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The images were horrific: so much confusion, so much carnage. On July 9, 1982, the Boeing 727 flying this route crashed in the New Orleans suburb of Kenner after being forced down by a microburst shortly after takeoff. Schiefeldein, Mrs. F., New Orleans area. Retired Kenner firefighter Michael Mumphrey adjusts some flowers at the memorial outside the church. But the aviation industry reacted negatively to the proposal, arguing that it was too expensive and carried little benefit. On July 9, 1982, Pan Am Flight 759 crashed in the New Orleans suburb of Kenner after being forced down by a microburst shortly after takeoff. The wind was whipping the rain into sheets of vertical water spray. It was July 9,1982, and at almost 4 p.m. on a windy and rainy Friday, a fully loaded Pan American Boeing 727 began its final takeoff from the New Orleans International Airport. NEW YORK -- Following is a list of victims of the crash of Pan American World Airways Flight 759 in Kenner, La., as released by the airline. To make sure pilots are aware of wind shear, airports installed wind shear detection systems beginning in the 1970s. I need more cable, I cried out. Brown, Lucille V., 35, stewardess, Hollywood, Fla. 7. He recorded the events in his journal. However, the National Weather Service reported that there were no severe weather warnings in place on the 9th of July 1982. Then, while the 727 sped down the runway, the wind shear returned. Against the scraping of cockpit windshield wipers, Pierce guided the 727 down the runway, picking up speed. The radio chatter quickly increased with intensity to almost panic levels. The tragic explosion and fire from the crash of Pan-Am Flight 759 took the lives of 154 people seconds after takeoff from the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport. Decisions are made quickly just to get the juggernaut of the newsroom moving. Back at WWL-TV the late-afternoon editing crunch started. Click Here to report it. We were trying to figure out what was going on. The crash of Pan Am Flight 759 in Kenner brought attention to the dangers of wind shear, at the time a little-understood thunderstorm phenomenon that knocked a jet plane out of the sky. Las mejores ofertas para 1982 Foto de prensa Pan American World Airways vuelo 759 sobrevivientes de accidente en Kenner estn en eBay Compara precios y caractersticas de productos nuevos y usados Muchos artculos con envo gratis! 1. Its easy to blame the pilot, but he didnt wanna die either, said their daughter Julia. Anxiety rules the situation; logic and experience formulate decisions. It was sheer confusion. [1] The investigation noted the failure of the US Government to "put out proper weather information that day and to maintain wind shear detection devices at the airport. The tangled debris of the plane had been mixed into the shattered wood and cinder blocks from the houses and the entire mess set ablaze, throwing up a cloud of black smoke that could be seen for miles. DeJesus, Hector, San Juan, Puerto Rico. That Saturday, during the wedding reception of a woman whose name he no longer remembers, he thanked the family for saving his life. It was caused by microburst-induced wind shear, and it killed over 150 people. I was sent on the live shot as photographer. Most commonly associated with thunderstorms, wind shear can be a significant hazard to planes because of its effect on airspeed, or the speed of an aircraft relative to the surrounding air mass. The crash killed 145 people in the plane and eight. Sisters Patty Hartford and Judy Cummings of Howell, Mich., boarded the Boeing 727-200 with their three. In mere seconds, the crash turned a quiet residential neighbourhood into a scene of total devastation. Donnelly, Dennis M., 30, purser, Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. 5. "Why should he be making all the money?" It was one of the deadliest airplane crashes in the history of the U.S. Give me more cable, I cried out to the truck engineer as I tried to find the center of destruction. On the afternoon of July 9, 1982, shortly after Pan American World Airlines (Pan Am) Flight 759 lifted off the runway with 146 passengers and crew en route from New Orleans to Las Vegas, Nevada, the Boeing 727 crashed into a suburban neighborhood in Kenner, Louisiana, killing all on board and eight on the ground. All they could find were bodies, from both the plane and from Kenner. July 13, 1982, Memo To: News Staff involved in the on-the-scene crash coverage. Furthermore, the first officer was not required to receive such training, and there is no evidence that he did. But despite this glaring deficiency, the FAA invested no resources in developing on-board wind shear detection technology. M.L., Adelaide, Australia. The NTSB issued numerous recommendations to improve the way the industry handled wind shear. But she regrets that her parents missed the birth of her child and so many other life events over the past 40 years. This was, as usual, an orchestrated, chaotic ritual met in daily fashion for the 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. show deadlines - reporters hastily finishing scripts, which are reviewed by producers, then given to the editors, who in turn gave the completed story to the broadcast engineer. Dennis Woltering and I would travel to Colorado to produce a series of stories on a relatively new radar system initiated at Denver's airport, Doppler radar, a system for detecting intense winds (micro bursts) inside a thunderstorm. 