Читать книгу Air Disasters: Dramatic black box flight recordings - Malcolm MacPherson, Malcolm MacPherson - Страница 7

FedEx Flight 705 was scheduled to depart the company’s home base of Memphis, Tennessee, for a routine flight to San Jose, California, at a little after 3.00 in the afternoon. The captain, first officer and flight engineer boarded the aircraft to find that another FedEx employee, who was not identified as someone who would fly with them that day, had already come on board. He was sitting at the flight engineer’s station initiating pre-flight procedures. A ‘jumpseat’ employee may not interfere with flight operations, according to the rules and regulations of the company, but the boarding flight crew members said nothing and the stranger gave up his seat to the flight engineer before strapping himself into a jump seat in the cockpit. He carried with him a guitar case, which contained two claw hammers, two sledgehammers, a knife and a scuba diver’s speargun.

The jump-seat employee, later identified as Auburn Calloway, came aboard Flight 705 that afternoon in a state of desperation. His career with FedEx, and, indeed, with any other freight company or airline, was in jeopardy. Federal Express had uncovered a series of irregularities and outright falsifications in both his original employment application and in hundreds of hours of flight records. The company had ordered him to appear at a disciplinary hearing in the upcoming week. The likely outcome of such a hearing was the termination of his employment and the loss of his FAA flight certification. He decided to kill himself and to make the suicide look like an accident, thus providing insurance money for his family. Moreover, by crashing one of their aeroplanes, he would punish FedEx for singling him out. Calloway’s plan was carefully devised. He did not want to use guns to disable the cockpit crew, knowing that any subsequent investigation would uncover bullet wounds. He wanted to make the deaths of the crew look as if they had been as the result of an air crash. He bought death and dismemberment insurance and planned to bludgeon to death the crew of Flight 705, then crash the DC-10 into the terminal of the Memphis base.

After takeoff the captain heard a struggle. He turned to see both his crew mates slumped in their seats, injured terribly, and a blood-soaked Calloway moving towards him. Calloway swung wildly at the captain and, although his blows landed, some were deflected. The plane lurched as the captain defended himself desperately. Then the first officer and flight engineer recovered sufficiently to fight back. Calloway swung a hammer, inflicting further injuries, but the cockpit crew did not give up and Calloway retreated to the rear of the cockpit. The crew did not have time to radio Memphis before Calloway brought out the speargun. He told the crew, ‘Sit down! Sit down! This is a real gun, and I’ll kill you.’

The flight engineer was bleeding from wounds to his face and head. He could not see Calloway clearly, but he could see the speargun, its barbed steel shaft inches from his face. He grabbed the weapon and threw himself at his assailant. The captain helped him subdue Calloway while the first officer struggled to regain control of the aircraft. The first officer could not use his right arm and the blows to his head had caused near paralysis to parts of his body. He pulled the control yoke back against his chest, and rolled the DC-10 to the left into a barrel roll at nearly 400 miles per hour. The captain and flight engineer shouted, ‘Get him! Get him’, as the three struggled with Calloway. They fell into the galley area with the movement of the aeroplane, at one moment weightless, at the next being pressed down upon by three times their weight in gravitational forces. The aircraft turned upside down at 19,700 feet.

The first officer threw the aircraft into a series of violent manoeuvres to keep Calloway off balance. He threw the yoke forward and sent the plane into a vertical dive. The throttle controls, located to his right, were pressed forward to their stops, and he could not reach them with his injured right hand. The DC-10 accelerated past 500 miles per hour, then past the instruments’ capacity to register the speeds. Flight 705 was experiencing velocity stresses that the airframe was not designed to sustain. The first officer pulled the aircraft out of the dive, and then reached across the yoke with his left hand to cut the speed. Then he called Memphis.

Flight 705 turned back for Memphis and was cleared for any runway. No one on the ground knew what had happened except for an ‘attack’ reported by the first officer when he had declared an emergency.

Once Flight 705 landed and came to a stop, a paramedic boarded the aeroplane. The captain and flight engineer were still struggling with Calloway on the floor, while the first officer sat trembling in the co-pilot’s seat. Calloway was handcuffed and hauled away.

