The fuselage hit the ground, lost both its wings, and continued a quarter of a mile across the North Carolina border, stopping just a few feet from Clingmans Dome Road. Sequoyah and the southern border of North Carolina in a thick forest. xnFpy-}Ju " (5CRS5skCFAw}wH(a1* `}.{c? Fifteen people died in four weekend plane crashes and three passenger planes were forced to make emergency landings, including an Eastern Airlines jet . Neither the pilot nor passenger survived. During WWII, more than 7,100 air crashes involved US Army Air Force (USAAF) aircraft occurred on American soil. It left MacDill Field near Tampa, Florida at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, June 11 and was returning to MacDill from Chicago in the early morning of June 12 when the crash occurred. If you liked learning about the old plane crash near Clingmans Dome, we bet youll love reading about the hidden tunnel underneath the road! The title is "Mayday! A Sevierville police officer reported a low flying airplane flying south over Sevierville at about 3 a.m. Neither the pilot nor passenger survived. Click here to take a moment and familiarize yourself with our Community Guidelines. Seven airmen parachuted to safety, however, one was seriously injured. Brainerd, Minnesota. The crash occurred approximately 11 miles from the plane's destination. These plane crashes were ultimately most likely unavoidable, but maybe we can all double-check our safety precautions before we venture out into the great smoky unknown. Shortly afternoon on May 4, 1945, a PBY-5A Catalina left Alameda, California, with a crew of eleven, and four depth charges. Lieutenant Laurence E. Wernberg was flying one offive new Vultee BT-13 Valiants to be delivered to Kelly Field, in Texas. On October 17, 1943, four P-47Ds were practicing high altitude formation flying when one was seen to enter a dive at 32,000 feet. Click here are a few of my favorite places near Bryson City. I will check this out next week. Very little debris remains atthe site (SNP, n.d.). How the Appalachian Mountains Were Formed, The Secret Plan to Protect the Smoky Mountains From Nuclear War, Smoky Mountain Civil War Battles: East Tennessee. They also found the frozen bodies of the two victims who had sadly died on impact. Hailing from Sumter, South Carolina, the jet was on a recon mission to take photos. /Annots [ 11 0 R 12 0 R ] On December 9, 1942, the aircraft was involved in a weather reconnaissance flight (such flights were considered combat missions). Looking at the satellite view it appears the hike to the plane crash is about a 3-mile round-trip hike, first up to Waterrock Knob and then across the ridge to Browning Knob. June 12, 1946: Plane Crash. Although the crash knocked down treetops and moved boulders, the site has been picked clean of wreckage. Many of these military aircraft accidents occurred in remote, often mountainous, areas managed by the National Park Service. My T-Shirts - https://shop.spreadshirt.com/mobileinstinct/ Extra footage on Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/mobileinstinctAll of my videos are organized by state on my website https://www.TheMobileInstinct.com More videos on My Second Channel - https://www.youtube.com/mobileinstinct2INSTAGRAM - https://www.instagram.com/mobileinstinct New FACEBOOK page - Lets be friends - https://www.facebook.com/mobileinstinct*CHECK OUT some other videos of mine! 27 Nov 1983: Piper Cherokee(AF) Piper PA-28-180(NTSB) Lexington, TN. All 12 crew members were killed. Have You Heard About the Old Plane Crash near Clingmans Dome? He said it is hard to think that his mom is up there right now. The B-20 Superfortress was an Army Bomber that crashed into Clingmans Dome in the early morning hours of a June night in 1946. Murder: 14. twinjett: my next question, would any metal detecting device be allowed in a national park? But the hike is definitley one of my favorites. Here's the story; on November 24, 1983, a Cessna 414 was flying from West Chicago to the Jackson County Airport here in the NC mountains. The officer made the report because Sevierville wasnt along any regular flight routes. Supplies were dropped to them by air, and they were finally led out of the canyon after 10 days(Ghiglieri and Myers 2001; Farabee 2005). local. Much of the wreckage was removed in 1960, under a Special Use Permit (SNP, n . Friends of Hunter Starling's mother, Tabitha Starling, have created a GoFundMe account to raise funds to help Tabitha with funeral and other expenses. ta.queueForLoad : function(f, g){document.