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Seaplane crashes in ocean, killing 19

Onboard were at least two American tourists and several Bahamians who had gone on a Christmas shopping trip.

By TAMARA LUSH
Published December 20, 2005

	[AP photo]
	Rescue crews search Government Cut on Monday.
	[AP/CNN]
	An amateur video image taken from CNN shows the propeller-driven seaplane about to crash.

MIAMI BEACH - A seaplane carrying Christmas shoppers and their babies crashed in the ocean off the white sands of South Beach on Monday afternoon, killing at least 19 of 20 people aboard.

Nearly everyone on the plane was from Bimini, a tiny island in the Bahamas just 50 miles from Florida.

Trailing smoke shortly after takeoff, the seaplane flew past high-rise condos and crashed at 2:40 p.m. as dozens of surfers and sunbathers looked on in horror. Some could even feel the heat that radiated from a fireball as it plummeted toward the water.

Most of the people on the beach knew few details of the crash, and many were shocked to hear that 19 people had perished and one person was missing.

Alex Casal, a surfer clad in a sopping black wetsuit, used his board to show how the plane wobbled, then listed to one side before hitting the water.

"I turned around and I see this plane making like a weird noise," said Casal, a 29-year-old day trader. "The left engine totally exploded and the wing totally fell off. There was an echoing "Boom!' and it hit the water hard."

Two of those onboard Flight 101 were crew members, at least two were American tourists and the rest were Bahamians who had visited South Florida for a Christmas shopping trip. At least three infants were on the plane.

Because items are expensive on the island chain, most Bahamians make at least one trip a year to Florida to buy everything from clothes to washing machines.

Amateur video obtained by CNN showed the main part of the aircraft slamming into the water, followed by a flaming object that was trailing thick black smoke.

Miami Beach fire Chief Lloyd Jordan said two of his ocean rescue workers were on duty and saw the plane crash. The pair were among the first in the water during a frustrating and futile rescue attempt.

"Our intention when we first arrived was to find as many survivors as possible," said Jordan. "They made a gallant effort. Unfortunately, their effort did not result in any survivors."

Cruise ships out of Miami were delayed because the plane crashed into the channel leading in and out of the port, which was closed for several hours.

Boaters and surfers were so close to the crash area that rescue personnel put bodies aboard private boats in an attempt to save lives.

Paul Fassbach, a 43-year-old physician, saw the crash while surfing. He jumped out of the water and ran a dozen yards down the beach, hoping to help. By the time he got close, police stopped him.

"Nothing could be done," said Fassbach. "That was the hardest part - knowing nothing could be done."

The historic propeller seaplane was owned by Chalk's Ocean Airways, which was founded in 1919 and is one of the only companies that flies regularly from Florida to Bimini.

Its aircraft have been featured in TV shows such as Miami Vice . Its floating planes take off in view of the port and waterfront multimillion-dollar homes that dot islands in the bay. Advance one-way fares cost about $80.

The airline's twin-engine Grumman G-73T Turbine Mallard was operating under visual flight rules, said Kathleen Bergen, a spokeswoman for the Federal Aviation Administration. The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board planned to investigate, but had not determined the cause of the crash.

The aircraft that went down was built in 1947 and is registered to Seaplane Adventures LLC in Greenwich, Conn., according to FAA records.

According to the FAA, the plane had a clean safety record with no reported incidents for more than 21 years.

In Fort Lauderdale on April 17, 1984, the landing gear failed because of a stress failure. On Feb. 10, 1984, in West Palm Beach, the elevator trim tab that controls pitch failed, causing "extreme shaking and vibration." No passengers or crew were injured in either incident.

Founded by Arthur "Pappy" Chalk, the small airline thrived during Prohibition, taking bootleggers, their customers and U.S. Customs agents to Bimini.

One of its Grumman Gooses was hijacked to Cuba in 1974, and the company has since had a policy of not carrying enough fuel to get to Havana.

At the Chalk's terminal, a few miles away from the crash site on an island just off MacArthur Causeway, the main boulevard to the famed South Beach, Norma Wilkinson from the Bimini Tourism Office made a few anxious calls from her car.

Wilkinson, who is from Bimini but lives in Miami and promotes the island, said she knew almost everyone on board the plane.

Bimini, a sportfishing mecca featured in Ernest Hemingway's Islands in the Stream , is a small, close-knit island with a population of 1,600.

"If you find out anything else, call me back," Wilkinson said into her cell phone. She grimaced, then shook her head, unable to do much more than stammer.

"That's, that's, that's sad," she said, closing her eyes.

--Times researcher Angie Drobnic Holan and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

[Last modified December 20, 2005, 01:51:07]