A Tale of Pathetic Revenge (United Airlines Flight 629) - DISASTER BREAKDOWN

Denver. November 1st, 1955. Precisely 6:11 in the evening. United Airlines Flight 629 had just landed at Denver’s Stapleton airport. The Douglas DC6 was in the middle of a cross country flight between New York and Seattle, the flight’s next stop was Portland, Oregon. Whilst in Denver, the plane was re-fueled. New passengers got on, and their bags were stored in the plane’s cargo compartment. In all, 39 passengers were on board the plane, plus the flight crew and flight attendants there were 44 people on the flight.

A Tale of Pathetic Revenge, the story of United Airlines Flight 629 and Jack Gilbert Graham

00:00 Part 1 - The Flight
06:03 Part 2 - Investigation
09:11 Part 3 - Everything Else

#aviation #truecrime

Sources:

[morrisgentry]

I was 8 years old when this happened. We had a family friend on the plane, the young Air Force Airman, Jesse Sizemore. I remember his wake and military funeral. Very sad and tragic.

[lostvictims]

In remembrance:

Captain Lee Hardee Hall, 41
First Officer Donald A. White, 26
Flight Engineer Samuel Francis Arthur, 38
Flight Attendant Peggy Lou Peddicord, 22
Flight Attendant Jacqueline Lou Hinds, 26
Fay Ellis Ambrose, 38
Bror Howard Beckstrom, 47
Irene Josephine Beckstrom, 45
John Peter Bomelyn, 53
Frank Mark Brennan Jr., 36
Clarissa Louise D. Bunch, 61
Horace Bradley Bynum, 32
Carol Joyce C. Bynum, 24
Barbara Jean Cruse, 23
Carl Frederick Diest, 53
John Paul Des Jardins, 43
James Francis Dorey, 58
Sarah L. Dorey, 55
Charles Gurney Edwards, 58
Elizabeth Dealey Edwards, 57
Helen K. Fitzpatrick, 42
James I. Fitzpatrick II, 1
Vernal Virgil Herman, 69
Goldie M. Herman, 59
Elton Bernard Hickok, 40
Marion Pierce Hobgood, 31
John WIlliam Jungels, 57
Daisie E. King, 53
Thomas L. Crouch, 23
Gerald George Lipke, 40
Helen Patricia Lipke, 36
Lela Vay McClain, 80
Frederick Stuart Morgan, 51
Suzanne Faulds Morgan, 39
James William Purvis, 40
Herbert G. Robertson, 43
Harold Russell Samstead, 50
James Earl Straud, 51
Clarence William Todd, 43
Ralph Waldo Van Valin, 72
Minnie O. Davis Van Valin, 66
Alma Louise Windsor, 47
Jesse T. Sizemore, 24
Sally Ann Scofield, 24

[philipbearly]

I witnessed this explosion as a
5 1/2 year old child. My family was just north of Longmont, CO on the way to my grandma's birthday gathering, when there was a massive flash of light to the southeast. We immediately thought it was a meteor, until the second explosion and flash followed by trailing fire descending almost vertical until impact and fires. My father was the manager at Johnson's Corner, the only 24 hour truck stop at that time in northern CO. He said there was some sort of disaster, and help would be needed at the site, so we left the cake and presents at my uncle's house and went the 7 miles east to the site. I will never forget the fires, debris, and seats with silhouetted bodies as our headlights turned across the wreckage. A LEO recognized my father and gave him a spare gun to help keep away the criminal looters who were already converging. After enough LEO's arrived, we went back to J.C., and my dad proceeded to call in off duty cooks and food preparers, along with all of our suppliers of coffee, bread, eggs, pop, etc. He hauled load after load of food to the site to feed the responders until the Colorado Army National Guard could mobilize and set up feeding and rest tents for the massive recovery effort. Johnson's Corner fed hundreds of them, and my dad and J. C. was later given a letter of commendation by the Chief of the State Patrol for the help given during the disaster. I still have that letter. I am 73 years old, but remember it like it was yesterday. I am still amazed at the inhumanity of Jack Graham, and that of the looters stealing luggage, purses, wallets, wedding rings, and gold teeth from the victims of this horrible event.