CAPTAIN: I can’t believe it, what a goatrope [mess].

What aeroplane number is this?

FIRST OFFICER: It’s, uh, 306.

CAPTAIN: Okay.

FIRST OFFICER: We can use auto throttles. [Laughter]

FIRST OFFICER: Express 705 cleared for takeoff.

Lights if you want ‘em, I mean clocks if you want ‘em, lights are coming on, we’ll get the vertical speed wheel here in a minute.

CAPTAIN: How’s the checklist look?

FLIGHT ENGINEER: Once the flight guidance has been set, we’ll be complete.

FIRST OFFICER: All right, er, it’s set.

FLIGHT ENGINEER: All right, before takeoff is complete.

FIRST OFFICER: Okay.

CAPTAIN: Your aeroplane.

FIRST OFFICER: I have the aeroplane, set standard power, please, before they change their mind.

CAPTAIN: Power is set.

FIRST OFFICER: Okay.

CAPTAIN: Eighty knots.

FIRST OFFICER: That checks.

CAPTAIN: V one, rotate, positive rate.

FIRST OFFICER: Gear up, please, IAS hold if you can.

CAPTAIN: Right 280, 275 radial outbound, Express 705.

FIRST OFFICER: Check. I don’t think you got out.

CAPTAIN: 275 radial outbound, Express 705.

FIRST OFFICER: Okay, climb, well, almost there. Climb power.

CAPTAIN: Express 705, two thousand five for six thousand, Express 705.

FIRST OFFICER: Want CMS?

CAPTAIN: Well, we appear to be safely airborne.

FIRST OFFICER: I was starting to wonder about it.

CAPTAIN: Vertical speed to 1000 feet per minute, please, or thereabouts.

FIRST OFFICER: What a goatrope, what a goatrope!

CAPTAIN: Pardon me?

FIRST OFFICER: What a goatrope back there, jeez!

[Laughter]

FIRST OFFICER: Slats retract. After takeoff checklist

[complete]. Let’s get out of here.

FLIGHT ENGINEER: Down to the line on the, after takeoff.

CAPTAIN: All right, okay.

FIRST OFFICER: I’ll come over here to get that radial.

CAPTAIN: 127.22 for Express 705. Express 705…nine nine. Express 705 is at ten three for 16,000, one six thousand. Express 705 on 27.4 They’re out to lunch. Excuse me, but have you worked at our ramp control?

[Laughter]

CAPTAIN: Victor 1 Victor.

FIRST OFFICER: Whew, I got a, oh boy, stay with us.

CAPTAIN: Taxi, Victor 1 Victor…

FIRST OFFICER: That’s Victor to one Victor, Victor one to Victor. Gee whiz. Well, that’s 23.0.

CAPTAIN: Flight level 230 for Express 705. 27.4 Express 704 on 33.0 Leaving one six direct Razorback Express 705.

FIRST OFFICER: Zero one, okay. Here we go.

CAPTAIN: That’s Crowley’s Ridge, you know about Crowley’s Ridge?

FIRST OFFICER: Naw, naw.

CAPTAIN: That’s it right there.

FIRST OFFICER: All, all this area right here?

CAPTAIN: See these trees?

FIRST OFFICER: Yeah.

CAPTAIN: That’s a natural fault line.

FIRST OFFICER: Oh, this is the New Madrid, uh…

CAPTAIN: Well, it’s part of it, yeah, but it’s much higher in elevation and the…climate is different. You drive in Arkansas, you drive right over it.

FIRST OFFICER: Well, I…

CAPTAIN: You see all those trees there, that’s it.

FIRST OFFICER: I know it, but I wonder about that. You go, Wynne, and all the, you know, stuff over here, you know, where it’s flat and you cross over that and I wondered about that. That’s not part of the no vaculight uplift and all that, that’s where? That’s further west, isn’t it?

CAPTAIN: Yeah.

FLIGHT ENGINEER: Altimeters.

FIRST OFFICER: Nines and twos here.

FLIGHT ENGINEER: After takeoff is complete.

