Paging the Dupe Police...Where is the thread?

It sounds like ROP handiwork to me.  On the other hand, they are pretty old aircraft.  


That airline <had> one of the best safety records in history.  


Does anybody know if they have the standard security proceedures?
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Seaplane Crashes Off Miami Beach, Killing 19

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By MARIA NEWMAN and SHADI RAHIMI
Published: December 19, 2005

A seaplane heading for the Bahamas from Florida crashed off Miami Beach this afternoon, killing all 19 people aboard, Coast Guard officials said, adding that 3 were infants.
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All of the bodies have been recovered, a police official told reporters at a televised news conference.

The airplane crashed shortly after takeoff, and dozens of rescue workers from various agencies, joined by volunteers aboard private boats, small powered craft and even surfboards, quickly began combing the waters off Miami Beach.

The propeller-driven plane, operated by Chalk's Ocean Airways, was headed to Watson Island in the Bahamas when it went down around 2:30 p.m., officials said.

Lifeguards and beachgoers reported seeing fire and smoke spewing from the plane's engines, followed by what they took to be an explosion, before the plane "went straight down into the water," Chief Floyd Jordan of the Miami Beach Fire Department said at the news briefing.

A witness, Frank Amadeo, told WSVN-TV that he saw a huge explosion in the sky and the plane disappear behind a condominium tower on Biscayne Bay in Miami Beach, The A.P. said.

The Coast Guard said the cause of the crash was not immediately known, and it could not confirm that there had been an explosion. The National Transportation Safety Board said it would investigate. Witnesses to plane crashes sometimes recall seeing or hearing explosions before impact that are later found to have occurred later.

Mr. Otero said the plane was one that regularly flew to and from the Bahamas.

Roger Nair, a spokesman for the airways, said it was Chalk's first crash in the 86 years that the company has been flying. The Web site of the Miami Herald, however, lists a crash in 1994 that killed two pilots.

"We are a close-knit family airline and most of our customers have been our passengers for many years," Mr. Nair said, reading from a statement. "Our thoughts and prayers are with all our customers and their families."

Television pictures taken from helicopters showed debris in Government Cut, the channel that ships take past South Beach into the Port of Miami.

Chalk's Ocean Airways, founded in 1919, is one of the oldest operating airlines in the world. Its amphibious planes became something of a South Florida icon when they were featured in the 1980's television show "Miami Vice."

Chalk's Ocean Airways is based in Fort Lauderdale and is now owned by a Florida businessman, Jim Confalone, who bought it out of bankruptcy in 1999 from a group of investors who were operating the airline under the name PanAm Air Bridge.

Anybody?

Quoted: Paging the Dupe Police...Where is the thread? It sounds like ROP handiwork to me.  On the other hand, they are pretty old aircraft.   That airline <had> one of the best safety records in history.   Does anybody know if they have the standard security proceedures? ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Seaplane Crashes Off Miami Beach, Killing 19    * Sign In to E-Mail This    * Printer-Friendly    * Reprints    * Save Article By MARIA NEWMAN and SHADI RAHIMI Published: December 19, 2005 A seaplane heading for the Bahamas from Florida crashed off Miami Beach this afternoon, killing all 19 people aboard, Coast Guard officials said, adding that 3 were infants. Skip to next paragraph Multimedia Video Report All of the bodies have been recovered, a police official told reporters at a televised news conference. The airplane crashed shortly after takeoff, and dozens of rescue workers from various agencies, joined by volunteers aboard private boats, small powered craft and even surfboards, quickly began combing the waters off Miami Beach. The propeller-driven plane, operated by Chalk's Ocean Airways, was headed to Watson Island in the Bahamas when it went down around 2:30 p.m., officials said. Lifeguards and beachgoers reported seeing fire and smoke spewing from the plane's engines, followed by what they took to be an explosion, before the plane "went straight down into the water," Chief Floyd Jordan of the Miami Beach Fire Department said at the news briefing. A witness, Frank Amadeo, told WSVN-TV that he saw a huge explosion in the sky and the plane disappear behind a condominium tower on Biscayne Bay in Miami Beach, The A.P. said. The Coast Guard said the cause of the crash was not immediately known, and it could not confirm that there had been an explosion. The National Transportation Safety Board said it would investigate. Witnesses to plane crashes sometimes recall seeing or hearing explosions before impact that are later found to have occurred later. Mr. Otero said the plane was one that regularly flew to and from the Bahamas. Roger Nair, a spokesman for the airways, said it was Chalk's first crash in the 86 years that the company has been flying. The Web site of the Miami Herald, however, lists a crash in 1994 that killed two pilots. "We are a close-knit family airline and most of our customers have been our passengers for many years," Mr. Nair said, reading from a statement. "Our thoughts and prayers are with all our customers and their families." Television pictures taken from helicopters showed debris in Government Cut, the channel that ships take past South Beach into the Port of Miami. Chalk's Ocean Airways, founded in 1919, is one of the oldest operating airlines in the world. Its amphibious planes became something of a South Florida icon when they were featured in the 1980's television show "Miami Vice." Chalk's Ocean Airways is based in Fort Lauderdale and is now owned by a Florida businessman, Jim Confalone, who bought it out of bankruptcy in 1999 from a group of investors who were operating the airline under the name PanAm Air Bridge.

Smoke and fire from the engines and you are ready to call the cause of the crash as terrorism from Islamic fanatics?

1. It's too early to tell
2. Smoke and fire from the engines do not sound like a terrorist attack, and no it doesn't fit the M.O. of previous terrorist attacks, that usually occurs from inside the cabin

More likely: These guys heard that Calderon had made bail and was leaving the country.

Note the ROP followed by the (?)    Denoting a question, rather than a statement.


Other witnesses saw it blow up in mid-air.  

A simple engine fire would probably not doom a Seaplane.  They can land within seconds.

Sorry if I hurt anyones feelings by baselessly accusing the innocent terrorist scumbags.  

Quoted: Other witnesses saw it blow up in mid-air.

and some moron witnesses said it was a missle that flew into the Pentagon and the WTC blew up, not collapsed.

Quoted: Cause of Crash:  Gravity.

It's all Bush's fault!  

No, from what I heard, they were attempting to land on a wet runway.

Quoted: Sorry if I hurt anyones feelings by baselessly accusing the innocent terrorist scumbags.

Man someone has major sand in their mangina.

It is way too early to determine the cause but I highly doubt that terrorists would go after a grumman seaplane.  My guess would be an engine fire that spread into the wing and ignited fuel and or caused structural failure of the wing.

I haven't seen any pics of the accident so obviously I am just making a wild guess.  In flight fires are a pilots worst nightmare.  It was what most concerned me anyway.

Cavu