Tragedy Remembered

Tragedy Remembered. TWA-United Airlines Accident. Catastrophe can happen even in spectacular beauty. When technological achievements and human actions fail, disasters may happen., On June 30, 1956, a United Airlines DC-7 and a TWA Super Constellation maneuvered around towering cumulus clouds on a partly clear day. All 128 passengers and crew perished when the planes collided at an altitude of 21,000 feet (6,400 m) above Temple and Chuar buttes. Passengers included prominent business people and families. Every passenger had loved ones waiting for them, though their journey ended unexpectedly., The Grand Canyon disaster "rocked the aviation world." It was the deadliest crash in American commercial aviation history at the time. Within a few years, the United States Congress created the Federal Aviation Administration to increase air safety., Due to its importance in aviation history, this hallowed ground is a National Historic Landmark. This designation protects artifacts remaining in this remote area of the canyon and provides learning opportunities about the events of that day and beyond., (photo captions:) , Grand Canyon's Pioneer Cemetery (L) is the final resting place for 29 unidentified passengers from United Airlines. Recovery personnel removed the remains of 70 accident victims from the TWA flight, and all but three were interred in a mass grave at Flagstaff Citizens Cemetery (R). 29 identified passengers were returned home for burial., Reminders of that tragic day.