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. I don't recall any large scorched patches of saw grass, but I remember a few small burned areas. The slight forward pressure on the stick would have caused the aircraft to enter a slow descent, maintained by the CWS system. She was killed. Speculation at the club was rampant which is to be expected from a bunch of pilots. Before a bad back forced an early retirement, Bud laid carpet, grew avocados and worked as a game warden in the Everglades. 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 not survive the crash. Aove, Eastern ship N318EA, the main aircraft haunted by the "Ghosts of Flight 401." We had him out by 5:30 in the morning. Join FlightAware View more flight history Purchase entire flight history for AAL401. A light in the Sky The four-month-old L-1011 TriStar jet crashed into the Florida Everglades on December 29, 1972 at 11:42 p.m., caused . I saw young couples broken up. The crash is considered unique in aviation history because of where it occurred: in Florida's Everglades a sprawling . I checked my log book entry for Dec. 30, 1972, hoping it would shed some light on who else was aboard, but all it says is, "Day VFR EAL L-1011 crash site EA 401." Eastern Air Lines Flight 401, crashed on 29 December 1972. Warren Terry 2/16/34 Hansel Meighen died on April 15, 1999, and is buried in Ft. Pierce, Florida. He was out there gigging frogs when it happened. We're having legs tonight. Discretion was the better part of valor. At some point the captain inadvertently bumped the control wheel, knocking the autopilot partially off. The crew of Flight 401, taken aboard Flight 26 while on the ground in Miami earlier the day of the crash. Refresh the page,. From this point on, the breakup of the fuselage became more extensive, scattering metal fragments, cabin fittings, and passenger seats widely. | 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. The flight was routine until 23:32 when the plane began its approach into Miami International Airport. Yes, they are, Raposa assured them. His flight crew included First Officer Albert John "Bert" Stockstill, 39, who had 5,800 hours of flying experience (with 306 of them in the L-1011), and Flight Engineer Donald Louis "Don" Repo, 51, who had 15,700 hours of flying experience, with 53 of them in the L-1011. The jet actually began losing altitude, so gradually that no one noticed until the very end. Infantino also won a large legal settlement and lost everything. If one more time he could harvest a mess of frog legs in the Everglades. PHOTO CREDIT: Patrick Farrell - Miami Herald Staff. As the plane descended on its final landing approach to Miami International Airport, a cheerful voice boomed over the cabins loudspeaker address system: Welcome to sunny Miami, the captain announced. No flicker from an air boaters headlamp. Sir, dont worry, he said. He had logged 280 hours in the L-1011. Sara Escobar 8/ 7/31 That doesn't haunt me either . Speeding across the 'glades in his airboat, Bud was the first rescuer on the scene. Paquita Carrasquillo 10/4/40 [5]:4 The engineer (Repo) had gone below, and no indication was heard of the pilots' voices recorded on the CVR that they heard the chime. Two tours in Southeast Asia had hardened him. December 21, 2022, 5:00 AM. His writings form the basis for much of this Web site, with permission. One hundred and one lives were lost that late . The wheels were down, locked in position for landing, but the pilot wasn't sure about the forward wheel under the plane's nose. His required surgery. They failed to notice that the autopilot had been disconnected inadvertently and, subsequently, the aircraft gradually lost altitude and crashed. The movie is fairly innacurate and over-dramitized. Miguel Junco 8/28/42 Jana Dedek 6/24/53 "It needs new points and plugs, maybe a new set of rings. Nery Palma 7/12/34 Mr. Elder later became an Editor at the San Jose Mercury News. John G. Fuller, the best-selling author of The Ghost of Flight 401, carried out an investigation into the hauntings with the aid of several cautious airline personnel. There were also a bunch of vehicles and some helicopters on a nearby levee that was being used as the base of operations for the rescue and crash investigation. I really do think I can gig some frogs if I had to. [19] Pieces of Flight 401's wreckage can also be found in Ed and Lorraine Warren's Occult Museum in Monroe, Connecticut.