How long were they stuck in the woods after the plane crash? Consequences of Flying Drunk So what happens when a pilot is arrested for flying under the influence? The flight, eventually bound for Seattle, crashed off the California coast on Jan. 31, 2000. You want to try it or not?, Keying the public address system, Captain Thompson announced, Folks, we have had a flight control problem up front here; were working it Uh, thats Los Angeles off to the right there, thats where were intending to go. Web3.3M views 1 year ago Air Alaska Flight 261 dives into the ocean shortly after takeoff, killing the 88 passengers and crew on board. The lead mechanic that day was John Liotine, a rare Alaska Airlines employee who still took safety seriously. Different speeds and phases of flight require the stabilizer to apply varying amounts of downforce on the tail in order to keep the plane level, and further adjustments must be made to ensure that the pilots dont have to continuously pull up or push down using the elevators in order to climb or descend. In September of 1997, maintenance workers in Oakland performed the aforementioned test on N963AS and found a wear depth of exactly one millimeter. Even though the pilots fought for control for a short period, an MD-80 will not 4:39 PM EST, Thu February 8, 2018. The US aviation industry has nevertheless managed to go a long time without another major crash, but as for whether something like Alaska 261 could happen again well, never say never. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Jean Gandesbery, 66, Davis, Calif.An adjunct instructor of writing at the University of San Franciscos Sacramento campus, Ms. Gandesbery just had her childhood memoirs published by Minerva Press in a novel, Seven Mile Lake. She was married to Robert Gandesbery. Said the friend: Monte will always be an inspiration to stop myself from jumping in the rat race, to take the moment, to take it all in.. According to the plea agreement, both breathalyzer tests performed on Arnston were well above the federal limit of 0.04 percent for pilots, indicating blood alcohol concentrations of 0.134 and 0.142 percent, over three times the legal limit. The pilots decided that Los Angeles looked better. For Linious Mac McGee, 1932 marked the beginning of a new way of life, and steady work. I think if its controllable, we ought to just try and land it, said Tansky. Less than one second later, Alaska Airlines flight 261 slammed into the Pacific Ocean, obliterating the aircraft and instantly killing all 88 people on board. James Jay Luque, 40, San FranciscoMr. Indeed, all seemed normal as flight 261 climbed out from Puerto Vallarta, heading for its cruising altitude of 31,000 feet. A former Alaska Airlines pilot plans to plead guilty in California to flying with a blood-alcohol level three times the legal limit for pilots. She was a food-and-beverage agent for Alaskas sister airline, Horizon Air. It really wants to pitch down., Alaska two six one, said the controller, Say your condition?, Two six one, we are at 24,000 feet, kinda stabilized, said Thompson. An avid outdoorsman and Spanish language graduate of Western Washington University, he was traveling with his parents and with long-time friends, Michael Bernard, Ryan and Abigail Busche, Russel Ing and Deborah Penna. She was also accompanied by her longtime companion, Charles Russell. The main character Whip Whitaker (played by Denzel Washington) has been through a divorce and the estrangement from his son. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. Peggy Stockley, 62, SeattleAn animal lover and community activist, Mrs. Stockley was traveling with her husband, Tom Stockley. A cacophony of banging and roaring filled the cockpit. Busche was traveling with his wife, Abigail Busche, whom he met when they were students at Western Washington. A technician for Alaska Airlines performed two breathalyzer tests that showed Arntson had a blood alcohol concentration of 0.134% and 0.142% well above the federal limit of 0.04% for pilots. The Safety Board found that this unsafe inspection interval was only approved indirectly by the FAA. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) also revoked his pilots license. Thats affirm, said Thompson. Nina Voronoff, 32, San FranciscoA nurse at the pediatric cancer unit at the University of California, San Francisco, she had gone to Mexico for a yoga retreat and was met by her boyfriend, Larry Baldridge Jr. Renato Bermudez, 39, San FranciscoMr. ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) The pilot of an airplane in a fatal Alaska crash had six times the legal limit of alcohol in his system for flying, according to federal investigators. He opened the mic for the public address system but never managed to get any words out. Key safety-related positions within the airlines management structure went unfilled. The eight-year-old McDonnell Douglas MD-83, registered as N963AS, outwardly seemed to be in good shape. Okay, right rudder, right rudder, said Thompson. The 2 pilots, 3 cabin crew members, and 83 passengers on board were killed, and the airplane Nevertheless, investigators praised the pilots for their heroic last-ditch efforts to save their aircraft, even attempting to fly upside down when they found they could not level the plane. Numerous people saw the plane flying parallel to a mountain ridge before it turned and descended. Most importantly, the National Transportation Safety Board excoriated Alaska Airlines decision to increase the intervals between jackscrew lubrications and wear inspections, and the FAAs approval of these intervals, which it considered to be a direct cause of the accident. The revelations were in a report by the National Transportation Safety Board, the Anchorage Daily News reported . You got it?. When he measured the wear on the jackscrew nut and found it to be exactly one millimeter (0.040in), he concluded that the nut had reached the end of its service life and issued a work card ordering its replacement. Were going to LAX, Thompson told the dispatcher. But in the end, Alaska all but got away with it. Three seconds later, the fairing failed, and the stabilizer swung unimpeded on its hinge to a position of at least 14 degrees aircraft nose down. Yeah, no, said Thompson. The FAAs special inspection report noted that the position of Director of Maintenance had gone unfilled since 1998; the Director of Operations position was empty; the Director of Safety was also the Director of Quality Control and the Director of Training and didnt report to high-level management; there was no maintenance training curriculum; on-the-job training was completely unstructured; the procedures in use didnt match those outlined in the maintenance manual; planes had been released from C-checks with paperwork incomplete; perishable and consumable materials had expired; shift turnover paperwork was missing, unsigned, or incomplete; work cards were not filled out properly; and more the list went on and on. The first flight was from San Diego International Airport to Portland, Oregon. Sheri Christensen, 25, Federal WayShe grew up in Yakima, one of four children of Bob and Pat Stookey, and moved to the Seattle area with her husband, Jeff Christensen. She had gone with her family to Mexico to celebrate the birthday of her mother, Jean Permison. That plane just started to do a big, huge plunge, said one pilot. Morris Thompson, 62, Fairbanks, AlaskaAn advocate for Alaska natives, he was celebrating his retirement after 12 years as president of Doyon, Ltd., a multimillion dollar Alaska Native regional corporation. Despite Alaska Airlines numerous regulatory violations, the investigation ended in 2003 without any charges being filed. The Gulf of California stretched out below them, bright and blue. An accountant with MPL2.com in Bellevue, he was traveling with the Ryan family and several friends. She was traveling with her former college classmates. Lorna Thorgrimson, 52, PoulsboTraveling with her husband, Robert Thorgrimson, Mrs. Thorgrimson was also accompanied by her close friends, Patty and Bob Williams. Gabriela Chavez, 33, Puerto Vallarta, MexicoA homemaker, wife and mother of one, Ms. Chavez was flying to San Francisco to visit her sister. Push and roll! Thompson shouted, trying to coordinate with Tansky to roll the plane right-side-up. Mechanical stops attached to the jackscrew prevent the stabilizer from moving farther than 2.5 degrees upward or 12.5 degrees downward. It stars Denzel Washington as William Whip Whitaker Sr., an alcoholic airline pilot who miraculously crash-lands his plane after a mechanical failure, saving nearly everyone on board. By nightfall, working with the help of flood lights from squid fishing boats, recovery workers managed to find just seven bodies. They had just moved to the Bay Area from Los Angeles, where they had raised three sons. Bradford Patrick Ryan, 33, RedmondThe trip to Mexico with his parents, Terry and Barbara Ryan, was meant in part to celebrate his graduation from Washington State University with a civil-engineering degree. A former Alaska Airlines captain faces jail time for piloting a plane carrying passengers while under the influence of alcohol, over four years after the incident took place. But they would tend to be more short-lived or there are easy ways for pilots to counteract such failures, he said. He was traveling with William Bryant, his best friend. Salvage vessels had to be brought in to raise the rest of the plane from the bottom of the Pacific Ocean. According to the criminal complaint filed Tuesday, Arntson was the pilot of two Alaska Airlines flights on in June 2014, in which he was under the influence. The anger he must have felt is difficult to fathom. or redistributed. I dont think we should, if it can fly, its like . He had planned to spend his retirement trading stocks on the Internet and taking leisurely afternoon walks with his wife of 30 years, Bonnie. Thelma Thompson, 56, Fairbanks, AlaskaMrs. He came to America from Fiji when he was 17 months old. Technical logs fell through the cracks; critical