Sabena Flight 548
Encyclopedia
Sabena Flight 548, registration OO-SJB, was a Boeing 707
aircraft that crashed en route to Brussels
, Belgium
, from New York City
on February 15, 1961, killing the entire United States Figure Skating team on its way to the 1961 World Championships
in Prague
, Czechoslovakia
.
The flight, which originated at Idlewild International Airport
(New York International Airport, later renamed John F. Kennedy International Airport), crashed on approach to Brussels' Zaventem Airport
. All 72 on board were killed, as well as one person on the ground (Theo de Laet, a farmer, was struck by debris). The crash was the first fatal accident involving a Boeing 707 in regular passenger service, 28 months after it was placed into commercial use.Three 707s had crashed previously during training or test flights.
, rushed to the scene of the disaster and provided comfort to the families of the dead and injured farmers.
The exact cause of the crash was never determined beyond reasonable doubt. Investigators suspected that the aircraft may have been brought down by a failure of the stabilizer-adjusting mechanism.
All 18 athletes of the 1961 U.S. figure skating team and 16 family members, coaches, and officials were among the fatalities. The dead included, most notably, 9-time U.S. ladies' champion Maribel Vinson-Owen and her two daughters, reigning U.S. ladies' champion Laurence Owen
, reigning U.S. pairs champions Maribel Y. Owen
and her partner Dudley Richards
, reigning U.S. men's champion Bradley Lord
, U.S. men's silver medalist Gregory Kelley
, U.S. ladies' silver medalist Stephanie Westerfeld
, U.S. ladies' bronze medalist Rhode Lee Michelson
and U.S. ice dancing champions Diane Sherbloom
and Larry Pierce. The loss of the U.S. team was considered so catastrophic for the sport that the 1961 World Figure Skating Championships
were cancelled.
American President John F. Kennedy
issued a statement of condolence from the White House
. He was particularly shocked by the disaster. One of the skaters killed in the crash, Dudley Richards
, was a personal friend of President Kennedy and his brother Ted Kennedy
from summers spent at Hyannis Port, Massachusetts
.
won a bronze medal at the 1964 Winter Olympics
– becoming one of the youngest Olympic medalists in history – the United States would not be dominant again in this sport until the 1968 Winter Olympics
in Grenoble, France, where Peggy Fleming
won gold in the ladies' event and Tim Wood the silver in the men's. The crash was also indirectly responsible for bringing foreign coaches such as Carlo Fassi
and John Nicks
to the United States.
U.S. Figure Skating President F. Ritter Shumway
, in office less than two months at the time of the accident, established the USFS Memorial Fund in honor of the crash victims. The fund, which is still in existence, is used to support the training of promising young figure skaters throughout the country. Future Olympic gold medalists Peggy Fleming
and Scott Hamilton
credit the fund with being vital to their careers.
A film about the event, called RISE, was commissioned by U.S. Figure Skating to celebrate American figure skating and commemorating the 50th anniversary of the accident. RISE was filmed in 2010 and shown in theaters nationwide for one day only: February 17, 2011, with one encore performance on March 7, 2011.
The film was shown on the Versus network on October 22, 2011.
Bradley Lord
, Gregory Kelley
, Douglas Ramsay
, Laurence Rochon Owen
, Stephanie Westerfeld
and Rhode Lee Michelson
Pairs skaters
Ila Ray Hadley
/Ray Hadley, Jr.
, Laurie Jean Hickox/William Holmes Hickox and Maribel Yerxa Owen
/Dudley Shaw Richards
Ice dancers
Diane Carol Sherbloom
/Dallas "Larry" Pierce, Dona Lee Carrier
/Roger Campbell
and Patricia Dineen
/Robert Dineen
Others
Coaches (Edi Scholdan
, Maribel Vinson-Owen, Daniel "Danny" Ryan and three others) and the team manager Deane McMinn
.
Judges Harold Hartshorne
and Edward LeMaire
and referee Walter S. Powell
Boeing 707
The Boeing 707 is a four-engine narrow-body commercial passenger jet airliner developed by Boeing in the early 1950s. Its name is most commonly pronounced as "Seven Oh Seven". The first airline to operate the 707 was Pan American World Airways, inaugurating the type's first commercial flight on...
aircraft that crashed en route to Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, from New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
on February 15, 1961, killing the entire United States Figure Skating team on its way to the 1961 World Championships
World Figure Skating Championships
The World Figure Skating Championships is an annual figure skating competition sanctioned by the International Skating Union in which elite figure skaters compete for the title of World Champion...
in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
, Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
.
The flight, which originated at Idlewild International Airport
John F. Kennedy International Airport
John F. Kennedy International Airport is an international airport located in the borough of Queens in New York City, about southeast of Lower Manhattan. It is the busiest international air passenger gateway to the United States, handling more international traffic than any other airport in North...
