# Plane crash at San Francisco International

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plane-crash-at-san-francisco-international/662806>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [July 6, 2013, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plane-crash-at-san-francisco-international/662806 "2013-07-06T19:14:32Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 20\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\
**Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plane-crash-at-san-francisco-international/662806/1 "2013-07-06T19:14:32Z")

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Few details so far. Anyone live around there, or have more data?

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**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\
**Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plane-crash-at-san-francisco-international/662806/2 "2013-07-06T19:23:36Z")

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Story just broke on AP and CNN a few minutes ago, but so far, yeah, very little detail. No word on whether anyone was injured, even.

ETA: Someone in the terminal posted [video that shows the plane smoking on the tarmac and passengers jumping onto the inflatable raft/ramps to get out of the plane](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhvbVhUQC08).

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**Author:** ![Sateryn76](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e4f/32.png) [@Sateryn76](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sateryn76)\
**Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plane-crash-at-san-francisco-international/662806/3 "2013-07-06T19:27:38Z")

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I just read that SFO is shut down to all air traffic. Are there close by airports that can handle the load?

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**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\
**Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plane-crash-at-san-francisco-international/662806/4 "2013-07-06T19:29:35Z")

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> [@Sateryn76](#):
>
> I just read that SFO is shut down to all air traffic. Are there close by airports that can handle the load?

Oakland has an airport that’s quite near.

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**Author:** ![appleciders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85f322/32.png) [@appleciders](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/appleciders)\
**Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plane-crash-at-san-francisco-international/662806/5 "2013-07-06T19:30:15Z")

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Oakland is pretty big, and it’s also accessible by BART. I think San Jose has a significant airport, and there’s Sacramento, but those are a little further away. SFO is huge for the trans-Pacific routes. No way this doesn’t screw up flights across the whole Pacific Rim.

I hope everyone makes it out OK. The fact that people were able to deploy the exit chutes quickly speaks well. Any landing you walk away from, right?

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**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\
**Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plane-crash-at-san-francisco-international/662806/6 "2013-07-06T19:38:06Z")

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[CNN newslink.](http://www.cnn.com/2013/07/06/us/california-plane-incident/)

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**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\
**Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plane-crash-at-san-francisco-international/662806/7 "2013-07-06T19:41:17Z")

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I drove past the airport on my way to work today; got there probably 10-15 minutes after the crash. Local news radio said it was a Boeing 777 and a caller who was out jogging alongside the airport and saw the crash said the jet was flying at a funny angle and a piece of the tail fell off just before it crashed.

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**Author:** ![Capt\_Kirk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@Capt\_Kirk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capt_Kirk)\
**Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plane-crash-at-san-francisco-international/662806/8 "2013-07-06T19:43:36Z")

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BBC has aerial pics up and it seems that the tail came off

> [@](#):
>
> Passenger David Eun tweeted: “I just crash landed at SFO. Tail ripped off. Most everyone seems fine. I’m ok. Surreal…”

So hopefully all are ok

**Capt**

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**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\
**Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plane-crash-at-san-francisco-international/662806/9 "2013-07-06T20:42:43Z")

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I just saw this on TV.  
Pretty clear that the plane landed short of the runway (it actually hit the edge of the jetty into the bay). It remains to be seen if it was pilot error or equipment malfunction.

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**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\
**Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plane-crash-at-san-francisco-international/662806/10 "2013-07-06T20:45:25Z")

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> [@beowulff](#):
>
> I just saw this on TV.  
> Pretty clear that the plane landed short of the runway (it actually hit the edge of the jetty into the bay). It remains to be seen if it was pilot error or equipment malfunction.

Tails don’t just fall off. I’m thinking bird strike or lightning strike.

Oh, wait: an article on NYT makes it sound like the tail came off after the landing.

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**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\
**Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plane-crash-at-san-francisco-international/662806/11 "2013-07-06T20:47:13Z")

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Been watching for a bit, where is the tail section? They haven’t shown it.

