Aircraft with 58 passengers still missing after 64 years

Northwest Airlines (NWA) Flight 2501 is said to be the worst crash in American aviation history when the DC-4 plane with 58 passengers on board went down over Lake Michigan, more than six decades ago.

The DC-4 plane flew from New York and was heading towards Seattle, Washington on June 23, 1950 when it disappeared over water without issuing any distress call.

Debris and other evidence were found along the Lake Michigan shoreline three days after the crash, following traces of oil slick by search and rescue crew. However the location of the aircraft remains unknown.

Authorities failed to find the wreckage and the cause of the crash was never determined.

35-year-old Captain Lind had over 900 flying hours with over 105 flying hours in a DC-4 aircraft. He had also completed his Civil Aeronautics Administration physical 4 months prior this ill-fated flight, which proved that the captain was physically fit and prepared for this flight.

35-year-old Verne F. Wolfe took the right hand seat as the co-pilot and 25-year-old stewardess Bonnie Ann Feldman was in the passenger booth attending to 55 passengers – 27 women, 22 men and six children. All boarded the plane, never to be heard from again.

According to reports, the crew checked in with Northwest flight control operations centre at LaGuardia Airport performing the norm of the flight preparation - checking on the weather along the route and arranging an alternative flight plan to avoid unfavourable conditions in order to reach its destination on time.

Flight 2501 took off on time; at 7:30pm, headed west and was reported entering a line of thunderstorms or a squall line.

Aware of the storm brewing in the Midwest, Captain Lind requested a cruising altitude of 4,000 feet instead of the 6,000 feet flight plan to its first stopover - Minneapolis. His request was denied due to other assigned traffic at that level.

Air Route Traffic Control the approved Captain Lind’s request to drop 4,000 feet as the aircraft reached Cleveland Ohio at 10:49pm.

40 minutes later, the aircraft was instructed to descend to 3,500 feet to avoid an eastbound flight at 5,000 feet due to severe turbulence. They were expected to pass each other near Battle Creek, Michigan, and the standard separation of 1,000 feet would not suffice due to this turbulence.

Approximately 11:51pm , the aircraft entered the vicinity of the growing storm. At this point, Captain Lind reported that he was over Battle Creek and would reach Milwaukee at 1:27am.

Flight 2501 was flying approximately 3,500 feet over Lake Michigan, 29 km NNW (North-North West) of Benton Harbour in Michigan. As the plane neared the lake shore, Captain Lind requested a further drop in altitude to 2,500 feet without stating a specific reason. The pilot’s request to descent further was denied and the plane disappeared from the radar screens.

Alerts went out the plane was missing when it failed to arrive in Minneapolis and local residents said they saw a flash of light over the lake.

Flight 2501 was reported missing when it was overdue to report in Milwaukee. Civil Aeronautics Administration radio stations attempted to contact the overdue flight 2501 on all frequencies but to no avail.

At the break of dawn, on June 24, 1950 the plane was officially presumed lost. Officials concluded this is due to fuel supply that would have been exhausted by that time.

The search and rescue teams began their intense search on the fog-covered lake. Methods like sonar and dragging the bottom of Lake Michigan with draggers were used in this widespread search but no trace of the aircraft was found beneath the lake.

Even with the week that followed, with additional debris and human remains washed up on public and private beaches along a stretch of ten miles north and south of South Haven, with numerous floating chunks of destroyed aircraft and pieces of luggage retrieved by the search and rescue team, the submerged wreckage remains a mystery.

Even after 64 years today, family members and friends of the passengers and crew are still looking and craving for a closure. Their pain remains and their one million and one questions remain unanswered.