Family Plane Crash: Ripping Through the Trees

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0:57It's just after 3pm on Saturday, March 2nd, 1974. In the Colorado Rockies, about 12 miles south of the town of Glenwood Springs, skiers carve through freshly groomed snow at the Sunlight Mountain ski area. Despite the promise of its name, Sunlight Mountain shivers today beneath dishwater grey clouds. The temperature hovers around freezing. A bitter wind rolls in, blowing fine, powdery spindrift across the slopes. Not that the weather has kept the visitors away. Schools have just broken up for spring break, and between dark ranks of spruce and aspen, hundreds weave their way downhill, squeezing in the last runs of the afternoon.

1:43Overhead, chairlifts stretch across the slopes like power lines. Seated in one, their skis dangling over the edge are nine-year-old Danny Schaefer and his older brother David As the chairlift clanks along, ferrying its passengers up the mountain, Danny gazes out over the tops of the evergreens The Schaefers arrived from Denver earlier today for a weekend ski trip, and so far it's been a blast As they near the end of the lift, Danny hears something in the distance a faint, high-pitched whine. He squints across the valley, and there, barely visible against the white mountainside rising behind it, is a tiny propeller plane.

2:27Immediately, it's clear that something isn't right. The plane shudders in the air, as if running on fumes. And what's it doing flying so close to the mountain? When the chairlift deposits them at the top of the run, Danny skis to a lookout spot and peers in the direction of the aircraft. He'd seen the plane while he was on the chairlift, so as he got off the chairlift, he quickly skied to a spot on the side of the run where he could have a better view of it. Danny watches as the aircraft turns suddenly, its left wing dropping low as it attempts to fly over a snowy, forested ridgeline. Then, as if in slow motion, the plane's wing appears to clip the top of a tree before it drops and vanishes behind the ridge in a cloud of smoke.

3:18Danny stares, his pulse quickening. Hoping he wasn't the only witness, he turns to his brother. Unfortunately, his brother was not looking at the time, so when he said, did you see that, he said, no, I didn't see anything. Later, when they rejoin their parents on the slopes, Danny tells his dad about what he saw. But he can't get him to take his story seriously. His dad questioned him and said, are you sure people down here saw that plane too? Maybe it just disappeared over the horizon. And so Danny began to doubt what he saw, and he just sort of let it go.

4:00Meanwhile, less than a mile to the west, just below a secluded ridge, the wreckage of an aircraft lies smoldering in the trees. And inside the crumpled fuselage, half buried in debris, are two other brothers, aged 8 and 11. Their names are Mark and Andy Godfrey. I remember kind of the point of impact where you just hear sounds and noises and violent deceleration, a crash, just that moment where I black out. It was just the tearing sound of ripping through the trees, and then I think we must have hit one final tree to come to rest, and that's when I was probably thrown forward and knocked unconscious.

4:53Ever wondered what you would do when disaster strikes? If your life depended on your next decision, could you make the right choice? Welcome to Real Survival Stories. These are the astonishing tales of ordinary people thrown into extraordinary situations. People suddenly forced to fight for their lives. In this episode, we meet Mark and Andy Godfrey. In March 1974, the two brothers, just 8 and 11 years old, are traveling with their mom, dad, brother and sister to Aspen, Colorado, for the family's annual skiing holiday. The trip is one of the highlights of the year, And as their plane begins its descent over the snow-covered Rocky Mountains, their excitement for the week ahead builds to fever pitch.

5:39When all of a sudden, the mood changes. It stopped being sunny and it started getting cloudy. It started getting a lot more turbulent. Things got very, very serious, very, very quickly. With the aircraft rapidly losing altitude, the pilot appears to have made a critical miscalculation. And while he tries to correct his error, all the family on board can do is hold on tight as the plane struggles to avoid the mountains looming from the clouds. What I really remember is just looking out the left window right next to me and seeing the ground very closely and the trees and just being confused. why we were so low.

6:26And the last thing I remember is my mother screaming, oh my God, we're going to crash. I'm John Hopkins. From the Noiser Podcast Network, this is Real Survival Stories.

7:03It's the evening of Friday, March the 1st, 1974. In a well-to-do suburb of Houston, Texas, inside a large house on a quiet tree-lined street, a family of seven is at home finishing dinner. Drop in on this family most evenings and you'll find a home bustling with noise and activity. But tonight the atmosphere is even livelier than usual, because tomorrow the Godfrey's leave for Aspen, the upscale ski resort in the mountains of Colorado. Once the dishes have been cleared away, 8-year-old Andy scampers upstairs to his bedroom. Of all the Godfrey's, no one is more excited for the coming week. This is just the second year he's been old enough to go on the annual skiing trip, and he can't wait.

