Pilots sometimes called them "Iron Birds" or Grumman ironworks, said Mark Evans, a historian at the Naval Aviation History branch of the Naval Historical Center. The Avenger was known as an extremely rugged plane.
Taylor is heard formulating a plan as soon as the first plane's fuel level dipped below 10 gallons, all five planes were to ditch at sea.
The planes flew in one direction then another as balmy daylight turned to stormy seas in the darkness. There are no landmarks in the middle of the ocean. Transcripts of in-flight communications suggest he wasn't wearing a watch. Pilots flying over water in 1945 had to rely on compasses and knowing how long they'd been flying in a particular direction, and at what speed.īoth of the compasses on Taylor's plane were apparently malfunctioning. Taylor, in an age before the Global Positioning System (GPS) became commonplace for navigation, got hopelessly lost shortly after the bombing run. Led by instructor Lieutenant Charles Taylor, the assignment was to fly a three-legged triangular route with a few bombing practice runs over Hen and Chickens Shoals. Five TBM Avenger Torpedo Bombers carrying 14 men took off at roughly 2:10 in the afternoon that day on a routine navigational training mission. Naval Air Station in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The legend of the Bermuda Triangle will be forever tied to the fateful flight that took place on December 5, 1945.įlight 19 originated at the U. Coast Guard's official response to Bermuda Triangle inquiries, writes: "It has been our experience that the combined forces of nature and the unpredictability of mankind outdo science-fiction stories many times each year." Disappearance of Flight 19 "To say quite a few ships and airplanes have gone down there is like saying there are an awful lot of car accidents on the New Jersey Turnpike-surprise, surprise." "The region is highly traveled and has been a busy crossroads since the early days of European exploration," said John Reilly, a historian with the U.S. They argue that a sometimes treacherous Mother Nature, human error, shoddy craftsmanship or design, and just plain bad luck can explain the many disappearances. The reality, say many, is far more prosaic. Alien abductions, the existence of a mysterious third dimension created by unknown beings, and ocean flatulence-the ocean suddenly spewing great quantities of trapped methane-have all been suggested as culprits. The disappearances have been attributed to the machinations of enormous sea monsters, giant squid, or extra-terrestrials. Many exotic theories have been propounded to explain what happened to the missing travelers. The article stimulated a virtual cottage industry in myth-making. But the region didn't get its name until August 1964, when Vincent Gaddis coined the term Bermuda Triangle in a cover story for Argosy magazine about the disappearance of Flight 19. Christopher Columbus wrote in his log about bizarre compass bearings in the area. Unusual features of the area had been noted in the past. No one keeps statistics, but in the last century, numerous ships and planes have simply vanished without a trace within the imaginary triangle. The Bermuda Triangle is an area roughly bounded by Miami, Bermuda, and Puerto Rico. Neither the planes nor the crew were ever seen again. On a sunny day 58 years ago, five Navy planes took off from their base in Florida on a routine training mission, known as Flight 19.
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