Search and Rescue

Maurice — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 12:23:00 GMT

Panic, panic my flight to the USA takes off today and I have a lot of packing still to do here in my home in South Wales. I am returning to Florida first and plan to fly down to the Bahamas in a wee 'canvas and tube' aircraft with the hope of finding and rescuing Liberty Girl.

She was last seen at the end of February drifting tail up, like a fisherman's float, north-west from the spot where we ditched her in the ocean some half way between the Dominican Republic and the Turks and Caicos Islands. I hope to scour the beaches of the lower Bahama Islands and call in to the US Base on Great Inagua, and try and track down the helecopter crew who fished me out of the drink, I owe them a beer!

Sun 'n Fun Airshow, Tampa, Florida, is on the 8th April so I hope to get back for that as someone wants me to give a talk. A chance to catch up with old friends from all over the world and do a bit of 'bar flying' with guys still flying aeroplanes who are twenty years older than me.

After that maybe Trinidad via Martinique for the Falklands or the overland route straight for Mexico and Panama possibly. It all depends on a little project we are onto in the woods of central Florida!

Liberty Girl in the Drink

Maurice — Sat, 16 Feb 2008 12:33:00 GMT

'LibertyGirl' in the drink 82 miles south east of Caicos, West Indies on bearing of 331 degrees from Puerta Plata.

Last position: 20N-45-08 W071-21-29 on the 16th February at approximatly 15:30 local time. 15 knot wind from 120 degrees Magnitude.

She may be floating but dinghy leaking so she may be gone. Fantastic US Coast Guard team - pilots Julie Kuckco and Jeff Cowen AMTC, Brett Crosby winch man AST, Jon Geskus diver. If it wasn't for the beacon around my kneck, I'd be writing this from the bottom of the sea.

SPONSOR WANTED! To raise General Patton's WW2 cub.

Boyancy of Liberty Girl - can anyone calculate if she is still floating off Great Inagua, Bahamas?

She has 26 gallons US in her wings and 10 gallons air space.
Her fuselage is stuffed with polystyrene foam (peanuts).
Cockpit has three half full standard UK refuse bags of foam.
Four man life raft is tied to strut but was leaking as fast as I could pump!

I was dumping fuel from wing tanks from 4,500 feet to 500 feet at say, 400 feet a minute.

If anyone spots her there's a reward of $2000 for sighting and lat/long information.
$4,000 for recovery onto dry land with minimum fuselage damage
N.B. Cut all fabric to release water from wings and fuselage before hauling her gently out of the water or you will destroy her!

NEW WEB SITE IN A WEEK...the old one is stuffed! I stuffed it, due to prolific cutting and pasting from lice ridden emails and bent documents!

Search results matching tags 'Around The World Solo Flight' and 'The Search for Liberty Girl'

Search and Rescue

Liberty Girl in the Drink