She downsized plans for the memorial so it could be completed while the remaining survivors are still alive. Beverly was sitting in the rear of the plane. He says he thinks about the crash every day and it has defined the way he looks at life. Flight engineer Don Repo is also said to have appeared onboard flights in a strange, supernatural manner. His knee was badly dislocated, his shin able to swivel in any direction. The granite monument, installed just north of the Miami International Airport, now serves as a permanent tribute to those who died when the Miami-bound Eastern Air Lines flight 401 crashed in the . There were 10 flight attendants in the main cabin serving 163 passengers. She came across a woman who found an 11-month-old baby as she scouted the wreckage for her son. Sharon Shackleford said it has been painful to go on without her sister but that the memorial brings her peace. Raposa had found her. As the aircraft circled over the Florida Everglades, the flight crew were fixated on whether the landing gear was, in fact, down and the indicator light was faulty. And then she started walking away, trying to help people. "Same thing in our lives. I try to do that but I'm human so it doesn't always work out.". . Eastern Airlines Flight 401 - Crash Investigation, Findings and Passenger List . Total construction cost: $5 MILLION. The harrowing tale of three survivors of the 1972 crash of Eastern Airlines flight 401 into the Everglades. Raposa would spend the next grueling hours fighting for those who survived the crash of Eastern Airlines Flight 401. 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. He would later learn the voice came from flight attendant Beverly Raposa, who would later lead survivors in Christmas carols to try to keep their spirits up in the cold night. The list of passengers who perished on Eastern Airlines flight EA401 and honored on the Memorial are: The list of pilots who perished on Eastern Airlines flight EA401 are: The flight attendants who perished on the flight are: Fortunately, there were 75 survivors during that horrible tragedy of late 1972. Tomorrow is not a given, she said. A group of survivors drafted plans for a marker, but life got in the way. The pilot was unnerved by what had happened and canceled the flight. The helicopters had trouble finding the wreckage but Marquis used his headlamp to help signal them, as he continued to pull survivors from the wreckage. Infantino and other survivors have for years tried to create one but have been unable to raise the money needed to build it. Beverly saw a sea of colors before being knocked out. Those are the last moments Ron Infantino, 76, who now lives in The Villages in Central Florida, remembers before blacking out. On the night of December 29th, 1972, he was a passenger on Eastern Airlines Flight 401 from New York to Miami. It also marked the first the first jumbo jet to crash. In 2015 we warned you that the new Miami Springs pool was going to be much smaller than the grand olympic sized pool we had for over 50 years. Promote your organization with Miami's #1 hyperlocal community website. Thirteen seconds past 11:42 p.m., the plane flew into the Everglades and crashed almost 20 miles northwest of Miami International Airport and eight miles north of Tamiami Trail. Raposa said she has flown for over 20 years for business, saying she sleeps like a baby every time she flies. The rescuers, Coast Guard members and Miami-Dade fire fighters and police officers, worked throughout the night finding survivors. Fundraising was a challenge, but Raposa said radio appearances and the support of former Eastern Air Lines employees bolstered efforts. I didn't know what to do.". (Photo by Steve Starr/CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images), Copyright 2023 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. Amazingly, 75 of the 176 passengers and crew aboard Flight 401 survived. According to a National Transportation Safety Board report, the pilots placed the landing gear handle down but noticed the green light that indicates that the nose landing gear is fully extended and locked failed to illuminate. A look at some of the strange tales that emerged after the accident. In the hospital he learned just how bad off he was. . "Hey, what's happening here?" To the flight 401 survivors - Franoise Riette December 30, 2020, 5:02 pm. It was time to leave as each of us will do. 