Description
Book Synopsis At the height of the Watergate scandal, Delta Flight 723 crashed into a fog-shrouded seawall at the end of Runway 4R at Logan Airport in Boston. While this incident and Watergate seemed unrelated at first, President Richard Nixon and his subordinates'' actions during Watergate interfered with the ability of the National Transportation Safety Board to properly investigate the crash. It wasn''t until three court cases, a federal investigation, congressional hearings, as well as a state investigation, when the true cause of the accident was exposed ten years later.
This is also the story of Air Force Sergeant Leopold Chouinard and his incredible fight for survival. Chouinard survived the initial impact of the crash, only to suffer third and fourth degree burns on the majority of his body. Doctors fought against incredible odds to try and save Chouinard''s life. For 134 days, Leo Chouinard defied all expectations as his doctors and nurses applied the latest advancements in
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments
Preface
Introduction
Abbreviations
1. Fog Warning
2. Passengers and Crew
3. Merger
4. "Let Me Get Off the Plane"
5. "Partial Obscuration"
6. "He Didn't Say to Go On Down"
7. "I Don't Trust That Thing"
8. "A Large, Long Flame"
9. "Aircraft Down on 4R"
10. "My Name Is Leo Chouinard"
11. The NTSB
12. "Avoid Public Criticism of the FAA"
13. "We Are Going to Do Everything We Can to Save You"
14. "Thousands and Thousands of Pieces of the Plane All Over"
15. "Criminally Negligent"
16. "You Want to Get Warned About Hitting the Ground"
17. "Trying to Use This Accident in a Cheap Political Way"
18. "We're Dealing with a Burn That Is Normally a Fatal Burn"
19. "The Administration Has Made Repeated Attempts to Both Harass and Intimidate the Board"
20. "There Is a Record of Malfunctions"
21. "If He Was Going to Die, We Did Not Want Him Dying on Our Watch"
22. "Leo, You're an Uncle"
23. "The Result of Nonstandard Air Traffic Control Services"
24. "An Unusually Foggy Day"
25. "Mr. Taylor Simply Forgot About Delta 723"
26. "The Interrelationship Existing Between Pilot and Ground Personnel Can Best Be Characterized as One Requiring Extensive Cooperation"
27. "Short Circuits Caused by Particles Produced Mechanical Misalignment"
28. "You Are Not Going to Get Rid of Me, Mike"
Chapter Notes
Bibliography
Index
