: Apr 07, 2012 4:08pm PST

May 13, 1991: Air Grand Canyon, Inc., Cessna T207A (N6280H) Grand Canyon, AZ : ACCIDENT SYNOPSIS: May 13, 1991, was looking to be another busy day flying tourists over the the flight departed Grand Canyon National Park Airport (KGCN) for what was to be a 45-50 minute tour flight over the spectacular Grand Canyon. The flight made a normal departure at 1:12 PM, but never made it to the canyon. A plume of black smoke was reported a few minutes later, eight miles east of the airport. After several unanswered radio calls and seeing wreckage, it would be confirmed by another AGC aircraft flying 15 minutes in trail that "Adventure One" had gone down in a fireball on the Kaibab Plateau. No distress calls were made and there were no survivors among the seven on board. The NTSB investigation later revealed that the engine had seized/failed due to a catastrophic detonation of the number one cylinder. A post-accident engine tear-down revealed ignition temperatures became so extreme within the cylinder that the piston actually began to melt. The flight crew/passenger manifest consisted of: Robert R. Mathews..........Pilot Doris Kalin......................United Kingdom Gaby Horler....................United Kingdom Franz Luond...................Switzerland Max Krucker....................Switzerland Paul Lipscombe...............West Germany Gitta Lipscombe..............West Germany This accident has personal meaning to me since I was originally the pilot scheduled to fly this particular flight. A group of six tourists requesting an air tour of the canyon while I was on my lunch break provided the "Twist-of-Fate" that allowed me to avoid almost certain death or serious injury. Never again after this day would I ever take aviation for granted. *********************************************************************************************************************************** HISTORICAL SUMMARY: The majority of "Adventure One" wreckage was removed from the site shortly after the NTSB completed their on-site examination. Only a few small fragments remain today. A few personal effects have been recovered from the site which included a set of keys, an eyewear sun-glass lens, and a partially melted wristwatch stopped at 1:20 PM (estimated time of the accident). Within a year after the accident, a bronze plaque was placed at the crash site as a memorial to those who lost their lives in this accident.

May 13, 1991: Air Grand Canyon, Inc., Cessna T207A (N6280H) Grand Canyon, AZ

ACCIDENT SYNOPSIS: May 13, 1991, was looking to be another busy da ...

Updated: Jan 21, 2012 1:37am PST

December 10, 1991: Las Vegas Airlines, Inc., Piper PA-31-350 (N350MR) Mount Wilson, AZ : ACCIDENT SYNOPSIS: Braxton “Perry” Smallwood age 44, loved to fly. As a Captain in the U.S. Air Force, he flew F-111’s based in Turkey and F-16’s at nearby Nellis Air Force Base during his 20 year military career. After honorably retiring from duty and an 8-year hiatus from aviation, Smallwood was hired by Las Vegas Airlines in February 1991 to fly sightseeing air tours over the Grand Canyon. Over the preceding ten months with Las Vegas Airlines, Smallwood would gain experience by either observing or flying to and from North Las Vegas Airport and Grand Canyon Airport. The tour itinerary was simple, air tour over, stopping at the canyon’s south rim to look over the edge, buy souvenirs, have lunch, and then a quick direct flight back to Las Vegas. Most tourists, exhausted from the long day, would sleep on the return leg. On December 10, 1991, Captain Smallwood departed Grand Canyon Airport with four French tourists. The 3:00 PM return departure was made in relatively clear weather. The flight was uneventful as Smallwood approached Temple Bar Marina. Off the nose, a band of low clouds, heavy rain and low visibility replaced the canyon’s blue skies. Flying over Lake Mead and dodging clouds, Smallwood was trying to find a break in the weather, but It just wasn’t there. With only 35 miles from the destination, the push for Smallwood to “press on” was no doubt with him. Compounding the pressure was the incentive to complete the flight as Las Vegas Airline’s policy was that pilots were only paid if they made it to the destination (An issue in the 1983 accident investigation of Las Vegas Airlines Flight 88). Air Traffic Controllers in Las Vegas watching the Piper’s wandering and spotty radar track, cleared the flight into controlled airspace. Shortly thereafter, controllers noticed the flight turn south and descend towards the eastern ridge of Mount Wilson. Minutes passed with controller’s repeated and unsuccessful attempts to contact the flight. A missing aircraft alert was issued, but with low clouds, low visibility, and increasing darkness, the search would have to wait until morning. At daybreak the wreckage was located on the 4,800 foot level of Wilson Ridge. There were no survivors in this Controlled Flight Into Terrain (CFIT) accident. *********************************************************************************************************************************** Historical Summary: To call this a Grand Canyon mishap is a stretch in geography, but in the days following the accident, the news media, hungry to fuel the ongoing air tour debate labeled the tragedy a “Grand Canyon Accident” ignoring the fact that it occurred forty miles west of the park’s boundaries. I will include it as Grand Canyon Aviation Archaeology to maintain the historical context. Locating this accident site was difficult. The one large fragment remaining at the site blends in easily with the terrain and during certain times of the day with either light or shadow is completely invisible from the air. I was fortunate to have a private aircraft available when I spotted the wreckage on an overcast day. The crash site is located on a very steep and unstable topography of loose rock and boulders. Often the slope grade exceeded 65 degrees. Unlike the wreckage of Las Vegas Airlines Flight 88 in Grand Canyon, most of the wreckage from LVA Flight 50 was recovered. Absent is the aircraft's tail section, most wing structures, landing gear, seats, and both engines. The remaining wreckage is comprised of a few fragments of fuselage and wing structure, engine components, cockpit components, and personal effects. An intense burn area and debris scatter was present during my visit.

