35 Miles from Shore

The Ditching and Rescue of ALM Flight 980 With a New Afterword

By: Emilio Corsetti III

Narrated by: Fred Filbrich

Winner of the 2018 Audiobook Listeners Award for Nonfiction

On May 2, 1970, a DC-9 jet with 57 passengers and a crew of six departed from New York's JFK International Airport en route to the tropical island of St. Maarten, but four hours and 34 minutes later the flight ended in the shark-infested waters of the Caribbean. It was, and remains, the only open-water ditching of a commercial jet. The subsequent rescue of survivors took nearly three hours and involved the coast guard, navy, and marines. This gripping account of that fateful day recounts what was happening inside the cabin, the cockpit, and the helicopters as the crews struggled against the weather and dwindling daylight to rescue the survivors, who had only their life vests and a lone escape chute to keep them afloat

©2008 Emilio Corsetti III (P)2016 Emilio Corsetti III

WOW!!!

Any additional comments?

This is a very good book. It's fast paced and well written. I enjoy listening and watching shows about airline crashes and disasters, not for the crash itself, but for the cause of the accident and eventual fixes for the cause. As for this accident, it happened before I was born, so this is one that I haven't heard of before. The author did a great job outlining the issues and events that lead up to the accident, the people involved in both the accident and rescue. The narrator did a great job.

I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator, or publisher.

Somebody Goofed - and It Wasn't Captain DeWitt

While the ditching was a major event in the lives of all concerned, this account is of medium interest.

Corsetti implies that the pilot was scapegoated for the accident, and he probably was; paper trails disappear for a good reason, and it seems obvious that this evaporated trail led to some uncomfortable conclusions for a couple of significant players. Peace to all the victims of this dreadful event.

A fascinating read

A fascinating read. Fast paced and well written it was very enjoyable.

The narration was well done. Great performance.

I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator, or publisher.

Terrifically Done!

35 Miles from Shore is fantastically laid out for even a non-pilot like myself can understand. As a frequent flyer, I had never really considered on the things that go into what the pilots and stewards do to protect and make our travels comfortable. The ditching of ALM Flight 980 took place before I was born and was an event that I had not known had occurred. By the writing of this book, you can tell that the author is either a pilot himself or has a passion for planes based on his descriptions and language/terminology that is used, which makes this even better. The narrator brings this story to life (bad word to use) walking the listener through the details with energy and explanation. Great book!

I received this audiobook at no-cost from Audiobookworm Promotions. The gifting of this audiobook did not affect my opinion of it.

True story

ALM Flight 980 was the first and only airplane to be open-water ditched of a commercial jet ever. On May 2, 1970 the flight was landed in the ocean just 35 miles from its diverted destination. There were 57 passengers and 6 crew on board heading for St. Maarten from New York’s JFK International Airport. The plain had been in the air 4 hours and 32 minutes when the Captain made the call to land in the ocean. It is unknown if he would of tried making that last 35 miles if the outcome would of been disastrous.

This book is so well written if takes you back in time to the airplane itself. The book is told not from the Authors point of view but from everyone involved that day. I love that there are reenactments in the book. They really make you feel like you were there. The research taken to make this book is outstanding.



I received this audiobook as part of my participation in a blog tour with Audiobookworm Promotions. The tour is being sponsored by Audiobookworm Promotions on behalf of various authors, narrators, and publishers. The gifting of this audiobook did not affect my opinion of it.