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. Now the names are there and they will never be forgotten, Ruiz said. The aircraft operating the route, a Lockheed L1011-385-1 Tristar crashed into the Florida Everglades, resulting in 101 fatalities. They were working all night with gear on the boots in the swamp and the mud.". Truth or scare? Pieces of the shattered plane lay scattered in the muck and jet fuel stained the inky waters of the Everglades. Days later, the wreckage of the aircraft was retrieved from the swamp, and some of its parts were able to be salvaged, including a galley. "Next thing I knew, we hit the left wing tip first, everything out of the overheads flew over. Sharon and Adrienne were injured and trapped in their jump seats. Had we had flashlights that night, Ruiz continued, every person that was ambulatory could have helped. Flashlights eventually came to flight attendant crew stations ten years after the crash. All rights reserved, WATCH LIVE: Small Plane Makes Emergency Landing on Roadway in Western Broward. - Flight Safety Foundation. His arm was hanging by a thread; the cold swamp water may have saved his life by coagulating the blood. Both pilots and the flight engineer died, along with 2 out of 10 flight attendants and 96 of the 163 passengers on board. The incident occurred on September 11, 1974, killing 72 of the 82 people on board. Washington, DC 20006, Online Donations can be made at www.PlaneSafe.org. Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 was a scheduled flight from New York JFK to Miami.Shortly before midnight on December 29, 1972, the Lockheed L-1011-1 TriStar crashed into the Florida Everglades, causing 101 total fatalities. The captain recognized him as being none other than Bob. Beverly had gathered survivors together, seating them back to back to stay warm. 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. READ MORE: Eastern Flight 401 introduced new safety measures and books, movies and ghost stories. Infantino started a commuter airline of his own, which later folded, and got married to his respiratory therapist, who also experienced heartbreak after losing her fianc in a drunk-driving accident. She asked the flight engineer later about the oven, and he said he hadn't fixed it, and it didn't need to be fixed. The couple was returning to Miami from their honeymoon when the unspeakable happened. Oh, Mercy, stop complaining, Ghyssels responded. She said it was ironic that he died in one of his favorite places in the world the Everglades. Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 traveled from New York to Miami. Mercy Ruiz, 29, also noticed something strange that night. Five years ago, Raposa revived the idea and got approval to place it on a plot of public land in Miami Springs. North Miami Beach, FL (PRWEB) December 7, 2007 On Monday, December 3, 2007 survivors of Eastern Airlines Flight 401, gathered at the Metro-Dade Firefighters Memorial Building, in Doral (Miami), Florida, to remember the 101 passengers and crew, who lost their lives in the fateful crash of a Lockheed L-1011, jumbo-jet in the Florida Everglades, December 29, 1972, while en route from New York to . All rights reserved, WATCH LIVE: Small Plane Makes Emergency Landing on Roadway in Western Broward, Jury Sides With Flo Rida, Awards $82 Million in Lawsuit Against Celsius, Small Plane Makes Emergency Landing on Road in Western Broward, Man in Custody After Allegedly Killing Co-Worker at Hollywood Business: Police, Netflix Is Hiring a Flight Attendant for One of Its Private Jets and the Job Pays Up to $385,000. "The tail turned over, the floor opened under me and I went down with 400 pounds of debris on me," she said. Ruiz said this began many, many years back with efforts to commemorate the victims from us, the surviving crew members, people close to the victims, and all of the people from our community who really wanted to join us.. 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. The idea for a memorial for Eastern Flight 401 first popped up at the 35th anniversary gathering in the Everglades. It was like a tornado. One of the worst air disasters in South Florida history happened exactly 50 years ago Thursday, when Eastern Airlines Flight 401 slammed into the Florida Everglades, killing more than 100 people . "I number things one to ten in my life, ten's the plane crash," he says. "I hear this voice scream out in the Everglades," he said. Literally you were inside a tornado.". Then there was silence. The bottom line was that the pilot and crew became so concerned about a burnt-out lightbulb that they neglected to notice the altitude dropping. "I got a call from a mother whose son was killed on Valujet 592 and she said how much she appreciates us having a wreath for them," said Infantino, choking up. A well-known fatal accident recounted from surviving cabin crew. Flashlights also became a standard piece of safety equipment at each jump seat. Visit miamiherald.com. This message board is intended for serious discussions of the December 29th, 1972 crash of Eastern Airlines Flight 401. See the coverage as it happened. "We don't have a home of our own to call our own, 401 doesn't," he said. Infantino heard that, but nobody could hear him. After this, sightings started of Bob and Don, standing in the aisle, cockpit, and galley. At the front of the aircraft, Sue Tebbs and Adrienne Hamilton were seated for landing. Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 was on its final approach into Miami shortly before midnight 50 years ago this month when a single light bulb on the aircraft's instrument panel failed to illuminate. 2023 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. Were gonna wake up.. Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 departed New York for Miami on December 29, 1972. The flight crew had taken pictures as a keepsake for what would have been their last trip of the year together. Here today, we hope that everyone, myself included, will find peace with this memorial monument.. When youve stared death in the face just as I have, she said, you dont take things for granted anymore.. Shortly before the scheduled landing at about 11:30 that night, Lilly went to the restroom and when she came back they switched seats. She encouraged them to sing Christmas carols to keep their spirits up, a mark of courage and stoicism in the face of a dire situation. She was six feet above the swamp but released her harness. one of the deadliest plane crashes in South Floridas history, Were down. Flight 401 crashed in Miami 50 years ago. For decades, many of the 75 survivors have reflected on ways to honor those who died in the tragedy. The survivors were taken to a narrow levee where helicopters took them to hospitals. Then he gave me last rites. But before we begin this spooky tale, we must first go back to December 29, 1972 on board Eastern . The U.S. Coast Guard had been quickly notified by the tower at MIA and had helicopters airborne almost immediately from their station in Opa-locka. Flight attendants Mercedes Ruiz and Patricia McQuigg were working at the rear of the aircraft. Beverly had gathered survivors together, seating them back to back to stay warm. The official cause of the crash was pilot error, the crew being distracted by a faulty nose gear indicator . He did not survive, but his memory lives on. On another flight, a flight attendant is said to have seen Don's face on the oven door. Love aviation history? We also informed you that much of the money was going into creating more buildings. "Where's my right arm, why's my right arm so far away from my body? Airboats represent a certain degree of sentimental value for survivors of Flight 401. "You will never be forgotten. MIAMI - Survivors and families are remembering the 101 souls who were killed 50 years ago when Eastern Flight 401 crashed into the Everglades. The plane then veered to the left and was thrown into darkness. 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. . While in the cockpit one day, preparing for the flight, another pilot heard loud knocks from under the floor beneath him. . The plane's capacity . The name of Ronald Infantino's wife Lily is on that memorial. 50 years later, memorial dedicated to survivors, families of Eastern Flight 401 crash. Bud Marquis, who was out hunting frogs with a friend, was the first to arrive and found a scene of chaos, with survivors struggling in the swampy wreckage. Nichole Shackleford, 53, was just 3 years old when she lost her mother, passenger Patricia Renee Shackleford, 20, in the crash. While Flight 401 came with intense loss, Ruiz emphasized that it spurred many significant safety developments in the aviation industry, from the advent of cockpit resource management (CRM) to the adoption of ground proximity warning system (GPWS) devices in commercial airliners. Dedication of a Memorial Monument for the 50th Anniversary of Eastern Flight 401. "It felt so good. So I'll never forget it, I brought it to my chest and held it.". After donating, please email the NADF Executive Director, Gail Dunhan so that she can send you an acknowledgement of your tax deductible donation. A series of errors brought down the plane that December night, between Christmas and New Years. National Transportation Safety Board report, Broward Motorcycle Deputy Hospitalized After Reported Hit-and-Run, Russian Founder of Cryptocurrency Firm Arrested in Miami, Jury Sides With Flo Rida, Awards $82 Million in Lawsuit Against Celsius, Small Plane Makes Emergency Landing on Road in Western Broward, Man in Custody After Allegedly Killing Co-Worker at Hollywood Business: Police, Netflix Is Hiring a Flight Attendant for One of Its Private Jets and the Job Pays Up to $385,000. Introduced New safety measures and books, movies and ghost stories board is for. Dont take things for granted anymore drafted plans for a marker, but life got in the cabin... 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