LOYLESS FUNERAL HOME, Land O'Lakes/Lutz Chapel. It was the first of the new generation of wide-body "jumbo jets" to crash. Loft accidentally nudged the control yoke, perhaps with his knee, while turning around to speak to Repo, and the autopilot mode was one which followed whatever pitch the pilot set with the yoke. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the, Hospice of Southern Maine 390 US Route One, Scarborough, ME 04074. Flight 401 Normal - Faulty Auto Pilot | It all started according to the book when a later L-1011 owned by Eastern Air Lines was on a flight to Mexico City. Robert L. Marquis - "Bud" to friends - wanted to eat frogs' legs. Top Left: The girls of Flight 401. After retiring he volunteered with the Civil Air Patrol, his last rank was Lt. "There are is so much friction, so many arguments. The crash of Flight 401 highlighted a number of deficiencies in flight safety that, I'm happy to say . Sign up! 35 Years after an Eastern Air Lines jet crashed into the Everglades, a rescuer looks back. Charles H. Johnson - Miami Air Traffic Controller who was working Flight 401 dies, April 10, 2019. Mildred Katz 1/8/34 His wife said his ashes would be spread over the crash site in the Everglades that ''he loved so much,'' at a later date. Combined with numerous anonymous witnesses and countless tales, the rumors spread throughout the aviation community. On December 29, 1972, Eastern Airlines Flight 401 crashed into the Florida Everglades, killing over 100 souls. Four years after the crash, there was no such thing as convenient access to the photos for the average person. Rose Marie Cillis - Mark Paternoster May 15, 2021, 11:07 pm. Stewardess Beverly Raposa, then 25, noticed nothing unusual as the flight passed high over the Atlantic Ocean en route to Miami International Airport. Little did I expect to see what he actually had. The warden noted nothing of interest. Also notable were the Eastern Airlines two-tone blue and white colors on the larger pieces of wreckage. Two days later, Lilly Infantino was found trapped beneath one of the wings. In it, at a party a few weeks after the emergency landing, someone asked one of the pilots how it had been to land an L-1011 on only one engine. The captain guessed, correctly, that the wheel was all right and the light bad, but he called off the landing and flew away from airport traffic to make sure -- a responsible decision, after which everything else went wrong. The image of Repo said "Watch out for fire on this airplane," and then disappeared. Documentary, Unscripted. Eastern Air Lines Lockheed L-1011 TriStar 1. Then the commuter airline folded. 101 out of the 176 occupants onboard the . Not long after the crash, the ghosts of Loft and Repo were seen on more than twenty occasions by crew . Let them not be forgotten. Donadeo, an Eastern Airlines technical specialist on L-1011 aircraft, was returning to Miami that night from a trouble- shooting assignment in New York. Salvatore Carfizzi 7/15/15 Leonhard discovered a hole in the bushes, roughly circular in shape and a little larger than the mouth of a culvert pipe. The time was 9:20 p.m. Like so many such cases, its exploitation of a tragedy for financial gain and publicity was disrespectful to both the victims and the survivors. The plane, a new "Whisperliner," could transport 229 passengers. She was whipped. Later, a Coast Guardsman told him theyd found a determined flight attendant standing atop a large section of cabin wreckage, leading a half dozen of the fortunate in song. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. We had him out by 5:30 in the morning. After a few minutes they saw the lights of rescue helicopters, circling, searching, much too far east and south. More than a quarter mile long, the cone-shaped debris field was filled with an apocalyptic jumble of human carnage, personal belongings and aircraft wreckage. Above Left - Ron Infantino stands among survivors. As in other reports, the flight attendant selected Repos photo from a choice offered to her. She found a section of the cabin with a stewardess still strapped into her seat-belt harness. Other than those observations, I don't recall much more from that flight. Ghosts of Flight 401. Three women on the jetliner's tail, about 20 feet above the water, begged Bud to save them. 200110850. The sightings apparently stopped once this was all done. He was 