- ACCIDENT DETAILS
Date: August 15, 1935
Time: 2018
Location: Walakpa, near Point Barrow, Alaska
Operator: Private
Flight #: ?
Route: ?
AC Type: Lockheed Orion 9E Explorer float plane
Registration: NR12283
cn / ln: 195
Aboard: 2   (passengers:1  crew:1)
Fatalities: 2   (passengers:1  crew:1)
Ground: 0
Summary: Dense fog caused the pilot to make a forced landing about 15 miles south of Point Barrow. After some mechanical repairs, the plane took off, rose to about 50 feet and then crashed into shallow water. Loss of control of the aircraft at a low altitude after sudden engine failure due to the extreme nose-heaviness of the aircraft. Adventurer, Wiley Post, 37, and humorist, Will Rogers, 56, killed. Most experts believe that a combination of miscalculations in the design and operation of the heavily customized aircraft resulted in the uncontrollable spin that occurred right after takeoff.
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