Lt. Charles Carroll Taylor, USNR
Flight 19 Instructor, FT-28
Charles C. Taylor was born October 25, 1917 in Nueces County, Texas. He was a United States Naval Officer. Taylor served in the United States Naval Reserve during World War II. He graduated from NAS Corpus Christi, Texas, February 1942, and became a flight instructor October of that year. In 1943, he flew with Scouting Squadron 62 and later that year, he became a torpedo plane pilot with Squadron 7. From April to December 1944, he was aboard the USS Hancock as part of Task Force 38. Also part of Acorn 36 at NAS Miami Opa Locka, and Squadron 79. He was recently transferred from NAS Miami to NAS Fort Lauderdale (November 21, 1945), where he served as a flight instructor. He had 2,509.3 flight hours, 616 in the Avenger torpedo bombers. He was the commanding officer of Flight 19. On the fateful day of 5 December 1945 at NAS Fort Lauderdale, Taylor (along with 13 other crewmen), was assigned to a training squadron of 5 Avenger aircraft that would be known as Flight 19. The squadron was to perform a routine navigation exercise, and mock bombing run over the Hen and Chickens shoals in the Bahamas, and then return to the NAS Fort Lauderdale. Flight 19 completed their assigned exercise and on their way back about 90 minutes after takeoff, the squadron commander Lt. Charles C. Taylor reported that he was lost. By this time, the weather and sea conditions got worse, as the evening wore on. Over the next three hours Lt. Taylor mistakenly led Flight 19 far out to sea, where the planes apparently ran out of fuel and crashed. Lt. Charles Taylor was initially found "guilty of mental aberration." Later on, his mother, Katherine Taylor, was successful in exonerating him of wrong-doing by filing her own investigation. Lt. Charles Taylor was exonerated in 1947, by the Board for Correction of Naval Records, in regard for "responsibility for loss of lives and naval aircraft." The planes never returned to NAS Fort Lauderdale. Neither did a PBM Mariner rescue seaplane with 13 crewmen aboard that was dispatched to search for their lost colleagues. In total, 6 aircraft and 27 men disappeared that afternoon. A massive search was organized, and nothing was found. Their disappearance launched one of the largest air and sea searches in history, and began the legend of the Bermuda Triangle. To this date, Flight 19 remains one of the great aviation mysteries. Instructor Lt. Charles Carroll Taylor, USNR was the lead pilot and instructor of Flight 19. His aircraft was a TBM-3D with BuNo 23307. His assigned Gunner was George Francis Devlin, AOM3c, USNR. His Radioman was Walter Reed Parpart, Jr. ARM3c, USNR. Lt. Charles Carroll Taylor was 28 years old. |
Lt. Taylor "Mental Aberration" & "Exoneration" letters
and Navy letter declaring the "Case Closed"
and Navy letter declaring the "Case Closed"
Katherine Taylor & the Parpart family correspondence regarding their thoughts about Flight 19
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Flight 19 Project Research by Matthew J. Bloom,
Curated by Benjamin Walter-Range & Minerva Bloom
Curated by Benjamin Walter-Range & Minerva Bloom
- Flight 19 Complete Naval Report: Get the naval investigation from original microfilm, published in book form (proceeds go to Museum).
- Support Project Mariner: An Expedition of the NAS Fort Lauderdale Museum.
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