FIRST OFFICER: Do you, uh, live over in Arkansas, Dave, or…?

CAPTAIN: Naw, I live in Fisherville.

FIRST OFFICER: Aw, Fisherville, great spot.

[Sound of hammer blows striking first officer and flight engineer]

FLIGHT ENGINEER: Ow!

FIRST OFFICER: God!

FIRST OFFICER: Oh, ah, shit.

CAPTAIN: God almighty!

FLIGHT ENGINEER: Ow!

FIRST OFFICER: What the fuck are you doing?

CAPTAIN: God, [groan] God almighty! God, God, God…

FIRST OFFICER: Get him, get him, get him.

CAPTAIN: He’s going to kill us.

FIRST OFFICER: Get him!

CAPTAIN: Get up, get him!

FLIGHT ENGINEER: I can’t, God!

UNIDENTIFIED: Stop! Hold his goddamn…

JUMP-SEAT PASSENGER: Sit down, sit down, get back in your seat, this is a real gun, I’ll kill ya.

FIRST OFFICER: Get him, get him, get him, get him, get him, get him!

AUTO WARNING HORN: Bank angle, bank angle.

FIRST OFFICER: Get him, get him, get him!

JUMP-SEAT PASSENGER: I’m gonna kill you! Hey, hey! I’ll kill ya!

AUTO WARNING HORN: Bank angle, bank angle.

CAPTAIN: Get him, get him, get him!

AUTO WARNING HORN: Bank angle, bank angle.

CAPTAIN: Yeah, get him!

AUTO WARNING HORN: Bank angle, bank angle.

FIRST OFFICER: Get him, get him, get him, Andy, I got the aeroplane!

AUTO WARNING HORN: Bank angle, bank angle.

FIRST OFFICER: Get him, Andy, get him!

AUTO WARNING HORN: Bank angle, bank angle.

[Sound of struggling in background] [Overspeed warning] [Series of clicks]

FIRST OFFICER TO CENTRE: Centre, centre, emergency! Centre, emergency!

AUTO WARNING HORN: Bank angle, bank angle.

FIRST OFFICER TO CENTRE: Centre, listen to me!

Express 705, I’ve been wounded. We’ve had an attempted takeover on board the aeroplane. Give me a vector

[direction] please, back to Memphis at this time. Hurry!

AUTO WARNING HORN: Bank angle, bank angle.

FIRST OFFICER TO CENTRE: Zero nine five, zero nine five, direct Memphis, get an ambulance and uh, alert the, uh, airport facility!

AUTO WARNING HORN: Bank angle, bank angle.

FIRST OFFICER TO CENTRE: Hey, Memphis, you still with me? [Struggling in background]

FIRST OFFICER TO CENTRE: Listen, hey, centre!

[Struggling in background]

FIRST OFFICER TO CENTRE: Centre, give me a heading to Memphis!

FIRST OFFICER TO CENTRE: Zero nine zero, roger, this is an emergency…! [Overspeed warning—series of clicks in background] [Struggling in background]

UNIDENTIFIED FROM REAR OF COCKPIT: Let go of it! [Sounds of struggle] Let go of the spear!

FIRST OFFICER TO CENTRE: One zero, thousand, okay, keep me advised, where is Memphis? [Struggling in background]

FIRST OFFICER: Okay, say my direction to Memphis.

FIRST OFFICER: Look, just keep talking to me, okay?

CAPTAIN: Jim!

FIRST OFFICER TO CENTRE: Yeah, we need an ambulance and, uh, we need, uh, armed intervention as well.

FIRST OFFICER TO CENTRE: Down to 5000 feet.

FLIGHT ENGINEER: Put it on autopilot!

FIRST OFFICER TO REAR OF COCKPIT: I’ve got it!

FLIGHT ENGINEER: Help, the son of a bitch is biting me! [Sounds of struggle]

FIRST OFFICER TO REAR: Andy!

CAPTAIN FROM REAR OF COCKPIT: Put it on autopilot and come back here!

FIRST OFFICER TO REAR OF COCKPIT: Keep him back there guys, I’m flying!

