B-17 Bomber, How to Survive a Bailout

[@houdinibat1]

Enjoyed your video very much. My dad was a ball-turret gunner on a B-17. On his 28th mission right after the bomb run fighters got into them and hit his 17 hard. A 20mm shell hit about a foot from his ball-turret and made a hole as big as a water bucket and wounded both waist gunners. The fighters shot them up pretty bad, one engine on fire right side, flight controls shot away. Pilot rang the bail-out bell and Dad got out of the turret and clipped on his parachute all O2 lines shot away, crew sharing 02 walk-around bottles. Pilot getting plane down to lower altitude and giving the long bell to bail out, plane went from dive into pitch up and pinned the crew to the floor. Then either a direct burst of flak or a wing tank blew up. Anyway, the right side of the plane from the radio back fell apart and the right waist gunner and Dad fell out with it. Dad caught a piece of flak in the leg just before this. He said all of a sudden it everything was so very quiet and he felt like he was all alone in the sky. Dad felt to see if he really had a chute on and was relieved that he did. Dad tried to pull the rip cord a couple of times and could not due to the thick, fleece lined leather gloves and the rip cord being so close to the chute pack. He got the glove off and pulled his rip cord and got a good chute. He said he saw only fragments of the plane after it blew up in midair. One fairly good-size piece of the fuselage hit flat on top of his chute and slid off doing no damage. As he neared the ground he saw a motorcycle headed in his direction. He landed on a German fighter base at the edge of the runway. Dad picked up his left leg just before he landed as he did not know how bad he was hit and sprained his right ankle landing. He pulled up his pants to check his wound and one of the Germans pulled dad's first aid kit off his harness and bandaged his wound, dad said it sure surprised him. Dad spent 11 mons. and 1 day as a POW before he was liberated. 612th Sq. 401st Bomb Group(H) 8th AF, Dad's first mission 30 Dec. 1942 Ludwigshaven, last mission 28 May 1943 Dessau, 5 months in combat and only needed 2 more to rotate home. We lost Dad August 2012 at 91 years old.

[@phil4986]

houdinbat1,thanks to your comment here on KZbin,your dad's amazing story will live forever.Thank you to your dad and all Americans who fought and still fight to keep us free.

[@dttempleton]

@@phil4986 I thank God for men like your Dad. Thank you for that story.

[@macnasty7605]

that reminds me of a story i have heard.. us bombers hit this town around here then one was hit by flak.. some bailed out and ended out being hosted in the same house they bombed

[@christophblase1956]

Well told

[@phil4986]

@@macnasty7605 Just shows us how crazy war is and how beautiful the spirit of some people are regardless what life throws at them.God Bless those Angels ..on both sides.

[@Stalagluft6]

I was a ball turret gunner on a B17 named Pot O’ Gold, shot down on my 10th mission You did a excellent narration on the ball turret. What you didn’t mention was the heated suit being a very poor design. On 2 missions it burned out leaving me with a very bad burn on my leg, no heat and being -60 degrees for the rest of the mission, and not being able to exercise to keep warm. We were being attacked by so many enemy fighters that I actually had cold sweat running down my forehead. I did end up having frostbite. Les

[@tomtom8459]

B-17 42-31377 / Pot O’ Gold Details Missing in Action Aschersleben 22/2/44 with Bill Lavies (KIA-broke his neck when landing on frozen Limfjord after bale out); Co-pilot: Elijah Vaughan, Navigator: Francis Peacock, Bombardier: Bob Shuman, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Neil Byers, Radio Operator: John Walcott, Ball Turret Gunner: Lester Schrenk, Waist gunner: Bill Harman, Waist gunner: Pete Guastella,Tail gunner: Vern Swindler (9 Prisoner of War); enemy aircraft, crashed Hoerdum, 12 miles SW of Thisted (Jutland), Den; Missing Air Crew Report 2750.

[@RowFarmVlog]

You are a real man Les. Thank you for your example!

[@markewings7525]

You got balls the size of the turret

[@Stalagluft6]

I only did my duty, Les

[@2NDCBT]

Thank you for all that you have done for this country and countrymen!

[@warrenchambers4819]

My great uncle said he didn't bail out but the 17 did. It came apart and he found himself just floating in air thankfully he had his chest chute snapped on.

[@ballbby3775]

That's wild, could u imagine?

