- My Forums
- Tiger Rant
- LSU Recruiting
- SEC Rant
- Saints Talk
- Pelicans Talk
- More Sports Board
- Fantasy Sports
- Golf Board
- Soccer Board
- O-T Lounge
- Tech Board
- Home/Garden Board
- Outdoor Board
- Health/Fitness Board
- Movie/TV Board
- Book Board
- Music Board
- Political Talk
- Money Talk
- Fark Board
- Gaming Board
- Travel Board
- Food/Drink Board
- Ticket Exchange
- TD Help Board
Customize My Forums- View All Forums
- Show Left Links
- Topic Sort Options
- Trending Topics
- Recent Topics
- Active Topics
Started By
Message
Cold War mystery: Families seek fate of missing airmen 65 years later
Posted on 7/9/15 at 3:07 pm
Posted on 7/9/15 at 3:07 pm
Interesting article from Shreveport Times. Cargo plane leaves Roswell via Barksdale and Loring AFB in Maine, headed to England carrying Strategic Air Command brass. It never arrives. Possible sabotage, possible Russian involvement. LINK
Also, Wikipedia article LINK
Also, Wikipedia article LINK
quote:
The C-124 was on a military flight from Walker Air Force Base in Roswell, New Mexico, to RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk, England, with a stopover at Loring Air Force Base in Limestone, Maine. It was commanded by Major Robert J. Bell, of the Second Strategic Support Squadron (similar to the 1950 Douglas C-54D disappearance in that respect). At a point over water, some 800 mi (700 nmi; 1,300 km) WSW of Ireland, shortly after a routine position report, the pilots issued a "Mayday" call, reporting a fire in the cargo crates.[3] They subsequently ditched the aircraft in the ocean about 453 mi (394 nmi; 729 km) west of the Irish coast. The aircraft landed safely and intact. All hands then donned life preservers and climbed into inflatable 5-man rafts equipped with numerous survival supplies, including food, water, signal flares, cold-weather gear, and "Gibson Girl" hand crank emergency radios.[1][2]
A Boeing B-29 Superfortress in the 509th Bomb Wing flew in from Ireland and spotted the rafts and flares.[3] The location was reported and the B-29 returned to base upon running low on fuel. However, when would-be rescuers (British planes, weather ships, submarine, several warships and the USS Coral Sea) arrived at the crash site over 19 hours later, on Sunday, 25 March 1951, the aircraft, along with its passengers and crew, were gone; all that was found was some charred plywood and a briefcase.[3] The survivors' bodies were never found. Overall, the fate of the crashed C-124 and its 53 occupants remains undetermined.[2] It is a known fact that Soviet submarines were operating in the area at the time,[4][3] and it has been speculated that the crew may have been "snatched".[5]
This post was edited on 7/9/15 at 3:08 pm
Posted on 7/9/15 at 3:10 pm to Jim Rockford
quote:
Roswell, New Mexico
Posted on 7/9/15 at 3:15 pm to Ace Midnight
Brian Williams probably knows, he was there.
Posted on 7/9/15 at 3:29 pm to Sparkplug#1
quote:
Brian Williams probably knows, he was there.
good one, survival chances after ditching in the North Atlantic are not super at any time of the year, and the response time for rescuers were pretty slow back then, but again, I wouldn't put it past those damn dirty commies either!
I used to do a lot of trips from HNL to the mainland and we were frequently bringing back remains of cold warriors, as well as MIA remains from other wars
This post was edited on 7/9/15 at 3:51 pm
Posted on 7/9/15 at 3:37 pm to Jim Rockford
Thanks for posting. I had never heard about this before. Here's an interesting article about a 727 that vanished from rural Africa recently: LINK
Popular
Back to top
Follow TigerDroppings for LSU Football News