forms were left incomplete; paperwork was outright falsified to show work done when it was not. James Ryan, 30, PortlandA flight attendant for Alaska, James Ryan turned 30 the day the family left for Mexico. That was the last time anyone ever measured the wear on the jackscrew nut on N963AS. Malcolm Branson, 39, Seward, AlaskaAn oiler for the Alaska Marine Highway ferry system, Mr. Branson was vacationing with his fiancee, Janice Stokes. Did it happen went in reverse? Tansky asked. Colleen Whorley, 34, SeattleAn art director at Microsoft, Ms. Whorley honed her skills in photography. So theyre trying to put pressure on you, said Tansky. First, pressurized grease was to be injected into a special tube on the nut until it filled all the thread gaps between the nut and the jackscrew and started to bulge out the top. Charles Weimer, 31, and three others died in the Aug. 4 crash near Girdwood, a ski town in the municipality of Anchorage. In September 2000, he filed a $20 million libel lawsuit against Alaska Airlines, arguing that he had been right all along and that Alaska had maliciously harmed his reputation. WebLoosely inspired by the plane crash of Alaska Airlines Flight 261, the film stars Denzel Washington as William "Whip" Whitaker Sr., an alcoholic airline pilot who miraculously crash-lands his plane after a mechanical failure, saving nearly everyone on board. Following the incident, Arntson retired from Alaska Airlines. If they had not attempted to move the stabilizer immediately before the first dive, their chances of safely reaching an airport before the jackscrew failed entirely would have been much greater. The pilot of Flight 261, Capt. Russel Ing, 28, SeattleA visual-arts graduate who worked in graphic design for Kinkos in Woodinville, Mr. Ing won awards for his photography. WebAlaska Airlines Flight 261 was a flight from Licenciado Gustavo Daz Ordaz International Airport in Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico, to SeattleTacoma International Airport in Seattle, Washington, United States, with an intermediate stop at San Francisco International Airport in San Francisco, California. The result was a chronic problem of Alaska Airlines MD-80s with poorly greased jackscrews. She is also survived by a son, Richard, in the Bay Area. It began life as a regional airline in Alaska, and by the time deregulation arrived in the late 1970s, it only had one destination in the lower 48 states. She played fast-pitch softball in high school and soccer at Bellevue Community College. Charles Russell, 65, Scotts Valley, Calif.Mr. But as the airline began cutting costs over the following decade, one of the areas that got put on the chopping block was maintenance. The rec room at the Karlsson home featured a jukebox, a pinball machine and a bumper-pool table. Capt. Within the next several minutes the pilots expected to pass abeam Los Angeles off the coast, and they were strongly considering a diversion to LAX, given that none of their troubleshooting had fixed the problem. I think its at the stop, full stop, said Thompson. Captain Thompson was not happy with this reasoning. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. The 2 pilots, 3 cabin crew members, and 83 passengers on board were killed, and the airplane All rights reserved. 2. Glenn Hatleberg, 65, Eugene, Ore.The husband of Barbara Hatleberg, retired father of three grown children and grandfather of two small girls, Mr. Hatleberg was beloved at his Lutheran church in Eugene, where he served as an usher during services. Fun stories about food, relationships, the great outdoors and more. Monte Donaldson, 31, SeattleA freelance landscaper, his passion was music and filmmaking. On every level, it was a tragedy that did not need to happen and to this day, it serves as a grim example of the depths to which an airline may fall when oversight becomes too thinly stretched. But after Liotine left for the night, the next shift and the shift supervisors decided to run the test again before taking his measurement at face value. Blake Clemetson, 7, SeattleBlake was Corianders younger sister, the daughter of Dr. David Clemetson and his first wife, Dr. Claire Barnett. Possibly. Avinesh Amit Deo, 23, BurienThe Highline High School alumnus had just graduated from ITT Technical Institute and was to have started his career at the time of the crash. And so began a slash-and-burn cost-cutting campaign a campaign that culminated in a terrible black mark which will forever hang over the company, a tragedy so horrible and so preventable that it would call the safety of the entire industry into question. The only layer of protection against a catastrophe was therefore the assumption that poorly trained, low-paid maintenance workers would apply enough grease. She grew up in Sacramento. (Alaska specifically did this every 30 months, or 9,550 flight hours.) Erickson was a student pilot. According to the official maintenance manual, greasing the jackscrew involved three main steps. During the course of the investigation and in its final report, the