-Caveat Lector- http://www.nytimes.com/2001/01/07/nyregion/07PLAN.html New York Times | 7 Dec. 2001 As Search Continues for Plane, Skepticism About Crash Grows By SHERRI DAY A day after witnesses said they saw a small single-engine airplane go down into the Hudson River and sink, searchers last night still had found no evidence of a crash and had not received any report of a missing plane. That lack of information contributed to mounting skepticism among the police that a plane crash had, in fact, occurred. About 8:30 a.m. Friday two women who were driving into Manhattan across the George Washington Bridge called the police to say that they had seen a plane fly low over the bridge. They said the plane, which appeared to be a white Cessna with blue stripes, glided onto the river south of the bridge and then sank. Two people on the ground later also told the police that they had seen a small plane go into the Hudson. Police officials said that about 2 p.m. yesterday the search operation, which at one time included helicopters and scuba divers, had been scaled back to two harbor boats. Earlier in the day, the search was extended to Weehawken, N.J., some four miles south of the initial search area, after a man there said he had seen large pieces of debris floating down the river. As of early evening, police officials said, that siting still had not been confirmed. Since the police have been unable to uncover any evidence debris or an oil slick that would suggest a crash, officials said that they were increasingly doubtful that the witnesses actually saw a plane go down, especially because authorities were on the scene within 10 minutes of receiving the initial call. "We're optimistic that there was no plane crash," said Sgt. Brian Burke, a police spokesman, who added that if a plane had crashed during the morning rush, more people on the bridge and surrounding highways most likely would have seen the accident and called 911. But since the accounts of the shoreline witnesses were similar to the women in the car, Sergeant Burke said, the police were proceeding as if a plane had entered the water. The Federal Aviation Administration's radar records were also a factor in maintaining the search, he said, because they confirmed the presence of a plane in the vicinity at the time. The plane, flying in an area not monitored by air traffic controllers, dropped below the radar's scanning range three miles south of the bridge. But Leigh Russo, one of the women on the bridge who reported the plane had gone down, said she was positive about what she saw. "I don't understand why they feel doubtful that there's a plane in the water, because there's a plane in the water," she said in a telephone interview from her home in Dumont, N.J. "I just know that we were very concerned that somebody was down in that water." Ms. Russo, who is a human resources and labor director for a retail company, said she, too, was surprised that more people had not seen the plane go into the water. "We're baffled as to why nobody else saw it except us," she said. "But we saw it, and there's somebody down there somewhere." <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/">www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html <A HREF="http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html">Archives of [EMAIL PROTECTED]</A> http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ <A HREF="http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/">ctrl</A> ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
