My parents are friends with the eight year old who survived who lost his whole family in this video, he is now happily married with children, i grew up with his son. They are a happy family.
That is good news to hear after reading about the man by one of the commenters above this post. I remember now the story about this. I was a teenager then.
My former neighbor Kerri, who lost her twin, was the one that campaigned for and got the memorial installed. She was a lovely woman. You would not have known she had such a tragedy in her life. I remember when this happened. We were frequent customers of Farrell’s and Sacramento was a regular stop on family vacations. Kerri spoke of “the accident” but never elaborated. When I found out WHICH accident, my heart broke for her. I was sad to hear she had passed away several years after her family moved away. (Natural causes) The twins are together again.
I cannot imagine the heartbreak that sole survivor of the family of nine went through. They didn’t just lose one loved one that day, they lost them all.
Just as sad as the lonely survivor of the Lago Maggiore Cablecar collapse recently in Italy, where only a young boy survived, losing all his family in this incident.
What gets me is that a 12 year knew this wasn't going to happen and the experienced pilot didn't. Hubris, maybe? But man, the loss of so many families is just gut wrenching.
You might not think that way after they cut off your leg because you are morbidly obese and have diabetes and did nothing about it except getting fatter and lazier.
Oh my god. I live in Sacramento, and my grandpa was a morgue worker all his life. He was on the scene of this, collecting the bodies. He talked about it as his most traumatizing moment at his job, in over 40 years of work. I've heard about this all my life, surreal to see a video on it
@@leae3750 I dont think he'd ever truly say that, other than that it was emotionally breaking. He died 2 years ago so...I unfortunately can't ask him anymore.
My late step-father Hamish was a medical examiner most of his life, started working as a funeral director, got his medical education and degrees, then worked in a morgue at the city hospital where he worked with the bodies of those who’d passed and determine cause of death. He dealt with the Piper Alpha incident, massive incident that happened off the NE Scottish coast, it was a massive explosion on an oil rig platform where 167 died. It left him with PTSD and he developed alcoholism due to it, and despite loving his job as a medical examiner, the disaster made him leave his job, the trauma was just too much. I imagine Hamish’s experience is akin to your grandfather, Hamish didn’t talk about it in detail very often, he massively struggled with it, he’d mention it from time-to-time and would be extremely somber on the anniversary every year, but he never fully went into details, just said most of the deceased were not whole and it was mostly parts of people he saw. I don’t blame him for not wanting to speak about it in detail, I’m assuming your grandfather is much the same.
@@leae3750 I was 12 when this happened, and I watched it happen, then ran down Freeport Blvd to Farrells with my brother. We walked across Freeport into Farrells parking lot. There we saw men carrying bodies out and lining them up on the lot. We stood right next to the bodies, and my 10 year old brother said "It killed a bunch of black people". He didn't realize they were all burned unrecognizable. The bodies I saw were intact, just badly burned.
The one kid losing essentially their whole family in an instant just ripped my heart to pieces. I couldn't even imagine the grief and despair that little one had.
My father and I were on our way to get ice cream there. I remember the fire trucks screaming by and we kept driving towards the ice cream parlor and as we drove by my father and I were in shock. It was a sad day and I am glad my dad took his time at Sears.
My parents and older siblings (I hadn't been born yet) were going to church at that day and arrived a few minutes after it happened. My sister remembers seeing a firefighter working his way along the roof. They heard about what had happened on the radio.
I had only been to a Ferrells once and it was a sensation overload for me as a child. It was in Memphis and we were there on a trip from Atlanta. I'm the youngest of three and my oldest brother, without my knowledge, had told the waitress that it was my birthday. Next thing I know, there's all kinds of racket, bells, whistles and lights flashing with a string of employees coming to our table while singing. I was so embarrassed but grew used to being the target of many pranks from my older brothers and I gave them their fair share as well.
Growing up as a child in the 60’s , Farrells ice cream parlor was our favorite place to celebrate our birthdays as kids! It was so much fun , with these humongous bowls of ice cream that we’d share with our friends and just be in ice cream heaven! Those were certainly the good old days that I’ll always treasure🥰✌🏼🍨🎂🍰🍦🍧
@@guntherultraboltnovacrunch5248 Yes! That place was amazing! My brother and I couldn’t wait until it was our birthday to celebrate with our friends and dig into such deliciousness 🍨🍧🍦
The fact the pilot was distraught and wanted others to be rescued shows that he was truly sorry for what he did and not so much over the consequences he would face.
@@ronstreet6706 Even with all the mitigating circumstances Imagaine trying to live with that on your conscience for the rest of your life. It would be game over for me for certain.
I feel like having honest, legitimate regret for something is what opens the door to forgiveness. The victims deserve all the sympathy and support in situations like this, but you'd need a heart of stone to not feel at least a little pity for someone who just signed up for a lifetime of guilt by making one bad choice.
@@ronstreet6706 The picture shows him in a wheelchair. It could be that his injuries left him medically unable to fly a plane, in addition to whatever regrets he may have felt.