[@dukecraig2402]

Yea, real lucky he had it on, some guys I guess because of their position in the plane didn't wear a chute, they were kept in racks or in the case of the B24's pilot and copilot their chutes were attached to the back of their seats and when things went sideways they had to put them on, I'm sorry but if I was a pilot or copilot on a B24 I'd be bitching at my commanding officers and writing all kinds of letters to Consolidated about that situation. My family lost someone that was a navigator on a B24, he was killed when an 88 shell came up inside the fuselage of the aircraft and exploded next to him, he never had the chance to use his parachute, he and the pilot and the pilots newlywed wife had gotten to be close and the pilot had also gotten to be friends with our family when they went to Boise Idaho where Buddy (our family member) was assigned to the crew and where the pilot and his wife got married. When their plane was shot down after action reports from other B24's in the formation said that 3 parachutes were seen coming out of it but no one knew which of the crewmen they were, while everyone was waiting to find out the pilots new wife traveled from NYC to our area 50 miles south of Pittsburgh so everyone could be together while they waited to hear who made it and who didn't, turns out Buddy didn't but the pilot did, out of the 3 that'd bailed out he was the only one that survived the POW camps, why the other 2 guys didn't survive the POW camps I don't know, could be they had injuries they succumbed to or maybe they got shot trying to escape who knows, but either way they didn't. The pilot actually went on after the war to get a degree in aeronautical engineering and got a job working for NACA which later became NASA at their Cleveland facility and was not only involved with the Apollo project but actually did some type of test flight stuff with Neil Armstrong. He stayed in touch with our family for years and his account of flying the B24 and being shot down can be found in two places online, he gave an oral history to NASA that can be read online and did a interview with Cleveland Magazine Online in which he even talked about his and his wife's friendship with Buddy although in the article he's known as Davey which I guess was his nickname on the crew (his actual name was Virgil Davison, the family's nickname for him since he was a little boy was Buddy, the bomber crew he was on nicknamed him Davey because of his last name of Davison). If anyone is interested in reading about the pilot and his time in NACA/NASA and his interview in the Cleveland Magazine try Googling "Solomon Weiss B24 pilot" and look for the NASA oral history of him and what I believe is either Clevelandmagazineonline.com or Clevelandonlinemagazine.com or Clevelandmagazine.com (actually I think that one's it) or something along those lines. His account of bailing out is pretty good, he said when his parachute opened it had a bunch of holes in it that caused a rapid loss of altitude, having read the after action reports and knowing that the chute was attached to the back of his seat which was a armor plate I'd lay odds that the 88 shell that came inside and exploded killing Buddy is what poked the holes in the pilots chute. But anyways that shell was the 2nd one that struck the plane, the first one hit it at 23,000 ft in the #3 engine about two seconds after bomb release during a run on the Ferrara railroad bridge in Italy, about two seconds after that one the one that struck the fuselage just forward of the bomb bay is the one that killed Buddy, but aerial reconnaissance after the mission showed they took the bridge out. So for 2nd Lt Virgil "Buddy" Davison and six other members of his crew the last thing they did in their lives was put their bombs on target, and that's why he's buried in Arlington National Cemetery with the rest of the heroes. Edit, it's cleveland.com, enter "cleveland.com Solomon Weiss B24 pilot WW2" and you can find the article, there's even some pictures of the crew that Buddy is in. 🇺🇲🇺🇲🇺🇲🇺🇲

[@dabda8510]

@@dukecraig2402 thank you for the amazing story.

[@dukecraig2402]

@@dabda8510 It gets even a little better, I found all this out the day after having moved home to PA after living in Ohio for 11 years, I moved there in 2008 and lived about 20 minutes up the road from the pilot until his death in 2015 and knew nothing about any of this at the time, after finding out the story and reading his account of everything in the Cleveland online article I saw he had a son that was a professor at the University of Akron and got a hold of him, he sent me all kinds of pictures of the crew and put me and my mother in touch with his mother who was still alive at the time, she passed away just last year but my mom got to talk to her about the cousin she never knew and only had heard about because she was too young to remember him when he left for the war.

[@garyowen9044]

God bless. That generation amazes me no end!

[@tomservo5347]

When I was a kid during the 80's I got to hear firsthand from a waist gunner on a B-17 on his having to bailout. He said when the captain ordered the bailout, you did it without question. He cleared the plane and what he vividly remembered was one of his gloves coming off and floating in front of his face during the freefall. He pulled his parachute ring, had a good canopy and looked at the ground. He didn't see a soul around and thought he may have a chance of escaping. As soon as he hit the ground he said the "Germans came out of the woodwork" and he spent 2 years as a POW. (He said the Germans never mistreated him.) He later found out the pilot and co-pilot managed to limp the plane back to England!

[@richardjames1812]

That seems to have happened sometimes - the order to bailout but the plane ends up returning home. I always wondered how the reunion went with the pilots and surviving crew if they met again after that.

[@tomservo5347]

@@richardjames1812 I could imagine the pilots trying to keep the plane level for as long as possible to help with the bailout and then realizing the plane had stabilized and wasn't as bad as first thought. One really can't fault them. I think a lot of it was fear of exploding if on fire.

