Safety Experts Say Wind Is A Factor In The Denver Plane Crash
Save Email Print
Bookmark and Share
Updated: 5:54 AM Jan 7, 2009
Safety Experts Say Wind Is A Factor In The Denver Plane Crash
Aviation safety experts say strong crosswinds likely were a factor in an accident last month that sent a Continental Airlines jet into a bone-jarring veer off a Denver runway and across open, snowy fields before it came to a halt and caught fire.
Posted: 5:39 AM Jan 7, 2009
Reporter: Associated Press
Email Address: news@kktv.com
width:200 and height: 150 and picwidth: 200 and pciheight: 150
Font Size:

Aviation safety experts say strong crosswinds likely were a factor in an accident last month that sent a Continental Airlines jet into a bone-jarring veer off a Denver runway and across open, snowy fields before it came to a halt and caught fire.

Several safety experts raised the possibility yesterday that the Boeing 737-500 airliner may have experienced "weather vaning," where a strong crosswind pushes a plane's tail and turns the aircraft's nose into the wind, much like it turns a weather vane.

Gusts of up to 37 mph were reported at Denver International Airport on the day of the accident, but experts say winds were probably not strong enough to explain the accident entirely. They say some other additional factor, either mechanical failure or human error also could have played a role.

Continental Airlines flight 1404 was taking off for Houston on December 20th when the accident happened. Thirty-eight people were injured

KKTV.com Features

KKTV and our Partners are proud to make Moms life easier…click here for more information

Click here for more information from our local health care specialists.

Do you have a story idea? Want to report breaking news? Call our newsroom at (719) 578-0000 or e-mail News@kktv.com.

Click Here to have KKTV come to your school!

Watch full episodes of your favorite CBS shows right here on KKTV.com.
Latest Blogs
  • EAT IT: Almonds - (Stacia Naquin)
    Keep your energy up when things get crazy. All you have to do is keep this super food handy at your desk.
  • Beware of Crooks Using Best Buy's Name (Betty Sexton)
    Crooks just sent a message to an 11News smartphone. It claims we've been selected for a $1,000 shopping spree. It's all a bunch of baloney!
  • Make a quick $250, hardly! (Betty Sexton)
    Thanks to Christine for telling me about this scam. She received a check in the mail from a group using the name American Consumer Opinion. It wasn't the legitimate Texas research company... just a crook looking to rip her off!
  • Treat It Like Thanksgiving - (Stacia Naquin)
    You don't have to sit on the sidelines at that Super Bowl party just because you vowed to make 2012 a healthier year. Here's some advice to keep yourself on track, after indulging during the season's biggest game!
  • "Be Prepared" is Good Motto for Storm Coverage
    Over in the KKTV 11 Weather Center, the radar's showing the snow moving in. Chief Meteorologist Brian Bledsoe says this storm has the potential to bring the most snow we've seen in 5 and 1/2 years, so it is "all hands on deck" and "batten down the hatches", as the newsroom makes its own preparations for this Groundhog Day Storm.