Low, slow, heavy and on one engine…

摘要

In April 1979 I was at home when I received a call to replace the first officer on a trip to fly canned goods and supplies to the island of St Vincent after the La Soufriere volcano had erupted. I was a 22-year-old first officer flying for a Caribbean cargo airline based in St Croix, which operated a small fleet of Curtiss C-46s Commandos. The captain on this flight was a cantankerous British-born expat, who also happened to be our Director of Operations. Loaded to our maximum take-off weight of 48,000lbs - with full fuel and cargo - we trundled off the ramp and after the normal run up and magneto check, we lined up for take-off. The captain advanced the throttles on our pair of 2,000hp Pratt & Whitney R-2800 radials and we began our take-off roll, raising the tail, and passing V2 speed with normal indications. Suddenly, just after breaking ground, the right engine failed without warning and as I was later told, began leaving a trail of thick smoke.