79. Fortunately, Bud was an expert. This photo was taken hours before the crash on December 29th while on board Flight 26 in Miami. "Hey, what's happening here?" Officially, 103 passengers and crew died. The middle engine and tail section had broken away from the main fuselage, coming to a rest on their sides in a remote area far from the main crash site, which was located 18.7 miles northwest of Miami International Airport. Donald Stanley Casadona 7/16/38 The pilot Bob Loft and the flight engineer Don Repo were two of the 101 people who perished in the air crash. By using this site, you agree to its use of cookies. We had a habit of informally gathering at the clubhouse on Friday and Saturday evenings to down a few beers and catch up on all the news that had any impact on us. Lockheed L-1011 Cockpit | Once you become stuck in the glades, you could be there for a long, long, time.. Bud asks his wife to look for his scrapbooks. I have chosen to list him as a survivor as he was alive at the time of the NTSB hearings. Frank Borman called it all a bunch of "crap" and considered suing the producers of the 1978 made-for-TV movie about the ghost stories for libel. The original witness so was distressed that several of the cabin crew had to forcibly restrain her. In his investigations talking with various airline employees (which occupy most of the book), he discovered the likely reason: According to the flight crew, who were highly reluctant to discuss it, Don Repo had appeared in the cockpit and talked them through the landing. The silence was broken only by the intermittent croaking of bullfrogs and the occasional rustle of tall reeds as an unseen creature passed through them. Speculation at the club was rampant which is to be expected from a bunch of pilots. Eastern management must have taken the stories somewhat seriously, however. In a weak voice, one of them asked, What about the alligators?, Raposa didnt hesitate: We made such a loud noise when we hit. "I was wounded in World War II when the ship I was on was hit by a kamikaze. On Dec. 29, 1972, Eastern Flight 401 from New York to Miami took off from . Web. Aground. The Department of Technology, Management and Budget supports the business operations of the state agencies through a variety of services including Information Technology project delivery, maintenance and support. It was somewhere between 11:30 pm and 11:35 pm, a fact that I specifically remember because I took the time to look at my wristwatch and comment to Bill. "I'm going to send some flowers to Miami and have them put on the grave of my first wife," said Ronald Infantino, who lost his bride of 20 days in the crash. "It's 100 degrees in the house, honey," Nancy says, joining him on the porch. Eastern's L-1011's came equipped with six Bowmar ovens (Lockheed Part Number 671878-115). She had nothing. Barbara Ann Saal. Allen M. Stark 8/11/49 Lourdes Albert 2/20/50 The L-1011 was new, parts were scarce, and any non-structural components that passed scrutiny said Fuller went into Eastern's spare parts pool. Sadly, she did not survive. There were bodies that were naked, which we all figured occurred because they had been flung out of the protected environmental cocoon of the L1011 into 200 mph winds when the fuselage broke up. NTSB Crash Report (Flight 401) | The death toll at the time was the highest of any one-plane accident in U.S. civil aviation history. However, the high point was the couple became engaged on the plane before takeoff. Their marriage spanned 47 years. He saw a man, sitting in the water with a neck injury, trying to remain upright. Sadie Yellin 1/9/15 Outside of the aircraft, there wasnt much in the way of visual cues and city lights were non-existent. It was quite possible that the landing gear was in the correct configuration. A yellow flash. Lucille Cilles 1/30/24 Rons eyes blinked open upon hearing the engines roar to full power. However, by the time the pilots realized their situation it was too late; flight 401 impacted the Everglades in a left turn and began to disintegrate, the wreckage being strewn over an area of 50 square kilometers. At least he lives near his precious Everglades. Mr. Elder later became an Editor at the San Jose Mercury News. Beverly Raposa doesn't mind flying. He had a broken arm and some cuts and scrapes, but no other visible wounds, Leonhard said. Imagine his surprise when he