116. "I was born in 1984, two years after the crash.". The aircraft involved, a 14-year-old Boeing 727-235, registration N4737, construction number 19457/518, was delivered to National Airlines on January 31, 1968. [4] The child's mother and 4-year-old sister were killed; the father was at work when the accident occurred. Pan Am Flight 759 took off from New Orleans International Airport in heavy thunderstorms for Las Vegas just after 4 p.m. on July 9, 1982, and crashed about one minute later. It crossed my mind several times that with this much jet fuel on the ground, the broken gas lines from the destroyed houses and along with the fires burning that at anytime secondary explosions could occur. KENNER, LA The City of Kenner will honor the victims of Pan Am Flight 759 during a memorial service on Saturday, the 40th anniversary of the crash that killed 145 people. This was my first indication that this was a significant and major airplane accident. Aguiar, Juan Carlos, Montevideo, Uruguay. Doppler radar would eventually be deployed at all major airports, including here in New Orleans. I was fatigued from the earlier filming and was hoping to skip the pressure of meeting today's deadline. During the live broadcast, I put my left eye closer to the camera's eyepiece and closed my right eye. No fronts or low pressure areas were within 100 nautical miles (120mi; 190km) of the airport. I did not want to get caught in the rainstorm that was about to assault New Orleans and the surrounding parishes. Pan Am Flight 759 was a regularly scheduled domestic passenger flight from Miami to San Diego, with en route stops in New Orleans and Las Vegas. They were heroic in their response. Where is the plane?, My camera was now live on the air. It was still raining raining very hard. The planes airspeed fell precipitously. Gewld, Janajaap, San Josi, Costa Rica. Fijut, James P., 37, steward, Miramar, Fla. 6. This documentary examines the tragedy of Pan Am Flight 759. The investigation was conducted by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), which found that the main cause of the crash was a microburst-induced wind shear during takeoff, which imposed a downdraft. 61. That's when I realized that I was filming in the middle of the jet plane crash and the debris directly in front of me were the houses destroyed by the plane as it burst into flames upon impact, killing all the passengers and several residents of the neighborhood. At 16:09:01, the aircraft crashed into the residential area of Kenner, about 4,610 feet (1,410m) from the end of the runway. Flight 759's crew discussed possible abort procedures but decided to take off. As a result of these safety recommendations, the FAA restarted research into wind shear-related areas that had been stagnant since 1979. Outside it was raining ferociously, and some flooding had occurred in the streets. Large clumps of wood were smoking from the flames, and the flames were everywhere. Minutes later, it smashed into a Kenner neighborhood, leaving in its path a three-block area of devastation and horror. "I thanked them all publicly on the microphone and said if it hadn't been for you people I'd have been in that crash. The crash killed 145 people in the plane and eight on the ground. The story below was originally published in 2019. Once again, a microburst had brought down a passenger plane belonging to a major US airline. This is his entry from that fateful day 40 years ago. The passage of time has not dulled Walker's sense of gratitude at the act of fate that kept him off that particular flight. 32. The flight director is an overlay on the attitude and airspeed indicators that shows the airspeed and pitch attitude needed to fly the desired flight profile. More flames popped up in front of me. Daniel joins the Simple Flying team having previously written for publications such as the BBC. I'm sure that thought occurred to the police, firemen and medical first responders as they searched the jagged and deadly debris looking for anyone needing assistance -- hopefully any survivors. Video: Shark feeding frenzy off Louisiana coast a problem for fishermen. WWL-TV photographer Brian Lukas was the first live camera on the scene bringing the images of that tragedy to the concerned viewers in the New Orleans region. Initially it was assumed by the assignment desk and by the manner of the dispatcher's voice that a small plane crashed at a location still undetermined. I did not want to get caught in the rainstorm that was about to assault New Orleans and the surrounding parishes. 