DC-10 disaster

On March 3rd, it has been 50 years since the McDonnell Douglas DC-10 airliner crashed near Paris. On that day in 1974, 346 people lost their lives (334 passengers and 12 crew members), making it the deadliest aviation tragedy at that time.

The aircraft, operated by Turkish Airlines, was flying as flight TK 981 from Istanbul to Paris to London. It was piloted by an experienced crew led by Captain Nejat Berkoz, a former Turkish Air Force pilot. His total flying hours exceeded 7,000, with nearly 440 on the DC-10.

The takeoff from Paris Orly Airport proceeded normally. Eight minutes into the flight, at an altitude of over 3,600 meters, air traffic controllers were startled by the chilling words from the co-pilot: "The fuselage exploded!" The aircraft entered a shallow dive at high speed and crashed into the Ermenonville forest northeast of Paris.

During the investigation, it was found that the rear cargo doors had opened during the climb, leading to an explosive decompression. This damaged the passenger cabin floor and disabled the aircraft's control systems. The direct cause of the crash was a flaw in the cargo door locking mechanism, which opened due to a pressure differential at altitude.

This was the second similar incident involving the DC-10 during its operational history. The first occurred two years earlier, but the damage to the control systems was less critical, allowing the crew to successfully perform an emergency landing. The cause of that incident was quickly identified, and the investigative committee made recommendations to improve the cargo door design. However, none of these recommendations were ever implemented.