During the opening pan shot of Dirk's stateroom, the article on the wall with the pic of the Titanic is a subtle reference to the Dirk Pitt adventure "Raise the Titanic", which was made into a movie in 1980, 6 years before the real Titanic was found.

When the boys land at the bottom of the hill under the truck bed, there is a wide shot. If you look closely in front of them, there is an object in the sand. This is the skeleton of Kitty Mannock who was in the plane that crashed. In a deleted scene they notice and examine the skeleton. The producers didn't take it out of the shot.

It's ironic at the end that Admiral Sandecker states that he is done with politics, because later in the Cussler books, Sandecker is appointed Vice President of the United States.