This devastating crash happened 25 years ago and claimed the lives of everyone who was on the flight
Chilling cockpit recordings have come to light, capturing the final moments before an Alaska Airlines flight crashed into the Pacific Ocean.
On January 31, 2000, Alaska Airlines Flight 261 was set to fly from Licenciado Gustavo Díaz Ordaz International Airport in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, to Seattle–Tacoma International Airport in Washington State.
The aircraft successfully took off from Mexico, but it never reached its destination. Mid-flight, the crew began to encounter serious mechanical problems.
Eventually, the plane went down in the Pacific Ocean. All 88 people on board were killed in the crash, including 83 passengers, two pilots, and three cabin crew members.
Even 25 years later, this tragic event remains one of the deadliest aviation disasters in the United States’ modern history.
The heartbreaking incident continues to be discussed even today. Recently, audio from the cockpit resurfaced and has been circulating on social media.
The aircraft was completely destroyed upon impact
MIKE NELSON/AFP via Getty Images
Promoted Content
You’ll Get Jealous Of These Women That Milo Has Gone Out With
Herbeauty
‘Back To The Future’ Stars: Reunited And It Feels So Good!
Brainberries
Why Do So Many Digital Assistants Have Feminine Names & Voices?
Brainberries
9 Retired Actors Who Took Their Careers In Unexpected Directions
Brainberries
Former Child Actors Accused Of Horrible Crimes
Brainberries
Flight 261 was being piloted by Captain Ted Thompson, 53, and First Officer Bill Tansky, 57. According to AeroTime, the two had a combined total of over 12,000 flight hours in McDonnell Douglas MD-80 aircraft.
But despite their deep experience, they couldn’t prevent the tragedy. Investigators later discovered that a mechanical failure in the aircraft’s tail section — caused by poor maintenance — was to blame. Specifically, the jackscrew assembly had not been properly lubricated.
In the cockpit audio that reemerged, Captain Thompson can be heard telling air traffic control that their aircraft was “in a dive.”
He continued by saying: “Not a dive yet but we’ve lost vertical control of our airplane.”
While Captain Thompson initially believed they had regained control, First Officer Tansky quickly responded, saying “no we don’t.”
The two of them began working together to troubleshoot the situation in an attempt to stabilize the plane.
All 88 people onboard sadly died
Pool photo/Newsmakers
After some silence from the crew, air traffic control reached out to another pilot in the area—believed to be flying an Aero Commander 690A—and asked them to “keep an eye on [the Alaska Airlines flight]”.
That pilot then reported to air traffic control that the Alaska Airlines jet had “just started to do a big, huge plunge”.
A second pilot confirmed the earlier observation, stating that Flight 261 appeared to be “definitely in a nose down position.”
Moments later, the pilots watching from the other planes said the Alaska Airlines jet had hit the ocean. The plane was completely destroyed upon impact.
The Federal Aviation Administration quickly launched a full investigation into the tragic crash.
The agency later released a statement saying: “The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) determined that the probable cause of this accident was a loss of airplane pitch control resulting from the in-flight failure of the horizontal stabilizer trim system jackscrew assembly’s Acme nut threads.”
“The thread failure was caused by excessive wear resulting from Alaska Airline’s insufficient lubrication of the jackscrew assembly