In 2021, a memorial marker was installed in the Everglades to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the May 11, 1996, ValuJet crash. It has truly been an honor for us to bring this permanent Eastern 401 Memorial Monument to reality. It also offered the opportunity to discuss their efforts to commemorate victims prior to the December 2022 inauguration of the 50th Anniversary of Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 Memorial Monument. Infantino served in Vietnam, but it was this flight, not war that brought him closest to death. "It was funny. Each section was like its own little group [of survivors], detached from the others. The Eastern Airlines flight 401 crash: the deadliest disaster in U.S. civil aviation history. For over thirty years Charlie worked with the FAA as an Air Traffic Controller.

She had been replaced by another Eastern flight attendant, Sharon Transue. According to DeWitt, the monument also represents how through a terrible tragedy in Flight 401, the industry eventually put safety first in many ways.. Please enter valid email address to continue. Mercy's camera would later survive the crash and this remarkable photo was developed. Ruiz continued her career as a flight attendant, flying for both EA and United (UA) in the years following Flight 401. Coviello was not so fortunate with Nicky. Lilly and Ron had just married on December 9th, and after a brief honeymoon in Disney World, they had flown to New York to spend Christmas with Ron's parents. 35 years after jetliner crash, hero gets his due, Aircraft Accident Report: Eastern Air Lines, Inc. L-1011, N310EA, Miami, Florida, December 29, 1972, Flight 401 1972 Jumbo-Jet Crash was Worst Aviation Disaster in State History. Captain Bob Loft and First Officer Bert Stockstill returned to an altitude of 2,000 feet, then put the plane on autopilot while they investigated. DALLAS December 29, 2022, will mark a half-century since the fatal crash of Eastern Air Lines (EA) Flight 401. We did something to the altitude, Stockstill was hearing saying. Edward graduated from Seymour High in 1947. Rose Kashman, 57, of New York, sporting a mink coat. She was Jennifer Larsen, an in-flight executive representative for Eastern Airlines. The crew made just two small entries on log sheet 427443: the tail skid light came on several times during the trip, and the pressure was low in the crews portable oxygen bottle. The aircraft broke apart as it cartwheeled across the wetlands. Official Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 - History, Photos, Survivors and Tribute. ", Inserted sideways, the fixture had jammed. Eastern Air Lines Flight 401, 50 Years On. The airplane crashed at 255153N,803543W. To the quarter-of-a-million pound operating weight of the airplane was added 400 pounds. Visit miamiherald.com. Rescue efforts went on for hours, but 75 survivors had been pulled from the wreckage by morning. Theres another photo Ruiz has analyzed over the years. She asked fellow flight attendant Patricia Ghyssels, who sat across from her, what was going on. Copies of that photo are now bound in a leather album that Eastern gave all the flight attendants of Flight 401 after the tragedy.

Fatal Distraction: Directed by Su Rynard. Bob Loft, the captain, operated the radio. With the emergency equipment rolling onto the field near runway Nine Right in anticipation of National 607, Eastern 401 was assigned the other parallel runway, Nine Left. In late 1972 the two were passengers in a plane crash that left both with debilitating painful injuries. Repo went back down the ladder into the avionics bay. He had purchased a non-smoking ticket, but while on board found a seat in the last row reserved for smokers. Amid the confusion, the distracted crew didnt notice the auto pilot button was switched off.

), Inside the hell hole was an optical sighting device which could be used to view the landing gear itself.Meanwhile, Stockstill was still trying to remove the jammed light assembly. The crash was a result of the flight crew's failure to recognize a deactivation of the autopilot during their more. "This wont come out, Bob. For decades, many of the 75 survivors have reflected on ways to honor those who died in the tragedy. When she returned they exchanged places. "I could see things flying all about methere was a rush of windit sounded like we were in the middle of a tornado. Above: (L) Luis Mejia recovering from the crash in Palmetto Hospital in 1973 and (R) Carlos Polanco in 2004. Three of the 4 cockpit crew members, two of the 10 flight attendants, and 96 of the 163 passengers were killed; there were 75 survivors. The aircraft operating the route, a Lockheed L1011-385-1 Tristar crashed into the Florida Everglades, resulting in 101 fatalities. Then came the final and fatal mistake. He turned to Repo and said "Hey, get down there and see if that goddamn nose wheel's down." On flight 401, an unexpected factor made it seem even larger than it was. It is clear that the crew viewed the malfunction not so much as an emergency as an annoyance. After selecting gear down, the nosegear light didn't indicate 'down and locked'. She was born on August 24, 1947, to Jefferson Truett Smith and S. Margeria Jeffus in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Loft looked over. The engineer and second officer for flight 401 was Donald Louis Repo, a man who had gone to sleep early the night before because he was trying to shake a cold.

