Crashing Just Before Landing in West Virginia | America's Worst Football Tragedy 

My Uncle Rick was on the team. I remember when the movie came out and the families of the deceased had a special showing in a theatre when I was six. Watching the movie and my parents telling me my uncle was on the plane absolutely horrified me and i’m terrified of flying to this day. I watch this channel’s videos all the time and as soon as I saw this one on my feed I knew what it was. I love this channel and how well done and detailed all of the videos are and how they all make me feel like I can imagine a fraction of what the passengers and pilots went through. I’m sitting in the kitchen with the video stopped one minute in because I don’t know if I want to know exactly what happened to my uncle, but I know this video will do their deaths justice in the portrayal. rip uncle rick and all the passengers and crew on the plane.

My grandparents lived in West Virginia, my grandmother went to Marshall, and they were both invited to be on this flight. However, their family-owned restaurant needed to be managed, and so they decided to stay in Huntington. Their restaurant literally saved their lives. Condolences to the 75 people on board, so sad.

The 1970s… No GCAS, Limited radar facilities, CRM wasn’t figured out, and probably hundreds of other technologies or regulations that had yet to be developed because a plane had yet to crash some type of way. All improvements to aviation are paid for in blood.

I was a high school sophomore when this happened. Being an athlete, this really hit me hard at the time...still haunts me!😟

WW2 vet and almost 20'000 hours of experience.. And still this can happen

MY GOODNESS its crazy to put into perspective just how much technology and how far aviation has progressed in 52+ years. The thought of a passenger airport in the U.S. not having ILS today would be ridiculous. Rest In Peace to the 75 victims

I'm a Marshall alumnus, class of '78. I was in 9th grade and remember the night it happened so clearly. It took the football program years to recover but they finally did. Thirteen conference titles and two Division I-AA national championships.

I was pulling a news shift at a radio station in Louisville, Kentucky when the news of the crash came across the AP wire. For a few seconds I just stared at it in disbelief. Then I immediately went into action gathering as much information as possible and the story led our newscasts for many hours thereafter. The radio stations in Huntington were good about supplying voicers for our newscasts. That happened 52 years ago and when I think about it seems like yesterday. Something like that makes an impact on you.

I live near Huntington and the pain of this tragedy is still felt to this day. Incredibly sad.

When you see the recreation of a tragic accident like this that occurred many years ago, it is very humbling to realize how many people have lost their lives over the years in which the lessons learned from the cause have lead to the advancement of airline safety that we have today.

One additional factor was that the airplane began to break out of the clouds while descending across a narrow valley. They were already at or below the airport's elevation but still a few hundred feet in altitude above the ground below them at the time. They began to see lights on the ground during this short period, and those lights may have have given them a false sense of security - a false sense of height above the airport... What the crew did NOT know [although, they SHOULD have known], was that the terrain in front of them would soon start to rise to their current height as they closed the distance to the airport on top of the hill. (Incidentally: this same phenomenon played an important role in two crashes at Cincinnati's Northern Kentucky Airport). It's always seemed to me like this crew simply did not spend enough time examining and familiarizing themselves with the pertinent aspects of and then briefing the approach - especially if neither pilot had ever flown into this field before... The really sad thing about this is that there are no do-overs.

Thank you for covering this. Im a wv native and an Marshall Alum ‘09. This was before my time but i know the story very well. We Are Marshall the movie was also made in regards to this class, team and school. Every year, on the day, the crash is recognized on campus and there’s even a fountain on campus dedicated to the team. My fraternity (Pike) also has dedication to the crash and actual Pike members who were on board. If you go to Huntington WV they have a marker for the actual crash site.

Of all the plane crash videos I've seen on this channel, this one brought tears to my eyes. What a horrible thing to have happened. :(

I remember when this happened, still devastating that we lost a whole team and others. Rest In Peace beautiful souls.

My dad played basketball,for Marshall in the 40’s and I was born in Huntington in ‘53. Moved when I was 12 but make one or two trips back every year to catch a Marshall football game. These days the town is even more defined by the university but there is still a sad, haunting feeling…at least to me. Great school, great city, great movie. Blessings to all still there that were in any way touched by this tragedy🙏🙏🙏

I remember seeing We Are Marshall. It still remains the worst plane crash in the history of sports.

I am from the Northern Panhandle of WV. I remember this well. It was 3 days before my birthday. Really broke the heart of many West Virginians. What a tragedy it was -- especially being so close to Christmas and Thanksgiving. So sad. Thank you for this recreation -- very well done!! 👍👍👍

East Carolina U grad here and this tragic event still saddens me. I was finally able to make the trip to Huntington to see the memorial fountain. Pirate Nation will never forget those who were lost that day.

