HERE ARE SOME OF THE EYEWITNESSES ACCOUNTS OF THE JETS THAT DAY

As we all know, eyewitness accounts are often different from each other, especially when people view from a different vantage point and see something that they have never seen before, like new Jet aircraft.  Many people for instance mentioned smoke coming from the aircraft, as thought the engines may have had a problem.  But smoke from these early Jets was common on most every aircraft.  Get 5 people to describe something & you'll get 5 different answers.

TESTIMONY OF Ira P. Glover 729 Garvin Street Charleston, W. Va. Given to Captain James G. Kuntz and Captain Vernon R. Stutts, at his home, 25 March 1950. Q. Mr. Glover, we understand you may have seen these two jet aircraft just before they crashed. Would you mind telling us what you saw? A. I was on my delivery route down near Olcott when I heard them approaching. I glanced up over my left shoulder just in time to see them coming.  They passed to my left and just after passing me, began a pretty sharp climb. When they started the climb, the one on the right banked pretty sharply to the right and collided with the leader. Right after that it disappeared into the clouds. Q. Mr. Glover, where was your position exactly? Would you show us on the map? A. I was about a mile and a half from Olcott, just down in this little valley. Q. Which direction were you standing when you saw them? A. I had stopped my truck and come around to the side of it and I guess I was facing south. Q. Where were the airplanes when you first saw them? A. They came over the ridge by me to my left. Q. And what was their attitude when you first saw them? A. They were climbing a little and going very fast. Q. What was their position, one to the other? A. The second airplane was below and on the right. Q. Were they in a climbing turn or were they climbing straight? A. I think they were climbing to the right. Q. Can you estimate their altitude? A. Oh, I would say about 2500 to 3000 feet. Q. How close did they pass to you? A. They were about 500 yards off to my left, traveling south. Q. Did you hear anything unusual after they disappeared into the clouds? A. No, just the roar of their engines. Q. Did you see anything fall from the airplanes? A. No, they disappeared into the clouds right after they collided. Q. About how far from you were they when their wings collided? A. I really don't know, but it must have been less than a mile. Q. What did you do when you saw them collide? A. There wasn't anything I could do. I jumped in my truck and went down to the store in Olcott and asked them if they had seen the airplanes that just passed over. No one in Olcott had seen them. Q. Would you describe the weather that day? A. Yes, it was drizzling rain and some fog. Q. How far could you see? A. I really don't know. Q. Could you see the tops of the ridges? A. Yes, I could see a little bit beyond the tops of the ridges. (This observer is an army veteran, who had been an anti-aircraft gunner. He stated that he had never seen American jets before but had seen German jets and had, upon occasion, seen formations. The investigators visited the position from which he had viewed the aircraft and it is in a hollow, surrounded by ridges approximately 300 to 500 feet higher than the position of the observer. The distance between the tops of the ridges would be, roughly, a mile and a half to two miles.) TESTIMONY Of  Mr. Thomas Carrier of Ruth, West Virginia Given to Captain James G. Kuntz and Captain Vernon R. Stutts at Ruth, West Virginia, on 25 March 1950. Q. Tommy, we understand that you saw the two jet aircraft flying over Ruth, W. Va., just before they crashed. Could you tell us what you saw and from what point you saw it? A. I was about half way up the hill just on the right of the road we are on now when I heard them coming. They were leaving a trail of black smoke behind them. It looked to me like they were climbing slightly. They came out of the north or northeast from the direction of Charleston and continued straight in their climb until they disappeared in the clouds and fog. Q. What kind of formation were they flying? A. Well, they were pretty close and I think the man on the right was leading. Q. Was there anything unusual about their flight? A. No, nothing that I noticed. Q. What was their formation like? A. Their formation was good. They were farther apart just before they went into the clouds than they were when I first saw them. Q. Did they ever change positions? A. No, they just got farther apart before they disappeared. Q. Did either cross over while you were watching? A. No, they stayed in the same position, just the distance between the two was greater before they went into the clouds. Q. What was the weather here at Ruth at the time you saw them? A. It was misty and hazy. Q. How long after you lost sight of them, did they crash? A. Oh, it was just a matter of seconds. Q. Was anything wrong with either of the planes just before the crash? A. No, they looked all right to me. Q. Did any parts of either plane fall prior to the crash? A. I didn't see any; the only thing I noticed was that both of them were trailing black smoke. Q. Was there any explosion before the airplanes crashed? A. No, it was after they disappeared from my view that I heard the explosion. Q. Did it look as though they may have collided, either while you were watching them or before you had seen them? A. I don't think so because both of them were separated in flight and they seemed to be normal except for the black smoke coming out of both of them. Q. Could you tell which plane was in the lead? A. I'm not sure but I think the one farthest from me was slightly ahead. Q. Do