__NOTOC__ On October 10, 1933, United Air Lines Trip 23, a

Boeing 247 The Boeing Model 247 is an early United States airliner, and one of the first such aircraft to incorporate advances such as all-metal ( anodized aluminum) semimonocoque construction, a fully cantilevered wing, and retractable landing gear.

airliner operated by

United Air Lines United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois.

and registered as crashed near

Chesterton, Indiana Chesterton is a town in Westchester Township, Porter County, Indiana, Westchester, Jackson Township, Porter County, Indiana, Jackson and Liberty Township, Porter County, Indiana, Liberty townships in Porter County, Indiana, Porter County, in the U. ...

, United States. The transcontinental flight carried three crew and four passengers and originated in

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the seat of Essex County and the second largest city within the New York metropolitan area.Oakland, California Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...

. It had already landed in

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

, and was headed to its next stop in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

when it exploded en route. All aboard died in the crash, which was caused by an on-board explosive device. Eyewitnesses on the ground reported hearing an explosion shortly after 9 pm and seeing the aircraft in flames at an altitude around . A second explosion followed after the aircraft crashed. The crash scene was adjacent to a gravel road about outside of Chesterton, centered in a wooded area on the Jackson Township farm of James Smiley. Investigators combed through the debris and were confronted with unusual evidence; the toilet and baggage compartment had been smashed into fragments. Shards of metal riddled the inside of the toilet door, while the other side of the door was free of the metal fragments. The tail section had been severed just aft of the toilet and was found mostly intact almost a mile away from the main wreckage. The

Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, ...

declassified 324 documents related to the investigation on November 16, 2017.

Incident

United States Bureau of Investigation investigator

Melvin Purvis Melvin Horace Purvis II (October 24, 1903 – February 29, 1960) was an American law enforcement official and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agent. Given the nickname "Little Mel" because of his short, frame, Purvis became noted for leadi ...

said, "Our investigation convinced me that the tragedy resulted from an explosion somewhere in the region of the baggage compartment in the rear of the aircraft. Everything in front of the compartment was blown forward, everything behind blown backward, and things at the side outward." He also noted that the gasoline tanks "were crushed in, showing

hat A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...

there was no explosion in them."

Investigation

Dr. Carl Davis of the Porter County coroner's office and experts from the Crime Detection Laboratory at

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

examined evidence from the crash and concluded that it was caused by a bomb, with nitroglycerin as the probable explosive. One of the passengers was seen carrying a brown package onto the aircraft in Newark, but investigators found the package amidst the wreckage and ruled it out as the source of the explosion. Investigators found a rifle in the wreckage, but they determined that a passenger carried it aboard as luggage, as he was en route to a shoot at Chicago's North Shore Gun Club. No suspect was ever identified in this incident and it remains unsolved, but it was the first proven act of air sabotage in the history of commercial aviation. Pilot Captain Terrant, his co-pilot, stewardess Alice Scribner, and all four passengers were killed. Scribner was the first United stewardess to be killed in an aircraft crash.

Notes

References

External links

*
Seven die as plane crashes in flames
. (October 11, 1933) ''New York Times'' p. 1 (pay site) *

. (October 12, 1933) ''New York Times'' p. 3 (pay site) *

. (October 16, 1933) ''New York Times'' p. 7 (pay site) * – includes names and addresses of the deceased {{DEFAULTSORT:United Airlines Boeing 247 mid-air explosion, 1933 1933 in Indiana 1933 murders in the United States 20th-century mass murder in the United States Accidents and incidents involving the Boeing 247 Airliner accidents and incidents in Indiana Airliner bombings in the United States Aviation accidents and incidents in the United States in 1933 Crimes in Indiana Disasters in Indiana Improvised explosive device bombings in the United States Mass murder in 1933 Murder in Indiana October 1933 events Porter County, Indiana Chesterton Crash Unsolved airliner bombings Unsolved mass murders in the United States Explosions in 1933

Incident

Investigation

See also

Notes

References

External links