man: if you were to have a son, would you encourage a political career for him? kennedy: oh, definitely. i would hope he would grow up to be if not a politician in the sense of devoting all of his time, i would hope that whatever he did do, that he would have some sense of responsibility for what went on. couric: when you hear him talk about that, do you ever feel like your choice not to pursue a career in public service might have disappointed him? -no. i can't imagine that he would have said anything different being asked that question under those circumstances. you know, he'd always said that he thought everyone should run for office. and, listen, there's a lot of time in life to do all sorts of things. ♪ ♪ hey, everyone. welcome to "how it really happened." i'm hill harper. july 17, 1999, we woke up to shocking news. john f. kennedy jr., his wife carolyn, and her sister lauren were missing, last seen aboard a private plane headed for martha's vineyard with john at the controls. tonight, our examination into the crash. did the plane malfunction? was it sabotaged? or was john himself somehow responsible? let's find out what really happened. -how you doing todayay? all rig? -good. how are you? man: how do you think your mother would have felt about this? about this outside? she would have been amused. kagan: here's the latest now on the search for john f. kennedy jr., his wife, carolyn bessette-kennedy and his sister-in-law, lauren bessette. the first thing we knew was the plane was missing, and ththat was reaeally all wew. tuchmaman: he h had just gogotten his p pe pilot's lilicense a yeyear earr and, by all accounts, just loved to fly. public l life and politics isis both seririous and fuf. man: the u.s. coast guard is conducting a search off of the coast of new york extending now up to martha's vineyard. they were going to leave from new jersey and make a pit stop at marartha's vineneyard anand then go o on to hyanannit for the fafamily wedding. the plane is reported as overdue and missing. it's unusual for a private plane to go missing that long. the plane e was expectcted to ae in thehe hyannis p port area or martha's vineyard area around midnight of last night. it did not show up. i'm honored to be here in the white house. man: at philbin beach in massachusetts, luggage and what the coast guard believes to be parts of the plane have washed ashore. we just did not believe that the worst could have happened, anand it was m many days before t that was coconfirme, and fofor each and every y one of thohose da, i i refused toto believe t the wawas gone untntil it was s off. king: totonight, thehe victis of the j jfk jr. plalane crah have been found and recovered. investigators are trying to figure out what went wrong. andersen: it was so devastating because, you know, john was always there, and there's a reason for that, because we never really had anybody as close to royalty, asas close to o an americacan p, in a s sense, asas john f. k kennedy jr.. man: j john! wowoman: can w we get at lookoking here, , pl? cuomo: he understood keenly how he was perceived and what he meant to people, and it never bittered him, whwhich is, lilike, alalmost imposossible to b bel. hehe would intntroduce himimf toto everyone e as john kenne. "hi. my name is john kennedy," eveven though h the entirere d knknew who he e was. he nevever had thahat presumptn ofof, "well, y you know who i " one of the things that i think people didn't appreciate john was how funny he was. there is one other wedding dress in the world exactly like my wife carolyn's, and i believe it's owned by dennis rodman. [ laughter ] bradley: he was great with voices. he did a dead-on schwarzenegger imitation. berman: there wasn't a big difference in the way john lived or the way any of us lived. i mean, he would go to his apartment, and, you know, he'd be over in the kitchen with a -- yoyou know, sosome cry blendeder making m margarita. woman: how comeme you didn'n't spea? 'cause carolyn did all the work, so she should do all the speaking. -you're such a good speaker. -[ chuckles ] he just seemed like, you know, as normal a guy as youou could evever be fofor being a a kennedy. man: can you answer one question, john? mr. kennedy? you can't just answer one question, if you're happy? he didn't have a mean bone in his body. he just t didn't. what? i won't. [ chuckles ] and he was a very attractive guy with very attractive qualities. i have a pretty normal life, surprisingly. i mean, you know, every now and then sort of strange things happen. when they found the wreckage of the plane and the bodies, i i mean, it - -- we d didn't go h home after rt bebecause the e story was s sl in full swswing. there e was still l a lot of m y about what happened, and so we stayed far long time while the ntsb and investigators were t trying to p piece togetr whatat had gone e so terriblbly. just a few months before the flight, john purchased a new plane. i ran into jfk