(New York International Airport, later renamed John F. Kennedy International Airport), crashed on approach to Brussels' Zaventem Airport
Brussels Airport
Brussels Airport is an international airport northeast of Brussels, Belgium. The airport is partially in Zaventem and partially in the Diegem area of Machelen, both located in the Flemish Region of Belgium.Brussels Airport currently consists of 54 contact gates, and a total of 109 gates...
. All 72 on board were killed, as well as one person on the ground (Theo de Laet, a farmer, was struck by debris). The crash was the first fatal accident involving a Boeing 707 in regular passenger service, 28 months after it was placed into commercial use.Three 707s had crashed previously during training or test flights.
Crash
There was no indication of trouble on board the plane until it approached the Brussels airport. The pilot had to circle the airport while waiting for a small plane to clear the runway. Then, according to eyewitnesses, the plane began to climb and bank erratically and crashed suddenly in a field near the hamlet of Berg. The wreckage burst into flames. All aboard were killed instantly. A farmer working in the fields was killed by a piece of aluminum debris from the plane, and another farmer's leg was severed by flying debris. Baudouin I, King of the Belgians, and his consort, Queen FabiolaQueen Fabiola of Belgium
Queen Fabiola of Belgium is the widow of King Baudouin of Belgium. She was Queen consort of the Belgians for 33 years...
, rushed to the scene of the disaster and provided comfort to the families of the dead and injured farmers.
All 18 athletes of the 1961 U.S. figure skating team and 16 family members, coaches, and officials were among the fatalities. The dead included, most notably, 9-time U.S. ladies' champion Maribel Vinson-Owen and her two daughters, reigning U.S. ladies' champion Laurence Owen
Laurence Owen
Laurence Rochon "Laurie" Owen was a Hall of Fame American figure skater. She was the 1961 U.S. National Champion and represented the United States at the 1960 Winter Olympics, where she placed 6th. She was the daughter of Maribel Vinson and Guy Owen and the sister of Maribel Owen...
, reigning U.S. pairs champions Maribel Y. Owen
Maribel Owen
Maribel Yerxa Owen was an American pair skater. With partner Dudley Richards, she was the 1961 U.S. national champion and represented the United States at the 1960 Winter Olympics, where they placed 10th. She was the daughter of Maribel Vinson and Guy Owen and the sister of Laurence Owen...
and her partner Dudley Richards
Dudley Richards
Dudley "Dud" Shaw Richards was an American figure skater who competed in men's singles and pairs. In singles, he won the bronze medal at the 1953 United States Figure Skating Championships and finished sixth at that year's World Figure Skating Championships...
, reigning U.S. men's champion Bradley Lord
Bradley Lord
Bradley Lord was an American figure skater who competed in men's singles. He finished fourth at the 1960 United States Figure Skating Championships and then placed sixth at that year's World Figure Skating Championships after the top three U.S. skaters skipped the event...
, U.S. men's silver medalist Gregory Kelley
Gregory Kelley
Gregory Kelley was an American figure skater who competed in men's singles. He won the junior title at the United States Figure Skating Championships in 1959 and finished ninth at the 1960 World Figure Skating Championships after the top three U.S. skaters skipped the event. In 1961 he won the...
, U.S. ladies' silver medalist Stephanie Westerfeld
Stephanie Westerfeld
Stephanie "Steffi" Westerfeld was an American figure skater.She earned a place on the United States' world team for the 1961 World Figure Skating Championships after she finished second at 1961 U.S National Championships....
, U.S. ladies' bronze medalist Rhode Lee Michelson
Rhode Lee Michelson
Rhode Lee Michelson was an American figure skater. She placed third at the 1961 U.S. Championships, earning her the right to compete a month later at the World Championships. A hip injury forced Rhode to withdraw from the North American Championships in early February 1961...
and U.S. ice dancing champions Diane Sherbloom
Diane Sherbloom
Diane Carol "Dee Dee" Sherbloom was an American figure skater who competed in ice dance. Previously paired with Roger Campbell, she had no intentions of competing at the 1961 United States Figure Skating Championships until a twist of fate brought partner Larry Pierce her way...
and Larry Pierce. The loss of the U.S. team was considered so catastrophic for the sport that the 1961 World Figure Skating Championships
World Figure Skating Championships
The World Figure Skating Championships is an annual figure skating competition sanctioned by the International Skating Union in which elite figure skaters compete for the title of World Champion...
were cancelled.
American President John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
issued a statement of condolence from the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
. He was particularly shocked by the disaster. One of the skaters killed in the crash, Dudley Richards
Dudley Richards
Dudley "Dud" Shaw Richards was an American figure skater who competed in men's singles and pairs. In singles, he won the bronze medal at the 1953 United States Figure Skating Championships and finished sixth at that year's World Figure Skating Championships...
