Deadly Coincidence: The Elizabeth Plane Crashes | A Short Documentary | Fascinating Horror

"On the 16th of December, 1951, a Curtiss C-46 twin engine airplane crashed in the city of Elizabeth, New Jersey. The disaster was an immense shock to local residents… but it wouldn’t be the last shock they would have to endure..."
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CHAPTERS:
00:00 - Intro
00:40 - Background
03:04 - The Elizabeth Plane Crashes
09:48 - The Aftermath
MUSIC:
► "Glass Pond" by Public Memory
SOURCES:
► Accident Investigation Report SA-248, published by the Civil Aeronautics Board, April 1952. Available via: www.baaa-acro.com/sites/defau...
► "Terror over Elizabeth New Jersey" by Peter Zablocki, published by The History Press, November 2021. Link: www.google.co.uk/books/editio...
► "How The City Of Elizabeth, New Jersey Saw 3 Plane Crashes In As Many Months In The 1950s" by Jake Hardiman, published by Simple Flying, March 2016. Link: simpleflying.com/elizabeth-ne...
► "How three planes crashed in three months in Elizabeth in '50s" by Vicki Hyman, published by NJ.com, May 2015. Link: www.nj.com/entertainment/arts...
► "Plan to reroute jets may mean more noise" published by NBC News, January 2008. Link: www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna22594823
Accident Investigation Report SA-254, published by the Civil Aeronautics Board, May 1952. Available via: www.baaa-acro.com/sites/defau...
​​​​​​​#Documentary​​​​ #History​​​​​​​​​ #TrueStories​

[@classicmicroscopy9398]

The captains in these cases performed amazingly well given the circumstances.

[@donnaroushall5397]

Dude…. WTF is wrong with you…?

[@tin2001]

It's likely they all flew planes in the war.

[@richardwillson101]

Dead pilots have often "performed amazingly well" before a crash. Even when evidence suggests that they had no control whatsoever. It's a human trait to try and find some good within tragedy. An aircraft crashed next to my work, the pilot was killed, but for a long time he was praised for "flying his crashing aircraft into a field to avoid a school, busy shopping centre and housing estates" The accident report came out and the reason for the crash was that the pilot was unconscious. But to this day, many still like to hold onto the belief that he Flew into the field to prevent casualties on the ground, like a hero. Instead of it "just being what it was". It was a sad loss, it hit everybody on our work and community very hard. There is a great legacy in the pilots name, which was something his wife set up. He will never be forgotten.

[@jordancoleman2402]

Except for home boy who "controlled flight into terrain"

[@kzrlgo]

How do you know?

[@stevenjlovelace]

This really makes you realize how much safer aviation has become.

[@californiahiker9616]

True! The painstaking search for the causes of crashes directly is responsible for safer aviation. Many new rulings are direct results of such investigations. Looks like these were some early ones that changed some things. Hopefully never again a pilot will have to choose where to put their planes down if there‘s some failure. These early pilots were heroes. May they and their passengers RIP.

[@frankverschaetzing]

I thought the same at 1:12 when he talks about the time it became the busiest commercial airport and the picture shows a kid on a bycicle riding between the planes 🙃🙂

[@jimgriffin9924]

Prove my point that if God intended for humans to fly, He's have given us wings. The only safe airplane is on on the ground with no engines. And yes, I did used to fly. But three bad flights in a row convinced me never again

[@Magikarp-4ever]

Until they lowered the standards to get more unqualified non white people working tower traffic :( because diversity makes the sky safer? Yeah they lowered the standards when they couldn't qualify enough go look it up

[@visassess8607]

​@@jimgriffin9924If God didn't want humans to fly then why did he give them the intelligence and dexterity to build, maintain and fly planes in the first place?

[@eraymonds]

"The younger children, meanwhile, were herded away from the windows and offered glasses of milk to distract them." Such a random tidbit of information that worked very well to convey the tragedy of the crash and its aftermath.

[@aaronjaben7913]

I was wondering "why milk? was that what was available, or was milk a special treat back then? and what was the cutoff age for milk vs hellish carnage?"

[@StrazdasLT]

​@@aaronjaben7913when refrigeration didnt exist milk wasnt readily available.

[@thurayya8905]

There is something heartbreaking when hearing that orphan children, who had probably seen enough tragedy in their young lives, pitching in to help with victims of the crash.

[@garylefevers]

Absolutely right. Horrible. Mo.doubt traumatized those poor unfortunate children.

[@AngelMessUp]

Also, just the fact that it crashed in their playground just tops the tragedy!

[@NiaJustNia]

The pilots likely flew during the war, and many of the kids in the orphanage likely lost their parents due to the war in some way or another (dad doesn't make it back, mum's left destitute and has no choice but to give up the kids or face starvation, or mum fell in love with a soldier, he promised to marry when she got pregnant, but he never came back, that sort of thing). The older kids (teens) trying to help are pretty much guaranteed to have been war babies.

[@knrdvmmlbkkn]

@@NiaJustNia"The older kids (...) been war babies." Quite to the contrary. That crash took place in February 1952. America joined the war in December 1941, ten years earlier. Teenagers are (as the term would suggest) at least 13 years old. Even if you count from when WW2 broke out (1st September 1939), anyone born during the war would at most be 12 on the day of that accident.

