It was April 27, 1976. 
American Airlines flight 625, a scheduled domestic flight, had departed earlier that day from Rhode Island T. F. Green International Airport (PVD) and made a routine stop at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) in New York. The final destination was Harry S. Truman Airport, Charlotte Amalie, St Thomas in the US Virgin Islands. The Boeing 727-100 left New York just after noon with 81 passengers and seven crew onboard.