[@APlexchanel]

Also, it is possible that after crew bailed, plane became more stable due to loss of weight of crewmembers

[@Alex-co5co]

Not really related but in May 44, a B24, I think, was shot down by german flak above my grandma's house. 3 americans parachuted out and one landed on the property her parents owned. They rushed there and found one crew, he was in his 20s years old, took him home and hide him in hay in their barn. When germans came and looked for him, they came to their houses and looked for him, because a watchman said it saw the american land on the property. My great grandfather said he wanted to help so he took the luftwaffe soldiers to the field where they found the parachute. The germans still came from time to time to check the house but my relatives moved the american to where we used to keep the sheeps, in a shed in a remoted area. Even if germans were coming there, he could see them from far away and run away in forest. They kept him hide until august 44 when they passed him to the soviets. My grandma said he was a very beautiful man, and even her, as a child could notice it, but they couldn't understand with him, just by signs, as no one spoke english. Sometimes I wonder who he was and what got of him after

[@richardjames1812]

What country was that?

[@Alex-co5co]

@@richardjames1812 Romania. Around Ploiești oil fields

[@jonathanenglish9146]

My grandfather was a waist gunner on a B-17 and his aircraft was shot down over Verona, Italy and he spent 13 months as a POW. He told me about how the ball turret gunner's chute was hit by shrapnel (along with him and most of the crew) so he took the dead top turret gunner's chute and hooked up the wounded ball gunner and sending him out the open bomb bay. He landed half in/half out of a ditch, seriously injuring his back (which caused him pain from then on). I remember seeing the "Caterpillar Club" card in a box with his medals and paperwork. He also had a card signed by General Curtis LeMay authorizing him to enter any Air Force Base in the U.S. which I assume was so he could use the PX or other facilities.

[@phil4986]

Your delivery sounded like what I would think a standard military training brief would sound like. It was chillingly deadpan and factual, like we were all actually in a room full of guys ,learning how to survive a B17 no longer able to fly. Like a window into a training room in 1942. Thank you for making this video. Massive respect to all our American and Allied veterans always.

[@nev707]

I wasn’t aware of the details about not pulling the ripcord at high altitude but makes sense. I’m not sure how you judge the height at 5000 feet though. Seems a B17 has more holes to bail out of compared to the British bombers. Apparently B17 crews had a higher survival rate than Lancaster bombers.

[@deankoerner2436]

My father was a tail gunner in the fortress he passed away 2 years ago at 95 years old he and his captain were together through all of the missions everyone else was replaced thanks for the info dad didn't like talking about it, he just would say we did what we needed to do.

[@mikewhye3457]

You're producing some very good videos. I thought I'd add some comments from my Dad, he died in 2010. In August 1944 he and the rest of his crew (he was the navigator) had to bail out of their plane which was on fire.... when he was at the nose hatch, the upper turret gunner was there, frozen in fear....Dad had to push him out. Dad went next but hit one of his legs on an open bomb bay door, cutting it (the bombs had been salvoed and the doors left open for anyone wanting to leave through the bomb bay). The tail gunner could not get out his hatch because he was wearing his parachute which made him too bulky to fit through that small door. ....he made his way forward to the waist compartment door and left there. All the others got out okay. Another navigator also gashed a leg badly on an open bomb bay door when he left his aircraft months earlier.. Also, one person who went out the nose hatch hit the ball turret guns which were pointed straight down as the gunner had left the turret to climb into the waist cabin.

[@WWIIUSBombers]

From what I understand plane fires were considered the the main reason for bailouts. The self sealing fuel tanks helps but not immune to overwhelming cannon fire.

[@mikewhye3457]

@@WWIIUSBombersThanks. In Dad's case, the fire was immediately behind the pilots' seats at the upper turret.....and with those oxygen tanks there (I almost forgot, they were in a new B-17 on its first combat mission and someone on another ground crew had pilfered the plane's fire extinguishers...an unfortunate common practice with many pieces of gear when a new B-17 arrived on the base)...and no fire extinguishers, the plane was doomed. I should have mentioned everyone bailed out, 7 POW and 3 Evadees.

[@wirelessone2986]

@@mikewhye3457 Great info...i do not like the robbers that consigned the bird to doom by having sticky fingers.

[@garfieldsmith332]

Thanks for this informing story and glad all of them got out. And thanks to your dad for his service. My day was Canadian infantry and was badly wounded in France and sent home.

[@brentsarazin4346]

Wow Mike. TY for sharing this information and I could only imagine what it must have been like at those harrowing moments in those men's lives.

[@joeverna5459]

I flew in a B-17. It was in up state Pennsylvania in 2000. It was one of my bucket list items. Yes, the skin of the plane is the thickness of a credit card. I was amazed at how loud the engines were. There is no pressurized interior so it had to be unbelievable cold at 25-30k feet. We were about 6 people plus the pilot and co-pilot. it cost $400 for a 20 minute ride. Once you were up you could move around the plane. The only positions not accessible were the tail gunner and the ball gunner positions. Along with the pilot and co-pilot seats. I have much more respect for these brave men now that I've had that experience. Thank you for your bravery.