71. It was difficult to get a proper bearing and perspective in so much of this debris. Months later, the story on the radiation spike in the Mississippi River aired in a special 15-minute segment on our 10 p.m. news. According to the NWS (National Weather Service), there were no severe weather warnings for the time and area of the accident. But in our deepest sorrow we could never imagine the sense of grief and mental anguish the family members of those who perished on that flight would endure. I was fatigued from the earlier filming and was hoping to skip the pressure of meeting today's deadline. No US airliner has crashed due to wind shear since 1994, and it is likely that the United States will never see such a crash again. Passengers in window seats might have noticed the thunderstorm outside, the sudden flashes of lightning, the blinding rain that obscured Runway 10. Pan Am Flight 759 was a regularly scheduled domestic passenger flight from Miami to San Diego, with en route stops in New Orleans and Las Vegas, United States. Banking left, the plane struck another set of trees then rolled inverted, its left wingtip slicing into the ground. The chatter and tone on this frequency is usually measured by professionally calm voices, but because of the high pitch tones emanating from the officer, the transmission was almost unintelligible. Life is all about timing. The rain had subsided a little, but my camera still needed a rain cover to protect it from the elements. After a few weeks of concern, the story vanished from the headlines and memory. The black clouds seemed to cover the entire western horizon. Naegele (child), Frankfurt, West Germany. Victims families remember the crash of Pan-American Flight 759, 40 years later, La. Former Kenner Police Chief Nick Congemi was a Kenner police officer in 1982, who also worked part-time for Pan Am airlines. 43. There were bodies lying in the streets, crushed under the rubble of homes, even floating in a swimming pool. A further six recommendations were issued regarding improvements to the quality of black box data, because the cockpit voice recording from flight 759 was nearly unintelligible and the data recorder tracked few parameters. Assistant News Director Tom Newberry was on the assignment desk, still coordinating the daily activities, when a frantic call blasted on the police scanners. Captain Kenneth McCullers and First Officer Donald Pierce began their take-off at 4:07 pm, but the crash occurred 2 minutes later, as the aircraft climbed to an altitude of roughly 100 feet before it began to descend. Jenny Whites parents Bryan and Margaret were touring the United States, stopping off in New Orleans and preparing to fly to Las Vegas on July 9, 1982. A special 15-minute broadcast was planned in the near future. The possibility of such reaction concerns me. McCullers, Kenneth L., 45, captain, Sebastian, Fla. 2. Near me a very visibly shaken woman walked with the help of her neighbors. Breaking apart as it went, the plane cartwheeled forward and slid for two and a half blocks, tearing diagonally across Hudson Street, 17th Street, and Taylor Street. Assistant News Director Tom Newberry was on the assignment desk, still coordinating the daily activities, when a frantic call blasted on the police scanners. She was the only reported survivor of the crash, as the baby girl's mother and sister were both killed in the crash. I'm on the air.. Goers, Mrs. It was July 9,1982, and at almost 4 p.m. on a windy and rainy Friday, a fully loaded Pan American Boeing 727 began its final takeoff from the New Orleans International Airport. Children played. 16. The crash, unfortunately, claimed the lives of all 138 passengers and 7 crew onboard. Across the quiet middle-class neighborhood, families were preparing for dinner. The taping of the river segment took most of the morning. Jennifer Schultz was on the telephone under the carport. Where are the houses? I kept thinking to myself, trying to get as much cable from the microwave truck as I could. A special 15-minute broadcast was planned in the near future. A sudden transition from a headwind to a tailwind can cause a massive drop in airspeed, even though the speed of the plane relative to the ground below might not have changed. At 4:08 and 40 seconds, flight 759 lifted off from the runway and began climbing, but it was already in enormous danger. This documentary examines the tragedy of Pa See more 945 people like this She was dubbed the 'miracle baby,' the only hopeful sign in a gloomy night. The NTSB report stated that "the coroner of Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, issued a 'Certificate of Fatal Death' for a 7, 1982 Boeing 727, Pan Am vlucht 759, stort neer in Kenner Louisiana, Air traffic controller carries weight of Pan-Am Flight 759 every day, Airborne wind shear detection and alert system, 1950 Air France multiple Douglas DC-4 accidents, "Aircraft Accident Report Pan American World Airways Inc., Clipper 759, Boeing 727-235, N4737, New Orleans International Airport Kenner, Louisiana, July 