Case file · Haunting
Ghosts of Eastern Flight 401
Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 crashed into the Everglades on 29 December 1972, killing 101; crews later said they saw the dead captain and flight engineer aboard other Eastern jets fitted with salvaged parts.
1972 CE · 25.86, -80.60 · status: claim
The account
John G. Fuller collected the stories in 'The Ghost of Flight 401' (1976), later a TV film. The crash itself, caused by a distracted crew and a disengaged autopilot, changed airline cockpit training.
The sceptical view
Eastern denied the sightings, and no named witness came forward on record.