Mar 3 1974
From The Space Library
A Turkish Airlines, Inc., DC-10 jumbo jet airliner carrying 335 passengers and 11 crew members crashed in the Forest of Ermenonville 42 km northeast of Paris, France, killing all aboard in the worst air disaster in history. The crash-the second by a jumbo jet-occurred shortly after takeoff for London from the Paris Orly Airport. Aviation experts from the Federal Aviation Administration, National Transportation Safety Board, manufacturer McDonnell Douglas Corp., and Turkish government were sent to the scene to help French officials determine the cause. Eyewitness reports were conflicting but initial evidence pointed to a mid-air explosion; six bodies and one section of seats were found 10 km from the main point of impact. Later findings indicated that the rear cargo door had flown off. The sudden loss of pressure in the cargo hold had collapsed the cabin floor, severing the aircraft control cables, and sucked out the six passengers before the plane plunged steeply earthward. (Robertson, NYT, 4 March 74, 1; 6 March 74, 5; AP, B Sun, 7 March 74, A2; Randal, W Post, 4 March 74, Al)
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