NTSB issued a large number of recommendations, including that the lubrication procedure for the MD-80 series jackscrew be revised; that a more accurate method of measuring wear on the jackscrew be developed; that maintenance technicians be specifically taught how to grease and inspect jackscrews; that the FAA not approve lubrication interval extensions without the airline providing supporting data; that all airlines be surveyed to ensure compliance with jackscrew lubrication procedures; that a bulletin be issued instructing pilots not to troubleshoot inoperative flight controls; that maintenance personnel and dispatchers be trained not to suggest continuation of a flight that is experiencing a major malfunction; that the jackscrew be made easier for maintenance workers to access; that an inspector be required to sign off on every lubrication of the jackscrew; that all maintenance intervals for critical components be re-examined based on data analysis to ensure that they are not too long; that the application process for maintenance interval changes be reformed; that MD-80 series jackscrew inspections be made on a tighter schedule; that some failsafe mechanism be incorporated to ensure the redundancy of the MD-80 jackscrew; and that the FAA ensure future stabilizer designs cant have a single point of failure. School counselors said she and her friend, Rachel Janosik, were funny, enjoyable, mature young women. Mr. Williams wore a ring identifying him as a Mason; the ring was found off the California coast and saved as a gift for his daughter, Tracy Knizek. Meghann Hall, 19, EnumclawA graduate of Enumclaw High School, she had considered a career in sports medicine or coaching. The crew scrambled to react to the massive upset. After Alaska Airlines received the test results it removed Arntson from all safety-sensitive duties. WebAlaska Airlines Flight 261 was a flight from Licenciado Gustavo Daz Ordaz International Airport in Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico, to SeattleTacoma International Airport in Seattle, Washington, United States, with an intermediate stop at San Francisco International Airport in San Francisco, California. He was vacationing with his daughter, Jacquelyn Choate. On June 20, 2014, Arnston piloted two flights from San Diego, Calif., to Portland, Ore., with 160 passengers on board; and then returned to San Diego piloting a second Alaska Airlines flight carrying 80 passengers. It disappeared from view and witnesses saw a plume of black smoke. A case worker at the Northwest AIDS Foundation, he joined with his partner in a commitment ceremony two years ago at First Baptist Church in Seattle with one of their dogs as the ring-bearer. Grace Pearson, 23 months, SeattleLittle Grace Pearson was traveling with her parents, Sarah and Rodney Pearson, and her sister, Rachel. Thankfully, Mr. Arntson was never involved in an accident, but his conduct could have resulted in tragic consequences.. CNN A former Alaska Airlines pilot plans to plead guilty in California to flying with a blood-alcohol level three times the legal limit for pilots. Still descending at high speed, flight 261s engines proved unable to keep combustion going in such an unusual attitude and started to stall with a series of loud bangs. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. WebAlaska Flight 261 Pilots Awarded ALPA Gold Medal Air Line Pilot, March 2001, p. 22 By Chris Dodd, Staff Writer Two Alaska Airlines pilots who fought until their last moments to regain control of their MD-80 despite an inoperative horizontal stabilizer have been honored with ALPAs Gold Medal for Heroism in a special ceremony in Seattle. Badly shaken witnesses reported the crash to air traffic control within seconds. Finally, the Safety Board also felt that there were lessons to be learned from the actions of the pilots. If done correctly, the process took about four hours. He was survived by his wife, Gabriel, two daughters and two sons. Alaska two sixty one, say again sir, said the controller. He was a favored friend in the neighborhood where he lived with his wife, Marilyn. Note: this accident was previously featured in episode 2 of the plane crash series on September 16th, 2017, prior to the series arrival on Medium. The NTSB report did not identify a probable cause of the crash. 