Sierra Hotel Blog
On August 31, 1986, a Piper Cherokee without transponder clearance collided with Aeroméxico Flight 498 over Cerritos, California. All 64 aboard the DC-9 and 15 on the ground were killed. The disaster led to mandatory TCAS and Mode C transponder requirements in US airspace.
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Iven Carl "Kinch" Kincheloe Jr. shot down 5 MiGs in Korea, set a world altitude record of 126,200 feet in the Bell X-2, and became known as America's First Spaceman. He was killed at age 30 during an F-104 test flight at Edwards AFB.
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General Joe Henry Engle earned astronaut wings in the X-15 at just 32 years old, flew 17 X-15 missions, and commanded two Space Shuttle missions including STS-2 aboard Columbia. He also flew Space Shuttle Enterprise on multiple unpowered Approach and Landing Tests, releasing from NASA's 747 at 25,000 feet. Joe flew over 185 aircraft types and logged more than 15,400 hours. He flew west on July 10, 2024, at the age of 91.
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On June 9, 1982, Israeli F-15s, F-16s, and F-4 Phantoms destroyed 17 of 19 Syrian Soviet-built SAM batteries and shot down over 80 MiGs without a single loss — the greatest air battle since World War II.
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Clarence 'Bud' Anderson was a WWII triple ace who flew 116 combat missions over Europe in his P-51 Mustang 'Old Crow,' scoring 16.25 aerial victories with the 357th Fighter Group — and never took a scratch. He went on to serve in Korea and Vietnam, became Chief of Flight Test at Edwards AFB, and was promoted to honorary brigadier general at age 100. He flew west on May 17, 2024, at the age of 102.
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