Freefall

Mid-Air Moose Jaw explores the mystery and expels the rumors of the 1954 mid-air collision over the city of Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. A NATO Harvard training plane and a Trans Canada Air-Lines North Star collided in clear weather with the loss of thirty-seven lives. The airliner crashed into a home on Third Avenue Northeast, killing Martha Hadwen, the only fatality from Moose Jaw. Ross School, with 350 students was a mere 400 feet from the crash site. Many Moose Jaw residents witnessed the collision. Varied eyewitnesses’ accounts and surviving family members’ recollections are included. While newspaper coverage of this disaster was extensive, Mid-Air Moose Jaw ferrets out many untold anecdotes giving the reader a greater in-depth understanding of this horrific disaster. How and why this mid-air collision took place is covered extensively with careful reference to the three Boards of inquiry. While some readers may find this aspect technical, the book is balanced with the human and sociological aspects following the disaster. Mid-Air Moose Jaw challenges pilots to practice proper collision avoidance techniques. At the same time the book reminds administrators and legislators of their responsibility to act diligently and promptly to potential aviation hazards. Since 1954 flying has become much safer with advanced technology. Mid-Air Moose Jaw is a tribute to those who paid with their lives to make aviation safer yet never to take that safety for granted.