It’s History: Ocean City’s Flying Saucer Rescue on the Beach

OCEAN CITY LIFEGUARDS who were on the patrol during the 1960s remember Chris Montagna’s fleet of boats – The Sweetheart, The Flying Pony, The Wild Goose, The Billy C., The Flying Cloud – but the first one they think of is the Flying Saucer. Every afternoon they would watch the 75-foot rebuilt PT-boat speed by just beyond the breakers.

Flying Saucer ads boasted: “The 125-passenger speedboat offers local vacationists the world’s fastest, regularly scheduled motorboat ride in world’s fastest speedboat.”
From 1953 to 1972 a ride in the Flying Saucer was a must do for visitors who enjoyed mixing sightseeing with thrills and chills. But on Wednesday, August 5, 1964, the afternoon ride on the huge craft was a little too thrilling and chilling for the 85 passengers when the Flying Saucer hit a submerged object while doing 60-miles-per-hour.

When Chris Montagna realized the boat was taking on water, he turned it towards the beach and ran aground.
Lifeguards from 30th and 32nd Street stands were quickly on the scene assessing the situation. Within two minutes Captain George T. Lafferty and 10 more lifeguards were there, and they formed a human chain and carried the passengers ashore through the breakers.

No one was injured, and by the time everyone was on the beach the police had a city bus waiting to take them back to Chris’ Restaurant.
Back in the ocean, lifeguards pushed the Flying Saucer out to a Coast Guard boat, which towed it to a boatyard on the bay.

By Fred Miller