Bellanca crash in 1957

J

jmhud6179

New member
My name is John Michael Hudson, and I live in Overland Park, KS. I'm writing to see if you can direct me to a source of information relating to my father's airplane crash which occurred about 7:00 PM on June 12, 1957. He and 3 other business associates were returning home to Harrison, Arkansas from a business trip to Texas when the company plane - a "4-place Bellanca" - crashed about 2 1/4 miles S.E. of Broken Bow, OK. I was 5 years old at the time, and now I'm 51. I've often wondered what the exact details were, and now that I'm growing older, I would like to find out more about the crash. My father's mother and father have been dead for many years. And my mother and brother are now deceased, and the information sources are quickly disappearing. Is there any way you can help direct me to a source of information about the accident? The only sources I have are from some newspaper articles, and those accounts are sketchy as to the model of plane, etc.

My father's name was William "Bill" E. Hudson. He was 34 when he died. I believe the plane got into some turbulent weather, and there were reports that 2 or 3 parts from the tail section came off right before the crash.


Thank you in advance for your consideration.


John M. Hudson

(913) 338-5572 - Home
(913) 226-5910 - Mobile
 
hey john!
i checked the ntsb accident database web site and found that accidents prior to 1962 are not online. perhaps if you contacted them with all the pertinent info including the "N" number of the aircraft they might be able to furnish you with some sort of report. contact info is available at: http://www.ntsb.gov
i hope you are able to bring some closure to the loss of your dad. we are all diminished by the loss of one of our own. the healing process is sometimes complete if we are able to know the whys and the wherefores. bless you and good luck.
blue skies,
vic steelhammer & N522A
 
Vic,

Thank you VERY much for your response. One other question regarding the airplane crash. I don't know that I can come up with the "N" number. How many 4-place Bellanca's, say less than 10 years old would there have been in 1957? I think the plane was somewhat new at that time. If there were only 3 models, it would help me narrow this down. I've looked at the pictures and it seems like the Cruisair looks familiar, but I'm not sure. Thanks again!!

John M. Hudson
 
Dear John:

NTSB records online don't go back far enough. I inquired AOPA and this is the response:

Dear Robert,
Thank you for contacting ASF. Unfortunately, we only maintain accident records dating back to 1982. I believe that any records prior to 1962 can be obtained from the NTSB by written request. More information can be found at
http://www.ntsb.gov/info/sources.htm.

Sincerely,
Kristen M. Hummel
Manager, General Aviation Safety Database
AOPA Air Safety Foundation
301-695-2171


jmhud6179 said:
My name is John Michael Hudson, and I live in Overland Park, KS. I'm writing to see if you can direct me to a source of information relating to my father's airplane crash which occurred about 7:00 PM on June 12, 1957...
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Thank you Robert. Do you have any idea how I might be able to identify the "N" number associated with that particular 4-place Bellanca in 1957? I don't know of any way of determining what that number would be. Thank you!!

By the way, this webpage and forum are very impressive. It's obvious that a great deal of detail went in to making this sophisticated but easy to navigate and use.
 
John:

You won't need it. Just give them the info you sent me and they should be able to find it.

Thank you for the kind words; great to know it's appreciated.

Regards,
 
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