EXCLUSIVE: JFK Jr. Crash Witness Breaks 27-Year Silence on Fatal Plane Tragedy
A participant in the search for JFK Jr. and Carolyn Bessette's bodies is telling his story.
Nov. 13 2026, Published 7:08 p.m. ET
Chilling new details about the July 16, 1999, plane crash that killed John F. Kennedy Jr., his wife, Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy, and her sister, Lauren Bessette, have emerged in a new book penned by the man who led the desperate search against the clock for the bodies, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Coast Guard Capt. W. Russell “Russ” Webster was the incident commander for search operations to locate their remains in the dark, frigid waters off Martha's Vineyard. For the first time, he is publicly revealing details of the grisly discoveries he made.
JFK Jr.'s Body Was Located Outside of the Aircraft's Wreckage
The wreckage of JFK Jr.'s plane was found at the bottom of the ocean 116 feet from the surface.
"John F. Kennedy Jr. was outside the aircraft," Webster said about where the late political scion's body was found about 10 feet from his plane's wreckage on the ocean floor, 116 feet below the surface of the Atlantic Ocean.
Kennedy was piloting his Piper Saratoga II with his wife, Carolyn, and her sister, Lauren, aboard when the aircraft plunged into the Atlantic. The trio had been headed to Martha's Vineyard to drop off Lauren before Kennedy and Carolyn continued to his family's compound in Hyannis Port on Cape Cod for a family wedding.
The horrific crash sparked a massive search-and-rescue operation, with crews deploying sophisticated sonar equipment in a desperate race to locate the missing plane and its passengers.
After five grueling days, searchers finally discovered the mangled wreckage on the ocean floor, roughly seven miles off the coast of Martha's Vineyard.
JFK Jr.'s Body Was 'Mashed Together'
John F. Kennedy's remains were found on the ocean floor 10 feet from his plane's wreckage.
Webster revealed why the race against Mother Nature was so important.
“There was a consideration that had another day passed, that in the 1.6-knot current, he might’ve been swept away,” the co-author of The Last Flight: The Untold Story of the Search for JFK Jr. and the Race Against the Atlantic shared about how they were able to recover the body in a nick of time.
The book's co-author, Eric Anderson, who served as the commanding officer of the Navy salvage ship, the USS Grasp, described JFK Jr's body as being "mashed together."
Some reports claimed Kennedy's legs had been severed in the deadly impact. However, the official autopsy painted an even more gruesome picture, revealing that his legs had been violently forced into his chest cavity, left attached to his body by little more than tendons and muscle.
Carolyn Bessette's Body Was Identified by Her Hair Color
Carolyn Bessette's body was so unrecognizable that she was ID'd by her hair color.
While Kennedy's remains were found outside the wreckage of the small plane, Carolyn and Lauren died while still strapped into their seats inside the aircraft.
However, the siblings' remains were rendered completely unrecognizable by the impact of the crash, which caused their seat backs to fold forward atop their bodies. Their bodies were said to be so ravaged that they were only identified by their hair colors.
Webster's wife, maritime historian Theresa Mitchell Webster, also contributed to his book and revealed that the National Transportation Safety Board's forensic anthropologist "told us that the girls were not facially recognizable."
People Involved in JFK Jr. Crash Investigation Finally Telling Their Stories
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The authors of the book were able to get interviews with people involved in the investigation.
The book was a passion project for the Websters, who spent a painstaking 15 years writing and researching it and conducting nearly 45 interviews.
“One of the reasons we were able to finally write this book was the fact that many of the people who had said they did not want to participate earlier had retired from federal service and became more talkative, more reflective,” the captain said. "They knew how important it was to tell this story."