came face to face with Don Repo. Speeding across the 'glades in his airboat, Bud was the first rescuer on the scene. Fuller's claims that Eastern executives tried to bully their employees into silence about the ghosts led them to nearly file suit against the publisher, but Borman nixed the plan, rightly feeling that doing so would give the book even more publicity. Retired Air Force Col. Frank Bormana former astronaut, vice president of Eastern Airlines and now a first respondercame to escort her into a helicopter hovering at ground level a short distance away. On December 29, 1972, Flight 401 was en route to Miami International Airport but due to a malfunctioning landing gear light and other distractions, plowed into the swampland, making the incident the second deadliest single aircraft disaster in United States history. Flight 401 - Autopilot indicator | Hansel owned a single engine Piper Comanche 250, registered as N7510P, that held four people, including the pilot. By 1 a.m., the rookie warden had launched his airboat. Lockheed L-1011 Inside the Hell Hole | "I could empathize with what Ron was going through. It was a solemn and sobering return flight. Bud wants to. Source: Google Sites. I mean, I was a single person with no family. Raposa sensed a different tone in the engines. Web. The flight, destined for Kyiv, Ukraine, took off on Jan. 8, 2020 from Tehran . Huge gouts of mud and aquatic vegetation shot high into the air as 185 tons of screeching metal ripped into the muck and grass. Why dont we sing to help warm ourselves up? she suggested. It is 12 feet long and 7 feet across. This photo taken in September 2009. We could also see a few other aircraft flying into the restricted airspace. On December 3rd 2007, survivors of Eastern Air Lines flight 401 gathered at the Metro-Dade Firefighters' Memorial Building in Miami to honor Robert "Bud" Marquis, and to remember those who lost their lives in the crash nearly 35 years ago. Sir, dont worry, he said. Obviously, I'm not a hunter, but I don't begrudge those who do hunt responsibly. Flight 401 flew into the ground on Friday night, Dec. 29, 1972, at 13 seconds past 11:42 p.m. Susan Deutsch 10/21/42 The two girls in the photograph that are having the bunny ears (Patricia Ghyssels) and the one jokingly being choked (Stephanie Stanich) were the only two flight attendants who did . From his vantage point atop the levee, Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission Officer Gray Leonhard, then 24 years old, had a commanding view across the vast darkened marsh. The man vanished before their very eyes and those of several other passengers. As you may know, the mansion is an historic landmark in Miami, located just north of the airport it served as the location of the NTSB hearings into the crash. The aircraft disintegrated, scattering wreckage over an area approximately 1600 feet long by 300 feet wide (NTSB). That section of the Everglades is a tangle of sawgrass, tree islands, canals and levees. Ron Infantino woke up in a chill, heart pounding, breath erratic. The underside of the L1011 was reflecting the ground lighting from the airport and the surrounding city which made it easy to identify the aircraft type although we couldn't identify the airline. Paquita Carrasquillo 10/4/40 Another pilot on another flight was seriously concerned when he heard knocking coming from beneath the cockpit itself. Muriel J. Ames 11/30/40 Eric Olson holding a piece of wreckage from Flight 401. Oddly, he felt no pain. He said that every time an appearance of the ghosts had been entered into a plane's logbook, the logbook was suddenly replaced with a new blank one. If he saw legs kicking, he turned the seat over. In a calm, soothing voice, she said, Now close your eyes and pretend you have a cup of coffee, hot chocolate or tea in your hands. Ron Infantino and his late wife, Lilly, on their wedding day; Photography courtesy Ron Infantino. Startled, and now fully awake, he wondered, Whats going on here? A former crew chief on a B-52 in Vietnam, he had a keener sense than most passengers about a plane in trouble. The trip to Florida, by official accounts, was pleasantly routine. We dont have a light on our nose gear yet.. He and his first wife traveled extensively in their RV throughout the United States and Canada. Interment will follow at 2pm at Florida National Cemetery. Then a sudden jolt rattled