[@nelsonde]

I think these videos are concise and valuable. Don't be troubled by the viewership, they will be viewed and appreciated for years to come.

[@WWIIUSBombers]

Thanks for the kind words. I'm new to the process of scripting, video creation, and editing. Still experimenting with formats, detail level, and video length.

[@JAMESWUERTELE]

@@WWIIUSBombers you keep making these videos and you will have more subscriptions than you can think of. Fantastic work!

[@davestelling]

@@WWIIUSBombers Your doing a marvelous job, really appreciate...

[@BurtSampson]

My grandpa flew in B-17s during the war and got shot down over Germany after flying over 30 missions over Germany and France(plus some other interesting stuff during Korea) . I recently uploaded a video of him from 1994 to my channel. At around the 11:30 mark I think it is he gets to getting shot down and having to bail out and getting captured. It's pretty interesting to hear a first hand account of this stuff. What the experience was like from his captors and stuff. He was a great man, I consider myself lucky to have gotten to grow up with him, and him having the patience to always tell me stories and explain stuff to me in a way that made sense. He had a lot of really, really good stories. I wish there were more videos of him, but I'm glad to have found that one, i had no idea it even existed until a few weeks ago. I was so happy to hear his and my grandma's voices again.

[@tixximmi]

My Dad piloted out of New Guinea in WWII in a B-17. He was glad he was the pilot instead of the Ball Turret. He always thought they were the real hero's.

[@RolloTonéBrownTown]

I love how the official procedure for destroying the bomb sight is just shooting the hell out of it with a .45

[@davestelling]

Yeah, me too. When men were men...

[@stevekaczynski3793]

@@davestelling I read that B-17 pilots were issued a small bomb they could use to wreck key components of the aircraft in the event of a crash landing in enemy territory.

[@ScoopsTVtools]

Didn't actually matter , the nazis had the plans to the bombsite in 1938 and Nordon knew this

[@gastonbell108]

It was a lot of nonsense, really. The Air Force was absolutely convinced (by their own propaganda) that the Norden was the premiere bombsight in the world when in reality the program had already been infiltrated before the war even started. The Germans had absolutely no use for the dozens of intact Nordens they did get their hands on. It simply wasn't all that great, certainly not enough to justify all the hoopla. What was supposed to be a game-changing precision bombsight ended up changing nothing when it came to bomber tactics.

[@RolloTonéBrownTown]

@@gastonbell108 thank you for additional perspective. This is all new learning for me so it's great to get more info

[@alankinne5370]

Although this is the proper way to bail out, rarely did it happen that way. In most situations there was traumatic damage to the aircraft that caused its flight characteristics to be less than optimal. Just watch any video of an aircraft being hit. However, this is still a good video that explains how bailing out was accomplished.

[@rogerlibby14613]

While returning from an over water training mission off the coast of Oregon the B-17 pilot ordered the crew to bailout as soon as they reached the coast. My father landed in waist deep water. The plane made it back to a landing field. My father had only worn his quartermaster shoes and they came off when the parachute opened. Remember that when you listen to stories about D B Cooper.

[@xray86delta]

I remember a quote by a German ace, talking about his Commander, who stated he would personally shoot down any of his men who fired at a parachute. Chivalry still existed, in some quarters, during World War II.

[@MattKearneyFan1]

Stigler if I remember who helped escort a damaged 17 home

[@tramlink8544]

i just watched episode 5 of masters of the air and they showed a bailout drill to the letter to how you described it, from quick releasing the flakvest to shooting the Norden bombsite twice in the lens, and even jettisioning a hatch

[@wyomingadventures]

Great video. We have a crashed B-17 on mountain peak in the Big Horn mountains. I've climbed up to see the wreckage a couple times. There's a memorial stone to the guys who got killed in the crash. No survivors. A local wrote a book about it.

[@douglasiles2024]

