Total Persons on Board:
14 pilots and crewmen.
|
FT 36
(Bureau No. 46094)
Capt. Edward James Powers,
USMC
Herman Q. Thompson, Sgt, USMCR
George R. Paonessa, Sgt, USMC |
FT 28 (Bureau
No. 23307)
Lt. Charles Carroll Taylor,
USNR
George F. Devlin, AOM3c, USNR
Walter R. Parpart, ARM3c, USNR |
|
|
FT 117
(Bureau No. 73209)
Capt. George William Stivers,
USMC
Robert P. Gruebel, Pvt, USMCR
Robert F. Gullivan, Sgt, USMC |
FT 81
(Bureau No. 46325)
2nd Lt. Forrest James Gerber,
USMCR
William E. Lightfoot, Pfc, USMCR |
FT 3
(Bureau No. 45714)
Ens. Joseph Tipton Bossi, USNR
Herman A. Thelander, S1c, USNR
Burt E. Baluk, Jr., S1c, USNR
|
FT. 81 was one man short because Marine Corporal Allen Kosner had asked to be
excused from the exercise. All of the pilots were qualified navy pilots, with an
average of 300 hours flight time. This was a VTB Type Advanced Training
exercise. They were not beginners, but advanced students.
The instructor for the flight was Lt. Charles Carroll Taylor, who had
recently transferred to Ft. Lauderdale from Miami. This was his first flight on
this training course, but he was a seasoned pilot with over 2,000 hours flight
time. He had spent 10 months flying combat missions in the South Pacific.
When:
December 15, 1945
Weather:
Scattered rain showers with a ceiling of 2500 feet within the showers and
unlimited outside the showers, visibility of 6-8 miles in the showers, 10-12
otherwise. Surface winds were 20 knots with gusts to 31 knots. The sea was
moderate to rough. The general weather conditions were considered average for
training flights of this nature except within showers.
Flight Route:
TBM Avenger Torpedo Bombers departed from the U. S. Naval Air Station, Fort
Lauderdale, Florida, on an authorized advanced over water navigational training
flight. They were to execute navigation problem No. 1, which is as follows: (1)
depart 26 degrees 03 minutes north and 80 degrees 07 minutes west and fly 091
degrees (T) distance 56 miles to Hen and Chickens Shoals to conduct low level
bombing, after bombing continue on course 091 degrees (T) for 67 miles, (2) fly
course 346 degrees (T) distance 73 miles and (3) fly course 241 degrees (T)
distance 120 miles, then returning to U. S. Naval Air Station, Fort Lauderdale,
Florida.
Area Believed Crashed:
Off Florida Coast. Some believe that they may have overshot Florida and
ditched in the Gulf of Mexico.
Reason for flight:
Military Training Flight
Type of Planes:
5 TBM Avengers in Flight 19
Search efforts:
All available facilities in the immediate area were used in an effort to
locate the missing aircraft and help them return to base. These efforts were not
successful. No trace of the aircraft was ever found even though an extensive
search operation was conducted until the evening of December 10, 1945, when
weather conditions deteriorated to the point where further efforts became unduly
hazardous.
Controversy:
At 1410 hours, the afternoon of 5 December, 1945, U.S. Naval Flight
19, consisting of five TBM Avenger Torpedo Bombers with a total of 14
men aboard, left the Naval Air Station in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on
an authorized advanced over water navigational training flight and
disappeared without a trace.
The first hint of trouble came at 1600 hours. An intercepted radio
message, believed to be between the leader of Flight 19 and another
pilot, indicated that the instructor was uncertain of his position and
the direction of the Florida coast. Further, the aircraft seemed to be
experiencing compass malfunctions.
The few additional transmissions were inadequate to establish the
exact nature of the trouble or the location of the group. Then all
radio contact was lost.
| One search aircraft, a PBM Mariner flying boat (Bureau
No. 59225) carrying 13 crewmen
and rescue equipment, was lost during the operation. A PBM patrol
plane which was launched at approximately 7:30 p.m., December 5, 1945,
to search for the missing TBM's. This aircraft was never seen nor
heard from after take-off. Based upon a report from a merchant ship
off Fort Lauderdale which sighted a "burst of flame, apparently
an explosion, and passed through on oil slick at a time and place
which matched the presumed location of the PBM, it is believed this
aircraft exploded at sea and sank at approximately 28.59 N; 80.25 W.
No trace of the plane or its crew was ever found. Until the late 1960's , this was just another unfortunate case of
some missing planes. Since the late 60's, this case has become one of
the key incidents that people point to as a proof that something
strange is going on in an area dubbed as "The Bermuda
Triangle." |
| The Final Crew of PBM-8
59255 |
|
Pilot - Walter G. Jeffery, Ltjg, USN
Harrie G. Cone, Ltjg, USN
Roger M. Allen, Ensign, USN
Lloyd A. Eliason, Ensign, USN
Charles D. Arceneaux, Ensign, USN
Robert C. Cameron, RM3, USN
Wiley D. Cargill, Sr., Seaman 1st, USN
James F. Jordan, ARM3, USN
John T. Menendez, AOM3, USN
Philip B. Neeman, Seaman 1st, USN
James F. Osterheld, AOM3, USN
Donald E. Peterson, AMM1, USN
Alfred J. Zywicki, Seaman 1st, USN |
|
Flight 19 even figured in "Close Encounters of the Third
Kind," in which first the planes and then the men were returned
by aliens.
A search team a few years ago found what they believe to be one of the missing Avengers, however, they were unable to prove
it.
For more information, use the
following links
USN
History - Flight 19
Bermuda
Triangle & TBMs
Naval
Aviation News - Flight 19
Department
of the Navy - The Lost Patrol
|
