This website documents the crashes of four Boeing 747s, one military
jet, and several incidents involving other Boeing 747s. Two DC-10
accidents are also reported. It supports the hypothesis that one
cause was common to the Boeing 747 crashes: inadvertent rupturing/opening
of the forward cargo door in flight.
The method is to group the crashes into a class from which deductions
can be made about each member of that class. The aircraft are
brought into the class by common similarities. For instance, to
be brought into the class called Boeing 747 cargo door crashes,
all Boeing 747s that have crashed must have had a sudden loud
sound on the cockpit voice recorder. If not a sudden loud sound
on the CVR tape then that crashed Boeing 747 is excluded from
the class. Other criteria to be included are required: abrupt
power cut to the flight data recorder, at least nine missing,
never recovered bodies, at least one fodded engine, some inflight
damage to structure, and high flight time.
Deductions can then be made about each member of the class based
upon similarities with the other members. For instance, if three
members of the group have inflight damage to the right wing fillet,
then it can be deduced that aircraft number four probably has
inflight damage to the right wing fillet. All deductions are subject
to visual confirmation if possible.
In addition, once the members of a group are defined, then inductions
can be made about potential members of the group. For instance,
if all the damaged aircraft in the group had outward opening cargo
doors, then similar aircraft with outward opening cargo doors
are at risk of becoming a member of the crashed group, subject
to other similarities being the same, such as high flight time
and same model aircraft.
The method used to group the aircraft into one crashed group instead
of four separate crashes has been to review the various government
accident reports, news reports, eyewitness accounts, personal
experience, and other official documents. The main documents used
are on the web site and are the accident reports from the governments
involved, UK, USA, India, Canada, and input from Ireland, New
Zealand, and France.
Every statement from which conclusions are drawn is supported
by evidence or reputable eyewitnesses. For instance, to say that
at least one engine had foreign object damage in each crash is
to point to the precise page in which the observer of the damaged
engine described the foreign object damage. Each crashed airplane
had at least one damaged engine in flight or it is not included
in the group and each engine is named. Each statement of a damaged
engine is documented by a page of an official report if available
and news reports if not.
Of the four crashed airplanes in the group, one is under investigation
and unexplained, two had controversial findings of bomb in forward
cargo hold, and one had a clearly shown cause of inadvertent opening
of forward cargo door in flight.
The hypothesis of this site is that one common mechanical malfunction
caused all four crashes, the malfunctioning cargo door. That's
why this is called the cargo door website.
It's not a coincidence that:
The cargo door theory explains the steak because the event happened when the plane was in the correct sun angle and time for the fuselage to reflect sun to observers on the ground. At any other 23 hours and 30 minutes of the day, it could not be said the streak was door because the sun angle would be wrong or non existent. But, at 8:31 PM on July 17th near NYC the sun angle was perfect for door to reflect sunlight as it spun away. It's no coincidence; it's cause and effect.
The cargo door theory explains the mysterious radar blip because the spinning metal cargo door with fuselage skin attached would reflect primary radar at that distance, just like it did with the DC-10 cargo door and the UAL 811 cargo door departures. The two blips on the radar plot without transponder display are a P-3 and a mystery blip It's no coincidence; it's cause and effect. The mystery blips may be related to TWA 800 but it's unknown how exactly.
The cargo door theory explains the sudden loud sound on the CVR because when the door departs an explosive decompression occurs which causes a very loud sound, just like it did on UAL 811 according to the passengers who survived. It's no coincidence; it's cause and effect.
The cargo door theory explains the abrupt power cut because the power to the FDR and transponder was cut when the nose was severed by the 300 knot CAS force crumpling the nose into the absent cargo door hole. It's no coincidence; it's cause and effect.
The cargo door theory explains the missing bodies because the passengers are sucked out the hole caused by the departing cargo door and attached fuselage skin and into the number three engine leaving parts of human remains inside, just like UAL 811. It's no coincidence; it's cause and effect.
The cargo door theory explains why number three engine catches fire and lands separately from the other three engines because baggage from the cargo hold is ejected into number three engine which becomes Fodded, catches fire, vibrates, fuse bolts shear as designed, and engine falls away on fire before other three engines are involved. It's no coincidence; it's cause and effect.
The cargo door theory explains the fireball when baggage from the cargo hold is ejected into number three engine which becomes Fodded, catches fire, vibrates, fuse bolts shear as designed, and engine falls away on fire into disintegrating wing, fuel vapor and air, igniting fireball. It's no coincidence; it's cause and effect.
The cargo door theory explains why the aft cargo door is found intact and the forward door in pieces because the forward door ruptures/opens up, out, and away, striking fuselage and breaking into pieces, just like UAL 811. It's no coincidence; it's cause and effect.
The cargo door theory explains the debris pattern which shows forward cargo hold material ejected first, then detached nose falling in dense area, and rest of fuselage and wing and tail falling in scattered area miles later. It's no coincidence; it's cause and effect.
The cargo door theory explains most because it is what happened;
the other theories just fit a few of the important evidence clues
and don't work for the others.
The forward cargo door opened on the four aircraft leading to
fatal accidents. Why the door ruptured/opened is a mystery for
three of the crashes. The cause could have been a bomb or many
other reasons. A bomb and an opened cargo door are not incompatible
explanations for the crashes.
The investigation effort needs to be directed to the cause of the opening cargo doors; until then all outward opening cargo doors on B 747s need to be welded shut until explanation is found for TWA 800 crash.
There is currently a mysterious crash of a Boeing 747. All possible explanations must be considered before rejection. The cargo door theory has not yet had that consideration. The cargo door theory fits all evidence from streak, radar anomaly, CVR, FDR, engine FOD, wreckage plot, injuries to persons, and inflight damage. Other theories, such as bomb, missile, center tank fire, all have flaws that reject them as the correct explanation for the initial event.
I invite factual, reasoned rebuttal. Send comments to email address below.
Important point to remember: The destructive force is not the
explosive decompression, that event just blows door into slipstream.
The destructive force is the 300 knots of wind force on the structurally
compromised nose which tears is off.