My great uncle was part of a B-17G bomber crew that had to bail out over Austria. May 10, 1944, flying out of Foggia, Italy, the 775th Bomber Squadron (Allyn's Irish Orphans), 463rd Bomb Group (H), 15th Air Force, took part in a raid on Weiner Neustadt, Austria. Inbound on the bombing run, they took Flak hits which damaged their intercom system, and bomb bay doors, so that only one door would open. They dropped half of their bomb load on target and turned for home. They were then harassed by multiple enemy fighters that scored critical hits, causing fires in the #2 and #3 engines. As the plane began to lose altitude, they were given the order to bail out. The two waist gunners and ball turret gunner couldn't get out of their primary exit, due to the fire from the #3 engine, so they, along with the radio operator, went out through the partially open bomb bay. The tail gunner bailed out of his hatch, but he deployed his parachute too soon and it was damaged by flames coming from the aircraft. He was killed upon impact with the ground. The co-pilot was trying to bail out, but was in and out of consciousness, and was pushed out of the bomb bay by the bombardier; my great uncle. The navigator then went out the bomb bay and successfully deployed his chute. My great uncle then bailed out, but the aircraft was too low at this point for his chute to fully deploy and he was killed upon impact with the ground. The pilot and flight engineer went down with the aircraft as it crashed on the reverse slope of a hill. The navigator came down in some trees about 20 yards away from the crash site, but was stuck in them because of his parachute. Then the remaining bomb load on the aircraft (the bombs had been armed prior to starting their initial run on the target) detonated, killing the navigator and presumably the pilot and flight engineer. No trace of those two was ever found. The tail gunner, bombardier, and navigator were all recovered and buried in the local town cemetery, with their remains being disinterred after the war. It's a fascinating story, with a book written by the niece of the pilot, as she learned more about him. God speed the crew of Pete's Playhouse (42-31685). In loving memory of T/Sgt Prescott C Piper, KIA May 10, 1944, near Pottschach, Austria. kzbin.info/www/bejne/rou9ZnSBgtJ6eNk At the 3:46 mark in that video is a photograph, taken by the Germans, of the remains of my great uncle.

[@sophrapsune]

Lord have mercy.

[@h5skb4ru41]

if your uncle died how you knew?

[@kot0472]

So five members alived?

[@douglasiles2024]

@@kot0472 Yes. The two waist gunners, the ball turret gunner, the radio operator, and the copilot all safely bailed out and were taken prisoner by the Germans.

[@douglasiles2024]

@@h5skb4ru41 My family has the original telegram from the Army Air Force, listing him as MIA, followed by a letter later on confirming his death, from the German Army through the International Red Cross.

[@mlester3001]

My dad was a waist gunner on the B17 and later on the B26. It was in the B26 he was shot down behind enemy lines. He, the pilot, and another crew member survived. The rest perished. I remember seeing his "Caterpillar Club" membership papers and pin. With the plane crashing it is hard to fathom how they could go through such a cumbersome protocol before jumping.

[@ken-dw4or]

My friend's father was a bombardier on a B-17G with the 15 AF 97 BG he and the same crew made thru 50 missions and made it home before the war's end and he told me that he never carried he issued 45 colt but carried a small caliber Colt 32 pocket hand gun because of the fear of getting the large 45 colt stuck in the escape hatch.

[@anconranger1774]

Cool channel!! Dad was Flight Engineer on B-24 Liberator in Italy circa 1943.

[@dukecraig2402]

My family lost someone who was a navigator on a B24 in Italy, 15th Air Force. Shot down and killed on his 21st mission with the crew, 3 chutes came out but only the pilot survived the war the other 2 guys died in the POW camps, among the 20 they survived 3 were runs on the oil fields at Ploesti Romania. The one they got shot down on was a run on a railroad bridge near Ferrara Italy, 27 Aug 1944. They got hit about 2 seconds after bomb release, reconnaissance photos after the raid showed that they took the bridge out though.

[@SamBrickell]

The bailout procedures are so detailed and interesting.

[@TheJimtanker]

In the 82nd we jumped from 800 feet. I had 52 jumps when I retired.

[@johnnicatra570]

Airborne 173rd vn 70-71

[@YetiSmasherOhnO]

This was awesome-- white knuckled and clammy as I watched. My grandpa was a ball-gunner on a Superfortress in the Pacific. Thank you so much for the insight.

[@virginiaveritas326]

Excellent video - very clear and well illustrated bailout process. My FIL (Navigator) earned his membership of the Caterpillar Club when his B-17 was shot down during WWII. He was one of the unlucky few as he was shot as he parachuted down - fortunately it was not a life threatening wound. He spent 19 months as a POW. Thank you for posting this video!

[@WWIIUSBombers]

Thanks for the feedback. I'll likely continue on with a future video describing the escape and evade part of the bailout.

[@tornwax]

Great video ! My uncle was a flight engineer on B-17, B-24 and B-25.

[@derekwhite8844]

I thought I knew almost everything about WW2. That was until I stumbled upon this channel, it is very informative and interesting. Awesome video & thank you for all of your hard work

[@WWIIUSBombers]

Thank you and welcome to the channel.

[@sophrapsune]

This is an excellent description! I was left wondering how this theoretical drill actually tended to play out in practice: who didn’t get out, who could get out of a spinning aircraft, who tended to survive the emergency bail out. Would love a follow-up video analyzing the history of bailout outcomes.

[@douglasiles2024]

There were probably many factors that came in to play. How badly damaged was the aircraft, fires, intercom systems damaged, etc. It's like doing a fire drill at school as a kid. It runs smoothly during a drill, but if the real thing should happen, rarely does it go the way it's planned.

[@Banana_Pony]

Yeah, and what a heck of a long procedure to bail, vs. modern split second times of post WWII seats.

