China Eastern Airlines Flight 583
China Eastern Airlines Flight 583 was a China Eastern Airlines flight from Hongqiao Airport, Shanghai, to Los Angeles International Airport, Los Angeles.
On April 6, 1993, the McDonnell-Douglas MD-11 was cruising above the Pacific Ocean at Mach 0.84 when a crew member accidentally deployed the slats near the Aleutian Islands. The plane then encountered severe oscillations and made an emergency landing at Shemya Air Force Base in Shemya, Semichi Islands, Alaska, United States.
Of the 255 passengers and crew, 60 were hospitalized. Two ultimately died; An American died of his injuries in a hospital. Of the cockpit crew, 5 received no injuries and 3 received serious injuries. Of the flight attendants, 8 received no injuries and 4 received serious injuries. Of the surviving passengers, 84 received no injuries, 96 received minor injuries, and 53 received serious injuries. By April 24, 1993 all but three of the surviving passengers were discharged from the hospital.
Michael Crichton's novel Airframe opens with a fatal incident based on Flight 583.
The airframe, redesignated as N951AR, now serves as a cargo freighter for Miami based Sky Lease Cargo but has since been scrapped.
China Eastern still uses the flight number 583, although the flight now departs from nearby Pudong Airport using a Boeing 777.
