Shattered Wings: Aircraft Accidents of the Great Lakes Region

Shattered Wings is a collection of fourteen aircraft accidents that have taken place in the Great Lakes region of the United States. Ranging from the earliest days of commercial and military aviation to 1970, each of these tales was chosen to provide the reader with an insight into this region’s rich aviation heritage. While some of these tales end in tragedy, others conclude on a much happier note. Examples of these narratives include the pilot that exhausted his aircraft of fuel despite one of its fuel tanks being nearly half full, the successful landing of a DC-3 airliner following a tragic midair collision over downtown Milwaukee, the mysterious crash of a brand new 727 jetliner into the waters of Lake Michigan, the crashes of two British strategic bombers some 200 miles and 20 years apart, and the failure of government regulators to fully adopt an aircraft manufacturer’s recommendation that contributed to a crash of a commuter plane into an ice covered Lake Erie. From propeller-driven to jet-powered, the aircraft involved in the accidents described in this book represent the advancement of aviation technology during the time period covered.