Chris' Seafood Restaurant and Fish Market, at the base of the Ninth Street bridge in Ocean City, NJ, was a popular eatery from 1932 - 1972. The restaurant served fish caught daily by its own fleet, and the market packed and shipped fish to all parts of the country. Some of Chris' boats were used to take vacationers on sightseeing rides and fishing trips. Gone with the Wind, Wild Goose, Flying Cloud, and Flying Pony were some of his boats, but the most exciting boat was a surplus navy World War II PT boat - Fyling Saucer. This boat had a 75 foot wooden hull with three engines, each of which burned 100 gallons of high octane airplane fuel an hour. It held 125 passingers and was once called the world's fastest regularly scheduled motorboat ride. Because it was so fast, only the owner, Chris Montagna, operated the boat.
Below is a picture of the FLYING SAUCER and an unused ticket for a ride on this famous boat. This ticket has never been used.
Flying Saucer - Explosion, Friday, August 28, 1970. Flying Saucer - Explosion, Friday, August 28, 1970
Flying Saucer - pictures from the early years of the flying saucer. Flying Saucer Pictures
Flying Saucer video clips (3.51 minutes) showing Chris' Flying Saucer, Flying Pony and the Sweetheart (sailboat), from the early 1960's courtesy of Ken Struthers. Edited by Bruce Balderson. Chris' Flying Saucer - video clips (Downloading may take a minute, wait)