ROMANCE OF THE SKIES
The Passengers The Lee Clack Family of Midland, MI

Entire family from Midland MI perishes on plane »

  The H. Lee Clack, 36, of Tokyo and Midland, Michigan perished aboard Romance of the Skies. The son of missionaries to China, he was general manager of Dow International.…

Jun 15 2011 / No Comment / Read More »
The Flight

Romance of the Skies »

N90944 - Romance of the Skies

On November 8, 1957, Clipper Romance of the Skies, a Boeing Stratocruiser operated by Pan American World Airways, departed from…

Jun 12 2011 / 1 Comment / Read More »
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The Crew

William P. Wygant, Co-Pilot »

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William Purdy and Berneice Wygant Wygant of Sausalito, CA was First Officer of Romance of the Skies.   Wygant was a very experienced pilot. He earned a commendation for his performance of duty from Admiral Fletcher, the commander of the North Pacific Fleet, for his…

Aug 27 2011 / No Comment / Read More »

N90944 Crew Members »

n90944 for web corner

John King Marie McGrath Albert Pinataro   Gordon H. Brown – Pilot, of Palo Alto, California, 40 years old. Yvonne Alexander – Stewardess of San Francisco, California Eugene Crosthwaite – Purser of Felton, California William Fortenberry – Second Officer, Santa Clara, California William P. Wygant…

Jun 13 2011 / No Comment / Read More »
The Headlines

LA Times – Searchers find bodies »

LA Times boat bodies web

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Jun 17 2011 / No Comment / Read More »

Los Angeles Times »

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Jun 14 2011 / No Comment / Read More »
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Boeing Stratocruisers A Pan Am Stratocruiser at Honolulu in the 1950s

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Jun 17 2011 / Read More »

The Boy Who Thought He Saved a Clipper

By Allan E. Morton Written May 20, 2005 Revisions until March 14, 2006 When I was ten years old our family moved from the Tongan Islands to Idaho. For the previous six years my father, Ermel…

Jun 14 2011 / Read More »
N90944 Flying in luxury aboard a Stratocruiser

Giant airliner descended from World War II bomber

“Romance of the Pacific” was a giant maze of metal and sophisticated electronics equipment. Built by Boeing in 1949, she had been in continuous use since her purchase by Pan American in 1950. A descendant of…

Jun 16 2011 / Read More »
Magazine photo of Romance

Another shot of Romance in magazine ad

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Jun 15 2011 / Read More »
The Search Thomas Ahroon (in World War II photo) commanded the Philippine Sea

Sailors ordered to return to ship, join search

The search for “Romance” would take on monumental proportions, and by 4 p.m. Saturday, November 9, 1957 the giant aircraft carrier, USS Philippine Sea, was being readied to lead the search and rescue mission.   Although…

Jun 15 2011 / Read More »
Navy SF2 planes take off the the USS Philippine Sea in search of Romance

Thousands of miles, 12 hours a day

From US NAVY records: On November 9,1957 Commander, Naval Air Force, Pacific Fleet, directed COMCARDIV 17 (RADM Thomas A. Ahroon), in PHILIPPINE SEA, to embark VS-21 and HS-6 and sail for Ocean Station “November”. CAPT Tuttle,…

Jun 15 2011 / Read More »
The USS Ponchartrain was nearby when Romance encountered trouble. Why did the pilot not attempt to ditch nearby?

Planes sight objects in hunt for Romance

From the Fresno (CA) Bee PLANES SIGHT OBJECTS IN HUNT FOR PACIFIC AIRLINER. EXFRESNAN, 43 OTHERS ARE ON MISSING CRAFT. San Francisco — UP — Pan American Airways reported today yellow objects “believed to be life…

Jun 15 2011 / Read More »
The Suspects Postcard of a Mobil station in Siskiyou County, CA. No known photos exist of William Payne

Demolitions expert bought huge life insurance policies before crash

William Harrison Payne, a former underwater demolitions expert with the U.S. Navy, surfaced as a prime suspect in the disappearance of Romance when an insurance company refused to pay off on one of the policies. Payne’s…

Jun 17 2011 / Read More »
Oliver Eugene Crosthwaite

Behind-the-scenes probe focuses on crew member Gene Crosthwaite

At 9:25 a.m. November 21, 1957 the phone rang in the Washington office of Civil Aeronautics Board executive James N. Payton. On the other end was W.O. Locke, legal officer for Pan American’s Pacific Division. Locke…

Jun 16 2011 / Read More »
William H. Fortenberry Cover story in True Magazine

We Flew Above Flying Saucers

True Magazine story published October 1952 How does it feel to see flying saucers? Like most people, we had never consciously expected to face that question, but now we have an answer. When you see “saucers”…

Jun 16 2011 / Read More »
herald and ufos

Nash-Fortenberry UFO Sighting Report

Click for brief History Channel video report of this famous sighting: http://www.history.com/shows/ufo-hunters/videos/nash-fortenberry-incident Wikipedia report on the sighting: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nash-Fortenberry_UFO_sighting…

Jun 16 2011 / Read More »
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Remembering William H. Fortenberry

Second Officer William Holland Fortenberry was first and foremost a family man who cherished his wife, Ronnie, and their three sons, Jerry, Ken and Craig. My dad loved the outdoors, and especially freshwater fishing and camping in…

Jun 15 2011 / Read More »
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