Doomed Jetliner Takes New Journey as Crash Training Tool

ALVERTON, N.Y., Oct. 27 — After T.W.A. Flight 800 exploded over the Atlantic Ocean off Long Island in 1996, an old airplane hangar here became a sacred place.

Investigators pulled mangled hunks of what had once been a Boeing 747 from the ocean, hauled them to the hangar and began piecing them back together in one of the largest reconstruction projects in aviation history. Over the years, people visited the wreckage and laid carnations on the seats where their daughters and husbands had died. Some called the site a tomb; others said it was a monument to their loss.

Now, the government has begun the long process of moving that monument, piece by twisted piece, from Long Island to the campus of George Washington University in Ashburn, Va. There, the 96-foot-long reconstructed section will be used as a training tool for safety inspectors at the National Transportation Safety Board Academy.

Since the plane plunged into the ocean on July 17, 1996, its remnants have become both evidence and de facto headstones for the 230 people who died on board. But now, families of the victims said they are glad the pieces are being hauled away and put to a different use.

"I don't think it's a closing," said Carol Ziemkiewicz, whose daughter, Jill Ann, a T.W.A. flight attendant, died on the New York-to-Paris flight. "To me, I guess I feel a little bit of satisfaction knowing that they're going to keep this plane for a purpose, rather than just destroy it. It tells me how important this tragedy is."

On Monday afternoon, four hulking pieces of the plane sat lashed to five-axle flatbed trucks, shrouded in a confection of white plastic that is usually used to wrap boats. Unwrapped hunks of the fuselage sat inside Hangar 4, still sprinkled with red, orange and green investigators' tags.

The shards are imposing just by themselves, and relatives of the flight's passengers said the sight of the completed reconstruction was even more humbling. It was assembled from 70,000 pounds of scrap, just part of an estimated one million pieces that were recovered, and spanned much of the length of the plane's red-and-white midsection.

The entire reassembly cost more than $35 million, and took place inside a vacant Grumman hangar that had been empty after the United States Navy pulled out of its Calverton base because of budget cutbacks.

The pieces of the plane were disassembled and packed away after the federal government completed its investigation into the crash in August 2000, determining that the plane was destroyed by a fuel tank explosion most likely caused by a short-circuit in the wiring.

The relocation to Virginia began last week, and the four pieces on the trucks were set to leave at 9 a.m. Tuesday, said Ed Lombardo, one of the truck drivers gathered outside the hangar.

Mr. Lombardo said he had hauled all sorts of oversized cargo in his 44 years driving trucks, from industrial machines to M.R.I. equipment used in hospitals. Usually the freight is not so emotionally charged, he said.

"You know what you're hauling," he said. "You don't want to do it, but you have to. This is just our job. You have to do it."

The crash and later reconstruction brought rolls of new, if reluctant, visitors to Calverton. One of them, Helen Siebert, said she came several times to examine the plane and the seat where her daughters, Chrisha and Brenna, had been sitting.

"It's difficult to explain," Ms. Siebert said in a telephone interview Monday. "It kind of reminded me of how I felt — tattered, blown apart, and very sad, but still hanging together. That kind of described me."

Ms. Siebert and other relatives of victims came from as far as France to visit the wreckage. Some made the trip only once; others returned again and again on anniversaries of the crash.

Ms. Siebert said that she could also reconnect with other families and federal inspectors when they gathered at the hangar. Every time she returned, Ms. Siebert said, her emotions felt unskinned.

"My oldest daughter always told me that life doesn't have a rewind button and you can't go back," Ms. Siebert said. "But you kind of went back in time when you went there. Your whole life changes, and I think you want to go back."

Aurelie Becker, whose daughter, Michele, died on the flight, said that by returning to the hangar and the plane, she and other family members could look at where their loved ones sat, and who sat near them. They wondered what the passengers were doing moments before the plane crashed.

Ms. Becker said visiting the plane and seeing seat 5F, where her daughter sat, always conjured up Michele's last words to Ms. Becker. They were, "I'm going to drink a glass of Champagne on this airplane."

If you know Jim can you ask him why he thinks the Bush admin. is continuing the Clinton cover up? Another question I have is how can SO many people be kept quiet on this? I know that there are hundreds of civilian eye witnesses but what about those involved in the government that have kept quiet?

Also, and this may be covered in the part of the book I've yet to read, I'm about 2/3 of the way through, does he speculate military or terrorist? I'm thinking a likely scenario given on another thread on this makes sense.

Since we are speculating...

How about the US Navy being put on alert to look for Islamic terrorists in a boat with a stinger. The Navy goes to the area in question, said Islamics launch missile at jet. Navy launches anti-missile measures at missile (possibly an anti-missile missile) and both arrive at airliner at about the same time.

Boom goes the jet.

Navy sends Islamics to bottom of the ocean and vacates the area.

Current President doesn't want investigation to derail his re-election, so cover up goes into place.

I refuse to reveal my sources... :^)

37 posted on 03/13/2003 12:01 PM EST by Crusher138

The more I read about the "Clinton Legacy" the more sick I become. Call me a conspiracy theorist but IMO the facts speak for themselves.

MKM

If you know Jim can you ask him why he thinks the Bush admin. is continuing the Clinton cover up?

I met Jim once in Washington. He writes about once a quarter to keep people informed on his court case. (I was searching for his latest letter but it must be at a country location. I also couldn't find it on-line.) I used to work for TWA but never met Liz. My pilot training was noncommercial, unrelated to TWA, and involved mainly Bell helicopters. I mention that only because it helps me recognize the CIA graphics as pure fiction.

I think Jim would say the fate of the case rests with the courts. Regrettably, I believe the administration isn't going to touch it until that judicial process plays out, if then. As we saw with the White House and Air Force vandalism, Bush showed reluctance in taking on battles that he could never win in the press, no matter the outcome. Jim has been fighting this one virtually alone except for some stalwart supporters.

You may have already been here, but I would recommend a couple of websites:

The Attack Against Jim Sanders

Associated Retired Aviation Professionals: The TWA 800 Investigation

Another question I have is how can SO many people be kept quiet on this?

As we know from Thomas Jefferson, "All tyranny needs to gain a foothold is for people of good conscience to remain silent."

We also know that Clinton removed by executive order whistleblower status from all personnel involved in the investigation and retrieval, which I would maintain was a red flag.

We know that three rows of seats [chemical analyses revealed missile fuel on the seats (rows 16-18 ?) were summarily dismissed by FBI's James Kallstrom] came out of the fusilage first at the top of the spill pattern.

We know it was reported (unofficially) that all passengers died of having their necks broken in a single direction, a pattern not consistent with a single explosion of the center fuel tank.

We know that the 747 was one of our safest aircraft, having flown millions of passenger-miles for more than 25 years, without a similar fuel tank explosion [I discount the Philippine explosion], which could not in any way be replicated by investigators despite repeated attempts.

We know that there isn't a pilot alive today who thinks the CIA graphics are credible, and that's separate from all the missing radar tapes, documents, demonizations of those expressing contrary views, etc., plus over 700 witnesses -- many of whom were judged highly credible.

That's just a few off the top. The book is excellent in presenting the details, but I'm afraid I'm again out of time, but this case does not augur well for America when a "free" press, presumably the foundation of our democracy, fabricates "facts" and "theories" relating to a Republican administration and Iraq, yet aids and abets cover-ups during a Democrat administration.

I say again, it is very sad. The moral: Vote Republican. I have -- ever since switching.

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