December 10, 1991: Las Vegas Airlines, Inc., Piper PA-31-350 (N350MR) Mount Wilson, AZ

ACCIDENT SYNOPSIS: Braxton “Perry” Smallwood age 44, loved to fly. ...

Updated: Feb 04, 2012 9:37am PST

February 13, 1995: Las Vegas Airlines, Inc., Piper PA-31-350 (N27245) Grand Canyon, AZ : ACCIDENT SYNOPSIS: February 13th was a Monday and the federal courtroom was packed after a weekend recess. Like many lawsuits involving negligence, this was a case of who was right and who was wrong and who was going to pay. The legal spotlight on this day was focused on air tour and charter company Las Vegas Airlines (LVA). The long time operator of Grand Canyon air tours was trying to convince an unconvinced jury how bad weather was to blame for the fatal crash of one of their flights into a cloud shrouded mountain during December 1991. For Las Vegas Airlines father and son owners, Donald Donohue Sr. and Don Jr. sitting in the courtroom's "hotseat" with their team of lawyers, was a bit like Déjà vu. The Donohues had been here before. The first time was in 1978, when one of their Piper Navajo Chieftains crashed shortly after takeoff killing all ten on-board. The other, was the devastating loss of LVA Flight 88 in August 1983 which wiped out nine Italian tourists and pilot within the Grand Canyon. Now they were back in court dealing with another preventable fatal accident that took five lives. The small family owned airline for the most part was holding its own after these mishaps, but each of these accidents brought increasing scrutiny from the FAA and media. Not to mention higher insurance premium costs. The last thing Las Vegas Airlines needed was another accident. Suddenly Donohue Jr's. cell phone rang. It was Jack Brekke, LVA's General Manager. Las Vegas Airlines Flight 45 had just crashed at Grand Canyon. Las Vegas Airlines Flight 45 was operated by a Piper PA-31-350 Chieftain (N27245) making it's return flight back to North Las Vegas Airport (KVGT). In command of Flight 45 was Captain Avilia W. Moore and like all pilots for LVA he was a retired military flier with most of his experience in high performance jets and little experience in general aviation piston powered aircraft. The nine passengers on the manifest were Taiwanese nationals. Having flown with Captain Moore earlier in the day, they spent a couple of hours peering over the canyon's edge and buying souvenirs to bring back home. After a buffet lunch, it was time to head back to the airport for the return flight. With his passengers boarded, Captain Moore wasted no time in getting both engines started and calling the control tower for a taxi clearance. At 3:30 PM, Flight 45 departed runway 21, but as Moore began making his right turn for Las Vegas, the left engine suddenly began loosing power. Moore began a desperate attempt to re-start the engine by adjusting the engine's throttle and fuel mixture, but to no avail. Faced with an inoperative engine and flying no higher than 100-200 above the terrain, Moore declared an emergency. He then stated to the control tower "i'm single engine right now". The flight never turned directly back to the runway, but instead continued flying for about 6 minutes, turning onto a crosswind, downwind, and then a right base leg for runway 21. Moore was nearly 2.5 miles northeast of the airport when he contacted the top of an 80 foot ponderosa pine tree. The aircraft then began to break apart as it made it's uncontrolled descent to the forest's floor in a burning pile of metal. When rescue personnel arrived, eight people including the pilot were dead at the scene. Miraculously, two passengers survived the accident with serious trauma and burn injuries. After several weeks of recovery in hospital burn units, they would return to their families in Taiwan badly maimed, but alive. The cause of the engine failure was never determined. The pilot was faulted for not following proper emergency engine failure procedures and turning into higher terrain with an inoperative engine. For Las Vegas Airlines this fatal accident proved to be their last. The company, which was founded in 1973, filed for bankruptcy and closed their doors in 1996. *********************************************************************************************************************************** HISTORICAL SUMMARY: First of all, I would like to thank Ms. Lora Pitsinger of the Tusayan Fire Department for providing the location details that allowed me to find the crash site. Ms. Pitsinger was one of the first responders called to this accident in 1995. This was her first "serious" emergency call and she still remembers it well. A year ago I mentioned my interest to document this site for historical purposes and she was generous to provide her account of the accident. The crash site has special meaning to her and others that responded to this tragic event. The site itself is located on land managed by the U.S. Forest Service and as with most recent accident sites in this area the majority of large wreckage debris was removed during the few days after the on-site investigation and subsequent clean-up . The main cabin burn area is contained within a radius of approximately 15 feet and consists of small structural fragments and components that have been exposed to considerable heat and fire damage. An outer area with a radius of about 25 feet contains plastic material and window plexiglass that exhibits little if any fire damage. Some of the trees in the crash path appear to have impact damage and trees immediately within the main cabin burn area show signs of charring. I was not able to locate wreckage outside of the 25 foot outer area.

