Eastern Air Lines Flight 401
A piece of aircraft in the Florida Everglades | |
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | December 29, 1972 |
| Summary | Controlled flight into terrain due to pilot error and loss of situational awareness |
| Site | |
| Aircraft | |
| N310EA, the aircraft involved in the accident | |
| Aircraft type | Lockheed L-1011-385-1 TriStar |
| Operator | Eastern Air Lines |
| IATA flight No. | EA401 |
| ICAO flight No. | EAL401 |
| Call sign | EASTERN 401 |
| Registration | N310EA |
| Flight origin | John F. Kennedy Int'l Airport |
| Destination | Miami International Airport |
| Occupants | 176 |
| Passengers | 163 |
| Crew | 13 |
| Fatalities | 101 |
| Injuries | 75 |
| Survivors | 75 |
Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 was a scheduled flight from John F. Kennedy International Airport in Queens, New York, to Miami International Airport in Miami, Florida. Shortly before midnight on December 29, 1972, the Lockheed L-1011-1 TriStar crashed into the Florida Everglades. All three cockpit crew members, 2 of the 10 flight attendants, and 96 of the 163 passengers were killed. 75 people survived, with 58 of them suffering serious injuries.
The crash is believed to have been caused by a subtle bump of the yoke on the aircraft, causing it to switch the autopilot from altitude hold mode, to Control Wheel Steering mode, causing the aircraft to begin a descent. Due to the focus on the landing gear and the minimal changes in the cockpit, the pilots did not notice. Because of this, the aircraft gradually lost altitude and crashed. This was the first hull loss and fatal crash of a Lockheed L-1011 TriStar. It was also the first severe widebody aircraft crash.