[greymark]

" Not meant to be on this plane, about to retire, preparations for a wedding". Alarm bells already ringing in my head.

[Robocopnik]

The whole "buying life insurance at the airport" thing has always seemed bonkers to me.

[joecrammond]

i hate reading about these sort of crashes, so many innocent people dead because of 1 or more people felt the need for revenge

[theworldwariioldtimeradioc]

I love hearing about the long forgotten pre-1960 plane crashes. Early aviation is worlds apart from what we know today.

[jimpern]

One thing that defeated Jack Graham's plan was the delay before the DC-6 took off, which is mentioned in the video but not explained. His intention was for the plane to explode while over a remote part of the Rocky Mountains where recovery of the wreckage - and its cause - would have been difficult. But because of the delay, the plane was stil over the far west Denver suburbs when it exploded, so the wreckage was fairly easily accessed.

[Tikibunss]

Jack really was a piece of work for sure. The lengths he went to here are just wow.
I enjoyed how this video was presented. It's amazing to see how much you've improved since I started watching. <3

[jenniferrucker]

The timer was a 90 minute timer not 60 minutes. He wanted a timer capable of more than 90 minutes, but 90 minutes was the most he could get. In the book, “Mainliner Denver”, one of the chapters give an account of Daisie King’s personality by Jack Graham’s, half sister. She said that Daisie would be your best friend one minute and then be at your throat the next minute. With Jack, the apple didn’t seem to fall too far from the tree. The difference was Jack took his animosity to a whole new level.

[chriscool]

I love the direction your videos are going! With every video, it’s just getting better and better. The newer videos are completely different from the older ones.

[welcome_to_the_collapse]

My grandmother always bought those policies at the airport. She would put in a few dollars, fill out a form, and then mail it to my dad. I remember seeing the Mutual of Omaha logo on the kiosk.

[Ryanboy]

Best disaster breakdown yet!!! I had never heard of this accident. Keep them coming.

[RBMapleLeaf]

Never heard of this disaster. But now you mentioned more accidents it’s the devastation it's effects are indescribable. I do recommend reviewing back at Japan in 1966. When you mentioned BOAC 911 awhile ago with Canadian Pacific 402 there were 3 other accidents in that same year in Japan. A Japan Air Lines Convair 880 and ANA Flight 60 and 533 I recommend if possible to try and cover all those accidents in one roof like you’ve done with “Pilot Suicide” (Containing SilkAir 185 and Egypt Air 990) Nice video by the way Chloe!

[cygnia]

There was a similar horrible case in Canada back in Sept. 1949. Joseph-Albert Guay hid a bomb in his wife's luggage for her flight so he could marry his mistress.

[vtommy]

Being a kid from Denver, I always thought this incident was odd. The plane actually crashed into the farm of my friend's uncle. (Long before I was born) You mentioned that he was only charged and convicted with the 1 murder, and that's the part that was so baffling to me when I learned of the crash as a kid. At the time, it was not illegal to blow up a plane. Therefore, they couldn't charge him for it. The only thing they could charge him for was killing his mom. Like you had said, apparently, that had only happened once previously, so there was no law preventing it. That seemed like such a foreign concept to me being an 80s kid, since we had things like the unibomber, OKC bombing, 9/11, etc.

[brega]

Horrid that people would "loot" belongings from such a tragedy.

[toastnjam]

I first heard of this from an old movie. It was the first segment of The FBI Story (1959)
Within fifteen months of the explosion, Graham was tried, convicted, and executed. Now its 20 plus years.

[Duvstep]

you and mentour pilot are my favourite channels to watch when it comes to detailed looks into various air accidents

[alberti]

Another saddening but fantastic, immersive and intriguing video. Disaster Breakdown’s videos are so hooking because every bit of information is meticulously sourced and horizontally linked. Thanks Chloe, once again.