- 4 -
Flight 636 took off on Runway 28R at 2305, turned to its right in the direction of Oakland Airport and two minutes later reported to Oakland tower at 2307: "Oakland tower this is Western 636, off San Francisco, Trans-Bay, landing instructions, over." The Oakland tower replied by issuing the following clearance: "Western 636, Trans-Bay, cleared to enter traffic pattern, Runway 27 Right, wind west one zero." The flight acknowledged these instructions.
It is to be noted that at 2301, four minutes before 636 took off from San Francisco, the San Francisco tower called Oakland tower on the interphone and requested a trans-bay clearance for this flight. The Oakland tower replied by issuing the following clearance: "Western 636 is cleared to the Oakland tower via the direct route, remain 'clear of clouds'." The distance between the two airports is approximately 11.5 statue miles. Tower operators in both places stated that they could see the lights of the opposite airport clearly and distinctly at the time.
The Oakland surveillance radar detected Flight 636 just as it was completing the right turn toward that airport and continued to observe it until it was within range of the six-mile scale at which time it was followed on the shorter range scope. At about 2308 tower operators in both Oakland and San Francisco saw a large orange colored flash in the direction of the aircraft's track. The target disappeared from the radar scope at this moment and the radar operator marked its last position as 5.5 miles, on a bearing of 217°, from the Oakland radar. Attempts to contact Flight 636 by both San Francisco and Oakland towers were unsuccessful.
The Oakland tower immediately alerted the San Francisco Coast Guard station and the Alameda Naval Air Station. The Coast Guard quickly dispatched two helicopters and three airplanes to the area, the helicopters being guided by Oakland radar. They illuminated the scene with landing lights and directed the aircraft to a position over the overcast directly above the floating debris from which flares were dropped. The fixed wing aircraft came below the overcast and reported its base as 500 to 600 feet above the water, with visibility restricted to approximately two miles. A helicopter pilot reported that visibility below 300 feet was 12 miles or better and that he could clearly see the lights on both sides of the bay. One stewardess and a male passenger were rescued by a Coast Guard boat and six bodies were recovered by Coast Guard and naval vessels. Bodies of the captain and the flight engineer were not found.
The crash occurred in water averaging 30 feet in depth at mean low tide. A variety of relatively small parts of the aircraft were recovered, the largest of which was the wing center section with the two main landing gears attached. Inspection revealed that the landing gear was fully retracted at impact. One propeller hub with the blades bent and broken was recovered but was damaged to such an extent that blade pitch settings and RPM at the time of impact was indeterminable. The four engines were not recovered because of deep, soft mud on the bottom.
Stewardess Nelson stated that she was seated in the aircraft's lounge at the time of takeoff from San Francisco, and that the takeoff appeared to be normal in all respects. She did not notice whether the "No Smoking" sign
