Sault Daily Star Article - Oct. 31, 1968
Here is the text of the newspaper article from the Sault Daily Star, October 31, 1968
Parts of plane found may be any of 7 lost
by Richard Plaunt
Fifteen winters of snows have drifted over the wreckage of a U.S. jet interceptor somewhere in the quiet, piney reches of Algoma forests.
Northern Ontario bushlands have closely kept the secret whereabouts of that F-89 Scorpion and at least seven other private and military aircraft lost without trace since that November 1953.
Since then, only twice has the rugged Algoma woodland yielded to man's stumblings.
Once giving up its knowledge of the Wawa-bound Butler brothers' fate five years after they and their light aircraft crashed in dense fog east of Highway 17 North at mile 31. And a second time this week, with the discovery by two prospectors, of military aircraft parts in the Cozens Cove area. Officials have yet to learn its identity.
It's not the F-89 – The forest still broods over that wreckage.
Against a turbulent background of high winds and heavy snows the ill-fated interceptor was last sighted on radar about 100 miles north of Kinross (Kincheloe) Air Base Nov. 24, 1953.
With it the Scorpion took two young air force lieutenants, pilot, Lieut. Felix Monica and 2nd Lieut. Robert R. Wilson.
Radar technicians back home at Kinross tracked the missing aircraft until it merged on the scopes with a Canadian "UFO" during a routine practice session at about 7:53 p.m. Radar and radio contact at that point ceased abruptly.
Later the crew aboard the Canadian Air Corce C-47 target reported they had seen nothing of the U.S. interceptor.
According to Sault Star files, the UFO "alert" had been previously arranged with the RCAF.
November 28 the search by U.S. and Canadian forces aircraft had been called off, but reopened Nov. 30 following a statement by Algoma Central Railway workers that they had heard a crash about 100 miles north of here shortly after Kinross lost contact.
But no clue has ever turned up of the Scorpion, or its two crew members.
January 15, 1954, the Sautlt Star writes RCAF officials are mystified at their failure to locate a missing T-33 jet trainer en route to North Bay downed in heavy weather.
Search planes and helicopters fought snow and cold to search for missing pilot officer Charles Ness.
Air force officials felt the jet had gone down within thirty miles of North Bay, but never found a trace.
In February 1959, master sergeant Frank Wyman disappeared in his light aircraft over Lake Huron. Searchers found no oil slick and no debris.
In March 1969, a USAF T-33 trainer crashed 18 miles south of Kincheloe. Only one man was found. The other apparently escaped the aircraft successfully but was never rescued.
Still no clues have turned up in the disappearance of Wisconsin lawyer Thomas J. ??derson, lost between Sault Ste. Marie and White River Dec. 30, 1961.
Fifty RCAF personnel were involved in the ?? day search and ???? USAF planes from Kincheloe.
In 1966, two other civilian planes went down but search once again proved fruitless – do they too belong to the forest?
… likely jet fighter
Aircraft parts found near Cozens Cove by two prospectors may prove the wreckage from a jet fighter several years ago over Lake Superior.
Maj. J. H. Parker of the USAF Kincheloe Air Base, positively identified the stabilizer found early this week as belonging to a high performance military, jet-aircraft.
The tail section washed up from the lake, probably brought by currents to the point where the two prospectors found it near shore.
No paint was left on the section but flecks of yellow primer paint were apparent. An unexplainable maroon color could also be seen which could have been a second colour changed by the weather, or by heat.
Earlier there was some conjecture it could have been wreckage from an F-89 Scorpion interceptor downed in 1953 but this later appeared unlikely.