My dad's best friend was working at Farrells when this happened, he didn't like to talk about it, but one time he did tell us about how he ended up tossing children through a broken window to get them out of the burning building, he had burns all over his arms from it, such a terrible tragedy.
Once I saw the title and the image, I immediately remembered my mom talking about the incident when I was younger. She was born and raised in Sacramento. Her and her friends were going to the ice cream store but her friend left her money at home. Her friend insisted they run home and get her money. When they came back, the plane had already crashed. I remember my mom got emotional talking about it. She only mentioned it once.
Grew up in Sacramento as well (though this happened a little over 4 years before I was born), and we'd drive right by the airport and strip mall to get to church (among other places during the week). My family was headed to church and arrived not long after it happened, and they had to detour around the area, not knowing until later (when they heard about it on the radio) as to what exactly had happened (though they could see the smoke, and my sister remembers getting enough of a view of the building that she remembers seeing a firefighter up on the roof trying to help fight the flames).
Imagine going out for ice cream only to lose your entire family in just a few short moments, especially at such a young age. I hope that poor kid was able to live a full life afterwards, though I doubt anyone would ever be the same again after suffering that kind of trauma.
The survivor’s guilt the pilot must have felt is something I can’t imagine. Especially considering that it was families and children and that several probably died from burns which is a horrific way to go. This might be one of the most upsetting stories I’ve heard from this channel in a long time.
@@danielbierwirth2190 i would honestly do the same. I don’t think I could ever live with myself if I knew that so many innocent beings who just wanted a snack died at my hands.
@@danielbierwirth2190 I think you have things a little bit mixed up - it was the owner of the jet who died in a high speed dive in a P-51 about a year after the original incident. I don't know whether that was suicide because there was a passenger, too, so it would be a doubly awful thing to for him to do.
@@seanbreheny9777 Is that what it was.... It was a long time ago. Now that you have stirred up the cobwebs in my brain, (thank you very much for that dust storm), you are right. I was 14 or so at the time. I don't know why I've always thought it was the pilot of the Saber Jet, but I remember many years ago, my dad telling me once I had it wrong. Well thanks for setting me and the record straight.
@@star-tc7xv I was just corrected, it wasn't the pilot who died in the Mustang by Suicide. My brain had 2 related stories crossed. It was the "OWNER" of the Jet who was killed about a year later in the Mustang. My brain combined those stories. So I wanted to admit my error up front. Its sad to get old and have your brain compact your life into a 3 minute video.
I feel so bad for those grandparents who ran across the street to help and got hit my a truck. I bet they were so focused on the disaster that they didn’t even consider checking the street
As a grandparent, I can absolutely attest to that. I would run toward any kind of danger if any of my kids or grands were in trouble. Familial Love is like that, I’d die for any of them❤️
Does anyone know where she was when she was hit? I feel like a truck should have been going slow when there was that much chaos all over the street and surrounding buildings.
@@05pittsd No idea but a truck doesn't have to be going very fast at all to kill someone. About a year ago where I live, a cyclist collided with a truck that was getting ready to pull out of a parking lot and died from a head injury. The driver in this video could have been negligent but it's just as likely that it was out of their control.
My wife and her sister were supposed to be at a birthday party there, but were late, fortunately. But their father did not know that. He was a Fire captain, a first responder who expected that his children had perished. There are photos of him at the scene in utter despair.
Honestly part of why I love your videos so much is because you don’t just leave it at “well that was horrific!” You actually say what’s changed because of the accidents/incidents.
I'm honestly super impressed that more than a memorial plaque came out of this. A major charity being set up in response to this so that other burn victims can recieve better medical treatment is just about the best memorial possible
Agreed, Andrea. The Cocoanut Grove Fire and the Hartford Circus Fire (both also on Fascinating Horror) led to improvements in burn care. But a center that can perform continuing research is a huge benefit to medicine.
Agreed, every year on the weekend of the memorial the local fire academies have all of the cadets at street corners around the greater Sacramento area with fire boots to fill with donations for the burn center. They make millions of dollars every year from that alone.
Get divorced. The other half of your family will vanish in an instant. People you spent years with and loved dearly. Birthdays, Christmases every long weekend...maybe you even worked with them. This episode is tragic but people lose people every day without the death. Doesn't mean it hurts any less. Just saying.
I moved to Sacramento from San Jose in 1980 and had always enjoyed going to Farrell's in both cities. I had heard stories about the tragedy on Freeport Blvd., but never got a detailed story until this video. I'll try to visit the memorial plaque and pay my respects, as soon as I can. Thank you for the knowledge.
My mom and I were at that Farrell's that day. My mom later told me that not long after we got there I was begging her to leave. I was crying and telling her that we had to go...now! She got really upset at me because we used to always go there and she wanted some ice cream as well. Anyways, just minutes after we left the plane hit. I remember looking out of the back window of the car and seeing a huge plume of smoke, but not knowing where it came from. My dad was a Sacramento police officer at the time and was one of the first officers on the scene, but my mom and I had left just moments before...
