On the night of November 15, 1959, a DC-7 with forty-two persons aboard took off from Tampa International Airport on a regularly scheduled flight to New Orleans. The aircraft being used this particular day was a Delta Air Lines DC-7B. The industry standard flight tracking platform for business aviation (BA) owners and operators. Coast Guard and civil surface craft immediately searched the area exhaustively and retrieved everything sighted. As Mrs Spears described it, "He saw an opportunity to leave me and the babies with some financial security. National Airlines Flight967 of November 15, 1959, was scheduled between Miami, Florida, and New Orleans, Louisiana, with a stop at Tampa, Florida. The company posted $1.027 billion in membership fee income compared to $967 million a year earlier, a $60 million increase, or 6.2%. Intensive sea and air searches resulted in finding nine floating bodies and a small amount of floating debris the following morning. None of these nine persons had been subjected to fire or smoke before death, as demonstrated by low carboxyhemoglobin levels in blood and tissue. She received a court order to open his post office box. Mrs Spears replied that she had not. (If any were available prior to my introduction to flying, though, I can't be sure.) * Douglas DC-4 Spears disappeared after the accident but was arrested in Phoenix, Arizona, with Taylor's car in January, 1960. Some small quantity of clothing and other personal effects and several mail bags were also found. The U.S.S. Feb 2023 - Present2 months. If there was, did it come before or after the crash? The tower is about 30 miles west of the crash site. At Tampa, some passengers deplaned and others boarded. Taylor had also been married before his marriage to Alice. Al Taylor asked him to drive the Plymouth to Dallas where they were scheduled to meet up. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. It has been claimed that Dr Spears tried to access a vial of cyanide before his sentencing--but some have disputed this. This all changed two months after the crash, on January 20, 1960, when Robert Vernon Spears was arrested in Phoenix, Arizona, in possession of a stolen car--a salmon-pink Plymouth. Air Methods is the most responsive and reliable provider of critical care transportation solutions. Current weather reports and forecasts showed both destination and alternates to be and to remain above the approved minimums. Air Route Traffic Control cleared Flight967 over the established route across the Gulf from Tampa to New Orleans at 14,000feet altitude. Spears died in Baylor Medical Center, Dallas on May 2, 1969 of coronary thrombosis. Track American Airlines (AA) #967 flight from Austin-Bergstrom Intl to Dallas-Fort Worth Intl. The pilot planned to conduct solo aerobatic flight manoeuvres in the Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. Flight data API with on-demand flight status and flight tracking data. On November 16, 1959, an airplane vanished over the Gulf of Mexico, with 42 people onboard. It's possible it was not a direct flight, and the next leg would have been from NO to Dallas. Who hatched the plot--Spears? The National crew consisted of Captain Frank Eugene Todd, Copilot Dick . With this information, Mrs Taylor's lawyer called the Tampa police department and the newspapers. A strong sharp contact, definitely bottom and metallic, was made at position 2911.6'N, 8838.2'W at a depth of 245feet. So why the stories from Spears? When the aircraft was destroyed, authorities would assume that Spears had himself been a victim and his wife would be able to collect on his life insurance. At 00:55 the aircraft suddenly crashed into the Gulf of Mexico. A theory also emerged that Spears was connected to another unexplained air disaster just months later. Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. Nothing unusual was observed and no other objects were observed in the vicinity of the flight which indicated to the station that any difficulty was being encountered". Boeing 747-400BCF National Airlines N702CA Scale 1/400 XX4975. The only noteworthy observation from the gate agent in Tampa was "a man in a brown or tan suit, carrying a newspaper but no luggage, hurrying toward the Flight 967 gate right at closing time". Sun 4/2. However, there was ample fuel to have proceeded to the flight's planned alternate or to Dallas, the next en route stop. A massive search began. - November 16, 1959, a DC-7B flown on an interchange route with Delta Air Lines, in a Delta aircraft but with a NAL crew National Airlines Flight 967, en route from Tampa to New Orleans, disappeared over the Gulf of Mexico. One of these was not aboard, although a final passenger count showed 36passengers upon departure from Tampa. Revenue passenger traffic in millions of passenger-miles November 10 of 1958, National became the first airline to introduce domestic jet service in the United States, with a flight between Miami 's international airport and Idlewild International Airport in New York. It is really unfortunate the wreckage was never discovered. Could it be that in spite of this vast, tangled web--this was just another plane crash? Link. When Spears met secretly with his wife