Pan Am Flight 806
A Pan Am B707-321B, similar to one involved the accident | |
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | January 30, 1974 |
| Summary | Controlled flight into terrain due to bad weather |
| Site | 0.8 mi (1.3 km) from Pago Pago International Airport, American Samoa 14°20′55″S 170°43′55″W / 14.34861°S 170.73194°W |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Boeing 707-321B |
| Aircraft name | Clipper Radiant |
| Operator | Pan American World Airways |
| Call sign | CLIPPER 806 |
| Registration | N454PA |
| Flight origin | Auckland International Airport |
| 1st stopover | Pago Pago International Airport |
| 2nd stopover | Honolulu International Airport |
| Destination | Los Angeles International Airport |
| Occupants | 101 |
| Passengers | 91 |
| Crew | 10 |
| Fatalities | 97 |
| Injuries | 4 |
| Survivors | 4 |
Pan Am Flight 806 was an international scheduled flight from Auckland, New Zealand, to Los Angeles, California, with intermediate stops at Pago Pago, American Samoa and Honolulu, Hawaii. On January 30, 1974, the Boeing 707 Clipper Radiant crashed on approach to Pago Pago International Airport, killing 87 passengers and ten crew members, making it the deadliest aviation incident in American Samoan history.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) determined the probable cause of the accident was the flight crew's tardy identification of microburst-induced wind shear. Other factors included poor visibility, a lack of altitude, and airspeed callouts by the aircrew.