A Family Grudge on Flight 629: The Plane Explosion That Shocked the Nation

Up to this point, there had been only one other purposely doomed flight in American aviation. On October 10, 1933, in Chesterton, Indiana, a United Airlines flight exploded in the air.

The cause of the explosion was a bomb. A nitroglycerin bomb was set off with a timer killing all on board: three crew members and four passengers. No one was ever suspected or prosecuted for that crime.

In the 1950s, commercial flying was still in its infancy. It was exciting and new but people held a fair amount of trepidation when flying. In fact, people were so cautious that life insurance was sold in kiosks right at the boarding gate.

For just a few dollars, you could purchase a $25,000 policy...or more.

Investigators began running background checks on all the passengers. The first passengers that were “flagged” were the ones who purchased life insurance before the flight.

While there had been several passengers with these policies, only one stood out to investigators.

Daisie E. King, 53, was a Denver native who was traveling to visit her daughter and grandkids in Alaska. 

Daisie was the mother of two adult children, Helen Gallagher and John “Jack” Gilbert Graham. After the death of Jack’s father, Daisie struggled to raise her two young children.

It was the midst of the Great Depression and Daisie was a poor, single mother. With little means to support her children, Daisie “temporarily” placed five-year-old Jack in an orphanage. From that moment on, the relationship between Jack and his mother was contentious.

In 1941, Daisie married wealthy rancher John Earl King. This union greatly improved Daisie’s financial situation. And yet, Daisie decided against bringing her son home from the orphanage.

She would, however, bring Jack home for the holidays and gift him extravagant presents. But Daisie would always send her young son back to the orphanage.

Jack grew up resentful, angry and violent. He left the orphanage at 16 and lied about his age to join the Coast Guard. But less than a year into his service, Jack was court martialed for being AWOL (absent without leave). 

After leaving the Coast Guard, Jack began forging checks. He was also charged with illegal gun possession and bootlegging.

Ironically, the mother that refused to raise him, bailed him out and paid all his legal fees.

By the time Jack was 22, he was married to a woman named Gloria and had two young children.

Around this time, Daisie’s husband had passed away and she was in receipt of his large inheritance.

In 1954, Daisie moved back to Denver and bought a house for herself, Jack and his young family. She also opened a drive-in restaurant and made Jack the manager.

But Daisie and Jack’s relationship remained strained. Daisie believed that moving back to Denver and helping with her grandkids in addition to providing Jack with a job was enough to make up for his abandonment issues.

Jack had years of pent-up rage and his resentment towards his mother only grew now that she was a constant presence.

On November 1, 1955, Daisie was packing for her trip to Alaska. As she was closing her suitcase, Jack came into her room and handed her a wrapped gift that she wasn’t to open until Christmas. She had no idea that Jack had handed her a literal ticking time bomb.

Upon arriving at the airport, Jack purchased several travel insurance policies worth $37, 500. He then kissed his mother on the cheek for a final goodbye.

As the scope of the investigation began to narrow, it soon became laser-focused on Jack Gilbert Graham. With his criminal past including multiple insurance frauds, the evidence began to stack up against Jack.

Presented with the FBI’s findings, Jack finally confessed to the bombing of Flight 629. Jack described how he made the bomb out of 25 sticks of dynamite and set the timer for 60 minutes.

On November 1, 1955, Daisie was packing for her trip to Alaska. As she was closing her suitcase, Jack came into her room and handed her a wrapped gift that she wasn’t to open until Christmas. She had no idea that Jack had handed her a literal ticking time bomb.

Upon arriving at the airport, Jack purchased several travel insurance policies worth $37, 500. He then kissed his mother on the cheek for a final goodbye.

As the scope of the investigation began to narrow, it soon became laser focused on Jack Gilbert Graham. With his criminal past including multiple insurance frauds, the evidence began to stack up against Jack. Presented with the FBI’s findings, Jack finally confessed to the bombing of Flight 629. Jack described how he made the bomb out of 25 sticks of dynamite and set the timer for 60 minutes.

At the time of his arrest, there was no federal statute that criminalized the act of intentionally exploding a commercial plane. So, prosecutors went with the easiest and most surefire way to guarantee a conviction: one count of premeditated murder against a single victim, Daisie King.

The trial began on April 16, 1956, and it was America’s first televised trial. It lasted three weeks and included testimonies from over 80 witnesses. 

On May 15, 1956, the prosecution rested and jurors went into deliberation. In just 69 minutes, the verdict was read. John “Jack” Gilbert Graham was found guilty of murdering his mother. He was sentenced to death and executed on January 11, 1957.

On July 14, 1956, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed a bill into law prohibiting the intentional bombing of a commercial aircraft.