Western Air Express Flight 7
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Western Air Express Flight 7, a domestic scheduled passenger flight from
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to
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, crashed on January 12, 1937 near
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. The twin engine Boeing 247D, registration NC13315, crashed shortly after 11:00 a.m. in adverse weather conditions. Of the three crew and ten passengers on board, one crew member and four passengers perished. One of the fatalities was noted international adventurer and filmmaker Martin Johnson, of
Martin and Osa Johnson Martin Elmer Johnson (October 9, 1884 – January 13, 1937) and Osa Helen Johnson (née Leighty, March 14, 1894 – January 7, 1953) were married United States, American adventurers and documentary filmmakers. In the first half of the 20th cent ...
fame. The off-course Boeing 247D, ''en route'' from
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, was on approach to the
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at
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in severely lowered
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due to heavy rain and fog. On suddenly spotting a ridge looming directly ahead, pilot William L. Lewis cut power to the engines and "pancaked" onto the hillside to reduce the force of the impact. The airliner first struck the ground with the left wing tip. It then skidded along the side of the mountain in a curved path for approximately 125 feet, finally coming to rest headed in the opposite direction from which it struck. The point of collision was at an elevation of 3550 feet, near the summit of Los Pinetos, the highest mountain in the immediate vicinity. â€
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/ref> One passenger died immediately and three more died within a week, as did the co-pilot, C. T. Owens. Martin Johnson died of a fractured skull while hospitalized. His wife Osa suffered back and neck injuries but continued with the couple’s lecture circuit, doing so from her wheelchair.Kansas State Historical Society - Profile of Osa Johnson
/ref> She later sued Western Air Express and United Airports Co of California for $502,539 but lost on appeal in 1941.
''Los Angeles Times'', July 1, 1941, p. A14 - brief excerpt
One of the survivors was a 25-year-old passenger who managed to hike five miles down the mountainside where he met rescuers from the Olive View Sanitarium who were searching for the accident site. The accident was investigated by the Accident Board of the Bureau of Air Commerce, under the authority of the
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. The cause was attributed to the adverse weather conditions, coupled with the pilot’s decision to descend to a dangerously low altitude without positive knowledge of his position.


See also

*
1937 in aviation This is a list of aviation-related events from 1937: Events * Over Tushino airfield near Moscow, Soviet aircraft fly in precise formations spelling " LENIN", "STALIN," and "USSR." * Cuba establishes a naval aviation arm. * Kawasaki Heavy Indus ...
*
1937 in the United States Events from the year 1937 in the United States. Incumbents Federal Government * President: Franklin D. Roosevelt ( D- New York) * Vice President: John Nance Garner ( D-Texas) * Chief Justice: Charles Evans Hughes ( New York) * Speaker of ...
* Aviation accidents and incidents *
List of accidents and incidents involving commercial aircraft This list of accidents and incidents involving commercial aircraft includes notable events that have a corresponding Wikipedia article. Entries in this list involve passenger or cargo aircraft that are operating commercially and meet this list ...


References


External links

* * - includes brief glimpse of NC13315 at 06:00 mark * - includes wreckage photographs * - names of passengers & crew * * (related to above ''Evening Independent'' article, but edited with alternate content) {{Aviation accidents and incidents in the United States in the 1930s Airliner accidents and incidents in California Aviation accidents and incidents in the United States in 1937 1937 in California 1937 in Los Angeles Disasters in Los Angeles History of Los Angeles County, California Santa Clarita, California 7 Accidents and incidents involving the Boeing 247