Hopewell Township near Aliquippa in Beaver County, Pennsylvania — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
USAir Flight 427 Memorial
This site is dedicated in fond and loving memory to the 132 passengers and crew of USAir Flight 427 which crashed here at 7:03 PM on September 8, 1994.
Topics. This historical marker and memorial is listed in these topic lists: Air & Space • Disasters. A significant historical date for this entry is September 8, 1994.
Location. 40° 36.221′ N, 80° 18.523′ W. Marker is near Aliquippa, Pennsylvania, in Beaver County. It is in Hopewell Township. Marker can be reached from Pettita Lane north of Green Garden Road. Located on private property. Access only with prior permission from the landowner. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Aliquippa PA 15001, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 4 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Mount Carmel Presbyterian Church (approx. 1.4 miles away); Baker Cemetery (approx. 2.6 miles away); Ohio United Presbyterian Church (approx. 2.9 miles away); Tried Stone Baptist Church (approx. 3 miles away); B.F. Jones Memorial Library (approx. 3.1 miles away); Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad Passenger Station (approx. 3.6 miles away); Aliquippa Works (approx. 3.6 miles away); First Colonial Residents (approx. 3.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Aliquippa.
Regarding USAir Flight 427 Memorial. USAir Flight 427 was a scheduled flight from Chicago's O'Hare International Airport to Palm Beach International Airport, with a stopover at Pittsburgh International Airport. On Thursday, September 8, 1994, the Boeing 737 crashed in Hopewell Township, Pennsylvania while approaching Runway 28R at Pittsburgh. After the longest investigation in the history of the National Transportation Safety Board, it was determined that the probable cause was that the aircraft's rudder malfunctioned and went hard over in a direction opposite to that commanded by the pilots, causing the plane to enter an aerodynamic stall from which the pilots were unable to recover. All 132 people on board were killed.
Investigators discovered that the rudder servo valve, which remains dormant and cold for much of the flight at high altitude, seized after being injected with hot hydraulic fluid that had been in continuous action throughout the plane. Boeing agreed to redesign the rudder control system with a redundant backup and paid to retrofit the entire worldwide 737 fleet.
- from Wikipedia
Related marker. Click here for another marker that is related to this marker. - Another Boeing 737 crash occurred under very similar circumstances when United Flight 585 crashed while attempting to land in Colorado Springs in 1991.
Credits. This page was last revised on June 28, 2023. It was originally submitted on January 30, 2023, by Craig Baker of Sylmar, California. This page has been viewed 1,338 times since then and 371 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on January 30, 2023, by Craig Baker of Sylmar, California.