[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 152 (Wednesday, November 16, 2005)]
[House]
[Pages H10329-H10330]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
{time} 1315
RECOGNIZING THE 60TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE DISAPPEARANCE OF THE 5 NAVAL
AVENGER TORPEDO BOMBERS OF FLIGHT 19
Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the
rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 500) recognizing the 60th
anniversary of the disappearance of the 5 naval Avenger torpedo bombers
of Flight 19 and the naval Mariner rescue aircraft sent to search for
Flight 19, as amended.
The Clerk read as follows:
H. Res. 500
Whereas on December 5, 1945, the 5 Avenger torpedo bombers
of Flight 19, originating at the Naval Air Station of Fort
Lauderdale, Florida, and its crew of 14 Navy airmen,
disappeared;
Whereas the Mariner rescue aircraft sent to search for
Flight 19, originating at the Naval Air Station of Banana
River, Florida, and its crew of 13 Navy airmen, also
disappeared on that date;
Whereas December 5, 2005, marks the 60th anniversary of the
disappearance of Flight 19;
Whereas the loss of Flight 19 occurred during peacetime;
Whereas the disappearance of Flight 19 sparked one of the
largest air and sea rescue searches in history covering over
200,000 square miles;
Whereas all investigations of the disappearance of Flight
19 have failed to recover any aircraft, debris, or remains;
Whereas there remain unanswered questions concerning the
disappearance of Flight 19; and
Whereas there are continuing efforts with the latest
technology to determine the location of the lost aircraft and
crews: Now, therefore be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) recognizes the 60th anniversary of the disappearance of
the 5 naval Avenger torpedo bombers of Flight 19 and the
naval Mariner rescue aircraft sent to search for Flight 19;
(2) honors the memory of the 27 Navy airmen lost in these
disappearances;
(3) recognizes the historical significance of Flight 19;
(4) acknowledges continuing efforts to determine what
caused these disappearances; and
(5) commends the Naval Historical Center for preserving the
history of Flight 19.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Culberson). Pursuant to the rule, the
gentlewoman from Virginia (Mrs. Jo Ann Davis) and the gentleman from
North Carolina (Mr. Butterfield) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Virginia (Mrs. Jo Ann
Davis).
General Leave
Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent
that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and
extend their remarks on the resolution under consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentlewoman from Virginia?
There was no objection.
Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time
as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Res. 500, recognizing the
60th anniversary of the loss of 27 men with Flight 19 and the naval
Mariner rescue aircraft.
On December 5, 1945, the United States Navy tragically lost 27 of its
bravest men to circumstances that are still surrounded in mystery. On
that day, Flight 19, comprised of five Avenger torpedo bombers with a
total crew of 14 flew out of Fort Lauderdale's Naval Air Station for a
routine exercise and never returned.
After having lost contact with Flight 19, the Navy deployed a rescue
mission of 13 men, all of whom never returned.
Theories abound about what happened that day with the disappearance
of 27 men and their planes, sparking one of the largest air and sea
searches in history. Hundreds of ships and aircraft scoured over
200,000 square miles of the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. The
wreckage was never found. Questions have gone unexplained.
Most try to explain away the events by offering the theory that
Flight 19 disappeared in the Bermuda Triangle.
After intense investigation, we do know that Flight 19 lifted into
the air from the Naval Air Station at Fort Lauderdale, Florida at 2:10
in the afternoon during peacetime. It was a routine practice mission
under the command of Lieutenant Charles Taylor. After having completed
their objective, the flight plan called for them to fly an additional
67 miles east then turn north for 73 miles and finally back to the
Naval Air Station Fort Lauderdale, making their distance a total of 120
miles.
While attempting the return flight, a radio transmission from Taylor
signaled that his compasses were not working, but indicated he believed
himself to be somewhere over the Florida Keys. Flight 19 thereafter
lost contact with the tower and was never heard from again.
The Mariner took off approximately at 7:30 p.m. in search of Flight
19 and was never seen nor heard from after takeoff. Based upon a report
from a merchant ship off Fort Lauderdale which sighted a burst of
flame, it is believed that this aircraft exploded at sea and sank.
However, no trace of the plane or its crew was ever found.