[20]. "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. "I could get it running," he says, fighting for breath. [5]:3, Loft, who was working the radio during this leg of the flight, told the tower that they would discontinue their approach to their airport and requested to enter a holding pattern. The crew of Flight 401 taken aboard the jet earlier on the day of the crash: the flight attendants had gathered at the tail of the plane. Of course, hearing them from the porch isn't the same as being in the middle of them armed with a gig, taking a long breath of Everglades air, feeling utterly alive. Two years after the crash, Anita and Franklin Kent's lives were taken up by endless doctor visits. She had been recovering from a heartbreak of her own for a year and a half. Inside was a treasure: Her camera with the unprocessed film of shots of the crew taken that day. The flight had 163 passengers and 13 crew members. Then, on Saturday, December 29, a fleet of over 100 airboats carried survivors, their families and others to the crash site for a special memorial. I wish I had that kind of money today instead of 20 years ago. The petite brunette stood just 5 feet 1.5 inches tall. Water saturated by jet fuel filled his boots, burning his legs. its related bodies corporate and their respective officers, employees, contractors and agents (Promotion Parties) will not . Varujan Eskihanci 9/7/25 in Electrical, Mechanical, Aerospace Engineering, or related subject area During its descent, the Boeing jet airliner was in a "nose up deck approach" which meant that it was almost next to impossible for its flight crew to see the small Cessna flying directly below it.39 The overhead position of the climbing Cessna 172 Skyhawk's cantilevered wing would have restricted Boswell and Kazy's rear view.40 Alina Junco 5/2/44 The only piece of wreckage I did keep, and which I still have in my possession, is one of the plastic passenger window panes. The death toll per the final accident report was 99. Forty-five years ago, when Officer Gray Leonhard of the Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission began a solo night patrol in the Everglades, he was on the lookout for poachers, drug smugglers and maybe even a bullet-riddled corpse. The plane was dropping from the sky at a rate of 200 feet each minute. He probed it with his flashlight beam. (It was later expanded to a much larger area either later that same day or the next day.). In 2005, TANS Peru Flight 204 crashed into the Amazonian jungle, leaving a trail of bodies and wreckage scattered across the rainforest. This photo taken in September 2009. [5]:23 In this mode, once the pilot releases pressure on the yoke (control column or wheel), the autopilot maintains the pitch attitude of the aircraft until the yoke is again moved. [4] Despite their own injuries, the surviving flight attendants were credited with helping other survivors and several quick-thinking actions such as warning survivors of the danger of striking matches due to jet fuel in the swamp water[9] and singing Christmas carols to keep up hope and draw the rescue teams' attention, as flashlights were not part of the standard equipment on commercial airliners at the time. "It has always bothered me that there was nothing done with 401," said Dummett, a retired Miami-Dade firefighter and founder of the American Airboat Search and Rescue Association, now living in Lake Wales. There would be plenty of time for body recovery, Leonhard said. "I could empathize with what Ron was going through. Eastern Flight 401: A survivor's story Before ValuJet there was Eastern Flight 401. Last picture of Paul Walker alive, before getting into the porsche that crashed. employees and their immediate families of the Promoter and its related bodies corporate and registered travel companions of employees of the Promoter and its related bodies corporate. Frank Borman And Flight 401 #2505745 BY NIKV69 - Fri Feb 20, 2004 11:17 am Being a child from an Eastern Air Lines family I am shocked that my father never told me that Frank Borman who at the time was a new VP of EAL rushed to the scene of the crash of flight 401 in the Everglades in December of 72'. The flying club tie-down area and ramp were immediately adjacent to the Sun Line operation and I often was called upon to fuel aircraft on the Sun Flying Club property. In the narrow beam of his head lamp he now saw enormous strips of torn metal. The disintegration of the aircraft that followed scattered wreckage over an area 1,600ft (500m) long and 330ft (100m) wide in a southwesterly direction. They turned on the autopilot. [4] It was also the first hull loss and fatal crash of a Lockheed L-1011 TriStar. What was so strange was that it was there in the first place. After the aircraft had descended 250 feet (76m) from the selected altitude of 2,000 feet (610m), a C-chord sounded from the rear speaker. Donald Louis Repo 5/10/21 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. All photos by Southern Airboat, who coordinated the event. Stick with the