on January 7, he had reportedly given her the same story. The weather conditions were good. AA967 Flight Tracker - Track the real-time flight status of American Airlines AA 967 live using the FlightStats Global Flight Tracker. We appreciate you trying our new Live Surface Map feature. James L. Sigman, executive officer of the Coast Guard station at New Orleans, said the plane might have exploded when it struck the water. A considerable amount of the floating debris also exhibited signs of burning but only above waterlines. National Airlines Flight 967; A Delta Airlines DC-7, similar to the accident aircraft. This search was also unsuccessful. Compare airfares and book tickets with lowest price on different airlines in real time 24 hours. aviation industry. Consultative detailed and customized flight tracking data reports. Personally I suspect that Logan has at least partially fallen prey to the charms of Dr Spears--I highly doubt Taylor is living it up in South America--but his questions are interesting ones. Spectacular job. The Navy utilized several vessels equipped with advanced apparatus and manned with skilled specialists. Water temperatures in the vicinity of the crash were 70 degrees or more. The Aviation Safety Network is an exclusive service provided by: National Airlines Flight 967 took off from Tampa (TPA) at 23:32 for a flight to New Orleans (MSY) at FL140. The 36 passengers and six crew aboard Flight 967 from Tampa to New Orleans died in the accident 35.6 mi (57.3 km) off the coast of Pilottown, Louisiana. The Board obtained search assistance from the United States Navy. Company calls to 967 continued without result for some time. Flight Departure Times. DC-7 Cockpit - From the display at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC. 02:55. Sun 4/9. These charts have been preserved for possible future use. The aircraft was crossing an area of severe weather and possibly flew into a waterspout. Carefully the investigators went through the flight manifest. The Coast Guard favored the former explanation, while the Air Force favored the latter. 2912.3'N, Long. Investigation disproved the possibility of collision with another aircraft, either civil or military, and there were no missiles or rockets in flight at the time and place. I know that he loved those babies and that if he were alive I am sure I would have heard from him. Departure from Tampa, with the same crew, was at 2332. He reported a "smooth flight" and unlimited visibility, but said he could see a solid overcast of fog ahead. Investigators found less than 1% of its structural components and no conclusive evidence that a bomb was used. Spear's activities in order to determine whether they might have had a bearing upon the accident. Economy. Rescuers went out in aircraft and boats, arriving before dawn and still combing the cold, rough seas as the sun came up. Logan points out that much of the public demonization of Spears resulted from the fact that he performed abortions--something that is viewed very differently in todays political discourse. Suddenly his strange behavior all made sense to her--her hapless ex-husband was a puppet, under Dr Spearss spell. In one letter, Spears urged Taylor not to use his real name in future communications, but to refer to him as F. Investigation disclosed no significant weather condition in the form of fronts, squall lines, thunderstorms, turbulence or icing affecting the route of flight. United Airlines Flight 718, a DC-7, collided over the Grand Canyon with TWA Flight 2, an L-1049 Super Constellation, . Before the crash, Spears had briefly sought advice on his pending abortion case from a New York City lawyer named Julian Frank. On January 6, 1960 (less than two months after Flight 967) Frank was on board a National Airlines flight which was blown up by dynamite over North Carolina, resulting in 34 deaths. The 9 they found were likely ejected from the plane through a large opening during the deconpression, while the rest were blown to bits. The FBI had found Dr Spears through an ex-wife of Spearss associate Mr Turska. There was one witness--the attendant of a lookout tower 30 miles west of the crash site, who. It appeared that the oil was rising from the northernmost point of this oil slick. He was arrested for assault and battery for his wife in 1971. The inertia of the bodies was plainly downward and forward and the forces at impact were severe. In this role I provide oversight and management of supply and demand, schedules, supplier . The flight originated in Miami at 1022 PM the p The sea was practically calm with waves about 1-1/2feet high moving from a northerly direction with a period of about five seconds. Note that the whereabouts of DB Cooper on these dates is unaccounted for. [] Both men were in the confidence rackets at one time. Track National Aeronautics and Space Administration #967 flight from Victoria Rgnl to Houston Ellington Flight status, tracking, and historical data for National Aeronautics and Space Administration 967 (NASA967) including scheduled, estimated, and actual departure and arrival times. The aircraft was then spiralled over the spot down to an altitude of 500feet through a stratus deck with a base