Tenerife: Remebering the World's deadliest aviation disaster
Today marks the 40th anniversary of the deadliest aviation disaster in the world. This was when two Boeing 747s belonging to Pan Am and KLM collided on the runway at Los Rodeos Airport at the Island of Tenerife leaving 583 people dead and 61 survivors. The events, the coincidences and the errors that led to the disaster are incredible to believe. A terrorist attack at a different airport, Gando Airport that led to the diversion of all flights to Los Rodeos Airport, miscommunication, foggy weather and pilot error all played important roles in the crash. The interesting aspect of it is that all the events happened on the ground. forty years ago, Tenerife, a quiet Spanish island was suddenly home to the deadliest airline disaster in the world both then and now. The two planes were diverted to Los Rodeos Airport after a bomb explosion at Gando Airport, Las Palmas, Canary Island. The two 747s (a Pan Am) and (a KLM) ended up on an infrequently used runway. As the planes waited...