[@NiaJustNia]

@@knrdvmmlbkkn I don't mean born during the war, I mean they were babies (as in young children) and lived through the war. Old enough to know and remember families being torn apart, the fear, the loss, the poverty, seeing the people that did return never being the same, etc. They would've been better off if they had been born during the war, because they'd have been too young to experience the same upheaval, as they never knew a time before the war.

[@thegmobaby]

A small one-pilot plane exploded over my neighborhood a few years ago, the engine fell onto a house and killed everyone. It sounded like a thunderclap right above our heads even though it was almost a mile away. I thought something happened to the train next to our house since it makes loud noises all the time and didn’t realize it was serious until I went outside and saw all the smoke. Scariest part was standing and pacing around helplessly waiting to hear sirens. I hope the family rests in peace

[@SilveniumTheDrifter]

Wow. Yet another reminder to "live every moment as if it were your last"

[@501FighterWing]

Donnie darko

[@poeticsilence047]

​@@501FighterWingThinking the same thing.

[@thegmobaby]

@@501FighterWing No literally

[@murdermatics]

What incident are you describing?

[@cjclark1208]

1951 30y old pilot performed admirably for his chosen “negotiation” landing, saving lives on the ground, good man.

[@Dulcimertunes]

Probably Air Force vet

[@theurchin65]

It makes for a nice newspaper headline, but it's a total myth that pilots do everything to avoid the injury/death of people on the ground. There have been several pilots who have been interviewed after surviving a plane crash and all have said that they instintively aimed for open land, in order to save themselves and/or their passangers; rather than slam their aircraft into a building, giving themselves no chance of survival.

[@nanashiwolf]

​@@theurchin65yeah I think if you navigate it right a landing on open ground can be doable with luck and skill. also yeah would definitely want my pilot to prioritize us and him lol

[@gnarthdarkanen7464]

@@theurchin65 Well, if it makes you feel any better, when I get my certification, I'll focus on making sure I GREEDILY aim for the densest mass of high capacity constructions and places I can find instead... Nose right over and tear the g** d*** wings off on my way down if I have to just for a bigger crater! ALL about body-count, BABY!!! ;o)

[@thestars386]

Hey what's up twinkle toes?

[@roxieroo8125]

Judy Blume wrote a novel aimed at adults called "In the Unlikely Event," which uses these plane crashes as the backdrop for the main plot of the novel. I had never heard of these crashes before that book, and now this video did a great job filling in more details.

[@melissagottlieb3381]

Never heard of this book, will look it up thanks!

[@MegCazalet]

I JUST commented the same thing! After I read that book, I read a memoir called Replacement Child by Judy Mandel that is semi-related, because the author’s sister was killed in their family apartment in one of the crashes, and she grew up really feeling like a replacement, with the disaster and loss hanging over. Very sad. I will be reading them again, I think.

[@mrskaa7584]

Really good book!❤

[@RIVALContentJammerz]

Blubber!

[@j.d.e.7416]

Judy Blume was born and raised in Elizabeth, NJ, so was living there when these crashes took place.

[@ytknits4892]

“The plane broke into two pieces and crash landed into the playground of an orphanage”. “Newark Airport would be closed with immediate effect”. Yeah, that’ll do it.

[@evanhenderson9461]

Imagine being the PR manager 😭

[@Prodigalson55]

Not because of the orphanage, but because some famous muckety muck politician was killed.

[@divinita6012]

​@@Prodigalson55 That was one of the previous crashes that he died in. The orphanage was the icing on the cake.

[@Prodigalson55]

@@divinita6012 Thanks for the clarification on that.

[@remijohnston471]

it’s almost comically horrible. i wouldn’t have believed it if someone had just said it to me in person

[@martlettoo]

How do you make videos about horrible things so strangely calming yet gripping? Somehow you can be so informative and good at presenting things that I feel like I just memorized the whole video in one sitting without effort. Incredible!

[@Nurichiri]

It's his voice. He has a calming, yet subtly expressive voice.

[@lumindoesvideos]

I think it's a combo of his relatively calming voice with the fact he doesn't sensationalize the tragic story in any way.

[@ThatOpalGuy]

it would be interesting to see videos with amped up, chaotic music, jump cuts, and agonized commentary. They would be very difficult to watch fully, I would bet.

[@ThatOpalGuy]

@@lumindoesvideos the Mr Rogers of tragedy. or, perhaps, the Bob Ross?

[@NeverEvenThere]

Wow, remembering a whole 10 minute video is usually so hard for you that you feel the need to point it out like an accomplishment?

[@manuelacosta9463]

What an unbelievably tragic run of bad luck. That photo of the first plane going down is terrifying and eerie. Moments from death caught in a frame of film.

[@kenmore01]

It's a mix of bad luck and the fact that planes were crap back then. At least the maintenance. They probably had guys from the local garage working on them.

[@psyrapmafia]

one day years from now resaerch will reveal what was wrong with this specific location or specific planes at this lcoation.

[@psyrapmafia]

@@kenmore01 this theory doesnt track at all. if "planes sback then where bad" was the reason, then all airports at that time wouldve been equally bad as well, and this story would have no signifiicance.

[@kenmore01]

@@psyrapmafia My theory is that the maintenance at this particular airport was terrible, thus the planes were not airworthy.

[@elLooto]

Theres some footage from a documentary calling Elizabeth "A very safe community that has never faced any disaster." Its famous as the earliest, and most deadly, commentators curse of all.

