|plane1_stopover1 = |plane1_stopover2 = |plane1_stopover3 = |plane1_laststopover = |plane1_destination = Santa Monica Airport, Santa Monica, California, United States |plane1_passengers = 0 |plane1_crew = 4 |plane1_injuries = 0 |plane1_fatalities = 4 |plane1_survivors = 0 |plane2_image = Northrop F-89J Scorpion.jpg |plane2_alt = |plane2_caption = A Northrop F-89J Scorpion of the Wisconsin Air National Guard's 176th Fighter Interceptor Squadron in October 1972. |plane2_type = Northrop F-89J Scorpion |plane2_name = |plane2_operator = United States Air Force |plane2_tailnum = 52-1870 |plane2_origin = Palmdale, California, United States |plane2_stopover = |plane2_stopover0 = |plane2_stopover1 = |plane2_stopover2 = |plane2_stopover3 = |plane2_laststopover = |plane2_destination = Palmdale, California, United States |plane2_passengers = 0 |plane2_crew = 2 |plane2_injuries = 1 |plane2_fatalities = 1 |plane2_survivors = 1 |ground_fatalities = 3 |ground_injuries = 74 (estimated) }} On January 31, 1957, a Douglas DC-7B operated by Douglas Aircraft Company was involved in a mid-air collision with a United States Air Force Northrop F-89 Scorpion and crashed into the schoolyard of Pacoima Junior High School located in Pacoima, a suburban area in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles, California.[1][2][3]
Accident
The DC-7B, y 2022}}
Valens was not at school that day because he was attending the funeral of his grandfather.[4][5] Recurring nightmares of the disaster led to Valens' fear of flying,[6] which he overcame after he launched his music career. Valens, along with fellow rock 'n' rollers Buddy Holly and The Big Bopper, and pilot Roger Peterson, perished two years later in an airplane crash when their chartered Beechcraft Bonanza crashed near Mason City, Iowa, in the early morning hours of February 3, 1959.[citation needed] However, in the nightmare sequences of the film, the first collision was portrayed by two general aviation aircraft (one of which was the Beechcraft Bonanza in which Valens actually died), as opposed to the aircraft in the actual disaster.
The 1957 crash was discussed on the May 19, 1957, episode of The CBS Radio Workshop (entitled "Heaven Is In the Sky").[7][8] The program described when and how both planes took off from their respective airfields, and included discussion of how the Pacoima Junior High School was having the 7th grade students outside for exercise. It also included interviews with people who were witnesses and/or affected by the crash.[citation needed]
References
- ^ Hill, Gladwyn. "7 Die as Planes Collide and One Falls in Schoolyard; PLANES COLLIDE, SCHOOL YARD HIT Roar Alerts Students 'Everything on Fire' Witness Describes Crash." The New York Times. Friday February 1, 1957. Page 1. Retrieved on February 3, 2010. "Wreckage of airliner falls into school yard at Pacoima, Calif." (subscription req'd)
- ^ "31-JAN-1957 Douglas DC-7B N8210H." Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on February 3, 2010.
- ^ "7 KILLED, 74 HURT IN SCHOOL AIR CRASH." [sic]Los Angeles Times. February 1, 1957. Start page 1. 5 pages. Retrieved on February 3, 2010. [dead link]
- ^ Cecilia Rasmussen (January 28, 2007). "The day fiery disaster fell from the sky". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 15, 2021.
- ^ Allen, David (February 19, 2021). "Childhood pal recalls Ritchie Valens as 'sweet,' 'tough' from California home". Retrieved May 15, 2021.
- ^ Kahler, Karl (Dec 29, 1988). "On Pacoima Playground With Ritchie Valens : Grief Moves Him to Save Lives". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 15, 2021.
One student developed an intense fear of flying after the accident--Ricardo Valenzuela, who later adopted the name Ritchie Valens.
- ^ "The Definitive CBS Radio Workshop Radio Log with Parley Baer, Herb Butterfield and William Conrad". Archived from the original on January 15, 2015. Retrieved January 15, 2015.
- ^ "CBS Radio Workshop".
External links
- Final accident report, Civil Aeronautics Board DOCKET # SA-323, FILE #2-0020, DATE ADOPTED November 22, 1957, p. 5. PDF
- ASN Aircraft accident Douglas DC-7B N8210H Sunland, CA – Aviation Safety Network
- We Remember We Heal – Joan Gushin website
- Test Planes Collide Over School, 7 Die – Joan Gushin website
- List of injuries, Pacoima JHS – Joan Gushin website
- CBS Radio Workshop, Episode "Heaven Is In the Sky"