The 1956 Grand Canyon Air Disaster by Dan Driskill - Part 1

The 1956 Grand Canyon Air Disaster: The Legends, Legacies and Mysteries of TWA Flight 2 and United Flight 718.

On June 30, 1956, two airliners collided and crashed in the Grand Canyon, killing 128 persons in what was then the worlds worst commercial aviation disaster. This crash led to the creation of the FAA and the modern air traffic control system. Dan Driskill will discuss this tragic mid-air collision, as well as post-crash recovery, investigation and clean up efforts (which continue to this day) of the airplanes.

Dan Driskill is a writer, attorney and former ambulance service owner who currently works as a flight paramedic in northern Arizona. He is currently writing a nonfiction book on this topic.

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[learjetace]

The 1956 UAL / TWA midair over the Grand Canyon certainly stands out in terms of aviation crash history. Remember that the beginnings of the airline industry had their roots in early air mail transportation. Routes were established and the mail industry led to the carrying of passengers. Also note that the 1931 air crash that killed Knute Rockne was a Fokker F-10 trimotor (not a Ford). The watershed event was the phasing out of wood and fabric aircraft as well as its notoriety.