TWA Flight 260

TWA Flight 260
A Martin 4-0-4 of Trans World Airlines, similar to the aircraft involved.
Accident
DateFebruary 19, 1955 (1955-02-19)
SummaryControlled flight into terrain
SiteSandia Mountains, Bernalillo County, New Mexico, United States
35°11′38″N 106°26′31″W / 35.194°N 106.442°W / 35.194; -106.442
Aircraft
Aircraft typeMartin 4-0-4
OperatorTrans World Airlines
IATA flight No.TW260
ICAO flight No.TWA260
Call signTWA 260
RegistrationN40416
Flight originAlbuquerque International Airport, New Mexico, United States
DestinationSanta Fe Municipal Airport, New Mexico, United States
Occupants16
Passengers13
Crew3
Fatalities16
Survivors0

TWA Flight 260 was a scheduled passenger flight by Trans World Airlines (TWA) from Albuquerque, New Mexico, to Santa Fe, New Mexico, in the United States. On February 19, 1955, the 40-passenger Martin 4-0-4 prop plane servicing the route crashed into the Sandia Mountains, killing all 16 passengers and crew members. Its deviation from the normal flight path, initially believed to be the result of pilot error, was revised to "unknown" given that the contribution of other factors could not be definitively ruled out. The crash remains the deadliest aviation incident in New Mexico history.