Mount Success, Douglas DC-3 Plane Crash – On November 30, 1954, Northeast Airlines, Flight 792, encountered snow squalls, reducing visibility to zero, during its flight to Berlin, New Hampshire. The plane continued on, and while trying to navigate only by instruments to the Berlin Airport, it crashed into the southern slope of Mount Success (3,565 feet) in the Mahoosuc Range, New Hampshire.
The flight originated at Boston, Massachusetts, and was bound for Berlin, New Hampshire, with stops at Concord and Laconia, New Hampshire. On board the twin-engine Douglas DC-3 plane was a crew of four and three passengers.
Just before crashing into the side of the mountain, pilot Peter Carey was able to pull the nose of the plane up enough to avoid crashing into the mountain head on, and his actions resulted in the plane landing on its belly. All seven people onboard survived the initial crash, but while waiting to be rescued, two crew members died from injuries that they sustained in the crash. Poor weather conditions made search and rescue efforts difficult, and the remaining five survivors were not rescued until the plane wreckage was located on December 2, 1954.
Today, the crash site and wreckage of Northeast Airlines Flight 792 can still be found just off the Appalachian Trail, along the Appalachian Trail corridor boundary, near the summit of Mount Success. Numerous pieces of the plane and a large section of fuselage remain at the site. Some who visit the wreckage leave their mark on the fuselage, and a few signatures date back to the 1960s. And if you are wondering, I did not sign the fuselage.
This crash site is a very special place where lives were lost. If you decide to visit it, please honor and respect it and do your part to keep the site preserved. Take only pictures, and keep in mind, this wreckage is on federal land, and it is illegal to remove any artifact from federal land.
All of the above images can be licensed for publications by clicking on the image you are interested in. And you can view more images of the Douglas DC-3 plane wreckage here.
Happy image making..
Don’t Remove Artifacts | Historic Information Disclaimer | White Mountains History
Bibliography:
Civil Aeronautics Board Accident Investigation Report, file No. 1-0226, adopted July 29, 1955, released August 3, 1955
Owner of ScenicNH Photography LLC
Erin Paul is a professional photographer, writer, and author who specializes in environmental conservation and historic preservation photography mainly in the New Hampshire White Mountains. His work is published worldwide, and publication credits include: Appalachian Mountain Club, Appalachian Trail Conservancy, Backpacker Magazine, and The Wilderness Society.
Thanks for the information! We just hiked up to the crash site of the B18 Bomber plane crash at Mt. Waternomee. It is very interesting to read about, so we are very grateful for the information you all shared! Our next hike will be, guess what, Mt. Success!
Sorry for your loss, M. Hall!
Petra
Hi Petra,
I am glad you found my information interesting. Both sites are very special places.
Passenger of this crash, Daniel H. Hall, was my grandfather, being my dad's father. My dad was born 2 years after the crash in 1956. He is now 65. I am 30. Sadly, my grandfather, Daniel, who I never met, was later killed in 1966, only twelve years after the crash, when my dad was a ten year old boy. Thanks for sharing info about the crash… it's quite lost to the memories of most people in this world anymore.
Thank you for sharing your family history. Unfortunately, many important sites in the White Mountains are being forgotten about, and stories like yours are the very reason why we need to keep them in the spot light.
after my dad died, I was going through some of his papers and found a letter of thank you from the airlines. Evidently my dad and other men from Gorham organized a search and rescue team. I was 7 years old, at the time. It was an US Army helicopter that eventually located and rescued the plane and its survivors.
Hi Daniel,
I bet you were surprised to learn your Dad was involved with search and rescue operations. Amazing how many people were involved with this crash. Thank you for sharing.
My brother in law worked at this site on salvage operations for a fellow from New York who had purchased the usable items from the owners. He lived just a short distance away in Gorham, N.H.
Hi Bob,
Thank you for sharing this information.
That gentleman from New York that purchase the wreckage was my father Lloyd a Webb
Hi Mark,
Thank you for sharing. That is great information!
I met Lloyd a couple of times because of Donald (who always spoke highly of him) and probably may have met you also Mark although it had to have been many years back. Sounds like rather extreme conditions to be wandering around on a mountain, glad I was not part of it !
Great note that brings back lots of memories and stories that my dad told us, the man from NY that your brother-in-law referenced!
Mount Success New Hampshire- Douglas DC-3 Plane Crash http://bit.ly/bxScNM