The Untold Story of JFK Jr's Fatal Pilot Mistakes! 

Stop leaving yourself vulnerable to data breaches! Go to my sponsor aura.com/pilotdebrief to get a 14-day free trial and see if any of your data has been exposed. Here's a few facts I didn't include in the video: - John had to repeat a lesson during instrument training four times, but that lesson was about VORs and NDBs and had nothing to do with the reason why he crashed - nothing else in his training history suggested he was below average or a reckless pilot - Shortly after takeoff on that fateful flight, John almost ran into an American Airlines flight that was on approach to the Westchester County airport. John wasn’t talking to Air Traffic Control and the American Airlines crew had to maneuver to avoid the collision. The controller wasn’t able to get ahold of John and the truth is that if John had requested VFR flight following, he would have received traffic advisories and most likely avoided this, but he also would have had a controller to talk to throughout the flight that could have provided him with weather advisories and perhaps prevented this tragedy. - Ultimately, I think he just became too complacent, having flown the route numerous times and he overestimated his skill level in the aircraft and didn't realize how dangerous the situation was. CHECK OUT ONE OF THESE OTHER CELEBRITY PLANE CRASHES Buddy Holly's plane crash 👉ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-QQFO6isorFg.html Lynyrd Skynyrd's plane crash 👉ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-chMcJoUNQX0.html Kobe Bryant's helicopter crash 👉ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-1WiFqu8i7PI.html

Quick call. “It’s getting late now, let’s go out for dinner and leave in the morning “.

I'm not even aviation enthuastic, but I like watching these videos for some reason. It's still interesting to me. Keep up the good work!

This crash, and John Denver's, were the "water cooler" stories at our local FBO. Lots of conjecture, which mostly turned out to be correct, unfortunately.

He stopped flying because his mother was terrified of him dying in a plane crash. Only after she died did he pick it up again.

Almost all of my night time was in Hueys in the Army with another pilot. Later i flew Ag and pipeline patrol in airplanes with little night time. I consider night to be IFR and two pilot. I know many Freight Dogs and such are very comfortable single pilot at night, but they have instrument (and now all those computers) situational awareness. It is scary out there at night guys/gals.

“Just because it’s legal, doesn’t mean it’s a good idea” should be the motto of Part 91, written in large glowing letters across the dash of every high performance low hours twin. Thank you for your excellent analysis and I’m glad you are starting to pick up some sponsor money.

John acted irresponsibly-but I think in his arrogance he thought he could handle it. From what I’ve read he was a risk taker like some of his family members. That’s fine but not when you’re carrying 2 passengers.

You’ve been benevolent to describe all the reasons why the odds were against him, Lauren was the unsuspecting victim. Was in New Orleans when then president Clinton ordered the coast guard, navy to search for the missing Saratoga. Bottom line simulator instrument time is close to worthless, he was a low time non instrument rated pilot unfamiliar with a high performance single engine aircraft. The pressure from Caroline and the wedding in addition to his own personal shortcomings made him believe he could make the trip at night safely.

I'm a retired Airbus Captain (30 yrs USAir/American) with 18,400 TT (3000 Single Engine, 100? in the saratoga/lance type plane) ..... THE NIGHT JFK JR. DIED July 16, 1999 I was a first officer flying a Boeing 737 into Boston that night. I had regular schedule of flying into Boston for a lng layover once a week, and from Boston the next night to Miami for another long layover. This particular night was so memorable because JFK Jr’s private plane was missing, attempting to fly at night, single pilot, single engine (nice plane), into Martha’s Island for a family function, a wedding I think?. The descent into Boston I commented to the other pilot how murky and eerie it was, no lights what so ever. Boston was reporting overcast, 4 miles, visibility, approaches to Rsy 27 and 31 were in use. 27 and 31 are runway headings, based on the 360 degree compass rose, to the nearest 10 degree mark. 27 = 270 degrees, 31 = 310 degrees, and when you had parallel runways, and extra letter for Left, Center, Right were used, so 32L, 32R etc. ATC kept asking us slow down, and “can you see the airport yet?” When we couldn’t see it he turned us away and sequenced for an Instrument approach, and he was frustrated. Visibility was no longer 4 miles. We made the approach and landing without incident. The hotel was a 5 star, and the whole crew went to the same hotel (later years we, the pilots, were no longer staying with the flight attendants). John Kennedy, a private pilot with NO instrument rating and only a few hundred hours, bought a very night complex expensive airplane. Complex means big engine, adjustable propeller, retractable gear. He usually had a flight instructor with him as a safety pilot but not this night. His instructor offered but JFK declined, probably didn’t want to inconvenience the kid with a long weekend, housing may have been an issue too. I believe he got disoriented while flying, it’s easy to lose your situational awareness at night, no lights outside, it’s called VERTIGO. It can lead into a loss of control of the airplane. It did. It sounds like he rolled upside down in a steep turn with the left wind striking the ocean first, crushing the roof of the plane. It sank in 120 feet of water. They didn’t find the plane for 4 days.