[@MegCazalet]

There’s a memoir that involves these disasters, by a woman whose sister was killed in their family apartment by one of the crashes. She was born after, and grew up with this deep loss and a pall over the town. It’s called Replacement Child by Judy Mandel. Grief was treated differently at the time. I cannot imagine, just sitting in your kitchen and suddenly your world explodes because a plane fell from the sky, again. On 9/11 it felt like planes were falling from the sky, and it was a terrifying day, but they didn’t land in my kitchen.

[@johannesbols57]

"In the Unlikely Event" by Judy Blume.

[@user-qx9wc4om5x]

My dad was 15 years old and lived a block away from these three tragic plane crashes. He's going to be 87 soon, and he still remembers it like it happened last.

[@garylefevers]

Thank you for mentioning the book. After our loss of our first born son, we decided to try again. He was by no means a replacement for his older brother. Unfortunately we did not read another book called The Subsequent Child. We felt we had no reason to read it because we were going to be careful to not make him feel that way. It didn't work. After almost 30 years we found out that he felt that if his brother hadn't died, he would not be here. We reassured him that was absolutely not true. If my spouse had been healthier during pregnancy we would have a houseful. We are unsure if he understands how true it is, we pray that he does. My point is that if others go through an unfortunate tragedy please listen to those who have been there before. Btw: I can not remember the authors name. Stay safe folks.

[@MegCazalet]

@@johannesbols57 Thank you but that’s not the book I’m referring to. That was historical fiction, this one is a memoir.

[@Sabrina79]

I just finished reading "Replacement Child" recently. It really yanked at my heart, but it's SO worth reading!

[@ImmortalKat4ever]

The lack of a specific cause is almost more terrifying. Obviously the cases of negligence y'all cover are infuriating, but at least there's a problem to be solved there. Can't fix bad luck.

[@adde9506]

There's a special type of visual disorientation that comes from flying through fog that makes you believe you are climbing. Most people are more inclined to believe their eyes than the instruments. I'm fairly certain they hadn't identified this problem in 1952 but commercial airline pilots are drilled on it nowadays and the planes pretty much land themselves. Poor pilot would have genuinely believed he was fighting his way to a good landing with a broken altimeter until he popped out of the clouds and BUILDINGS.

[@Arkylie]

There's the Swiss Cheese model of failsafes, wherein a number of layers get put together, each of which is going to have some "holes" or ways that things could still go wrong, but where collectively they cover most eventualities and it's only when you get a really-bad-luck combination that it bypasses all security features. We can't fix bad luck directly, but we can at least reduce the chance of any specific type of bad luck would cause a catastrophic failure. Here, it was done by putting the problem zone in a place where it would no longer endanger any unrelated lives. So yeah, it's not great when you can't identify the problem and therefore can't directly aim the solution, but you also work out more large-scale solutions that solve a wider variety of problems. So even the lack of specific data can, in its own way, be a blessing.

[@Liusila]

⁠@@adde9506if they’re flying using instruments alone though, you’d think they’d consider trusting the instruments.

[@adde9506]

@@Liusila You would think, but because it's your most fundamental systems being tricked. it is extremely difficult for people to identify that it's happening and stop making it worse, let alone figure out how to fix it. Nowadays, ATC and aircraft autosystems are there to help them fix it, but this poor guy had no chance.

[@nevillehoward8736]

Two were mechanical failures. They weren't specific to Newark, but very much coincidences.

[@bioodfox7805]

I applaud you for your time spent researching and fact checking. Nobody does this kind of content justice like you do. On a side note, my thoughts are with the crews of each flight. Knowing you are bound to crash must be a VERY uneasy feeling to have to sit on.

[@quillmaurer6563]

Especially those who know they surely won't survive and spend their final seconds trying to avoid killing anyone on the ground.

[@darthdevious]

My aunt used to work for Delta Airlines back in the late 70's and through most of the 80's. We used to go pick her up a lot, as she worked out of Newark airport. Back then, we could go in and watch planes land. Saw the Concorde land there once.

[@StAlphonsusHasAPosse]

Bet that was cool

[@darthdevious]

@@StAlphonsusHasAPosse yes it was.

[@violetsterling67]

What a wonderful experience for you to watch Concorde landing!

[@kenmore01]

My sister worked for American back then. I can tell you what she smelled like when you picked her up. A mix of perfume and cigarette smoke. 😂

[@rjm44nyy]

I was born and raised in Elizabeth and I remember the plane crashes even though I was only 6 years old. One reason that I remember so well is that my father was an Elizabeth firefighter and responded to all three crashes. I especially remember the second crash. I was watching TV late in the afternoon while my mother was busy giving my baby brother a bath. We heard a plane that seemed especially loud. They passed over our neighborhood very often so we were sort of used to it. Even so this one was extremely loud and was shaking the house. We lived on the top floor of a four family apartment building on Bayway Avenue so I went out to the back porch to look. The plane came so low over our building that in the gloom I could see the heads of passengers in the windows. I was never so scared in my life. The plane crashed about a mile from our house. Although it did hit some homes it missed two schools:Battin HS and St. Mary's parochial school. It was after school got out for the day but early enough that there were students and teachers still in the buildings for activties. The third accident happened after my bedtime but I was awakened by the telephone. After she answered I heard my mother say "Oh no, it can't be". I got up and asked her what was wrong. She said there had been another airplane crash. My uncle was also an Elizabeth firefighter and was called in on his night off to help with the response. My aunt than called my mother to tell her so that she would know in the morning why my father was not getting home from his shift. Later, when I was older my father told me that he was one of the first men to enter the apartment building that the plane hit and he discovered a family of three that were dead in their apartment bedroom. They probably never knew what hit them. I usually never leave comments but I thought that some of you might find my firsthand story interesting.

