Mizpah Loses her Nose

[Sedalia Dave]

 

 

 

Read the story here.

[Abilene Slim SASS 81783]

And there was Miss Julie who made it back to England. Miraculously, only the bombardier was lost. I can’t find the account, but the writer said the howling and shrieking of the torn metal could heard from miles ahead of its landing. 
 

[Sedalia Dave]

51 minutes ago, Abilene Slim SASS 81783 said:

And there was Miss Julie who made it back to England. Miraculously, only the bombardier was lost. I can’t find the account, but the writer said the howling and shrieking of the torn metal could heard from miles ahead of its landing. 
 

IT WAS A FORTRESS COMING HOME They Could Hear It Before They Could See it

[watab kid]

they were remarkable planes , they flew what they shouldnt , full of holes , missing engines , pieces of the tail or wings , but a lot of men were lost in them as well , i dont have any records of the european theater , my father was in the pacific but i have read of these fine airplanes , 

[Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984]

So, planes like this got towed aside and used for spare parts?

[Wallaby Jack, SASS #44062]

58 minutes ago, Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 said:

So, planes like this got towed aside and used for spare parts?

 

 

                                       nah, .... get out the buffing pad and put her back into service .....   😉

[Chantry]

Some aircraft were famous for their ability to take battle damage and still come home.  The B-17 was one, some others include the P-47 Thunderbolt, the PBY Catalina and the Fairey Swordfish.

[Cold Lake Kid, SASS # 51474]

That picture reminded me of my Father's adventure in his Mitchel (B-25) Photo Survey aircraft.

After the end of WWII it was decided to map the rest of Canada, since much of what was there was unknown: i.e. lakes, rivers, other features.

They would fly, photographing strips 30 miles wide from the US/Canada border to the Arctic Circle.

Once, gaining altitude while flying out of Fort Churchill, Dad was tending his three cameras in the nose when the pilot started screaming Gabe! Get out of the nose.

Dad didn't hesitate and tried to crawl out of the nose, through the tunnel under the pilots compartment, only to receive : "A great kick in the ass! I looked about and saw feathers, blood and guts all over!" 

A Bald Eagle had taken exception to the aircraft and had headed to it, coming through the Perspex nose, knocking the three cameras off their mounts and making a general mess.

They did an emergency landing at Fort Churchill, patched the nose as best they could and flew back to Ottawa to have the aircraft repaired and have the National Research Council technicians rebuild and recalibrate the cameras and mounts.

Mother was happy because it meant Dad was home while the aircraft and the Trimetrogon camera system were repaired. 

Edited March 8 by Cold Lake Kid, SASS # 51474

[watab kid]

yes - those that made it back to the field were used for parts , my father used back a lot of parts to keep the planes on saipan flying , a lot could not be saved tho by the time they ere back on the ground 

[Trailrider #896]

With absolutely no disrespect to the Marines and their men who died in WWII, the Eighth Air Force lost more men in the ETO, than the Marines did in the whole war! Part of this was due to the misguided policy of daylight "High Altitude Precision Bombing", supposed to concentrate on Nazi industry and military targets, and to keep "collateral damage" (civilian casualties) to a minimum, whereas the British concentrated on "area bombing" at night. 

 

When HAPB didn't work in the Pacific, Curtis LeMay went to low-level area bombing, with much more effective results and lower casualties for his airmen.

 

B-24 crews claimed their bird could carry more bombs over longer ranges, the B-17 crews replied, "Yeah, but the -17 will get you home more often!"

[Cowtown Scout, SASS #53540 L]

Dad was a co-pilot on B-24s with the 15th AF in Italy.  His plane was shot down during a mission 29 Dec 1944, 1 crew member was KIA and all but my dad were eventually captured and put in POW camps.  He evaded capture with the help of the Italian Underground until Italy was liberated early May 1945 and was repatronated 14 May 1945.

Edited March 7 by Cowtown Scout, SASS #53540 L

[Forty Rod SASS 3935]

You know, the C-47 wasn't any slouch, either.  I have know a baker's dozen Goony Bird "jockies" who survived crashes of their planes.  

One recently died at 103 years of age.  He knew Patton and flew Pathfinders behind Normandy Beach the night before D-Day, and survived a couple of crashes.  

 

He also flew a C-47 back and was told he couldn't fly that plane again because it had over 300 bullet holes in it and seven or eight chunks missing from AA fire.