7:51I had gone the year before at the age of seven. Before that, I would be left behind with my grandparents because I was just too young to go on the family trip. So I had gone the year before in 1973, probably my first time skiing. I was extremely excited to learn how to ski. So when March of 1974 rolled around, I was extremely excited again.

8:18Andy is the second youngest of five. The birth of his sister Paula 18 months ago means he's no longer the baby of the family. But there's still quite a gap between him and his eldest siblings, 15-year-old Ellen and 14-year-old Billy. My older brother Billy was, you know, I'd say he sort of ruled the roost. I was just the youngest brother of three, and so I was intimidated by him. He was much bigger and stronger. So, you know, stay out of his room, those kind of things. Hurrying past Billy's off-limits teenage sanctum, Andy pushes open the door of his own bedroom, which he shares with another brother, 11-year-old Mark.

9:00I'd say he was a little bit more quiet than I was, not as quite as outgoing. Part of that might be the dynamic of being a middle child where you're, you know, I don't know, not as expressive. And I'm three and a half years younger than Mark. So for a while there, I was the youngest of four. So I was pretty rambunctious and always getting into things. You might say that Mark is more like his mother and Andy's more like their father in some aspects of their personality. I think that we're, you know, kind of a good yin and yang to each other.

9:41For Mark, a shy middle child in a family of big personalities, it hasn't always been easy to figure out where he fits within that ecosystem. But lately, things have started to fall into place. I was just kind of coming into my own, if you will, and understanding my place in the larger world. if you kind of think back to when you were 10 or 11. You start getting a better grasp of the world at large, if you will. And I remember kind of better understanding where my place was. For all their differences, the Godfrey children share many things. The same fair hair, the same blue eyes and wide, toothy smiles.

10:22They share an aptitude for sport, with Billy in particular showing a lot of promise on the football field. Their father, William, is an executive at a national bank Mother, Deneen, is a homemaker who has her hands full with the five kids In family portraits, the Godfrey's could be an advertisement for the American dream of health, wealth and happiness And it's not just a surface impression, this really is a close-knit unit

10:52Later that Friday evening, Andy and Mark are tucked up in bed, too excited to sleep when the dad comes in to say goodnight.

11:02My dad was a guitar player, and he was a big John Denver fan, so Mark and I remember the night before the accident, he came into our room and played a John Denver song, Rocky Mountain High, as a lullaby to put us to sleep. So to say we were just so excited to be leaving the next morning is a big undersleep. I've read studies that a person's imprint, if you will, their character, their personality, is basically set in the first three years of their life. So, you know, if you're swaddled in love and protection and happiness, I think that has a big impact on your overall personality and your outlook in the world going forward.

11:54It's the following morning. The Godfrey's carry their bags across the tarmac of a Houston airfield. The only member of the family missing is the toddler, Paula. She'll be staying behind with the grandparents. Up ahead, its red and orange fuselage gleaming in the Texas sun, is a small twin-engine turboprop plane. Recently the bank where William Godfrey works acquired this Mitsubishi MU-2 aircraft for its executives to use at their leisure. In previous years, the family has always flown commercial. The upgrade to a private plane lends a distinct glamour to their departure. Young Andy can barely contain himself.

12:36I was so excited to get on that plane. For some reason, I wanted to sit in the co-pilot seat when we took off. And my older brother, Billy, had already decided that he was going to be sitting there. So we had this little negotiation, which is very surprising because, as I said before, I was totally intimidated by him. While the bags are loaded into the overhead compartments, Andy summons up the nerve to challenge his big brother. For some reason, this day, I had the courage to say, I really want to sit there, Billy. So he said, fine, I'll sit in the co-pilot seat when we take off and you can sit there when we land.

13:16And I was like, okay, deal. So I ended up going and sitting in the back left seat of the airplane, and Mark was in the back right seat. Satisfied with his negotiating, Andy buckles in next to Mark at the back of the plane. A few moments later, the pilot sparks the engines. The propellers splutter into life. And as they accelerate down the runway, the fuselage rattling and shuddering, Mark shifts nervously in his seat. A shadow of unease passes over his face. I remember being on the plane, looking around the plane. I remember this memory very vividly and thinking something could happen to the plane and we're all together and that would not be good.

