August 17, 1983: Las Vegas Airlines, Inc., Piper PA-31-350 (N88LV) Grand Canyon, AZ
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.
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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 ****
LAS VEGAS AIRLINES, INC. - SUMMER 1983
Las Vegas Airlines was established in 1973 and operated air tour/charter flights from the North Las Vegas Airport (KVGT) in Las Vegas, Nevada. Pictured is a Las Vegas Airlines air tour brochure from the summer of 1983. The airline eventually ceased operations in late 1998-99.
(NOTE) The aircraft pictured (N22LV), was destroyed in the early morning hours of May 20, 1987 when an intoxicated aircraft mechanic for Las Vegas Airlines attempted to fly the aircraft. The plane traveled about 3 miles from the North Las Vegas Airport before it crashed inverted and nose-first in an open field. (2010 Lostflights)
During the beginning of 1983, the airline's fleet consisted of five PA-31-350 Chieftains and two PA-32R Saratogas. The company employed ten pilots and carried about 19,000 passengers annually.
AIRCRAFT INVOLVED:
The Piper PA-31 Navajo is a family of cabin-class, twin-engine aircraft designed and built by Piper Aircraft for the general aviation market.
In September 1972, Piper unveiled the PA-31-350 Navajo Chieftain, a stretched version of the Navajo with more powerful engines and counter-rotating propellers to prevent critical engine handling problems. The fuselage was also lengthened by 2 feet, allowing for up to ten seats. Production of the PA-31 series ceased in 1984.
The Grand Canyon Airport was a regular stop for Las Vegas Airlines. The accident aircraft seen at the Grand Canyon Airport during the early 1980s.
THE ACCIDENT
Flying through the rainy cloud cover and believing he was further North than he actually was, Captain Gustafson may have also thought he was well above the canyon's rim.
Had Captain Gustafson been afforded the benefit of visibility this is the view he would have had rapidly filling his windscreen.
At an altitude of 6,320 feet, the aircraft struck the face of the cliff at a wings level attitude while traveling at nearly 170 knots indicated airspeed (KIAS).
The wreckage of Flight 88 can be seen at the base of the cliff on the ledge below.
"GUS's PLATEAU"
After the accident, this freestanding mesa became known as "Gus's Plateau" by fellow air tour pilots and friends of Captain Wallace Gustafson.
The 6,400 foot formation of sedimentary limestone and sandstone is located in the mid-western portion of the Grand Canyon. The plateau is encompassed by the Hualapai Indian Reservation and therefore requires a special permit from the tribe to access.
On May 15, 1984, the National Transportation Safety Board released the final report on the accident. (NTSB/AAR-84/05)
The Probable Cause:
The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of this accident was the pilot's failure to maintain adequate visual flight references to positively identify his position while flying below the rim of the Grand Canyon which resulted in his selection of an inappropriate flightpath and subsequent collision with the terrain during an attempt to climb in instrument meteorological conditions to a safe altitude above the rim of the Canyon.
The Grand Canyon Pink Rattlesnake (Crotalus Oreganus), a subspecies of the Western Diamondback Rattlesnake, is a common sight in this part of the canyon. I was however surprised to see one in November during my second attempt to reach the crash site.
During my second attempt in November 2008, I thought I found a route to the crash site through this narrow canyon.
During monsoon season, a steep canyon such as this can be a literal "Death Trap" due to sudden flash floods.
This pour-off formed a thirty foot vertical drop which ended my second try. Without a climbing rope, it was just too much of a risk to hand-climb down.
It would be nearly two years before I could make a third attempt to reach the crash of Las Vegas Airlines Flight 88.
FINDING THE ROUTE - APRIL 27-29, 2010
In preparation for my third attempt to reach the crash site, I photographed the area extensively from the air to find a route that I could use without requiring the use of technical climbing equipment. Finding suitable routes up to and around the plateau was another challenge.
Due to the steep cliffs surrounding the top of the plateau, there are few routes to the summit. Using the aerial photographs, I was able to access the summit through a steep slope on the southeast corner of the mesa. From there I was able to set up a base camp.
With Gus's Plateau (background) only a few miles away, it took some time to search for a route to hike down to the next level.
In the Grand Canyon there are no straight line hiking routes. A point to point 5 mile route often means a 15 mile hike or more through the rough "staircase" type terrain.
In some places the sandstone benches were easy climbs while in other places it required me to lower my heavy backpack by rope down steep terrain.
