On the night of March 12, 1948, Northwest Flight 4422 carrying a crew of six and twenty-four Merchant Marines crashed into Alaska's Mount Sanford, thus ending prematurely a flight from Shanghai to New York, and starting a gold legend and adventure that continued into the 1990's. This adventure is based on the book, Flight of Gold , that recounts the crash, and the adventurers who discovered the wreckage in 1995 after it emerged from the glacier. While I highly recommend the book, here is a quick video summary of the real-life adventure that Adventure Pack 2 is based on.


From cf.alpa.org/internet/alp/2001/June-July01pg16.html:

F/O McGregor notes that, since the Air Line Pilot story, the two pilots have received considerable feedback from fellow pilots, speculating on the cause of the crash. The Civil Aeronautics Board report at the time listed the probable cause as "the pilots' failure to see Mt. Sanford" because of cloud cover or being blinded by the aurora borealis.

The research of F/Os McGregor and Millican determined that the latter could have been a factor - the northern lights were reported to be extremely bright on that date. But the pair also suspect the Flight 4422 crew, who were off course, may have mistaken Mt. Drum (at the western end of the Wrangell range) for Mt. Sanford. They may also, the pair speculate, have been thrown off by faulty altimeter settings in the mountain range's sub-zero temperatures.

"They normally flew the correct route at 9,000 feet MSL, but the airplane actually hit the mountain at 11,000 feet MSL," F/O McGregor points out. The cold-weather altimeter error at 13,000 feet and -35 degrees Fahrenheit could have been as much as 1,500 feet, he adds. Although cold weather altimeter error was a known phenomenon in 1948, several years passed before pilots completely understood it and routinely made adjustments for flying in these extreme temperatures. Not all of the pilots in the 1940s had the benefit of that knowledge.

• Fateful Route of Northwest 4422 [Flight# AP21 (PAED-CYEG)]


• Aircraft: DC-4 or similar (helpful to have aircraft that can follow gps heading)
• Weather: Crystal Clear - as it was the night of the crash
• Time: Nightime. Make sure to set your sim to night for this one!
• Scenario: For this scenario you will fly the fateful leg of the six leg flight where Flight 4422 was lost, only we will complete this ill-fated flight leg from PAED to CYEG. The FSX flight plan file is included with this package. Set your altitude for 11,000 feet - the cruise altitude for Flight 4422. This is important to enjoy this scenario. Lastly, make sure to watch closely as you fly past Mount Sanford on the leg from PAGK to ORT . Off to your right the first mountain you'll see is Mount Drum, followed by Mount Sandford. Also included is a freeware of DC-4 for those wishing to add another level of realism.



• PAGK to the East Landing Zone [Flight# AP22 (PAGK-PAGK)]


• Aircraft: Bush - Preferably Tundra Wheels
• Weather: Your discretion, but clear might make it easier to find the site.
• Time: Daytime.
• Scenario: In Scenario 2 you will seek out the East Landing Zone. Fly from Gulkana (PAGK) to the base of Mount Sandford. This was later used as a backup landing zone for the real mission, second landing site they used after the West Landing Zone on the opposite bank (wrong side) of the river. Look for the campfire smoke and use the flight map for guidance. Also note the Nav data at the top of the map for general heading and distance information (though not exact). You may wish to save your flight if you are stopping at this point because the last Scenario starts at the East Landing Zone.



• East Landing Zone to Cub Valley to wrecksite to PAGK [Flight# AP23 (PAGK-PAGK)]


• Aircraft: Bush - Preferably Tundra Wheels
• Weather: Your discretion, but some natural clouds floating by can add a neat experience.
• Time: Daytime.
• Scenario: In Scenario 3 we will fly to the "Cub Valley" Landing Zone, then fly to the wrecksite before returning to Gulkana (PAGK). In addition to the flight map from scenario-2, you should watch for lines of caribou that will guide you in the general direction (up the correct glacier) to find Cub Valley. When you "run out of caribou" continue up the glacier looking for the campfire of Cub Valley Landing Zone. After stopping there for a while, it's time to find the wrecksite. Follow next line of caribou to locate the wrecksite. After photographing enough artifacts to confirm your 'find', return to PAGK to tell the world of your discovery.