you remember what the weather was like? A. Yes, it was hazy, with a light drizzle falling. Q. How far could you see? A. I could see the mountain tops all right but not much beyond. (This witness is 18 years of age and was in a position to view the aircraft just before impact. He lives approximately a mile and a half from the crash. He most probably saw the aircraft at the same instant as did Mr. Holstein. Mr. Holstein would have seen them from the north, looking south, while Mr. Nichols was facing north. In other words, the aircraft probably passed between these two men on an estimated heading of about 150°.) TESTIMONY of  Mrs. R. Y. Hayne  801 Churchhill Drive Given to Capt. James G. Kuntz and Capt. Vernon R. Stutts, at Kanawha County Airport, 23 March 1950. Q. Mrs. Hayne, did you see the two aircraft which crashed the 22nd of March? A. Yes, I saw them just after they took off. Q. From where did you see them? A. From the back yard of my home at 801 Churchhill Drive, Forest Hills, Charleston. Q. Would you tell us what you saw? A. Well, I heard them approaching from the airport and I looked up just in time to see them passing overhead. Q. Would you describe their attitude as you saw them? A. Well, they were very level and just going straight out. They seemed to be playing. The second ship was shifting its position behind the first airplane. Q. How long did you watch them? A. Well, I watched them until they started a sharp climb and disappeared into the clouds. Q. Did either one of them touch the other? A. Not while I was watching them. Q. Could you describe the weather that day? A. Well, it was misty and rather hazy; you couldn't see too far. Q. Just for the sake of orientation, would you tell us where your home lies in relation to the airport? A. Well, we are in South Charleston and the airport is roughly north of us. Our home is on a ridge overlooking the river and Charleston. TESTIMONY Of  Mr. Eugene Cantley of Ruth, West Virginia Given to Captain James G. Kuntz and Captain Vernon R. Stutts, at Ruth, West Virginia, 25 March 1950. Q. Gene, we understand that you saw these two airplanes fly over Ruth just before they crashed. Could you describe their flight for us? A. Yes, I saw them coming low across the ridge and they appeared to be climbing a little. They kept on climbing until they disappeared in the clouds. Q. Where were you when you first saw them? A. I was walking up the road from Ruth to my home. Q. What direction were you facing? A. South or southeast I guess. I saw the airplanes before I heard them. Q. How was their formation? A. It looked to me like the man on the left was leading and the man on his right was behind and below him. They were off to my left. Q. Was there ever any change in their formation? A. Well, yes, they were farther apart just before they went into the clouds than they were when I first saw them. Q. Did either of them change position with relation to the other? A. No, the only change was in the distance between them. Q. Did you think there was anything wrong when you saw them? A. No, I didn't know they had crashed until about half an hour later someone called from Charleston and told us. Q. Was there any rain falling at the time? A. No, it rained a little bit before they went over and again after the crash, but not at the time they went over. Q. Do you think they might have collided? A. I don't know but they didn't while I was watching them. There was always some distance between them. TESTIMONY Of  Mr. E. Bassi Charleston Control Tower Operator Given to Captain James G. Kuntz and Captain Vernon R. Stutts in the Control Tower on 24 March 1950. Q. Mr. Bassi, were you on duty at the time of takeoff? A. Yes. I also gave them their ARTC clearance. Q. Would you repeat that clearance for us? A. Yes. At about 1145 Captain Blackhurst, the National Guard Operations Officer, called and requested that their ARTC clearance be given to the lead pilot over the phone so that they could taxi out and take off immediately thereafter. Cincinnati issued the following clearance:   "ATC clears Air Force 1019 to Maxwell Air Force Base via direct route    500 on Top. Takeoff and climb to 8000 feet on a 170° magnetic track.    Report reaching 500 on top, cruise and maintain 500 on top while in    Control Area." The pilot requested permission to climb on course    immediately after takeoff rather than on a heading of 170. Cincinnati    was advised of this request and a revised clearance was given, provided    the pilot could maintain 5000 feet a minute climb and would assume    responsibility of separation of the two aircraft in the climb. The    revised clearance was given to the pilot as they were taxiing to takeoff    position. The clearance read: "Cincinnati Control clears Air Force    1019 to Maxwell Air Force Base via direct route 500 on top. Climb to    500 on top on course (215°) immediately after takeoff. Report passing    through 10,000 feet and reaching 500 on Top to Charleston Tower. The    lead pilot acknowledged these instructions and advised he could climb    at 5000 feet per minute and would take care of separation in the climb. Q. Why was this change in clearance necessary? A. Due to conflicting incoming traffic. Q. What time was his final clearance delivered? A. The revised final clearance was given at 1205 Eastern. TESTIMONY Of  Mr. Kermit Nichols of Emmons, West Virginia Given to Captain James G. Kuntz and Captain Vernon R. Stutts, at Emmons, West Virginia, on 23 March 1950. Q. Mr. Nichols, we understand that you saw the two jet aircraft just before they    crashed. Would you tell us what you saw? A. I saw the two planes in formation flying down the river. They passed just    above the