CAPTAIN FROM REAR OF COCKPIT: Put it…

FLIGHT ENGINEER FROM REAR OF COCKPIT: Hurry up, Jim…

FIRST OFFICER TO CENTRE: Request a single frequency.

FLIGHT ENGINEER FROM REAR: Jim!

FIRST OFFICER TO CENTRE: 19.1.

CAPTAIN FROM REAR: Jim, is it on autopilot?

FIRST OFFICER TO REAR OF COCKPIT: No, I got it.

CAPTAIN FROM REAR: Put it on autopilot and come back here!

FLIGHT ENGINEER FROM REAR: Quick, Jim!

FIRST OFFICER TO REAR: Okay.

CAPTAIN FROM REAR: Hurry, Jim! Come back here now!

FIRST OFFICER TO REAR: Okay…wait a minute, I’m coming.

CAPTAIN FROM REAR: Jim, do it now!

FLIGHT ENGINEER FROM REAR: Hurry, hurry!

[First officer exits co-pilot seat and goes to rear of cockpit]

FIRST OFFICER: You move, I’ll kill ya!

FIRST OFFICER TO CAPTAIN: Go up and get the aeroplane.

CAPTAIN: I’m going.

FIRST OFFICER: If you can.

CAPTAIN: Are you in control?

FIRST OFFICER: Yeah, can you take this?

[Captain returns to his seat, sounds of him buckling in]

CAPTAIN TO REAR: Jim, are you in control? Jim, are you in control?

FIRST OFFICER FROM REAR: Yes, I’m in control.

CAPTAIN: Memphis, can you hear me?

TOWER: Uh, is this Express 705 heavy?

CAPTAIN: 705, yes.

TOWER: 705 heavy, Memphis, roger, I do hear you.

You can proceed direct to Memphis if able. Expect runway niner. The altimeter is 30.29er.

CAPTAIN TO TOWER: You understand we’re declaring an emergency. We need security to meet the aeroplane. We’ll stop it on the runway if we can.

TOWER: Express 705 heavy, affirmative, all that’s been taken care of, that security will be available for, as well as medical assistance.

FIRST OFFICER FROM REAR: Dave!

CAPTAIN TO REAR: Yes!

FIRST OFFICER FROM REAR: Are you okay?

CAPTAIN TO REAR: I’m okay. Are you? Do you have him under control? Talk to me, Jim.

FIRST OFFICER FROM REAR: Huh?

CAPTAIN TO REAR: Do you have him under control?

FIRST OFFICER FROM REAR: I’m okay.

TOWER: Express 705 heavy, can you proceed, direct to Memphis. Descend at your discretion and, uh, the localizer is on for runway niner.

CAPTAIN TO TOWER: All right, we’re headed that way now, I think.

TOWER: Roger. Express 705 heavy, is the situation under control or is it still in progress?

CAPTAIN TO TOWER: We appear to have it under control.

TOWER: Roger.

CAPTAIN TO TOWER: Uh, Memphis, this is 705, understand that we need some medical personnel to meet us also!

TOWER TO CAPTAIN: Express 705 heavy, roger, that’s being taken care of. They’ll meet you there. Express 705 heavy, are you able to turn towards the airport?

CAPTAIN TO TOWER: Yeah, give me a vector.

TOWER TO CAPTAIN: Zero vector…

CAPTAIN TO TOWER: We’re turning towards the airport now…

TOWER TO CAPTAIN: Left turn heading 100.

CAPTAIN TO TOWER: 100 Express 705. Express 705, I got to descend down to 7000 to proceed to Memphis.

TOWER TO CAPTAIN: Express 705, roger, descend at your discretion. Express 705 heavy, if able you can pick up the localizer runway niner and track it inbound.

CAPTAIN TO TOWER: Give me that frequency, please.

TOWER TO CAPTAIN: Okay, runway niner localizer is, uh, 109er.5.

CAPTAIN TO TOWER: 109.5, thank you, nine six, 89 inbound?

TOWER TO CAPTAIN: Say again?

CAPTAIN TO TOWER: 089 inbound?

TOWER TO CAPTAIN: Affirmative.

