ddavid 149 Posted November 13, 2013 Report Share Posted November 13, 2013 Found this story over at Hovercontrol about a damaged B-17 that managed to return to base after colliding with an enemy fighter: http://garfieldsteamhouse.org/History/WWII/WWII-B17-Survival-Story.php Cheers - Dai. Link to post Share on other sites
allardjd 1,853 Posted November 13, 2013 Report Share Posted November 13, 2013 I've seen this before and this seems to be an updated (and corrected) version. As originally written, after bombing the Tunis docks the miraculous return was to the UK. This version indicates the base was in Algeria and is probably correct. No one was bombing Tunisia from Britain - that would have been a pretty long haul, even in the long-legged B-17. At the end of the story the fuselage "collapsed to the ground" but the photos don't show it bent or broken - it just looks like the tail wheel retracted. That was a tough old bird and had a reputation for bringing the crews home with horrendous damage to the airframe. Much better than the B-24 which had a glass jaw and a low flash point. Good story. Real heroes in those days. John Link to post Share on other sites
britfrog 180 Posted November 13, 2013 Report Share Posted November 13, 2013 go on Dai see if this is on snopes!! ) Link to post Share on other sites
brett 2,284 Posted November 13, 2013 Report Share Posted November 13, 2013 Maybe you should check it Dai, looks more like a goose strike to me. Thanks for the link Dai, that is one hell of a story and one hell of an aircraft, amazing. Link to post Share on other sites
Kevin Firth 114 Posted November 13, 2013 Report Share Posted November 13, 2013 That is one awesome set of photos, and another good reason if ever any were needed why ppl should wear a poppy at this time of year.... Link to post Share on other sites
Gunner 69 Posted November 13, 2013 Report Share Posted November 13, 2013 Amazing story and a nice finding. Thnx for it . Link to post Share on other sites
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