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Re: Florida B-17s!

Mon Jan 21, 2013 9:01 pm

Just for grins I was looking at the Daytona News Journal circa August and September 1943 and 1944 to see if any B-17's went down in my hometown area during that timeframe. I know NAS Deland and NAS Daytona were up and running. I didn't see anything. I did see a few crashes of other types of aircraft, one from NAS Deland into Lake Woodruff on Aug 24th 1943.

For you sleuths....on August 24th (coincidently), 1944 out of NAS Daytona, an ENS James M. Safford went missing on a training mission. I went thru Sept 14th of the newspaper and couldn't find anything other than a local club put up a $50 reward for info on him or his plane. Anyone want to take a stab at it? Google didn't show anything when typing in the name.
Last edited by CoastieJohn on Mon Jan 21, 2013 9:56 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Re: Florida B-17s!

Mon Jan 21, 2013 9:09 pm

Wildchild wrote:I don't believe so, but I might be wrong.

If you are a subscriber you can. If not you need to use a host like Facebook or photobucket.

Re: Florida B-17s!

Mon Jan 21, 2013 9:22 pm

I got it! Thanks tremendously to Mark Allen M for his assistance in "walking" me through it! :drink3:

Re: Florida B-17s!

Mon Jan 21, 2013 9:29 pm

Wildchild wrote:"Numerous aircraft mishaps occurred during the World War II years, but detailed data is not readily available. In late 1970, wreckage of an FM-1 Wildcat was located by hunters near the south shore of nearby Lake Jessup. Subsequent contact with and investigation by USN authorities indicated that the pilot had safely bailed out of the aircraft during this circa 1944 mishap."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NAS_Sanfor ... _accidents

Serial # should be 38-498, listed as a YFM-1A


This plane is still there, on private property...owned by people who are very adverse to having anybody poking around looking for it (Translation: How would you like to be shot?). A couple of photos showed up a year or so ago in a forum...can't remember which one. A friend of mine has seen it, but only because he is friends with one of the old families with money in the area that knew the owners. (This plane was the subject of much dreaming by my friend and I in high school in the 70's. I am glad he kept looking and finally answered the question to if it was still there). The owners have been approached before by people thinking a almost pristine aircraft, waiting for a set of tires and a wax job is there to be had. What is there is a couple of large peices of broken corrosion that is quickly rotting away as it has for decades.

Re: Florida B-17s!

Mon Jan 21, 2013 10:21 pm

all of these unfound warbirds in florida make me want to buy 1 big assed metal detector!! geek :f4u:

Re: Florida B-17s!

Mon Jan 21, 2013 10:52 pm

RandolphB wrote:
Wildchild wrote:"Numerous aircraft mishaps occurred during the World War II years, but detailed data is not readily available. In late 1970, wreckage of an FM-1 Wildcat was located by hunters near the south shore of nearby Lake Jessup. Subsequent contact with and investigation by USN authorities indicated that the pilot had safely bailed out of the aircraft during this circa 1944 mishap."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NAS_Sanfor ... _accidents

Serial # should be 38-498, listed as a YFM-1A


This plane is still there, on private property...owned by people who are very adverse to having anybody poking around looking for it (Translation: How would you like to be shot?). A couple of photos showed up a year or so ago in a forum...can't remember which one. A friend of mine has seen it, but only because he is friends with one of the old families with money in the area that knew the owners. (This plane was the subject of much dreaming by my friend and I in high school in the 70's. I am glad he kept looking and finally answered the question to if it was still there). The owners have been approached before by people thinking a almost pristine aircraft, waiting for a set of tires and a wax job is there to be had. What is there is a couple of large peices of broken corrosion that is quickly rotting away as it has for decades.


If it's rotting away, why do they care? couldn't they at least place it indoor's??

Re: Florida B-17s!

Mon Jan 21, 2013 11:14 pm

Wildchild wrote:
RandolphB wrote:
Wildchild wrote:"Numerous aircraft mishaps occurred during the World War II years, but detailed data is not readily available. In late 1970, wreckage of an FM-1 Wildcat was located by hunters near the south shore of nearby Lake Jessup. Subsequent contact with and investigation by USN authorities indicated that the pilot had safely bailed out of the aircraft during this circa 1944 mishap."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NAS_Sanfor ... _accidents

Serial # should be 38-498, listed as a YFM-1A


This plane is still there, on private property...owned by people who are very adverse to having anybody poking around looking for it (Translation: How would you like to be shot?). A couple of photos showed up a year or so ago in a forum...can't remember which one. A friend of mine has seen it, but only because he is friends with one of the old families with money in the area that knew the owners. (This plane was the subject of much dreaming by my friend and I in high school in the 70's. I am glad he kept looking and finally answered the question to if it was still there). The owners have been approached before by people thinking a almost pristine aircraft, waiting for a set of tires and a wax job is there to be had. What is there is a couple of large peices of broken corrosion that is quickly rotting away as it has for decades.


If it's rotting away, why do they care? couldn't they at least place it indoor's??


I suspect they have had problems with people on their land. I don't know exactly who it is, but have a good idea the general area. Not everybody likes or even cares about aviation. That said, if they don't care, it's not going to be worth the effort for them to move a few piles of corroded metal for any reason. Years ago, when talking around town, we found people who were involved with crashes on their properties that were told in no uncertain terms from the military to "Leave it alone and don't even touch it"....in regards to things that ended up on their property. These folks are probably long time residents of the area and may have been told that also.

