Evening star., 1953-07-19
Probers Of Crash
Fatal 10 II Hope for
Clue from Survivors
By tha A,soelassd Press

MILLION, F1a., July 40.-N0Vy
investigators seeking cause Of
the crash Of q Marine transport
plane that killed II men hoped
tonight that five survivors could
supply clue.
Thirty-seven Naval ROTC col
lege students and four crewmen
were killed in the crash Of the
twin-engined cargo plane.
Navy doctors reported that the
two crewmen and three college
students who lived through the
disaster were in too serious con-
dition to be interviewed. Two
were on the critical list.
Meantime, Navy crews probed
through the charred and twisted
wreckage and aerial observation
parties were sent up to try to
find out what went wrong.
Almost all Of the dead were
ROTC students in summer train
ing at Corpus Christi, Tex. and
Norfolk, Va. The passengers
were being flown from Corpus
Christi to Norfolk for amphibious
drills.
The survivors were Capt. c. Z.
Graft, Morehead City, N. c., and
Corpl. j. P. Tuttle, Chaumont,
N. Y, crew members, and Dale
E. Scott, East Lansing, Mich;
Jay B. Weidler, jr., Philadelphia,
Pa, and Thomas F. Maggard,
Kansas City, all students.
Models Grounded.
The Navy at Norfolk an
nounced that all Fairchild Packet
planes such as the one which
crashed were being grounded
temporarily. Other types took
over the airlift. The Packet is
the Marine version of the Clio
Flying Boxcar.
The plane burst into a rolling
ball of fire after smashing
through q clump Of trees. It
scattered burning wreckage and
bodies for more than 100 yards |
before crashing into three parked
automobiles and a barn.
Two men struggled from the
flames and staggered to safety.
Alex Allen, Is, who lived on the
farm where the crash occurred,
said one of the survivors asked
him to pull off his burning
clothes and shoes.
Six survivors were picked up
by Navy rescue teams, but one
man died in Whiting Field Hos
pital about four hours later with
out regaining consciousness.
Gay Group of Students.
The students were a gay, care
free lot when they left. They
had just completed their naval
weapons course as part Of their
sophomore training. Before
their naval course in their Junior
year, they were to spend six
weeks learning about aviation
and amphibious operations.
Many of the parents Of the |
victims said they first learned
of the tragedy of the radio.
M. F. Smith, Oklahoma City,
whose son was among those |
killed, called the Associated
Press and said some friends
said they heard my sons name |
on the radio"
"IS this correct-there's no
doubt he is dead?" the father
asked after he was told Lloyd M. |
Smith, 20, was on the list. Young
Smith was an engineering phys
les student.
Of the dead, % were students
at the University Of Oklahoma.
There were 10 from Rice Insti-
tute, two each from the Univer-
sity of Missouri, and Oregon
State and one each from the
University of Oregon and Geor-
gia Tech.
The tragedy took the life of
Billy E. Mills, engineering stu
dent from Wayne, Okla, scarcely
month before his scheduled
wedding. He was to have been
married to Miss Patsy Lee Rob-
erts, hometown girl employed
by the telephone company.
Everett Mills, a farmer, said
he learned Of the crash on the
radio and drove to Norman i'm
mediately where university offl1
cials informed him his son was
among those killed.
The son of Hal Phillips, news
director for Radio Station
KTOK, Oklahoma City, also was
among the dead. He would have
been "a years old July "A. Mr..
Phillips is vice president Of the
Oklahoma Association Of AP
BroadcasterS.
Mother Hears News.
Mrs. Eldridge r. Starr Of
Hobart, Okla, was one of the
mothers who learned of her
sons death over the radio. The
Navy had notified her by tele-
gram, she said, but the message
was garbled and she didn't
know for sure her son, Kenneth,
was on the plane until his name
was read on the radio.
A mathematics major, he had
served in the Navy before get
ing a scholarship in the reserve
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