@@DR-mq1vn Yes, I do. I was a kid so my memory is more like still pictures rather than a continuous "movie", but I do recall being there, waiting in the foyer for a table, being seated at the table, then pitching a fit and wanting to leave. I remember my mom being angry because she had just lit a cigarette (back when people smoked in restaurants) and she wanted ice cream. We finally left (after she finished her cigarette) and I was really impatient the whole time until we left. I also remember driving away from the restaurant and being on Freeport Blvd and on my knees looking out of the back window and seeing smoke (kids were not seat-belted back then - they just jumped around in the back seat like chimpanzees). Later, when I was older (maybe 15 or 16), I found out that my father was one of the first police officers on the scene and heard about the carnage. Makes one wonder...
@@mikesmusicden Thanks for answering me! I'm 55 so I remember how it was in the 70s. But what I wanted to know is if you remember your feelings that day. Do you remember if you felt something, and that is why you didn't want to stay? Can you remember any of that? And when the car was driving away, were you looking out the back window because you anticipated that something might happen? Also, have you had any other "gut feelings" since then?
I really like how he talks about the aftermath and any changes that came from the disaster. Instead of leaving it so sensational, it’s good to remember good things that can come out of these tragic events.
The good thing that comes out of these tragedies, is that people horrified by the tragedy immediately do whatever they must to make it so another tragedy like it doesn't happen again.
Now this whole thing is a tragedy, but the grand parents getting run over by a truck trying to reach their grand children who weren't even there just broke me.
@@Utubesanarc I'm confused with your response. I found the info about the car which was struck on a wiki entry. Many articles don't mention those two fatalities -they only mention a car was struck while the jet crossed the highway. The jet could have clipped the car with no loss of life. I' assume the jet was afire by then and set the struck car afire.
This acident reminds me of one that happened here in São Paulo, Brazil. In July 17, 2009 a TAM airline plane was trying to land at the airport (I forgot the name), it was raining, the runway wasn't fully finished and didn't had means to drain the acumullated water. In the end, the plane couldn't stop in time, went through the whole runway and crashed in a building. 199 people died
@@youtubegarbage7876 are you for fucking real? Doesn't matter if theyre American, Brazilian, or goddamn Afghanistani, every person is just as important as another. One American kids life is not worth any fucking more than one Brazilians life
@@youtubegarbage7876 or maybe just maybe, it is well known but your lazy ass just haven't go search it yet. It was covered on Air Crash Investigation, also known as Mayday! in some regions.
This tragedy is literally the stuff of my nightmares! Imagine going from just trying to enjoy eating ice cream with your family to then immediately being the sole survivor of your entire family in a matter of mere seconds…
Additional information: Kerri Francis McCluskey was almost 4 when her twin sister Kristi died in the plane crash. Kerri herself had a broken leg and some lighter wounds. As an adult, "McCluskey led the drive for a memorial rose garden, with its two metal benches, stone obelisk fountain, concrete marker and two metal plaques with the names of those killed. It was dedicated March 15, 2003, 'in loving memory' of the deceased." The pilot, Bingham, has declined to be interviewed, but has lived with this tragedy every day, and will continue to do so until he dies.
Here's an anomaly, I looked and didn't see Kristi McCluskey's name on any of the lists or on any of the memorials for the deceased . Did anybody else spot it?
My father grew up in Sacramento, and was about 11 years old when this happened. The way his generation remembers it, Farrell's was so popular most people in town could claim they had either recently visited the shop, or were planning to within the near future. "Either you had just come from Farrell's, or you were just about to go."
I still have the BD invitation for the free ice cream treat. Yes it was very popular place to be. Yes good thing we couldn’t make it. I can thank Mr Reagan for having my aunt work that day! ❤️
We lost a friend and his daughter in this accident. He had taken her there for her birthday, along with several of her friends. The primary reason for the crash was the pilot using a short runway and the temperature which was high creating low air density on takeoff
Yes, the pilot decided to use a short runway, he wasn’t up to extending it to accommodate his airplane & didn’t feel like chugging across to a longer freeway. Sorry for your loss... I then saw blame also put onto new sign on ice-cream store distracted the pilot...!
@@WLHS "Distracted the pilot???" Ridiculous. Watch any video of ant big plane coming into San Diego International Airport. Steepest required landing angle on the US...and THOUSANDS of surrounding tall buildings and other distractions. Fortunately, the take off side is over the water. Which I imagine might also pose a distraction.
Just found this and whoa... I was there that day with my brother and we wanted to go to Farrells after the show. My grandmother and aunt had brought us to the show and were tired after a long day, saw the wait (line) and said "no", We ended up going to a drugstore down the street that had a soda fountain. As we were leaving we heard the "boom" and saw the fire. My brother and I wanted to go back and see what was happening but my grandmother floored it and got us home where we saw on tv what happened
The Brumit's, from Meadow Vista, CA. where the couple killed in the car the jet hit crossing the road that day. Sadly they we're going to visit their son Terry in the hospital due to his being in a serious go-kart accident. I moved away shortly after that and always wondered how Terry Brumit coped with type of loss.
