HOLLAND, MI (WHTC-AM/FM) – One of the mysteries beneath the inland seas is the subject of a three-hour cable television program tonight.
The Discovery Channel’s “Expedition Unknown” will spotlight the search for Northwest Flight 2501 that crashed into Lake Michigan on June 24th, 1950, nearly halfway between New York City and Seattle, killing all 58 persons aboard. The remains of the DC-4 propliner have not been found nearly 70 years later, which piqued the interest of show host Josh Gates, who contacted the Michigan Shipwreck Research Association, which has been searching for the remains since Craig Rich wrote a story about Flight 2501 16 years ago. “Josh had one of his production people call (Valerie Van Heest, who is among the searchers) and say, ‘You know, I think we’d like to do an episode about your search for the airliner,’” Rich said during a Tuesday interview on “WHTC Morning News.” “It’s right up his alley, a mystery that has not yet been solved, although we hope it will be at some point.”
Gates and his producers spent a week last summer in the South Haven area filming the MRSA’s search efforts, and Expedition Unknown airs tonight at 8 PM. Documenting the latest on the search for Flight 2501 will be a part of the MRSA annual fundraising program at the Knickerbocker Theatre in Holland on March 21st.