On December 1 1959, Allegheny Airlines Flight 371 crashed into the side of Bald Eagle Mountain. Only one of the 26 on board survived.
Remnants of the crash are still on the mountain today, along with a memorial sign.
First lets look at the history of the crash, and then I'll explain step by step with gps coordinates & photos, how we hiked to the site of the wreckage. Although not an easy hike by any means, this is easier to access than the Piper plane on the mountain near Lock Haven.
The Crash Of Allegheny Airlines Flight 371
Allegheny Airlines Flight 371, on December 1 1959, was headed from Philadelphia to Cleveland, with stops in Harrisburg, Williamsport, Bradford, & Erie.
The flight made it's scheduled stop in Harrisburg at 8:51, without incident. It departed at 9:06 with 22 passengers and 4 crew members. At 9:17 the pilot requested instrument clearance at Williamsport. Cleared for approach, the plane was observed over the airport at 9:45, but at too high of an altitude to make the landing. Both an airport employee and the captain of an airplane waiting nearby, both witnessed the plane roll out of it's right turn, and proceed in a level flight on a southerly direction, disappearing into snow showers and clouds.
At 9:47, the airport employees heard the flight 371 crash into Bald Eagle Mountain.
The only survivor of the crash, Louis Matazzo described the events leading up to the crash.
" The hostess was just turning on the loudspeaker and tell us us we were coming in. All of a sudden, the pilot seemed to race the motors and pull up. There was a crash. The planed burst and exploded." Before the plane made impact, "The Lord opened my side of he plane, and I was able to jump out" Matarazzo recalled.
The plane rammed the mountain about midway. It cut a wide swath through the snow covered, tree studded slopes. The fuselage was shredded. Then fire broke out. But oddly, the tail section was virtually undamaged"
The Charlotte Observer Dec 2 1959
"I fought my way though flames, past the wreckage" explained Matarazzo, age 35, was at the time president of a Philadelphia sportswear company."I tried to make my way back to the wreckage, but I couldn't made it. My legs were too stiff. The pain-"
When a catholic priest was flown in by helicopter arrived, Matarazzo told him, "Thank God, father you are here." The Rev. Francis Corcoran, an assistant pastor at the catholic church in Williamsport, was lowered by helicopter to administer last rites to the victims of the crash.
A helicopter from Olmsted Air Force Base in Middletown Pa, flew several to the site, and lowered them to the crash scened by means of a winch, while the helicopter hovered overhead. In the photo above, Dr Wilcox was being lowered to the scene.
"I flew up to the crash scene in a helicopter and was lowered about 50 feet to the ground in a sling something like a horse collar" he recalled. "I had the holy oil with me and I went from person to person looking for those who might be alive. I found only three." said Rev. Cochran. "There was nothing left of the plane except a piece sticking up in the air."
"The area is all rocks and broken trees and I had to practically crawl around. I wasn't dressed for it. Mr Louis Matarazzo was the first man I got to. He was lying on the ground about 20 feet from the plane. He was completely conscious and rational. He felt bad bout the other people on the pane and was worried about his wife and children. He said he wasn't scared or afraid to die. I was with him when they brought him down the mountain because the doctor said he was the only one who had any chance at all to live."
Matarazzo, being loaded on a stretcher to be carried down the mountain
The Rev. said it took an hour to reach the railroad tracks. "It was hard work for me, and an awful experience for him, but he never complained." Rev Corcoran stayed with Matarazzo as he was taken by by train, and then ambulance, to the emergency ward. "He didn't want me to call his wife, because she was not well; so I called a priest in Philadelphia who got in touch with her. I'll never forget it as long as I live. I never saw anything like that. It was a terrible scene."
Jack Kramer who was involved in the salvage operations in 1959, recalls that as one of the engines was being recovered it rolled down the side of the mountain over the Pennsylvania Railroad tracks and into the river.
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Hiking To The Site
Disclaimer - This is not a simple hike. There is no trail, and it's a rather treacherous straight down the mountain climb over loose boulders, moss, and wet leaves. It's very do-able for anyone familiar with this sort of hike, but it's not something everyone should attempt. As one description of the rescue states: "Recovering anything from the crash site would be difficult because much of it is on a 67-degree slope. It is difficult to stand in places without hanging onto a tree and the footing is treacherous."