"Felt like he mastered the controls after a few 1 hour flights" sounded like a recipe for disaster and it was. I'm so addicted to this channel right now
To be fair, it wasn’t entirely his fault as the video stated that regulations at that particular airport had been unacceptably lax for quite some time. I feel bad for that dude by the way since it was clear he was absolutely distraught over the damage he caused albeit accidentally following his removal from the cockpit of the plane, even going so far as to apologize profusely and beg anyone within earshot to rescue the poor souls trapped within. You can obviously tell it messed him up pretty badly after the fact if he refused to fly ever again. 😑
Today any jet requires a specific type rating to fly, I believe. Not sure if that was the case at the time, but if he had that much experience flying contemporary aircraft to the F86, three hours’ transition time isn’t unreasonable if he is a seasoned pilot. The other thing to consider, regarding his attempted climb angle, is that he may have been trying to comply with noise abatement or obstacle clearance procedures at that particular airport, especially if residential and commercial properties had grown up around the airport.
@@Chris-hq7nl It sounds as if Bingham realized too late that the Sabre was on the roll too slowly, and tried to yank it into the air instead of going off the end of the runway on the ground. Perhaps he was hoping against hope he could either "leap" the fence and building or even go round a tight circuit and stay inside the perimeter. What clearly happened instead was that the Sabre stalled (aerodynamically, that is, not an engine stall like a car) and fell back onto the runway...tragically retaining too much momentum. Incidentally Crown Assets had sold Sabre 5 23275, which became N275X, for parts only. It was not supposed to fly again. That wasn't because there was anything actually wrong with the Sabre itself, but it caused tremendous regulatory trouble as the investigation progressed...
Interesting. I never heard about this one. I used to work at the end of a runway, at Pearson International Airport in Toronto,Canada. The planes used to shake the rafters and you couldn’t speak to your work partners when one flew over. Also, I was up on the roof one day and it was foggy, all I heard was a roar coming and it sounded like it was farther away, then all of a sudden, a 747 Jumbo Jet came right out of the fog, it seemed so close that I could see into the wheel bay doors as it landed. I just thought to myself, “if one of these jets loses control, we are all going to die”. We were situated at the exact angle and position to the runway as this Farrell’s Ice Cream shop was.
That's incredibly scary.😨 I love planes, but one thing I have always resolved is that I do NOT want to live or work in a building near the end of a runway! Planes are statistically very safe, but takeoff and landing is where things can definitely go wrong!
I hope you weren't there day that Air France plane overran the runway and just missed crashing into the 407(Unless my memory fails me and it was the 401 XD)
Did you work at the Wendy's/Tim Horton's? I remember going through the drive-through there and having to wait while the plane landed in order to continue speaking. The Air France crash was on a runway going the opposite direction of the one flashy5150 is talking about (if we're talking about the same place, but I only know of one runway at Pearson that heads towards buildings), the Air France plane went off a runway that ran parallel to the highway and into a small ravine. (Source: I was born and raised 5 mins from Pearson airport and both my parents and I worked there in the parking department.)
Not remotely the same but we had an air show where I live. I’m about 5 miles from the small local airport so we hear some planes but it’s not usually loud. The runways handle small passenger jets from SouthWest airlines and private jets. Until the Blue Angels (military jet show off group) came to town. None of the neighbors or I knew what was going on but they were taking off right over us for three days. Their wheels were practically brushing our roofs. The noise was deafening. My whole building, made of cinderblock, was shaking. It wasn’t til after the first day they spent swooping super low over our neighborhood for 2-3 hours that we found out what was going on. It was honestly terrifying at first and my dogs were super traumatized. I can’t even begin to imagine what it was like to people who live closer!
The young twins, Kerri and Kristi, were the grandchildren of our next door neighbors in Sonora, CA and even though I was a few years older I met and played with them a few times. I remember this crash and my parents telling me what happened and was very shocked and saddened knowing I wouldn’t be seeing them together again. The grandparents/neighbors of course, were utterly devastated. Such a tragic event.
When I saw the thumbnail I was VERY confused...was this ice cream shop ON a plane? I couldn't have even imagined that a perfectly fine plane would just run right off the runway into a store built on the other side of it...
I was honestly expecting a fire, and/or people being killed in some kind of crush because the building had a shitty design with the fire escapes welded shut etc. Seems fairly standard for the era.
I used to be a commercial pilot years ago; our nickname for the FAA was The Tombstone Agency because they never acted until someone died. And unfortunately oft times in aviation incidents it's a lot of people who die.
Loved to go to Farrells in my hometown, Flint, MI. Worst disaster there was when the waiters tripped while carrying one of the giant bowls of ice cream. Plus it was in Flint, MI.
We had a place similar to Farroughs and the biggest disaster that happened was when the waitress sat the huge ice cream soda down and the bottom broke off and the mess landed in my classmates lap.
