We Remember USAir Flight 427

On Sept. 8, 1994, USAir Flight 427, a Boeing 737-3B7, crashed near Aliquippa, Pa., while on approach to Pittsburgh International Airport. All 132 people on board were killed, including pilots CA Peter Germano and FO Charles B. “Chuck” Emmett III; flight attendants Stanley Canty, April Slater, and Sarah Slocum-Hamley; and 127 passengers.

After investigating the accident for more than four and a half years, the National Transportation Safety Board released its final report on March 24, 1999, citing mechanical failure as the probable cause. Specifically, the NTSB reported that the accident was due to “a loss of control of the airplane resulting from the movement of the rudder surface to its blowdown limit. The rudder surface most likely deflected in a direction opposite to that commanded by the pilots as a result of a jam of the main rudder power control unit servo valve secondary slide to the servo valve housing offset from its neutral position and overtravel of the primary slide.”

Please join APA in honoring and remembering the colleagues and passengers who died in this tragic accident. As professional pilots, safety will forever remain our highest priority.