[@elleoftwocities]

A plane crashed behind my house in 2014. Terrifying and gave me PTSD. The blaze was so hot and the little explosions after the one huge sound of the crash didn’t leave my dreams for years. I still have flight anxiety and had frequent panic attacks for years. I can’t imagine it happening to me twice, let alone four times???? Rip to the victims and I hope the entire community was able to heal!

[@mda037]

The psychological effects of three crashes in three months is understandable. A questioning of the benefits of avionics versus safety concerns I'm Sure was a hot topic of conversation at that time.

[@brucebaxter6923]

Still is, planes are now so complex and technologically advanced that it’s just not fair to put that pressure on pilots. Time for autonomous aircraft

[@mda037]

@@brucebaxter6923 That is true in 2023 but you can imagine in 1952 aviation was still new enough as to be questioned with regards to safety.

[@Phrate]

@@brucebaxter6923we can't even figure out autonomous cars yet, you want autonomous planes?

[@brucebaxter6923]

@@Phrate We have had them since the late 50’s. What are you talking about? We have been flying them for the last 60 years.

[@donutchan8114]

A lot of people probably died waiting for that fourth plane crash to happen, with that small nugget of dread haunting their day to day.

[@jordancoleman2402]

I'm from a little farming community in Wisconsin and haven't spent much time in bigger cities. A few years ago I went to a drug treatment center in New Jersey for 3 months and flew out of that airport on my way home and couldn't wrap my mind around the size of it!!! Was glad to get back to my little town with a population 1/8th of that airport.

[@jeffreyskoritowski4114]

Hope you're doing ok.

[@ketaminekermit802]

I hope your good, Iam struggling now over 7 years with drugs. Iam very happy and proud of everyone that beats all sorts of addiction, because i just now how hard and dangerous it can be. Greetz from Switzerland 🇨🇭

[@jordancoleman2402]

@@ketaminekermit802 it can be done ❤️ I know it may feel impossible but trust me with a little help you can do it find a whole new life for yourself! Coming up on 5 years clean and sober.

[@jordancoleman2402]

@@jeffreyskoritowski4114 thank you, coming up on 5 years in Dec. Life still has it's struggles but it's much better today.

[@lifewuzonceezr]

Sending support from Alberta

[@davidhouston6475]

I remember that Simpsons episode where Homer had to go fight City Hall to have the planes rerouted from flying over his neighborhood. He was having the same problems mentioned in this video he even had Lisa on top of the roof of their house trying to fend off the planes with a rake.

[@poeticsilence047]

Should have called them names like he did the garbage men.

[@richardwillson101]

When you sit back and think logocally about the situation, its not as odd as it sounds. The airport was the busiest in the USA and aviation was going through a growth period where the boundaries of technology and design were being pushed in aircraft... So, three crashes in the same geographical location across 3 months suddenly makes a lot more sense. Those were some dark years across the whole aviaiton industry, where we learned the lessons that we still live by today in aircraft design, manufacture and maintenance.

[@dyamonde9555]

Safety regulations are written in blood. this is were the blood came from.

[@2760ade]

I agree with you. Aviation was nowhere near as safe in 1951 as it is presently! In fact the question could be asked, why were there not more at such a well used and busy airport!

[@californiahiker9616]

You have a good point there.

[@moteroargentino7944]

Exactly. And the location of the airport made things worse. It wouldn't have prevented the crashes, but maybe if there was water or empty fields nearby to attempt an emergency landing without turning (which is a demanding maneuver for an aircraft in distress) the victims and damages could've been minimized.

[@brendanfoehr5086]

I think the proximity of the crashes is what gives it a hint of the spectacular. Three plane crashes in Elizabeth in a short span of time wouldn't be that shocking, given how different aviation was in 1951/'52, but three crashes in THREE MONTHS, that's still weird. Even at the time, that was weird, and it was just chance. It's a odd run of sheer bad luck that, from a 2020s perspective, can sound even more bizarre that it really is at first glance.

[@ash3941]

I've lived between NJ and NYC my whole life, including Elizabeth for a while as a kid -- and somehow never heard of these crashes. RIP to the victims. I admire the heroism of so many people involved, from the pilots to the children in the orphanage.

[@user-qx9wc4om5x]

What years did you live there? My dad lived in Elizabeth in the late 30s, 40s and early 50s.

[@dottiegillespie8067]

I was born in Elizabeth in 1965, even as a kid I remember them talking about this situation. A lot of theories. Thank you I love your content @

[@kennethkobylakiewicz3157]

I lived in the elmora hills section of Elizabeth as a child in the early 60's.

[@finlandball1939]

Huh. As a New Jersey resident I’ve never heard of this before. Glad to know about more little-known disasters that happened here.

[@HeronCoyote1234]

I lived in Jersey (northeast corner) for 14 yrs (mid-70s to late 80s), and never heard of these either.