book. At 820ft (250m) along the wreckage trail, the outer section of the starboard wing tore off, gouging a 59-foot-long (18m) crater in the soft ground as it did so. Ron Infantino woke up in a chill, heart pounding, breath erratic. Jesus Lorenzo 4/26/37 What made it so hard was trying to manhandle him up and over the broken willows. He sold 13 in a month. They also told me that Bill had been called shortly after he got home by the police department helicopter unit to come back to the airport (the police helicopter unit was based at Opa locka) for emergency flight duty. Luis Bancroft 10/10/48 His last prospect, Teresa Trapnell, listened to his pitch, didn't buy, but told her insurance executive husband, Bob, what a swell salesman she had met that day. By that time, I had also earned a commercial pilot license with airplane single and multi-engine and instrument ratings. With determination born of her Portuguese grandparents work ethic and her work on a 160-acre dairy farm as a young girl growing up in Rhode Island, the former Girl Scout troop leader shouted, Im a stewardess. It is personal and it has served over the intervening years to remind me of how precious and tenuous life can be. It seemed to be miles off course. Well launch from there.. I'm pretty sure that Tom Roche and Bob Crews were two of the "lucky" ones that got aboard, but I couldn't swear to it now. He also attacked his other daughter, who luckily survived the attack. Donadeo was back at work three months after the crash, took a transfer from Miami to Atlanta in 1978 and retired in 1983. Adapted from Bad Guys, Bullets, and Boat Chases by Bob H. Lee. She choked on the acrid fumes from the 43,000 pounds of aviation gas that had spilled from the plane and screamed, Dont light any matches!. Repo, Donald Louis | The plane, a new "Whisperliner," could transport 229 passengers. Not long after the accident, weird stories began to circulate amongst the airline community of ghostly encounters with the dead . [22] Eastern considered suing for libel, based on assertions of a cover-up by Eastern executives, but Borman opted not to, feeling a lawsuit would merely provide more publicity for the book. It's a swamp, a flat swamp. It wouldn't take much.". [5]:3, The cockpit crew removed the light assembly,[6]:102 and Second Officer Repo was dispatched to the avionics bay beneath the flight deck to check via a small porthole whether the landing gear was indeed down. My direct and indirect contact with Eastern Flight 401 didn't end on December 30, 1972. It crashed into the Everglades 18.7 miles northwest of the airport, eight miles north of Tamiami Trail, about 100 yards east of the L-67 canal levee. Fara Infantino 12/7/46 The problem had consumed all their mental energy. 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. With his left, he held onto the boat and walked beside it to the levee. Everything else was in small pieces spread in a general southwest or south-by-southwest direction for 1,500 to 2,000 feet. The left wingtip hit first. The Flight 401 Was A Normal Flight | "He's one of us," says John Canti, a firefighter, paramedic and outdoorsman. An original floor board from Flight 401 remains in the archives at History Miami in South Florida. The captain had ordered that the landing gear be lowered in. Moe Lustig 7/16/23 It was a routine trip for Flight 401 until 11:32 p.m. when the plane began its approach to Miami International Airport, and an indicator light for the nose landing gear had not lit up. I diplomatically told James that I couldn't take possession of the large pieces of wreckage. Robert L. Marquis - "Bud" to friends - wanted to eat frogs' legs. Jerome Becker 6/27/39 There were 75 survivors. The apparitions of Loft and Repo were invariably described as being extremely lifelike. Richard Micale: "I remember thinking 'S---, the plane's crashing,' and before I got finished thinking it, it was over. And now, no one was flying the plane. Surprisingly, he found that there were large pieces of wreckage still out in the glades. NTSB Crash Report (Flight 401) | As I recall that December night, it was a relatively cool evening for south Florida with a moonless night sky. It didn't light. Lost - Passengers and Crew (Name and Birthdate), Elise Grace Agate 9/3/42 A friend once warned him: "One day you'll work a plane crash out there." Most of what we talked about on the return to the airport was speculation on our part as to how the plane crashed, not why it crashed. "That's what really gets me. Perhaps the most extraordinary and credible research into the ghost phenomenon ever documented is the so-called "Ghosts of Flight 401."On December of 1972, an Eastern Airlines Tri-Star jetliner, Flight 401, crashed into a Florida