1977 Israeli Air Force Sikorsky CH-53 crash
helicopter crash
On 10 May 1977, an Israeli Air Force Sikorsky CH-53 Yas'ur helicopter crashed during an exercise in the Jordan Valley, killing all 54 on board (including the 10-member flight crew). The disaster became known as Ason HaNun-Daled, or "Disaster of the 54".
It remains the worst single-aircraft accident in the West Bank. The crash site was in the Jordan Valley, near the Israeli settlement of Na'aran, north of Jericho in a wadi. The cause was determined to be flying at too low an altitude during the dark, which caused the helicopter to strike a hill, crash and explode (CFIT, Controlled flight into terrain).
The public source identifies “1977 Israeli Air Force Sikorsky CH-53 crash” as helicopter crash. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Israeli, Force and Sikorsky.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “1977 Israeli Air Force Sikorsky CH-53 crash”, the useful work is to connect “helicopter crash” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Feb 19, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q4577674. Authority coordinates are 31.932, 35.436. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1977.
The absence of detail may reflect summary conventions rather than a lack of surviving documentation. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “1977 Israeli Air Force Sikorsky CH-53 crash”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow 1977 Israeli Air Force Sikorsky CH-53 crash primary sources, 1977 Israeli Air Force Sikorsky CH-53 crash archive and Israeli research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “1977 Israeli Air Force Sikorsky CH-53 crash”?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “1977 Israeli Air Force Sikorsky CH-53 crash” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.