February 13, 1995: Las Vegas Airlines, Inc., Piper PA-31-350 (N27245) Grand Canyon, AZ

ACCIDENT SYNOPSIS: February 13th was a Monday and the federal cour ...

Updated: Jan 08, 2012 2:27am PST

November 22, 1995: General Aviation, Cessna 210L (N5138Q) Grand Canyon, AZ : ACCIDENT SYNOPSIS: Since the official opening of the Grand Canyon National Park Airport in 1967 there have been 6 fatal accidents attributed to pilots arriving or departing on dark moonless nights. The area around the airport is unique in that at night, all visual references to terrain and obstructions vanish and the all important horizon used for reference is gone. Pilots have often referred to night flying around the canyon's airport as flying in a "Black Hole" or in the "Void of Space". A pilot's only answer to a safe flight is to totally rely on the aircraft flight instruments. The primary goal is to keep "the shiny side up and the dirty side down". Jason Cook age 25, was a new pilot, having earned his private license the month prior he felt he was ready fly something faster than the slow Cessna 172 he had been renting. He decided to buy a Cessna 210 Centurion. The plane was fast and had a retractable landing gear. It also had an impressive array of flight instruments and avionics to keep an instrument rated pilot out of trouble. The problem was that Cook did not hold an instrument rating nor was he proficient to fly safely on instruments. The stage was set for disaster. After spending the day at the Grand Canyon with his girlfriend Sondra Schuler age 23, friends drove both Cook and Schuler from his local pizza restaurant business (We-Cook-Pizza) to the airport. It was well past sunset and a friend asked Cook if he had any concerns about flying on such a dark night. Cook replied with overconfidence "It's no different than flying in the day". At 8:00 PM, the Cessna departed runway 21 and as the aircraft began to climb Cook retracted the landing gear. Heading southbound, the "Black Hole" that doomed pilots before him suddenly filled the windscreen. Cook, trying desperately to find a reference point in the dark void began turning left and losing altitude. In a matter of a few seconds, the Cessna smashed to earth in a violent impact instantly killing both Cook and Schuler. The plane crashed only a half mile from the departure end of the runway. *********************************************************************************************************************************** HISTORICAL SUMMARY: The memorial site is located about one-half of a mile from the departure end of runway 21 and it's assumed based on the accident report and the small fragments of wreckage near the memorial that the accident site is very close if not at the location of the memorial. The site itself has been altered due to people removing wreckage from the surrounding area and re-locating the fragments to the memorial site. A collection of wreckage debris is located near the crosses which makes defining the actual crash site dimensions difficult. Some debris collected and placed at the memorial is not from the accident aircraft, but from other unknown aircraft that had crashed in the same general area. The memorial site is also a popular geo-cache location known as the "Cook-Schuler Memorial" and is visited frequently. I was a little concerned about the popularity and number of people that visit the site, but on my visits I have not noticed any direct vandalism or looting at the location.

