Wreckage of Pan Am plane that shaped aviation safety found 74 years on
The wreckage of the Pan American Airways plane, the Clipper Endeavor, has been discovered 74 years after its crash off the coast of Puerto Rico. The aircraft went down on April 11, 1952, due to multiple engine failures shortly after takeoff.

Briefing Summary
AI-generatedThe wreckage of the Pan American Airways plane, the Clipper Endeavor, has been discovered 74 years after its crash off the coast of Puerto Rico. The aircraft went down on April 11, 1952, due to multiple engine failures shortly after takeoff. While all 69 passengers and crew survived the initial impact, 52 perished as they struggled to access life vests and rafts in the rapidly sinking plane. This tragedy spurred significant aviation safety reforms, most notably the introduction of mandatory pre-flight safety briefings on all commercial flights. The discovery was made using a sonar-equipped drone by the Air/Sea Heritage Foundation in partnership with Expedition Unknown.
Article analysis
Model · rule-basedKey claims
5 extracted"We are all stunned and elated by this discovery, yet also humbled to remember what happened in that place so long ago," said Russ Matthews, president of the Air/Sea Heritage Foundation.
The disaster led to sweeping reforms in aviation safety, including compulsory pre-flight safety briefings on every commercial flight.
The plane crashed on April 11, 1952, following multiple-engine failure shortly after take-off, resulting in the deaths of 52 out of 69 people onboard.
The wreckage of a Pan American Airways plane, the Clipper Endeavor, has been found 74 years after it crashed off the coast of Puerto Rico.
The wreckage was located 2,000ft below sea level using a sonar-equipped drone.