They rushed to rescue survivors. New Year was two days away and Miami was a hot and sexy place to celebrate the occasion. [5]:9 The landing gear could have been manually lowered, nonetheless. For memorials with more than one photo, additional photos will appear here or on the photos tab. or don't show this againI am good at figuring things out. That's because last year, my flight from Chicago to Miami was visited by ghosts - and I'm pretty sure it was the crew Eastern Airlines Flight 401. Cleveland acquired 150 acres near the Lewis Fork in what is today known as the Purlear Community by 1778. With the aircraft in mid-turn, the left wingtip hit the surface first, then the left engine and the left landing gear,[5]:8 making three trails through the sawgrass, each 5ft (1.5m) wide and over 100ft (30m) long. In the cockpit: Capt. Your email address will not be published. [23], According to Robert J. Serling's 1980 book From the Captain to the Colonel: An Informal History of Eastern Airlines, the claim that wreckage from Flight 401 was installed and later removed from other Eastern aircraft was false, and no Eastern employees had ever claimed to have seen or believed in the alleged ghost sightings. Incidentally, the witness refused to fly and left the plane right before it was due for take-off. One of them had worked with the dead pilot years earlier and positively identified him. 6 min read. His flight crew included the First Officer Albert Stockstill, 39, and the Second Officer cum flight engineer, Donald Repo, 51. cemeteries found in will be saved to your photo volunteer list. MYSTERIESRUNSOLVED & MRU MEDIA, 2019-2022. Translation on Find a Grave is an ongoing project. An email has been sent to the person who requested the photo informing them that you have fulfilled their request, There is an open photo request for this memorial. By 11:41 p.m., Capt. Have scientists finally solved the mystery of Europes bog body phenomenon. His spirit and that of Flight Engineer Don Repo were said to have appeared on other Eastern Lockheed L-1011 aircraft for years after the crash. The hauntings of Eastern Airlines planes is certainly the most well-known. From this point on, the breakup of the fuselage became more extensive, scattering metal fragments, cabin fittings, and passenger seats widely. The flight was under the command of Captain Robert Albin Loft, a 32-year-veteran of Eastern Air Lines. The man would ask the attendant to pass a message to a woman, whom he named, that was on board the flight. After graduating Dubuque Senior High School in 1936, Captain Martin enrolled at Iowa State University where he graduated with an electrical engineering degree and a pilot's license. [8], In all, 75 survived the crash67 of the 163 passengers and eight of the 10 flight attendants. Robert lived in 1891, at address, Kentucky. The short video below is a reconstruction of the disastrous incident. The explanation soon became clear: the apparitions were always on aircraft that contained equipment salvaged from Flight 401. . Cockpit area microphone (CAM): [Sound of click], CAM: [Sound of six beeps similar to radio altimeter increasing in rate]. Verify and try again. It was a gradual descent, little by little the craft lost a couple of meters it was so gradual that not even the well-seasoned Captain noticed anything hinky until all hell broke loose. Please contact Find a Grave at [emailprotected] if you need help resetting your password. These reports received extensive publicity by the news media. At this moment, the First Officer Albert Stockstill noticed that the landing gear indicator was not illuminating. The Fraser Island Humanoid Encounter Contact On The Beach! [5]:4 Fifty seconds after reaching their assigned altitude, Captain Loft instructed First Officer Stockstill to put the L-1011 on autopilot. Post a Response. Cremated, Ashes given to family or friend. NPS. Prior to his current assignment, he commanded the Joint Intelligence Operation Center European Command Analytic Center at RAF Molesworth, United Kingdom. Captain Robert John Long. Your email address will not be published. The following conversation was recovered from the flight voice recorder later: Less than 10 seconds after this exchange, the jetliner crashed: The location was west-northwest of Miami, 18.7mi (30.1km) from the end of runway 9L. However, Captain Loft died before he could be rescued from the wreckage. Then, it dropped 100ft (30m), and then again flew level for two more minutes, after which it began a descent so gradual it could not be perceived by the crew. Required fields are marked *. He immediately drove to Eastern's Miami offices and decided to charter a helicopter to the crash site, as the swampy terrain made rescue difficult, and Eastern Airlines had not heard any news of progress in rescue efforts. The celebrated explorer Captain Robert Falcon Scott (1868-1912) also famously took part in the race to claim the South Pole in 1911, but sadly failed in his mission and died on his return journey. Loft, satisfied the bulb was the culprit . The majority of those who passed away were seated in the middle section of the plane. However, they appeared to be fixing the oven. Some high-ranking employees and pilots would do so only under the cover of anonymity. There was nothing particularly memorable about the route, every pilot and flight crew in Eastern Air Lines had one time or another cut their teeth on that routine flight path. He also named the mighty Columbia River after his ship, SS Columbia Rediviva. Shortly before midnight on December 29, 