Another good debrief Hoover. You gave more information about him that I had never heard. Still, another unnecessary accident.

Great debrief. One element that deserves more emphasis IMO is how quickly things went wrong at the end. From wings level at 2500 to impact was just 34 seconds.

Excellent video. Hubris definitely played a major role.

I was flying the day this happened for the Civil Air Patrol doing Chesapeake Bay Patrol in coordination with the Coast Guard. We flew low and slow (800 Ft 90 kts) to look for boaters in distress. We circled the bay and cut across mid-bay at its widest point from east to west. The whole east coast of the US was in the grips of a summer heat wave and was very hot and hazy. As I crossed to the west coast, I lost the horizon. I had to fly for a few minutes on instruments. After I heard of the crash, I assumed he went over the water to get to the island and lost the horizon and shore. I guessed he thought he was heading out to sea thinking he he missed the island and tried to get back to the shore. The turns disoriented him and he entered a death spiral.

Around the time this happened a magazine reporter went up in an airplane with somebody at night over the ocean the reporter was told to close his eyes for a period of time and when he opened his eyes his attention was directed at a white dot outside the window and asked to identify it he said it was a star, the pilot said no it's a boat in the ocean we're headed directly for the sea, the reporter couldn't even feel that they were going down this was done to demonstrate why it is important to be type rated for night flying and how easy it is to get disoriented.

Aircraft don’t care how wealthy you are, what your social status is, or how famous you are. RIP.

Could have hopped in the car and driven to Falmouth/Woods Hole and taken a ferry or other boat over to the island. Considering the amount of time it takes to get a private plane ready and to get everyone to the airport, I don't think a trip by land/boat would have taken that much longer than a flight.

I’ve always found this case fascinating. Thanks for the in depth analysis and explanation. I appreciate your content.

Another thing worth talking about, with the injury to his left ankel, what about any pain killers he could have been taking?

I remember when this happened. I had just gotten my instrument rating. I had a really good flight instructor. He could do a really fine job of inducing spatial disorientation and the airplane might or might not be in a good flight attitude. Look up and recover. With two passengers in the plane, one or both would be sitting behind him. A quick glance back, or down at a map and no visual cues outside, to me, this one screams spatial disorientation.

I remember my Dad talking about the security when NTSB brought the engine into TEXTRON where he worked.

John's mother was NOT in favor of his flying & being a pilot. Jacqueline begged John to give up his idea of flying, and he didn't actively pursue it until she died. So sad!

I see at least 4 RED FLAGS that should have caused this pilot to NOT attempt the flight!😢

JFK Jr. , like too many others who have met the same fate, did not devote the time, seriousness, and attention to the safety requirements of flying. Flying airplanes beyond a point where a safe outcome is less assured is foolish. Other, more honest sources, have said he was not a confident pilot and the results speak for themselves.

Fame and wealth had it's privileges. The US Navy dispatched it's entire east coast fleet looking for Kennedy Jr.

A pilot friend of mine was flying VFR in the same area that evening, and noted the visibility issues. He also reported a slanting cloud layer that offered a false clue as to the true horizon: this twice had him making an involuntary turn before he figured out to disregard it and consult the artificial horizon. He believes this phenomenon contributed to the crash.

Thank you, Hoover, for another excellent post!!

On that night in 1999 I was flying as Captain in a US Airways Exp Beech 1900 commuter. I made two round trips ALB-BOS. Both approaches in Boston Logan airport required an ILS to get in. I can only imagine the lack of ground lights and being over water must have been disorienting for a non-instrument rated private pilot.

He should have never flown that night without an instructor. An avoidable tragedy.

So.. which part of this was "untold"?

great debreif--i didn't hear anything untold however

Hoover I just joined your channel because I respect your knowledge and I find so much wisdom from you that I can apply to my every day life to be safer!! Thank you Hoover.

I seem to recall reading somewhere that Jackie was extremely opposed to JFK Jr.'s flight training, so he gave it up and then started again after she passed away. Apparently quite a number of Kennedys and Bouviers had already died in small plane crashes.

Over confidence is what kills a pilot too. I am so keen for Pilot Debrief to make an episode on the plane crash of one of the most successful cinema composers, James Horner - what happened to him? I was so distraught when he died because his music was beautiful and intense such as Aliens, Titanic, Avatar, Braveheart etc.