Distance: Approximately half a mile down the mountain
(It's going to feel like a LOT more than half a mile)
Parking GPS Coordinates - N 41 13 11.327 W 076 54 41.921
Trail Marker (almost there) GPS Coordinates: N 41 13 28.451 W 076 54 38.662
Final GPS Coordinates: N 41 13 30.796 W 076 54 38.318
Armstrong Road is a dirt & gravel road, right off of 15. Navigate carefully, and consider driving on the berm for the last bit of the approach, as traffic on 15 does not adjust well to sudden stops, and the road is VERY easy to miss.
The Gate is located at
41°13'11.5"N 76°54'46.9"W
Once on Armstrong road, you will approximately to the area of the State Forest Tower gate up a small hill the the south..
Where we parked - Fire tower gate on the right, you can see our car up ahead.
N 41 13.185 W 076 54.777
You can probably park safely in front of the gate, but there's a grass pull off to the left nearby, and just past the gate, if coming from 15, there is a second gate, which feels like a better area to park without blocking access. (we didn't see a single other vehicle the entire time we were here, this is not a heavily trafficked area)
Now you want to make your way downhill. Exactly where you begin will not matter too much - and it's all going to be rocky. Just pick a spot that looks good, anywhere near the parking area, and head down.
Some of our route downhill. It's even steeper than it looks.
Eventually, and I do mean eventually, you will come to a trail of sorts. It's an old logging path, and you can finally walk on somewhat level ground for a few feet, which is really nice, after that trip down the hill.
From here, it will depend on where exactly you came down - but
you'll be headed to these coordinates, where you will see a pile of sticks and rocks:
N 41 13 28.451 W 076 54 38.662
You can't really tell in this photo, so I marked it in yellow, but if you stand on the trail with your back to the pile of rocks, and look down the hill, you will be able to spot the green memorial sign through the trees.
The wreckage is only about 150 feet down the hill, from the trail.
Shane Collins, along with his cousin Mark Avery, re-located the crash site in May of 2014.
In October 2016 a memorial plaque was installed at the crash site.
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Find More Local Stories & History Here:
Piper Plane N32777 Crashed On July 16 1986
The entire plane is still on the mountain, although this hike is a bit more difficult than the Flight 371 site.
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Read More
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Flight Memorial Page On Facebook
The Tyrone Daily Herald, Dec 2 1959
Two others, Fred Gettys of New Cumberland Pa and William T. Derry of Pottstown were alive but unconscious when rescuers reached the scene. They both died before they could be brought down the mountain.
The Crash Report
For more than 13 hours after the crash, it was believed that 24 had died. But on Tuesday night it was discovered taht off duty pilot Donald W. Tygert, 26 of Webster NY had boarded the plane as well, making the death toll 25.
The crash was startlingly similar to one a month before, near Charlotsville VA, when a two-engine Piedmont airliner crahsed into the mountainside, killing 26 of the 27 persons on board.
Captain Thomas R. Goldsmeith of North Olmstead Ohio was called in unexpectedly for this flight. He had been on two weeks vacation with his infant child.
Officer Sherosick recalls his arrival at the scene, by helicopter:
“On the helicopter, one of the guys told me to sit down and allow my feet to dangle out the door. He put a harness around me and told me he was going to lower me to the ground,” said Sherosick.
“When I first got aboard, I thought we would go over the site and then the pilot would try to set the helicopter down nearby,” Sherosick said, adding this was the first time he ever saw an airplane crash.
“I had to do what I was ordered to do,” he said, describing the scene “as very remote, hilly and rocky,” very rugged terrain.“
“When they pushed me out, I heard a big ‘Eek.’ It scared the heck out of me. It was the equipment, probably the sound of the cable stretching. As they were lowering me, I was swinging back and fourth on the cable, due in part to the wind as well as the motion of the blades from the helicopter,” he said.
Once he was on the ground, Sherosick regained his balance and took the harness off so it could be raised up. He was the first state trooper, but not the first civilian, to reach the tragic site.
“I don’t think any emergency vehicles got near the scene. They were down at the foot of the mountain. I can’t recall, but I believe some of the vehicles were stationed at an old railroad bed. They had to carry the bodies down the mountain and then take them away in the vehicles,” he said.
Sherosick stayed at the crash site for hours, assisting in carrying the last body off the mountain.
“It was clearly the most horrific scene I would see in my lifetime. It was very sad.”
Louis Matarazzo died in December of 2004, at age 82.
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