Arrow Air Flight 1285R was an international charter flight carrying U.S. Army personnel from Cairo, Egypt, to their home base in Fort Campbell, Kentucky, US, via Cologne, West Germany, and Gander, Newfoundland. On the morning of Thursday, 12 December 1985, shortly after takeoff from Canada's Gander International Airport en route to Fort Campbell, the McDonnell Douglas DC-8 serving the flight stalled, crashed, and burned about half a mile from the runway, killing all 248 passengers and 8 crew members on board. , it is the deadliest aviation accident to occur on Canadian soil. At the time of the crash, it was the deadliest aviation accident involving a DC-8; its death toll was surpassed by the crash of Nigeria Airways Flight 2120 nearly six years later. The dissenting report led to delays in changes to de-icing procedures, and a thin layer of ice caused the deadly crashes of Air Ontario Flight 1363 in Canada in 1989 and USAir Flight 405 in 1992.
In response to lack of confidence in accident investigations by the CASB, the Government of Canada shut the board down in 1990, replacing it with an independent, multi-modal investigative agency – the Transportation Safety Board of Canada. boarded the aircraft before it departed for Gander at 02:50 UTC.
<blockquote>The Canadian Aviation Safety Board was unable to determine the exact sequence of events that led to this accident. The Board believes, however, that the weight of evidence supports the conclusion that, shortly after lift-off, the aircraft experienced an increase in drag and reduction in lift that resulted in a stall at low altitude from which recovery was not possible. The most probable cause of the stall was determined to be ice contamination on the leading edge and upper surface of the wing. Other possible factors such as a loss of thrust from the number four engine and inappropriate takeoff reference speeds may have compounded the effects of the contamination.</blockquote>
Four (of nine) members of the CASB dissented, issuing a minority opinion asserting that there was no evidence presented proving that ice had been present on leading edges such as the wings, and the minority report speculated that "An in-flight fire that may have resulted from detonations of undetermined origin brought about catastrophic system failures." As a result, the Canadian public's confidence in the CASB was undermined. The federal government responded by creating the Transportation Safety Board of Canada.
Aftermath
Caskets being carried in for a memorial service at [[Dover AFB on 16 December 1985|thumb|right]]
The "Silent Witness" by Kentucky artist Steve Shields. Arrow Air Flight 1285R memorial at Gander Lake, with a DC-8 taking off in the background|thumb|right
Arrow Air Flight 1285R memorial in Fort Campbell, Kentucky|thumb|right
On the day of the crash, responsibility was claimed by the Islamic Jihad Organization (de-facto part of Hezbollah). Islamic Jihad had already claimed responsibility for the 1983 Beirut barracks bombings that killed more than 200 American Marines. The claim was dismissed by the Canadian and U.S. governments soon after. According to United Press International, "Hours after the crash the Islamic Jihad – a Shiite Muslim extremist group – claimed it destroyed the plane to prove [its] ability to strike at the Americans anywhere." Pentagon and Canadian government officials rejected the claim, made by an anonymous caller to a French news agency in Beirut.
The death toll of all 256 people on board – 248 U.S. servicemen and 8 crew members, still constitutes the deadliest plane crash in Canada, and the U.S. Army's single deadliest air crash in peacetime.
Of the 248 servicemen, all but twelve were members of 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), most of whom were from the 3d Battalion, 502nd Infantry; eleven were from other Forces Command units; and one was an agent from the Criminal Investigations Command (CID).
On 16 December 1985, President Ronald Reagan, accompanied by the First Lady Nancy Reagan, attended a memorial service at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, where he said:
"Some people think of members of the military as only warriors, fierce in their martial expertise. But the men and women we mourn today were peacemakers. They were there to protect life and preserve a peace, to act as a force for stability and hope and trust. Their commitment was as strong as their purpose was pure. And they were proud. They had a rendezvous with destiny and a potential they never failed to meet. Their work was a perfect expression of the best of the Judeo-Christian tradition. They were the ones of whom Christ spoke when He said, 'Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God'."
A memorial to the 256 victims at the crash site overlooks Gander Lake, and another memorial was erected at Fort Campbell. There is also a Memorial Park in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, just north of Fort Campbell. , the scar from the crash is still visible from the ground and by satellite.
The dissenting report led to delays in changes to de-icing procedures, later made after a thin layer of ice caused the deadly crash of Air Ontario Flight 1363 in Canada in 1989. In response to lack of confidence in accident investigations by the CASB, the government of Canada shut down the board in 1990, replacing it with an independent, multi-modal investigative agency – the Transportation Safety Board of Canada.
The mystery crime series Unsolved Mysteries explores speculation about the crash in season 5 episode 30 (aired on 5 May 1993)
The television documentary series Mayday featured the Flight 1285R crash and investigation in season 11 episode 3 titled "Split Decision" (aired on 26 August 2011) which included interviews with accident investigators and a dramatic recreation of the accident.