[@prettyshinyspaghetti8332]

Lived in NJ for my whole life. Never heard about this

[@dunbrine47]

Same

[@thestars386]

​​@@dunbrine47Alrighty. I lived in Pennsville and Glassboro, New Jersey.

[@JC-rs3nh]

Lived in Union (same county as Elizabeth) and never heard of this

[@aileencastaneda3724]

I never knew about these crashes so many lives lost. Each Captain performed their duty trying to save souls either in the air or in the ground. RIP to all lost their lives. 🕊️

[@reachandler3655]

Yikes! It must've been terrifying living in the area. Sounds like the orphanage had a narrow escape.

[@user-qx9wc4om5x]

My dad lived about a block away from these accidents. He is now almost 87, and still remembers it as if it happened a week ago.

[@janeene24]

I’m from Newark and never heard of these crashes. Thanks for bringing them to light.

[@ethribin4188]

This many crashes in such a short time? This is.... so unlikely. Yet ... seems to be just chance. Scary.

[@TheJoannalicious]

Def not the air traffic control protocols. Nope, can’t be that.

[@zakelwe]

Even more co-incidentally New York once again had 3 plane crashes in less than 3 months back in 2001 with the twin hijackings then the Airbus 300 in November of that year where the rudder fell off. That odds against the same place having two similar runs in that time frame is probably very large.

[@tootallforyou112]

​@@zakelwegotta be some kinda curse

[@hybridAbsol]

Elizabeth's ghost 💀

[@randomcloverr]

@@TheJoannaliciouslmao can you please explain how ATC of all things somehow caused multiple mechanical failures on three separate flights?

[@murdermatics]

I know that statistically cars are more deadly but plane crashes seem mostly fatal. I mean one plane can go down with up to some 3-400 souls on board and if any of them walk away it's an absolute and unbelievable miracle.

[@georgehowarth5932]

I'm pretty sure you're statistically more likely to survive a plane crash than to die in it.

[@ollimoore]

Well, it depends on the type of accident, doesn’t it? Runway overruns (for example) seem to have a decent survival rate, slamming straight into the side of a mountain not so much.

[@horrortackleharry]

@@georgehowarth5932 Clearly it depends of the definition of the term 'plane crash'.

[@horrortackleharry]

You can largely (though not totally) control your likelihood of car travel survival by the way you drive. You can't with plane travel.

[@StAlphonsusHasAPosse]

I feel the same way as you

[@ejthedhampir507]

A history of NY plane crashes would be very fascinating to watch. There have been a few in addition to the ones in this video: 1933 Eastern Air Transport Curtiss Condor Crash 1947 Union Southern Airlines DC-3 Crash 1947 United Airlines Flight 521 1947 American Airlines Flight 765 1952 Curtiss C-46 Commando Crash 1953 Eastern Airlines L-749A Constellation Crash 1953 Linee Airee Italiane Douglas DC-6 Crash 1957 Northeast Airlines Flight 823 1958 JFK Airport Take-Off Collision 1959 American Airlines Flight 320 1960 New York City Mid-Air Collision 1961 Aeronaves de Mexico Flight 401 1962 American Airlines Flight 1 1962 Eastern Airlines Flight 512 1965 Eastern Airlines Flight 663 1969 New York Airways DHC-6 Crash 1970 Trans International Airways Flight 863 1971 FAA C-47A Crash 1975 Eastern Airlines Flight 66 1983 Learjet 23 Crash 1989 USAir Flight 5050 1990 Avianca Flight 52 1992 USAir Flight 405 1996 TWA Flight 800 1997 FedEx Flight 14 2001 September 11 Attacks 2001 American Airlines Flight 587 2009 US Airways Flight 1549

[@chatteyj]

I always find flight 587 a shocker and especially tragic being so close after 9/11, I bet many still have never heard of it to this day.

[@elisam.r.9960]

I now feel the urge to search through the Mini Air Crash Investigation channel to see how many of these have been covered there.

[@ulmwilliams57]

USAir 405 would be interesting, especially if he connects it to Air Ontario Flight 1363 which had occurred just before and was the same make of plane and had the same cause of crash

[@dfuher968]

@@chatteyjActually, its a very well covered accident in both tv documentaries and in KZbin videos, likely due to the proximity to 9/11. It mustve been very traumatizing to the ppl of New York as a whole and the ppl of Queens particularly, coming just 2 months after 9/11, and its so tragic in its avoidability. And Im not even talking about pilot error, Ive always had problems with that stated cause, when the pilot was just doing, what he was taught to do.

[@triggeredcat120]

He did cover the 1996 TWA accident

[@sharonsmith583]

I flew in and out of Newark for 20 years and had never heard of any of this. Good episode!

[@starfish1349]

Maybe it was just as well you didn't know...!

[@sharonsmith583]

@@starfish1349 Agreed!

[@benjie128]

As someone who grew up near a large international airport. The sound of jet engines are like white noise to me. A popular past time of my childhood was going to the airport to watch the planes take off and land.

[@irenetorkel2186]

You found plane crashes from the 1950s I never heard about. Your subject matter and delivery make you one of the most interesting creators on the platform. Even the stories I've heard about include information I didn't know. Keep them coming. You're making me look smarter among my coworkers 😂

[@seandelap8587]

Always look forward to a Tuesday morning with FH

[@mikesradios]

Crazy... I grew up in Elizabeth in the '80/90s and my family had been there for 3 generations, never heard of these crashes before now. Thank you for the great and informative videos, as always!