I kept waiting (and hoping) for the cockpit to scream at them to "PULL UP!" but then remembered this was in the 70's when such systems didn't exist. Such a tragic accident.

As a Huntington native and current Aviation pro flight student, I've been anticipating this video for a while.

Like so many other comments, this particular tragedy sticks in my head over many decades. Only the quality of TFC covering this story convinced me to watch, and endure the hollow feeling I knew would overcome me afterwards. I’m writing these words in an effort to justify my pain I chose to deal with. Well presented TFC. I’ll embrace my feelings knowing your work was worth my sadness. The movie “We Are Marshall”, with Matthew McConaughey is well worth the watch.

11 views in 36 seconds of video?! Wow! This channel has grown massively.

This was a nasty blow to that town, that probably took a long time to recover from, and those families were shattered, and most likely never recovered from the loss.

The hills of Appalachia can be quite deceptive. The Appalachian Mountains are worn down and don’t have the craggy peaks of the Rockies, but there are countless hills and some can change drastically in elevation. I grew up in the area, and you get an appreciation for the hills when driving around. It seemed that every little town had its “Dead Man’s Curve” somewhere. I’ve always thought that this was a case of disorientation where the crew spotted lights on the ground and thought they were higher than they were because they didn’t consider that the lights may be in one of the valleys rather than the hilltop. Also consider that Tri-State is a very small airport. I remember my parents taking me to see the Blue Angels there in the late 80s or early 90s. The Blue Angels didn’t agree to perform there until Tri-State extended their flight line. Prior to this there wasn’t enough of a ground reference for them to perform safely, especially with the hills and valleys near the airport.

I was a student at Marshall. The city of Huntington and the entire State of West Virginia was devastated. This video was tough to watch. I’m still shaking.

I was there and walked thru the burning wreckage field with a TV news crew (WSAZ). Film was used at the time and I was carrying the case for the sound equipment. I stayed at the airport when Bos Johnson and Roger O'Niel returned to the station to process and edit the film. I have never seen so many ambulances in my life. None were needed.

Thank you for doing a segment on this one. This hits close to home for me as I’m from Huntington WV and live literally 15 mins from Marshall University Campus. I was born after the crash happened but I have talked to many people who still remember that day like it was yesterday. They also done a movie called We Are Marshall which highlights the plane crash and how Huntington and Marshall University overcame such a tragedy. 11/14/70 will be a day that we’ll never forget… #WeAreMarshall #Nov14 #75

Another tragic sports team crash one you might want to consider doing is the University of Evansville basketball team DC3 crash seven years later. I’d like to see your graphics on that one. Nice work.

Thanks for posting this. I am a Marshall grad Class of 1977. I read there was evidence the pilot attempted to pull up after initial contact with treetops.

Wow, I grew up in Huntington and heard this story all my life but most people including myself believed it was lightning that caused a power failure and then the crash. Thank you for your insight into this event and setting the story straight. Also for reference I have flown into tristate airport many times and it is a very precarious airport, it sits on top of a mountain with near shear drops on both ends of the runway. The runway itself is also very short so no room for error.

I have family in Huntington and all these years later they still speak of this tragedy with a terrible sadness. My uncle was a professor of music at Marshall and he sang the national anthem for every home game. Thankfully he was not on this flight. I've flown into into that airport in daylight and it looks like it was a small strip carved out of the side of a mountain.

This channel is better than every air crash documentary!

The movie about the crash and the aftermath, "We Are Marshall", is one my favorite films. Not all of the team was on that plane. Some stayed behind due to injury, a few drove.

the music in these videos just makes this such a cinematic experience. love it. they always make me emotional when there's a loss of life.

The level of realism in these videos are stunning!

The University of Evansville basketball team had a similar tragic accident losing their entire team in 1977. 29 lives lost.

i was 7 when this happened , i dont remember it in the news , but i did remember the tragic Andes plane crash Flight 571 as it was on the news , we still had black and white tv sets in 1972. You should do a video on flight 571 , i met Nando , one of the survivors in 1989 at a stop over in Mexico

Ironically watching crashes gives me a sense of calm when on flights. Understanding all the changes that arise from crashes to prevent it in the future. Redundant systems are amazing

Great to see a new video from The Flight Channel. An important crash. Thank you for making it.

Thank you so much for doing this one! I live near the crash sight and never really knew the details of the actual crash till now.

The Marshall Football plane crash was not the only football plane crash that year. Earlier in Oct, 1970, the Wichita State Football team's charter plane crashed in Colorado killing most of the team. The Flight Channel should do a video on this accident as well.