1972. Now, though, it seemed they were acting as guardians over their former employers flights. By this time, Frank Borman was the CEO of Eastern Airlines who called the stories a haunting garbage and considered suing the producers of the 1978 made-for-TV movie The Ghost of Flight 401 for tarnishing Eastern Airlines reputation. [5]:6,16[9] However, the NTSB concluded that the captain's tumor did not contribute to the accident. The home is a 2-pen structure with a large sleeping loft running the entire second floor. Even the Vice President of Eastern Airlines would go on record stating a mysterious encounter before his flight. Al DeSa April 17, 2007, 10:46 am Back to index. Previously sponsored memorials or famous memorials will not have this option. There's nothing like a day spent fishing in the beautiful waters off the coast of Rockport, Texas. Flight 401 made three trails through the sawgrass, breaking into pieces as it circled on its axis in the Everglades National Park. 2 tail-mounted engine, and remains of the empennagefinally came to rest substantially further forward than other major sections, was probably the result of the No. For months, hunters, poachers, and wildlife enthusiasts started reporting strange unearthly sights and encounters around the crash site. Cremated, Ashes given to family or friend, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/17211647/robert-albin-loft. YouTube. Coincidence? Over the following months and years, rumors began circulating that employees of Eastern Air Lines were reporting sightings of the dead crew members, captain Robert Loft and second officer (flight engineer) Donald Repo, sitting on board other L . [21] A television film, also titled The Ghost of Flight 401, aired on NBC in February 1978. Use Escape keyboard button or the Close button to close the carousel. Perhaps if we one day can understand the reasons for that, we can understand more of afterlife existence generally speaking. In the cockpit: Capt. Subscribe to our free newsletter and join our subscribers. The crew began to panic. [25] A television film of the same name was aired in October 1978. The . This was the first fatal crash of a wide-body aircraft. Out of thin air, Repos voice would say, Watch out for fire on this plane. Robert married Emma Loft. If you don't like what you read you can unsubscribe at any time. Sightings of the spirits of Don Repo and Robert Loft spread throughout Eastern Air Lines to the point where Easterns management warned employees that they could face dismissal if caught spreading ghost stories. He built his log home in 1779. The pilots tried again, they cycled the landing gear, but zilch; the confirmation light was off. As for the latest ghostly encounter, an individual who was on a red-eye flight from Chicago to Miami last year was supposedly visited by the crew from Flight 401 and the apparitions appeared when the aircraft was over the Florida Everglades. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. On his 1979 album Three Hearts, musician Bob Welch also recorded a song titled "The Ghost of Flight 401". Drag images here or select from your computer for Robert Albin Bob Loft memorial. Are you sure that you want to report this flower to administrators as offensive or abusive? 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. Their airboat crashing through the marshland at burning debris. One reserved for the living perhaps. Lived In Saint James NY, Osprey FL, Nokomis FL, Nesconset NY. Indeed, perhaps it is understandable that airlines might not want such sightings spoken of publicly lest people choose another plane to make their journey. Also known as V R Loft, Loft Loft, Loft Robert Valentine. Please enter your email and password to sign in. His flight crew were all experienced veterans. [5]:5 The plane was traveling at 227 miles per hour (197kn; 365km/h) when it hit the ground. Captain Robert Long was born on 3 November 1590, in St Albans, Hertfordshire, England. On one particular occasion, on Flight Tri-Star 138, while performing her normal duties, she could clearly see the face of Repo in the oven door in the planes kitchen. Captain Loft died in the wreck remains of Flight 401 before he could be transported to a hospital. For more tales of the macabre, check out our blog. (Rob and Sarah Elder, "Crash") In command of flight 401 that night were three pilots: Captain Robert Loft, First Officer Albert Stockstill, and Flight Engineer Donald Repo. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate, or jump to a slide with the slide dots. Failed to remove flower. I thought you might like to see a memorial for Robert Albin Bob Loft I found on Findagrave.com. 1 (port) engine, and fragments from the port wing itself and the port tailplane. Are you sure that you want to remove this flower? Try again. Stockstill tried to remove the bulb. Aug 09, 2019. This memorial has been copied to your clipboard. He has been writing and researching with over 20 years of experience. Eastern Airlines Flight 401 departed New York's JFK airport at 9:20 in the evening enroute to Miami International Airport. [6], The flight was under the command of Captain Robert Albin (Bob) Loft, age 55, a veteran pilot ranked 50th in seniority at Eastern Air Lines. Try again later. Marcus has been Editor-in-Chief for several years due to his excellent knowledge in these fields. The crew didnt react. Many believe that the piece is cursed. Flashlights are now standard equipment near jumpseats, and all jumpseats are outfitted with shoulder harnesses. Oops, some error occurred while uploading your photo(s). Many of them were happy to tell of their experiences. [6]:102,108 Stockstill was killed on impact, while Captain Loft died in the wreckage of the flight deck before he could be transported to a hospital. He graduated from Wheat Ridge High School, CO in 1986. 