It is unknown if John F. Kennedy, Jr., knew that his plane was crashing on July 16, 1999. He sent out no distress calls, and his plane did not have a black box, which would have recorded the cockpit audio and other flight information. According to the NTSB investigation, about an hour into the flight Kennedy became spatially disoriented. Because he was not instrument rated, Kennedy relied on visual clues, which were nonexistent as he flew over open water in darkness and haze. In such circumstances, the inner ear can provide misleading sensations of motion. Radar data indicates that Kennedy began a tightening spiral dive (known as a “graveyard spiral”), descending at a rate of more than 4,700 feet (1,432 meters) per minute, with the plane eventually in a nose-down position. The dive lasted about 17 seconds, during which Kennedy would have likely been confused, with the aircraft instruments not matching his physical sensations. According to aviation experts, all three occupants—Kennedy, Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, and Lauren Bessette—may have felt increasing G-force pressure and the growing noise of airflow over the plane. However, these sensations would not necessarily have been immediately alarming. If any of them had become aware of the gravity of the situation, it was likely only in the final seconds before the plane crashed into the ocean.
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