What happened
On the day of the accident, two Boeing B-29 Superfortress aircraft were operating at high altitude. The first aircraft, a B-29-70-BW with registration 44-69939, was cruising at 26,000 feet with an 11-person crew on board. Flying approximately 1,000 feet above this plane was a second Boeing B-29-50-MO, registered as 44-86364, which was carrying 10 crew members.
The sequence of events began when one of the engines on the upper aircraft failed. This mechanical failure caused the second bomber to lose altitude, placing it directly in the flight path of the lower aircraft. The two bombers collided while flying at Flight Level 260. Following the impact, both planes entered an uncontrollable descent toward the earth.
During the subsequent dive, three crew members managed to escape the wreckage via parachute: two from the first aircraft and one from the second. These individuals landed safely and were found uninjured. However, the remaining 18 fatalities occurred when both aircraft struck a prairie area situated roughly 11 miles northwest of Stockton.
Findings
The collision was initiated by an engine failure on the higher-altitude aircraft, which led to a loss of altitude and subsequent mid-air impact.