[@mstevens113]

I'd guess more often than not it was a case of get out any way you can while the plane is breaking up around you. From the footage I've seen not many losses from flak or fighters are going to allow much, if any, time for a coordinated bail out.

[@stevekaczynski3793]

It was a lot of things to remember during a crisis situation.

[@2lotusman851]

And if possible do not bail out over the target zone, or over an area hit by bombers recently. The citizens on the ground tended to treat bomber crew poorly.

[@herberar]

So many questions for years, answered in one video, thanks a lot!!!

[@billeudy8481]

This is truly an excellent presentation! You corrected a lot of misconceptions I had about bailing out of a B-17. In the process, you answered a lot of questions I’ve often pondered, several more which the video itself predicated and a few I hadn’t yet considered. Thanks for putting forth the effort do such a thorough and concise job.

[@masterwrench4252]

Thank you for that. Growing up on 12 o-clock high & getting several interior tours (Macminville air museum) I was always wondering about the procedure. So much more than I ever thought. So thanks again for the in-depth information.

[@leodavis7524]

Excellent video, my father was a navigator and had to bail out 👍

[@leodavis7524]

After bailing out, he spent the rest of the war as a POW .🙁

[@onlyme112]

Glad he made it out. My uncle was a navigator on a B-17 and didn't survive when the plane was shot down.

[@leodavis7524]

@@onlyme112 sorry to hear that 😕

[@stratotramp6243]

Great video. I was at what was RAF Nuthampstead yesterday clay pigeon shooting. B-17s and lightning's used to operate from this field. There is a small airstrip left.

[@531c]

I've cycled past RAF Nuthampstead many times and whenever I see the memorial dedicated to the hundreds of airmen that lost their lives during ww2, I feel a deep sense of loss for them, their families and comrades. Those brave young men paid with their lives for our peace today. We're forever in their debt.

[@liquidusblue]

@@531c the memorial at the pub is nice. There is a small museum there too. My great uncle was shot down over Leipzig in a Lancaster. It's the scale of it that gets me. Can't imagine that many Aircraft in the sky.

[@HQBergeron]

My uncle Lt. John P. Walker was a B-17 navigator who flew 28 missions out of Nuthampstead, perishing on that 28th on 30 Dec 1944 which would have been his crew’s final mission. Their B-17 went down in the Channel due to engine failure and possibly icing with all hands perishing. Uncle John and one other were the only ones to actually bail out, but apparently quite low. This video gives me some ideas why that might have been, but it is only theory. We have an official report from an amphibious aircraft which saw them and tried to save my uncle, but it is slim on detail. Glad to hear some of the airfield remains and someone is aware of its history. I hear there is a church there with stained glass windows bearing the names of those who perished flying from Nuthampstead. If you ever happen to be there and see the name of John P. Walker, snap a photo and leave me a note here so maybe I can get in touch and get the photo as I don’t know if I will ever get to England again to see it. Thanks!

[@531c]

@@HQBergeron i can't promise, but I'll see what I can do. I'll visit the nearby church.

[@keithlast1487]

Lots of great comments here. Love the diagram. I've always wondered how the various airmen fit into their positions.

[@tnwhiskey68]

Never knew about the high altitude opening problems before. Good info!

[@zachary8491]

I love the format. The level of detail. The description of the bailing out process...I cant start to imagine myself in whatever position in the aircraft while its burning or spinning out of control and having to go accross so many steps... so many things can go wrong. Imagine your parachute recieved flak damage but you still have to snap it on and wait for thousands of feets of free fall to see if its still working..... 😰😰😰 Great video

[@eagles360view3]

Very detailed research and these guys (crew members) are the heart of steel

[@dynmicpara]

EXCELLENT, PROFESSIONALLY INFORMATIVE PRESENTATION!!

[@rickblackwell6435]

Full of many details I had never heard of - especially destroying radios and such. Fantastic.

[@veritas6466]

Early in the war my Father flew backseat of TBD’s, then transitioned to navigator in the B-26. At wars end he re-up’d into the Shore Patrol and was stationed in Florida. He said breaking up drunk Marines bar fights, as they awaiting their peacetime discharges, was the most dangerous duty he faced!

[@miguelservetus9534]

Never appreciated how dangerous bailing out would be. Great work.

[@thedarkone2444]

Recently subscribed, fantastic information that isn't common knowledge and we'll put together.

[@TheKrighter]

My friend's Dad did his 30 missions and got to go home, but was then assigned to a test crew that flew newly assembled B-17s from Calif to Oregon at night along the coast. He had to bail out twice because of the failure of new engines. The second time was pitch black, cloudy, no moon, and he landed in a tree. Couldn't see his hand in front of his face. Hung there for hrs, and when the sun came up, his feet were about 2 ft off the ground. That was the only story he ever told us about the war.

[@texkillerson6681]

@Kirk R -- That story seems to imply that DB Cooper could have succeeded. The FBI claims that he had to get killed because of the trees and darkness and whatnot. Naturally, they would want the public to believe that nobody ever got away from them, so I don't automatically believe them on anything.