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded', f);})(function(){ta.trackEventOnPage('postLinkInline', 'impression', 'postLinks-27398619', '');}, 'log_autolink_impression');Clingmans Dome road up near the top. The wreckage was found about 24 hours later on the side of a mountain about 15 miles southeast of their destination. Just a few months later on August 28, 1944, another USAAF Douglas P-70 (P-70B) from Hammer Field crashed into the summit of Quarry Peak, 15 miles west of Mono Lake. It crashed a little before 6pm at about 6,000 feet. twinjett, Thank you for such a neat story! The vision of the plane crash is now fixed as part of my memory. A couple of homemade signs nailed to trees a short ways down the path offer tips and warnings for proceeding ahead. US RF Phantom II fighter jet crashes into the Smokies at nearly 500 miles per hour. Its a tad scary walking thru the yellow dots hap hazardly sprayed by the CSI people mark the way. On November 18, 1942, a Beech AT-7 Navigator from Mather Field, near Sacramento, struck the Mendel Glacier in Darwin Canyon. Here is a copy of the story from a old newspaper!! The human remains, of course, were returned to the family, and the engines and anything else of value were salvaged. Graffiti covered the white paint. On September 2, 1945, the last day of the war, a USMCGrumman F6F-5 crashed in Death Valley. On July 7, 1960, the wreckage was found at Lake Le Conte. A rescue team has recovered the bodies of three victims who died in a single engine plane crash in Great Smoky Mountain National Park. The 'planetary parade' is fun, but UT experts say it's a bit overhyped. Her heart was bigger than anything I had every known. Extensive wreckage exists at the sitetoday (GMNP, n.d.; Mireles 2006). Much of the eight-seat Cessna 414A is still up there on the mountain. Great Smoky Mountains National Park. higher levels are evergreen and it smells like a Christmas tree farm as you near the top. youtube/FloridaTrailblazer The plane crashed shortly before 6 p.m. Some of the services we offer include. The human remains, of course, were returned to the family, and the engines and anything else of value were salvaged. That fateful night the B-29 had been on a night-training flight mission prior to the crash. The cause of the crash was never determined (Mireles 2006). To use our mobile site, please enable JavaScript. Second Lieutenant George B. Smallfield was thrown from his aircraft, and managed to attach and deploy his parachute in free fall, but the remaining nine members of his crew perished (Farabee 2005; Mireles 2006). Police ID motorcyclist killed in crash as 32-year-old Knoxville man. On March 29, 1945, an AT-11 crash-landed on Devils Golf Course, and the pilot survived(Farabee 2005). TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) - Un hombre de Tampa desapareci durante un viaje a fines de abril, segn las autoridades. Doing some more research on line, there has been a book written about the crash and other crashes in the Smokies. This aircraft was on a routine navigational night-training flight at the time of the crash. We are not endorsed by, authorized by, or affiliated with any mentioned attractions. McDonnell Douglas DC-8-54F37. ta.queueForLoad : function(f, g){document.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded', f);})(function(){ta.trackEventOnPage('postLinkInline', 'impression', 'postLinks-27399650', '');}, 'log_autolink_impression');Gatlinburg in November and I will have to check this out.The road going up to Clingmans Dome is around 7 miles.I will look and see if I see anything.It might be hard to spot anything with all the leaves that have covered the ground for the past 64 years,But who knows. The National Transportation Safety Board released its Aviation Accident Factual Report Monday that documents how a plane, carrying three people, went down in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in December. Cruickshank, with a makeshift crutch,was able to meet up with Goldblum in the morning, and eventually they found Embanks. Ridge scientist. Charleston Gazette West Virginia 1946-06-13. On July 30, 1943, a Consolidate B-24D Liberator hit the Tanque Verde Ridge in Saguaro National Park, and nine airmen lost their lives. This information is taken from the white paper WWII Military Aircraft Incidents in National ParkService Units: A Preliminary Inventorysubmitted to the George Wright Society by: They knew the plane made it to Knoxville, so the search started there and moved south to Tampa. Theengines and some fuselage pieces were retrieved by the Pima Air and Space Museum in 1979(SNP, n.d.; Mireles 2006). Rethink that selfie. Meteorological conditions at the crash site included low clouds and precipitation. On Independence Day 1944, three Consolidated B-24Js left March Field for gunnery and bombing raining. For a decade, the father of the 23-year-old co-pilot (Second Lieutenant Robert M. Hester) searched for the site of the crash. Then just before you get to the top youll notice a small unmarked trail to the left (very easy to miss) watch for it. Two people died in this crash. endobj If we hike to the top elevation is 6,300 feet. Wernbergglided towards the lake surface, but hit a cable and plunged into the water, near Hoover Dam(Farabee 2005). With thunderstorms in the area, a local Sevierville police officer reported an unusually low flying aircraft passing over in the wee hours of the morning. Neither the pilot nor passenger survived. 