50 seconds later the plane, once more nosedived, again, this time losing more than half its assigned altitude. Under the command of Captain Robert Albin Loft, an expert navigator rated 50th in seniority at Eastern. At around 5:00am, this person closed their eyes and after feeling as if someone was near, this individual opened their eyes to find someone sitting in the aisle seat. There he was able to land in a swampy patch of grass and coordinate rescue efforts. On approaching Miami International . Please try again later. Also known as Robert Laudat, Robert Loft. Search above to list available cemeteries. This account has been disabled. The disintegration of the aircraft that followed scattered wreckage over an area 1,600ft (500m) long and 330ft (100m) wide in a southwesterly direction. Captain Loft was found during the autopsy to have an undetected brain tumor in an area that controls vision. The pilots of flight 401, from left to right: Bob Loft, Bert Stockstill, and Don Repo. Robert Loft, 55; First Officer Albert Stockstill, 39, and Second Officer Donald Repo, 51, all of Miami-Dade. Birth. Please ensure you have given Find a Grave permission to access your location in your browser settings. Also known as Robert J Loft, Robert Dancio, Rober J Gancio. Captain Loft had been with the company for over 32 years; a total of 29,700 flight hours. There was an error deleting this problem. A further sighting is even more spine-tingling. By Isabelle Resnick In 1979, Captain Robert R. Singleton published the first edition of You'll Never Get Lost Again. James Hall, Flight Operations and Safety, Miami office, had the grueling task of notifying all the families of the crash victims. 27 January 2016 by Iain Russell. The Ghosts of Flight 401, part of the Discovery+ series Shock Docs, focuses on the supernatural legacy of the crash. It is not, however, the only such incident of its type on record. He married Sarah Taylor on 3 October 1614, in Hertfordshire, England. Captain Robert L. Martin. Thus, the switching to CWS in channel A possibly did not occur in channel B, thus depriving the first officer of any indication the mode had changed (channel A provides the captain's instruments with data, while channel B provides the first officer's). The Stranahan House is the oldest surviving building in Broward County, having been built in 1901. This person greeted the male (in his late 40s or early 50s) who was wearing a pilot's uniform and a captain's hat that read Eastern Air Lines. Sorry! Robert J Gancio, 63. After lowering the gear, First Officer Stockstill noticed that the landing gear indicator, a green light identifying that the nose gear is properly locked in the "down" position, had not illuminated. Captain Bob Loft was also seen on a few occasions, but never as often as Repo. Investigators believe the autopilot switched modes when the captain accidentally leaned against the yoke while turning to speak to the flight engineer, who was sitting behind and to the right of him. We do not aim to prove nordisprove any of the theories, cases, or reports. In her spare time, she loves reading, watching movies, making crafts, and watching hockey. We will review the memorials and decide if they should be merged. aired in February 1978. Our motto always is, "you make up your own mind". 50 seconds later the plane, once more nosedived, again, this time losing more than half its assigned altitude. When she returned to her seat with the stewardess following behind her, both women saw who was later identified as Don Repo just fade away and vanish before their eyes. For a year and a half after Flight 401 went down, both crew members and passengers reported seeing the deceased Captain Robert Loft and flight engineer Donald Repo on other L-1011 flights. Frank Borman, prior to becoming CEO of Eastern Airlines, arrived at the crash scene and helped to rescue the flight passengers. Above him, Capt. Resides in Sarasota, FL. It is said that this is the reason Loft and Repo haunted Flight 401 to keep future flights safe from human error. Remember my name for the next time I post. Which memorial do you think is a duplicate of Robert Loft (17211647)? Oops, something didn't work. In the cockpit: Capt. Are you adding a grave photo that will fulfill this request? In the following years, however, passengers and crew alike began to not only see Loft and Repo on and around Eastern Airlines flights, many unknowing people even had brief conversations with them. Burial. Robert Bain Loft was born circa 1863. If you have questions, please contact [emailprotected]. Robert A.Loft - Capt. Added in World of Warcraft: Legion. About 490 feet (150m) from the wingtip's initial contact with the ground, the massive fuselage had begun to break up, scattering components from the underfloor galley, the cargo compartments, and the cabin interior. Ancient DNA unlocks secrets of marriage rules in Minoan Crete! On Dec. 29, 1972, Eastern Flight 401 from New York to Miami took off from . After nodding his head as a greeting, the pilot leaned over to look out of the planes window and thats when his nametag became visible which read Robert Loft. Equipment near jumpseats, and fragments from the port wing itself captain robert loft the port tailplane of... 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