Sabena Flight 548 was a scheduled international passenger flight from Idlewild Airport in New York City to Brussels Airport in Belgium. On 15 February 1961, the Boeing 707 operating the flight crashed on approach to Brussels Airport, killing all 72 people on board and one person on the ground. The fatalities included the entire United States figure skating team, which was traveling to the World Figure Skating Championships in Prague, Czechoslovakia. The precise cause of the crash remains unknown; the most likely explanation was thought to be a failure of the mechanism that adjusts the tail stabilizer. This was the first fatal accident involving a Boeing 707 in regular passenger service; it happened 28 months after the 707 airliner had been placed into commercial use. It remains the deadliest plane crash to have occurred on Belgian soil.
Accident There were 11 crew members on board the flight. The two pilots, 43-year-old Louis Lambrechts (15,384 flight hours) and 48-year-old Jean Roy (16,231 flight hours), were both former military pilots. There were no difficulties reported during the seven-and-one-half hour transatlantic flight from New York, although the flight crew lost radio contact with the Brussels airport about 20 minutes before approaching to land. Under clear skies, at about 10:00 Brussels time (CET; 09:00 UTC), the Boeing 707 was on a long approach to Runway 20 when, near the runway threshold and at a height of 900 feet (270 m), power was increased and the landing gear retracted. The airplane had been forced to cancel its final approach, as a small plane had not yet cleared the runway. The 707 circled the airport and again attempted to land on the adjoining Runway 25, which was not operational, but this second approach was also aborted. Witnesses observed that the pilots were fighting for control of the aircraft, attempting to land despite a mechanical malfunction preventing a normal landing. The plane circled the airfield three times altogether, and the plane's bank angle gradually increased until the aircraft had climbed to 1,500 feet (460 m) and was in a near vertical bank. It then leveled its wings, pitched up abruptly, lost speed and spiraled rapidly, nose-down, plunging into the ground less than two miles (3 km) from the airport at 10:05 CET (09:05 UTC). The plane crashed in a marshy area adjacent to farmland near Berg, four miles northeast of Brussels. Eyewitnesses said that the plane exploded and burst into flames. A farmer working nearby was killed by flying debris, which also struck a second worker, whose leg was subsequently partially amputated. Airport rescue vehicles arrived at the crash site almost immediately, but the plane was already engulfed in flames. Baudouin I, King of the Belgians, and his consort Queen Fabiola traveled to the scene of the disaster to provide comfort to the bereaved families. They donated oak coffins bearing the royal seal to transport the bodies back to their homes.
Loss of American figure skating team All 18 members of the 1961 American figure skating team, traveling to the World Figure Skating Championships in Prague, were killed, as well as 16 others who were accompanying them, including family members, coaches and skating officials. Among the fatalities were nine-time U.S. ladies' champion-turned-coach Maribel Vinson-Owen and her two daughters: reigning U.S. ladies' champion Laurence Owen, age 16, and her 20-year-old sister, reigning U.S. pairs champion Maribel Owen. Both had won gold medals at the 1961 U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Colorado Springs, Colorado, just two weeks earlier. Laurence Owen appeared on the cover of the 13 February issue of Sports Illustrated just two days before her death. Maribel Owen's pairs champion partner Dudley Richards and reigning U.S. men's champion Bradley Lord were also killed, along with U.S. ice dance champions Diane Sherbloom and Larry Pierce. Also killed were U.S. men's silver medalist Gregory Kelley, U.S. ladies' silver medalist Stephanie Westerfeld and U.S. ladies' bronze medalist Rhode Lee Michelson. Some national teams had already arrived in Prague. The competition's organizers initially confirmed that the event would proceed, but the International Skating Union conducted a poll on 16 February regarding the most appropriate course of action, and the voters elected to cancel the event. A telegram was sent from ISU headquarters reading: "In view of the tragic death of 44 [sic] American skaters and officials the 1961 world championship will not be held." Prague was awarded the event for the following year.
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