Marine and Ports officials raced to the East End early on Wednesday morning after Harbour Radio received word a commercial flight carrying 111 people might ditch in the Atlantic Ocean.

The pilot boats St. David and St. George were deployed off the end of the Airport runway, three Marine Police boats and the Bermuda Fire Service were on standby, and a US Coast Guard cutter, a US Navy ship, and three merchant ships including the container ship Oleander were diverted to the Island, Marine and Ports director Mr. Ron Ross told The Royal Gazette yesterday.

And the pilot of the United Airlines jetliner, which was bound for Sao Paulo, Brazil from New York when one of its two engines failed, asked the US Naval Air Station in Bermuda to send up a helicopter, a Base spokesman confirmed last night.

The New York Times reported yesterday that Bermuda's Airport advised that a rescue helicopter and a P-3 Orion plane on the ground in Bermuda could not be sent for hours, and the ships were diverted instead.

But last night, Chief Petty Officer John Kenney said that while the P-3 was grounded with an engine problem, a US Navy helicopter was ready to fly from Bermuda. "We went to an alert status,'' got the rescue helicopter out of the hangar, and called out rescue swimmers, he said.

"But it didn't make a lot of sense, with a large aircraft coming into Bermuda, to send a very slow-moving helicopter out to meet it. It was more the logistics of the situation than not being willing or able to respond.'' The plane landed safely shortly after 1 a.m., but only after the pilot dumped fuel to reduce its weight.

Marine and Ports was advised early on Wednesday morning of "a possible ditching'' of the airplane near Bermuda, Mr. Ross said. About a dozen Marine and Ports officials took part in what was "quite a big operation.'' "The crews really turned out in extremely fast time,'' he said. But not long after the pilot boats and other craft were quickly deployed, the emergency on Flight 987 was downgraded, he said.

The passengers and crew stayed at Grotto Bay Hotel overnight, then left for Brazil on Wednesday by way of New York and Miami.The 767 remained in Bermuda for engine repairs.

Because of the engine failure, the plane lost cabin pressure and dropped to about half its normal altitude of 30,000 feet while still about 300 miles from Bermuda, the New York Times said.

The newspaper quoted air traffic controllers in New York as saying they lost radio contact with the flight for stretches of eight to ten minutes or more, because of its low altitude and their antiquated radio equipment. Had the plane ditched, they said they would not have known where to find it.

But yesterday, Federal Aviation Administration officials said the flight was never in danger.

A multi-layered communication system kept the pilot in contact at all times with either air traffic controllers or the airlines' own dispatchers, said Mr.

John Walker, the FAA's air traffic manager for the eastern region.

"At no time was the flight in any danger,'' he said. "There was never a time when communication was lost.''