ridge there and disappeared from my sight just before they crashed. Q. Where were you when you saw them? A. I was sitting on my from porch. The house is just across the river from    Emmons on the south bank of the Coal River. Q. How close were the airplanes when you first saw them? A. They were flying formation. They were not far apart. I'd say, maybe 50 to    100 feet. Q. Which direction were they going? A. Roughly, following the river and the railroad. They were in a turn to the    left. Q. Did you think they were going to crash? A. Yes, because they were in a slight dive and then just before they went out    out of sight, they steepened their dive. Q. How far from you did they pass? A. Oh, I'd say about half a mile. Q. Could you tell how high they were? A. Well, just a little above the ridge. Q. Did you hear them crash? A. Yes, there was a loud explosion. Q. Did they look as though they might have collided? A. No, they were flying together but they were far enough apart for me    to see between them. Q. About how far apart were they? A. I just can't rightly say, but I know they weren't together, they were    flying separately. Q. How far is it from here to Emmons? A. Well, right across that far ridge I'd say, as the crow flies, 3 to 4,000    feet, not more than that. It is not over a mile. Q. Does this hollow that we are standing in now, run north and south? A. Yes, roughly, north and south. Q. Do you know how high we are above sea level? A. No, I'm not sure, but the hollow here is about 300 feet. Q. 300 feet above sea level, Mr. Holstein? A. No, I mean it is 300 feet from where we are standing to the top of    the ridge, about 3 or 400 feet. (Mr. Holstein lives about 1 mile northwest of the scene of the crash. The interview took place at the position from which Mr. Holstein observed the aircraft.) TESTIMONY Of  Frank Morris and James Price of Grippe, West Virginia. Given to Capt. James G. Kuntz and Capt. Vernon R. Stutts, at Grippe, West Virginia, 23 March 1950. Q. We understand you boys saw the crash of the two jet aircraft yesterday. Where were you standing when you first saw the airplanes? A. We were walking west along the railroad track, between Grippe and Emmons. The planes appeared to be coming down the river, following the river and the railroad track. When we first saw them, they were just about over Emmons, flying together coming down. Q. Were they flying straight and level? A. Their wings were level but they were making a gradual turn toward the hill which they hit. We thought they were trying to scare us and we both dove under the bank beside the track just before they hit. Q. Then they must have appeared to have been coming directly at you? A. Yes, we thought they were going to hit us. Q. Did the airplanes pass over you before crashing? A. No, they crashed on the hillside in front of us, to our right. Q. Could you tell which plane was leading? A. Not exactly. Q. Did there seem to be anything wrong with either of the airplanes in flight? A. I don't think so. Q. Could you tell how high they were? A. They weren't very high; they were below the ridge and going pretty fast. Q. What was the weather like at that time? A. Raining a little bit and kind of hazy. Q. Did they explode immediately on contact with the ground? A. No, it seemed as though there was a second or two before the explosion. Q. Did you see the explosion? A. No, we were under the bank. Q. Was there one or two explosions? A. Just one, a couple seconds after they hit. (Frank Morris is 19 years of age and James Price is 17. These were the last persons to see the aircraft prior to the crash. Neither of the boys had seen jet aircraft before or formation flying. Both got a good view of the planes just immediately before the crash.) ________________________________________________________________                                             Brounland, W. Va. Office of Flying Safety                     March 27, 1950 Wright-Patterson Field Dayton, Ohio         I read in the paper that you wanted any information possible on the two F-86 planes which crashed at Emmons, W. Va. on Wednesday March 22, 1950. I was working on top of the hill at Sproul, just a short distance below Emmons and saw the planes start down. I was not in position to see them when they landed but saw that they were starting down. I saw the planes cross over about a mile above me up the river. When they appeared out of the clouds they were flying South, one directly behind the other. They seemed to change east- ward and flew about two miles up the river then all of a sudden seemed to plunge to the ground at about a fifty degree angle, one directly behind the other. A TRUE COPY                         t/s/ Herbert Harless James G. Kuntz                          Lease Operator for Owens Libby Owens. JAMES G. KUNTZ Captain, USAF                           Brounland, W. Va. TESTIMONY of  Mrs. Duffy Forest Hills, Charleston, West Virginia, Given to Capt. James G. Kuntz and Capt Vernon R. Stutts, at her home in Forest Hills, Charleston, West Virginia, 25 March 1950. Q. Mrs Duffy, we understand that you saw the two jet aircraft which crashed on the 22nd of March 1950. Would you tell us, in your own words, just what you saw? A. I was working in my back yard and was attracted by the roar of their engines. I looked up just as they passed through the valley, which was to the north of our house there. They were not very high and the second one was above and a little behind the first one. They were both trailing black smoke. They came over the ridge just about 50 or 100 feet above the ridge and disappeared to the southwest in the clouds. Q. Did you notice anything unusual about their climb? A. Well, they