The Waterbury Democrat., 1946-01-19

nAmk m NmcSmW0 WGSm . AO88 0A At what remains Of the liner, stlll hot rs and flremen an hour and . hale ern Alrllnes official; Capt. George Sheridan, crash representative oi the Airline Pilots Association; Eda ward BafTinger, manager of La 0uardia Field and active airline pilot; and Capt. O. ". Younger man. check pilot of Eastern Air. lines, were on the scene after fiy- ing to an auxiliary airfleld in Meri- den.
 Rlckenbacker May Visit Scene
 Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker, presi- dent and general manager of East- ern Airlines was notified of the crash and is expected to personally visit the scene soon.
 The flight, according to Eastern Airline officials, was not a regularly scheduled one and was arranged for the convenience of passengers ir hurry to get from New York to Boston. All but Mrs. SturTnan, the nurse and baby, boarded the plane at New York.
 Almost Perpendicular
 MT. Youngerman, describing his reaction of the crash, said: Tt was one of the most unusual accidents I have ever heard of. The plane apparently dropped straight down from the sky because there was very little damage to trees except within the immediate vicinity oi where the plane hit the ground. He pointed out that had the plane 'crash-landed" in the usual sense of the term. coming in on a glide more trees at the scene would have been sheared of.
 Officials from the New Haven Re- crlIiting Station, It. Comdr. E. H Radzinski and Chief Pharmacist Mate w. A. Mock, arrived at the scene early in the afternoon. They explained that they were present in order to establish identity of vic- tims who might have been Navy personnel.
 According to State Police who were assigned the task of removing the remains from the crash, the first body to be identified was that of Stewart Willard Bessett. The mans body was lying outside the wreckage and was easily spotted by troopers. Identity was established by the fact that the man wore an identification bracelet, reported to have been a Christmas present from a member of his family,
 Were to Celebrate
 The pilot and co-pilot were iden- tified by the stripes on their sleeves hardly recognizable as very little clothing remained clinging to the bodies.
 Mrs. Sturman, accompanied by two-year.old Jean Eta and ths nurse, Barbara Thompson, were enroute to Boston for the celebra- ton of @ wedding anniversary with her serviceman husband. They were the only passengers who did not board the ill-fated plane tr New York. Officials said that the three came aboard at Miami. Heat Greater Up Front Most of the victims were without clothes or with only small rem- nants clinging to their charred and torn flesh as they were removed from the front section of the plane As the State Police dug deeper in- to the twisted mass of hot metal 1t was apparent that the greatest blast of heat had been up front as bodies removed from farther back bore more remains of clothing.
 A passenger list had been previ- ously released by Eastern Airlines officials in which 1t was stated that the huge transport carried a crew of three and a passenger list of IS. But probing deeper Into the rear 0i the plane troopers came across tha almost fully-clothed body of little two-year-old Jean Etta.
 At the unexpected discovery troopers were visibly moved and it was apparent that the question of whether any other unknown persons were buried in the wreck age. Efforts were speeded up, un- consciously 1t seemed, but only the body of the child's mother was as last removed. This too, as was Jeans rigid figure, was almost fully clothed.
 Looked for Field
 The plane was flying at about i,600 feet altitude when the port motor caught fire, witnesses said Tt flew for q few miles then banked as if the pilot were looking for an emergency field. Then the wings folded and the craft plummeteo straight down.
 Hundreds of persons eaw the plane in flight, trailing q blaek streamer of smoke, and fire depart. ments in q hak dozen communities were alerted.
 Witnesses reached the scene Only a few minutes after the crash buI th plane was burning 60 fuFtously that they weren't able to get near t for co minutes. All agreed that the plane was in difficulty tn the cir, and that the pilot apparently made vain efforts to bring the huge craft to earth in . safe landing.
 When The Democrat reporter are rived ct the scene shortly after the plane crashed, ik was hard to be- lleve advance reports that such q tragedy had occurred. Few spec tators were milling about ct that time and State Police had not as