FIRST OFFICER FROM REAR: Dave!

CAPTAIN TO REAR: Yeah!

FIRST OFFICER FROM REAR: Can you get her [the aeroplane] on the ground?

CAPTAIN TO REAR: Okay.

TOWER TO CAPTAIN: Express 705 heavy, when you can I’d, uh, like to know your fuel on board and, uh, number of, uh, persons on board.

CAPTAIN TO TOWER: Okay, we’ll, uh, give it to you in just a second.

TOWER TO CAPTAIN: No rush.

CAPTAIN TO REAR OF COCKPIT: Listen, is he okay, put, put that thing in his throat, I don’t give a shit if he’s dead or not, don’t kill him but hold him, you got him, Jim? Jim, are you under control? Jim, are you under control? Jim? Jim, are you under control? Are you under control?

FIRST OFFICER FROM REAR: No, no!…Something’s the matter with me!

CAPTAIN TO REAR: There is something wrong with him!

FIRST OFFICER FROM REAR: No!

CAPTAIN TO REAR: You keep him down, hear!

FIRST OFFICER FROM REAR: I can’t…!

CAPTAIN TO REAR: You can keep him down, put that thing in his…!

FIRST OFFICER FROM REAR: No, no!

TOWER TO CAPTAIN: Express 705 heavy, is that localizer coming in now?

CAPTAIN TO TOWER: Yeah, we’re on the localizer now, descending.

TOWER TO CAPTAIN: Roger, and you want a visual or do you just want to, do you want to shoot the ILS

[instrument landing system] or just shoot a visual?

CAPTAIN TO TOWER: I’ll follow the ILS down and take a visual.

TOWER TO CAPTAIN: Roger, Flight 705 heavy, at pilot’s discretion maintain, uh, 2000 and advise when you get the airport in sight.

CAPTAIN TO TOWER: Will advise.

TOWER TO CAPTAIN: Okay, you’re three zero, three one miles west of the airport.

CAPTAIN TO TOWER: Thank you, sir.

CAPTAIN TO REAR: You got him down okay? Hey, you put that, you keep him under control. Is he trying to get up? [Sound of hammers being thrown into cockpit]

FIRST OFFICER FROM REAR: No!

CAPTAIN TO REAR: You hang in there now! Hey, put that, go back and, hit him on the head, just…[Sounds of struggle from rear of plane]

TOWER TO CAPTAIN: Express 705 heavy, you’re about twenty-five miles from the airport, and I’ll be making a transmission every thirty to forty seconds just to stay in touch. [Sounds of struggle from rear of plane]

FLIGHT ENGINEER FROM REAR: Stay down!

CAPTAIN TO REAR: If you have to, if you have to put that in his throat, you do it! [Sounds of struggle from rear of plane]

CAPTAIN TO REAR: Is he still down?

FIRST OFFICER FROM REAR: Yeah, yeah!

CAPTAIN TO REAR: Is he, is he under control?

FIRST OFFICER FROM REAR: I don’t know…

Yeah, he is.

TOWER TO CAPTAIN: Express 705 heavy, you’re twenty miles from the airport and uh, do you have that fuel and passenger information?

CAPTAIN TO TOWER: I got four on board, 86, uh, 85,000, I think 86,000 in fuel, four souls.

TOWER TO CAPTAIN: Roger Express 705 heavy, how many people should security be looking for?

CAPTAIN TO TOWER: Four.

TOWER TO CAPTAIN: Yeah, I mean how many involved in the action?

CAPTAIN TO TOWER: Everybody’s been injured, uh, there’s one person that, uh, lost it the, uh, jump-seat passenger’s the one that attacked the crew.

TOWER TO CAPTAIN: Okay, thank you. [Sounds of struggle from rear of plane]

TOWER TO CAPTAIN: Express 705 heavy, verify uh, situation’s still under control.

CAPTAIN TO TOWER: Well, it’s sort of under control.

TOWER TO CAPTAIN: Okay, Express 705 heavy, uh, fifteen miles from the airport, about fourteen miles, uh, advise when you get it in sight.

CAPTAIN TO TOWER: I have it in sight.

