In 1970, a plane crash involving Wichita State University football players resulted in the deaths of 29 individuals, including 14 players. The Martin 4-0-4 aircraft crashed near Mount Sniktau, Colorado, due to the pilots' poor planning. The tragedy impacted the Wichita community deeply, an echo resurfacing recently with a similar disaster that involved an American Airlines plane colliding with an Army helicopter, stirring memories of the 1970 event. The recent crash contained young figure skaters and their coaches, further emphasizing the community's sorrow over the loss of promising lives in aviation accidents.
"It was like if you cut the cord on an elevator. We dropped that quickly." Glenn Kostal remembers the moment of the crash vividly, conveying the sheer horror of the fall.
The National Transportation Safety Board's report definitively pointed to the pilots' poor planning as the cause of the tragic crash that took 29 lives.
Wichita residents are once again grieving, as Wednesday's collision echoed the pain of the 1970 tragedy that claimed many promising lives on the football team.
Both planes headed west that morning not knowing the devastating outcome awaiting them, marking a somber chapter in the community's history.
Collection
[
|
...
]