, was a personal friend of President Kennedy and his brother Ted Kennedy
Ted Kennedy
Edward Moore "Ted" Kennedy was a United States Senator from Massachusetts and a member of the Democratic Party. Serving almost 47 years, he was the second most senior member of the Senate when he died and is the fourth-longest-serving senator in United States history...
from summers spent at Hyannis Port, Massachusetts
Hyannis, Massachusetts
Hyannis is the largest of seven villages in Barnstable, Massachusetts. Also it is the commercial and transportation hub of Cape Cod and was designated an urban area as a result of the 1990 census. Because of this, many refer to Hyannis as the "Capital of the Cape"...
.
Aftermath
The World Championship event was cancelled. Because the casualties included many of the top American coaches as well as the athletes, the crash was a devastating blow to the U.S. Figure Skating program, which had enjoyed a position of dominance in the sport in the 1950s. Although Scott AllenScott Allen
Scott Ethan Allen is an American figure skater. He is the 1964 Olympic bronze medalist, the 1965 World silver medalist, and the 1964 and 1966 U.S. national champion....
won a bronze medal at the 1964 Winter Olympics
1964 Winter Olympics
The 1964 Winter Olympics, officially known as the IX Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in Innsbruck, Austria, from January 29 to February 9, 1964...
– becoming one of the youngest Olympic medalists in history – the United States would not be dominant again in this sport until the 1968 Winter Olympics
1968 Winter Olympics
The 1968 Winter Olympics, officially known as the X Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1968 in Grenoble, France and opened on 6 February. Thirty-seven countries participated...
in Grenoble, France, where Peggy Fleming
Peggy Fleming
Peggy Gail Fleming is an American figure skater. She is the 1968 Olympic Champion in Ladies' singles and a three-time World Champion...
won gold in the ladies' event and Tim Wood the silver in the men's. The crash was also indirectly responsible for bringing foreign coaches such as Carlo Fassi
Carlo Fassi
Carlo Fassi was a well-known Italian figure skater and international coach whose students included several World and Olympic champions.-Career:Fassi was born in Milan....
and John Nicks
John Nicks
John Allen Wisden Nicks is a British figure skating coach and former pair skater. His pairs partner was his sister Jennifer Nicks, and together they were the 1953 World Champions...
to the United States.
U.S. Figure Skating President F. Ritter Shumway
F. Ritter Shumway
Frank Ritter Shumway was a major figure in figure skating in the United States.From 1951 to 1965, he was president of the Ritter Company, a dental chair manufacturer founded by his grandfather Frank Ritter, and later led the company's successor, the Sybron Corporation...
, in office less than two months at the time of the accident, established the USFS Memorial Fund in honor of the crash victims. The fund, which is still in existence, is used to support the training of promising young figure skaters throughout the country. Future Olympic gold medalists Peggy Fleming
Peggy Fleming
Peggy Gail Fleming is an American figure skater. She is the 1968 Olympic Champion in Ladies' singles and a three-time World Champion...
and Scott Hamilton
Scott Hamilton
Scott Hamilton may refer to:*Scott Hamilton *Scott Hamilton *Scott Hamilton...
credit the fund with being vital to their careers.
A film about the event, called RISE, was commissioned by U.S. Figure Skating to celebrate American figure skating and commemorating the 50th anniversary of the accident. RISE was filmed in 2010 and shown in theaters nationwide for one day only: February 17, 2011, with one encore performance on March 7, 2011.
The film was shown on the Versus network on October 22, 2011.
Notable casualties
Singles skatersBradley Lord
Bradley Lord
Bradley Lord was an American figure skater who competed in men's singles. He finished fourth at the 1960 United States Figure Skating Championships and then placed sixth at that year's World Figure Skating Championships after the top three U.S. skaters skipped the event...
, Gregory Kelley
Gregory Kelley
Gregory Kelley was an American figure skater who competed in men's singles. He won the junior title at the United States Figure Skating Championships in 1959 and finished ninth at the 1960 World Figure Skating Championships after the top three U.S. skaters skipped the event. In 1961 he won the...
, Douglas Ramsay
Douglas Ramsay
Douglas Ramsay was an American figure skater who competed in men's singles.Known as "Dick Button Jr.", he early won the reputation of being a particularly charismatic free skater and an audience favorite....
, Laurence Rochon Owen
Laurence Owen
Laurence Rochon "Laurie" Owen was a Hall of Fame American figure skater. She was the 1961 U.S. National Champion and represented the United States at the 1960 Winter Olympics, where she placed 6th. She was the daughter of Maribel Vinson and Guy Owen and the sister of Maribel Owen...
