Skeptics Theory Of
Bermuda Triangle

 

 

Like many other super popular subjects, Bermuda Triangle has also had its own share of controversy and counter arguments. There are many skeptics who believe that the triangle incidents are some imaginary stories fabricated mostly by the authors over the generations or are merely the results of incorrect research. 

 

According to them, there is nothing that really requires any explanation. They say that considering the heavy  amount of traffic (both flights and cruise ships) that pass through Bermuda Triangle and also for its large area, the number of incidents are normal compared to numbers elsewhere in the world. 

 

In fact, Bermuda Triangle area is a heavily flown and cruised channel for many passenger liners. This is the main area that connects the US east coast, Caribbean islands and Europe for cruise ships. Aircraft flying between Caribbean, South-America and Florida will also need to fly over this area. 

 

And as pointed out by the critics, the size of the area is actually quite huge. The triangle area by various definitions can be anywhere between half a million to 1.5 million square miles. You may check out the Triangle Location to understand the location and size of Bermuda Triangle. 

 

According to the critics, systematic and scientific research have shown that there is nothing abnormal about the incidents where adequate information could be gathered. After all, why should there be any mystery? It can only be that we are unable to determine the causes for some incidents because there is not enough information available for those, and when we can, they would all appear to be like any other cases of normal accidents. 

 

Here are the point of views of some of such 'critics': 

 

Lary Kusche

 

Lawrence David Kusche was a researcher from Arizona State University in US. He wrote the book "The Bermuda Triangle Mystery: Solved" in 1975. In his book, he challenged almost all the popular writers like Vincent Gaddis and Charles Berlitz who by then had swept the world by the storm of Triangle mysteries. Kusche mentioned that most of these writers had often exaggerated or twisted the stories wrongly to make them sensational to the readers. 

 

Kusche's research was mainly based on the vast information he gathered from new papers of those times when the disappearances were reported and his basic assumption was the news reports on the newspapers would be correct. He also collected information from Meteorological Department to know about the sea weather conditions during the incidents. He also interacted with many Naval officers to know about their own experiences and views. 

 

Kusche's research showed that in many cases pertinent information was not captured in the books published by the authors thus giving a wrong picture altogether. 

 

In one such example he mentioned about the five Navy planes of Flight-19 that vanished during a training mission in 1945. The 400 page report from US Navy Board mentioned nothing mysterious. According to him, the most logical theory could be that the compass of Charles Taylor (the pilot of the lead plane) had failed. The trainees' planes were not equipped with navigational instruments. They were following the leader. So, the group was disoriented and simply ran out of fuel. No mystery was involved other than the obvious mysterious force of gravity on a plane having no fuel at all. 

 

In another example he noted that a writer mentioning that a ship was lost in a calm sea while the weather report of the day showed high wind conditions and turbulent sea... so a false reporting. Yet in another example he showed that an author mentioning a ship leaving a port on the Atlantic coast disappearing after 3 days... but in reality the ship actually left from a port of the same name from Pacific Sea which was more than 3000 miles away... another wrong information. 

 

Kusche concluded: 

Many of the ships and planes that disappeared mysteriously in the Bermuda Triangle were not in the Bermuda Triangle at all. 

Number of ships and planes that went missing in the triangle area, was not disproportionate compared to other parts of the world. 

Considering that Bermuda Triangle area is frequented by tropical storms, such incidences are not unlikely, nor are they mysterious. He also went on to mention that Berlitz and other writers often made no mention about these tropical storms in their books. 

In many cases the incidences have been misreported due to sloppy research. For example a boat's disappearance had been mentioned but its eventual return (may be delayed) has not been reported. 

Some incidences had never taken place to begin with and had been falsely reported. For example, a writer wrote about a plane crash in 1937 off Daytona Beach in Florida. A check of the local newspaper showed no such incidence during that time. 

Kusche remarked that Bermuda Triangle was a "Manufactured Mystery". 

 

Lloyd's of London

 

Lloyd's of London is a major marine insurance company and used by cruise ship owners for insuring the ships before their voyage. When the UK Channel IV planned to telecast The Bermuda Triangle program in the TV, they checked with Lloyd's if there were actually large number of ships that sunk in the triangle area and if they had received large number of insurance claims. The answer was negative. 

 

US Coast Guard

 

US Coast Guard had also maintained that the number of disappearances in Bermuda Triangle has been insignificant. They too officially hold a stand that there is no mystery in the triangle area, and the ships and planes behave the same way as they do in other parts of the world. 

 

US Coast Guard also collects evidence and provides documentation against reported disappearances. In one such case of explosion and sinking of the tanker SS V.A Fogg, they produced photographs of the wreck and some bodies. But a book mentioned that no bodies were ever found except for that of the captain who was found in his cabin sitting at his desk and clutching on to his coffee mug. 

 

Earnest Taves and Barry Singer

 

These two gentlemen had been well recognized researchers. Through their research and survey, they have been able to demonstrate that mystery and paranormal materials are often quite popular and profitable. Despite inaccurate and fictitious matters, the publishers of books and producers of films continue to market them for profits. As a result there is a vast amount of material now generated on Bermuda Triangle which are mostly misleading. 

 

They have also been able to show through surveys that majority of the readers are favorably inclined towards such mysterious stories and often reacted sharply to skeptical viewpoints. 

 

Conclusion

 

So in short the critics say, the mystery of the Bermuda Triangle became a mystery because the authors took advantage of the sensational matter, created stories and added their own imagination. And the media kept publishing them because they were selling like hot cakes. The real mystery they say is... how the Bermuda Triangle became a mystery in the first place :-) 

 

Related Articles

 

 

1) Bermuda Triangle Theories 

 

2) The facts and Myths of Bermuda Triangle