BasilGott93 at 14:38, 20 March 2026

2026-03-20T14:38:56Z

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{{Short description|1977 aviation accident in the U.S.}}
{{use mdy dates|date=December 2023}}
{{Infobox aircraft occurrence
|name = Air Indiana Flight 216
|image = Douglas DC-3, SE-CFP.jpg
|image_size = 240
|caption = [[DC-3]] similar to accident aircraft
|date = December 13, 1977
|summary = Rudder and right aileron<br>control locks not removed before takeoff
|occurrence_type = Accident
|site = [[Evansville Regional Airport]], [[Indiana]], United States
|fatalities = 29
|injuries =
|aircraft_type = [[Douglas DC-3]]
|operator = [[Air Indiana]]
|tail_number = N51071
|origin = [[Evansville Regional Airport]], [[Indiana]]
|destination = [[Nashville International Airport]], [[Nashville, Tennessee|Nashville]], [[Tennessee]]
|passengers = 26
|crew = 3
|survivors = 0
}}
The '''Air Indiana Flight 216''' crash occurred on December 13, 1977, at 19:22 CST, when a [[Douglas DC-3]], registration N51071 carrying the [[University of Evansville]] basketball team, the [[Evansville Purple Aces men's basketball|Evansville Purple Aces]], lost control and crashed shortly after takeoff at the [[Evansville Regional Airport]] in [[Evansville, Indiana]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19771213-0 |title=ASN Aircraft accident Douglas C-53 (DC-3) N51071 Evansville-Dress Regional Airport, IN (EVV) |publisher=Aviation-safety.net |date=1977-12-13 |access-date=2012-01-29}}</ref> The plane was on its way to [[Nashville International Airport]], taking the team to play the [[Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders men's basketball|Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders]] in [[Murfreesboro, Tennessee]].<ref name=tpcrifl>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=-DxOAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Ge4DAAAAIBAJ&pg=6470%2C5684374 |work=Spokesman-Review |location=Spokane, Washington |agency=Associated Press |title=Team plane crashes in flames |date=December 14, 1977 |page=1}}</ref><ref name=aceedr>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=wq1VAAAAIBAJ&sjid=L-ADAAAAIBAJ&pg=6706%2C4632809 |work=Eugene Register-Guard |location=Oregon |agency=wire service reports |title=Air crash ends Evansville's dreams |date=December 14, 1977 |page=1D}}</ref>

The [[National Transportation Safety Board]] blamed the crash on the pilot's failure to remove [[gust lock]]s on the right [[aileron]] and the [[rudder]] before takeoff, as well as an overloaded baggage compartment. The NTSB report said that the plane might have been able to stay airborne had only one of the problems existed. As it was, the extra baggage shifted the plane's center of gravity to the rear, and the locked rudder and aileron made it impossible to control the overweight aircraft.

Head coach [[Bobby Watson (basketball coach)|Bobby Watson]] was the only coach on board the flight as his assistant coaches were on [[Scout (sport)|scouting]] assignments at the time. Athletic director Jim Byers had planned to board the plane but stayed behind to interview a candidate for the baseball program. Four of the passengers were still breathing when found by rescuers, with three dying on the scene and one dying hours after the accident. <ref>{{cite web | url=https://mccutchanvillefiredepartment.org/ue-plane-crash/ | title=UE Plane Crash | date=October 9, 2023 }}</ref><ref name=twp>{{cite news |last1=Johnson |first1=Dave |title=Evansville Fans, Community Took Watson to Heart |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/sports/1977/12/15/evansville-fans-community-took-watson-to-heart/36dfb734-643d-4c93-8ae5-28e736c9be29/ |newspaper=The Washington Post |accessdate=June 30, 2020 |date=December 15, 1977}}</ref> The only member of the Purple Aces who did not die in the crash was 18-year-old freshman David Furr; he was out for the season with an ankle injury and thus was not on the plane that day. Two weeks after the crash, Furr and his younger brother Byron were killed in a car accident near [[Newton, Illinois]], leaving the entire 1977 Evansville team dead.<ref name=aevpl>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1755&dat=19771229&id=p8YyAAAAIBAJ&sjid=f2cEAAAAIBAJ&pg=1967,6052206 |work=Sarasota Herald-Tribune |location=Florida |agency=UPI |title=Last Evansville player dies in auto accident |date=December 29, 1977 |page=1E}}</ref> After consideration, the rest of the season was cancelled.

[[File:The Weeping Basketball.jpg|thumb|The "Weeping Basketball" fountain memorial at the University of Evansville, commemorating the Air Indiana Flight 216 crash.]]

A memorial has been constructed at the University of Evansville known as the "Weeping Basketball." On stone slabs are engraved the names of the players who were killed, including Furr (the final name on the monument is that of Charles Goad of the Goad Equipment Company, invited on the flight by his friend Bob Hudson). Also engraved is an excerpt from the eulogy delivered by school president Wallace Graves at a memorial service: "Out of the agony of this hour we will rise." A memorial is also at the [[Ford Center (Evansville)|Ford Center]], where the Purple Aces currently play their home games. <ref name=wfie>{{cite news |url=https://www.14news.com/2020/12/13/sunday-marks-years-since-ue-plane-crash/ |work=14 WFIE |location=Indiana |agency=NBC |title=Sunday marks 43 years since UE plane crash |date=December 13, 2020}}</ref>

==Flight crew==
*Airplane crew:<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.evansvilleliving.com/articles/30-years-after-90-seconds|title=30 Years After 90 Seconds|date=September 9, 2011 }}</ref>
**Pilot - Ty Van Pham (aged 42)
**Copilot - Gaston Ruiz (aged 35)

==See also==
{{Portal|Aviation|Indiana|Modern history}}
*[[List of accidents involving sports teams]]
*[[Air Midwest Flight 5481]], an accident where maintenance errors combined with aircraft overloading to cause a stall and crash.
*[[Fine Air Flight 101]], a [[DC-8]] that was improperly loaded with the center of gravity shifted towards the back. Because loaders did not give the crew the proper information with regards to how the aircraft was loaded, the pilots improperly set their trim for takeoff. The plane immediately stalled and crashed after departure.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [https://www.ntsb.gov/investigations/AccidentReports/Reports/AAR7810.pdf Final report] from the [[NTSB]]. [https://libraryonline.erau.edu/online-full-text/ntsb/aircraft-accident-reports/AAR78-10.pdf Copy from] [[Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University]].
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{{University of Evansville}}
{{Evansville Purple Aces men's basketball navbox}}
{{Aviation accidents and incidents in 1977}}
{{Aviation accidents and incidents in the United States in the 1970s}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Evansville Basketball Plane Crash}}

[[Category:Aviation accidents and incidents in the United States in 1977]]
[[Category:Aviation accidents and incidents involving the Douglas DC-3]]
[[Category:Evansville Purple Aces men's basketball]]
[[Category:Aviation accidents and incidents in Indiana]]
[[Category:1977 in Indiana]]
[[Category:1977–78 NCAA Division I men's basketball season]]
[[Category:Aviation accidents and incidents involving sports teams]]
[[Category:December 1977 in the United States]]

Air Indiana Flight 216 - Revision history

BasilGott93 at 14:38, 20 March 2026