[@lifewuzonceezr]

Wild that you never heard of them!!

[@b-dub6865]

In 1988, a single engine plane crashed into a house down my street on Memorial Day wknd in Phoenix. I’ll never forget that sound & how our entire house shook as the plane roared right over the top of us. As I looked at my dad, we heard & felt a huge explosion & ran outside to see a massive black cloud of smoke. I was so scared! He ran down to help but couldn’t get near the fire. My school friend, Jennifer Lynne Pedersen, passed away that day as she climbed out of the pool - a piece of the plane had sliced her in half. The pilot & 2 other guests at the party also died. Her parents & a friend were seriously injured, but survived. It was so sad. Experts believe the pilot crashed because her door was open & she was trying to close it.

[@purplecelery7380]

These days I'm sure no one would let children assist with rescue operations. Those poor older orphans - wonder how that affected them, no doubt having encountered survivors with serious injuries (and possibly dead bodies)?

[@Prodigalson55]

They were just fine! They had milk to calm them😂

[@jenniferryersejones9876]

lol!@@Prodigalson55

[@divinita6012]

Back then I'm not surprised considering the time period and the fact that the emergency services were already mentally exhausted from the previous two crashes.

[@glennstubbs8232]

Back in day most search and rescue was done by Civil Air Patrol cadets, ages 13 to 18. We had a lot of experience with serious injuries and hauled a lot of dead bodies out of crash sites.

[@littlebear274]

Unfortunately sometimes you make do with whoever's available. Weirdly enough psychologically speaking sometimes it might be better for them to help, though it's generally close to impossible to know beforehand how individuals will react.

[@ddthompson42]

Great video, as always! Correction about National 101, though: it’s a 4-engined plane, so “both engines failing” wouldn’t necessarily cause it to go out of control (and implies it only had two engines). One engine failed (went into reverse) and the pilots mistakenly feathered the wrong propellor and left the failed engine in reverse, causing it to respond in a way that was probably extremely confusing to the pilots. So now you have two engines on one side at full power and one engine running full reverse on the other side. Result was inevitable if they didn’t know what was happening. Had they killed the reversed engine, they likely could have returned to the field on three normal engines.

[@conditionallyunconditional5691]

Agree 100%.

[@skwervin1]

I used to live along the flight path of Essendon Airport in Melbourne Australia, and where we lived was on the top of a range of hills that the planes would pass over as they lined up for the runway. About 3-400m down the road from us, the hill dropped away, dropping about 150 m or more so the planes would be so low you could see the rivets in the wings and wave to the pilots. Most of the aircraft were small to mid range freight with a couple of larger ones each day and thankfully the runway would shut down around 10pm each night and not re start until 6am. It would be so loud you could not hear what someone next to you was saying. Essendon used to be the main airport for Melbourne before Tullamarine was built. There were a few times when it was so loud you were waiting for the crash as it hit something down the street but it never happened and you just got used to it. At that time I was working at a research lab that was situated at the end of one of the main runways at Tullamarine...lol. Tullamarine was built a fair distance from the city of Melbourne but the city has grown out towards it in the last few years, but it is still surrounded by mainly land with only grazing on it at most. The facility I worked at owned about 200 hectares of land, most of it was under grass but we had a few cows, sheep and horses on it (We did animal vaccine research for farm animal health) and the labs themselves were as far from the runways as possible but even then it could be a bit loud. Interestingly the Police had their Dog Training facility next door, maybe to get the dogs used to irritating noises!

[@Kevin-go2dw]

Essendon airport, as it is surrounded by buildings has also had some unfortunate accidents. One light plane, I think it had a student pilot did gain altitude when taking off and crashed into a couple of houses just on the other side of the freeway and suburban street killing the occupants. More recently a commercial plane after taking off turned and crashed into the retail buildings that had been built on the airport perimeter. This crash was recorded by dash camera. The pilot was found to be at fault by not configuring the aircraft rudder properly. While every so often there are calls for the airport to close, I believe it is busy with lighter aircraft as well as the air ambulance and provides capacity that would not be available at Tullamarine.

[@skwervin1]

It handles a lot of the freight and private craft so they don't interfere as much with the main airport at Tullamarine. Unless they seriously extend Tulla and build a separate freight section, maybe on the western section of the land, I can't see them shutting Essendon anytime soon. I can remember people talking about closing Essendon back in the 70s after Tullamarine opened, and it is still going today!

[@scarpfish]

I had never heard of these incidents before. That must have been a nerve racking time for residents of the city.

[@Great-Documentaries]

You would have to be about 82 years old or older to be a resident of Elizabeth and remember these events from 1951. I want to suggest that FH is wrong when he says that "many" in Elizabeth still remember that. I'd say 99 out of 100 do not. At least.

[@cw4608]

72, not 82 years ago so a person 5 years old at the time could recall this. I know several people born in 1945/46 who are living today.

[@Smulenify]

Even 1 in 100 is still over 1250 people in Elizabeth, I think that can qualify as many. I'd say people over 78 should be able to remember it well, and even those 75 year old might remember it somewhat, if only from hearing about it so much in their youth.

[@nerd26373]

There's something ominous with plane crashes. They're like a broken record playing inside your mind.