Great Video. As you had mentioned in a past video about the Nelons and the Bramlage families, though the high performance complicated plane you are flying can be flown with a single pilot, it might be a good idea if you can have a second pilot fly with you to cover some of the workload. In John Junior’s case his ego may have gotten the best of him to show the women he can handle the plane without any help.

It's an amazing fact that almost every plane accident is caused by Swiss cheese.

Alot of ICAO countries dont allow VFR at night.

I have flown to Block Island, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket many times. Fog comes in quickly on those islands. No VFR only pilot should make that trip at night. Night flying over the ocean should be considered conditions regardless of the weather. I have also flown the Cherokee 6. That is a lot of plane for a low time pilot. A lot of holes in that Swiss cheese!

Is the "significance of Lauren later in the video" comment about maybe them living if they didn't have to go to Martha's Vineyard? I thought it was going to be something else since you referenced her as mostly forgotten.

Can someone explain something to me? One cause in quite a few of these accidents is the loss of spatial orientation whether night, over water or weather related. If you cant see outside, dont look outside, use the instruments to tell you what you're doing. Admittedly I know little about flying beyond where to find my seat in economy class but years going to sea taught me if you were in limited or zero visibility you look at the radar and the compass.

JFK jr. was checked out at my home base field Santa Monica Ca. "SMO". I remember the Piper Saratoga being White with green trim, the one he was checked out in.

No plane crash has ever made me sadder than this one. As a pilot, I can understand his feelings as he knew he was losing control of his plane. As far as I am concerned, the fact that he, his wife and her sister coming late was the major cause of this crash as everything followed after this. Some issues were, he had more money than sense by getting a plane that was too much for him. He had never flown IFR alone before. It's all so very sad.

Always happens, you have money and buy a high performance aircraft with little experience. These pilots treat it like another toy and not a life or death machine. Very sad but very common.

Untold? This was one of the most told plane crash stories in history

When I got my cast off, my foot and ankle muscles were so weak I could barely move my foot. I was shocked by the de-conditioning. I needed to get strong through Physical therapy. He apparently thought his foot was fine to fly, but I wonder.

Two small plane crashes in three days Utah and North Carolina.

I've said it before, but I'm saying it again, the most dangerous period for a pilot is between 250 and 1,000 hours of flight time. You've gained confidence but often that confidence exceeds actual ability especially when conditions are not nominal. John didn't know where he was and he didn't know what his aircraft was doing. I doubt he ever knew he was in a bank. Dirty artificial horizon and never thought to look at his bank angle indicator.

After all these years how can any part of the story be untold? I don't get it.

As one mother told me shortly after the crash "I'm glad that his mother had already passed away for it would have surely killed her to have her only son die". They have a profound history of tragedy.

Not sure where you got John's flight training info, but the podcasts with direct interviews with his instructors paint not so good skills.... furthermore you missed identifying that prior to take off, his local instructor was at airport and tried, insisting to John to let him go with them as advisor given John cast AND INSTRUCTOR WASN'T CONFIDENT WITH JOHN'S NIGHT FLYING

The US Navy should never have been involved in the search and recovery, unless the government is planning to do that for everyone.

I have a dumb question from a non-pilot: All aircraft have attitude indicators, right? What makes it difficult for the inexperienced pilot to use and trust the attitude indicator? Is it being over-whelmed, over-worked? I know enough about flight to know that the inner ear is not to be trusted, and the attitude indicator is what you trust your life to. (Or maybe I'm just totally ignorant, but I'd like to learn.)

Flying with family or other guest is dangerous by nature. They talk to you, asking questions, they distract you at the moment you have to concentrate and have to do complex tasks. They reduce your span of controle and you can't let them shut up. It's a major factor in private flying accidents.

At the time of the accident, the US government immediately thru every rescue resource available to find him. They would never spend that resource to find you. Absolute shit show. …. Great video!

Bottom line: Too much plane for a novice with too much money!

I loved night flying as a VFR pilot with an instrument rating. But I have turned around at night more than a few times because of low visibility. Night and questionable weather is a recipe for disaster, especially for a low time pilot.

I’ve always wanted to see your take on this incident.

Another example of the checkbook is thicker than the logbook.

This is the Mt Everest of all plane crash stories, glad to see you tackling it, I learned from another excellent video on this crash that John's flight instructor had offered to go with him on this flight and he refused the offer. After your thorough layout of his limited experience flying this plane at night solo, refusing the instructor's offer was crucial. It was also reported that other private pilots had canceled their scheduled flights in this region that night due to the weather conditions. The real sad part of this story is that this guy had mega resources to simply charter a flight or to higher a pilot to fly his plane for him. This is a classic case of get-there-idis, and a man's ego that won't accept his own limitations.

