On the 24th of September, 1972, the Golden West Sport Aviation Air Show was in full swing at Sacramento Executive Airport in Sacramento, California. Thousands of aviation enthusiasts had gathered to see aircraft – including military and experimental models – exhibited on the ground. The show came to an abrupt halt, however, when one aircraft leaving the show failed to take off at the end of the runway, and instead ploughed through a fence, across a road, and directly into a crowded ice cream parlour.