American Notes Georgia

A clear day. Light winds. Nothing should have gone wrong. Yet barely had the single-engine Cessna 208 Caravan lifted off in Jenkinsburg, Ga., last week when it stalled and plunged into a pasture from 1,000 ft., too suddenly for the pilot or any of the 16 experienced skydivers to escape. All were killed, their bodies crushed against one another in the front of the plane.

Investigators shortly discovered some startling evidence: sugar had clogged the plane's fuel filter and may have stopped the turboprop engine. The FBI, investigating the apparent sabotage, indicated that revenge might have been the motive. Agents were weighing a possible link to an incident in Tennessee last month in which a smuggler loaded with $15 million worth of stolen cocaine was killed in a parachute jump. Beyond that, there were suggestions of a disturbing recklessness. The plane's owner, David Lee Williams of Atlanta, disregarded a mechanic's warning that the fuel was contaminated. He flew the craft to the West Wind Sport Parachute Center, where it turned into a coffin for himself and the chutists.