I know a jet crashed in the 60's at some point around here. A number of people remember it. In 1978 or so I spoke to the guy who was police chief/ sheriff/ state marshall and pretty much every other title for LE at the time and he guarded the site and worked wth the military to get the wreckage out of the area.

Re: Florida B-17s!

Tue Jan 22, 2013 12:42 am

Well if someone showed them how the Air Force views wrecks now I bet they will change their mind...

Anyways, If you have a relatively shallow lake near your house that you think miay contain a airplane, here's something you could do:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNos9g1RHps

BTW, I'm still working on my list of Army planes that crashed in Florida and are probably still where they are. So far i'm up to 10 P-40's, 1 definate B-25 that ditched in the gulf, and 1 B-24 that crash landed in the middle of a swamp due to "personal injury"... (?)

Re: Florida B-17s!

Tue Jan 22, 2013 2:07 am

Wildchild wrote:If it's rotting away, why do they care? couldn't they at least place it indoor's??
Lots of people like the idea of something junk on their property because, I guess, it makes a cool story. How many antique cars and railroad equipment sit rusting on private land because the owers want it that way and have no intention to ever sell? That happens a lot.
I know for sure of a fighter plane in a lake. I've stood on what's left of it. I dated the owner's oldest daughter for a time, many years back and I'd never have known about it otherwise. Hardly anyone knows it even exists, probably to this day (I lost track of them after she dumped me but I suspect they still own the area as it was a huge chunk of land). They liked the fact is was there. They'd never dream of having someone haul it out, because then it wouldn't be theirs anymore. So many people would rather something turn into a pile of rust than let anyone else have it and do something with it. Just watch any episode of American Pickers and you'll see the same mindset in each episode.

Re: Florida B-17s!

Tue Jan 22, 2013 8:22 am

Back in the day I did a lot of airboating and there were some wrecks scattered here and there. Of the several I saw not one was recognizable. Most of these were high speed crashes and what is left the tanic acid in the water has pretty much taken care of. I can think of just a handfull of Florida recoveries.

1. The Kingfisher recovered by J.W.
2. The Corsair fuselage recovered by Harry Doan.
3. P-51 from the lake in Bartow.
4. The aforementioned P-40 that was on ebay a couple of times over the last several years, recovered by Hal T.
5. Razorback P-47 from Lake Kerr. Very rough, since destroyed in hanger fire iirc.

I'm sure there are a few others, maybe someone else can complete the list.

Re: Florida B-17s!

Tue Jan 22, 2013 12:30 pm

The January B-25 News section of the Aero Vintage's website details a crash of a B-25 in the 60's in South Florida. The news item claims the B-25 is possibly still there... Happy Hunting!
http://www.aerovintage.com/b25news.htm
Last edited by Warbirdnerd on Tue Jan 22, 2013 2:53 pm, edited 2 times in total.

Re: Florida B-17s!

Tue Jan 22, 2013 1:16 pm

p51 wrote:
Wildchild wrote:If it's rotting away, why do they care? couldn't they at least place it indoor's??
Lots of people like the idea of something junk on their property because, I guess, it makes a cool story. How many antique cars and railroad equipment sit rusting on private land because the owers want it that way and have no intention to ever sell? That happens a lot.
I know for sure of a fighter plane in a lake. I've stood on what's left of it. I dated the owner's oldest daughter for a time, many years back and I'd never have known about it otherwise. Hardly anyone knows it even exists, probably to this day (I lost track of them after she dumped me but I suspect they still own the area as it was a huge chunk of land). They liked the fact is was there. They'd never dream of having someone haul it out, because then it wouldn't be theirs anymore. So many people would rather something turn into a pile of rust than let anyone else have it and do something with it. Just watch any episode of American Pickers and you'll see the same mindset in each episode.


I'm sorry, but thats the most selfish thing to do ever... soon they will end up with a pile of rust and then think that maybe they should have sold it.

I don't know how much this would work, but i'm into automobile barn find's myself. When I buy cars from previous owners, or attempt to, I tell them that they will still be able to see the car whenever they want to. I have even offered to store one of their cars inside a air-conditioned garage because it was parked outside and he didnt want to sell it.

While I understand that this is hard to do because the airplane tends to travel alot, it might work.

Re: Florida B-17s!

Tue Jan 22, 2013 1:32 pm

Ah! the strange and wonderful things some folks do with their stuff ... :wink:

viewtopic.php?f=3&t=48396

Re: Florida B-17s!

Tue Jan 22, 2013 2:47 pm

Serial # should be 38-498, listed as a YFM-1A


Airacuda? Baugher has this for 38-498:
498 forcelanded due to engine failure at Orlando AAB, FL Oct 23, 1941. To CL-26 Feb 1942


And this for 38-497:
497 crashed and burned Jan 22, 1942.

Per Wiki:
The most serious accident occurred to YFM-1A (Model 8) 38-497, on a flight from Chanute Field, Illinois, and Keesler Field, Mississippi,

but no mention of where it came down.

Re: Florida B-17s!

Wed Jan 23, 2013 1:05 am

I have a house in Lake Placid about 20 min to the south of Sebring and have been wanting to go wreck hunting around there for years. I will say there is an intact dehaviland Dove in lake Istapoka to the south of the Sebring airport I've seen it and it can be seen in google earth. Any wrecks other wrecks around me?
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