Incident
At approximately 1216 hours, the pilot of a Cessna 402 (registration N69400) overheard a radio transmission from aircraft N1306H, in which the pilot stated he was 100 miles south of Bimini and had 15 minutes of fuel remaining. Shortly thereafter, the captain of American Airlines Flight 603 heard the pilot of N1306H announce that he was "going in," followed immediately by the activation of an emergency locator transmitter (ELT). Another pilot then reported to Miami Center that he observed a brown life raft with two persons aboard.
Search and Recovery
The U.S. Coast Guard conducted a search of the area but failed to locate any wreckage or the occupants. The search was suspended on February 10, 1982. On February 15, 1982, a life raft washed ashore near Palm Beach, Florida, containing the body of the pilot of N1306H. The other occupant was not found, and no further evidence of the aircraft was recovered.
Aftermath
The incident remains unresolved regarding the fate of the second person and the location of the aircraft. No probable cause has been determined by the investigation.