Re: [PSUBS-MAILIST] nekton fatality

["Paul Kreemer" <paulkreemer@gmail.com>]

I had this description of the Nekton accident:

The Nekton Alpha and 
Nekton Beta
with a surface ship were raising a sunken powerboat near Catalina
Island, California in 1970.  They attached a line to an existing
bowline on the boat and moved about 100 yards off to watch the lift. 
When the powerboat was lifted almost to the surface the bowline broke
and the boat glided shallowly and rapidly towards the Nekton Beta,
with a steel skeg striking the conning tower of the submersible.  The
impact shattered an observation port and dazed the pilot Rich Slater. 
The Beta sank to the bottom and filled with water up to a
level where the internal pressure matched the ocean pressure and in a
semi-concious state Slater managed to swim to the surface.  He was
luckily picked up and rushed to shore.  His copilot Larry Headlee was
found dead on the bottom.  Slater survived with ruptured eardrums, cuts
and a concussion.


(details from the Busby book)