BCPA Flight 304
On the morning of October 29, 1953, a Douglas DC-6 named Resolution was flying the final leg of a transpacific route from Honolulu to San Francisco when it flew into a hillside near Half Moon Bay, California. All 19 people aboard — 8 crew and 11 passengers — were killed. Among the dead was American concert pianist William Kapell, 31 years old and considered one of the most gifted pianists of his generation, returning from a concert tour in Australia. The accident left no survivors and few answers that the aviation investigators could state with certainty.
The Final Approach
Captain Bruce N. Dickson, 34, and First Officer Frank A. Campbell, 28, were experienced crew — each had several thousand hours in the DC-6 and had each made more than 100 approaches into San Francisco Airport, including many instrument approaches in fog. The weather that morning was overcast but not dangerous for instrument conditions. At 8:39 a.m., Dickson reported to San Francisco approach control that the aircraft was over Half Moon Bay at 500 feet on top of the clouds, preparing to turn inbound. Three minutes later he reported 'southeast, turning inbound.' At 8:45, no response came. All subsequent calls went unanswered.
The Wreckage in the Hills
Investigators found the wreckage in mountainous terrain southwest of San Francisco, about seven and a half miles southeast of Half Moon Bay town, at approximately 1,950 feet elevation. The aircraft had first struck the tops of large redwood trees, shearing off one landing gear and leaving it hung in an oak. It then crossed a narrow ravine and struck the side of a steeply rising slope about a half mile beyond the first tree strike. The landing gear was down and locked at the time of impact. There was no evidence of mechanical or structural failure before impact.
The Probable Cause
The Civil Aeronautics Board concluded that the probable cause was crew error in position assessment. Investigators believed that Dickson, after reporting his position over Half Moon Bay, either briefly saw terrain through a break in the overcast and became convinced he was farther northeast than he actually was, or made a radio navigational error that led him to begin a descent over terrain rather than over water. The flight struck the hills before completing its instrument approach. The death of William Kapell amplified the tragedy in the public consciousness — he had been on his way home after his first Australian tour, where critics had acclaimed him as one of the finest interpreters of Chopin and Prokofiev of his era.
From the Air
The crash site is located at approximately 37.406N, 122.325W in the hills above Half Moon Bay on the San Francisco Peninsula. The terrain rises steeply from the Pacific coast to over 2,000 feet. Nearest airports: Half Moon Bay Airport (KHAF), about 5 nm northwest; San Francisco International (KSFO), about 13 nm northeast. The coastal range here regularly traps marine fog during autumn mornings.