9, 1982", "Pan Am crash's 'Miracle Baby' made best of second chance", "Hunt Goes On For Bodies and Clues in Pan Am Crash that Killed 153", "Crash anniversary draws little attention", "Pan Am and U.S. Though the damage was catastrophic, McCullers and Pierce's last-minute decision saved many lives. Clipper seven fifty nine contact departure one two zero point six so long. NEW YORK -- Following is a list of victims of the crash of Pan American World Airways Flight 759 in Kenner, La., as released by the airline. The passengers on the flight were predominantly American, but there were also people from Australia, Hong Kong, Uruguay, and West Germany onboard the flight. I would cover and attend several memorial services of that event. The previous wind shear alert had expired and no new one had been issued. Despite the known threat of wind shear, no reliable detection technologies existed, and pilots werent well trained to handle it. But directly beyond the end of runway 10 lay the suburb of Kenner, its western boundary marked by Williams Boulevard, a four-lane street with trees growing out of the median. She had no one else, the wedding was Saturday and she would pay $150, Walker said. For example, if the wind at one end of the runway is blowing north at 15 knots, and at the other end of the runway the wind is blowing south at 5 knots, then a 20-knot wind shear is said to be occurring on the runway. This downdraft then caused the plane to lose altitude and therefore led to the crash. Delorme, Catherine, Lausanne, Switzerland. The race to an undetermined scene in Kenner was on. Now facing a significant tailwind, the wings struggled to generate enough lift to keep the plane airborne. woman accused of using aunts debit card for 136 DoorDash orders held on preset $18 million bond, Juvenile injured after homemade pipe bomb detonated, police say. Another way to improve reaction times would be to redesign the flight director. The weather chart at 18:00 local time identified a high pressure system located 60 nautical miles (69mi; 110km) off the Louisiana coast. At the time of accident, the aircraft was carrying 137 passengers and one non-revenue passenger in the cockpit jumpseat, along with a crew of seven. I called out to Dennis, give me more cable. Copyright 2023 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Dennis Woltering and I would travel to Colorado to produce a series of stories on a relatively new radar system initiated at Denver's airport, Doppler radar, a system for detecting intense winds (micro bursts) inside a thunderstorm. And unlike many crashes where those responsible try to dodge blame, Pan Am and the US government accepted responsibility and paid out millions in settlements to relatives of the victims, even though it could have been argued that no one was directly at fault. Crash of Pan Am Flight 759: I was booked on that flight, former New Orleans radio DJ recalls. The FAA circular noted that this manoeuvre could require a pitch angle much greater than pilots are used to, and at low altitudes, it could require extremely fast reaction times. Six houses had been totally destroyed and five others were severely damaged, and there was hardly anything left of the 727, save for the tail. Therefore, to make a wind shear recovery, pilots had to deviate from the optimal attitude shown on the flight director, a disconnect that increases reaction times. He used to pass the jobs along to a friend until an epiphany hit. N4737, the aircraft involved pictured in May 1982, two months before the accident. I called out to Dennis, give me more cable. Three years later, Pan Am flight 759 was still using the same standard instrumentation that the study found inadequate to help pilots deal with severe wind shear. James L. Boyer - News Director, WWL-TV. Everyone in the newsroom not dedicated to a story that day listened intensely. Melissa "Missy" Trahan was just 16 months old when she was rescued from the rubble of Pan Am Flight 759 in Kenner, Louisiana, on July 9, 1982. "I didn't know that woman, I didn't know anyone in her family. Another takeaway from the study was that some wind shear should be avoided at all costs because a successful penetration is impossible. -- Sandy Giancontieri was at home with her three young sons. The details of the story were still incomplete. However, the study found that wind shear on takeoff was even more dangerous than wind shear on approach. To the right, Jane May escaped through a rear window. Many of the victims were living in houses that had been destroyed. Nationalities of passenger, crew and ground fatalities. Houses, cars, shrubberies were blackened. The only survivor on the ground was 16-month-old Missy Trahan-Ferrara, the "miracle baby." Back to top Reply Replies (0) 1 0 nealnan8 LSU Fan Atlanta Member since Oct 2016 671 posts re: Pan Am flight 759 simulation. The forecast between 1200 and 2200 indicated "scattered clouds, variable to broken clouds at 3,000 feet (910m), thunderstorms, and moderate rain showers." It was hours before I realized the