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**Author:** ![Terminus\_Est](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terminus_est/32/3087_2.png) [@Terminus\_Est](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terminus_Est)\
**Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plane-crash-at-san-francisco-international/662806/12 "2013-07-06T21:02:04Z")

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> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#):
>
> Story just broke on AP and CNN a few minutes ago, but so far, yeah, very little detail. No word on whether anyone was injured, even.
> 
> ETA: Someone in the terminal posted [video that shows the plane smoking on the tarmac and passengers jumping onto the inflatable raft/ramps to get out of the plane](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhvbVhUQC08).

Translating from Tagalog, the woman on the video says that the tail scraped the runway. I assume this is why the tail fell off.

Pic from a passenger: [https://path.com/p/1lwrZb](https://path.com/p/1lwrZb)

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**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\
**Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plane-crash-at-san-francisco-international/662806/13 "2013-07-06T21:06:48Z")

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> [@Rick](#):
>
> Been watching for a bit, where is the tail section? They haven’t shown it.

I don’t see the whole tail section, but I see the two “wings” from the tail. Yes, it looks like he clipped the jetty at the edge of the water, which severed the landing gear.

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**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\
**Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plane-crash-at-san-francisco-international/662806/14 "2013-07-06T21:12:53Z")

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From [here](http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/07/06/19323541-boeing-777-crashes-while-landing-at-san-francisco-airport?lite):

> [@](#):
>
> “The tail was too low. Instead of coming in flat it was coming in at a 45-degree angle, with the tail far too low,” she said. “It really went through quite a few acrobatics on the runway.”

So yeah, sounds like the tail got smashed because of the landing angle.

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**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\
**Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plane-crash-at-san-francisco-international/662806/15 "2013-07-06T21:43:50Z")

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frrom a passenger on the plane and a person on the ground, the plane came in too low and hit hard.

the man on the plane said that the pilot tryed to pull up, but it was too late. the man on the ground said that the rear landing gear caught then was gone, and the plane slammed down. the wings caught and came off and the cabin went orange.

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**Author:** ![appleciders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85f322/32.png) [@appleciders](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/appleciders)\
**Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plane-crash-at-san-francisco-international/662806/16 "2013-07-06T21:50:28Z")

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> [@rocking\_chair](#):
>
> frrom a passenger on the plane and a person on the ground, the plane came in too low and hit hard.
> 
> the man on the plane said that the pilot tryed to pull up, but it was too late. the man on the ground said that the rear landing gear caught then was gone, and the plane slammed down. the wings caught and came off and the cabin went orange.

Where are you getting that?

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**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\
**Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plane-crash-at-san-francisco-international/662806/17 "2013-07-06T22:00:55Z")

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cnn had an interview with the man on the ground. the man on the plane texted and then called his daughter, and took pictures as he escaped the plane. the daughter was interviewd on cnn.

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**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\
**Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plane-crash-at-san-francisco-international/662806/18 "2013-07-06T23:25:24Z")

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press conference just happened. 307 people on the plane. 2 people have died. 60 are unaccounted. 82 transported to hospital at the scene, 190 were taken to the airport and a number were transported to hospital from there.

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**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\
**Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plane-crash-at-san-francisco-international/662806/19 "2013-07-06T23:51:24Z")

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As I was driving to work, firetrucks & ambulances were kind of desperately trying to pass everybody, but those suckers really aren’t built for speed. Nobody on the freeway except for me pulled into the slow lane to let them pass…

Makes me wonder if we have buses like in M_A_S\*H that are set up to take lots of wounded, or if they just scrambled every ambulance on the peninsula?

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**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\
**Post date:** [July 7, 2013, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plane-crash-at-san-francisco-international/662806/20 "2013-07-07T00:54:00Z")

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the lastest press conference has 1 person unaccounted, down from the 60 previous.

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