- Jacob Veldhuyzen van Zanten
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Jacob Veldhuyzen Van Zanten 
An advertisement in the KLM magazine Holland Herald featuring him. The magazines with this ad inside were onboard KLM Flight 4805.Born February 5, 1927
Lisse, NetherlandsDied March 27, 1977 (aged 50)
Tenerife, Canary IslandsNationality Dutch Alma mater KLM Occupation Pilot Known for KLM´s most experienced pilot, Tenerife Airport Disaster This is a Dutch name; the family name is Veldhuyzen van Zanten, not Van Zanten.Jacob Louis Veldhuyzen van Zanten (February 5, 1927 – March 27, 1977) was a Dutch aircraft captain and flight instructor. He was the captain of the ill-fated KLM Royal Dutch Airlines Boeing 747 which was involved in the Tenerife airport disaster.
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Biography
Born in Lisse, Netherlands, Veldhuyzen van Zanten obtained his private pilot’s license on June 21, 1947, and his commercial pilot's license on April 18, 1950. That year, he began working for KLM Royal Dutch Airlines as a flight director, and in 1951, he commenced duty as a first officer on the Douglas DC-3.[1] He then obtained his Flight Radio Telephone Operator’s License on September 22, 1952, Airline Transport Pilot’s License on October 19, 1956, and Flight Navigator’s License on August 6, 1963.
In addition to his duties as a regular line pilot, he had been the chief flight instructor for various aircraft. At the time of his death, he was in charge of training all of KLM's Boeing 747 pilots,[2] and the head of KLM's flight training department. Jan Bartelski, a KLM captain until 1978 and later president of the International Federation of Air Line Pilots' Associations, was a contemporary of Van Zanten and knew him personally. In his book Disasters In The Air, he describes Van Zanten as "a serious and introverted individual but with an open-hearted and friendly disposition. He was a studious type and regarded as the company’s pilot expert on the Boeing 747 systems."[3] When the news of the disaster broke the KLM executives looked for Veldhuyzen van Zanten to lead their investigation, it was only soon after that they found out that he had been involved in the accident.
On January 23, 1971, Veldhuyzen van Zanten was type-rated on the Boeing 747. That same year, Veldhuyzen van Zanten, along with two of his colleagues, went to Seattle to take delivery of KLM’s first 747, the Mississippi (registered PH-BUA).[1] At the time of the disaster, he had 11,700 flight hours (1,545 of which were on the Boeing 747).[4]
Veldhuyzen van Zanten was also the captain featured on many of KLM’s advertisements. While this has been attributed to his high position within KLM, Jan Bartelski, for instance, argues that Veldhuyzen van Zanten was photographed simply because he was the only captain available (due to his responsibilities as a flight instructor) to KLM Public Relations, as others were away flying.[3]
Veldhuyzen van Zanten lived in Sassenheim, Netherlands. Some of his interests included music, the United States, and the Racing Team Holland. He is survived by his wife and two children.
The Tenerife disaster
Main article: Tenerife airport disasterThe Tenerife airport disaster on 27 March 1977 was the collision of two Boeing 747 passenger aircraft on the runway of Los Rodeos Airport (now known as Tenerife North Airport) in Tenerife, Spain; killing 583 people, the crash is the deadliest accident in aviation history. All 248 aboard KLM flight 4805 were killed, as were 335 people on Pan Am flight 1736.
In heavy fog on the airport's only runway, Veldhuizen van Zanten took off and crashed into the top of the Pan Am aircraft, which was backtaxiing in the opposite direction under the direction of Air Traffic Control; the KLM's flight crew had been aware of Pan Am backtaxiing behind them on the same runway. The dense fog prevented visual confirmation; the KLM captain thought that Pan Am had cleared the runway, and started to take off without further clearance to do so. Veldhuyzen van Zanten's actions were the result of a number of other factors, including rumored communication difficulties with Air Traffic Control (accents, and non-standard phraseology - though the Co-Pilot of the Pan Am dismisses this theory); he thought he had been given clearance (whilst given a departure clearance, it was not a take off clearance), and the Control Tower assumed that the KLM 747 remained stationary on the runway.
Aircraft type ratings
Veldhuyzen van Zanten was rated for the following aircraft[4]:
- Douglas DC-3 from 28 September 1951 to 20 June 1962.
- Convair CV240/340 from 23 August 1952 to 20 June 1962.
- Lockheed Constellation from 1 October 1952 to 20 June 1962.
- Douglas DC-6 from 12 February 1957 to 20 June 1962.
- Douglas DC-7C from 6 June 1957 to 20 June 1962.
- Vickers Viscount 803 from 11 June 1959 to 21 July 1967.
- Douglas DC-8 from 16 March 1967 to 9 June 1971.
- Boeing 747 from 23 January 1971 to 27 March 1977.
References
- ^ a b "Wie was Veldhuyzen van Zanten?". Project Tenerife. http://project-tenerife.com/nederlands/wiewasvz.htm. Retrieved 2010-01-23.
- ^ Meisler, Stanley (1977-03-30). "'He Is Going to Kill Us,' Pan Am Pilot Exclaimed". Los Angeles Times: p. B1.
- ^ a b Bartelski, Jan (2001). Disasters in the air: mysterious air disasters explained. Airlife. pp. ?. ISBN 9781840372045.
- ^ a b "Part One of the Spanish Report". Project Tenerife. http://project-tenerife.com/nederlands/PDF/Spanish_report.PDF. Retrieved 2010-01-23.
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Categories:- 1927 births
- 1977 deaths
- Flight instructors
- Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents
- People from Lisse
- Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in Spain
- Dutch aviators
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