Warbird Information Exchange

http://www.traffic.tampabay.com/news/pu ... da/2234369

Anyone know?

Not a lot of help, but I do recall an article on AeroVintage.com having an article a while back about a B-25 crash in Columbia.

Again not much help but back in the 70's there was the drug running B-25 that went down in Tennessee I think it was. Could the article be confusing the Columbia one with the Tennessee one?

No id I'm afraid, but at least here is a newspaper article regarding the guy's death.

https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid= ... 6150&hl=en

T J

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I know of three B-25s that crashed in Colombia, prob during illegal flights. Two crashes were in the 70s (rep 1976 and 1978) and one in the 80s. But I don's see a link so far...

"The younger Goldner was reported dead in a 1983 plane crash in Colombia. He was piloting a World War II-era B-25 bomber that caught fire. Three other people died in the crash." This could very well be N87Z as it disappeared around that time. It was reported that 87Z crash landed in the Bahamas Islands on Long Island, however, the Minister of Aviation advised me that they had no records of a crash of a B-25 type aircraft on Long Island, further, the newspaper there also had no information on said crash, so I'm wondering.......is this the same ship.

CoastieJohn, a DC-3 crashed in Tennessee while on a drug run,

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Gary Lewis
J.A.F.O.

Gary, check out page 10 (or 18 of the actual paper). John

https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid= ... 0423&hl=en

with regard to the Dawsonville crash...that would be 43-4336 B-25H-1 registered as N96GC. the ship was completely destroyed and burned. a friend of mine pulled the aft floor board and the bell cranks out of what was left of the horizontal stabilizer, "visitors" to the site had destroyed anything and everything. nothing to be made flight worthy or satisfactory for static. I researched this ship for decades.

_________________
Kind Regards,
Gary Lewis
J.A.F.O.

If the dates in the above newspaper is correct (and one would imagine the father knew when his son was reported dead), then the idea of N87Z becomes somewhat suspect. Air Classics reported the demise of this aircraft almost a year previous to the Goldner case. The 25 is reported to have crashed on Aug. 2, 1982 killing Pilot Earnest Battaiia, Argentinian, of Miami, FL; crew James McKesson, US, of Miami Beach, FL; Alexsandro Garcia, Cuban, of Miami, FL.

By doing a little internet research I find a James Irving McKesson who died on Aug. 2, 1982, but no further info about his passing is available. He seems to have had a company called Jim's Boats in North Miami Beach. Can't find anything on Battaiia.

Also I found this newspaper article which includes details about a James McKesson who apparently did, or didn't have an 'incident' in the Bahamas in 1981.
http://archives.chicagotribune.com/1981 ... ck-pistols

The guy who supplied information regarding the crash to Air Classics was a Weeks Air Museum employee named Kent McMakin. Maybe he can be traced to get further information.

Do we know of any Lodestar that went 'missing' in case the Consulate official was right on the type of aircraft used?

T J

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Make my day, punk!

Hi TJ - your post in this thread includes "The 25 is reported to have crashed on Aug. 2, 1982 killing Pilot Earnest Battaiia, Argentinian, of Miami, FL; crew James McKesson, US, of Miami Beach, FL; Alexsandro Garcia, Cuban, of Miami, FL." I'm a researcher and it's a crash I'm curious about. Can you tell me where you found this information?

Thank you!
Heather

Hi Heather,

The info came from Air Classics magazine (Feb. 83 issue), and in the report it says that the magazine got their info from Kent E. McMakin, who at the time was a Weeks Air Museum employee. You can find further contact info for him by using whitepages.com. Seems he has moved further North/ Northwest!

T J

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Make my day, punk!

Thanks T J! I really appreciate it!

Heather