13 months later. A Newport Beach airline pilot has been arrested and charged with piloting an Alaska Airlines jet full of passengers while under the influence of alcohol, authorities said Thursday. Copyright 2023 Childrensbookadayalmanac.com. Flight 261 immediately plunged into a near-vertical dive, hurtling downward toward the Pacific Ocean. Lives would have been saved if they had. The whole episode must have left him a bitter man although unlike most whistleblowers, he did manage to restart his career in the industry. Meanwhile in the cockpit, the pilots tried to figure out what had happened. A member of Ski Patrol, he was known to friends as Pat. The effect was immediate and catastrophic, as his inputs ripped out whatever threads remained on the jackscrew nut. Ah, here we go, said Captain Thompson, uttering the last words captured on the cockpit voice recorder. Ryan Sparks, 20, EnumclawA graduate of Enumclaw High School, Mr. Sparks was traveling with his girlfriend, Meghann Hall, and her friend Rachel Janosik. The pilots pulled back as hard as they could on their control columns and deployed the flaps to try and slow down, but their efforts were utterly hopeless. At least upside down, were flying!. LOS ANGELES -- Federal authorities have arrested a former Alaska Airlines captain on federal charges of piloting a plane while intoxicated. Should you poke holes in potatoes before boiling? What temperature outside is unsafe for babies? And then, as the plane passed through 23,400 feet, a warning light flicked on in the cockpit: AUTOPILOT TRIM, it said. He was remembered for being a friendly neighbor and loving owner of two golden retrievers, Casey and Emma, and he loved to play the clarinet. WebOn Flight 261, the nut portion of the jackscrew (located on the horizontal stabilizer) screwed itself off the jackscew. For comparison, according to the Department of Motor Vehicles, it is illegal for adults to operate motor vehicles with blood alcohol concentrations of 0.08 percent or higher in the state of California; that percentage drops to 0.04 percent for those operating commercial vehicles. Harry Stasinos, 54, BrierMr. This article is written without reference to and supersedes the original. How should I dress my baby in a 70 degree room at night? He had flown for four decades and worked for Alaska Airlines since 1985. / CBS News. Carolyn Clemetson, 31, SeattleMrs. On the basis of these measurements, the shift supervisors overruled Liotines earlier work order and cleared the plane to fly. The couple was considering starting their own insurance agency. A JetBlue pilot was removed from the cockpit of a flight and taken into custody in the US after having a blood-alcohol level more than four times the federal limit for pilots. As far as the pilots were concerned, the electric motors had probably seized and they could fly on to San Francisco without trimming the stabilizer. Quality control fell by the wayside as workers performed tasks they didnt understand, while under pressure to get planes back in service as quickly as possible. Many workers who greased jackscrews didnt apply additional grease to the screw itself after greasing the nut. Ronald Lake, 59, Corte Madera, Calif.He was the husband of Joyce Lake, father of three adult sons and an avid traveler. The base confirmed that there werent any known problems with the stabilizer, and the discussion then turned to how to handle the failure. A former Alaska Airlines captain faces jail time for piloting a plane carrying passengers while under the influence of alcohol, over four years after the incident took place. Naomi Laigo, 53, Fairfield, Calif.A devoted mother of three sons who was a nurse at a clinic in San Leandro, Calif., she grew roses in her spare time. And hes just hit the water, said one pilot. Avinesh Prasad, 19, BurienA beloved employee of HomeGrocer.com and a star on the company soccer team, he moved from Fiji with his family when he was 18. When the jackscrew was hauled to the surface, investigators could not find any trace of grease on it, except for some old, dried out leftovers outside the normal working area of the screw. Paul Pulanco, 40, SeattleLike his partner, Craig Pulanco, Paul Pulanco was an animal lover and avid gardener. It was really tough there for a while.. Related: Has my pilot had too much to drink? The basic design of the stabilizer is relatively simple. Hes ah, down.. On the 31st of January 2000, an Alaska Airlines MD-83 bound for San Francisco suddenly plunged from the sky off the coast of California, spiraling downward until it slammed into the Pacific Ocean. Then in 1999 Alaska Airlines retaliated against John Liotine, putting him on indefinite leave from his job and circulating false rumors about him; the airline sought to portray him in the media as a disgruntled employee who wanted to get back at supervisors who passed him over for promotion. Video Alaska Airlines Pilot Accused of Flying Drunk - ABC News Jimmy Carter Kellie Pickler's husband dies Georgia shooting Escaped NYC zoo owl Tesla union launch Alaska Airlines Pilot Accused of Flying Drunk Authorities say 60-year-old David Hans Arnston flew drunk twice in one day. Were gonna stay up here and burn a little more gas, get all our ducks in a row, and then well be talking to LAX when we start down to go in there. The plan was to stay on course a little longer, burning fuel to reduce their landing weight and test out the planes handling capabilities, before turning around and heading into Los Angeles. Both were Alaskan natives. Video Alaska Airlines Pilot Accused of Flying Drunk - ABC News Jimmy Carter Kellie Pickler's husband dies Georgia shooting Escaped NYC zoo owl Tesla union launch Alaska Airlines Pilot Accused of Flying Drunk Authorities say 60-year-old David Hans Arnston flew