14:04And I remember putting that out of my brain and saying, well, that's not going to happen. We're all together. Everything's going to be fine, Mark. Don't worry about that. Soon they reach cruising altitude The aircraft leveling just below the clouds Mark glances around at the smiling, carefree faces of his family And manages, at last, to relax There was a lot of, you know, energy, excitement There were a lot of snacks on board So we were, you know, eating whatever snacks were available so it was a carefree atmosphere with kind of no worries or concerns. It's about three hours later. So far the flight has been smooth and uneventful.

14:52The pilot has flown them over central Texas and the northwest corner of New Mexico before crossing into Colorado, pointing out sights of interest along the way. The weather has been clear, providing those on board with magnificent views of the landscape below, the topography shifting from wide open prairie land to high desert plains, and finally to the snow-flecked foothills of the Rockies. In the cockpit, the pilot reduces their speed and eases the controls into a gentle descent towards Aspen. A few minutes later, they enter a layer of dense, low-hanging cloud. At this stage, heavy turbulence might cause some of the passengers to experience a sudden sinking feeling in the pit of their stomachs.

15:40Realizing they must nearly be there, Andy unbuckles his seatbelt and makes his way unsteadily up the aisle. It's time for Billy to uphold his end of the bargain. I walked up to the front and I said, Billy, we're almost in asthma. It's my turn to sit there. and he said, no, for whatever reason. Maybe he was nervous because it was so bumpy and getting kind of scary. He said, go back to your seat. So I went back to my seat. Andy remonstrates under his breath. He skulks back to his seat and in his indignation forgets to refasten his seatbelt. On the other side of the aisle, Mark is staring out of the window.

16:20There's no view anymore. The landscape has been swallowed by a swirling mass of leaden cloud. It presses itself against the cabin window, like it's trying to force its way inside. At some point, it stopped being sunny, and it started getting cloudy. At some point, it started getting a lot more turbulent. And I do remember we were, I won't say final approach, but we knew we were near Aspen, that things got very, very serious very, very quickly. In the eerie twilight beyond the window, the propellers seem to labor against the frigid air, the wings seesaw. A strange, clattering sound emanates from the cockpit as a blizzard of ice crystals pelts the windscreen.

17:07In the space of seconds, things have gone from light and cheery to subdued and fraught. Knuckles whiten around armrests. Billy calls back from the co-pilot seat a dark joke Comparing the situation to a new story from a couple of years ago About the Uruguayan rugby team whose plane crashed in the Andes His parents are quick to admonish him The comment feels too close to the bone It was the tone in my mother's voice And then probably my father's voice too that flipped the switch Hearing them reprimand our brother and telling him to be quiet in a tone that I'd probably never heard before. It's become clear by now that this is not just a spot of bad turbulence.

17:56Something has gone seriously wrong. As the pilot wrestles with the controls, William and Deneen do their best to reassure the children. Andy, meanwhile, turns his head to the side, his gaze fixed on the window. What I really remember is just looking out the left window right next to me. and seeing the ground very closely and the trees and just being confused why we were so low. As they drop even lower, mountains loom through the clouds, craggy peaks and frozen cliffs banded with black granite. Dark tracts of forest appear, close enough to make out the individual boughs weighted down with snow.

18:44Mark stares terrified, unable to pull his eyes away What I saw vividly is what looked to me like the ground rushing up to the plane Obviously it was the other way around The plane was falling very quickly to the ground But I saw trees coming up at a very rapid pace up to the window The plane banks sharply

19:11Somewhere down below, alpine pistes weave through the trees Skiers and hikers are enjoying themselves Making the most of the last decent snow of the season Unaware that just beyond a ridge to the west Something terrible is unfolding in the frozen air I heard the jet engines, the turboprop engines Whining at a very high pitch and the last thing I remember is my mother screaming, oh my God, we're going to crash. At approximately 3.30 p.m., as the pilot tries to maneuver the aircraft over an alpine ridge, the slanting left wing shears the top of an 100-foot spruce tree, which is all it takes. I remember kind of the point of impact where you just hear sounds and noises and violent deceleration, a crash, just that moment where I black out.

20:08It was just the tearing sound of ripping through the trees. And then I can remember the impact, sort of like a luge, you know, hitting the snow and sliding. And then I think we must have hit one final tree to come to rest. And that's when I was probably thrown forward and knocked unconscious.

20:36It is Saturday, March 2nd, 1974. A few miles south of Glenwood Springs, Colorado, the mountains are bound tightly by a deadening layer of snow and frost. Millions of spruce trees, twisted and bare, stand huddled against the landscape like shivering battalions, backs bent from countless harsh winters. Just one valley over, the lights of a bustling ski resort glow invitingly. But this side of the mountain remains obscured, shrouded in a crepuscular gloom. The silence is deafening, the stillness absolute. Early this afternoon, a sound threatened to disturb the quiet, a muffled whomp, accompanied by a shrill metallic rending that reverberated fleetingly in the thin alpine air before it was snuffed out, swallowed by the snow.