[@heikoplotner2636]

Ging einem deutschen Nachtjäger so, hing im Baum und hat gefrohren da es kalt war. Taschenlampe runtergefallen. Morgens sah er, daß er 1/2 Meter über dem Boden hing.

[@89128]

In all the B-17, B-24 ditchings in the North Sea, only one bomber crew survived intact. Very poor odds indeed.

[@stevekaczynski3793]

An American or British bomber crew member in WW2 opened his chute during a bailout and the impact of it caused severe pain to his groin. After the war he tried to have children but couldn't. A visit to a doctor eventually revealed that opening the parachute had caused him to have a crude vasectomy. It took an operation before he was able to have children.

[@enjoyphi7378]

Hello from France ! Great job !

[@timMycat-ov2kg]

The B-17 techs responded magnificently what with O2 lines, ammunition belts, ball turrets etc. But thank goodness for ballistic missiles and the B-52.

[@tomgraham7755]

My father was a tail gunner and his plane was hit bu flack over Germany and his plane made it back as far as the North sea just off the coast of Holland when the flight crew bailed out. They were rescued by Dutch fishermen and returned to England

[@eb1138]

The work you have put into your videos is impressive. The level of detail is amazing. Thank you.

[@AncientAbsWisdom]

Superb presentation. Thanks

[@gonedeep43]

That's a lot of info. With that, it seems there was a lot to remember and do prior to exiting the Aircraft. And, sometimes the Aircraft couldn't get to a horizontal position, so getting out of the Aircraft becomes even more difficult.

[@ctvega10]

I have been really enjoying your videos. Great quality and content that I have not seen before. thanks

[@AudieHolland]

Great video, very informative. Now the free falling part and opening your chute at lower altitude sound very logical to me, in the movies and in even in veteran bomber crewmembers' memories, you always see the crewmembers deploy their parachutes only seconds after bailing out. In reality, all a spectator from a nearby bomber would have seen, is the stricken bomber going out of control as the pilot leaves the plane. But the spectator will have to have extremely good eyesight and a lot of patience if he expects to see blooming parachutes.

[@davehoward22]

try doing it when your in a spin with heavy g force pinning you to the fuselage

[@dukecraig2402]

Those are the guys who didn't make it out.

[@johnkevinlilly]

My dad also bailed out of a B-17 9/43 Emden Germany. 18 months in Stalag Luft 3

[@brentsarazin4346]

I can only imagine what moments like this would have been like for these men and woman. It still haunts me today of the number of souls that were lost and never found in Wars. R.I.P. each one of you.

[@keithsurdyke2535]

Women? No women crew members in that time period.

[@heikoplotner2636]

Tausende Flieger stecken im deutschen Reichsgebiet noch im Boden allein 8000 Jagd-Flieger aus dem Zeitraum 1.1.1945 - 8.5.1945 Einige Bomber sind im Sumpf und Sumpfwiesen in Niedersachsen komplett verschwunden.

[@jnauttube]

When my father jumped out of his b17 on the munster raid, the plane was going down tail first and was in a spin, I don't think any these procedures were adhered to.

[@JCinerea]

Exactly!! If the plane is going backwards and it's plummeting towards the ground, I am going to leave the plane quickly!!!

[@DerAbenteurer94]

What's his name,please?

[@streetlugechris]

That was excellent learnt so much in just a couple of minutes.

[@724bigal]

“Nothing ever go’s according to plan” has its roots in the bailout process!

[@mcmdrpiffle447]

Really brilliant video editing/information. I thought I'd come across pretty much every photo of the B17 through the years. This video showed how wrong I was. Fascinating explanation for folks like us who always wondered about this kind of minutiae. Sierra Hotel Sir, Subscribed !

[@smickster]

This was really interesting, especially the part about when to open your chute. Some obvious good advice there I'd never considered before. Thanks!

[@dukecraig2402]

Yea, I really liked the part "...at 5,000 ft the ground will seem to be rushing at you, this is the time to open your chute." Yea, no kidding.

[@haydencaryofilles6379]

Amazing video I love the way that you present the information in a very easy to follow away I just discovered your channel from this video and am now your 790th subscriber

[@jefff6167]

Thanks for taking the time to produce such great content.

[@williammcdorman6426]

Good narrative, the comments reflect that.

[@jean-christophearlandis2343]

Very interesting, thanks

[@ChrisCoombes]

My subconscious is grateful for this information to be used in future dreams.

