[GreenKeys] Fw: 1943 Heroism...Wow...incredible true story!

Mon Apr 10 03:04:37 EDT 2017

more info on wikipedia:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_American_(aircraft)

On 09-04-17 19:05, Larry Tighe wrote:
> *I have some teletype gear that was around in 1943.  I'm *
> *sure they carried this story.*
> **
> *lar*
> *K2JIA*
>
>
>
>     *This is really incredible as well as outstanding!*
>
>     cid:C83B4699-890C-4872-BC31-432782FF50A7
>
>
>
>     *B-17 "All American" (414th Squadron, 97BG) Crew*
>      *Pilot- Ken Bragg Jr.*
>     *Co-pilot- G. Boyd Jr.*
>     *Navigator- Harry C. Nuessle*
>     *Bombardier- Ralph Burbridge*
>     *Engineer- Joe C. James*
>     *Radio Operator- Paul A. Galloway*
>     *Ball Turret Gunner- Elton Conda*
>     *Waist Gunner- Michael Zuk*
>     *Tail Gunner- Sam T. Sarpolus*
>     *Ground Crew Chief- Hank Hyland*
>
>
>     *In 1943 a mid-air collision on February 1, 1943,* *between a*
>
>     *B-17 and a German fighter over the Tunis dock area,* *became the
>     subject of one of the most famous photographs of WW II.*
>
>
>
>     *An enemy fighter attacking a 97th Bomb Group formation went out of
>     control,* *probably with a wounded pilot, then continued its
>     crashing descent* i*nto the rear of the fuselage of a Flying
>     Fortress named /"All American/",* *piloted by Lt. Kendrick R. Bragg,
>     of the 414th Bomb Squadron.*
>
>
>
>     *When it struck, the fighter broke apart, but left some pieces in
>     the B-17.*
>
>
>
>     *The left horizontal stabilizer of the Fortress and left elevator
>     were completely torn away.*
>
>
>
>     *The two right engines were out and one on the left had a serious
>     oil pump leak.*
>
>
>
>     *The vertical fin and the rudder had been damaged.*
>
>
>
>     *The fuselage had been cut almost completely through*
>
>     *c**onnected only at two small parts of the frame,* *and the radios,
>     electrical and oxygen systems were damaged.*
>
>
>
>     *There was also a hole in the top that was over 16-feet long and 4
>     feet wide at its widest;*
>
>
>
>     *The split in the fuselage went all the way to the top gunner's
>     turret.*
>
>
>
>     cid:095E40F7-B3D1-4152-9882-D4A6AAB8796F
>
>
>
>     *Although the tail actually bounced and swayed in the wind*
>
>
>
>     *and twisted when the plane turned and all the control cables were
>     severed,* *except one single elevator cable still worked, and the
>     aircraft miraculously still flew!*
>
>
>
>     *The tail gunner was trapped because there was no floor connecting
>     the tail to the rest of the plane.*
>
>
>
>     *The waist and tail gunners used parts of the German fighter and
>     their own parachute harnesses* *in an attempt to keep the tail from
>     ripping off and the two sides of the fuselage from splitting apart.*
>
>
>
>     *While the crew was trying to keep the bomber from coming
>     apart,* *the pilot continued on his bomb run and released his bombs
>     over the target.*
>
>
>
>
>
>     cid:97B9A7E5-8650-44F0-9D5B-3CE34CDCBADD
>
>
>
>      *When the bomb bay doors were opened,* *the wind turbulence was so
>     great that it blew one of the waist gunners into the broken tail
>     section.*
>
>
>
>     *It took several minutes and four crew members to pass him ropes
>     from parachutes* *and haul him back into the forward part of the
>     plane.*
>
>
>
>     *When they tried to do the same for the tail gunner,* *the tail
>     began flapping so hard that it began to break off.*
>
>
>
>     *The weight of the gunner was adding some stability to the tail
>     section, so he went back to his position.*
>
>
>
>     *The turn back toward England had to be very slow to keep the tail
>     from twisting off.*
>
>
>
>     *They actually covered almost 70 miles to make the turn home.*
>
>
>
>     *The bomber was so badly damaged that it was losing altitude and
>     speed and was soon alone in the sky.*
>
>
>
>      *For a brief time, two more Me-109 German fighters attacked the
>     /All American/.*
>
>
>
>     *Despite the extensive damage, all of the machine gunners*
>
>      *w**ere able to respond to these attacks and soon drove off the
>     fighters.*
>
>
>
>     *The two waist gunners stood up with their heads sticking out
>     through the hole in the top of the fuselage* *to aim and fire their
>     machine guns.*
>
>
>
>     *The tail gunner had to shoot in short bursts because the recoil was
>     actually causing the plane to turn.*
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>     cid:AC4676E8-0E75-44A0-B8A9-EBAED9C508E2
>
>
>
>     *Allied P-51 fighters intercepted the /All American/ as it crossed
>     over the Channel* *and took one of the pictures shown.*
>
>
>
>     *They also radioed to the base describing that the appendage was
>     waving like a fish tail* *and that the plane would not make it and
>     to send out boats to rescue the crew when they bailed out.*
>
>      *The fighters stayed with the Fortress, taking hand signals from
>     Lt. Bragg and relaying them to the base.*
>
>      *Lt. Bragg signalled that 5 parachutes and the spare had been "used"*
>
>
>
>     *So five of the crew could not bail out.*
>
>      *He made the decision that if they could not bail out safely, then
>     he would stay with the plane to land it.*
>
>
>
>     cid:D22A8DEC-7B13-44D9-88AC-74B78BD9FA47
>
>
>
>
>
>      *Two and a half hours after being hit, the aircraft made its final
>     turn* *to line up with the runway while it was still over 40 miles
>     away.*
>
>
>
>     *It descended into an emergency landing and a normal roll-out on its
>     landing gear.*
>
>
>
>     cid:A6D96BE1-7611-442B-ABB3-B90846CAA81D
>
>
>
>     *When the ambulance pulled alongside, it was waved off because not a
>     single member of the crew had* *been injured.*
>
>
>
>     *No one could believe that the aircraft could still fly in such a
>     condition.*
>
>
>
>     *The Fortress sat placidly until the crew all exited through the
>     door in the fuselage* *and the tail gunner had climbed down a
>     ladder,* *at which time the entire rear section of the aircraft
>     collapsed.*
>
>
>
>
>
>     cid:6A88CF07-9ACD-4417-9E02-FF6894A8A376
>
>
>
>      *This old bird had done its job and brought the entire crew home
>     uninjured.*
>
>
>
>     cid:4982FE04-7AB9-4F78-8902-C0F844B0DDF4
>
>
>
>     *Please pass this on to someone who will also appreciate this
>     amazing story.*
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>     */All is well...with my soul/**/🎼🎹/*
>
>
>
>
>
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>
>
>
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-- 
Met vriendelijke Groet,

Simon Claessen
drukknop.nl