jr. at a wedding where we had a long and very detailed conversation about aviation. i said, "john, lookit. the airplane you're thinking of getting, this piper saratoga, it's a very high-performance e plane but it is easy to kind of, you know, lose control of if youou're not rereally on i. my advdvice to youou would be to buy a an a-36, which is a very stable instrument platform. well, that would be my advice," which he didn't take. the type of plane jfk jr. acquired was a piper saratoga. it's a 300-plus horsepower engine. john's previous airplane, a cessna 182, was an older airplane. it was a little bit less complex as the piper saratoga. john kennedy had been flying for i ththink apprproximately y 18 months, had someththing over 300 flight hours, but this was a new aircraft that he had purchased and he did not have as much experience in this aircraft as he had in the previous aircraft he had owned. in aviation, most accidents are not a result of a single catastrophic event. it's usually a chain of multiple e small evenents. i have a theory which i call the falling-domino theory. soso if you cocould imaginine ds stackeked in a linine, each domino would represent a very small event that's happening or r a proble. lonnnnstrom: once you m make one mistake, that leads to another mistake, which leads to another mistake, which leads to another mistake. we c call it falalling bebehind the c curve. bailey: in john's case, there was less than a dozen events that would represent each domino or a problem. once one of these dominos start to fall, they're taking everything with it, and the end result would be catastrophe. and that's what happened here. carolyn called me from the emergency room. she was upset, and she was not someone who would cry and get upset all the time, so i knew it was bad. you want to be able to provide your child with the tools or resources they need. with reliable internet at home, through the internet essentials program, the world opened up. fellas, fellas. that's how my son was able to find the hidden genius project. we wanted to give y'all the necessary skills to compete with the future. kevin's now part of this next generation of young people who feel they can thrive. ♪ ♪ this magazine has always been an exploration of political issues, and it's a way to engage the political process. in the weeks leading up to this flight that he took, john had a lot of stress in his life. terenzio: john had a meeting with the publisher of the magazine, and they said that they were not going to continue their partnership with him, anand he was s starting to look k for funding elsewher. if somebody else would have picked up george i think we would have moved, but it was uncertain. terenzioio: it w was a tough time for john, but i think especially stressful for john was anthony's illness. anthony radziwill was john's cousin, and they were like brothers. they were closer than any -- probably any family member of john's is -- was to him. i thinink john wasas having a very hard time dealing with the fact that anthony was probably going to die soon. radziwill: and the doctors basically said there's really nothing more that they can do and suggested just going somewhere as peaceful anand quiet anand enjoyable, and we dececided then n to spd the summmmer at the vineyard in john and carolyn's house, and that's where we were. memorial day weekend, john had his new toy. i calleded it a flyingng lawnmo. it k kind of lookeked like a a sit-down lawawnmower withth a parachuhute. man: you want to knockck out a coupuple 360s for r me? -sure. -g-good. we'll bring it down. andersen: he brings it in just over the tops of the trees and in for a a very, vevery rough lananding. and, unfortunately, he broke his ankle. whatat happened d to yourur foot, here? you're in a cast this evening. yeah, i'm in a cast. i broke my ankle. it's the first weekend of the summer, and i'm laid up for a couple weeks. terenzio: john was so active, and especially in the summer, doing things outdoors. you knowow, it suckeked for h. radziwilill: carolynyn callede from thehe emergencycy room. she was upset, and she was not someone who would cry and get upset all the time, so i k knew it wasas bad, and she was very worried about hihim. it was just going to bee a lot toto handle on top o of everythihing else that we wewere dealingng with that summemer. amanpour: i spent the last weekend of his life with him at his estate in martha's vineyard. and when we left, i know john was going on to canada to try to drum up some more money and advertising and support for george. and he said, "next week, i'm going toto my cousinin's weg in hyayannis port,t, rory, but why dodon't you alall comep the fofollowing weweek?" so we saidid, "okay," " and, "g"great, lovevely. bye."" and we allll waved, and i stilill rememberer him wag and walkining across t to his pe on t the tarmac.c. my p partner, mimichael bermr, and i starteted george to try and bring a fresh new style