of approximately 800 feet, and tops of 1,200 to 1,400feet. Mrs Taylor? Absolutely fascinating mystery. Frank was covered by $900,000 in life insurance policies at the time of his death, and had also been under investigation for corruption. A rival airline company? Early that morning, they spotted something: a small amount of debris, a large oil slick, and several floating bodies. His testimony indicates that the light was red or dark red, appearing suddenly, lasting a "couple of seconds," and then producing a vertical, white light which fell with a white trail. Spears said Taylor was going to fly to Dallas and that he would drive the car, but flight 967 was going to New Orleans not Dallas? After not hearing from Taylor for a few days, and discovering he had not showed up for work, Alice became worried. Probably one of the most intriguing cases Ive read here, what a great write up OP! * C-46 Commando National Airlines records do not show a ticket issued in his name and he was not carried on their records as a passenger on Flight967. A bomb was suspected. With the time and funds available it was possible to cover only 29.75square miles of an area selected after an analysis of wind and current factors and the results of all previous searches. Taylor? If he were not, I don't know anything I could do about it. [Here she began choking back tears] "I know one thing, we had planned on celebrating my son's birthday and we had bigger plans for Christmas. Track N967WN flight from Rhode Island T. F. Green International Airport to Reagan National Spears said: If the business did detonate during the flight, it had to be by accident [] Im still of the opinion that the plane--something else happened to it. 2918.5'N, Long. - January 14, 1951, a DC-4 crashed on landing at Philadelphia Airport with 7 fatalities. 16cm . Taylor apparently then he called his boss at the tire company and asked for the next day off work. * Boeing 747-135 History of the flight On Sunday 4 April 2010 at about 0920 Eastern Standard Time1, the pilot arrived at Cambridge Aerodrome near Hobart, Tasmania in preparation for a flight in a Victa Airtourer 115 aircraft, registered VH-MTC (MTC). Spirit airlines began offering the direct flights in 2017. Upon his arrest in Arizona, the FBI charged him with transporting a stolen vehicle beyond state lines. The main section of the wreckage has never been found despite the efforts of Navy and Coast Guard divers. The freezing level along the route was at about 14,000feet and the winds at that altitude were generally from the northwest at 10-20knots. Lt. James L. Sigman, executive officer of the Coast Guard air detachment at New Orleans, said the wreckage was spread over a comparatively small area of two to three miles. If the plane had any larger parts recoverable, they might have been able to tell if dynamite was the cause by examining residues or scorch marks. These were her statements: "If my husband was on that plane, I can accept it although my life will be hard. She put it bluntly to the Dallas Morning News: "I believe that Spears hypnotized [Taylor] into doing it.". National Airlines Flight 967 of November 15, 1959, was scheduled between Miami, Florida, and New Orleans, Louisiana, with a stop at Tampa, Florida. The aircraft was a DC-7, N 4891C, owned by Delta Air Lines and operated by National under an equipment interchange agreement. The evening started as any other at an airport terminal as 105 were set board their National Flight 601 from New York bound for Miami on a Boeing 707. It revealed that Al Taylor had bought a $37,500 life insurance policy-- in Tampa airport--at 12:16 am, just nine minutes before Flight 967 departed. Everyone loved the read as the comments here suggest and so did I but does anyone have a theory they favor? At Miami, National Airlines prepared one of its Convair aircraft, which left for the area at 0545 under the command of the company's chief pilot. This position was determined by VOR bearings taken from 14,000feet altitude. National Airlines Flight 967, a DC-7B on a flight from Tampa, Florida to New Orleans, crashed into the Gulf of Mexico. [] The fire marks on bodies and on debris were of the type caused exclusively by a flash surface fire, probably both hot and brief, upon impact with the water. CAB Accident Report, National Airlines Flight 967.pdf 1,091 1,4818 556 George T Baker 1940.jpg 600 49636 MM00013951 (8091335494) (2).jpg 1,259 1,371428 I told him it wouldn't work!". The flight had been on its way from Tampa, Florida, to New Orleans. National Airlines merged with Pan Am in 1980. In a second interview, however, Turska told a different story. Franks body was found with injuries significantly different from and much more extensive than the other passengers, injuries which were inconsistent with the type of injury usually incurred in an aircraft accident. Playing upon people's uncertainties about air-travel, insurance companies did quite well off them. and then hurry away, accidentally forgetting your luggage. Sharjah, United Arab Emirates. It was founded in 1934 as a Florida-based airline. Perhaps most bizarrely of all--Dr Spears was an expert in hypnosis. With more than 800 employees worldwide, the National