2002 September 28 - Second Expedition

The #2 (RH) engine was destroyed back to the combustion section. The holes are the portions of the combustions cans that direct the gasses toward the turbine section through the outlet guide vanes.

A representative illustration of the Rolls-Royce Dart engine. The circled area is what is shown in the preceding photo. Essentially, only the turbine and exhaust sections remain of the right hand engine.

RH engine nacelle and wing structure. The chrome on the landing gear strut was still shiny. There was a post-crash fire which melted part of the spar and caused molten aluminum to drip onto the strut.

The empennage is hiding behind the tree at center. The RH engine nacelle is upslope from me to the right.

RH nacelle.

This was one of the storage boxes from the galley.

Portion of the fuselage crown. The impact literally opened the airplane like a can, with the upper portion of the fuselage peeling off in one piece.

The purpose of this trip was to escort Charles Hadlock to the site. As I write this (Jan 2021), Charles has been retired from NBC News for a few years. At the time, he was an anchor for the ABC station in Shreveport, LA (KTBS). He produced a 10-minute segment on the crash for the local 10PM broadcast. The segment can be seen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHkSo7djNlE

Aft end of the fuselage crown. The aft service door can be seen on the left end.

Aft end of the fuselage crown. The dorsal fin and aft service door (left) are evident in this view. Since this trip, people have flipped over the crown, and have exposed the interior to the elements.

When I first saw this, it stopped me in my tracks. This is the First Officer's control column, used by William F. "Fred" Tumlinson as he flew the aircraft..

The nose landing gear strut among other wreckage from the forward part of the aircraft.

Charles films the site as part of his news segment.

The Black Fork Mountain Wilderness is just that! In the summer/early fall, navigation is difficult with all of the undergrowth, plus it hides much of the wreckage. Later visits would be made in late-winter. The advantage with an early fall trip, though, was being at the site around the anniversary of the crash. This trip was the day after the 29th anniversary.

The LH engine nacelle and left main landing gear strut.

The bottom of the passenger boarding stairs.

Another view of the passenger boarding stair section.

Water separator; part of the air conditioning system.

Detail of the #1 engine.

Upper RH wing skin.