21:34But the source of the sound did leave a trace. Just below the crest of a tree-lined ridge, something has gouged a ragged path through the pines, leaving a trail of broken branches and a scattering of loose debris. The path leads downhill about a hundred feet before arriving at a pile of hideously compacted metal, barely recognizable as the fuselage of an airplane. Wings sheared off, cockpit caved in, engine cowlings ripped asunder. The bodies of the pilot and the six passengers are still strapped into their seats. All except for one. Eight-year-old Andy Godfrey lies in a heap of shattered glass and mangled aluminium.

22:24He's unconscious, but breathing. And slowly, Andy's eyelids twitch ajar. I wasn't sure if it was dawn or dusk, but I think we crashed around 3 o 'clock on Saturday afternoon. And so maybe I was unconscious for half an hour, an hour. I have no idea, but this is where it gets foggy because I think I was so concussed. It is in this state of shock that Andy hears a voice, his mother's. In the seconds before she slips away, Deneen Godfrey manages to pass on some crucial words of advice to her son She literally gave me marching orders as she was passing away She said, conserve the food, take care of your brother, and don't stray from the plane And he turns his head There, about five feet away from him, is eleven-year-old Mark Badly hurt, clearly stunned, but alive.

23:28He was really shaken up and maybe had a little bit of blood on him and stuff. So that was a very scary memory. But it also must have been comforting, too, to see that I wasn't alone. There was someone else with me. While his brother crawls through the wreckage towards him, Mark drifts in and out of consciousness. His injuries are more severe than Andy's. His legs are pinned under the seat in front. which was shoved into him as the plane concertinaed. I remember having hallucinations. For a long time, I used to think of them as dreams, but now as I get older, I realize I was hallucinating vividly.

24:07I thought I was anywhere but where I was. I thought I was in the bathroom of our house in Houston. I thought I was in other places. Gradually, Mark's delirium wears off. But being lucid doesn't make any of this easier to process. It still seems like a nightmare, one that he might yet wake up from. I would have been so disoriented that it would have taken me a long time to kind of grasp what had happened. And then the grasping of what had happened was completely overwhelming. And I think almost too much to process. Andy had been knocked out less, and he was maybe moving around a little bit more.

24:52And I think us talking and us, you know, confirming for each other, if you will, what had happened helps introduce some level of reality into the situation because you're able to talk to somebody about it. But sometimes words fail. At eight years old, Andy is only in the second grade. Mark has just started middle school. Less than 24 hours ago, they were being tucked in, having a lullaby sung to them. And now, here they are, in the cold and the dark, with everything they know upended. Paralyzed by fear, it's only natural that they grasp for familiarity. And so, as night falls around them, the brothers do what they've always done when the sun goes down.

25:43They close their eyes, and eventually drift off to sleep.

25:54It's morning. The sky above the wreckage is a pole of white. A few miles away, in Glenwood Springs, skiers anxiously await weather updates, as major blizzard warnings threaten the closure of certain runs. Inside the fuselage, a grey translucence leaks through the cracks in the ruptured metal. Andy and Mark, their woollen jumpers stiff with frost, open their eyes to the daylight and peer around. Andy and I slowly became aware of our surroundings. Our mother was trapped, I think, very close to me, if not, you know, partly on top of me, with broken skis and broken plane parts and things like that.

26:43So that is a tough memory to have. I don't think we had identified any other family members in the general vicinity of us that I can recall. Everything is a crumpled mess. Sharp, metallic, angular. Mark can't free his legs from whatever's trapping them. And if he moves his head, it scrapes the bottom of the collapsed roof. He is stuck, entombed in debris. For Andy, who wasn't buckled in when the plane crashed, he is able to move around a bit more. At one stage, he even leaves the fuselage, clambering through a jagged hole in the side of the plane and emerging into a snowy wasteland enclosed by towering evergreens.

27:31I do remember stepping outside the airplane just to sort of see if I could walk away or something, and the snow was so deep, that scared me, so I hopped right back in. As soon as Andy steps outside, his mother's instructions come back to him. I'm sure her words were sort of echoing, you know, don't leave the airplane. And conserve the food and take care of your brother. Andy pulls himself back inside the fuselage, kicking the snow from his shoes. The urge to run off and find help might be strong, but that's exactly what he was instructed not to do. Besides, he can't abandon his brother.