to the way we cover politics. terenzio: the week leading up to the accident, there was a lot going on. he was working a lot of hours, and he was not home a lot, and carolyn, i think, was feeling a little fatigued by all of the pressures, and she really wanted some downtime with john. and i think it was frustrating to her that she didn't see a light at the end of the tunnel in terms of, "when are we ever just going to be a married couple who can hang out and spend time together?" and she wasn't going to go to the wedding. i said, "look, this is going to look really bad for john if you don't show up at the wedding. people t talk enoughgh about u guys a and about w what's goinn and what's not going on with you, and i just think you have to go. his whole family's going to be there, and i think you have to go." and she said okay. [ voice breaking ] i don't know for sure if she wouldn't have g gone. i likeke to think k she would have anynyway, but i i'll -- i'i'll never f feel good a at hahaving had t that converersa. man:n: how isis everythining? everything is wonderful. [ chuckles ] andersen: the plan was that john was going to fly with carolyn to his cousin rory's wedding in hyannis port, and they w were going g to take carolyn's sister lauren and drop her off in martha's vineyard. lonnstrom: an instructor offered to go with him, and john turned him down, and he said, "no, i want to do this alone." quest:t: until nowow, most of fs flying, cecertainly at night, had been with an instructor. if the aircraft had become unstable, if the horizon had been lost, if they were in challenging circumstances, the instructor would've takenen over or would have guided john in the flyining of the a aircr. they'd'd be alive today. bailey: jfk jr. made that trip countless times on friday night and then returned on sunday night. there e was no reaeason to be concererned about t him flflying up ththat night.. quest:t: howevever, he's seseen boardig the plplane with crutches, and it immediately raises the question, "was he inin a fit state to manipulate the -- the rudderer controlss on thehe plane?" king: that still exists, that togetherness in the kennedys? -yeah. -it doesn't go away, right? no, it's one of the great lucky things about being in my family, which i am -- which has stayed. radziwill: that friday, they were going to a wedding in hyannis, and carolyn's sister lauren had decided she was going to spend the weekend in the vineyard, and they were going to drop her off on the way to hyannis. but they never made it. andersen: it was a hot friday. john was working in his office in times square, the officeces of geororge. that last day was, in many ways, an ordinary summer friday. i had lunch with john, and it was a nice lunch, although you could tell that john was a little bit tired. and we walked back to the office, and d we were tatalking abououts for the weweekend, and john told me that he was going to be flying to hyannis port, and... i was a little concerned. and i made a joke. i said to john -- i said, "john, just don't crash, okay? because we need you." [ chuckles ] i wish i could take it back. i wishsh that i cocould have sd inststead, "john,n, i wish mamaybe yoyou should j just let somemebody driveve you up this timime. it's beeeen a long w week. i knowow you're a a little tir. i know youour foot hururts. just be e careful, o okay?" terenzio: the plan was that john was going to meet lauren, carolyn's sister, in the lobby of the buililding, and then carolyn was going to meet them at the airport. he got out of the office later than he wanted to. there was traffic. arnot: i remember it was the worst traffic i had seen in 20 years. i mean, it was unbelievably bad. he had expected to leave in daylight and, of course, ended up leaving in twilight. they actuaually arriveved an h hour later than they y had plannened at thehe airport.. man: wiwith us right now is a pilot who was also flying in his plane to martha's vineyard last night, coincidentally happened to see john f. kennedy get on his plane and watch his plane take off. this is kyle bailey. he got to the airport probably around 8:00-ish, 8:10 p.m. very inconspicuous -- white t-shirt, casual clothing. did hehe have crututches? 