degree of destruction I witnessed. Then, other police and fire radio reports indicated a larger plane has crashed in Kenner - a suburb of New Orleans. Example video title will go here for this video. __________________________________________________________________. Winds from a storm off the ENE side of . Accept Responsibility for Crash", "$10.1 Million Awarded In a Pan Am Air Crash", "The Best That We Can Do: Taming the Microburst Windshear", "List of Victims of the Crash of Pan American World Airways Flight 759 in Kenner, La., as Released by the Airline", "Former HHS teacher makes movie about Kenner tragedy", Pre-crash photos of #N4737 at airliners.net, The Times-Picayune 1982: Pan Am Flight 759 crashes in Kenner, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pan_Am_Flight_759&oldid=1137768703, # = Nonpertinent word; * = Unintelligible word; () = Questionable text; (( )) = Commentary; --- = pause; Shading = Radio communication, ((Sound of windshield wipers begins and continues to end of tape)), ((Click)) ((Windshield wiper speed Increases)), ((Clunk sound attributed to nose strut topping)), (Come on back you're sinking Don - come on back), ((Thump sound attributed to nose gear striking up locks)). To the complete disbelief of everyone on the scene, he found 16-month-old Melissa Trahan alive in the rubble of her house, pinned underneath the mattress from her crib, which had flipped over on top of her and sheltered her from the flames. 117. I could smell the jet fuel. Unlike some crashes in urban areas, flight 759 is a widely known aspect of the local lore, and still represents a raw moment the areas history. You're in the crash site, he said. On July 9, 1982, the Boeing 727 flying this route crashed in the New Orleans suburb of Kenner after being forced down by a microburst shortly after takeoff. The crash wiped out more than a dozen homes in Congemis neighborhood off Clay Street. By 1985, the industrys approach to dealing with wind shear was not that different from its approach in 1982. I said, 'Everything's going to be all right.' Video: Shark feeding frenzy off Louisiana coast a problem for fishermen. To the left, Dorris Vidrine, his wife and their four children jumped to safety through their picture window as the plane exploded into the home. Air traffic has become safer. Therefore the LLWSAS wouldnt detect the wind shear and set off an alarm until the microburst had spread out, by which point the most dangerous part of its brief lifespan was already over. Melissa, wearing only a diaper, spent the next four hours under her mattress, which shielded her from the flames and shrapnel. Some carried thousands of dollars in suitcases and flight bags. Pan Am Flight 759 went down shortly after takeoff in a Kenner neighborhood on July 9, 1982, killing all 145 on board. 113. He still gets goosebumps when he hears his father's story, and he empathizes with the family of the victims of the crash when he passes the memorial at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic Church in Kenner. The frequent roar of jets was a fact of life for Kenner's 74,000 residents. Dennis Giurintano, an engineer from WWL-TV, came over to assist. Pierce, Donald G., 32, first officer, Miami Lakes, Fla. 3. The entire recovery operation came to a halt as first responders cried tears of joy at the discovery of just a single survivor amid so much carnage. A few houses away, Jennifer Schultz was making a telephone call under a carport. Pan American Flight 759, with 145 people on board, was going to Las Vegas and San Diego. And the debris continued as far as I could see. Had a small or medium-sized aircraft crashed? McCullers, Kenneth L., 45, captain,. Flames rolled over the mangled plane, shattered homes and the dead. He took the job and called Pan Am on Thursday to cancel the tickets, a day before that fateful flight. Jennifer Schultz was killed, but Barbara Schultz and the children, burning, scrambled out a picture window, stumbled onto neighbor Evelyn Pourciau's lawn and rolled to extinghish the flames. The first rescuers on the scene were faced with total pandemonium. Scattered clouds lay below thunderstorms and rain showers throughout the area. Only 20 seconds after lifting off, the 727 struck trees and crashed after the sudden tailwind put it into a descent from which the pilots were unable to recover in time. The minimum plausible reaction time under those circumstances was assessed to be about 4.25 seconds probably not enough to prevent the crash. The percentage of acceptable approach outcomes under these conditions was generally less than 50%. However, when using a modified flight director that could react to changes in wind speed and direction, pilots were almost universally able to land safely despite severe wind shear on approach. Correge, Alicia, Montevideo, Uruguay. Quite often the psychological effects of working amid the carnage and destruction don't show up until several days or weeks afterward. A strong front was moving in, and I gave thanks that I had finished filming for the day. Her