American Airlines Flight 6780
An American Airlines CV-240 similar to the accident aircraft
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| Accident summary | |
|---|---|
| Date | January 22, 1952 |
| Summary | CFIT on approach; cause undetermined |
| Site |
Elizabeth, New Jersey, United States 40°39′28″N 74°12′52″W / 40.6579°N 74.2144°WCoordinates: 40°39′28″N 74°12′52″W / 40.6579°N 74.2144°W |
| Passengers | 20 |
| Crew | 3 |
| Fatalities | 30 (including 7 on the ground) |
| Survivors | 0 |
| Aircraft type | Convair 240 |
| Operator | American Airlines |
| Registration | N94229 |
| Flight origin | Buffalo, New York |
| 1st stopover | Rochester, New York |
| Last stopover | Syracuse, New York |
| Destination | Newark, New Jersey |
American Airlines Flight 6780 was the first fatal crash of a Convair 240, occurred on January 22, 1952.
The twin-propeller aircraft was on the routing Buffalo-Rochester-Syracuse-Newark. On final approach to runway 6 at Newark Airport using the instrument landing system, it crashed at 3:45 p.m. into a house at the intersection of Williamson and South Streets, in the city of Elizabeth, New Jersey approximately 3.4 miles (5.5 km) southeast of Newark. The cause of the crash was never determined.
The plane, which had gone 2,100 feet (640 m) off course to the right, narrowly missed hitting the Battin High School for girls, which had dismissed for the day only 45 minutes before.
All 23 occupants on board (20 passengers and 3 crew) plus 7 people on the ground, were killed in the crash and ensuing fire.
The Captain, Thomas J. Reid, whose home was only blocks from the crash scene, had recently returned from an airlift to Japan; his wife heard the crash and told reporters that they had been planning to move to a house they had constructed in Point Pleasant, New Jersey.
Among the passengers was Robert P. Patterson, a jurist and former Undersecretary of War under Franklin Delano Roosevelt and former War Secretary under Harry S. Truman. Patterson was returning from meeting Thomas J. Watson of IBM, who had just hired him for a new case on the previous day. Patterson had finished a federal case in Buffalo earlier than expected the day before, and changed his rail ticket in for the aircraft seat, according to the Jan. 23 edition of the Deseret News. Also on board were former war correspondent John F. Chester and US Civil Aeronautics Administration officials George T. Williams and John D. Rice, both engaged in the development of airport radar systems and navigational aids.
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