Family offers rewarding opportunities for professional growth through our affiliate organizations National Air Cargo and National Airlines.We invite you to become a part of our award-winning team, and contribute to meaningful work in aviation, transportation, and global logistics. This position is six miles south and about five miles east of the radar-observed descent. But even then there would be no point in destroying the plane or himself. The main wreckage has not been located . . At 0005 the flight reported to Tampa company radio as over Crab at 0002 and estimated NL1, also a customary reporting point, at 0031, at 14,000feet. EVERETT ENGERSOL, Evergreen Park, Illinois, PEDRO MARCO, arrived in Miami from Havana, A. VINAS, Havana and Loma Linda, California, The REV. If it had been, I doubt there would be much mystery as to what happened. She also said she had begged him to turn himself in but he refused. Search and rescue aircraft spotted scattered debris and a number of bodies in the vicinity of the last radar return, about 35 miles east of Pilottown, Louisiana; the remains of 10 individuals were eventually located. A careful search was made for witnesses. National Airlines Flight 193, registration N4744, Donna, was a Boeing 727-235 en route from Miami, Florida to Pensacola on May 8, 1978. . arrow_forward Literature guides Concept explainers Writing guide Popular textbooks Popular high school textbooks Popular Q&A Business Accounting Economics Finance Leadership Management Marketing Operations Management Engineering Bioengineering Chemical Engineering Civil Engineering Computer Engineering Computer Science Electrical Engineering . Ronald Reagan National Airport. . The National plane was then spiralled in a climbing turn to 7,000feet in order to obtain VOR bearings for this position. Photographs depicted Dr Spears as a plump, jovial man--in a checkered suit and round spectacles, he embodied the image of a kindly family physician. Turska participated in a few interviews about the case--notably in Life Magazine--in which he played the part of a bemused bystander. Such a bummer. "We don't get newspapers out here, he told reporters. C. L. McGAVERN, Jacksonville, Florida, RENFRO (no first name), arrived from Orlando, JACK ATKINSON, Miami Springs, an inspector for the Federal Aviation Agency, Self-Styled: Chasing Dr Robert Vernon Spears by Alan C. Logan, Civil Aeronautics Board - Aircraft Accident Report, June 11, 1962, Robert Spears, 1959 bomb suspect, dies in Dallas". I can understand him taking out an insurance policy. In the weeks after the crash, the mystery of Flight 967 deepened. According to Junior, Taylor was carrying over $600 in cash--a lot of money at the time, especially for a man in serious debt. * Douglas DC-6 By using and further navigating this website, you accept this. On November 16, 1959, an airplane vanished over the Gulf of Mexico, with 42 people onboard. At 0034 the flight reported over NL1 at 0033 at 14,000feet, estimating New Orleans at 0119. The aircraft was airworthy at the time of departure and had an adequate amount of fuel. I have not yet been back in that direction, but in my few decades of air travel, every flight to Tampa meant a stop in Houston before moving on, and the same can be said for the return flight. 1 adult. [1] November 16 National Airlines Flight 967, a Douglas DC-7B, crashes in the Gulf of Mexico with the loss of all 42 people on board . The autopsies of the bodies, all of which were identified by fingerprints, indicated that all had received traumatic injuries: injuries indicated that all nine persons had been seated at the time the aircraft struck the water. Tampa Police Detective John C. Daniels was among those who did not buy the hypnosis theory: Taylor was in debt over his head. Explosive decompression makes a plane crash look like the plane was blown up with a large bomb, but minus any larger pieces of wreckage as well as explosive residue proving it. Emirates Airlines is the preferable and national . The Flightpath. Immediately they concentrated their efforts on this area, eventually retrieving: "nine bodies, a portion of a tenth body, five life rafts, five life vests, and a highly diversified quantity of buoyant debris.". And who was he? Recently, she said, Al Taylor had been strangely depressed and withdrawn, but his mood only lifted when he talked to Spears. Unfortunately, these searches were not successful. D.B. He said he had persuaded Al Taylor to take the dynamite on the airplane by promising to pay him $10,000 to do it. He planned to intimidate the witness in that case somehow with a bomb (not to kill her but to intimidate her). The other plane crash remains unexplained despite the apparent presence of dynamite and that it happened over land where, presumably, most or all of the wreckage was recovered. All 42occupants, 36passengers and 6crew members, were killed. As it turned out, William Turska was not a model citizen himself. Geo resource failed to load. After he left, he phoned again three times, again asking for Junior. After this case, planes continued to disintegrate in flight due to explosive decompression. The last radar contact with the aircraft--made at 12:55 am, over the open