A non American sports crash that might be interesting to look into is the crash of YAK-Service Flight 9633, most of the Yaroslovl Lokomotiv KHL ice hockey team was lost along with trainers, coaches, etc. The NHL was deeply affected by this incident as well, since a few players were lost in this crash. I understand Russian anything is controversial right now, but this accident happened in 2011, long before this current situation we are in occurred.

Oh my! This was such an an avoidable tragedy. So devastating. TFC, your videos just keep getting better and better! They are mesmerizing and so well-done!!

Everyone in my flight class including me loves this channel. We use it to constantly remind ourselves to triple check everything and to NEVER get complacent. Watch your instruments follow procedure. Rip to the souls lost its heart breaking to know they were not even going to take the flight initially.

The “actual visibility” part is creepy! 😳😳😳

I remember searching the Internet trying to see where I could watch We Are Marshall. This is a devastating tragedy.

I was at this game as a young boy. Went with the then basketball coach and his wife. I lived within walking distance of the stadium. I still remember Jim Woods at channel 9 coming on tv to tell us about the crash. Sad day!

There's a film on the tragedy and the university's comeback from it: "We Are Marshall".

Excellent job on the recreation as always.

Very early cant wait to watch this with my dinner! I love how much time and effort you put in your videos for us :))) massive thanks!!

I've flown into this airport and this runway numerous times early in my career. Because we operated mostly at night, it was very regular to have fog, low visibility, and generally tough instrument conditions at this airport. It is on top of a hill in a very humid area. At night the temperature would drop near the dew point and you'd get heavy fog conditions until sunrise the next morning. I had no idea about this accident until well after I stopped going into Huntington, but having some familiarity with the approach, terrain and weather in this area, I can see how a little inattention can be disasterous. It breaks my heart.

Rip to all those passengers who are on the aircraft 😭😡

My friend and Ravenswood High classmate Alan Skeens perished as one of the six who could not be identified. RIP my friend. Pilot breaks in procedure, like in hospitals, can be fatal for many. So sad.

Whilst it’s absolutely tragic each time there’s an accident, it’s amazing to see how safety measures continually improve as a result of findings

The airport in Kenova West Virginia is literally on a mountain, this crash devastated West Virginia.

One of the saddest moments in history. God bless every loss, I always pull for Marshall no matter what.

10k views is just an hour!! Loving how massively this channel is growing.

The sudden appearance of those TREE TOPS shocked me! I can hardly imagine what those pilots felt just before they crashed. Was there an explanation about their belief they found the glide slope? Not so certain "water got into the altimeter". Those things were tightly sealed and the airplane didn't leak until after it crashed.

I remember when this happened. Our neighbor was on that plane. He was a football player for Marshall. Every time I go to Huntington. I also go to the cemetery and cry. I see his name on that the monument and my heart 💔 break's. May they all rest in peace.

I knew the first officer, Jerry Smith and his family. His son was about 7 mos. old at the time and went on to become a pilot and currently flies for Southwest. Jerry’s wife was my dear friend for over 50 years and recently passed away. She never got over this tragedy and the loss of her husband so young.

Flying back then was pretty primitive compared to today. The only flights I ever took had destinations with ILS capabilities, so never experienced a flight like this one until I was in the Army…and few places we went had ILS. I noted that the right seat called out “400” when clearly they were lower, so….

Another great video TFC!

My neighbors Son Kevin Gilmore was a running back on the Marshall football team and perished in that crash. Kevin along with 3 other team players remains were never recovered. The Gilmore family tragedy doesnt end there. Two decades later Kevin's Nephew Jack Gilmore was a QB for The University of Nevada Las Vegas and he was killed by a drunk driver in Jersey City NJ . Such heart ache for one family to endure.

Very sad. Thanks for another brilliant video of yours.

I'm not sure this falls within what you prefer to cover, but please consider the Oklahoma State Cowboys basketball team plane crash in 2001. A Beechcraft Superking 200 becomes disorientated in a snowstorm. 10 lives lost.

Great great work Flight Channel!

What a tragic event. Thank you for covering this.

Uff one of my favorites football movies and i have never think on the plane crash. Thank you from Villalba, Spain. We are Marshall!

As always, an excellent & realistic video. Usually, the channel lets it be known that the paint scheme isn't the same as actual aircraft in the crash. That's the case for this one. The blue & white livery came out in the mid 1970s.

The Flight Channel, can you, if you haven't already, do one on the crash of Darryl Ward who was on the tv show Ice Road Truckers. He was one of my favorite truckers on that show and I've always been curious as to why the plane he was in crashed.

