Sacramento Mather Airport example essay topic

Load shift may have caused Emery cargo jet crash CNN News- February 17, 2000 In this story: 'No chance of rescue " At least 100 cars set afire Pilot reports balance problem RELATED STORIES, SITES From staff and wire reports RANCHO CORDOVA, California (CNN) - The investigation into the fiery crash of an Emery cargo jet that killed all three crew members is focused on a shift in the plane's load shortly after it took off from Sacramento, California. The DC-8 plunged into a nearby auction yard of wrecked cars, leaving a quarter-mile-long trail of burning debris. Authorities said the pilot of Emery Worldwide Flight 17 reported that the jet's cargo shifted shortly after takeoff Wednesday evening. The plane, its balance disrupted, tried to return to Mather Field for an emergency landing.

Instead, it crashed in a fireball about a mile east of the airport just before 8 p.m. There were no reported injuries on the ground. 'No chance of rescue " One witness said the plane hit the ground belly first and was immediately surrounded by fire. Nobody on the ground was injured. The plane, bound for Dayton, Ohio, carried three crew members: the pilot, first captain and a flight engineer, all believed to be Emery employees, said company spokesman James Allen. The crew members, whose identities were not immediately released, were dead by the time fire crews arrived, said Capt. Dan Hagerty, from the American River Fire Department in Rancho Cordova, California, a suburb of Sacramento.

'There was no chance of rescue,' he said. Firefighters were hampered by intense flames, which burned for several hours after the crash. Smoke was visible in the moonlit night several miles away. At least 100 cars set afire The plane's cargo included clothing, transmission fluid and a small amount of fuses -- 9 grams, or about a third of an ounce -- used to activate automobile air bags, Allen said. The crash at the Insurance Auto Auctions salvage yard set between 100 to 200 cars on fire, many with gas in their tanks, causing several explosions. Debris cut a swath about 250 yards wide and a quarter mile long.

Firefighters worked into the night extinguishing scattered flames. Debris from the plane, including a 15-foot-long piece of the fuselage and a wheel assembly, was found scattered among the wrecked cars. j Dozens of vehicles were crumpled. Pilot reports balance problem The flight took off at 7: 50 p.m. and the pilot immediately called back to the airfield's departure control and told them he had a severe problem with the balance of the aircraft, said Jim Whitehead, manager of the Federal Aviation Administration's regional operations center in Los Angeles. The plane hit the ground 'in a ball of fire,' he said. Motorist Ernie Killinger said the plane hit the ground belly first. 'I saw the top of the plane.

It was like he was crash-landing,' said Killinger, who was going home when he saw the crash. 'When the plane come out of the flames, I saw the front half of the fuselage come out of the flames and the cockpit was straight up and it just rocked back and forth until it was engulfed by the flames,' Killinger said. 'I thought at one time it would outrun the flames. ' Federal Aviation Administration investigators, a bomb squad, officials from the Sacramento County coroner's office and a hazardous materials team were among those on the scene. Emery Worldwide specializes in transportation services for business shippers of heavyweight cargo.

It announced last week it planned to replaced its entire fleet of 28 DC-8's over the next five years. Based in Redwood City, California, Emery operates in 229 countries through a network of about 500 service centers and agent locations around the world. The $2.4-billion company is a subsidiary of CNF Inc., a $5.6-billion management company of global supply chain services based in Palo Alto, California. Located just 12 miles east of downtown Sacramento within the heart of the Highway 50 corridor, Mather comprises 2,875 acres which formerly served as an Air Force Base. Its available facilities are impressive: two parallel runways, one of which is 11,300 feet long; capable of handling the largest fully-loaded aircraft, 40 acres of cargo ramp space, 321,000 square feet of warehouse space, and 198,000 square feet of office space.

Mather provides access to a local market of nearly two million people, with an additional market of over nine million within a 90-mile radius. It is easily accessible by major freeways and highways, and is situated near transcontinental railway lines and a deep-water port. And its location is ideal for service to Pacific Rim nations. Top businesses such as Packard Bell, Apple Computer and Siemas Duewag have chosen to locate in Sacramento. With the opening of Mather Airport, major companies now have an even greater incentive to move to this area.

LOCATION: Sacramento Mather Airport is located 12 miles east of downtown Sacramento at the Mather exit off Highway 50. Interstate 80, Interstate 5, and Highway 99 all converge at Highway 50 near downtown Sacramento, providing excellent access to Mather from all directions. Mather is located 87 air miles from San Francisco, 115 air miles from Reno, and 350 air miles from Los Angeles.