Vintage Cessna Went Down In December

A shrimp boat crew off the coast of St. Augustine, FL has apparently found the wreckage of a Cessna 195 (file photo of type, below) that went down in the Atlantic Ocean last month off the Florida mainland. Two bodies, believed to be the father and daughter lost in the accident, have been recovered from the scene.

The wreckage was found in about 50 feet of water a mile off Vilano Beach, near St. Augustine, according to the Miami Herald.

As was reported December 19 by Aero-News, the aircraft with four onboard went down in the Intracoastal Waterway en route from Jacksonville to Fort Pierce. Two sixteen year-old passengers were able to escape as the airplane sank in the water, although one of those girls later died at a hospital.

Pilot Gary Tillman and his daughter, Hanna, were officially listed as missing until Monday's discovery.

High winds and rough seas had prevented search crews from locating the wreckage. The accident occurred on the same day a Chalks Ocean Airways Turbo Mallard went down after takeoff from Miami.

FMI: www.ntsb.gov