ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 173992
Last updated: 22 January 2021
This information is added by users of ASN. Neither ASN nor the Flight Safety Foundation are responsible for the completeness or correctness of this information.
If you feel this information is incomplete or incorrect, you can submit corrected information.
| Date: | 03-FEB-1959 |
| Time: | 01:00 |
| Type: |  Beechcraft 35 Bonanza |
| Owner/operator: | Dwyer Flying Service, Inc |
| Registration: | N3794N |
| C/n / msn: | 1019 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 4 / Occupants: 4 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Written off (damaged beyond repair) |
| Location: | Clear Lake, IA -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Initial climb |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | KMCW |
| KFAR |
The accident occurred about 5 miles northwest of Mason City Municipal Airport, at 0100 on 03 February 1959. Reports indicate the aircraft took off normally and reached a height of 800 feet. All occupants were killed and the aircraft was completely destroyed. The probable cause was ruled as the pilot's unwise (though not illegal) decision to fly into black-out conditions without an instrument rating. Contributing factors include weather briefings from ATC that had "serious deficiencies" and pilot unfamiliarity with a specific aircraft instrument. The accident is remembered for the deaths of American musicians Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, and J. P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson.
Sources:
CAB Report: http://web.archive.org/web/20090226025843/http://www.ntsb.gov/Publictn/1959/CAB_2-3-1959.pdf
https://www.fiftiesweb.com/music/crash-report/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Day_the_Music_Died
Media:
If Buddy Holly were alive today, he'd be 82. Instead he died in 1959 — sixty years ago today — "the day the music died."
— Jeremy Vine (@theJeremyVine) February 3, 2019
The Big Bopper, Ritchie Valens and the pilot also died. They were heading for Fargo. Holly hired the plane after heating problems developed on his tour bus. pic.twitter.com/7i7TLwRJ1w
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 20-Feb-2015 05:14 | oselp | Added |
| 12-Apr-2016 15:35 | Anon. | Updated [Date] |
| 25-Apr-2016 18:45 | TB | Updated [Aircraft type, Registration, Other fatalities, Location] |
| 24-Oct-2016 04:13 | Dcs002 | Updated [Cn, Source, Narrative] |
| 03-Feb-2019 14:37 | Aerossurance | Updated [Embed code] |
| 04-Jan-2020 20:58 | James Dow | Updated [Embed code] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description