Raposa popped the release buckle and fell into the marsh, landing on her hands and knees. Sharon Norene Gatti 3/2/48 Am I the only one left alive? he wondered. There were 75 survivors. "I couldn't understand why I lived and they didn't. The flying safety was even more compromised because it was slightly hazy which reduced visibility to seven to ten miles over the Everglades. In the days and weeks following the crash of Eastern Airlines Flight 401, recovery efforts captivated the nation, and perhaps because of its iconic, unforgiving, alligator-riddled crash site, the event has remained seared in the memories of Floridians for decades. When the main part of the fuselage hit the ground, it continued to move through the grass and water, breaking up as it went. I lost my boot., Well, Raposa said, Ill help you find it., Thats okay, Raposa said. Bud Marquis had experienced better nights of frogging. Skeptic Brian Dunning claims that the origin for the ghost sightings was a joke made by an Eastern Air Lines captain after an emergency landing in which he quipped that he "thought [Don] Repo's ghost was on the plane."[22][24]. At the time, the decision to change seats carried no meaning. "It's 100 degrees in the house, honey," Nancy says, joining him on the porch. 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. My log book shows that our flight lasted 1.2 hours. The old airboat, the airboat in which he carried injured passengers, waits on a rusty trailer with flat tires. Later that afternoon or evening, Bill Elliott came back to the clubhouse where we were all waiting for him so he could let us know what he did and saw. 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. The aircraft impacted the Everglades at 227 mph at 25.51'53"N, 80.35'43"W, almost 7 miles due north of Tamiami Trail (US 41), slightly over 7 miles . They even made cheesy movie about it. Charles Kuchenbrod 7/16/30 MIAMI - Thursday marks 50 years since Eastern Airlines Flight 401 crashed into the Florida Everglades. 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. Those pilots probably didn't even know there was a NOTAM prohibiting flight immediately above the crash site. Ron Infantino woke up in a chill, heart pounding, breath erratic. 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. Meanwhile, 1,100 miles to the north, an Eastern Airlines jumbo jet lifted off in bitter cold weather from New Yorks John F. Kennedy International Airport. 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. Then he tells the story the best he can. [5]:4 Fifty seconds after reaching their assigned altitude, Captain Loft instructed First Officer Stockstill to put the L-1011 on autopilot. [15][16][17], These stories speculated that parts of the crashed aircraft were salvaged after the investigation and refitted into other L-1011s. 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. Below Right - Gatherers take a moment to honor Robert 'Bud' Marquis. Let them not be forgotten. Thats what youre going to get when we get out of here. Instead, it took 35 years. He'd cruise up on the frog, spear the frog with the 3-pronged gig, knock the frog off the gig into a sack, all the while moving forward in the airboat while getting ready to gig another frog. "Hey, what's happening here?" Raposa, Beverly | ", Official Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 - History, Photos, Survivors and Tribute. [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. Based on Fuller's book, it emphasized the ghost sightings. Sir, dont worry, he said. Of the 176 passengers and crew members aboard Flight 401, 77 survived the initial crash. Back in the day, when he spent so much time in the wilderness, only the airplanes overhead reminded him of civilization. One retired Eastern L-1011 pilot I spoke to said that he had a second officer flying with him on a B-727 for several months in the Spring of '73 who was a self-ordained preacher. After dark he moonlighted as a commercial frogger. When the Coast Guard helicopter attempted a landing, the prop wash threw hunks of debris dangerously around. Entry . "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. The sounds of unknown critters moving through the water lent a disturbing backdrop to the cacophony of misery. Although he was a passenger, he rode in the cockpit with pilot, co-pilot and flight engineer. Abbey Lynn Greenwald 9/18/52 It was more accurately a "tie-down"club; the members owned their aircraft and joined the club to be able to tie-down their aircraft at reasonable costs and have access to a ramp area where they could perform routine maintenance on their planes. Born in Arkansas, he grew up in South Florida when everybody seemed to be poor. It didn't look as if anyone could have possibly survived the crash, yet 75 people did. "He swore that Frank Borman had paid him to come to Miami and perform an exorcism on #318. | Frank Borman, a former NASA astronaut and Eastern's senior vice president of operations, was awoken at home by a telephone call explaining of a probable crash. Also in attendance was Ron Infantino, David Kaplan and the Casado family. Official Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 - History, Photos, Survivors and Tribute | In another 50 seconds, the plane was at half its assigned altitude. Jose Rego 9/5/19 They headed for the flash. Each year on December 29th, I spend a little time thinking about that silhouetted L1011 heading west over Opa locka Airport. Raposa was struggling for ideas to keep her group occupied. He did well for a while -- had a big house in the Country Club of Miami and drove a Lincoln. Refresh the page, check Medium 's site. 