There would be no water pockets or springs along this route leaving me to pack in about 4 gallons of water.
I had to lower my backpack down several places during the hike. With a heavy pack it's the safest method to scramble down steep exposed breaks in the terrain.
NEGOTIATING "GUS's PLATEAU"
The steep talus ledge was another challenge that I faced. To reach the crash site I would have to travel by foot over a mile and a half each way along this terrain.
Some areas were so exposed that my hike required a slow and exact approach. Each step was well thought out. The cliffs at the edge of the slope ranged from 100 to 300 vertical feet.
The safest place while hiking along the ledge was at the base of the cliff where some of the local wildlife (Desert Big Horn Sheep) had worn a rough game trail.
The most troubling aspect of hiking here was that if I did need emergency help there would be no way to reach me except to rappel from the top of the cliff.
The steep slope precluded any type of helicopter landing and rescue.
After hiking for just over two hours I finally reached the crash site.
The first fragment I encountered was a portion of an engine nacelle cowling with a vented inspection door.
The main wreckage was not far from the first fragment I located and I wasted little time hiking down to finally see it up close.
The main wreckage lies at the base of this 360 foot cliff. Initial impact was in a crevasse about 160 feet below the rim. The majority of the wreckage fell 200 feet onto the ledge below the initial impact point.
Some portions of the forward cockpit/cabin and human remains were lodged in the crevasse. During the recovery efforts, climbers rappelled down this cliff to reach the wreckage and victims. The ledge I traversed was never used by recovery teams as it was deemed too risky.
The main wreckage of Flight 88 is situated on a talus slope angled at about 45-50 degrees. The tail section, fuselage, and right wing are on the right side of the photo while the remains of the left wing are on the left side of the photo.
The fuselage of the Piper Chieftain was literally ripped apart by the tremendous impact against the cliff.
The main body of wreckage consists of the vertical stabilizer/rudder, right wing, right engine, cockpit, and passenger cabin.
A fragment of the aircraft's air conditioning system.
This fragment of wingtip was identifiable only by the strobe light power supply that was still attached to the structure.
The strobe light power supply was manufactured by Whelen Engineering, Inc. It was one of two used to power the wing tip strobe lights on the aircraft.
The aircraft manufacture's data placard is basically the plane's "Birth Certificate". It contains the aircraft model type and serial number.
This metal placard is riveted to the outside structure just below the main cabin door. It was found next to some brush at the site.
The nose gear tire (Goodyear Flight Custom II) appeared to be brand new with very little if any wear. Probably replaced by a maintenance crew a day or two prior to the accident.
The right main landing gear strut was still attached and in the retracted position, but the wheel and tire assembly was missing and not located at the site.
The left wing structure came to rest about thirty feet from the fuselage and tail section.
To get this photo of the aircraft registration number on the right side of the aircraft I had to lay on the ground and use my left foot to push against the fuselage.
The airline company title "LAS VEGAS AIRLINES" was barely visible on this crushed piece of upper fuselage.
The aft fuselage did not exhibit evidence of fire and was a mixture of both interior and exterior parts. Razor sharp edges could be found everywhere.
Examining damage to the vertical stabilizer and rudder assembly.
Although somewhat faded, after nearly three decades the aircraft's overall exterior paint was still in good condition.
Faded over time, the "PIPER" name on the upper vertical stabilizer was originally painted white.
A post crash fire consumed most of the forward fuselage and passenger cabin. The rudder pedals and control armature are visible in this photo.
This rudder pedal had broken off of the control armature during impact and escaped the post crash fire.
A twisted metal fragment is all that remains of Flight 88's flight instrument panel.
The left corner of the captain's flight instrument panel still contained the aircraft's 8-day mechanical clock.
The clock was manufactured by Swiss manufacturer Wakmann Watch Co. and displayed the hour hand positioned just past the one-o'clock position (The minute and second hands were broken off during impact).
Since the accident occurred around 12:27 PM, It's possible the clock continued to operate after impact or more than likely, the clock hands were bumped to that position.
During my time at the accident site, I was able to locate the captain's (left side) control yoke.
Relatively undamaged, It raises the question if the pilot was actually manipulating the controls prior to impact or was he possibly utilizing the aircraft's autopilot in an attempt to climb out of the canyon and the weather?
Similar to the captain's control yoke, the throttle quadrant containing levers for throttles, propellers, and fuel mixture were not significantly damaged by the impact.
The autopilot's Electronic Pitch/Trim Amplifier was almost crushed beyond recognition.