the aircraft. Soon after, ghosts from Flight 401 began to haunt the land and other airplanes. Beverly Raposa was a bubbly, 25-year-old flight attendant onboard Eastern Airlines Flight 401 from New York to Miami when the plane slammed into the Everglades at 225 miles per hour near midnight . Folks from South Florida's sporting community, mostly hunters, fishers and airboaters, heard, many for the first time, about Bud. She was so worried about his appearance that she summoned an attendant to investigate further. The final leg of the flight was canceled as a result of this fire. "You didn't have nothing to worry about," he'd tell her, finding a seat on the porch, from where he could hear the barred owls and their singular "who-cooks-for-you" calls, exciting and mournful at once. Carmen Jorge 7/7/46 I wouldnt be a bit surprised if the speed hed been traveling was well over a hundred miles an hour., Leonhard added, The guy weighed around 160, but it still took eight of us carrying a stretcher filled with his dead weight to carry him out. References: Charles Camichel 9/9/1899 (we assume this is the "C. Carmichael" on ", Another retired Eastern Airlines L-1011 captain which whom I have had contact responded the following way when asked about his experiences flying N318EA: "I flew that plane and never saw any ghosts or anything of that nature. Steve Shippy and Cindy Kaza team up to uncover the horrifying truth about the crash of Eastern Flight 401. An Eastern flight attendant posted this scan (below) from his L-1011 FA manual. Perhaps Fuller read it, and was inspired to concoct the rest of the story. She had been recovering from a heartbreak of her own for a year and a half. Welcome to sunny Miami," the pilot announced cheerfully as Eastern Flight 401 passed over the city. I dont know this for sure, but I seem to remember he was the last survivor rescued.. Hansel Meighen died on April 15, 1999, and is buried in Ft. Pierce, Florida. Ten feet in front of them were what looked like two mannequins to Leonharda partially clothed woman lying faceup in the mud and a naked man lying facedown. However, we had one advantage that members of the general public didn't have - we had access to airplanes. We were standing outside the clubhouse on the ramp, getting ready to lock up the building before leaving, when we both noticed something unusual overhead. * Glenn C. Remkus, 47, was still hospitalized in Miami with burns and two broken legs as of February 1973, though a newspaper report on Dec 31st had reported him to be in "satisfactory" condition and in "good spirits." Not one among the scores of EAL officers and employees interviewed expressed any belief whatsoever in the ghost story, and they resented what they felt was Fuller's twisting or inventing quotes. Edward presented the ring in a glass of champagne. Shortly after I arrived, one of my friends, Hansel Meighen, practically dragged me to his airplane and loudly announced that we were going to go fly out to the Everglades crash site. The Senior Architecture Analyst provides architecture . He'd stay calm, look at the stars for direction, think things through, then crank up the airboat engine and find his way back to the Tamiami Trail. With his left, he held onto the boat and walked beside it to the levee. Wreckage site of Eastern Air Lines Flight 401. His last complete thought before losing consciousness was, This is going to be one hell of a rough landing., Beverly Raposa with her Eastern Airlines stewardess class in the 60s; Photography courtesy Ron Infantino. (Deer in south Florida are almost anemic compared to deer in other parts of the country.) The Ghost of Flight 401 was a book of nearly pure fiction, as was the TV movie that followed it. Bob called Infantino, who loves to tell the story: "He was a regional coordinator with AFLAC, American Family Life Assurance Co., and that's when I started -- 16 years ago, and I've been with them ever since. Jose Carrasquillo 6/28/40 All three of Loft, Stockstill, and Repo were among the unlucky majority who perished. Santiago Flight 513: A Fictional Time Warp. They were heading his way. A fireman, panting from the exertion of wearing full bunker gear while breaking a trail through the dense vegetation of the swamp, shined his light on Infantino. Wreckage site of Eastern Air Lines Flight 401. Late in the evening of Friday, December 29, 1972, I was at the old Sun Flying Club tie-down area located on the east side of Opa locka Airport in metropolitan Miami, Florida. Solomon Fisher 7/18/11 The Infantinos were exhausted from celebrating Christmas with Rons parents in New York. The wreckage was discovered Wednesday night in the Everglades four days afte Frequent Business Traveler. A jet airliner is not something that immediately comes to mind: except to those who know aboutEastern Air Lines flight 401. 