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. The flight should have taken around 18 hours. They claimed that the deceaseds name was being used for the commercial purpose of selling books about the fatal crash (and a movie based on the book) by referring to the decedent as a reappearing ghost. The family lost the suit, and subsequent appeals. The powers-that-be want them to . Photos: AL DIAZ | MIAMI HERALD. 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). The article covered the story of an Eastern L-1011 ferry flight where the jet lost one of the two operating engines and the pilot had a challenging landing. 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. When he stopped the engine to push the boat back into the water, he heard a chorus of terrified human voices, hollering, moaning, shrieking. [15][16] Gossip regarding the sighting of the spirits of Don Repo and Bob Loft spread throughout Eastern Air Lines to the extent that Eastern's management warned employees that they could be dismissed if caught spreading ghost stories. Solomon Fisher 7/18/11 "I've tried to throw [the suitcase] away many times, but something always holds me back. She worked only briefly as a flight attendant after the crash. [5]:3, The flight was routine until 23:32, when the airplane began its approach into Miami International Airport. Once you become stuck in the glades, you could be there for a long, long, time.. The Ghost of Flight 401 TV Movie 1978 1 h 40 m IMDb RATING 5.7 /10 617 YOUR RATING Rate Drama Mystery Thriller An aircraft crashes in the Florida Everglades, killing 103 passengers. Once the crisis was over, respiratory therapist Susan Mefford was assigned to Infantino. [6]:107109, Robert "Bud" Marquis (19292008),[7] an airboat pilot, was out frog gigging with Ray Dickinsin (19291988) when they witnessed the crash. In his mind, he's still a strapping young fellow with big muscles. Only small fragments of metal marked the wingtip's first contact, followed 49ft (15m) further on by three massive 115ft (35m) swaths cut through the mud and sawgrass by the aircraft's extended undercarriage before two of the legs were sheared off. I do recall that some gremlins were on it though and they kept messing up my landing!!!!". I had first, second and third-degree burns all over my body. She had no first-aid kit. 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. Lloyd Irving Bearman 1/16/23 Even at 78, Marquis is an old-fashioned country boy. "Having money ruined my life," he said. It was only then that it had hit him. The fact that the tail assemblyrear fuselage, number2 tail-mounted engine, and remains of the empennagefinally came to rest substantially further forward than other major sections, was probably the result of the number 2 engine continuing to deliver thrust during the actual breakup of the aircraft. Get the latest flight sales and travel reviews straight to your inbox. Back row: Pat Ghyssels, Trudy Smith, Adrianne Hamilton, Mercy Ruiz. One hundred and one lives were lost that late . the pilot asked at the last second. Eventually, the investigations were concluded and most, but not all, of the wreckage was removed or salvaged from the Everglades. Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 traveled from New York to Miami. Well launch from there.. Eugene Schenker 6/24/30 Marquis is also survived by a son, Donald Marquis of Altamonte Springs; a daughter, Terri Mabie of Tucson; 10 grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren. That's why Hansel wanted me to fly; it would be my license that got revoked if we got caught, not his! Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 left New York's JFK airport, bound for Miami International Airport, on December 29, 1972. What made it so hard was trying to manhandle him up and over the broken willows. If he saw legs kicking, he turned the seat over. '," she says now. After retiring he volunteered with the Civil Air Patrol, his last rank was Lt. Officially, 103 passengers and crew died. Rodas, meanwhile, is "badly burned" as well, the source says. Loft, Robert Albin | My mother never told me the flight attendant's name, but she did say that she had suffered a broken back in the crash. The flying club was also a de facto social club with members having the common bonds of flying and aircraft ownership. Passenger List: TWA Flight 800. Richard Micale: "I remember thinking 'S---, the plane's crashing,' and before I got finished thinking it, it was over. 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. The petite brunette stood just 5 feet 1.5 inches tall. Rochelle Rubin 1/5/48 (she was the first victim discovered by the search team Ghosts of Flight 401 - 4 | Thomas Ponte 10/24/11 We exited the area and returned to Opa locka Airport, but our conversations were subdued. On December 29, 1972, Eastern Air Lines flight 401 left New York's JFK airport and crashed on its approach to Miami, killing 101 of the 176 people on board. Preoccupation with a malfunction of the nose landing gear position indicating system distracted the crew's attention from the instruments and allowed the descent to go unnoticed. The time was 9:20 p.m. She had been turned down by Trans World Airlines for a job because she was a half inch under the 5-foot-2-inch minimum height required for all stewardesses. 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