[@donnaroushall5397]

Probably a bot here…. But stupid as s@it

[@todd7619]

Well now there is 😞

[@dfuher968]

Its probably something to do with the fact, that while its by far the safest kind of transportation, once it goes wrong, its quite devastating with many killed. Plus, the fact that we humans like to be in control of our own survival, and sitting in a passenger seat u have absolutely zero control.

[@P_RO_]

The C46 was known to be a troublesome plane for engine fires, and the main reason it was used in passenger service is that war surplus made them cheap to buy. The Convair 240 also had problems, though it wasn't quite so bad. It needs to be remembered that piston-engined planes are less reliable than today's jets and are subject to more types of catastrophic failure. Plane crashes were still common back then.

[@RatPfink66]

In wartime service, 31 C-46s blew up inflight. It was found that leaked fuel collected in the wing roots, where unshielded electrics could ignite the fumes. Vents were installed in the wings to drain the gas. It was otherwise a rugged aircraft, which performed well in bad weather, and carried twice the payload of the C-47.

[@johnrust592]

I'm a native of New Jersey and have flown out of Newark several times. I never knew the history of the airport or about the three crashes in Elizabeth until now. Good job on this documentary.

[@user-qx9wc4om5x]

I bet you're glad that you didn't know back then what you now know about the three plane crashes.

[@formdusktilldeath]

This is definitely stranger than fiction.

[@zakelwe]

That's only half the story, check out the 3 plane crashes in 2001 in less than 3 months for the same city .......

[@littlemizredhead]

Elaborate please? 9/11 happened in 2001 but I don't think the two planes in NYC are what you're talking about.

[@gus_tavo67]

Definitely. If something like that happened on a tv series I would think they just jumped the shark 🦈

[@robertwilloughby8050]

​@@zakelweI know there was one that ran off the end of the runway, no deaths but plenty of injuries, was that one of the accidents?

[@TJ-el5tm]

Those older orphans in the third crash were fucking hardcore

[@kgb4187]

Imagine your parents being killed by a plane crash, being placed in an orphanage, finding solace in a simple playground and then a plane crashes into it.

[@FinnishLapphund]

Sometimes things just happens in unexplainable clusters. But I'm guessing that even some of those who did try to tell themselves it was unlikely for "lightning" to strike a 4th time, went around, and unconsciously just waited for the next plane to fall down on them/their area.

[@roger2008100]

Excellent research and commentary. Please keep up your high quality productions.😊

[@_kaleido]

A plane crashing into the playground of an orphanage sounds like something out of a dark joke

[@starry53]

That was very traumatic as three planes crashes on Elizabeth at the same year. It was Unbelievable.

[@wilsjane]

I am watching this video in London, where one plane flies overhead every 40 seconds 16 hours a day, on its way into Heathrow. Perhaps it is because they are landing, that we have never had a crash. The reason that they fly this route is that they follow much if the river Thames, which is seen as a place to ditch in an emergency. Fortunately it has never happened. For many years, thousands of businesses had to put telephone conversations on hold as Concorde flew over. In Hounslow, which is on final approach, several houses suffered structural damage and cracked windows.

[@SSmith-fm9kg]

Thanks for the video!

[@tyn999]

A very interesting case! Fascinating Horror never disappoints me!

[@scottyerkes1867]

Fascinating that 3 crashes occured in such a short time.

[@thekingskid]

Even to this day, there is still the occasional plane that shakes the house on approach to land.

[@californiahiker9616]

Well done! I watch several air disaster shows and have not seen this one covered. 3 crashes in a short time, what are the chances?! I really feel for the residents of the town of Elizabeth. So many dead, so many funerals, so many families suffering losses that would impact so many peoples‘ future. Thank you for covering these lesser known disasters!

[@donnicholas7552]

I'm from New Jersey and I never heard of this. Very scary and interesting!

[@lhea57]

Love your channel!

[@gk4204]

Another great video. Thank you.

[@joycedudzinski9415]

I was helping an elderly couple at one time and the gentleman told me that he lost a brother in an airplane crash and when I asked him more questions about it his wife brought out the CAB report. It was one of these crashes.The detail report covered all aspects of the crash. Sadly, his brother who perish was studying to be a pilot at a Miami FL aviation school, but that was cut short. 🙏 for everyone...

[@OWOT-re5jf]

Love your channel. Great narrative voice, too!

[@philipmurphy2]

Great research and commentary, Keep up the good work 👍

[@witchflowers6942]

these young pilots were so heroic in their efforts. And the emergency personnel, dentists and good samaritan orphans- We don’t know what the second pilot thought or did but it seems he too fought to save people on the flight and ground.

[@debbieellett9093]

That must have been traumatizing for all, both on the planes and on the ground.

[@calicogreyroot9238]

😮 I LIVED ON THE STREET WITH THE ORPHANAGE! Just a few houses down!!! Growing up, it was dilapidated and abandoned - and had countless ghost stories told about it. Holy crap, I never thought I'd see the day when MY HOME TOWN was on Fascinating Horror, let alone my old street! So surreal!

[@emdotrod]

When facing certain death, pilots might not be able to survive the crash but tried their best to lessen the damage in hope of increasing the probability of survival. May all the victims rest in peace

[@melissagottlieb3381]

I grew up an hour from here, never heard this. Thanks!

[@srijuniati4678]

I expected an explanation on something about the geography, radio frequency, or some faulty instrument. Never once crossed my mind that it would actually end with "welp, coincidence."

