And what country can preserve its liberties if their rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance? Let them take arms. The remedy is to set them right as to facts, pardon and pacify them. What signify a few lives lost in a century or two? The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.
Thursday, August 6, 2020
B-17 “Lady B Good” after attack by Me 262 in Berlin raid, March 1945.
B-17 able to fly hundreds of miles without 1/4th of a wing. Fast forward 76 years and now Boeing's given us The 737 MAX that can't fly 20 miles with MCAS software.
That might've only been a single 30mm shell hit, too. If it'd hit further forward, it could've broken the main wing spar and that'd be all she wtote for the plane and entire crew.
My Dad said the 262's he saw came through so fast they couldn't swing the guns around to get off a burst before they were gone. He was grateful for two things most of all: The extended range of the P-51 when the external fuel tanks were finally added, and the fact that the 262's didn't show up any earlier.
This ship from my dad's group was named "Dead Man's Hand" after the tail number. It was the last combat loss of the war for the group. Scroll down to read the Missing A/C Report.
http://www.447bg.com/42-31188.htm
The Me-262 was armed with four 30mm cannons. Paraphrasing an interview with Chuck Yeager, he felt that cannon shells tended to explode on contact, blowing away a lot of sheet metal, and that our 50 cal rounds did a much better job of penetrating to hit vital parts.
Takes a lickin’ and keeps on tickin’
ReplyDeleteB-17 able to fly hundreds of miles without 1/4th of a wing. Fast forward 76 years and now Boeing's given us The 737 MAX that can't fly 20 miles with MCAS software.
ReplyDeleteThat might've only been a single 30mm shell hit, too. If it'd hit further forward, it could've broken the main wing spar and that'd be all she wtote for the plane and entire crew.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if this Lady Be Good is the same as that Lady Be Good...
ReplyDeletehttps://unwritten-record.blogs.archives.gov/2017/06/16/lost-and-found-the-story-of-lady-be-good-and-her-crew/
No, the one in the desert was a B-24
ReplyDeleteMy Dad said the 262's he saw came through so fast they couldn't swing the guns around to get off a burst before they were gone. He was grateful for two things most of all: The extended range of the P-51 when the external fuel tanks were finally added, and the fact that the 262's didn't show up any earlier.
ReplyDeleteThis ship from my dad's group was named "Dead Man's Hand" after the tail number. It was the last combat loss of the war for the group. Scroll down to read the Missing A/C Report.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.447bg.com/42-31188.htm
The Me-262 was armed with four 30mm cannons. Paraphrasing an interview with
Chuck Yeager, he felt that cannon shells tended to explode on contact, blowing away a lot of sheet metal, and that our 50 cal rounds did a much better job of penetrating to hit vital parts.