What happened
A flight departing from Ramstein Air Base, destined for Dhahran to deliver food, medical supplies, and equipment for US personnel in Saudi Arabia, crashed shortly after takeoff. The aircraft departed from runway 27 during nighttime operations. While maintaining a speed of approximately 161 knots at an altitude between 50 and 100 feet, the plane ceased its ascent and began a leftward roll.
During this maneuver, the left wing made contact with pine trees, which resulted in the separation of engine number one from the airframe. Following this impact, the aircraft became uncontrollable, lost altitude, and struck a wooded area situated roughly one kilometer beyond the runway threshold. The impact caused the total destruction of the four-engine aircraft. The accident resulted in 13 fatalities and 4 serious injuries.
Findings
Investigations into the accident revealed that the primary factor was the unintended deployment of the engine number one thrust reverser immediately after liftoff, which was triggered by a technical malfunction.