Thanks to Just Rose for this odd story.
http://www.wmicentral.com/news/late...cle_44086eca-fdc9-5af3-bc03-fad51794a629.html
http://www.wmicentral.com/news/late...cle_361b62ae-3af6-5a8c-9c43-42ad2395365e.html
It will be interesting to see where it went!
http://www.wmicentral.com/news/late...cle_44086eca-fdc9-5af3-bc03-fad51794a629.html
On Sunday, May 6, two men flying a 1943 TBN Avenger WWII torpedo bomber ejected from the plane over the Fort Apache Reservation and survived after their parachute chair landed in the forest, hanging up on tree limbs.
The men, who have not been identified, ages 54 and 59, were flying the aircraft from California to Chicago when the incident occurred. The pilots reported seeing smoke and flames coming from the engine, according to reports relayed by the White Mountain Apache Tribal Game and Fish rangers that responded to the call.
However, the men said that the plane somehow righted itself and continued flying. They did not see the plane crash, however, the direction of travel was east-northeast towards Loafer Bench and Mt. Baldy on the Ft. Apache Indian Reservation.
To date, the plane has not been located despite coordinated efforts by WMAT Game and Fish, DPS, Forestry and the Apache County Sheriff’s office. Due to concerns about the plane causing a forest fire, multi-agency resources were employed to try and find the aircraft.
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they never found a crash site or any evidence of one. One of the parachutes was reportedly found in the location where one of the men landed after bailing out.
The men were “pretty banged up” according to WMAT Game and Fish Ranger Arvin Lavender, who was one of the first personnel to respond to the call. “One of them sustained a facial fracture in the fall from the tree where his parachute caught,” reported Acting Chief Ranger Wayne Amos. “The other one had a split on his leg, but both spent the night in the forest and were able to walk out to the highway the morning of May 7,” Amos added.
Both men were transported to Indian Health Services Hospital, treated and released where they arranged travel back to Chicago.
http://www.wmicentral.com/news/late...cle_361b62ae-3af6-5a8c-9c43-42ad2395365e.html
[....]
Because the vintage war bird reportedly righted itself and kept going for an unknown time it could have gone down some distance before finally coming down.
While pilots of the airplane said it flew “like a truck,” it had a range of more than 1,000 miles.
It is the same plane former President George H. W. Bush was flying when shot down in the Pacific during WW II.
Both Candy Lupe with Bureau of Indian Affairs Fire Management and Tribal Game and Fish officials said Monday morning, May 14, that they had not heard that anyone had found the wreckage yet.
Just after the incident Lupe said a Game and Fish fire engine and crew went out to look for it, fearing it might start a wildfire when it came down, but they could find no sign of it.
[....]
It will be interesting to see where it went!