The Search and Rescue operation for Air Force TC48
On November 3, 1965, an aircraft carrying 68 Argentinean soldiers disappeared over the Caribbean, in what was undoubtedly the worst accident of the Argentinean Air Force in its history. Now, Mariano Torres García is directing a search from Costa Rica. Crash Investigators interviewed him on the operation.
By Tom Dieusaert*
More than half a century ago, two Douglas four-engine C54 Skymasters from the Argentinean Air Force (FAA), tail numbers TC48 and T43, took off from Cordoba City, with final destination San Francisco, California. The planes carried the Aviation Military School’s graduating class of 1965 for their final instruction trip. It had 54 twenty two year old cadets and 14 officers on board. The planes made a stop on the US Howard Air Force Base in Panama before continuing the trip towards the International Airport of El Salvador.
Forty-five minutes after departure, very close to checkpoint Mike 5 in the Caribbean Sea, the pilots of TC48 reported fire on engine number three. In their final radio communication, they informed they were flying low and by instruments, near Bocas del Toro and heading to Puerto Limon in Costa Rica. They never made it to the airport. Mariano Torres García was only 5 years old in 1965, but has a vivid memory of the disaster. His father was directly involved in the traumatic briefing and assisting of the victim’s families. Now, Torres Garcia wants to finish his father’s work, by finding the wreck using modern technology.
How did you get involved in this search mission?
At the time of the accident, my father (Gabriel Torres García) was a former official of the FAA and station manager for Aerolineas Argentinas at the Buenos Aires International Airport (Ezeiza). The following days after the disaster, in times with no Internet access and minimum TV coverage, parents and relatives would go to Ezeiza to get updates on the search and rescue (SAR) operation. My dad had the difficult and sad task to contain a large group of relatives that would come back every day. The tragedy of the TC48 marked him for the rest of his life. My brothers and me heard all these sorrowful stories during our youth.
Around 2008, I decided to start my own investigation into the accident. I wondered how there could be such opposite theories on the TC48’s final destination: Some are convinced the plane crashed in the jungle, others think it went down in the sea.
What do you know about the last known position of the flight?
Three hours after the last radio communication, the United States Air Force launched the most important SAR operation in Central America for that time, with 55 airplanes looking for TC48. But the operation was called off a few hours later, due to bad weather.
On November 7th, close to the Mosquito Gulf and all along the Panamanian shoreline, orange life vests that belonged to TC48, like clothing, military caps with nametags and airplane debris began to appear. The plastic ID of Cadet Vuistaz, and the passport of Cadet Pereyra, were found. Notwithstanding these elements of proof, most of the information on the crash was distorted, due to lack of communication and sensationalist press reporting.
How did these legends and myths about TC 48 sprang to life?
There was a local indian, called Porfirio, who was seen by neighbors wearing several watches on his arm. They accused him of stealing them from the TC48 wreckage. Then there was also teacher, called Thalia, who reportedly lived in a very remote area and one night had received the visit of two young men. They had left without telling their names. The desperate relatives clung to these kind of stories for clues to prove that the plane had crashed in the Costa Rican jungle.
One of the reasons for this confusion, is that the first aircraft involved in the SAR operation, were instructed to fly at an altitude between 500 and 1000 feet over the Costa Rican shore and eastern jungle. These airplanes confused many inhabitants into thinking that they had seen the TC48. Many parents spent months looking in the jungle to find their sons. In fact, there is still a large group of relatives that go comb the Costa Rica mountains, every single year since 1965.
So where did you start your own investigation?
I found a Honduran blog called “catrachowings.com (catracho is a nickname for “Honduran”) where many aircraft accident specialists like the late Rodolfo Isaad, debated about the TC48 accident. In 2015, I decided to investigate it more deeply and presented a dossier to the Argentine Air Force (FAA). The FAA and the Ministry of Defense gave me full support to move forward. Together with a team, I made several trips to Panama and Costa Rica and interviewed hundreds of people. We found the transcripts of the radio communications of the SAR operations from the US Air Force.
Thanks to the job of Dr. Jose Rivera from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), we also discovered two color videos from the US Air Force. The videos showed very clear images of the orange life vests recovered from the sea. All of this was very valuable to proof the plane crashed in the sea.
We also got in touch with Dr. Patrick Scannon of The Bentprop Foundation, who searches for missing American airplanes from WWII in the Pacific Ocean. Scannon provided us with detailed information on how to look for a lost airplane at sea. He taught us how to approach governments and what type of technology to use when searching for a lost airplane. Meeting Dr. Scannon definitely was a huge step forward.
Can you tell us more about the four (unsuccessful) search expeditions? How will the next operation look like?
Since 2015 we have made 4 expeditions and covered more than 25,000 hectares using a Side Scan Sonar from Edgetech, closely cooperating with the Coast Guard Services Panama and the US. We also had support from the NOAA, the Marine and Science Department of the University of Miami and many accident investigators and oceanographers.
We assumed that the TC48 Captain made a left turn when he realized he was falling to get closer to the coast. So, we assume the wreck can’t be too far off the Costa Rican coast. Today, using the side scan sonar, technology introduced by Martin Klein in 1965, we can locate almost anything under the sea. It is just a matter of time and resources. We have located many things underwater off the Costa Rican coast, but not the remains of the plane. Our next expedition, after this pandemic is over, will be farther away from the coast and reach 500 meters below sea level.
So what is still lacking to get on with the operation? And why do you think this time you will locate the wreck?
The continuous change of governments is a problem for our project. No matter whether it is in Argentina, Costa Rica or Panama, every time the authorities are replaced, we have to start from scratch and explain the project all over again. But we have the technology, we know the specialists and we know the people in Puerto Limon, Cahuita and Bocas del Toro.
There are two climate windows to work with a calm sea: October & November and April & May. So, now we are already looking to April 2021. The funding of the next expedition is another challenge that hopefully will be solved soon. However, I believe that these 68 families deserve to know what has happened with their loved ones so they can finally lay them to rest.
P.S. The search and rescue operation by Mariano Torres García and his family on Youtube.
*Tom Dieusaert is the author of Computer Crashes, when airplane systems fail.
