Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 6231
N274US, the aircraft involved in the accident, seen in 1970 | |
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | December 1, 1974 |
| Summary | Stalled due to atmospheric icing, pilot error, and instrument failure |
| Site | |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Boeing 727-251 |
| Operator | Northwest Orient Airlines |
| Registration | N274US |
| Flight origin | John F. Kennedy International Airport, New York City |
| Destination | Buffalo International Airport |
| Occupants | 3 |
| Passengers | 0 |
| Crew | 3 |
| Fatalities | 3 |
| Survivors | 0 |
Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 6231 was a Northwest Airlines charter flight from John F. Kennedy International Airport, New York City, to Buffalo International Airport, Buffalo, New York, where it was to pick up the Baltimore Colts professional football team. On December 1, 1974, the Boeing 727 serving the flight crashed in Harriman State Park near Stony Point, New York, just north of the New York City area.
All three crew members on board died when the aircraft struck the ground following a stall and rapid descent caused by the crew's reaction to erroneous airspeed readings caused by atmospheric icing. The icing occurred as a result of failure to turn on the pitot tube heating at the start of the flight. This was one of two Boeing 727s to crash in the eastern U.S. that day; the other was TWA Flight 514 in northern Virginia, northwest of Dulles airport (250 miles (400 km) to the southwest).