The Bermuda Triangle covers almost 440,000 square miles of the Atlantic Ocean. An imaginary line that begins near Melbourne, Florida, extends south to Bermuda, and west to Puerto Rico before turning north to Florida, forms the Triangle. From 1972-1999, more than one hundred planes and ships have vanished into thin air. More than one thousand lives have been lost as well. One frightening aspect of this entire saga is that disappearances continue to occur at an alarming rate.

A small part of the Bermuda Triangle lies in the Sargasso Sea. This sea is best known for its tall, thick, floating seaweed called Sargassum. The seaweed is thought to be a forest that once rested on an island in the Atlantic Ocean. According to legend, the island sank at a very quick pace, taking with it the forest and vegetation.

One of the most notable disappearances is that of Flight 19. The flight consisted of five Navy TBM Avenger torpedo bomber

Many unidentified objects have been seen entering and leaving the sea and in the sky. Captain Dan Delmonico is a lifelong sailor. His reputation is that of a calm observer not susceptible to over-reacting. He made two almost identical observations in April 1973. Both sightings were made at about four o’clock in the afternoon. He saw a gray object shoot through the water directly in front of his boat. He guessed its size to be 150 to 200 feet long and its speed to be at least sixty to seventy miles per hour. As it approached, it veered around the boat to pass as if it knew he was there. As it passed, he noticed that it invoked no turbulence and the surface of the water never broke.

At 4:26 p.m. Fort Everglades Rescue intercepted a transmission from FT-28. Immediately, the rescue team called several stations along the coast and asked them to turn on their radar and attempt to locate the lost flight. At 6:04 p.m. Lieutenant Taylor radioed his flight crew to tell them they were off course and needed to adjust their course to a more easterly direction. That exercise appears to have mysteriously taken them further from land. At 7:04 p.m. all radio communication ceased.

planes. Mechanics had certified the planes fit for flight. Flight planes were checked thoroughly and appropriately filed with the proper authorities. There were no indications that this mission would be anything other than a routine experience for the crews of these aircraft. Even the weather was cooperative. The forecast predicted clear skies and calm winds.

In an attempt to find the lost flight, a Martin Mariner PBM-5 flying boat was sent to search for the mission squadron. The flying boat left Fort Lauderdale Airport at 7:27 p.m. At 7:30 p.m. the plane’s radio failed, and flight disappeared forever.

Force would send out planes to assist in the search. Numerous land teams would crisscross the Bahamas and the Florida Keys searching in vain for signs of survivors or wreckage that may have washed ashore. One search and rescue ship, the S.S. Gaines Mills, radioed at 7:50 p.m. that they had observed a burst of flames that rose one hundred feet high and lasted for about ten minutes. Ships and planes rushed to the area, but no signs of debris or survivors were found.

The planes appear to have been ditched. The canopies were open, and some of the propellers were bent back. One of the planes had the marking “FT” on its side, which was the designation for Fort Lauderdale. The plane also had the number 28 on it, which was Lieutenant Taylor’s plane number.

Some topics in this essay:
USS Cyclops, Control Center, Dan Delmonico, Bermuda Triangle, Lieutenant Taylor’s, Mary Celeste, Gaines Mills, Lauderdale Airport, Bermuda Stern, TBM Avenger, bermuda triangle, flight 19, flight crew, ten minutes, lives lost, fort lauderdale, uss cyclops, flying boat, fort lauderdale airport, left fort lauderdale, atlantic ocean, lives lost triangle, plane suddenly, thousand lives lost, dr manson valentine,