B-36 Crash Site -El Paso

This video is about a B-36 Crash site on the west slopes of the Franklin Mountains in El Paso. Texas. It attempts to memorialize the lives lost in that incident.

[@arnoldjohnson5594]

I was a gunner on a B36, 95th bomb wing,334 sqd .6 of us walking on the sidewalk, heard the 36 overhead preparing to land, all at once we heard the crash and then silence. Cloud cover prevented a view. We stood in place on the sidwalk, in silence. Never forgot that moment in history. Never will as I approach my 90th birthday. Thank you. Arnold R. Johnson

[@detzold1]

Thank you for your service to our country, Mr Johnson. I appreciate your comment. I was a lonely zygote in the womb when this happened, but our Boy Scout troop used to hike up there each year when I was a bit older. Tragic day. See this link to my full blog on the disaster: davetzold.com/2012/07/08/b-36-crash-franklin-mountains-1953/

[@k7jeb]

I remember that snowy, foggy day in December, 1953. I was outside, but on the east side of Mt. Franklin, heard the crash and saw the smoke. Ten years later, I worked as a transmitter engineer on Ranger Peak, above and to the south of the crash site. I never hiked down to it, thinking the Air Force had removed every bit of the wreckage. But I can see from your video the burners and turbine blades of one of the jet engines the aircraft carried outboard of the piston engines and propellers. A very sad place and time...

[@deweytaliaferro61]

Thank you again !

[@detzold1]

Dewey....I'll never forget meeting you and your family in El Paso for the dedication of the historical monument commemorating the tragic B-36 crash on North Stanton Street! This blog post and the imbedded video have been a remarkably popular place over the years....so far over 124,000 hits! Take care...Dave Etzold

[@jimrichardson8575]

So sad that so many men lost their lives on the mountainside just doing their jobs. This tribute is the best I have seen. The vocalist is beautiful.

[@jasonlieu5379]

I must say this is a very nice tribute to the individual who took the time to put this all together it is a very nice memorial video I am sure the surviving family members greatly appreciate it thank you to all of those forgiven their life and service to our country ✈️

[@johnwatson3948]

As many know pilot Gerick had a history of friction with ground control - only ten months earlier he had abandoned and lost a B-36 in England to fuel exhaustion when GCA couldn’t bring him in through the fog. In the case of El Paso he argued with the controller and ignored a warning about the mountains. Gerick had also not shown up for the preflight briefing at Carswell - possibly thinking it was not needed on such a milk-run. When arriving he may have also believed he was further north than he was - was seen to circle El Paso municipal airport to the south possibly thinking it was the identical looking Biggs AFB.

[@brent4770]

I hiked up to the site in 1978 when I was a kid. I still remember it like it was yesterday.

[@johnwatson3948]

Nicely done. I located it and hiked up there in 1995 but only showed pictures at Air Force reunions - was surprised a few years later when it was “rediscovered” and in the newspapers.

[@detzold1]

Its been said that my blog on this subject was the genesis of the "rediscovery" of this Cold War Tragedy....see it here, John: davetzold.com/2012/07/08/b-36-crash-franklin-mountains-1953/

[@johnwatson3948]

Thanks, very comprehensive - had not seen this before. In 1995 I was a (young) member of the Fort Worth 7thBW B-36 reunion group who had known Gerick (they called him “Herman the German”) and the other crew. I went up there to get pictures for the reunions and never thought anyone else would care about the crash site. In researching was surprised how exploitative and graphic the 1953 newspaper accounts were - saying how bodies were found jammed into the cliff crevasses.

[@detzold1]

@@johnwatson3948 I got the bug to research this because of the Cold War going on at the time...and thinking we might have had a "broken arrow" incident that was covered up. Though it turned out to be just a ferry mission, the backstory of Gerick's incident over England was interesting....and I got a full microfilm copy of the accident report from Army Archives. I hope that our "radio play" available on the blog site wasn't too amateurish! DFE

[@johnwatson3948]

No I think the radio play and the blog are great. Back then I was interested in all the B-36 crashes and got all the report microfilms from AFHRA - unfortunately with changes in technology will have to eventually replace these with the newer DVD versions. Back then also had time on my hands and visited most of the other B-36 crash sites (but not yet the England one).

[@jesusortiz8499]

Thank you for remember our fellow comrades....wondering why those 2 people gave thumbs down....

[@johnbutler7403]

Thanks for the enjoyable and moving video. I grew up in the northeast shadow of the Franklins and spent many wondrous hours hiking/climbing through them. One thing I wouldn't do (Just My opinion) is wear short pants and no ankle protection - I had several friend who had grievous injuries from daggers, ocotillo, etc.

[@gettinghosed]

Good video. Do you have the Lat Lon on this?

[@ivannoevigna2501]

Muito TRISTE e tocante!

[@SWATgonIBIZA]

R.I.P. all my Respects

[@ColKorn1965]

My father was stationed at Biggs when this happened.

[@haroldmclean3755]

RIP

[@stephentaylor280]

If I recall there was a bomber that crashed on the east side of the mountains up close to the "A". Back in the fifties my dad bought a canyon back up there to build on. My brother and I and friend would go up and explore the wreckage. Can't remember what type of plane it was.

[@eptxsandy915]

Isn't there a big white marble cross that marks the crash site? I wonder what happened..

[@detzold1]

@@eptxsandy915 No marble cross, but there is a black marble plaque glued to one of the big boulders, commemorating the names of the deceased crew members. Someone placed some solar lights in the shape of a cross up there several years ago. I need to climb up and see if it is still there.

[@stephanieervin7909]

look at me fart butting around with a high dollar toy, to a God awful song. people suffering for crumbs and look at me,blessings

[@ninjobrown6868]

Stephanie Ervin Hey you and those crumb suffering peeps, stop picking on the old successful business farts with bad taste in music. Lol

[@Firebrand55]

The Accident Report hinted that part of the cause was the pilot's confusion with the El Paso Municipal Airport with Biggs AFB. Check this out on Google Earth...they are close together and the same compass alignment; a tough break for the crew; ironically, Gerick and 5 other crew members had safely baled from 51-5719 at Lacock, England. Both accidents had a degree of Pilot/GCA confusion. RIP the crew of 44-92071A.

[@detzold1]

Correct....."pilot error".....he also did not use IFR in the storm, nor did he get briefed on the topography of El Paso....with the 2,000-foot mountain running down the center of the city! Sad....