PBM-5 Mariner VP-50 Blue Dragons (BuNo 59256) in April 1956-similar to BuNo 59225. (Note: "BuNo" stands for Bureau Number.) |
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| Occurrence summary | |
|---|---|
| Date | December 5, 1945 |
| Type | Presumed mid-air explosion |
| Site | 28°35′N 80°15′W / 28.59°N 80.25°W / 28.59; -80.25 |
| Crew | 13 |
| Fatalities | 13 |
| Survivors | None |
| Aircraft type | PBM-5 Mariner |
| Operator | United States Navy |
| Flight origin | NAS Banana River |
| Destination | NAS Banana River |
Earlier, as it became obvious the flight was indeed lost, several air bases, aircraft, and merchant ships were alerted. A PBY Catalina left after 18:00 to search for Flight 19 and guide them back if they could be located. After dark, two PBM Mariner seaplanes originally scheduled for their own training flights were diverted to perform square pattern searches in the area west of 29°N 79°W / 29°N 79°W / 29; -79. PBM-5 BuNo 59225 took off at 19:27 from Banana River Naval Air Station (now Patrick Air Force Base), called in a routine radio message at 19:30 and was never heard from again.
At 21.15, the tanker SS Gaines Mills reported it had observed flames from an apparent explosion leaping 100 ft (30 m) high and burning for 10 minutes, at position 28°35′N 80°15′W / 28.59°N 80.25°W / 28.59; -80.25. Captain Shonna Stanley reported unsuccessfully searching for survivors through a pool of oil. The escort carrier USS Solomons also reported losing radar contact with an aircraft at the same position and time.
Read more about this topic: Flight 19