TOWER TO CAPTAIN: Express 705 heavy is cleared visual runway 9, Express 705 heavy, the wind is uh, zero three zero at five, cleared to land runway niner. [Sounds of struggle from rear of cockpit]

CAPTAIN TO TOWER: Cleared to land?

CAPTAIN TO REAR: Kill the son of a bitch! Kill him!

Kill him! Kill him! Kill him! [Sounds of groans from first officer in rear of cockpit]

FLIGHT ENGINEER FROM REAR: Jim, Jim, Jim, [sounds of struggle], Jim, help me! [Sounds of struggle, groans from first officer]

TOWER TO CAPTAIN: Express 705 heavy, you’re about six and a half miles from the threshold, if able, when you get it on the ground, advise when you’re on the ground, uh, I won’t, uh, make any more transmissions to you at this time. [Sounds of struggle from rear of cockpit]

FLIGHT ENGINEER FROM REAR: Stop fighting!

[The captain knows that the fight behind him in the cockpit is not over, and considers putting the aeroplane on autopilot at 7000 feet while he puts an end to the struggle. Instead he chooses to land the aeroplane and switches to runway 36L.]

CAPTAIN TO TOWER: I’m coming around to 36 left.

TOWER TO CAPTAIN: Okay, Express 705 heavy, runway 36 left, cleared to land, cleared visual [to runway] 36 left. You are cleared to land, the wind is 050 at 8. [Sounds of struggle from rear of cockpit]

FLIGHT ENGINEER FROM REAR: Ow! Jim, he’s biting me!

FIRST OFFICER FROM REAR: Stay down!

[Groans from first officer in rear] [Sounds of struggle in rear of cockpit]

AUTO WARNING HORN: Bank angle, bank angle.

[Groans from first officer in rear]

TOWER TO CAPTAIN: Express 705 heavy all of the emergency equipment will be on frequency 121.9.

CAPTAIN TO TOWER: [Two clicks on microphone]

[Sound of struggle in rear]

AUTO WARNING HORN: Bank angle, bank angle.

[Sounds of struggle in rear]

FLIGHT ENGINEER FROM REAR: He’s after the hammer, Jim!

AUTO WARNING HORN: Altitude alert: one thousand.

UNIDENTIFIED FROM REAR: Where’s he going? AUTO WARNING HORN: Bank angle, bank angle. Too low! Terrain, sink rate, pull up, too low, terrain, sink rate 500, too low, terrain, sink rate [sounds of struggle in rear]. Pull up! Sink rate, pull up, sink rate, pull up, sink rate, sink rate…

CAPTAIN TO TOWER: Get the crews over here now, get ‘em over here in a hurry!

FLIGHT ENGINEER FROM REAR: Stop the jet, help us, stop the jet on the ground and help us!

TOWER TO CAPTAIN: Express 705, uh, help is on the way and frequency change approved, uh, the emergency equipment’s on, uh, 121.9.

FLIGHT ENGINEER: Have they got the equipment out here?

CAPTAIN: They’re on the way…

FLIGHT ENGINEER: Blow the door!

CAPTAIN: Yeah! [Sound of door being opened]

FLIGHT ENGINEER: Don’t get close enough that he can grab anything!

CAPTAIN: Help me out…Don’t move! Don’t even think about it!

FLIGHT ENGINEER: Shut the engine down! Did you shut the engine down?

CAPTAIN: Yeah. Don’t let him move!

FIRST OFFICER: Don’t move!

[Sound of engine shutting down]

Calloway was convicted on a two-count indictment of air piracy and interference with flight operations and sentenced to life imprisonment with no possibility of parole. He is currently residing at the federal penitentiary in Atlanta.

The flight crew survived the attack. The captain suffered multiple lacerations to his head; he had been stabbed in his right arm and had a dislocated jaw. His right ear had been almost completely severed. The first officer’s skull was fractured; he recovered from the paralysis to his right side but would experience ongoing motor-function impairment to his right arm and leg. He was blinded in one eye. The flight engineer suffered a skull fracture, as well as a severed temporal artery. The crew would never fly again.