I've watched quite a lot of your videos at this point and I must say I really appreciate the fact that you highlight the new safety regulations and other positive outcomes that result from such incidents. Great work, I do hope you continue making these videos =]
My first job was at Ferrell’s In Escondido, CA.. I worked in the candy shops, where the guests checked out and could buy old-fashioned candy on the way out. It was so adorable and nostalgic. A happy place to work for a 15 year old.🍨 🍦 🍭 🍬
I loved that Farrell's. I went to the same summer camp in Julian for many years, and that was always our late lunch stop on the way home. We'd usually meet up with others from camp there, so it was one last extension of our week together before heading back to our normal lives. I was so sad to hear it had closed. Thanks to you and all the staff there for some wonderful memories.
I couldn't understand why I never heard of this, and then I realized that just two weeks before the Munich Olympics Massacre had taken place, and this must have not gotten the recognition it would normally have received.
Man, most of these make me angry, because these disasters are usually the result of negligence, laziness, and/or greed. Now while there was a little bit of that here, this still mostly feels like the tragic result of honest mistakes, and that makes this so much sadder.
Farrells came to my town in 1973, when I was 6. It was all the rage at that age, with a cool gift shop and its graduated size selection of jaw breakers, plus hats, whistles, candies, etc. Kids had birthday parties there, to which I remember attending a couple. They'd even run a bass drum and a siren out to sing Happy Birthday. If someone ordered a giant, party-sized "Zoo," they got the same treatment. It was great. Fast forward to summer, 1984, and it was my first part-time job. Place was disgusting. I was a bus boy and was treated like dirt. It had aged 20 years in its 11 years. Cock roaches, terrible management, poor maintenance, etc. I remember thinking of calling the health department but found out a couple years after I'd quit that they had shut down. Place was demolished and rebuilt as something else, which was also demolished. Worst job I ever had. Good riddance. Great memories as a kid, though.
It was his fault. The guilt is appropriate. Those buildings didn't just appear from nowhere and he was aware of his lack of experience in the plane. I don't condemn him. We are all capable of causing someone's death by negligence in an instant. This is something I often forget when I'm driving my 4000 lb. car down the road at 45mph.
Tbh I didn’t know what Farrel’s was before this video so I just assumed that it was an ice cream parlor stationed in the shell of an old retired fighter jet
A huge contributing factor in this accident from my memory of this, having been there that day, was that the pilot requested and was granted a midfield takeoff on a different runway than the one being used in order to avoid the line of planes waiting to take off after the show. The length of the primary runway in use was plenty long for the jet. The length of the runway from the intersection point he started his departure was not and he should never have attempted it. Had he waited in line and not been in a hurry, this wouldn’t have happened.
@@markdavis9148 My dad was in aviation at the time and I remember him talking about this. He said the pilot rotated too early in an attempt to take off and actually came back on the runway before yanking it off at the last moment. There is a rise just passed the end of that runway, a road (Freeport Blvd) runs basically perpendicular to it which is higher than the runway, and he barely cleared it but never got airborne.
*This channel is simply outstanding! Thank you for highlighting these lesser known, yet still important from a regulatory amendments point-of-view, historical disasters. You're contributing thoroughly premium content to RU-vid. Keep up the stellar work, good day!*
6:20 Jesus Christ.... I feel so bad for the 9 year old who lost his parents, grandparents, 3 siblings, and a couple cousins..... I really pray they’re alright and were able to overcome that tragedy but wow man I feel so fucking bad for them, I literally can’t even imagine losing my entire family like that .... 😧😔i
@T Paine how are you going to be all "Holy Roller" on everybody when you have songs like " I'm N Luv wit a stripper" "bootywork" "bartender" "Buy U a Drank" and "FBGM" shame on you T-Pain
My mom was actually 12 or so when this happened. she had a neighborhood friend who celebrated her birthday that night at the parlor and my grandma changed her mind last minute. She had a few friends pass in that accident.
Thanks for just saying your grandma changed her mind, and not telling us Jesus came from the clouds and spared your mom. It's a rare US youtube comment that avoids that dreck.
I herd about this tragedy when I was station at McClellan AFB back in the 1990s. So sad that many were family's members who died together there. May they all Rest In Peace. Good video.
When I was a kid we went to one in S CA. And I always thought it was the only one! I wanted to take my kids there but heard it had closed down many years ago, wish I had known they were everywhere! And sad to findout the last one closed in 2019 too!
We had a Farrells in Eugene, Oregon and I never knew it was a chain either. I always thought it was the only one around. Lol It was the funnest place for birthday parties.
I saw the jet in the thumbnail, read the title. Looked back at the thumbnail, re-read the title. "Maybe he put the wrong image.... Surely... Oh god now I have to watch" And now I have to subscribe.
I remember this so distinctly. I was in a hospital in Sacramento giving birth to my son. His birthday is September 24, 1972, It was so, so sad. The nurse wouldn't let us watch tv, said they were broken. Of course, eventually. someone told us about the incident. So much sadness in the midst of happiness of having a son.
That was absolutely fascinating ... I remember Farrell's as a child growing up in the 1970s. It was always a treat to go, and I just can't imagine such a visit ending in tragedy.
