me + survivor runner up + plane expert + mud + crashed military jet = tv show pilot

I was contacted several weeks ago by a man asking where the jet in the woods was. After a series of emails he explained that he was producing a pilot for a tv show called Abandoned America. Ian Rosenberger, (3rd place finisher on Survivor Palua) was to be the host and they were looking for interesting local things to shoot for the pilot. They thought the jet in West Milford might be a good choice. I volunteered to take him on a scouting trip to the jet, which we did a week later.

After several weeks of discussion, investigation and general paranoia that I wouldn’t be prepared, we went to the site yesterday to shoot the video. I brought in Ian Hopkins, who settled the debate over what kind of plane it was when he found a stamp of the model on the inside of the wing. He was far more knowledgeable about aircraft then I was, so it was logical to bring him on board. As the “historian” and “local expert” for the segment, I knew I needed to nail down more information. I knew the basics of the incident, but had very little hard data. I managed to track down a local resident who had interviewed a police officer who was on scene the day the jet crashed and obtained a copy of the interview.

The film shoot was to happen at 11am Sunday but for a variety of reasons, including lack of a car, I arrived at 1pm. I met Ian Hopkins for the first time and was introduced to the film crew and to the host Ian Rosenberger. He is 6 foot 8, skinny, and generally likeable. Did I mention he’s a jolly green giant of a man? I recalled how I liked him a lot on Survivor Vanuata, but decided not to pester him with questions about the show and his experience. We were there to film a video of a crashed jet, not an episode of the Survivor fan club.

What amazed me was Ian was wearing flip-flops. I had warned the film crew that the area gets very very muddy during the summer and it had rained a fair amount in the previous days and so it would be worse then normal. I advised wearing boots and bringing a change of footwear, socks and maybe even pants. So was he a non-believer or did he not get the message? or did he just not care? Regardless, I knew he was in for a muddy icky ucky trip…

We filmed an intro bit at a rock wall just inside the trailhead. After getting rid of some jitters and wondering how to look, where to look, and trying not to smile like a geek we got into the shoot. There were a lot of people there. Besides the three of us, there were three film guys, a sound guy, a director and two producers, as well as one of the producers girlfriend. I had been clued in only the day before that a family of bears lives about 200 yards away from the crash site. Luckily if they hear you making noise, they were give you a wide berth as they want no part of you, so I was confident that a dozen people trekking thru the woods with camera gear would make more then enough noise to keep them away… now as for the poisonous snakes that live here, that’s another story.

After the intro shoot we trekking down the hill and thru the boulder field towards the jet, which is about a 7-9 minute walk from the trailhead. The best time to view the jet is in winter because a) it’s not muddy and b) there’s little folliage so you can find the jet easily. In the summer you can be 75 feet away and not see it. I actually got a little disoriented by the dense brush but if you know where to go, it’s pretty hard to miss it.

When we got close I could see this was the worst I’d ever seen the mud. Several time I was in the mud halfway to my knees. Ian’s feet were a mess from the start and after about 5 minutes he gave up and ditched his flip-flops entirely and just went barefoot. Considering there’s snakes, ticks and pieces of metal from the aircraft around, this was not the best move, but he got by ok. Below is a picture of us afterwards. You can see Ian’s feet and they’re a mess even after he washed them off. He was covered with a layer of mud most of the time.

Here’s what my pants looked like when i got home. I sank half way to my knees in spots, but got mud all the way up to my knees. I also had muddy hands and arms and it took a lot of scrubbing to get the mud from under my fingernails…

We spent about 2 hours shooting video and eventually it was all over. The original idea was that they would film an entire pilot episode, featuring the jet, Bannerman Castle and North Brother Island. The entire episode would be shown to the networks to see if they wanted to pick it up as a full series. Now it appears as if they are going to pitch the series solely based on the jet. THANKS GUYS! NO PRESSURE! NOPE, I DON”T FEEL AT ALL RESPONSIBLE FOR SUCCESS (OR NOT) OF YOUR TV SHOW!

They will be doing all the graphics and voice overs and editing and hope to be pitching it by early July with an answer very quickly. I do not know if the show gets green lit if this will be used, re-shot or not used at all. obviously I’d like to see it used, but even if it doesn’t, this was a fun experience. I will be given a copy of the finished product and (with their permission) will post the video on this site.

Oh,… as for the true story of the jet crash… I’m going to remain silent on that and wait till I have the video to post.