[@rachmanwalker4145]

2:35 B-17 "Lucky Strike" S/N 42-29923 532BS/381BG [VE-K] Damaged over Kiel, 1/4/44 Crash landed Church Farm, Cawston,🇬🇧 8 WIS 2 KIS (skull fractures)

[@uttaradit2]

its toasted

[@rachmanwalker4145]

@@uttaradit2 yes it was! 😅😅😅

[@heikoplotner2636]

Im Winter ! Das Buch ,, Die Feuerreiter, Gefangen in fliegenden Festungen '' // Ray Matheny . US Titel suchen. Der sprang bei Kiel ab ,, Diacon Sinners '' im Winter um 1944. Gutes Buch.

[@kennyj4366]

Thank you, you really did your home work, those facts were right on the button. 👍

[@381stbg4]

Well done segment!

[@christhut8140]

Excellent video! I've been very interested in bombers lately so this was a great piece. I didn't know how cramped the ball turret was!

[@WildBillCox13]

Good content. Thanks for posting.

[@ashleymarie7452]

Extremely factual and interesting! Thanks!

[@tomasthomas7407]

so much to remember, soo little time. God Bless Them All 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

[@mikemcgonegal1616]

Good video! I wonder how many of them had to attempt this with only one wing, or tail gone and plane out of control. Makes me shiver to think.

[@garyowen9044]

Thank you! I learn something new every day… today is “The Caterpillar Club”. Never knew about that until now.

[@johnschofield9496]

This is so sad. How in the world would an airman be able to do ANY of this when the plane is spinning toward the ground. This is why we lost so many brave men in these aircraft.

[@RolloTonéBrownTown]

Yea its pretty unrealistic to expect people to do all these complex, time consuming procedures when the planes exploding around you, rounds are zipping through the cabin and you're feeling heavy g forces

[@MrWhipple42]

The instructions were undoubtedly for controlled situations where the plane was damaged but still flyable and not taking fire. I'm thinking of, for example, damaged B-17s that made it back across the English Channel but couldn't land properly. Obviously, if your plane was disintegrating under German AA, just getting out with a parachute connected and not being hit by debris or flak would be a miracle.

[@stelleratorsuprise8185]

I believe there would have been more survivors If they could have worn their parachute, but they could not.

[@davidfarrow5667]

Very insightful. Thank you.

[@chrispony5000]

Very informative, thank you.

[@westernsloper]

phenomenal video

[@MGB-learning]

Great video

[@rachmanwalker4145]

4:47 "Windy City Avenger" S/N 42-23037 366BS/305BG [KY-N] Damaged over Schweinfurt 10/14/43 Crash landed Wakerley, near Corby, Northamptonshire

[@lastfirst78]

That is a lot of procedure to get out of the plane. Even more difficult if it is spinning or inverted.

[@tvbox6955]

Great research and information. 🙂

[@craigw.scribner6490]

Great video! I learned a lot. I was fortunate enough to take a ride on the "Madras Maiden" in 2017 when it visited Wichita, KS, fulfilling a life-long dream. Thanks and I'm now a subscriber to your channel!

[@HMASJervisBay]

The thing from my experience is that processes go right out the window when the shit hits the fan. A cool head under pressure will carry the day.

[@billyponsonby]

I heard that in ‘43 or ‘44, the USAAF considered removing all gunners but the tail gunner’s position in order to save some lives in the hundreds of aircraft being lost.

[@cggage]

A very well-done video! I learned a lot from it. Quite a complicated procedure! Along the lines of these WWII bombers, one subject I have never heard much about is the effectiveness of the bomber's machine gunners. Certainly, there were a whole bunch of machine guns all over the aircraft. But, how effective were they? Were they able to shoot down/disable some/many/most attacking fighters? To what degree?

[@andreclay8362]

Outstanding presentation!

[@williambradfordbaldwin4386]

WOOOWEE WOOOWSEE and WOW WOW! This is some of the greatest info I have ever seen on here!! I have become more interested in WWII bomber crew, uniforms etc.lately and this just takes the cake, thank you so much, your time and your efforts are so worth it!!

[@williamlouie569]

When B17 just got shot up or hit by flak and plane is dropping from the sky. I don't think there's time to go through the checklist you just mentioned. Lucky if you are able to escaped the plane alive.

[@stevetyson1322]

Incredible information.

[@bob456fk6]

Since these guys didn't have experience skydiving, I can't imagine how terrifying it must have been, especially at night...in a thunder storm. In total darkness, how do you judge 5,000 feet?

[@loucorreia6142]

Excellent and well researched video.

[@marcoortiz4579]

Very good video, muy interesante, should be an history teacher...

[@RinkyRoo2021]

I never thought air density made such a difference, in school they told us your falling speed was always the same......I guess my teachers where wrong yet again . I can't imagine how hard it would be to bailout in a spin or on fire .

[@Playsinvain]

I too assumed terminal velocity was a constant, but it makes sense that it’s not

[@frankm2588]

Falling speed is not constant, an object increses in falling speed until terminal velocity is reached, the latter depends on air resistance. Now, if a plane is spinning and breaking up, the air resistance will change.

[@Ccccccccccsssssssssss]

Thanks for the great videos!