4 0 obj Since the advent of the airplane, there have been 54 crashes in the Smoky Mountains. The peculiar part about this report was that Sevierville wasnt along any normal flight routes for aircraft. Plane crash map Locate crash sites, wreckage and more. Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. ???? I think they would not like you using one. Both occupants were killed. I'm also gonna be on vacation in the smokies this coming November, and I'll try to see if remnents of the crash are still evident. Despite killing the people inside, the Cessna is largely intact on the mountain today. Copyright Lil Blue Boo 2023 | Privacy Policy, The Great Smoky Mountains and Western NC Hiking. While this strategy worked originally, it quickly became the strategy that killed him. A USAAF Consolidated 0A-10 (Army designation for Navy PBY-5A Catalina)was on route from Amarillo, Texas, to Mather Field, nearSacramento, on August 1, 1945. To this day, you can still find pieces of the wreckage that was spread over nearly 20 acres. Subscribe for the LATEST content directly to your inbox! The aircraft had apparently struck the mountain near the top of a 12,500 feet ridge, then slid down into the lake. Theaircraft was flying in poor isibility, about 200 feet above a paved road, and struck the eastern, slope of Guadalupe Peak. Annette Herfkens with Willem van der Pas in Peru, 1983. ]E*^QD$JQ#+ Hes Siennas sloth and he comes on hikes with us . An AT-6 crashed north of Paige Creek, just inside the park boundary, on December 28,1942. I never knew that there are close to 54 plane crash sites located in the Smoky Mountains. On the last day of 1943, a Consolidated B-24D left Biggs Field in El Paso, Texas, on an instrument training mission, and struck a hill west of Pine Top. A tactical rescue team of the National Park Service recovered their bodies from the rugged terrain Wednesday. The pilot, unable to get his bearings in the cloudsperhaps due to the flight most likely being VFR decided to begin dunking underneath the relatively low ceiling of cloud cover. It looks like heaven. <> This is the general area of the crash, so be sure to keep an eye out during the beginning of your hike! Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate and a partner of other affiliate programs including Booking.com, CJ and Tripster, we may earn commissions from qualifying purchases via links found in this article. All the other eightaviators in the B-24J perished along with all eight airmen on the B-24D (Mireles 2006). Constance, in OlympicNational Park. Additionally, the weather is wholly unpredictable in the mountains, especially at various elevations. 12 dead. I HAVE however, heard about the (ta && ta.queueForLoad ? Looks like a gap in the tall grass at first, then if you take that trail you will see a tree with a sign that says Browning Knob trail 0.7 on it. On the first leg to Winslow,Arizona, on August 11, 1940, the aircraft developed engine trouble over Lake Mead. 50-hour oil change analysis. As humans have learned ever since they laid eyes on these smoky mountains, you can never truly take your safety for granted anywhere above or below these mountains. Details. All three crew members who jumped from the plane survived: Engineer Corporal Roy W. Embanks was uninjured; Lieutenant Charles Goldblum (bombardier) slid down asteep slope and his parachute snagged on the rocks; and Flying Officer Maurice J. Cruikshank,Jr. (navigator), hit a steep slope and broke bones in his foot. I have flown with David and I trust him 110 percent. However, on that fateful day, he was apparently unaware or unconcerned by the weather awaiting him. My mom was my best friend, to say the least, and I didnt really get to say goodbye, he told WATE, a Knoxville television station that covers the Gatlinburg area. The entire crew of six was killed on impact. However, it would be a moderately difficult hike to get there. I usually describe this kind of place as Narnia: Its not the easiest hike, but very doable if you can climb over fallen trees and jump across some small mud pits: The canopy is pretty thick so the vegetation is mostly ferns, fungi and mosswhich I love: Theres a lot of photograph if you take your time: This looked like a waterfall of roots to me.a rootfall? 