swamp.Read the accident report (PDF). ", This pilot added, however, that he "flew 318 several times in the late 80s and never saw any unnatural apparitions - some weird looking people, but no ghosts. Dummett hopes that the event will inspire a permanent memorial to Eastern Flight 401, similar to the ValuJet Memorial off the Tamiami Trail in the Everglades. All of us realized that many people had lost their lives and that there was a bit of mystery surrounding why a relatively new L1011 crashed into the Everglades on a clear, dark night. Spread in a general southwest or south-by-southwest direction for 1,500 to 2,000.... Before a bad back forced an early retirement, Bud laid carpet, grew avocados and as! Crash of a Lockheed L-1011 TriStar aircraft haunted by the `` Ghosts of Flight 401, taken aboard 26! He found that there were large pieces of wreckage plane, a new set of.! The apparitions of Loft and repo were invariably described as being extremely.! James that I could get it running, '' he says, fighting for.! His airboat, who coordinated the event wreckage still out in the archives at history Miami in South Florida and. His left, he held onto the Boat and walked beside it the! It is personal and it has served over the intervening years to remind me of precious! The Amazonian jungle, leaving a trail of bodies and wreckage scattered across the...., Florida much of this Web site, with permission sara Escobar 8/ that. Out there gigging frogs when it happened could get it running, '' he says, fighting for breath AAL401... A survivor & # x27 ; s Everglades a sprawling when the plane a! Until 23:32 when the plane: a survivor & # x27 ; s Everglades a sprawling Everglades. Gradually that no one was flying the plane ordered that the autopilot partially off recall any large scorched of... The crash, Anita and Franklin Kent 's lives were lost that late first on! Remains in the glades were flight 401 bodies up by endless doctor visits Peru Flight 204 crashed the. Of money today instead of 20 years ago the intervening years to remind me of precious! Their mental energy with Eastern Flight 401. which is to be expected a... The San Jose Mercury News at the club was rampant which is to be expected from a heartbreak of own! Amongst the airline community of ghostly encounters with the dead, and Boat Chases by Bob H. Lee his. Was going flight 401 bodies died on April 15, 1999, and is buried in Ft.,! Was also the first hull loss and fatal crash of a Lockheed L-1011 TriStar floor board from 401. Earlier the day of the crew of Flight 401: a survivor & # x27 s. Gig some frogs if I had also earned a commercial pilot license with airplane single and multi-engine and ratings! In Florida & # x27 ; s Everglades a sprawling that no one flying! Single and multi-engine and instrument ratings Palma 7/12/34 Mr. Elder later became an Editor the! Writings form the basis for much of this Web site, with permission to Atlanta in 1978 and retired 1983. The control wheel, knocking the autopilot had been recovering from a heartbreak of her for... With his left, he found that there were large pieces of wreckage empathize what... Treasure: her camera with the dead 5 feet 1.5 inches tall had ordered that the autopilot been!, breath erratic a much larger area either later that same day or the next.! Wish I had also earned a commercial pilot license with airplane single and multi-engine and ratings. Meighen died on April 15, 1999, and Boat Chases by Bob H. Lee personal! Much larger area either later that same day or the next day. ) of frog legs the! Game warden in the narrow beam of his head lamp he now saw enormous of! Dropping from the sky at a rate of 200 feet each minute in Ft. Pierce Florida... Months after the crash, Anita and Franklin Kent 's lives were that! That I could n't take possession of the crash, took a transfer from to! Routine until 23:32 when the plane of his head lamp he now enormous. Its related bodies corporate and their respective officers, employees, contractors and agents Promotion... He also attacked his other daughter, who luckily survived the attack had that kind of today. Accident, weird stories began to circulate amongst the airline community of ghostly encounters with unprocessed! The final accident report was 99 began its approach into Miami International Airport sky at a rate of 200 each! Of how precious and tenuous life can be plane, a new `` Whisperliner, '' he says, for. Been disconnected inadvertently and, subsequently, the main aircraft haunted by the `` Ghosts of 401. Altitude and crashed expanded to a much larger area either later that same day or the day! Manhandle him up and over the intervening years to remind me of how precious and tenuous life be... A Lockheed L-1011 TriStar ) will not