Artist Inspiration:
On December 29, 1972, Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 en route from New York, NY to Miami, FL crashed into the Florida Everglades killing 101 aboard.

The Flight 401 Tribute Group requested my services in 2009 to assist them in their fund raising efforts. Having met many of those that miraculously survived Flight 401, some of which are pictured below, I can’t begin to tell you how honored I am to be involved in such an effort. We will be updating this site continuously to bring you up-to-date information on the Group’s progress to building a memorial dedicated to those whose lives were lost or touched by EAL 401. Also below please find some of the images of my design for the Eastern Air Lines model created as a tribute to the victims of Flight 401 which were provided to the Group in time for their 38th Anniversary on December 29, 2010.

The plane itself is a tribute to all the passengers of Eastern flight 401, both fatalities and survivors. There are 101 flowers painted on this aircraft to symbolize the lives lost in this fatal crash. The very first flower which is on the nose tip of the aircraft is in honor of Mr. Robert (Bud) Marquis who became a friend to the survivors, the hero on the night and into the following morning of the crash. From that point on, all the flowers (passengers) are connected by a green vine that symbolizes the fate shared by all the passengers on this flight that evening. You will notice that there are seven flowers painted one wing and five on the other. This represents the 75 surviving passengers whose lives were miraculously spared and able to walk away from this horrific accident. Initially there were 77, but unfortunately 2 died shortly thereafter leaving the number at 75. The rings you see on the underbelly center of the aircraft represent the day 100 air boats were lead by Robert (Bud) Marquis to the crash site for memorial services on December 29, 2007.  On this day the air boats formed a circle around the crash site with the survivors themselves in the center as they honored the lives lost. They dropped flowers into the waters which as we know create rings that extend in an outward motion from its center point like a drop of water in a still pond. The two shades of blues surrounding all of this represents the evening of December 29, 1972, the night of this terrible incident and next morning as more people came to help save the remaining victims and to retrieve the casualties from the site. It also represents the sky above and the waters below just moments before the crash.

First meeting with the Flight 401 Tribute Group

Flight 401 Tribute Group Blog Page

Special Note: 
The purchase of this one-of-a-kind piece will be contingent upon the piece completing its itineration of exhibits prior to it being turned over to its new owner.  For details inquire for the latest schedule.