23 Oct 1983: Cessna TU206G: She sounds matter-of-fact, but she has had time to become analytical about her behaviour: the crash happened 30 years ago, in November 1992. Redoubt, Alaska, which is now within Lake Clark National Park. The aircraft impacted the ground at cruising speed and the wreckagewas widely dispersed and burned (Macha and Jordan 2002). On October 24, 1941, 19 Curtis P-40 Hawks of the 57th Pursuit Group left March Field at Riverside, California, to fly to McClelland Field, in Sacramento, California. Would be neat to have a detector and spend some time up there looking. Can You Do Dollywood in One Day? David F.Greggs 26 of Montgomery, AL and Navigator, Capt. Weight and balance certification. I couldnt find any engines at the site and after a little research it turns out that they were salvaged soon after the crash. According to reports, the plane was en route to Sylva on the night of November 24, 1983, in some undefined precipitation and with low-lying cloud cover. The hike offers epic and sweeping views of the North Carolina mountains, including from one of the spurs, a glimpse of Ghost Town in Maggie Valley off in the distance. Copyright 2016 by WJXT News4Jax - All rights reserved. Discover short videos related to smokey mountain plane crash on TikTok. ta.queueForLoad : function(f, g){document.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded', f);})(function(){ta.trackEventOnPage('postLinkInline', 'impression', 'postLinks-27404096', '');}, 'log_autolink_impression');plane crashed 1/8 mile east of where the tower stands today just a few yards north of the Applachian Trail.. All I can remember was it was over half way up Clingmans Dome road and going up it was on the right side. United Air Lines. Quis autem vel eum iure reprehenderit qui in ea voluptate velit esse quam nihil molestiae lorem. He was flying in poor visibility, and was advised by radio to increase altitude to avoid the . It crashed a little before 6pm at about 6,000 feet. comm. It crashed a little before 6pm at about 6,000 feet. Three people are dead after a plane crash in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, according to the National Park Service, which confirmed Tuesday that a single-engine plane, previously . Read on to learn more about the old plane crash near Clingmans Dome: The B-29 Superfortress was a bomber built for the U.S. Army. Its not very far: I wouldnt ever go alone to the crash, or too close to dusk. I wrote about it here in 2015. Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), Camp at Historic site #47 in the Smokey Mountain National Park, Cool email, huh? The rest of the debris is slowly being reclaimed by the forest or has been carried off by visitors over the years. Check out our blog, Have You Heard About the Secret Tunnel Under Clingmans Dome Road?, About | Privacy Policies | Business Resources | Sitemap | Made with by IMEG. The accident was attributedto icing, and all five members of the crew were killed. Copyright 2023 News4JAX.com is managed by Graham Digital and published by Graham Media Group, a division of Graham Holdings. As suddenly as theystopped, the four engines restarted and the two pilots were able to nurse the plane to KingmanArmy Air Field. Smith said the photo haunts him because it was like the Lord was sending a signal to everybody. On Wednesday January 4, 1984 a US Air Force RF-4C Phantom II disintegrated as it crashed into The Smokies at 450 mph. Other family members were at the Gatlinburg-Pigeon Forge airport waiting for the plane to arrive. First Lieutenant Leonard C. Lydon and Second Lieutenant Jack C. West both bailed out near Barton, California. stream Haha.thats Sam! Drowning: 60. Once youre over to Browning Knob, notice another small unmarked trail to the left. The aircraftstruck a mountain (now named Mt. -- (AP) -- An Army 3d Air Force B-29 Superfortress crashed into a towering peak in the rugged Great Smoky mountains national park, near the Tennessee-North Carolina line, killing the 12 men aboard. '1@Qq75Nr0 P-qhK ;5+EG. Neither the pilot nor passenger survived. Once you reach Browning Knob, you should see another unmarked trail to the left. He had friends in the area and had flown into the Jackson County Airport before. The superintendent said nothing unusual had been reported about the weather in the park last night or early this morning, but he pointed out that fogs and low clouds were frequent in this section. The wings sheared off and the fuselage continued on winding up on the North Carolina side near the highway going to the top. Killed in the crash were pilot, Capt. Anybody else remember where the crash site exactly was at? - The adult son of Kim Smith, one of three people killed when a plane from Lawtey crashed in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, is struggling with the loss. It is the modern-day retelling of the Icarus story of flying too close to the sun. Deep cleaning upholstery and carpet. The B-29 Superfortress was shredded into a thousand pieces, including all but one of its four engines, which landed on the opposite side of the road. Then, they noticed the debris field on the west side of the road. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. While they say all the wreckage from the crash has been cleared, you can hike past the crash site when you visit! For example, wind acts abnormal around mountain ridges and valleys, causing there to be unique airflows that could cause issues. The plane left Tampa, Florida in the early evening on June 11th, with a planned return the next morning, on June 12th. The plane began to hit treetops about one-eighth of a mile from the Clingmans Dome Observation Tower. The operating hours, policies and procedures of other businesses may change at any time without notice. Early on the morning of September 9, 1941, a Douglas B-18A wason a night navigation training flight when it collided with a cliff on Mt. This hike just outside of the Smoky Mountains in NC is wild, but we confirmed that if you get hur. Extensive wreckage exists at the site, WWII Military Aircraft Incidents in National ParkService Units: A Preliminary Inventory. Theaircraft was flying in poor isibility, about 200 feet above a paved road, and struck the easternslope of Guadalupe Peak. Smith told the station that David Starling is an experienced pilot, having previously flown for the Air Force. The recovery team found the crash site on Inadu Knob near Old Black Mountain. The aircraft had impacted mountainous terrain at about 6,000 feet msl and 11 miles from the destination. In December 1960 the lake was renamed Hester Lake (Macha and Jordan 2002; Farabee 2005; Mireles 2006). - Cause: Occurrence #1: in flight encounter with weather The plane was piloted by Maj. Gen. Paul B. Wurtsmith, the youngest general in the Army Air Force. Have You Heard About the Secret Tunnel Under Clingmans Dome Road?, How To Park For Free at the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Everything You Need to Know About Elkmont Ghost Town, 5 Ways Camping in the Smoky Mountains Saves You Money on Your Trip, 5 of the Top Places to Grab Breakfast in Sevierville, 5 Tips for Finding the Perfect Smoky Mountain Cabin Rental. The remains of WWII Navy Goodyear FG-1, including machine guns andremains of its pilot, were discovered in the park by a hiker in 1967 (Macha and Jordan 2002). Even exceptional pilots can easily fall prey to unforeseen conditions. The Great Smoky Mountains have so much to offer its locals and visitors in the form of both historical and archaeological experiences. Weather was likely a factor in this plane crash nearly 40 years ago in North Carolina, where the wreckage remains (photo by Justin Colburn/Alamy stock). N844H. more, You seem to have JavaScript disabled. The windows were smashed; dark holes appearing to mysteriously lead into another dimension. After crossing snowbird VOR the aircraft turned south and again there were altitude excursions. The pilot crashed in a rugged area of the southern Appalachian mountains approximately six miles west of Clingmans Dome around 11 a.m. Thank you for reading! On a routine drive to the Clingmans Dome pumping station, two Civilian Public Service employees found a burnt airplane engine about three-quarters of a mile from the Forney Creek Parking Area on Clingmans Dome Road. Plane crash: 73. I was the first person to arrive at this Crash Site in 1983. Bad weather prevented the B-24 from returning to Adak, and so it was forced to crash land in Bechevin Bay, on Atka Island. Eventually stopping only a few feet from Clingmans Dome Road, the plane skidded to a stop after losing both of its wings and impacting the ground at an unknown speed or trajectory. The aircraft crashed afterhaving feathered one propeller (indicating an engine failure),killing all six crewmen (C. Fuller, pers. Always have a plan, and always be prepared for multiple outcomes. Here's a link to more info regarding the crash.This is pretty interesting.I love reading stories about an area Ive been to several times and didnt even know. Just after midnight on May 23, 1943, a B-17F en route from Marysville, California, to Lewiston, Montana, crashed four miles south of West Yellowstone. By TAMARA HENRY, United Press International. Read Also: Elkmont ghost town: Ghost stories that will give you goosebumps. All those tall fir trees have died in