TWA Flight 260

TWA Flight 260

A Martin 4-0-4, circa 1955, in Eastern Airlines livery.
Accident summary
Date	February 19, 1955
Summary	Controlled flight into terrain
Site	Sandia Mountains, Bernalillo County, New Mexico, USA
Passengers	13
Crew	3
Fatalities	16 (all)
Injuries (non-fatal)	0
Survivors	0
Aircraft type	Martin 4-0-4
Operator	Trans World Airlines
Registration	N40416
Flight origin	Albuquerque International Airport, NM (ABQ/KABQ)
Destination	Santa Fe Municipal Airport, NM (SAF/KSAF)

Coordinates: 35°11′38″N 106°26′31″W / 35.194°N 106.442°W / 35.194; -106.442

TWA Flight 260 was the Trans World Airlines (TWA) designation for a flight from Albuquerque, New Mexico to Santa Fe, New Mexico. On February 19, 1955, the 40-passenger Martin 4-0-4 prop plane used by TWA for that route crashed into the Sandia Mountains. Its deviation from the normal flight path, initially believed to be the result of pilot error, was revised to "unknown" given that the contribution of other factors could not be definitively ruled out.

On February 19, 1955 at 7:03 am, TWA flight 260 en route from Albuquerque, New Mexico to Santa Fe, New Mexico received an IFR clearance from the Albuquerque tower ("ATC clears TWA 260 for approach at the Santa Fe Airport via Victor 19 climb northbound on the back course of the ILS localizer"). There were no further communications after the aircraft took off at 7:05. It was last seen in a high-speed shallow climb toward the cloud-shrouded Sandia Ridge at an estimated altitude of 3,000 feet above ground level.

At 7:13 the flight crashed into the Sandia Mountains killing all 13 passengers and three crew members on board instantly. Due to the complex mountainous terrain, a day after the crash several members of the New Mexico Mountain Club, along with other volunteers assisted the New Mexico State Police in the recovery efforts leading to the formation of the Albuquerque Mountain Rescue Council, a voluntary organization still active today.