Oh, wow. I'm having such a weird flashback. I went to college with a guy who said his older sisters had been killed in a plane crash at Farrell's, and that was the reason his parents had chosen to have him. At the time, I dismissed it (you hear lots of weird stories in dorms), but now I'm remembering that he was from Sacramento, and would have been born about two years later. 😔
I was there that day, nearby. We lived just around the corner, I remember…at Fruitridge and Florin Road. It was the last day for jets there, at the then-called Executive Airport.🌿🐇 It is very weird…to see the story reappear. Being just a kid…it was quite the experience for me, … to imagine how easily I could have been at that innocent birthday party.🌿🐇 My goodness.
The root of it is that the pilot did not know the "flight envelope" of the aircraft he was flying. The flight envelope covers all combinations of altitude, attitude and airspeed, and defines the safe zone for a given plane to fly in. He thought, "I'm in a jet fighter, I can take off at a very high pitch!" Wrong. He tried to take off and instead "stalled" - reached such a high pitch the wings couldn't sustain lift any more and promptly quit flying. So close to the ground, he had no chance of recovery from the stall, and the plane became an unguided bomb aimed straight at Farrell's. The airshow was at fault too, however. The proper thing (done at many airshows nowadays) would have been to have him take off at a proper airfield, fly to the show, do his passes, and fly BACK to the original field to land, with proper runways and buffers. If the Sabre was a static display, they should have just hauled it off on a truck and not tried to FLY it out of the airport. Poor planning by both the airfield and the airshow assured the disaster would happen even with a more experienced pilot.
@@daffers2345 A big problem with the Sabre was that it had small wings. That meant that it needed high speeds to fly in fighting trim. At low speeds, it was trying to get a brick into the air, and demanded great care in takeoffs and landings to prevent a sudden stall (and immediate crash). This pilot knew NONE of that. He was just about a passenger in his own plane once things started getting out of hand.
@@ArchTeryx00 Sabre Dance. The pilots had a song about the Super Sabre: Don't give me a one-o-o It's deadly to friend and foe' That old 'Saber dance" made me sh!t in my pants, Don't give me a one-o-o
@@P_RO_ True, but that doesn't apply here. Super Sabres are F-100s, this was a Canadian version of an F-86 Sabre. Where the F-86 would passively try to kill you (stall), the F-100 would actively make the attempt (tip stall in ground effect).
@@mfree80286 Both the F-86 and F-100 were also underpowered. The turbojet engines of that era were heavy for the amount of thrust they produced. Taking off in a Super Sabre could be very tricky. You had to make sure you got it going fast enough before you lifted off or you could end up in serious trouble. The thrust to weight ratio was well below 1:1 so it would not accelerate going straight up.
I recall this incident very clearly. I was living in Sacramento at the time. I drove through the Freeport Blvd. intersection in front of Farrell's just two hours before the F-86 did. Heard the report on the radio just afterward. I've had occasion to fly in and out of Sacramento Exec. Like many airports once out in the stix, the city came to it. The area around it had built up. An F-86 had no business in there.
The fact that the pilot wanted his rescuers to go save others from the wreckage really got to me. He really did feel guilty. He genuinely cared more for the people who's lives he put in danger than his own, at that point. I feel that it was his fault, though I don't blame him. Everyone watching this video has heard it and is sick of it, but we aren't perfect. I'm not a pilot, but I feel it's safe to say that the way a pilot reacts to obstructions and too-short runways would most likely be 'get off the ground.'
this. the man had to deal with this event plaguing his conscience the moment that aircraft crashed into the parlour. when a pilot sees something on the ground, instead of just trying to turn it away (like you would swerve a car to avoid hitting something or someone in the road), a pilot cant do that, as the plane would just rotate, and more than likely just crash. the only choice? either pray like hell that you slow down fast enough, or you bank on speed and pull the hell up. he knew that Option A was not a possible one, so he tried to bank on speed. sadly, as we know, speed was not enough to prevent tragedy. that CL-13 served proudly in the RCAF, and was lost in mere moments due to the pilot not having that crucial training and experience needed to fly such a beautiful beast.
@@StrabbyStrabby unfortunately making glib comments from the safety of your armchair is far too easy, I think it shows these people have never had to make a serious decision under extreme pressure, at take off speed the runway is dissappearing very fast, (60mph is 88feet per second, just a reference to think on), you don't get a lot of time to dwell on things, so when things go wrong you have but seconds, I wish people would think before they write.
@@richardmcavoy6413 Do you remember Farrell's? It was magical. When my kids were younger I heard there was a new one that opened not far from one that had closed many years prior that I remembered. I took my kids there for my son's 11th birthday and I was so disappointed. The ambiance wasn't there. Almost nothing memorable about the original was replicated. I remember the old-timey piano music playing and the neat old fashioned lighting and everything in there, dark wood furniture & bar where they sold all kinds of special candy. On birthdays a barber shop quartet would come out banging a huge drum and sing a capella in perfect harmony. The remake was just another restaurant and the hats they wore were the same style as the old ones but made of Styrofoam. They sold them for $16 each. My son said he wanted one and I told him no. I had told him previously about what Farrell's had been like before. It had class and style. I told him I could make a better hat for less than $16 and I did. I still have the hat I made for him just like the ones they used to wear.
