A Strato-Freight Airliner Crashes San Juan, Puerto Rico June 6, 1949

The Strato-Freight airliner that crashed off the coast of Puerto Rico in June 1949 was a converted army transport C-46. It had once been used to carry fully armed troops. The airline company, based in Connecticut, had added room in the plane to seat more passengers. Four minutes after takeoff the plane crashed off the island's northern coast, a result of a failure of its right engine. My e-book looks at the story of an airline stewardess from Binghamtom, New York who became a heroine by rescuing passengers. Judith Hale clung to a rock for five hours after hitting the water in pitch darkness.