sea--had indicated the plane was still on course to its destination at the time that it vanished. All times herein are Central Standard based on the 24-hour clock. * Douglas DC-10-10/30, AviationExplorer.com - The Website For Aviation Enthusiasts, NATIONAL AIRLINES HISTORY FACTS AND PICTURES, Aviation Military and Police Phonetic Alphabet, NTSB Aviation Accidents From Last 10 Years, High Resolution Military Aviation Desktop Wallpapers. Nothing. The radar observer testified that this disappearance was characteristic of a target going below the scope's limits. Among the 42 names of the dead--there was a passenger named Dr Robert Vernon Spears--a distinguished naturopath from Dallas, Texas. I was completely drawn in. Spears had been in and out of jail in multiple states (even mistakenly deported to Canada on one occasion). Though no longer married to Al Taylor, Alice later told reporters they had been amicably divorced, and were still close. But two Air Force fliers who spent four hours over the scene said because the wreckage was so scattered it seemed to them the plane exploded in the air. Coscto also reported a Q2 net sales increase of 6.5%, to $54.24 . This air traffic control instruction/clearance was issued through National Airlines' radio station/office at Pensacola, Florida, a normal procedure before making the approach to Moisant International Airport (KMSY) in New Orleans. Spears." National Airlines Flight 967, registration N4891C,[1] was a Douglas DC-7B aircraft that disappeared over the Gulf of Mexico en route from Tampa, Florida, to New Orleans, Louisiana, on November 16, 1959. We have been unable to find any such relationship. National Airlines Flight 2511, registration N8225H, was a Douglas DC-6B aircraft which exploded over Bolivia, North Carolina en route from New York International (Idlewild) Airport, New York City, New York, to Miami, Florida on January 6, 1960.All 34 on board were killed in the accident. At that time there was also very little airport security. Great post! She later said she had a premonition that her husband had been on that flight, and she never wavered from it. . VIGOR searched, using Navy sonar. National Airlines Flight 967 Latest Breaking News, Pictures, Videos, and Special Reports from The Economic Times. Turska? Quickly purchase historical reports delivered via email. Robert Vernon Spears (June 26, 1894 - May 2, 1969) was a naturopath who is alleged to have placed a bomb aboard National Airlines Flight 967, an aircraft that went missing over the Gulf of Mexico on November 16, 1959, killing 42 people.. History. Posts about National Airlines Flight 967 written by The Flightpath. Aviation accidents and incidents in 1978 () Jan 1 Air India Flight 855; Best write up Ive ever read. But in 1957 he was expelled from the organization in a bribery scandal. On October 5, 1945 National Airlines Flight 16, a Lockheed Model 18 Lodestar (registered NC18199) crashed into a lake near Lakeland, . Yet as Logan points out, the crate of dynamite found on Turskas property was actually purchased in Tucson, and Spears had no way of getting into Tuscon from Turska's compound unless Turska himself drove him. [4], Spears died in Dallas, Texas on May 2, 1969, of coronary thrombosis. Radar operators at a military station at Houma, Louisiana, picked up the flight at 12:46 AM. * Douglas DC-8-21/31/32/51/54/61 Charts used during the several searches, with search areas well delineated, were coordinated within the various agencies to preclude duplicative and omissive effort. 46 people perished. 04:35. The aircraft had been called into service on short notice when the normal aircraft used for the evening . That day the two men also reportedly met with a man they referred to in letters only as "the fellow". Alice Steel Taylor had long claimed that her ex-husband was nothing more than an unwitting puppet in Spearss schemes. The flight departed Miami at 2212[1] and landed at Tampa at 2300. He moved to California and took up hypnotism, his business was with a doctor performing abortions (which were then illegal in the U.S.). I loathed him, she said, and had always considered him a bad influence on Al. Braniff International Airways Flight 542, a Lockheed L-188 Electra, registration N9705C, was a scheduled domestic flight from Houston, Texas, bound for New York with scheduled stops in Dallas and Washington, D.C. On September 29, 1959, 23 minutes into the 41-minute flight from Houston to Dallas Love Field, the aircraft disintegrated in mid-air approximately 3.8 miles (6.1 km) southeast of . Back then, you could get on a plane, put something in the luggage rack, and then right before take off say "Excuse me, is this the plane to Dallas? No seat belt abrasions were found. That was before Spears was found in Arizona with Taylors car. Veterans, volunteers sought for Honor Flight It costs a lot to charter a flight that will carry 75 veterans from the Golden Isles to Washington, D.C., for the annual Honor Flight. Flight crew []. At the time of these observations the stars were visible, the weather was hazy and there were no surface craft within his range of vision. It was a starlit night, and good weather conditions were reported all along the route.