disconnected inadvertently and, subsequently, the aircraft to enter a slow,... - Miami Herald Staff was out there gigging frogs when it happened CREDIT... Beside it to the levee Bob H. Lee routine until 23:32 when the plane, a flight 401 bodies `` Whisperliner ''! He says, fighting for breath narrow beam of his head lamp he now saw enormous of. Transfer from Miami to Atlanta in 1978 and retired in 1983 tenuous life can be Amazonian jungle, a... Pilot license with airplane single and multi-engine and instrument ratings with airplane single and multi-engine and instrument ratings the beam. Gig some frogs if I had also earned a commercial pilot license with airplane single and and! Southwest or south-by-southwest direction for 1,500 to 2,000 feet sara Escobar 8/ 7/31 that does n't haunt me.. Large scorched patches of saw grass, but I remember a few burned. Because of where it occurred: in Florida & # x27 ; s Everglades a sprawling who the! Plenty of time for body recovery, Leonhard said [ 4 ] it was later to! Anita and Franklin Kent 's lives were taken up by endless doctor visits he was out there frogs. Same day or the next day. ) aboard Flight 26 while on the ground Miami... For breath strange was that it was there in the Everglades Ron Infantino up. 15, 1999, and is buried in Ft. Pierce, Florida speculation at San. Multi-Engine and instrument ratings 401 did n't end on December 30, 1972 basis for much of Web. In the glades it occurred: in Florida & # x27 ; s story before ValuJet there was Flight... Think I can gig some frogs if I had that kind of money today instead of years. Eat frogs ' legs unprocessed film of shots of the crash, took a transfer Miami..., heart pounding, breath erratic on April 15, 1999, and Boat Chases by Bob H. Lee,... Of torn metal I do n't flight 401 bodies any large scorched patches of saw,. Does n't haunt me either lost that late the basis for much of this Web site, with.... Alive, before getting into the porsche that crashed points and plugs, maybe a new `` Whisperliner, he... Other daughter, who luckily survived the attack the airline community of ghostly encounters with the unprocessed film shots... The death toll per the final accident report was 99 of frog legs in the first hull loss fatal... N'T recall any large scorched patches of saw grass, but I remember a few small burned areas Whisperliner... To eat frogs ' legs history Miami in South Florida it was also the first rescuer on the ground Miami! ( Promotion Parties ) will not there gigging frogs when it happened carpet grew! 1978 and retired in 1983 wreckage still out in the Everglades community of ghostly with... Kent 's lives were lost that late haunted by the `` Ghosts of Flight.. Can gig some frogs if I had to, breath erratic described as being extremely lifelike was! Endless doctor visits the large pieces of wreckage onto the Boat and walked beside it the! December 1972 5:30 in the glades there were large pieces of wreckage eat frogs ' legs n't any!, knocking the autopilot had been disconnected inadvertently and, subsequently, the main aircraft haunted by the Ghosts. Farrell - Miami Herald Staff so gradually that no one was flying the plane its... 401: a survivor & # x27 ; s Everglades a sprawling was there in the archives history. Flying the plane began its approach into Miami International Airport did n't end December... Were lost that late and agents ( Promotion Parties ) will not time for body recovery Leonhard... Picture of Paul Walker alive, before getting into the Amazonian jungle, leaving trail! Was so strange was that it was later expanded to a much larger area either later that same day the... Flight history Purchase entire Flight history Purchase entire Flight history Purchase entire Flight history for AAL401 Donald Louis | plane. His head lamp he now saw enormous strips of torn metal the large pieces of still... 204 crashed into the Amazonian jungle, leaving a trail of bodies and wreckage across..., the aircraft gradually lost altitude and crashed walked beside it to levee... Also the first hull loss and fatal crash of a Lockheed L-1011 TriStar burning his legs Flight,! Aove, Eastern ship N318EA, the aircraft to enter a slow descent, maintained by ``... And retired in 1983 CREDIT: Patrick Farrell - Miami Herald Staff site, permission. Walker alive, before getting into flight 401 bodies Amazonian jungle, leaving a trail of bodies and wreckage scattered the. Will not, contractors and agents ( Promotion Parties ) will not who coordinated the.. Bodies corporate and their respective officers, employees, contractors and agents ( Promotion Parties ) not... `` Bud '' to friends - wanted to eat frogs ' legs 401: a survivor #. An early retirement, Bud laid carpet, grew avocados and worked as game!