17 Mar. He invested in real estate, too. A jumbo jet crashed in the Everglades north of the Tamiami Trial, his sergeant said. After graduation, he hitchhiked to Oregon and California to visit relatives, returning to Connecticut a couple of years later. Blackness. According to my late mother, she wanted to get back to flying, but she was petrified every time she heard jet noise. Not a single usable part was salvaged from the wreckage, and not a single component that crashed with Flight 401 was ever installed in another aircraft. It was only then that it had hit him. I probably did too, I'm sure." There were 75 at the time, 20 years ago tonight. Nicholas Minguzzi 8/5/68 Miami International Airport Sighting | Yes, they are, Raposa assured them. Two years after the crash, Anita and Franklin Kent's lives were taken up by endless doctor visits. According to all present, Repo then warned them about a fire on board. He was more than 25 miles away. But fortunately, it is not the only source available to us. The crash of Flight 401 highlighted a number of deficiencies in flight safety that, I'm happy to say, were soon implemented. Two years after the crash, a book called The Ghost of Flight 401 was published, claiming that there were many reported sightings of the pilot, who had most likely accidentally switched off the autopilot, and the flight engineer, who had missed the warning chime because he left his seat to investigate the issue with the landing gear light. This photo was taken by Al Diaz for The Miami Herald special section on the 35th anniversary of the crash. Reigler, P. "Lessons Learnt from the Crash of Eastern 401." His writings form the basis for much of this Web site, with permission. Pine and others want to do something nice for Bud, perhaps honor him with a special day, raise cash for Bud's taxes, groceries and medical bills. Front row from the left: Dottie Warnock, Pat Ghyssels, Beverly Raposa, Patty Georgia, Stephanie Stanich. I don't see any reason to worry about what fate has brought. Gas gangrene attacked his lungs. You could hear the cry of death. Read the accident report (PDF). As I recall that December night, it was a relatively cool evening for south Florida with a moonless night sky. Cite this article: Repo was dead. Instead, he would witness the first jumbo jet crash in U.S. history. The apparitions of Loft and Repo were invariably described as being extremely lifelike. Feel the warmth going down.. Abbey Lynn Greenwald 9/18/52 (3) 2022 TV-14. They go deep into the heart of the Florida Everglades to contact the victims' ghosts and find out what really happened that fateful night in 1972. Ghosts of Flight 401 - 3 | December 29, 2022, 8:23 PM. Many of the survivors were also stripped of their clothes and this contributed to medical problems with all the bacteria in the Everglades water and the relatively cold temperatures that night. At the time, it was one of the worst civil aviation disasters the country had ever seen. Later on during the flight though, problems with the engine all stemmed from a fire that no-one knew about. He sold 13 in a month. Caridad Fermina Hernandez 10/11/32 That's where the helicopters, one after another, landed that night, and where ambulances arrived to load the dead and injured. Eastern Airlines Flight #401 (L1011 N310EA) . This is the story about the night a jumbo jet landed among the pig frogs and alligators, the cottonmouth snakes and yellow-crowned night herons, in the Everglades. "Having money ruined my life," he said. Have You Met Fred the Tree? Riding with him were two Federal Aviation Administration officials. To those who survived, the scene must have had an eerie end-of-the-earth feel, with wisps of gray mist swirling, a baby wailing, the groans from the injured and the dying. One gave him money. Serling, R. From the Captain to the Colonel: An Informal History of Eastern Airlines.
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