National Airlines Flight 193
N4744 during recovery
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| Accident summary | |
|---|---|
| Date | May 8, 1978 |
| Summary | Controlled flight into terrain |
| Site | Escambia Bay near Pensacola, Florida 30°29′8″N 87°7′3″W / 30.48556°N 87.11750°WCoordinates: 30°29′8″N 87°7′3″W / 30.48556°N 87.11750°W |
| Passengers | 52 |
| Crew | 6 |
| Fatalities | 3 |
| Injuries (non-fatal) | 11 |
| Survivors | 55 |
| Aircraft type | Boeing 727-235 |
| Aircraft name | Donna |
| Operator | National Airlines |
| Registration | N4744 |
| Flight origin | Miami International Airport (MIA/KMIA) |
| Stopover | Melbourne International Airport (MLB/KMLB), Melbourne, Florida |
| 1st stopover | Tampa International Airport (TPA/KTPA), Tampa, Florida |
| 2nd stopover | Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY/KMSY) |
| 3rd stopover | Mobile Municipal Airport (MOB/KMOB), Mobile, Alabama |
| Destination | Pensacola Regional Airport (PNS/KPNS), Pensacola, Florida |
National Airlines Flight 193, registration N4744, Donna, was a Boeing 727-235 en route from Miami, Florida to Pensacola on May 8, 1978. It was scheduled with stops at Melbourne, Florida; Tampa; New Orleans, Louisiana and Mobile, Alabama. The accident occurred at night in low visibility from fog. During the descent into Pensacola Regional Airport it impacted Escambia Bay, sinking in 12 feet (3.7 m) of water.
The instrument landing system (ILS) for runway 16 had been out of service since January of that year for runway reconstruction. A non-precision approach to runway 25 was available instead. Prior to initiating the approach a twin engine Beechcraft reported breaking out of the overcast at 450 feet (140 m). The minimum descent altitude for this approach was 480 feet (150 m). This concerned the first officer who informed the captain in his opinion that plane had made an illegal approach. An Eastern Air Lines jet ahead of them reported briefly having the runway in sight before losing it in the clouds and going around.
While established on the approach the first officer neglected to make altitude and approach fix call outs. The ground proximity alarm sounded and the first officer checked his altimeter. He read it as 1,500 feet (460 m) and turned off the alarm. The flight data recorder would later show their actual altitude at this point was only 500 feet (150 m). The flight crew may have been distracted by the alarm and failed to realize they passed through the minimum descent altitude. Shortly after this they impacted Escambia Bay. Barge traffic in the area assisted in the evacuation. Three passengers drowned attempting to exit the aircraft. The aircraft was intact after the accident and was removed to a hangar at Naval Air Station Pensacola but written off due to extensive sea water corrosion. The airframe was subsequently disassembled and removed from the air base to a scrapping location.
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