Mythbusters

[systemofadown1162]

Last night on Mythbusters (if you dont already know, is a show on the Discovery Channel in which they test urban myths to see if the myth is true or not) they had a myth about the ball turret gunner on a B-17 falling out at 22,000' and survived. Supposidly he fell on a French train station where a bomb had just exploded and the shockwave broke his fall.

Anyone ever hear of this story?
I have it Tivoed but havent watched it yet.

[RickH]

They busted the myth. The dummy they used would have been killed by the fall or the shrapnel from the 1000 lb explosion.

[Former Member]

So was the myth plausable or busted???

I remember somebody else about a year ago listing quirky events of aircrew members falling thousands of feet from stricken bombers and surviving. A couple examples were of tail gunners gliding back to earth in their severed B-17 tail section and at least one was of a ball turret gunner that fell to earth in his ball turret and somehow survived (although severely injured). Anybody else remember this thread???

John

[mrhenniger]

I read about a Lancaster tail gunner choosing to bail out rather than burn to death in his burning bomber which included his burning parachute. He kicked out around 20,000 feet and passed out on the way down. He came to in deep show and bushes after falling through pine bows. He was missing his boots, and was scratched up badly, but nothing was broken. Knowning he was in a bad situation without his boots he started blowing on his whistle and was picked up by German authorities shortly after.

I also heard about a B-24 crew man decending from his bomber and impacting on the side of a snowy mountain and slide of quite a distance before coming to a stop.

You can't believe everything your read, but these cases are still plausible. Terminal velocity, unconcious limp bodies, cushioned impact sites... survival is possible.

Mike

[Obergrafeter]

Didn't the Russians (might have been Germans) have a parachute regiment that jumped without chutes into snowbanks? Read that somwhere long ago or maybe somebody slipped crack into my coffee this morning.

[Jack Cook]

Out here in Oregon on the coast at Cape Lookout in 1943 a B-17F flew into the sides of the cliffs and exploded with the bombardier surviving. I guess arriving at the crash first isn't always bad!

[Forgotten Field]

This is a true story, and there was a book or short story I read about it when I was in high school. The story details as posted are essentially correct. They were confirmed by the Germans extensively investigating the details, examining the crash and finding his parachute still present at the crash site. He was not believed after the war and had to track down the German soldier's to prove his story, which he eventually did.

[Tulio]

There is a book I have somewhere, documenting the story of someone in a similar "falling" situation; the title if I remember correctly, is "The Man who fell from the Sky".

I'll try to find it and if it has an ISBN (doubtful, I recall it being an old book, probably around 1920s or 30s) I'll post the data here.

Saludos,


Tulio

[bluethunder28]

Story here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Magee

Also interesting site: http://www.greenharbor.com/fffolder/wreckage.html

[tom d. friedman]

the all time bail out survival record with a failed parachute in the deep blue sky belongs to a ww 2 russian airman. i don't remember the specific details, but it is, or was documented in the guiness book of world records, unless this lucky achievement has been surpassed!!!

[Jack Cook]

June 7, 1943 Marine Corsair ace Jim Percy was shot down over the Solomans and bailed out but his chute failed. I believe he fell around 7000'. Water has the consistancy of concrete and Jim received devistating injuries. He was in the water for quite a while with sharks bumping against but was rescued in the nick of time. In the same dogfight Sam Logan was in his chute when a Zero cut his foot off and P-40 pilot Mat Matson survived with burns and scrapnel wounds after ramming the Zero he shot down and was circled by a swamp of Zeros while floating down in his chute. All were rescued by the same PT boat.

[DonL]

Speaking of B-17 ball turret gunner myths, I work with someone who claims he knows an 8th air force ground crew man who swears that many ball turret gunners were crushed to death when they could not get out of damaged turrets in wheels up landings. I have read a lot about B-17s and I have never read of this happening, other than an old TwiLight Zone movie. Any thoughts on this, am I reading the wrong stuff, it must have happened.

[tom d. friedman]

it's true, & an unimaginable ending to 1's life!!

[PatM]

DonL,
I believe one incident that has been documented is contained in Andy Rooney's book "My War." He was a war correspondant at the time and witnessed the landing.

[systemofadown1162]

[quote="DonL"]I have read a lot about B-17s and I have never read of this happening, other than an old TwiLight Zone movie.quote]

Twilight Zone? The only one I remember like this is "King Nine Will not Return"