There’s more photos over on Flicker

A Memorial Service for Emilio Carranza

In 2003 my wife and I attended the annual memorial service. There were perhaps 150-250 people in attendance, their cars lining Carranza Rd, forcing us to walk nearly 1/2 mile to the Memorial Site itself. The Memorial began with an introduction by William Heller, Carranza Chairman of the Mt Holly Post 11. He explained why they hold this memorial every year. I’ll admit that I didn’t get it just yet. I recall thinking prior to coming, “Ok, the guy died trying to fly long distance. It’s a tragedy, but why do they do this? Do they have memorials every year for Christie Macauliffe?” I regret thinking that because I now understand.

After a brief speech by a priest, and Lawrence Gladfelter, Commander of Post 11, the principle speakers began. They included:

Sergio Villabulos, Lt Col of the Mexican Embassy, Military & Air Attaché,
Billy Mack, NJ Department Commander, Trenton, NJ
Doug Satterfield, LT Col, US Army Reserve, Ft Dix

Their speeches were followed by placing of the wreathes, dozens of them, then a military salute via the playing of taps, and even a military fly-over by a very old bomber of some sort. I couldn’t tell what model it was…. They also displayed a small piece of Carranza’s wreckage that was recently discovered in the local firehouse.

Afterwards I thought long and hard about what Carranza did and why. I thought about what it meant and it suddenly dawned on me. We live in an age where anything is possible. Non-stop flights from Newark to Tokyo are a reality. We may soon be able to take low orbit shuttles to make that trip in 3 hours. Travel is just not a big deal. Yeah, it may be uncomfortable and sometimes expensive, and yeah after 9/11 it’s a hassle dealing with security, but do any of us really think about air travel with any wonder any more? We have space shuttles going up it seems every month or two, and we even have an orbiting space station where astronauts remain for extended periods of time. Can the orbiting hotels envisioned in the movie 2001 be that far off? What’s next? Manned trips to Mars? Even if we do that, will most of relate to it? None of us expect us to be traveling thru space like Captain Kirk any time soon.

Think back to 1928. Air travel was not commonplace. We didn’t have Fedex to overnight packages. We didn’t even have an interstate Highway System like Route 80 until 30 years later, so even traveling by auto was a slow process. If we could travel long distances, it could mean a world of difference, opening up commerce possibilities, tourism, as well as a greater exchange of culture and knowledge. Charles Lindbergh proved it could be done, and Carranza was going to be next. He flew around America, attempting to generate better relations between our two nations. Carranza was an inspiration to everyone, both in America & Mexico, and even around the world. He was trying to push the limits of existing technology, to demonstrate what we all would someday be able to do. It must’ve seemed very relevant to most people, even if many couldn’t exactly envision what changes long distance air travel would bring. Next year will mark the 75th anniversary of his death. Hopefully there will be more then 200 people at that service. More people should know what he did, and why & how he died. Anyone who has ever flown in an airplane or received anything that traveled by plane owes a debt to all those who helped make air travel as we know it possible. We all know who the Wright brothers are. Most of us know who Charles Lindbergh is. Most do not even know the name Emilio Carranza. Hopefully that will change.

The Emilio Carranza Memorial

Down a desolate road in Wharton State Forest, past a juvenile detention center, and sitting amidst the sandy dunes and scrub trees is a small memorial to a mostly-forgotten aviator. The Mt Holly Legion Post #11 has made it’s mission to keep his memory alive. His services used to draw visitors in the thousands, but now it’s dwindled to only a few hundred, mostly local residents & dignitaries from Mexico. So who is Carranza & why are we celebrating his life and death?

In the 1920’s air travel was in it’s infancy. Lt Col Doug Satterfield, said at a recent memorial service, “Today we have no appreciation of [Carranza’s undertaking]. Aircraft before the 40’s were unreliable, unpredictable and prone to falling apart without warning.” Instrumentation was limited to a compass, and a lighter to look at maps in the dark. Charles Lindbergh had just flown non-stop across the Atlantic, creating an interest in air travel that previously didn’t exist. Emilio Carranza, the grand nephew of Don Carranza, 1st Commandant of the Constitutional Army (later the 1st President of the Mexican Republic) and nephew of General Alberto Carranza, founder of the Mexican Air Force School of Aviation, he naturally had an interest in both the military & aviation.

Carranza believed in the future of air travel. He believed that long travel was possible making it possible to bridge the gap between far away places. He believed that eventually people would be able to travel around the world, opening up commerce, tourism, and dialogues between nations. His family moved to Eagle Pass, Texas where he finished high school. He later returned to Mexico and attended the Military School of Aviation, where he graduated with honors. In 1926 he acquired a Lincoln standard airplane, which, inspired by Lindbergh’s recent flight across the Atlantic, he would use to fly long distances. He planned to fly from Chicago to Mexico City via many small airports across the Midwest. Halfway to his destination, he ran out of fuel and crashed, with his brother being seriously injured.

