C5 A

[Shawn Aro]

This morning a C-5 crash at dover Shawn

[Victor Archer]

Re: C5 A

The plane landed short on a declared emergency landing. Everyone on board reported as being ok with some injuries.
Stevo, you weren't on board we hope!

[Unregistered]

Re: C5 A

as long as the c-5A been flying cant remember if this has every been the only one that has every crash Shawn .

[Stevo]

Re: C5 A

I'm safe and sound... here in Altus America.

[deepsky]

Re: C5 A

Ya, I don't think I've ever heard of one crashing before.

[AAFO_WSagar]

Re: C5 A

Ya, I don't think I've ever heard of one crashing before.

I think one went in way back during the Vietnam evac.... it was pretty nasty. If I remember correctly, it nearly ended the program for the airplane... At the time, nobody was used to such a large airplane...

[speeddemon]

Re: C5 A

I think one went in way back during the Vietnam evac.... it was pretty nasty. If I remember correctly, it nearly ended the program for the airplane... At the time, nobody was used to such a large airplane...

But that one was so grossly overloaded. Here is a report from the Air Force:

"C-5 Galaxy 68-0218 was the initial mission of Operation Babylift to bring Vietnamese orphans to the US in the few remaining days before the Republic of Vietnam fell. The C-5 departed Saigon-Tan Son Nhut Airport at 16:03. Twelve minutes after takeoff, after climbing through FL230, there was what seemed
to be an explosion as the lower rear fuselage was torn apart. The locks of the rear loading ramp had failed, causing the door to open and separate. A rapid decompression occurred. Control and trim cables to the rudder and elevators were severed, leaving only one aileron and wing spoilers operating. Two of the four hydraulic systems were out. The crew wrestled at the controls, managing to keep control of the plane with changes in power settings by using the one working aileron and wing spoilers.The crew descended to an altitude of 4,000 feet on a heading of 310 degrees in preparation for landing on Tan Son Nhut's Runway 25L. About halfway through a turn to final approach, the rate of descent increased rapidly to 4,000 feet per minute. Seeing they couldn't make the runway, full power was applied to bring the nose up. At 50 feet, the throttles where retarded to idle and the C-5 touched down in a rice paddy. Skidding about 1,000 feet, the aircraft again became airborne for a half mile before hitting a dike and breaking into four parts. The cargo compartment was completely destroyed, killing 141 of the 149 orphans and attendants. Only three of 152 in the troop compartment perished. Five of the flight crew, three of the medical team, and three others lost their lives, but 175 of the 328 aboard survived.


Sources:
Air Force Magazine, Aug. 1991"

[ramp mouse]

Re: C5 A

I remember a C-5 that went in after takeoff from Ramstein AFB in germany during the buildup to Desert Storm

[AAFO_WSagar]

Re: C5 A

Speed, I'm not sure it was overloaded.. even if it was, from what I read in your copied report and elsewhere, it was a failure of the cargo door locking mechanisim causing the door to blow out and a subsequent control failure..

However it happened, I didn't mean to imply that it was a bad airplane... just that I remembered one had been lost in an accident. I do remember, at the time though, the airplane was "controversial". It was bigger than anything Lockheed had built before or that the AF had in their inventory, it cost much more than expected (what doesn't) and had some...."issues".. (what new design doesn't)...

I was in my twenties at the time, considering myself lucky that I wasn't there to personally witness the things that were going on... Cronkite was "God", delivering the "gospel according to Walter" nightly at 6:00 PM... You could buy a new Beetle for less than two grand, gas was a quarter a gallon, McDonalds had sold a few million and women wore no bras...

Those were the days!

[Eric]

Re: C5 A

Dealing with the airframe here at Travis, I am always in amazment when them things take off with an ungodly amount of weight and the amount of work that it takes to keep the Fred's in the air. Kudos to all the fellas turning the wrenchs!

[speeddemon]

Re: C5 A

Speed, I'm not sure it was overloaded.. even if it was, from what I read in your copied report and elsewhere, it was a failure of the cargo door locking mechanisim causing the door to blow out and a subsequent control failure..

However it happened, I didn't mean to imply that it was a bad airplane... just that I remembered one had been lost in an accident. I do remember, at the time though, the airplane was "controversial". It was bigger than anything Lockheed had built before or that the AF had in their inventory, it cost much more than expected (what doesn't) and had some...."issues".. (what new design doesn't)...

I was in my twenties at the time, considering myself lucky that I wasn't there to personally witness the things that were going on... Cronkite was "God", delivering the "gospel according to Walter" nightly at 6:00 PM... You could buy a new Beetle for less than two grand, gas was a quarter a gallon, McDonalds had sold a few million and women wore no bras...

Those were the days!

I don't know if it was 'overloaded' specifically, either. I just remember hearing about it on the news way back then, saying it was overstuffed with refugee's and babies, and that the loadmaster and pilot were arguing about 'how much was too much'.

[Stevo]

Re: C5 A

Well, being a Loadmaster on the C-5 and having been a part of two briefings from the Crew of the jet that went down in Vietnam, I can safely say that that C-5 was NOT overloaded. Weight wise or if you go strictly by the number of people (which the crew was never 100% sure of how many they had... all the reports are based on a best estimate) they were still good to go. Our procedures say we can Emergency Evacuate "Approxametly 600 people". Either way, it was pretty full... 328 is a lot of people no matter how you look at it.

As for how many have crashed... 3 now. The one in Vietnam, one at Ramstein AB Germany during the first Gulf War, and the one just recently. Not too bad of a record for as long as it's been flying.

[AAFO_WSagar]

Re: C5 A

As for how many have crashed... 3 now. The one in Vietnam, one at Ramstein AB Germany during the first Gulf War, and the one just recently. Not too bad of a record for as long as it's been flying.

Stevo... sign me up for a ride anytime bud... .Don't know the hours flown by you guys, but I'd guess that's a pretty good "odds on" safety record by any standards!

BIG ass plane, no matter how you slice it!

[deepsky]

Re: C5 A

That is, quit a record! Thanks for the info.

[Propellerhead]

Re: C5 A

Here are a few low-res pics I found on the net.

Thanks for the pics. The first two provide some context sorely lacking in the ones I've seen so far (distance from runway and the "ride" they took on the ground).

Rob