, Stephanie Westerfeld
Stephanie Westerfeld
Stephanie "Steffi" Westerfeld was an American figure skater.She earned a place on the United States' world team for the 1961 World Figure Skating Championships after she finished second at 1961 U.S National Championships....
and Rhode Lee Michelson
Rhode Lee Michelson
Rhode Lee Michelson was an American figure skater. She placed third at the 1961 U.S. Championships, earning her the right to compete a month later at the World Championships. A hip injury forced Rhode to withdraw from the North American Championships in early February 1961...
Pairs skaters
Ila Ray Hadley
Ila Ray Hadley
Ila Ray Hadley , was an American figure skater who competed in pairs and ice dance with her brother Ray Hadley, Jr..Hadley was born in Renton, Washington...
/Ray Hadley, Jr.
Ray Hadley, Jr.
Ray Ellis Hadley, Jr. was an American figure skater who competed in pairs and ice dance with his sister Ila Ray Hadley.Hadley was born in Seattle, Washington...
, Laurie Jean Hickox/William Holmes Hickox and Maribel Yerxa Owen
Maribel Owen
Maribel Yerxa Owen was an American pair skater. With partner Dudley Richards, she was the 1961 U.S. national champion and represented the United States at the 1960 Winter Olympics, where they placed 10th. She was the daughter of Maribel Vinson and Guy Owen and the sister of Laurence Owen...
/Dudley Shaw Richards
Dudley Richards
Dudley "Dud" Shaw Richards was an American figure skater who competed in men's singles and pairs. In singles, he won the bronze medal at the 1953 United States Figure Skating Championships and finished sixth at that year's World Figure Skating Championships...
Ice dancers
Diane Carol Sherbloom
Diane Sherbloom
Diane Carol "Dee Dee" Sherbloom was an American figure skater who competed in ice dance. Previously paired with Roger Campbell, she had no intentions of competing at the 1961 United States Figure Skating Championships until a twist of fate brought partner Larry Pierce her way...
/Dallas "Larry" Pierce, Dona Lee Carrier
Dona Lee Carrier
Dona Lee Carrier was an American figure skater who competed in ice dancing with Roger Campbell. The pair won the silver medal at the 1961 United States Figure Skating Championships, earning them the right to compete a month later at the World Championships in Prague...
/Roger Campbell
Roger Campbell
Roger Campbell was an American figure skater who competed in ice dancing. After partnering Diane Sherbloom in 1959, he won the bronze medal at the 1960 United States Figure Skating Championships with Yvonne Littlefield and went on to finish eight at that year's World Figure Skating Championships...
and Patricia Dineen
Patricia Dineen
Patricia Major Dineen was an American ice dancer who competed with her husband Robert Dineen. The duo won the Silver dance title at the 1960 United States Figure Skating Championships and then the bronze at the senior level at the 1961 United States Figure Skating Championships, earning them the...
/Robert Dineen
Robert Dineen
Robert Dineen was an American ice dancer who competed with his wife Patricia Dineen. The duo won Silver dance title at the 1960 United States Figure Skating Championships and then the bronze in the senior division at the 1961 United States Figure Skating Championships, earning them the right to...
Others
Coaches (Edi Scholdan
Edi Scholdan
Edi Scholdan was a figure skater and figure skating coach.Scholdan was born in Vienna and, as a competitor, represented Austria at the 1933 World Figure Skating Championships. However, he became better known as a coach; he worked at the Broadmoor Skating Club in Colorado Springs, Colorado...
, Maribel Vinson-Owen, Daniel "Danny" Ryan and three others) and the team manager Deane McMinn
Deane McMinn
Deane McMinn was a figure skating judge who was serving as team manager for the United States Figure Skating team attending the 1961 World Figure Skating Championships...
.
Judges Harold Hartshorne
Harold Hartshorne
Harold Hartshorne was an American ice dancer.With partner Nettie Prantell, he was the 1937-1938 U.S. Champion and 1943 bronze medalist medalist. With partner Sandy MacDonald, he was the 1939-1941 U.S. Champion and 1942 silver medalist. With partner Kathe Mehl, he is the 1944 U.S...
and Edward LeMaire
Edward LeMaire
Edward LeMaire was an American figure skater who competed in pairs and men's singles. In pairs, he won the junior title at the United States Figure Skating Championships in 1942 and won a bronze medal in senior pairs the following year with Dorothy Goos...
and referee Walter S. Powell
Walter S. Powell
Walter S. Powell was president of the United States Figure Skating Association from 1943 to 1946. After his term was complete, Powell remained very active in the international side of the sport, serving as the first chairman of the USFSA's International Committee from 1946 to 1952...