A small comment that JFK, Jr. was not President Kennedy's only son. He had a son named Patrick who, unfortunately, died 2 days after his birth in 1963. I would not mention this, but it was a shock that really affected both him and Jackie. He's buried next to his father in Arlington.

There's a reason that a commercial pilot without a instrument rating cannot fly over 50 miles from the home airport or fly at night. As a commercial pilot you have shown skills above that of a private pilot and yet they don't want you to go over 50 miles since you are more likely to encounter weather or at night where you can have this scenario. Even scattered clouds at night can be a killer. If you can't see them you can't avoid them. Any pilot without a instrument rating or not able to bring their A game with a instrument rating should think really hard about flying cross country at night. The FAA gives us a lot of freedom as pilots and it is up to us to make sure we fly responsibly. Before I got my instrument rating I was flying from Laughlin to Palm Springs at night. I did everything I could to make sure that the ceiling was high enough that it wouldn't be a factor. I had preplanned that if anything seem weird that I would immediately turn back and land. As we flew along there was a very high stratus ceiling. As we were getting close to Palm Springs my passenger said that it was raining. I looked to the wingtip and in the strobes I could see the rain. I immediately turned off the strobes and said to her, "No, it's not!" I made sure that there could be no distractions and I kept my eyes glued to the Artificial Horizon, altimeter, turn and bank, Directional Gyro, and airspeed! Until I could see the lights of Palm Springs that instrument panel was my world!

When I took flying lessons in the US - when I lived in Casper, WY back in 1998 - we took 2 dual-lessons at night; one in the circuit and another, cross-country (to Cheyenne and back). However, here in the UK, there's a dedicated 5-hour (minimum) night rating course, which isn't a certification on its own as it's attached to the PPL. That said, it's not specifically to give you know-how to take off and land at night. It's more for, if your flight is running late and you end up landing after sunset, then at least you have the competence to fly in VMC but in low light. We also have an Instrument Rating (Restricted) - because the weather in the UK is unpredictable (i.e., rubbish) - which is s "UK-only" qualification which allows pilots to fly IMC but then after then, if you want a full IR, you can do a CBIR (Competency Base IR) to supplement the IR(R).

He stopped flying because his mother begged (coerced, however you look at it) to do so. Jackie was convinced the “curse” of the Kennedy family would claim her son if he continued his training as a pilot.

Any time an autopilot does anything unexpected, it is significant by definition and needs to be investigated.

Well told description of the event but not much in the way of new information. Basically he flew into IMC when he was not qualified.

I have heard that his mother didn't want him to fly, so he quit. After her death in 1994, John decided to take it up again.

PLEASE, Could you make Keith Green & Rich Mullins Debrief videos. 2 different crashes which took the lives of the musicians who gave us Christian music which are still beloved and played constantly today such as "Awesome God" and "Make My Life a Prayer to You", and many others for each of them.

He started with an intelligent and cogent flight (daylight conditions, tho tail end of) plan that would have worked within his capabilities and experience. It all changed as 1) he was late ... 2) his wife's sister was late 3) his wife was late... and suddenly, it turned into a VFR night flight. He didn't want to miss the wedding and it was now too late to make the wedding by car or other. SO, the pressure was tremendous...tired, all of the changes, insecure, two women passengers, tensions, late, visibility poor and worsening, over worked/loaded...such a bummer ...lots of lessons for all of us who fly...

I can imagine, once you get spatially disoriented, things can spiral out of control very quickly... even if after a few seconds you realize what's going on, it might just be too late to recover. Don't underestimate the risk of this

This happened about a week before my PPL checkride. We talked about it AD NAUSEUM, but was the most formative experience in my entire 25 year aviation career! Just foolishness- in Europe, their "Private" pilot's license is the equivalent of after we pass our instrument add-on here in the states. Just like our drivers, we pass out pilots licenses like giving away candy. PPL should include WAY more instrument training, if not the entire instrument add-on. We have way too many people with only a PPL mucking it up in the skies! As a Medevac pilot, I cannot tell you how many times I couldn't land because someone didn't know what they were doing and trying to land without obeying traffic rules, trying to land at us head on on the opposite runway, or flat out just not listening to the radio! We're always classy and talk it out on the ground in a calm manner, and the person usually realizes their mistakes. Luckily, we've never been in a "Critical" lifesaving situation when this occurs, but someday it will happen! Our PPL's are simply not skilled enough for anything other than a local day flight. Sorry if this offends some PPL's- go get your instrument rating! A good pilot never stops learning, and if you've only held a PPL, and have held it for years, then you aren't learning! Flying is a lifelong endeavor in learning- not a "I passed!" event!

