FAINT HOPE OE ANY MORE SURVIVORES.

Chronicle (Levin), 19 August 1947, Page 5

FAINT HOPE OE ANY MORE SURVIVORES.

Received Monday, 7.0 p.m. NEW YORK, August 17. Occupation Headquarters at Tokio announced that there were five passengers and eight members of the crevv Aboard the aircraft. A corrected lisl from the navy shows that onlj^ five bodies were picked up, leaving five, in cluding Mr. George Ateheson, missing. The three survivors aboard the destrover Rowan were reported by radio as saying: "It is doubtful if anyone else got out of the plane alive. " Although the ofifieiai passenger list is not yet announced, the names of the passengers announced in Tokio whon the aircraft took off were, in addition to Mr. Ateheson, Colonel Carl (or A.) Russell, an Assistant Cliief of Btaff of Allied Headquarters, Colonel David Larr, Colonel I-Iarvey Huglin (who was one of the three survivors, and navv •aptain Randolph Boyer, all of the joint strategic. plan and operations group of General MacArthur 's staff. Airmen report five-foot waves and iqually ovcrcast skies. They say there s faint hope that any more survivor.-. will be found. Vice-Admiral John Hall 14th Naval District Commandant, said the air search would be resumed again in the morning and "as iong as there was a chance'of lipding one man dead or alive our ships will eontinue the search. ' ' Colonel Russell, who is missing, was one of the prineipal planners on General MacArthur 's staff for the projected in vasion of Japan in 1945. Mr. Ateheson was regarded in Japan as one of General MacArthur 's ablost adrninistrators and closest" advisers. ii was generally accepted that, after Ihe peaee treaty, he would be Nnited States' representative on the Japan Control Commission and probably chairman. Since 1920 when he was appointed student interpreter for the United States' State Department at Peking, his interests alinost exclusively were conlined to the Far East. He was ap pointed political adviser to General MacArthur in September 1945 and re eeived the rank of ambassador in May 194(5 at the youthful age of fifty. Sergeant Holiand is reported to have been serious.ly injured. Captain Thomas, Rider, who piloted the plane, suffered an arm fracture and other injufies but is not in a serious condition. Colonel Huglin was cut about the face and hands and his back was wrenched.

FACED INEVITABLE QUIETLY. Mr. Ateheson sat quietly as their plane plunged into the sea in the inky blackness 65 miles west of Ohau, said Colonel Harvey Huglin, one of the three survivors in a radio iqtervjew from tne rescue destroyer Rowan. Colonel Huglin said Mr. Ateheson who was seated in the central cabin three feet from an eseape hatch, when the plane hit the water was not seen to leave the wrecked plane. The passengers had about 30 minutes' warning before the c-rash. Every attempt possible was made to make a safe landing. Colonel Huglin did not remember how he escaped or how long the plane remaineo afloat before it broke up and sanii carrying with it valuable papers believed to have been in Mr. Ateheson 's possession, but because there was a 20knot wind and rough seas, he thougfit it was only a short time. Asked if anyone was supposed to assist Mr. Ateheson, Colonel Huglin re-

plied: "The entire crew of the Fortress was eharged w'ith assisting him in the event of trouble." Asked whether Mr Ateheson 's papers were distributed among the passengers to save any of them, Mr. Huglin said: "No. So far as I know none of Mr. Ateheson 's papers were saved." Colonel Huglin said the survivors were very close to eaeh other during the night when they were floating in the water and were able to call to eaeh other. He did not know how many rafts were in the water after the crash. He added that the plane was a general headquarters ship reserved for assignment to important' personages or im.poi'tant Allied or American missions. 6