Tim,
Great story. I enjoyed reading it very much.
A few years ago a B17 from WWII landed at our little airport here in
Vacaville. I paid 400 dollars to go up in it.
They allowed you to wander through the plane while airborne. I sat where my
father sat, a tail gunner and radio operator during WWII. Actually , the
tail gunner section was closed off - however the ball turret was open as
well as the bomber seat, and the side guns were all there, of course
inactive.
The guide wires all run inside the fuselage. I was glad that no one slipped
and then decided to grasp one to pull themselves back up. It gave me chills
to sit in the radio operator seat that was his during the war.
He also invented a radio tuning device that the Navy continued to use.
He was also shot down while in a smaller war bird and spent 3 days in a
raft.
He told me that while stationed on an island in the Pacific. . . that the
native women were used to having their breasts hanging out all the time.
The Navy issued T-Shirts to the women as an attempt to cover their breasts.
The next day the women, now loving their new t-shirts, had cut holes out on
each side of the front so that their breasts could continue to hang free.
He said it was an hysterical sight to see hundreds of these native women in
their new white t-shirts proudly displaying their breasts hanging out
through self made holes in the front.
While over Lake Tahoe in a PBYF, the pilot wanted to land in the lake to
take home a slot machine. On take off the plane was not able to get up
enough speed to get enough lift to clear the area (higher altitude). The
Navy had to take the plane apart and truck it back down to a lower
elevation. Never did tell me what became of the pilot who went off course
to get his hands on a authentic slot machine.
Kirk
59BE
_______________________________________________
Support Team.Net http://www.team.net/donate.html
http://www.team.net/archive
http://autox.team.net/mailman/listinfo/spridgets
|