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The Last Flight: The Untold Story of the Search for JFK Jr. and the Race Against the Atlantic
Hardcover
Aviation & Nautical20th Century United States HistoryNaval History
Publisher Price: $29.99
ISBN13: 9781400262236
Publisher: Harper Select
Published: Oct 13 2026
Pages: 256
Language: English
One of Town & Country's Best Books of the Fall
On a hazy July night in 1999, John F. Kennedy Jr., his wife Carolyn, and her sister Lauren vanished over the waters off Martha's Vineyard--triggering a national vigil and one of the most ambitious search operations in American history. For days, the world watched and waited.
But the full story of what happened after the crash has never been told--until now.
In The Last Flight, Captain W. Russell Russ Webster, the Coast Guard commander who led the search, and historian Theresa Mitchell Webster, take readers inside the high-stakes, emotionally charged mission to locate the missing aircraft and recover its passengers. Drawing on firsthand accounts, official reports, and newly uncovered insights, this gripping narrative reveals the unprecedented coordination between the Coast Guard, Navy, and NOAA in a race against time, technology, and the unforgiving sea.
Beyond the headlines lies a powerful human story--of exhausted rescuers, clashing agencies, political pressure, and quiet acts of heroism. From sonar operators and Navy divers to commanders navigating impossible decisions, each played a role in what became the largest and most expensive search ever for private citizens in a small airplane.
Blending narrative history with investigative depth, The Last Flight also explores unanswered questions surrounding the crash, offering a compelling new perspective on one of America's most haunting tragedies.
At once a pulse-pounding account and a deeply moving tribute, this is the definitive story of the mission that forever changed the Coast Guard--and a nation still captivated by the legacy of the Kennedy family.
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