", The controller responded, "Alright, ah, we got you headed westbound there now, Eastern 401.". Raposa said she has flown for over 20 years for business, saying she sleeps like a baby every time she flies. Top Left: The girls of Flight 401. The flooring of the plane crumbled. On this day in 1972, Eastern Airlines Flight 401 crashes in the Everglades. When youve stared death in the face just as I have, she said, you dont take things for granted anymore.. I couldnt even see the crash. Her four-year-old son, Nicky, was nowhere in sight. The pilots seemed to have realized what happened mere seconds before the crash. Anyone interested in attending should email flt401memorial@gmail.com. Now, on December 29th, it had been flying for only four months, one week and two days. Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 was a Lockheed L-1011 Tristar 1 jet that crashed into the Florida Everglades on the night of December 29, 1972, causing 101 fatalities (77 initial crash survivors, two died shortly afterward). Thataboy. "Turning number two," the pilot said as he depressed the start switch. WebCrash (also known as The Crash of Flight 401) is a 1978 made-for-TV drama film directed by Barry Shear and based on the true story of the first crash of a wide-body aircraft, that of Eastern Air Lines Flight 401, a Lockheed L-1011 TriStar which crashed in the Florida Everglades near Miami on the night of December 29, 1972. Johnathan Kaminer, a two year old child dressed in a red-and-blue outfit, was hurled three hundred feet north of the cockpit. A few even had their clothes blown off. The jumbo jet had been making a late evening flight from New York to Miami. The coat closet disappeared. He decided: Go. Category:Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 From Wikimedia Commons, the free media repository Media in category "Eastern Air Lines Flight 401" The following 8 files are in this category, out of 8 total. It had always worried her that if something should happen to them both, who would take care of her girls?

After Four Tough Years, Can Boeing Break Through the Clouds? When Connell felt a blast of cold air and a wet, in-rushing wave of fuel, he knew the plane was breaking up. 2022 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. A native of Louisiana who now lived in Miami, Stockstill had even more flying time in the new L-1011 than Loft. Yet as Flight 401 approached Miami International Airport, the bulb failed to come on. The plane broke up into three or four sections, and the sections were spread out over the marsh. Eastern Air Lines Flight 401, 50 Years On, Aviation journalist and Daily Caller contributor who counts playing and teaching golf among his many hobbies, follow him on Twitter @realBrentFoster. There was not a great deal of action in the cockpit for Donadeo to observe, however. As captain, his was the final authority as to whether to proceed or abort the takeoff. The man from Hialeah "seemed to be on the ceiling. The plane descended out of the sky as pilots were distracted over a landing gear warning light. WebThe men on Flight 401's flight deck listened to their fellow pilot onboard the National plane as it dealt with its troubled gear. Eastern's uniforms in the winter of 1972 were dark brown, beige and powder blue; flight attendants had the option of wearing skirts, slacks or shorts with boots that zipped nearly to the knee. Below: Christina Casada-Acorn, now 35, standing at the crash site in 2007 while holding the dress she was wearing the night of the crash. In the front of the plane, strapped into her seat against the rear wall of the cockpit, Adrianne Hamilton felt the entire nose of the airplane rotate violently to the right; she lurched left, but was held by her seat belt. On this day in 1972, Eastern Airlines Flight 401 crashes in the Everglades. Go down and see if it's lined upthat's all we care. Minor, Miami Herald) Below, Right, Mrs Leona Levine on March 15, 1973 (Joe Elbert, Miami Herald). Amazingly, 75 of the 176 passengers and crew aboard Flight 401 survived. ", The cockpit voice recorder picked up the sound of laughter. / CBS Miami. ", Gustavo Casado was sitting in seat 16C with his wife beside him in 16D and their two month old daughter, Christy, seated on his wife's lap. Aircraft 310 was one of a dozen L-1011s Lockheed had delivered to Eastern Airlines that year, and it was one of the best of the bunch.

Inside the plastic cube were two small light bulbs, called peanut bulbs. He turned to Loft as Repo was entering the hell hole. West Indian Flight 790 entered a final approach. If we're a little late, it's overtime,' Ruiz recalls. He began to doze as the seat belt sign was lighted and a voice came from the cockpit. Nonetheless, at one point, efforts appeared to come to a standstill until the beginning of 2022, when Raposa, in a conference call, emphasized a desire for action ahead of the 50th anniversary. There's so many good things, positive things came out of Flight 401, that this plane crash can never happen again with all the safety features put on it, said Infantino. From first impact to last movement the Whisperliner traveled more than one third of a mile. The group wanted to balance their pose, so they stood in two lines of four with one of the flight attendants stretching out over the top of a closet. Marc Leshay, twenty one, a University of Miami student headed back to class after the holidays.

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Raposa was one of 75 survivors. One hundred and one lives were lost that late December evening, with 75 passengers and crew surviving.

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