drunk twice in one day. The tangled remnants of the threads from the nut remained wrapped around the jackscrew, wordlessly telling the story of how the stabilizer failed. The basis for the approval of the design under this rule was the fact that the nut has two independent threads that did not link with one another, such that if one thread failed, the other could still hold the jackscrew in place. The following is a list of some of the victims of Alaska Airlines Flight 261. Mr. Deo immigrated from Fiji with his family when he was young. The evidence indicates that he had flown with an alcohol level more than three times the legal limit, US Attorney Nicola T. Hanna said in a statement. Planes inverted sir, a nearby pilot told the controller. All rights reserved. Four minutes later, a warning light illuminated to inform the crew that the autopilot was unable to move the stabilizer. Allen Friedmann, 48, Round Lake Beach, Ill.A marathon runner remembered for being a good neighbor in his Chicago suburb, Mr. Friedmann is survived by his wife, a daughter, 16, and a son, 5. When daughter Grace was born two years ago, he started saving Sundays for family. Even though the pilots fought for control for a short period, an MD-80 will not The Piper PA-22-150 left Girdwood at about 4:15 p.m. and crashed 15 minutes later in steep terrain on Goat Mountain, investigators said. He retired in 1989, but continued his column, which began in 1973. Over time, this minute difference will cause the jackscrew to wear away the threads on the nut if metal-on-metal contact is allowed to occur. As investigators recovered more and more of the plane from the ocean floor, a troubling picture of the sequence of events began to emerge. At that moment they effectively were dead. The revelations were in a report by the National Transportation Safety Board, the Anchorage Daily News reported . Arnston was then removed from all safety-sensitive duties by Alaska Airlines, and he retired from employment with the carrier after a 20-plus year career as a captain, KTLA reports. Alaska Airlines flight AS261 crashed on January 31, 2000, about 1621 Pacific standard time, Alaska Airlines, Inc., flight AS261, a McDonnell Douglas MD-83, N963AS : it crashed into the Pacific Ocean about 2.7 miles north of Anacapa Island, California.. If they lost control again, he didnt want to endanger people on the ground. A former Alaska Airlines pilot will spend a year behind bars for flying intoxicated at three times over the legal limit in June 2014. But the measurements were imprecise and repeated tests often produced different results allowing a certain amount of ambiguity as to whether the value was over or under the limit. He was coming home with his wife, Carol. Possibly. Over the next couple minutes, the pilots found the plane to be reasonably stable at lower speeds. What he liked best in life was family, said his longtime medical assistant. Web19K views 2 years ago. Janice Stokes, 48, Ketchikan, AlaskaMs. Even though the pilots fought for control for a short period, an MD-80 will not (To avoid confusion, from here on out nose up and nose down, as they relate to the pitch of the airplane, will be used to describe the stabilizers direction of motion. Less than one second later, Alaska Airlines flight 261 slammed into the Pacific Ocean, obliterating the aircraft and instantly killing all 88 people on board. FAA employees charged with overseeing safety compliance at Alaska before the crash complained that they did not have sufficient staff to closely track its operations, which doubtlessly contributed to the airlines ability to keep woefully deficient maintenance practices under the radar of the federal government. Were slowing here, and were gonna do a little troubleshooting, can you give me a block altitude between twenty and twenty five?. All Rights Reserved. Lets do that. Thompson attempted to move the stabilizer trim using either the electrical switches, the trim handles, or both, in an effort to clear the jam. Alaska Airlines flight AS261 crashed on January 31, 2000, about 1621 Pacific standard time, Alaska Airlines, Inc., flight AS261, a McDonnell Douglas MD-83, N963AS : it crashed into the Pacific Ocean about 2.7 miles north of Anacapa Island, California.. The state medical examiner found the cause of Weimers death was injuries from the crash but also that alcohol intoxication may be viewed as a factor contributing to death., Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. Less than one second later, Alaska Airlines flight 261 slammed into the Pacific Ocean, obliterating the aircraft and instantly killing all 88 people on board. Rachel Janosik, 20, BellevueA graduate of Enumclaw High School, she was traveling with former schoolmates Ryan Sparks and Meghann Hall. The last minutes of those on board the doomed MD-83 would have been sheer hell, as the plane went inverted, corkscrewed, pirouetted, and spun like a top during its final dive. Keep in mind that the pitch of the stabilizer itself is actually inverse to the pitch of the airplane.).