weren't climbing too much until they passed through this ridge and then they began an abrupt climb after they had passed me. Q. How long could you see them? A. They disappeared into the clouds just after beginning their climb. Q. How far apart were they? A. Oh, I really don't know; they were farther apart when they began their climb than they were when they passed my house. Q. Did either plane strike the other? A. I don't think so, they changed their position a little bit but I don't think they collided. Q. Mrs. Duffy, would you orientate us with respect to the airport? A. Yes, the airport is about 5-1/2 miles north of here over that ridge. I guess it is really more northeast of here. Charleston is just down over the valley about one mile straight away, I guess. ___________________________________________________________________ TESTIMONY Of  Mr. Thomas Carrier of Ruth, West Virginia Given to Captain James G. Kuntz and Captain Vernon R. Stutts at Ruth, West Virginia, on 25 March 1950. Q. Tommy, we understand that you saw the two jet aircraft flying over Ruth, W. Va., just before they crashed. Could you tell us what you saw and from what point you saw it? A. I was about half way up the hill just on the right of the road we are on now when I heard them coming. They were leaving a trail of black smoke behind them. It looked to me like they were climbing slightly. They came out of the north or northeast from the direction of Charleston and continued straight in their climb until they disappeared in the clouds and fog. Q. What kind of formation were they flying? A. Well, they were pretty close and I think the man on the right was leading. Q. Was there anything unusual about their flight? A. No, nothing that I noticed. Q. What was their formation like? A. Their formation was good. They were farther apart just before they went into the clouds than they were when I first saw them. Q. Did they ever change positions? A. No, they just got farther apart before they disappeared. Q. Did either cross over while you were watching? A. No, they stayed in the same position, just the distance between the two was greater before they went into the clouds. Q. What was the weather here at Ruth at the time you saw them? A. It was misty and hazy. TESTIMONY Of  Mr. Wheeler Holstein   Emmons WV Given to Captain James G. Kuntz and Captain Vernon R. Stutts, 24 March 1950. Q. Mr. Holstein, we understand that you may have seen these two planes just before they crashed. Would you tell us, in your own words, just what you saw? A. Yes, I was in my yard over there at the coal pile and I heard their noise. I looked up just as they crossed the ridge. Both the airplanes seemed to be coming down and I thought they were in trouble. Just about half way across the ridge, they seemed to steepen their dive. Then I lost sight of them as they went over that far ridge. It wasn't more than two seconds later until I heard the explosion. Q. When did you first see the planes, Mr. Holstein? A. They came down out of the clouds about half way across the ridge. Q. Mr. Holstein, how close were the airplanes to one another when they crossed the ridge? A. Well, I couldn't rightly say but they were pretty close. Q. Did you notice anything abnormal about their flight? A. Well, I thought it was funny that one should be following the other one all the way down to the crash. Q. Could you tell us in what position they were with respect to each other? A. It looked to me like the one on the right was ahead. Q. How close did they pass to you? A. I really don't know. They went just south of me. They weren't very high. The following factors are listed as probable causes of the accident:     1. That the lead pilot, in his transition from VFR to IFR conditions, encountered some degree of vertigo and inadvertently continued the left turn past the intended course, lost altitude and crashed into the mountain side. His wingman was concentrating on flying formation. Considering the vertigo factor, the Board finds two conditions worthy of note and further study:         a. The J-3 attitude gyro is difficult to read and interpret. Concentration on this instrument may have led the pilot to neglect altitude.         b. The rate of climb, airspeed and altimeter are subject to lag due to installation peculiarities of the pitot static system in the F-86. This lag, particularly in the altimeter, is not conducive to the precise instrument flying techniques required in minimum weather conditions.     2. That the lead pilot may have attempted VFR flight in IFR conditions. The Board found it difficult to understand why a climb was not established earlier in the flight. The characteristics of an F-86 make it possible to begin a 4000 to 5000 feet a minute climb within a minute and a half to two minutes after takeoff.     3. That it is possible, but highly improbable, that physical difficulties such as heart failure, may have been a factor in this accident. The Flight Surgeon stated that the lead pilot, being a man 45 years of age, would have had a very thorough physical examination the last two years. Further, two radio transmissions just prior to the crash, although unreadable, would in- dicate that both pilots were in command of their faculties. RECOMMENDATIONS:     It is recommended:     1. That a study be made to determine the reliability of the J-3 attitude gyro and its suitability for actual instrument conditions.     2. That a study be made of the rate of climb indicator airspeed indicator and altimeter, as installed in the F-86 and of the pitot-static system therein, to determine their dependability in actual instrument conditions.

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