Fascinating Horror has my vote as one of the most interesting RU-vid channels. The narrations are always concise and clear. The content well thought out with extensive research. And the stories are truly fascinating and horrible! Well done. Please keep them them coming.
@@allisonday893 Makes me think of the Wings episode where Joe is trying to get his brother to stop saying words like fascinating. Main producer writer of that show died on 9/11 plane. Here is bat biologist Bret Weinstein w/ mRNA vax inventor & optical mouse rich guy who talks too much revealing vax truth & generic treatments to save humans. Watch b4 it is taken down. I take the I med in vid. Will avoid the F. ( Columbine shooters ) Hope this info prevents bad things. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE--_NNTVJzqtY.html
I like the fact that the narrator does not waste energy trying to be emotional. The calm delivery does not shield the extreme empathy and sadness the viewer witnesses. Anything more would be pandering.
@@Mr1borrego2 Not true, as of the 40th anniversary of the accident in 2012 he was still living in Northern California. He was contacted by the Sacramento paper to make a statement, and declined.
Named after the local zoo in the community Farrell's was in. In Seattle, it was called the "Woodland Park Zoo." They also had a "lesser" sundae called the "Mount Rainier." I'm an older guy now but fondly remember Farrell's growing up. I also remember the tragic incident made my folks and family think twice about ever going there again.
You are correct; it was called "The Zoo," and was run around the restaurant in a special sling carried by two people, to the accompaniment of a hand-cranked siren.
I am extremely familiar with this incident and I will let you know it has nothing to do with the proximity of the business or its sign or anything else in the area. The sole responsibility for this instant lands directly on the pilot of the plane nothing else. Thousands of planes had taken off from this airport prior to this accident military and civilian with no incidents. He had no Familiarization with this plane and never should’ve been flying it. I believe this is why the pilot never flew again in fact I believe he lost his pilots license for this exact reason.
I was also 12 then, and was at the airshow all day, and watched the entire crash unfold. Earlier that day, I watched that F-86 racing a small yellow biplane all around Sacramento to promote the airshow. I was standing on an electrical box just below the tower to get a clear view. The jet got probably halfway down the runway and the nose went up, then the plane got around 25 feet high, then dropped. I then saw black tire smoke as he locked up the brakes, then a cloud of dust as it went off the end of the runway, slid around a 1/4 mile, still had a lot of speed at this point, hit the 10 foot embankment at Freeport Blvd where the fuel tanks exploded in a huge fireball. Even at 1/2 mile I was from the explosion, I felt the radiant heat instantly. I lost sight of it there, then saw the smoke coming from Farrells. My brother and I ran down Freeport towards the crash. We got there before any fire or rescue vehicles probably due to the traffic. I saw the hedges on Freeport burned, along with the street and sidewalks blackened. From there, the jet flew another 100 yards across the parking lot, but only 3 feet high, because all of the roofs of the cars had been sheared off by the plane, and the paint of the cars was blistered by the heat. My brother and I walked through the parking lot as fire department and police arrived. We were never told to leave, as I am sure they thought we must have been inside Farrells. Firemen carried bodies out and lined them up right in front of us. The bodies were all burned and unrecognizable. This is the actual crash( ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-xdwk00AwNdg.html ) It is my understanding that the pilot Richard Bingham later crashed a P-51 on final.
@@beththompson2188 Its been many years, and I still remember it clearly. But, it may have been 10 feet up for all I know, but the angle I saw it from, it was definitely off the ground for a second.
@limelight81 I have now seen 8 planes crash, all at airshows. The last one was the P51 crash in Reno into the spectators. I was a mile out standing on my camp trailer, saw the whole thing. Just makes you sick. We knew it was bad.
Bingham was alive as late as 2012, living in Shasta County. The Sacramento Bee contacted him for a comment on the 40th anniversary of the crash, but he declined.
Lately, I've become addicted to this channel. It makes me wonder where it's been all this time. I'm fascinated by historical events, as well as morbid curiosities, so it's basically a perfect channel for me. Well-restearched too.
I vividly remember the news coverage of this tragedy, as it was too close to home. I also remember the pictures on the front page of the Stockton Record newspaper. Horrible.... We were living in Stockton at the time, but had once lived near Sac Exec.Airport, where my aunt worked for a small flight company. Our family went to Farrell's a couple of times. It had a fun noisy "carnival like" atmosphere! I can still picture the dark woods, red leather? booths, the long tables, the Tiffany light fixtures, and the servers dressed like old fashioned "Vaudeville" singers! The ice cream was "special"... lots of fudge topping, whipped cream... messy good! This tragedy really affected us, realizing that of the times we ate there, it could have been us?! After that tragedy, we never went to another Farrells again. RIP to all those lost... 50 years ago! 🙏
I was there that day. Sac Exec was my regular airport. I flew in and out of it on a weekly basis. Based on that knowledge and conversations with attorneys involved in the subsequent lawsuits, I can only say this: There was one man in the cockpit of that Sabre. He and he alone made the fatal decision to fly under the conditions that existed at the time. Richard Bingham was the "pilot in command" and he was solely responsible for the death and injuries to 50 victims. That's where the blame belongs. Bottom line: while he met the minimum requirements to fly the plane, doing so was far beyond his skill as a pilot. No excuses or explanations will change that truth.
