Page:CAB Accident Report, 1942 TWA DC-3 and Army C-53 mid-air collision.pdf/5

- 3 - City, Missouri. After consulting the Army meteorologist, he filed a flight plan to proceed contact at 2000 feet to Columbia, and from there, he planned to continue on instruments, via Kansas City, in the overcast at 4000 feet.

History of the C-35 Flight

Army C-53 took off from Stout Field at about 9:05 a.m., and, with Lieutenant Burrell at the controls, proceeded at an altitude of approximately 2000 feet to Torre Haute, arriving over Torre Haute at 9:26 a.m., one minute later than the estimated arrival tine. The flight crossed over Effingham at 9:48 a.m. and over St. Louis at 10:22 a.m., exactly on estimated flight schedule. Prior to arriving over St. Louis, several unsuccessful attempts had been made to contact St. Louis for clearance to Kansas City, and, after passing St. Louis, the St. Louis Station called Army C-53 to relay a clearance from Kansas City Air Traffic Control, as follows: "For Army 20116, Item one, cleared from twenty-five miles east of Columbia over Columbia and Kansas City to the Wichita Range Station. Item two, to cruise two thousand to Columbia, four thousand to Wichita. Item six, to maintain four thousand until further advised. Item sixteen, no delay expected. Special Instructions: Contact Columbia and Kansas City Radio when passing, and contact Wichita radio for further clearance."

About 4 minutes before arrival over Columbia, C-53 contacted the Columbia Station advising that Kansas City clearance had been received O.K. and that they would be over Columbia in about 3 minutes. Columbia then confirmed the Kansas City clearance C-53 had received, and stated that they (Columbia) would advise Kansas City of the arrival of C-53 over Columbia at 11:01 a.m. and of the flight's estimated arrival time over Kansas City, 11:42 a.m. The Kansas City A.T.C. added two minutes to this estimated arrival time because of adverse wind and estimated it at 11:44 a.m.

At Columbia, Captain Penn took over the controls, climbed to about 4000