Mr. Speaker, on one tragic day, 27 families experienced excruciating
losses of their loved ones, and this Nation lost 27 of its bravest and
most dedicated Americans. While the events of that day may go
unexplained, the memories of those men will not go unhonored. These 27
men have the thanks of a grateful Nation.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. BUTTERFIELD. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of House Resolution 500, introduced by
the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Shaw). This resolution recognizes the
60th anniversary of the disappearance of the five naval Avenger torpedo
bombers of Flight 19 and the naval Mariner rescue aircraft sent to
search for Flight 19, and it honors the memory of those 27 Navy airmen
lost in the disappearance.
As the gentlewoman from Virginia (Mrs. Jo Ann Davis) said a moment
ago, on December 5, 1945, at approximately 2:10 p.m. a squadron of TBM
Avenger torpedo bombers departed from Naval Air Station Fort Lauderdale
in Florida on the first leg of a routine exercise. The five-plane
formation turned east and headed out over the Atlantic Ocean and
subsequently disappeared off the coast of Florida. A 13-man crew of a
PBM Mariner was sent out to search for the men of Flight 19, and they
too never returned from the area commonly known as the Bermuda
Triangle.
The disappearance of the five Avengers and the Mariner resulted in
one of the largest air and sea searches in history. Hundreds of ships
and aircraft combed 200,000 square miles of the Atlantic Ocean and the
Gulf of Mexico, while search parties on land looked for evidence on the
off chance that the aircraft may have gone down undetected. Nothing was
ever found. No wreckage, no evidence was left of the fate of these six
airplanes.
Flight 19, Mr. Speaker, became the Lost Patrol and has been
associated with myths of mysterious disappearances of ships and
airplanes with the legendary Bermuda Triangle. According to the
official board of inquiry, the mission was an overwater navigation
training hop composed of an instructor, four naval aviators undergoing
advanced training, and nine enlisted aircrew, except for one, who were
all undergoing advanced combat aircrew training.
The flight, Mr. Speaker, was entitled Navigation Problem Number 1,
which departed Naval Air Station Fort Lauderdale on a triangular route
with a brief stop for some glide bombing practice on the first leg out.
The weather for the area was described as favorable. The planes were
thoroughly pre-flighted. All survival gear was intact.
[[Page H10330]]
Fuel tanks were full. Instruments were checked, but none of the
aircraft had a clock.
While Flight 19 remains one of America's most enduring, unsolved
mysteries, some facts are known. Flight 19's departure from Naval Air
Station Fort Lauderdale was led by one of the students. At some point
the instructor, Fox Tare, 28, took the lead after the flight turned
north on the second leg, thinking that his students were on the wrong
heading. While the instructor was familiar with the Florida Keys, with
both compasses out and with evidently no concept of time, he could have
mistaken the cays of the Northern Bahamas for the Keys and the water
beyond for the Gulf of Mexico.
Toward that end, the favorable weather of low ceiling and daytime 10-
mile visibility were replaced by rain squalls and by turbulence and
darkness of winter night. Terrific winds were encountered, and the calm
sea now ran rough. Although no one can officially say what truly
happened to Flight 19, former TBM pilots have expressed the opinion
that an Avenger attempting to ditch at night in a heavy sea would
almost certainly not survive the crash.
Recently, Mr. Speaker, there has been a renewed focus on solving this
continuing mystery. Hopefully, this new investigation into the events
on December 5, 1945, will result in concrete evidence as to the fate of
Flight 19 and the PBM Mariner and will bring closure to the families
who lost their loved ones on that fateful day.
Mr. Speaker, I again want to commend my colleague on this resolution.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield as much time as
he may consume to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Shaw), the author of
this resolution and a distinguished member of the Ways and Means
Committee.
Mr. SHAW. Mr. Speaker, the Bermuda Triangle Flight 19 is one of the
great mysteries of south Florida. There are those that will stand and
look out to sea and say there is something strange out there, because
it was on December 5, 1945, when 27 families experienced excruciating
losses of their loved ones and this Nation lost 27 of its bravest and
most dedicated Americans. While the events that tragic day may go
unexplained, and they are still unexplained to this date, the memory of
those men will not go unrecognized.
I am proud to sponsor H. Res. 500, which recognizes the 60th
anniversary of the disappearance of the five naval Avenger torpedo
bombers of Flight 19 and the naval Mariner rescue aircraft sent to
search for Flight 19. These 27 men have the thanks of a grateful
Nation.
