ON THIS DAY WITH SHAUN WALLACE March 27, 1977

THE DEADLIEST air crash in aviation history took place when two jumbo jets collided in Tenerife, killing 583 people. That day the island was shrouded in heavy fog.

Los Rodeos airport was also unusually busy – a bomb, planted by the Canary Islands Independence Movement, had exploded at Gran Canaria airport, injuring eight. It meant many planes were diverted to the smaller island of Tenerife at the last minute, adding to the pressure on pilots and the control tower.

Both planes involved were waiting to depart. The first, a Pan Am 747, was taxiing ahead of takeoff but its route left it on the main runway. The second 747, a KLM jet, was waiting at the other end. The KLM pilot, the hugely experienced Captain Jacob van Zanten, believed – wrongly, it was later claimed – that he had been given clearance for takeoff. He throttled up the runway, unaware that the other jumbo was in his

path. The KLM jet tried to clear the Pan Am plane, with Captain van Zanten pulling back so hard on the control stick sparks flew from the rear of the plane as it hit the tarmac. But it was too late.

It smashed into the side of the Pan Am flight as it rose, tearing the fuselage off.

Both planes exploded and the KLM jet broke into three pieces as it hurtled along the runway, killing all 248 on board.

A further 335 were killed on the Pan Am flight, although 60 – including the pilot – survived. Many factors played a part, not least the congestion, the weather and the earlier bombing.

Meanwhile, Captain van Zanten believed he was good to go and had no reason to suspect another plane lurked in his path.

But the controller believed he had only cleared the jet to “prepare” for take-off.

The disaster led to many changes, including greater clarity of language between the control tower and pilots.

Question: On this day in 1915, Mary Mallon was forcibly quarantined in the US and remained isolated for the rest of her life. By what name is she better known?

Last week I asked: Which Roman poet, best known for writing the Metamorphoses, was born on April 20, 43BC? OVID.