[@uranium54321]

One topic I’d love to see you cover is the Elixir Sulfanilamide disaster, it led to the creation of the modern FDA approval process for drugs

[@elLooto]

Its good that approval process keeps drugs off the market without such safeguards as peer review and longitudinal studies. Oh... wait..

[@vicvinegar7671]

Man the tragic irony of your dying effort being steering away from the city but instead landing in the playground of an orphanage. Thank God there were no kids outside

[@ljenk5]

Thank you ☺️

[@bunnymad5049]

Oh my goodness. Truly horrific. The pilots were exemplary in their efforts. Absolute heroes. I'm so, so sorry to all those involved. What a nightmare. Thanks dude. You 100% are always interesting, always respectful, always well researched. I learn a lot from often googling after watching. The way you manage to summarise the most important details is amazing. xxx

[@xray86delta]

Truly fascinating.

[@terrisomers7843]

Wow. I'm originally from the Newark area. I lived in a tiny town to the north of the airport on the eastern edge of the marshlands across from NY for most of my childhood. Always in the flight path of the airport, noise-wise. I never knew about any of these crashes! Thank you for another great video! 👍🏻 ❤

[@RatPfink66]

National 101, lost 2/11/52, was a DC-6 (as pictured). FH refers to "both" engines failing. Per the CAB report, #3 prop reversed pitch and #4 was feathered by mistake.

[@runawayteacher1]

I grew up in Elizabeth and heard stories about the plane crash...even told that one landed outside the school I attended. I thought it was an urban legend, but in the story of 2nd crash- there was a picture of my school in the background. Love the detail you gave which cleared up many questions I had about the plane crashes.

[@user-qx9wc4om5x]

My dad lived in Elizabeth from 1936 to the mid 1950s

[@donnamuller6460]

My husband and I are from PA but fly out of Newark all the time because we need United to Europe many times a year, not available from Phila. My parents, who died in 2005/6 never liked that we did this because they didn’t fly. Had never and WOULD never fly, but seemed touchy about Newark. THANK YOU for this video! My parents lived in Irvington and then Elizabeth in 1951 until 1958 when I was born. They never mentioned the plane crashes although my Mom was a great storyteller. They must have been incredibly traumatic.

[@ColonelSanders17]

"Crashed into a playground of an orphanage." Man, those kids could not get a break!

[@blehhh4988]

thanks for making videos often!!! love it sm

[@donnaroushall5397]

Ugh….. HATE these bots…. Why can’t we get did of them…☝️

[@trippie-gone]

Another great video. Have not heard of these events before. Must have been devastating for their community.

[@JedCurrie]

Good video thanks.

[@snowclo135]

I fly out of Newark reguarly and had no idea. Thank you for another great video

[@Blaklege63]

Wow. What a crazy situation

[@irishpsalteri]

Entirely new to me. Very interesting. My son is a pilot, for some reason I watch this type of content all the time. Good job.

[@MR_Mydnight]

Thanks!

[@susangreene9662]

Passenger planes were still in their infancy. Investigations were as well. Probably not as thorough care and maintenance as today. I'm sure those poor residents suffered PTSD after those crashes. Kudos to the pilots who tried to minimize damage and casualties.

[@GoodPersonTestWebsite]

Wow very interesting! I've from New Jersey originally and haven't heard of this though it was before my time of course. Very interesting back story to how airport runways became so large and isolated.

[@andrewkelley9405]

man, even the air around Jersey is cursed...

[@joeyjamison5772]

My first airplane ride ever originated at Newark Airport. It was to San Antonio, Texas, courtesy of the US Air Force!

[@chadmccoy8032]

Love the vintage pictures.

[@KevinJGamez]

Im from Bergen county and never heard this story , thanks for sharing

[@b.p.879]

Fascinating story!

[@nilsbrown7996]

What GREAT reader this is.

[@Mr110074]

Wow I live in Passaic County and I’m shocked I never heard of this. Newark Airport is where we all go to for our plane trips. To this day I’m use to planes flying over my house and neighborhood. As a kid we would look out the window and see planes from a distance, sometimes three at a time. At nighttime when we could only see the plane’s lights, it looked really cool. Man it must have been horrifying living In Elizabeth at that time. As somebody in the comments already mentioned, the cause could be just how early in the airline industry it was when they were trying figure out stuff. It’s sad but at least things are better now.

[@xXKazeInuYashaXx]

I teach in an area by the airport and we have landing planes over our heads constantly, it feels like you can reach out an touch them. Kids have screamed before because they think the plane is going to fall on them. I always think back to this story! Also highly recommend reading Judy Blume’s book “in the Unlikely Event!” I read it (stupidly) when I was flying out of Newark airport lol

[@Steve-fv7zc]

1:17 so eerie to see an old TWA airplane at Newark Airport after listening to your other video about that 1996 TWA plane failure. Also why I love and am so fascinated with history though at the same time!

[@Dovietail]

Fascinating case!

[@pdbordelon]

I never heard of these crashes. Its such an unbelievable coincidence - fascinating!

[@dimebagdave77]

Manythnx 🤘

[@mintybadger6905]

I live under the flight path of a big international airport (they’re usually about 1,200 feet up) and there are times I think, “Well, this is it - she’s going to crash on our heads, hope it doesn’t hurt”.

[@shawnnj5999]

i live in hillside right next to newark airport and elizabeth, i had no clue about any of these crashes, thanks for this video this hits home..