I’ve crossed Lake Michigan several times when leaving the Oshkosh event, in the daytime with varying visibility but all during VFR weather and even with all that, it was impressive how quickly the horizon disappeared, I can imagine how quickly it would get bad at night and with haze.

I will purchase no product that interrupts the flow of a video presentation.

Man I still remember this when it happened but never looked up the details. Very sad Thank you for sharing your research!

I'm not a pilot...can someone explain why pilots who get disoriented to the horizon can't correct by using the altimeter to verify wings level?...Best, Steve

Flying above an inversion easy when you look up and see a blue sky, sun or stars. Even a slight moon adds a glow to the haze tops and faint horizon. Falling darkness drops the visibility in the inversion to zero for the unwary. I remember showing a student a similar scenario not long after this accident in our local area as we flew through sunset on what originally was a perfect inversion day.

I remember this. Bad weather and misdirection. 0:27

There's no debate about it! Pilots know, only the useless news sources need it to be a bigger story. JFK Jr had a BARELY passable VFR rating, meaning visual flight rules. He was not a natural, instinctive pilot. He had what we call "Doctor's Syndrome". Rich people buying their way to a pilot's license and yes, there are plenty of sketchy instructor outfits that will trade dollars for competency. Then, JFK Jr left late, as all his passengers did not arrive on time. He had a VFR flight plan filed and he literally took off at sunset. After sunset, only IFR flight plans should have been allowed to proceed. He was noted as "agitated" at the delayed take-off. The media turned that into Jr and his wife not getting along. Well, in the end, the pilot is responsible for his souls on board and the safety of his aircraft. No money can buy your way out of that fact. He got disorientated as the dusk fog accumulated and flew the plane into the water. NTSB calls it Controlled Flight Into Terrain, or CFIT.

I am not a pilot, but I know aircraft have artificial horizons so you know up from down. If that tool exists, why don't pilots use the artificial horizon when they become disoriented?

Great explanation. Sadly This scenario has repeated itself over and over and over in the aviation world.

After 25 years, I can finally explain what happened correctly. I have always explained the VFR rating in IFR conditions and the lack of checking for the weather in the morning but not before take off. Thanks to you, I can tell the whole story. I told the story as a student pilot with a VFR rating so I did have the basic knowledge, but apparently I was missing a few slices of the swiss cheese. Thanks for the summary.

Observation from an old guy: If you are famous or an attractive woman, you can not get the level of training other people would nor the training you receive will be adequate.

I always wondered what you thought of this particular mishap. Thank you covering this.

Jackie believed he was not serious enough to fly. He waited until she passed

Spacial disorientation leads to pronounced confusion. The end result of this is panic. Panic overtakes everything and all rational thought is abandoned.

As usual, your debrief was well researched, and well presented. Thanks.

I remember that his Uncle, being a US senator, was able to summon the US Navy to help find the plane.

Hoover, you do a great service. Thank you and keep up the good work.

Great channel Hoover!!

The breach of our records is not accidental. It's planned.

excellent reporting

He passed his instrument written, but what about the instrument check ride?

I still think Hillary had something to do with it.

Sorry, RIP....classic case of "get there-itis", and flying in excess of one's training. He never completed his IFR training at FlightSafety. This tragedy was still relatively fresh, and a cautionary tale, .... during my Commercial Pilot training at FlightSafety in 2001.

"Flying fatigue" is the avation equivalent of driving D.I.I.

Insufficient training and time to fly a complex, high performance aircraft in such conditions. Personally, I don't think VFR at night should be legal. Spatial disorientation is no joke. Should have been an IFR flight out of an abundance of caution. Just because you are legally in VFR conditions doesn't mean you can't fly by instruments. The fact that I do so is why I survived inadvertent flight into IMC, which is arguably what JFK Jr. experienced. Haze is a meteorological condition too.

What makes pilots ignore the Attitude Indicator? I've always wondered, not having ever "flown" a plane outside of a simulator why pilots don't use their AI? Wouldn't that have told him his wings weren't level?

I don’t think John truly understood the auto pilot.

No flight following ?

So true Hoover. My T-38 instructor pilot crashed in a C-141 in Egypt, in the local pattern (desert) at night due to spacial disorientation, as determined by the accident investigation board. An think how much more training we have regarding this compared to most civilian pilots. So sad. Thanks for the excellent background and analysis.

The laws of physics do not apply to those who've enjoyed a life of wealth and privilege........