Tuscaloosa, AL lost four players in the crash. TCL, the airport; is thankfully in the beginning steps of extending their main runway from 6500’ to roughly 7700’. UA flies out & in @ least 5-6x a year.

It is so disheartening to watch it. One literally doesn't want to LIKE the video. So many innocent lives and such tender ages as well. Also, on final approach.... But due appreciation for your hard work as usual mate. Always precise and concise explanation of events.

This was so tragic. I remember ESPN doing a special on the team and this accident when I was younger. It scared me out of flying until i was much older. I was traumatized.

I was barely 3 when this tragedy happened. I wonder how many players would have made it to the pros. Or would have gone to Canton. R.I.P. 😢😢😢😢💔💔💔💔.

Grew up across the river in Ashland KY, went to many Herd games through my young life and most notably the Randy Moss and Chad Pennington era. Even while I was in High School during the 80's, the team had many memorials and days of remembrances for the team. Ohh for the record we in that area refer to Kenova and Ceredo by their initials. CK! Ceredo comes before Kenova :) I flew out of and into that airport many times while I was in the US Army. Tri-State holds a special place in my heart.

What a tragedy... well recounted TFC, thank you.

Every decade improves with technology on board with systems updated and the oh so important ILS system to equipt pilots in such conditions. We have seen numerous accounts of pilots landing in treacherous conditions throughout history but once in a while even the best are defeated..sometimes it's in the lap of the gods,sometimes just pilot error....

We lost college classmates and friends. Watch the movie, "We Are Marshall". And, keep in mind the movie intimates that it was a lightning strike that caused the crash.

TFC, thank you very much for a very thorough video on this terrible tragedy. I can now understand much better just what actually took place that fateful flight. It just makes me shake my head in confusion and disbelief that a Captain with so much experience let his plane descend that low. I find myself wishing to believe that their instrumentation was giving them false information and I also wonder how familiar this flight crew was with this airport and region, but I think I know in my heart that most probably this very experienced Captain just somehow was not as careful as he should of been and made mistakes that cost all of them their lives. How tragic and how very heartbreaking this is.

This one gutted me. Even though I am very familiar with the story, it is heartbreaking. This video was excellent. As usual. Very respectful of the lost.

Can't wait to watch this. Your videos are incredibly well done, can't imagine how much work it takes to make these. You are an amazing channel 🥰

I saw the movie as well and I offer to those personally impacted by that horrific tragedy my deepest, deepest heart felt sadness... It's incredibly difficult to put in words. But, I am so very sorry that hey passed that way.

A sad day in the history of college football. The team played their last game in Greenville,NC at East Carolina

These videos give me anxiety and make me so sad, yet I can’t stop watching them. Those poor people.

man this channel deserves an oscar!

This is so crazy. I don't blame them, they literally couldn't see anything. Rest in peace, man.

I just reloaded my RU-vid... to find this posted 10 seconds ago...

I grew up in Kentucky...one hour from Marshall University. I was six years old when the crash happened. Maybe because my parents taught at Morehead State University everyone talked about the crash. Fifty three years later, I still root for Marshall despite them kicking our butts in the first game of the football season.

What a sad story. Another totally preventable accident. It’s crazy that so many lives are lost because of the deficiency of one or two people. Wonder if there really was an issue with the altimeter readings, or if the pilots decision was ignorance, or hubris. Either way…..it makes u appreciate all the dedicated and professional pilots out there who follow the procedures and don’t take anything for granted.

While it's a tragedy that this plane crashed, with tremendous loss of life, this crash saved future lives by the lessons learned from it.

Art Harris, a Marshall running back, and his father were both killed in the crash. The father was my first ever supervisor at a real job. Heck of a nice guy. This mishap occurred less than 11 months after I just missed the crash of a Navy fighter at NAS Miramar by 200 ft. Peace to all whose lives were touched.

I live near this! I have been waiting on this video for years!

I don’t understand how you can continue to descend without visual confirmation of the runway.

That is one of the darkest runways I have ever seen! RIP to all who died!

A quality production... as always 👍🏼✌

I live only a few minutes from the crash site and visit often. When I visit I try to feel what might have been going on in the victims minds. So sad

Have you ever covered the Wichita State University football team tragedy in '78? We never had a team since then.

Hard to believe these experienced pilots ignored the MDA.

Flight Channel is one of my favorites.. but would be nice if they went back to the 40's and 50's when I grew up and try to explain some of those accidents

One thing I’ve learnt from this channel is don’t fly on DC planes