This is the place where the majority of the warbird (aircraft that have survived military service) discussions will take place. Specialized forums may be added in the new future
Post a reply

The book "Saint-Exupery: The Final Secret"

Sun Mar 16, 2008 12:13 pm

PARIS (Reuters) - Horst Rippert, an 88-year old former pilot of Germany's Luftwaffe, has said in a forthcoming book that he may have killed French writer and war pilot Antoine de Saint-Exupery in 1944.

Saint-Exupery, who achieved worldwide fame with his fairy-tale-like book "The Little Prince," died in mysterious circumstances when his plane came down near Marseilles while on a reconnaissance mission. His body has never been found.

Extracts of the book "Saint-Exupery: The Final Secret" were published in Le Figaro magazine over the weekend, and Le Figaro quoted Rippert as saying: "It's me, I shot down Saint-Exupery."

However, Rippert also said in the article that he could not be certain of the identity of the French pilot whose plane he shot down. He also hoped it was not the French author as he was a big fan of Saint-Exupery's works.

"I didn't see the pilot and even so, it would have been impossible for me to know that it was Saint-Exupery. I have hoped ever since that it wasn't him," he said.

Saint-Exupery was a pioneering pilot of his era. Following the Nazi German occupation of France in 1940, he moved to New York but then came back and joined the Free French air force. He was 44 years old when he died.

(Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta)

Sun Mar 16, 2008 2:41 pm

Here's another thread about it.

http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/showthread.php?t=12335

Regards,

Sun Mar 16, 2008 4:59 pm

that would just suck.

Sun Mar 16, 2008 5:45 pm

Good info. I have heard few years ago news when was found first info about final fate of this pilot.

found

Sun Mar 16, 2008 9:43 pm

A few years back, it seems I recall a story about a P-38 found underwater in the Med and they thought it was his since he was on a recon mission when lost. Am I right about this?

Mon Mar 17, 2008 12:42 am

It was...
Post a reply