He acquired a retired Mexican Air Force plane and planned to fly non-stop between Mexico City and Ciudad, Juarez. Note that this plane was made entirely of wood. This would be the 2nd longest flight of any Mexican pilot. He arrived safely on 9/2/1927, at about the same time Charles Lindbergh arrived in El Paso, Texas, where they both celebrated together. The two became close friends and Carranza was Lindbergh official companion while Lindbergh visited Mexico City. Lindbergh flew to Mexico City non-stop from Washington DC, making it the 2nd longest non-stop flight only to Lindbergh’s recently completed trip to Paris. This excited Mexicans everywhere, and soon a committee was formed to get a Mexican aviator from Mexico City to Washington DC non-stop. Carranza was the pilot they invited to make this trip.

The plane, a Ryan B-1, was carefully constructed to deal with both the rigors of such a long flight, as well as dealing with the thin air of Mexico City. Carranza himself was closely involved with the process. On one flight to San Diego, he crashed in the desert and boarded a train to his destination. The only witness to the crash was a 5 year old boy named Juan tapia. He was so impressed and inspired by Carranza that he declared he wanted to be as brave as Carranza. He fulfilled that goal, enrolling in the Mexican military & receiving 7 purple hearts.

Carranza flew the Ryan B-1 from San Diego to Mexico City as a test run, and over 100,00 people eagerly awaited his arrival. His safe arrival completed the longest non-stop flight by a Mexican. By June 10th, 1928 things were in full motion. Spotters along his route to New York were in place. He had a final meal with his family & he departed for America the next day. Heavy fog & darkness made navigation possible only by dead reckoning. Bad weather lay ahead, and all air travel near South Carolina had been cancelled. He finally arrived safe & sound at 4AM in Moorseville, NC. After a brief stay for rest & refueling, he left on June 12th for Washington DC where he landed at Boiling Fields.

Carranza met with world leaders, and the event was covered by press from around the globe. This was not just a trip to test the endurance of an aviator and a plane. This was meant to inspire good will among nations as well. In Mexico City, aviators dropped flowers from the sky. Carranza met with President Coolidge and the Secretary of State. He flew to Detroit with Charles Lindbergh, which further cemented him in the minds of most people as a true leader. Afterwards Carranza flew to New York, where Mayor Jimmy Walker gave him the key to the city. He reviewed the troops at West Point, an honor never given to a visiting official with the rank of just Captain. His plan was to leave on July 3rd for Mexico City, and arrive on the 4th, the American independence day.

The weather was not cooperative, and he was told not to go. Despite these warnings, he made several attempts to leave, but all were cancelled at the last minute. Frustrated, Carranza rescheduled for July 12th. The weather was almost as bad, if not worse now. A large electrical storm covered the area. Lindbergh begged him not go. He returned his plane to the hangar and returned to the hotel. At the Waldorf Astoria in mid-meal he received a telegram. It was an order to leave immediately “lest your manhood be in question.” He left for Roosevelt Field immediately. He lifted off at 7:18 PM, July 12th.

At 325 PM the next day, John Carr was picking berries in the Pine Barrens when he discovered the wing of an airplane. It belonged to Carranza’s plane. A bolt of lightning had hit his plane and sent him crashing down in the middle of what would later become Tabernacle, NJ, in the middle of Wharton State Forest, otherwise known as the Pine Barrens. Members of Mount Holly Legion Post 11 were dispatched to retrieve Carranza’s body. Hacking their way thru sandy pines, they found Carranza, still clutching a flashlight, and carrying in his pocket the telegram from the Mexican Military.

Carranza’s death made headlines around the world. A brave young man had died trying to extend the boundaries of flight. Carranza’s body was held at Buzby’s General store until the coroner made the pronouncement of death, and the body was identified. President Coolidge offered to have his body transported by warship. Two years later, children in Mexico had raised money to build the memorial that now stands in the Pine Barrens where his plane crashed. The members of Mount Holly Post 11 declared that Carranza would not go unremembered,, and every year there is a memorial service. Members of his family, as well as Mexican Dignitaries come & place a wreath at the memorial site. Mount Holly Legion 11, as well as various members of the US Military also gives speeches and pay respects to a fellow soldier who died serving his country.