Why Couldn't Investigators Reach the Crash Site? We explore the science of altitude on the expanded audio version of the story.Īt 13,325 feet, El Alto International, which serves La Paz, is the highest international airport in the world. Ground controllers there had no radar-and what navigational equipment they did have was spotty-so they relied on the cockpit crew to track their own position. On January 1, 1985, the mostly empty Boeing 727 was headed from Asunción, Paraguay, to Miami, with stopovers in Bolivia and Ecuador. In the Air Force, he was known for buzzing the tower and other hijinks, but he’d joined Miami-based Eastern only a few months before, and during a tricky approach in the middle of a thunderstorm would not have been the moment to chime in. Sitting behind both, flight engineer Mark Bird was a retired fighter jock. No foolishness, especially when descending through a mountain valley in bad weather. ![]() Copilot Ken Rhodes was a straightforward military man. Pilot Larry Campbell was responsible for the safety of everyone on the flight, and this was just his second landing in the Bolivian city of La Paz. ![]() The 29 people on board would have just heard the engines change pitch and felt the nose dip slightly, seat belts tugging at their stomachs. ![]() By the time it crashed, Eastern Air Lines Flight 980 would have been just about ready to land. Beverage carts stowed, seat backs upright, tray tables locked.
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