New Resource for Underwater
Rescue Training Provided in Ohio

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 25, 2006

Bowling Green (OH) – Ohio will have a new area for training in underwater rescue when plans to sink a 54-foot jet are carried out at Portage Quarry this weekend.

The Hamburger Flugzeugbau GmbH manufactured HANSA jet will be at the heart of a training program for local rescue agencies including the Toledo Water Rescue team. Last in service with Grand Aire, with headquarters at Toledo (OH) Express airport, the HANSA jet was transported from the airport to Portage Quarry on August 24, 2006. Plans are to place the jet in 50 feet of water with the tail assembly starting at the 30-foot level.

“We have welcomed area rescue teams to hold training at the quarry,” said Portage Quarry owner Jeff Rice. “This will raise the bar in training and provide an artificial reef for fish and recreational divers.”

Rice said he plans to close the Eastern half of the quarry from 2 to 3 p.m. on Saturday, September 30, while the plane is lowered into the water. Diving will be allowed on the West wall only again on Sunday, October 1, while the plane is positioned into its final resting spot South of Mike’s Rock near the center of the quarry.

Between 1967 and 1974, 54 of these jets were manufactured by the German company. The plane was unique in that forward swept wing was seen previously only on the World War II Junkers JU 287 bomber. The HFB 320 was configured to carry 8-12 passengers for business or corporate transport. There was also a cargo only version manufactured.

Tail number N171GA flew as a private jet charter service out of Toledo. This aircraft, serial number 1037, was manufactured in 1969 and is the only surviving flyable example in the United States.

Portage Quarry, located south of Bowling Green, is a popular SCUBA site known for water clarity with full amenities for divers at all levels. The recreational facility is also known for its sand beaches and three sand volleyball courts. When the jet is placed into service the quarry will be closed to recreational divers and swimmers.

Videos of the weekend legends August 11 -13 discussions are now available on the Portage Quarry web site. Dr. Sam Miller and Sam Lecocq presented a history of SCUBA diving and Alec Peirce of Scuba 2000 discussed the legendary Sea Hunt television series. Divers from as far west as California and from as far south as Louisiana attended the event this year. Canada and Japan was also represented by divers. A second annual Legends event is planned for August 10 -12 in 2007.

Dr. Miller has been diving since 1943. He has appeared on the cover and was the first guest editor of Skin Diver Magazine. He has authored numerous articles for Skin Diver, Scuba Pro Diving, Historical Diver, Southwest Diver, Discover Diving, Los Angeles Underwater News, NAUI News and currently writes a diving column for a California news paper, the first and only regularly scheduled diving column to appear in any US news paper.

Lecocq had worked with other dive legends including famed Jacques Cousteau to develop self contained underwater breathing apparatus (SCUBA) equipment. In 1958 Lecocq founded a company based on early Healthways models called Sportsways for the manufacture and distribution of recreational diving equipment. One of his first products was a revolutionary single-hose regulator called the “Water Lung”. He has over 35 patents on dive regulators, most of which are still in use today.

Peirce attributes his interest in the sport of SCUBA directly to his life-long hero, Lloyd Bridges, and to the TV show Sea Hunt. He operates the largest scuba school in Canada and introduces thousands of divers to the exciting sport of SCUBA diving each year. Scuba 2000 is recognized as the finest scuba training facility in Canada and one of the best in North America.

Hamburger Flugzeugbau GmbH

Model HFB 320 HANSA

ABOUT PORTAGE QUARRY: Located just one mile south of Bowling Green in Northwest Ohio, the Portage Quarry Recreation Club is a complete recreation facility that caters to the Scuba diver enthusiast. The Scuba diver will experience some of the best recreational diving in Ohio with clear water visibility, wreck diving, and plenty of fish. The Scuba dive shop includes tank rentals, nitrox fills, equipment, and PADI instruction. There are three professional beach volleyball courts along with recreational swimming from a sand beach. In the summer the Portage Quarry Recreation Club is home to two music traditions, a music BlowOut the first weekend of July and the annual . Also on the schedule is a Divers Alert Network (DAN) Barbeque and the Advanced Aquatics Steak Roast. Trademarks are the rights of the perspective companies.

Click here for more information on this jet as it heads to its final resting place, 16 feet off Mike's Rock in 45 feet of water.

Click here for more information on this jet as similar Hansa HFB 320s were manufactured in Germany.