November 22, 1995: General Aviation, Cessna 210L (N5138Q) Grand Canyon, AZ

ACCIDENT SYNOPSIS: Since the official opening of the Grand Canyon ...

Updated: Sep 10, 2010 12:00am PST

August 3, 1999: General Aviation, Cessna 177B (N19113) Grand Canyon, AZ : ACCIDENT SYNOPSIS: The aircraft, a Cessna 177B Cardinal was rented from Aero Haven, Inc. of Big Bear, California by 39 year old Michael Regli for a three day personal flight with stops at Las Vegas, Nevada and Grand Canyon, Arizona. The aircraft was scheduled to return to Big Bear on August 3, 1999. Accompanying Regli on the trip was Christine Hostettler, age 21 and Celine Lesignioli, age 22. The airplane arrived at the Las Vegas McCarran International Airport parking ramp about 5:40 P.M. on August 1st, where it remained for the night. On August 2nd. At 2:00 P.M., the trio departed Las Vegas for the Grand Canyon. Arriving at the Grand Canyon, the aircraft again remained overnight and was refueled to full tanks prior to departure. Regli, with only 422 hours of total flight time logged appeared to be unfamiliar and unprepared at the canyon having asked the controller in the tower numerous times for local radio frequencies. Information that would have been on sectional charts and the Airport Facility Directory (AFD) for Arizona. However, the only sectional chart in the aircraft was for Las Vegas and the AFD was for California. With full fuel tanks, luggage, and three persons on-board, the Cardinal was heavy and only a few pounds short of it's gross weight limit of 2,500 pounds. Compounding to these limitations was the air temperature at a warm 73 degrees Fahrenheit. The density altitude was at 8,800 feet msl. The Cardinal, with it's non turbo-charged engine would still be able to climb, but just barely and ONLY if the engine was operating at it's optimum level of performance. With Regli in the left seat and Hostettler sitting up front in the right seat, Celine Lesignioli had the entire back seat row to herself. Lesignioli most likely intended on taking a short nap on the 2 hour return flight to Big Bear. At 2:07 P.M., the control tower cleared N19113 for takeoff on runway 03. The aircraft accelerated slowly and lifted off the 8,999 foot runway, but the climb rate was slow and far from normal. Regli should have aborted the takeoff and landed on the remaining runway, but he didn't. Within a few seconds the end of runway 03 passed below the staggering Cessna with the view opening up to a sea of tall pine trees and rising terrain. The aircraft barely cleared the rooftops of hotels and other businesses in the town of Tusayan startling many people on the ground of the low flying aircraft. The tower controller noticing the aircraft in trouble suggested to the pilot, "If you need to turn up the highway for altitude you can do that" Regli acknowledged, but as the aircraft crossed the highway it was flying too slow to make the turn. The aircraft suddenly rolled left and crashed down through the trees. Striking one tree at 40 feet above the ground, the impact tore the tail section from the aircraft. The aircraft pitched over and crashed nose first into the ground instantly killing Michael Regli and Christine Hostettler. Celine Lesignioli remained trapped in the crumpled aircraft critically injured, but alive. In a twist of fate, the hot engine was thrown clear of the wreckage and away from the high octane fuel pouring from the aircraft's wing fuel tanks. further saving the life of Lesignioli. The accident investigation revealed that the pilot used poor judgment in flight planning by not determining the performance of the aircraft prior to takeoff. In addition, the pilot did not have the sectional charts or other airport information to make a safe departure from Grand Canyon. The investigation also revealed that engine performance was degraded on takeoff by density altitude, improperly gapped spark plugs and a weak magneto. *********************************************************************************************************************************** HISTORICAL SUMMARY: I was on a small local hike about five years ago when I found this crash site. I never really did anything with it since it was a small general aviation accident and I was primarily researching large civilian and military crash sites at the time. As I began to focus more of my research on all accidents in the Grand Canyon region I came back to this site to research and document it. The crash site is contained within a relatively small area. Beginning from the first tree impact, the wreckage extends about 50 feet on a 330 degree magnetic heading. A prescribed management fire burned much of the forest undergrowth helping in the on-site research. The fuselage main impact site was identified by the concentration of small fragments of cockpit components and material. These items were photographed and not collected.

August 3, 1999: General Aviation, Cessna 177B (N19113) Grand Canyon, AZ

ACCIDENT SYNOPSIS: The aircraft, a Cessna 177B Cardinal was rented ...

Updated: Oct 16, 2012 1:33pm PST