At this time I would like to pause for a moment and read the names of
the men who disappeared with Flight 19 and the naval Mariner rescue
crew: Flight 19 crew headed by Charles Taylor, Forrest J. Gerber,
Edward Joseph Powers, Walter Reed, George Francis Devlin, Herman
Thelander, Burt Baluk, Robert Peter Gruebel, Robert Gallivan, Howell
Thompson, George Paonessa, William Lightfoot, George Stivers, Joseph
Bossi.
This is the Mariner crew: Walter Jeffrey, Harrie Cone, Charles
Arcenaux, Roger Allen, Lloyd Eliason, Alfred Zywicki, James Osterheld,
John Menendez, Philip Neeman, James Jordan, Robert Cameron, Wiley
Cargill, Donald Peterson. Their memories are lodged in the hearts of
their loved ones who might survive them today.
I too would join with the ranking member on this particular bill to
say that I do hope this mystery will finally be solved, because in
south Florida this is still one of the great mysteries, what went on on
December 5, 1945, and the Bermuda Triangle that caused so many to
perish and so many aircraft.
Mr. Speaker, may God bless the families of these American heroes.
Mr. SPRATT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Res. 500, a
resolution to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the disappearance of
the Navy's Flight 19 in the Bermuda Triangle on December 5, 1945. Every
schoolkid in America knows the Bermuda Triangle as a place of ghost
stories and mystery--a place where whole ships and airplanes literally
disappear without a trace. Rumors abound about the cause of these
disappearances, ranging from mechanical failures to irregular magnetic
field activity to extraterrestrial abduction. No mystery from the
``Devil's Triangle'' has more captured the attention or imagination of
America than the ill-fated journey of Navy Flight 19.
At 2:10 p.m. on December 5, 1945, Flight 19, a squadron of five Navy
Avenger TBM Torpedo Bombers, took off from Fort Lauderdale for a
training run that took them into the heart of the Bermuda Triangle. The
weather was cooperative and the water was calm, which was deemed lucky
for a squadron where only one of the 14 airmen, Lt. Charles Taylor, had
combat flight experience. Nonetheless, midway through the mission, Lt.
Taylor became disoriented, claiming his compasses had stopped working,
a curious phenomenon in an area known for erratic magnetic activity.
Thinking himself over the Florida Keys, Lt. Taylor pointed his squadron
Northeast in an attempt to return them to land. Unfortunately, the
squadron was over the Bahamas to the east of Florida instead of over
the Keys, so their continued northeasterly journey actually took them
further out to sea. At 7:04 p.m., the last radio contact was made by
Taylor, when he reportedly uttered ``everything is wrong . . . strange
. . . the ocean doesn't look as it should'' and ``They look like
they're from outer space--don't come after me.'' After this
communication, Flight 19 was never heard from again.
This kicked off a massive search spanning 250,000 square miles of
ocean. As part of this search, two additional aircraft known as Martin
Mariners, were deployed by the Navy to patrol and look for wreckage.
With no indication of difficulty, one of these Martin Mariners failed
to meet at a scheduled rendezvous point, and was never heard from
again. No sign of the Mariner or the Flight 19 Avengers has ever been
found. Roger Allen from Sumter, South Carolina, in my district, was one
crew member on the missing Mariner whose fate has yet to be discovered.
H. Res. 500 takes the laudable step of commemorating the 60th
anniversary of the disappearance of Flight 19 and the naval Mariner
rescue aircraft and honoring the memory of the 27 Navy airmen lost on
these flights. It also acknowledges the continuing efforts to determine
what caused these disappearances so we can provide answers and closure
to the families of the airmen who were lost. I commend the fascinating
and haunting tale of Flight 19 to anyone interested in the mystery of
the Bermuda Triangle, and I join Congressman Shaw in urging my
colleagues to support H. Res. 500.
Mr. BUTTERFIELD. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time,
and I yield back the balance of my time.
Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I have no further
requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentlewoman from Virginia (Mrs. Jo Ann Davis) that the House suspend
the rules and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 500, as amended.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds of
those present have voted in the affirmative.
Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas
and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this question will
be postponed.
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