On September 25, 1978, a commercial aircraft collided mid-air with a light plane, triggering one of the most catastrophic aviation disasters in American history. A total of 144 people lost their lives when Pacific Southwest Airlines Flight 182 struck the private Cessna Skyhawk N7711G before plunging to earth in San Diego, California.
Air traffic controllers had instructed the Boeing 727's crew to monitor the Cessna that was sharing their airspace. However, just minutes before the collision, they had lost visual contact with the smaller aircraft. First Officer Robert Fox, 38, could be heard discussing the light aircraft's whereabouts with 42-year-old Captain James McFeron. "Yeah... I don't see him now," Fox stated, before asking: "Are we clear of that Cessna?" Flight Engineer Martin Wahne replied "Supposed to be." What sounded like chuckling is then heard before Captain McFeron said: "I saw him at one o'clock, he's probably behind us now."
Tragically, the light aircraft was positioned directly beneath them. Moments later, the 727 was struck and McFeron asked: "What have we got here?", to which Fox responded in a state of alarm: "We're hit man, we are hit." The chilling cockpit recording captured the final exchanges between the captain and his crew on what had been a gloriously clear day that appeared ideal for flying. Upon realising they had been struck, McFeron then informed air traffic control: "Tower, we're going down, this is PSA." He then said: "This is it baby!" before urging his passengers to "brace yourself". An unidentified voice in the cockpit then delivers a heartbreaking message to their mum moments before the plane crashed: "Ma, I love you".
The tragedy claimed the lives of 144 people, including seven crew members, 30 additional employees, the two Cessna occupants and seven people on the ground, including five women and two children. At the time, it stood as the deadliest commercial aviation disaster in American history, a record that was surpassed eight months later when American Airlines Flight 191 came down in Chicago on May 25, 1979, killing 273 people.
