Eastern Air Lines Flight 512

Eastern Air Lines Flight 512
The wreckage of the aircraft
Accident
DateNovember 30, 1962
SummaryPilot error
Site
Aircraft

An Eastern Air Lines DC-7, similar to the one involved in the crash
Aircraft typeDouglas DC-7B
OperatorEastern Air Lines
RegistrationN815D
Flight originCharlotte Municipal Airport
Charlotte, North Carolina, US
DestinationIdlewild Airport
New York City, US
Occupants51
Passengers45
Crew6
Fatalities25
Survivors26

Eastern Air Lines Flight 512 was a scheduled American domestic passenger flight operated by Eastern Air Lines from Charlotte Municipal Airport in Charlotte, North Carolina, to Idlewild Airport in New York City. On November 30, 1962, while attempting to abort an attempted landing at its destination, the Douglas DC-7B operating the flight crashed after it failed to gain altitude and struck the ground. 25 of the 51 occupants of the plane died in the accident. Emergency crews responded, but rescuers were delayed by the thick fog and the soft terrain. An investigation launched after the crash found that the probable cause of the accident was that the pilots had made critical mistakes during the go-around that prevented the aircraft from gaining altitude.