the last 20 years with that affid disease. % The path is clear and paved for the first bit before turning to dirt and leading up several stone staircases. They said they might have a preliminary report in a week to 10 days, but it could take a year or more to issue a final report on the cause of the crash. To get here first drive to the visitor center at Waterrock Knob, (one of our favorite places to bring visitors too. A USMC Curtiss-Wright R5C-1 (incorrectly identified as a C-46 by Farabee [2005]) crashed during a winter snowstorm near Mt. /Contents 4 0 R>> If youve hiked the Appalachian Trail, chances are youve passed the crash site without even realizing it! Upholstery repair and re-dying. Neither ASN nor the Flight Safety Foundation are responsible for the completeness or correctness of this information. Neither the pilot nor passenger survived. On December 5, 1943, a Consolidated B-24E disappeared over the Sierras on a celestial navigation flight with six crewmen on board. He did not talk to her right before or during the flight, but she did send a photo of the view outside the plane to other family members. Down that trail about 100 feet, youll be able to see the plane in the distance down the hill. I have ordered the book I hope to have it soon. See details: See map: N7338G. National Park Service. This aircraft was on a routine navigational night-training flight at the time of the crash. {;"%A'&L8s$wg_e(gn 2.(EAr25`D)+F )u {$HOAX v&=Sw1? y.G;] #v(_X2#W9y/A&i@fM9,1*0@_VD\nyd>wXfk235DyJ rWm7ZEQ+!D@|o#})[}of 5 ;GM:@=xgj![C}y. I crave the forest, the smells, the beauty and especially the healthy feeling of being outdoors. If you follow that trail for a little bit you will see a tree with the following signs on it: Yes, there are warningsmake sure you tell someone where you are hiking just in case! On December 24, 1944, a Cessna UC-78B Bobcat took off from Yuma Army Air Field to flyto Deming, New Mexico, with a pilot and two passengers. 0:38. On September 18, 1944, an ArmyC-47 left Anchorage for Fairbanks with a civilian pilot fromNorthwest Airlines, and 18 servicemen on board. In addition to that, hed been drinking a little the FAA reported a blood-alcohol level of .04 percent. As Im getting older I dont do it as much as I should and your pictures helped me see things I dont see much of anymore. My father would show me where the tall trees were sheared off from the crash. Here on the mountain side, seats and wreckage were scattered all over the steep terrain. The police said that there were no. A second incident involved a United StatesMarine Corps (USMC) Grumman F4F, which crashed on Anacapa Island on an unknown dateduring the WWII (Macha and Jordan 2002). This plane crashed in the Smoky Mountains in 1983, killing both occupants. It was an attempt to keep his bearings, which the FAA referred to as up and down altitude excursions. The plane crashed just shy of couple's . Certainly, it is a stark reminder of how powerless we really are in the face of nature. And some of the trees along the trail have been marked with yellow spray paint to make it easier. Twelve airmen died in the crash. Three airmen were killed in the accident. However, some reports say that pieces of the aircraft can still be seen while hiking to Andrews Bald. Despite immediate and subsequent searches, no trace of the aircraft was ever found (Wadley and McCarter 2002). Gunnery student Private NewtonJ. Steven was thrown from the B-24J and was able to parachute successfully. Clingmans Dome. Several WWII military plane crashes have been documented in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks. Park officials said the park's technical rescue team. We hiked to one of them recently: The wreckage of this particular plane crash has been sitting there for 35 years: The story goes that on November 24, 1983, a Cessna 414 was flying from West Chicago to the Jackson County Airport here in the NC mountains. One B-24J collided with, andsheared off the tail of, a B-24D which immediately plummeted. See map. You are at Browning Knob as soon as you start to see the views again: Once over to Browning Knob, youll notice another small unmarked trail to the left. Reg # . comm.). The almost intact wreck was removed by USMC helicopters in the summer of 1974 at the request of National Park Service (Macha and Jordan 2002; Farabee 2005). The Smoky Mountain area is rich in history, and we know you love learning more about it each day! It was five months before the wreck was found and the bodies of the eight crewmen were recovered. twinjett,Do you think any of the wreckage is still there?Or do you think they got most of it when they were building the lookout tower in 1956?Just wondering.I might have to get that book too.