On April 4th, 1977, Southern Airways flight 242, en route from Huntsville to Atlanta, faced severe weather, including hail and thunderstorms. The DC-9's engines failed after encountering a violent hailstorm, leading the pilots to attempt an emergency landing on a rural highway in Georgia.

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From Season 5 Episode 6 "Southern Storm": Southern Airways Flight 242 (DC-9)

The crew of a DC-9 find themselves in a violent storm. Rain and hail are pelting the aircraft. The cockpit windshield shatters. When both engines give out the crew has no option but to put the plane down on a highway. The jet plows into a gas station and breaks into pieces in the middle of New Hope, Georgia. Seventy people – including eight on the ground – are killed. Combing through the wreckage, investigators are faced with multiple mysteries: Why did the pilots fly into such a severe storm? And what caused its engines to fail?

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