JFK Jr.'s Body Was Found Just Hours Before Search for His Remains Was Nearly Called Off, Mission Leader Reveals
JFK Jr.'s body was discovered hours before officials considered calling off the massive search, the mission leader revealed.
Oct. 24 2026, Updated 2:43 p.m. ET
John F. Kennedy Jr.'s body was discovered on the floor of the Atlantic Ocean just hours before officials considered ending the massive search for him, his wife, Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, and her sister, Lauren Bessette.
RadarOnline.com can reveal that the Coast Guard commander who led the operation shared how a last-minute discovery may have prevented John's remains from disappearing into the ocean forever.
Search Team Was Preparing to Call It Quits
A Coast Guard commander revealed how JFK Jr.'s remains were found 116 feet below the Atlantic Ocean in 1999.
After John's plane disappeared on July 16, 1999, authorities launched an extensive search spanning approximately 100 nautical miles between Cape Cod and Long Island.
By the fourth day, however, the operation had produced few results, and officials were discussing how to bring the mission to an end.
Coast Guard Capt. W. Russell "Russ" Webster, who served as incident commander, recalled how the search took a dramatic turn when sophisticated sonar equipment finally detected John's body approximately 116 feet below the surface.
John was found around seven miles off Martha's Vineyard's southwestern coast, roughly 10 feet from the wreckage containing the bodies of Carolyn, 33, and Lauren, 34.
"John F. Kennedy Jr. was outside the aircraft, and there was a consideration that had another day passed, that in the 1.6-knot current, that he might've been swept away," Russell said in an interview.
His wife, maritime historian Theresa Mitchell Webster, added, "They might have never found him had another day gone by."
Divers Recovered All Three Bodies
Divers recovered the bodies of JFK Jr., Carolyn Bessette Kennedy and her sister Lauren Bessette five days after the fatal crash.
The search team used side-scanning sonar and a video camera to locate the wreckage of the Saratoga II, which John had been flying when it went down.
The following morning, five days after the crash, divers recovered all three bodies.
"The NTSB [National Transportation Safety Board] forensic anthropologist told us that the girls were not facially recognizable," Theresa said, explaining that Carolyn and Lauren were identified by their different hair colors.
John F. Kennedy Jr. Had Not Finished Instrument Training
JFK Jr. had completed just 12 of 25 instrument-training modules.
Russell, who spent 26 years in the Coast Guard, explained that John was flying under visual flight rules, relying on landmarks rather than instruments to navigate.
Although John had completed the New Jersey-to-Martha's Vineyard journey approximately 35 times, he had not finished his instrument training, completing just 12 of 25 modules toward his certified flight instructor certification.
"On July 1st, 15 days before he flew, one of his certified flight instructors said, 'John, you're not ready yet for this. You need more experience with instruments,'" Russell recalled.
The NTSB determined that the plane descended at approximately 4,700 feet per minute.
"Water is only marginally less than cement at that speed [almost 60 mph] and coming from that altitude," Russell shared.
Search For John F. Kennedy Jr. Reportedly Cost Millions
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The Coast Guard commander estimated the search for the three bodies cost $5 million.
Russell estimated the operation, which involved thousands of personnel from at least 28 local, state, and federal agencies, cost up to $5 million.
Crews also raced to recover the victims, aircraft, and belongings before human and animal scavengers reached them.
The Websters spent 15 years researching and writing The Last Flight: The Untold Story of the Search for JFK Jr. and the Race Against the Atlantic, conducting nearly 45 interviews.