husband had just left for work, and the family would be eating dinner alone. Still inside the airport boundary, the 727 reached a maximum altitude of barely more than 100 feet, then began to descend. She was wet from the rain and appeared to be in shock. With two massive crashes due to wind shear in barely over three years, it was clear that the pace of improvement was not sufficient. But directly in front of me were concrete cinder blocks on fire. He pondered the situation - head to Las Vegas or postpone the trip? Most of it was smoldering from the pockets of flames that seemed to be emanating from underneath. The aircraft was destroyed by the impact, explosion, and subsequent ground fire. The pilots were unable to react to the wind shear in time. And people still fondly remember Melissa Trahan as the miracle baby, although she is now an adult with kids of her own. 68. They covered her with a blanket. In addition, 8 people on the ground were killed as the aircraft crashed into and subsequently destroyed multiple houses. In the list of victims provided by the airline to United Press International, six of the passengers' nationalities were omitted. "I said, 'What flight number was it?' The flight engineer was 60-year-old Leo B. Noone, who had 19,904 flying hours, including 10,508 hours on the Boeing 727. On July 9, 1982, the Boeing 727 flying this route was forced down by a microburst shortly after takeoff, crashed into the New Orleans suburb of Kenner. Walker, a career broadcaster with two young children at the time, had planned a trip to Las Vegas to surprise his school teacher wife, Judy, who'd never been to the casinos. The next question, then, was how to decrease that reaction time. 29. He recorded the events in his journal. The crash of Pan Am Flight 759 in Kenner brought attention to the dangers of wind shear, at the time a little-understood thunderstorm phenomenon that knocked a jet plane out of the sky. The plane also demolished the home of the Trahan family, where Melanie Trahan was at home with her daughters Bridgette, 4, and Melissa, 16 months. 146 people were on board and . A memorial service marking the event was held in front of the fountain Tuesday. A blast of flames incinerated Mrs. Giancontieri and her sons, Robbie, 7, Ryan, 4, and Christopher, 4 months. News Director Jim Boyer made sure the decision was firm and swift. What they found was that flight 759 unwittingly flew straight into a microburst, a type of downdraft associated with thunderstorms. This study found that without any airborne detection technology, pilots were often unable to handle significant wind shear. What I wouldnt do to have just one of them alive, said White. Events were happening quickly. Surely it must be farther out in the distance. Flowers, left by families of the victims of flight 759, rest on the memorial to the disaster at Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Kenner Tuesday, July 9, 2002. 'Barbara was like melted,' Mrs. Pourciau said. While 138 passengers boarded the plane, the pilots monitored the weather, watching carefully as thunderstorms gathered near the airport. Images of Flight 759 would remain in the pages of memory and thoughts of all who were there on that fateful day. But Pan-American Flight 759 crashed moments after takeoff, about a half-mile east of what was then called New Orleans International Airport. It was a way of connecting and honoring the heroic efforts of the first responders and understanding the horrific loss to the victim's families. The tires on a child's bike were on fire. One solution would be a device on board the plane that could detect wind shear farther along the projected flight path. 13. The police radio bristled heavily with increased activity. But most of the passengers were going to Las Vegas for vacations and gambling. In the traffic congestion I noticed several ambulances trying to get through the same traffic that we were trying to get through. The flight crew was trying to avoid the neighborhood and make it to the canal, (as) it was less populated. 28. Pan Am Flight 759 was a regularly scheduled domestic passenger flight from Miami to San Diego, with en route stops in New Orleans and Las Vegas. They likely were not very concerned: none of the storms they could see on their weather radar looked serious, and there were no significant weather advisories, or SIGMETs, in effect for the New Orleans area. It then merged with Pan Am in 1980, and as a result, the aircraft transferred its registration to Pan American Airways. Clipper Definance vs. Taking all of these findings together, the NTSB painted a stark picture of an aviation system that doomed flight 759 before it ever took off. You're in it. It was still raining raining very hard. Romero, Manuel, San Juan, Puerto Rico. The police channels were bristling with elevated voices some officers were screaming. Neither a level 2 nor level 3 cell was considered to be dangerous; the pilots might not have known or did not consider the fact that a cell of any intensity level could produce a microburst.