United Crew Relives Fright of Crash, Vows to Fly Again

CHICAGO — Flight attendants from United Airlines Flight 232 today relived the sights and sounds of a crash landing in Iowa that one called “a roller coaster ride with special effects.”

Cabin crew members from the ill-fated DC-10 jet, which crashed nine days ago in a cornfield near the Sioux City airport, shuddered remembering the chaos of the crash.

“To come out and to look and see nothing but debris. . . . I said, ‘Oh God, where is the other half of the plane?’ ” flight attendant Donna McGrady recalled through tears.

Trail of Fire, Debris

All but one of the eight working cabin crew members survived the crash, which sent the airplane cartwheeling in a trail of fire and debris, and six of them gathered in Chicago today to share their experiences with colleagues and the news media.

Virginia Murray, a flight attendant who had been seated in the second row, said her impressions of the crash had literally altered her way of looking at life.

“Colors are so vibrant, especially the color green,” she said. “The first thing that I saw were green corn plants coming in . . . and there was the smell of fresh cut grass. It was the most wonderful smell.”

Set Example of Composure

The cabin crew credited flight attendant in charge, Janice Brown, with preventing panic by setting an example of composure.

Brown, speaking in a hushed but steady voice, said she forced her self to remain in control for the sake of the passengers.

“My hand might have betrayed me momentarily, but I willed it to be still,” said Brown, who has worked for United Airlines since 1977.

Timothy Owens, a newly qualified flight attendant, said the crash was like being on a roller coaster ride with bright lights. But Owens, like the other flight crew members, said he intends to resume work in due course.

Considered Death Possibility

Murray said that after the rear engine of the jet blew up there was well over half an hour to confront the possibility of death. The shock of survival was so strong she wondered at first if she was really alive.

Debris from the explosion is thought to have cut the aircraft’s hydraulic lines, forcing the pilot to attempt an emergency landing at Sioux City.

The cabin crew said there had been a number of infants aboard the plane who had to be held on the floor prior to touchdown and they recommended aircraft be equipped with special seats so babies can be secured for landing.

Of the 295 people on the Denver to Chicago flight, there have been 185 survivors, including the cockpit crew. Flight attendant Barbara Gillaspie remains hospitalized. United Airlines was to hold a private memorial service later today for Rene Le Beau, the one crew member to die in the crash.