Mile 62.5 - Chuar Butte

Chuar Butte boasts an impressive sandstone face that is starkly visible from river level after rounding the bend below the Little Colorado River. In 1956, two commercial airliners, a United DC7 and and TWA Super Constellation collided over the butte and surrounding area. There were no survivors among the 100 plus passengers and crew. Debris rained down on Chuar Butte and nearby “Crash” Canyon requiring a dramatic recovery effort by authorities, which included the assistance from an expert Swiss climbing and mountaineering team. The disaster -at the time the most costly in the civilian realm as far as number of lives lost- was a catalyst for the creation of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).