That's so sad that those people were just trying to have a nice day with their families only to die that way. I can't imagine how that kid who lost his whole family felt. 😢
I drive by this location everyday going home from work. You can't drive by that spot without think about what happened there. It was way before my time, but definitely made a mark in Sacramento history.
As a person who grew up near Portland, Oregon, I'm familiar with Farrell's Ice Cream Parlors and the joy they provided for special large gatherings, often at birthday celebrations, which could include many family members. What a shocking thing to have happened at such a venue! I can't imagine... And to learn about the deficits of the pilot's experience with that craft and of the airport setup itself, well how remarkably tragic.
This report is very misleading and full of issues. I know this incident very well. I was a kid at the time just down the street at an arcade. We rushed over to the scene when we heard it happen. I was in the parking lot and saw the F-86's tail visible above the smoke. I realized that we were in the way of first responders and decided to leave. There was a 17-18 year old Farrells employee in a daze in the parking lot. I felt so bad knowing there were many dead inside. The pilot of the F-86 did not want to wait in line to use runway 20 which was 5,503 feet. That runway also would put him over a golf course which had no obstructions. Instead he asked and was given permission to takeoff on runway 30 which is 3,837 feet long with a rising embarkment in front of him that is Freeport Blvd, the road he crossed before slamming into the Ice Cream parlor. Imagine general aviation aircraft are waiting in line to takeoff on the longest runway and a F-86 says I will use the short runway? He raised the nose early trying to get airborne but did not have the rotate speed. There was a series of photos in the local newspaper, The Sacramento Bee that showed this. This was also a hot day so another reason to use the longest runway. Remember all of the other aircraft used the longer runway and were successful in taking off that day. This was all caused by the impatient pilot selection of the shorter runway (to save fuel) WITH obstructions on that departure runway.
as a twin, losing my twin sister would honestly be enough to kill me. i have no idea what i would do without her, not being able to feel that connection with anyone else. god, that’s my worst fear. my heart goes out to her and everyone else affected by this tragedy
I was 13 at the time. We stuck around at the end of the air show to watch the planes leave. We remember seeing this plane's attempted take-off and then the fireball rising from behind some hangars. Around this time Sacramento Municipal Airport (International Airport now) became the new official Sacramento airport, wisely located out in the farmlands, away from the city.
I remember my dad would tell me this story whenever we would go to the Jack in the box that the Farrells was replaced with, I would sit in the drive through scared a plane would hit us. Edit: I know now that the Jack in the box isn’t in the same exact location just what I thought as a kid
the Fire/Police station across the street is actually the site...there is a memorial plaque there... Your father sounds like mine though lol.. always dramatic in a hilarious/funny way
I was at that Farrell's with my family just the day before the accident. I still haven't completely processed that. So many lives lost. What a tragedy.
I am a native of Sacramento. My father had been at Farrell’s shortly before the crash that same day. It shocked all of us to the core. I was 13 years old when it happened and I remember how scared we all were and how sad for all who perished we felt.
My parents took us to this Farrell’s every year after going to CalExpo, the California State Fair. What a horrifying ending to a memory, and tragedy for all the families
I have to say thank you for this channel. There's a tendency these days to have podcasts and channels about tragedy and crime, and I largely dislike the content. But this channel has something those things don't: hope. Wherever you can, you find the positive - like the living memorial, which is very important (as a burn victim I'm endlessly grateful for burn clinics) and the ways in which policies have been changed and loopholes resolved. Thank you for sharing this.
I like to learn about crime and tragic events that happened in the past, even from recent years, but I like to hear about the positive outcomes that come out of those horrific incidents, like new safety laws and better infrastructure.
There was one in Bloomington, I believe. There may have been others, but I don't remember any. We went there as high school students. I still regret never ordering a "Zoo."
"The biggest sundaes on offer were delivered on stretchers borne by multiple servers." OMG the Pig Trough was the bestest ice cream sundae ever. Of course I never had enough friends for the Zoo.
I had the Zoo. First grade? It must have been. I was required to invite the whole class as well as my brother's friends. So I liked at least one other person there. The Zoo was amazing and I wish I still had the little plastic zoo animals and other accessories. Is it McDonalds or the backyard for kids today? sad, sad, sad. The gift shop had a thousand kinds of candy. Rock candy that looked like real rocks of different colors. The big fat licorice ropes that probably gave a fair percentage of us dangerously high BP. No HFCS, no palm oil. The real deal, candy by candy.