'c'cause he had an injury. i thought i saw one crutch, and i saw him limping. quest: he's seen boarding the plane on the night, the friday night, with crutches, and it immediately raises the question, "was he inin a fit statate to m manipulate e the -- the rudder controls on the plane?" that turns the plane left and turns the plane right. we don't know, is the short answer, of what effect, if a any, ththis had on n what happepe. bailey: he actually did do a run-up on the airplane, which is he was checking the various components of the airplane, making sure the engine was functioning properly. it struck me as a little bit odd. what went through my mind was maybe possibly he w was checkining a prprevious proroblem, perhaps, that he had on the airplane. my plans that friday were to fly to martha's vineyard in my aircraft. i decided to scrub my plans that night because of the reduced visibility conditions. jfk jr. did check the weather that evening, and the report was roughly nine miles of visibility. nonow, the actctual weathehr was s nowhere nenear that. we know frfrom other p pilots ththat were flflying that t same and ththat same aiair space thte hahaze and thehe mist was s ver. arnot: the basic discrepancy was this. there were two different systems. there was an automatic system which misgauged d the weathehr anand led forerecasters to say n nine miles s visibili. in aviation terms, the weather forecast that jfk jr. got was just plain wrong, anand it's thahat forecastt that a accounted f for his dea. [ camera shutter clicks ] radziwill: carolyn called me from the plane right before they were taking off, and i think it was probably a little bit after 8:00. i don't remember anything really important from that conversation. i didndn't certaininly think it wouldld be the last time i would d speak to m my frien. i reremember at the end shshe s, you know, "i love you." and i -- for some reason, i dididn't say, "i love you," back, and that a always stucuck with, and d she said,, "i'll l call you w when i lan" and d then that t was the lat i ever heard from her or anyone. it wasn't until 8:38 that they took off. camemerota: the e ntsb repor, which was issued later, tells us a little bit about what happened. the towewer controller issuess a takekeoff clearance. john acknowledges the takeoff clearance and then, it says, "a few seconds later, the tower controller asked the pilot if h he was headading totowards teteterboro, to which he applied 'no, sir. actually, i'm heading a little north of it eastbound." "the tower controller then instructed the pilot to make a right downwind departure. this was acknowledged by the pilot at 2038:56. there was no record of any further communications between the pilot and air traffic control." so we thought that that was the last time thatat anyone hahad spoken t to, but t it turns o out that m might not b be true. bailey: all the way at the end of the ntsb accident report, we have two witness statements. soso that evenening, i ovoverheard anan aircraft cal, whicich i thoughght was calllg rerepublic opeperations and ended up being martha's vineyard's operations. i had not heard about these before. these apappear likelely to be the e very last t transmississ ofof jfk jr. this is going to be your life -- editing, publishing, magazines, writing? is that it? well, i mean, starting a magazine is a huge enterprise, and it's enormously exciting. this is what we're doing, you know, and -- for the time being, or you want to stay with it? well, i would hate to say i'm going to do anything till i'm 70, but i'm going to be doing this for the foreseeable future. hey, everyone. welcome back to "how it really happened." friday evening, july 16th, john kennedy jr. boarded his piper saratoga along with his passengers in the back, his wife, carolyn, and her sister, lauren. they intended to make a short flight to martha's vineyard. we now know extraordinary details about what happened during their one hour and three minutes in the air. check it out. ♪ ♪ andersen: at 8:38, he took off with carolyn and lauren aboard the plane and headed towards martha's vineyard. hehe takes offff, and he h hs babasically nonortheast. andersen: we learned later that john's plane came uncomfortably close to an american airlines passenger jet. as he passes over white plains, the pilot of that jet is warned by air traffic controllers that this small aircraft is near him and that he should pay attention. they didn't come close enough to crash, but they came clclose enoughh to scacare everybobody. the e pilot of the amererican airlines says to the controller at laguardia, "that plane's not talking to anybody?" and the laguardia guy says, "no, he's not talking to anybody." and he never did. you can imagine if he had this kind of trouble navigagating eaearly in thehe flight, he mightht have trououble lalater in thehe flight. then he continued along the connecticut coastline and then the rhode island coastline, and then rather than continuing along the coast, where he would have been able to see the groundnd and be ororien, he wenent directlyly out over the oceaean to marththa's viney. bebetween poinint judith and martha's vineyard, you have this black, inky air space over open water where there would have been no clues at all. there was no land to see. there were no lights. there was nothing. and at that point, he's made a fatal error. at the end of the national transportation safety board report, wewe have thesese two o very intereresting and odd witness statements. camerota: these witness reports are extraordinary because they reveal something that none of us knew before, anand that is s that ththere may hahave been pepee who spspoke to johohn rig