If you go to the website I am posting here, you will see a short description and a couple of pictures of a friend of mine.
I, along with some friends gather at a local airport every saturday morning to have breakfast, and either fly or work on our groups aircraft. Roger Rand is one of our regulars, a great guy, quiet and humble.
Roger Rand was a B17 pilot in WW2. His story is an interesting one, and he has related some of the details to me. He will discuss his story if asked, but rarely brings it up.
Roger was on his 21st mission as Capt of a B17 when after suffering severe flack damage, and realizing the plane was not going to make it, he ordered the crew to bail out. He reached down to unfastened his seat belt, and just as he did, the plane exploded. He was throw clear of the aircraft, and he says he only survived because he had gotten his seat belt unsnapped.
The bombadier had passed out up front, due to lack of oxygen after the front end had taken so much damage and he lost his oxygen supply.
He was also throw clear of the aircraft and came to floating under his chute later. Roger tells me they are sure his chute D ring caught something on the way out causing the chute to open.
Only one other crewman survived, a total of 3 survivors from a crew that day of nine. They floated down and were captured by Hitler Youth, who Roger tells me were not too kind to them. They spent 4 and a half months in a German prison camp until the end of the war, where things were rather unpleasant I am lead to believe.
Roger brought out his logbooks to the hangar one day and let us look through them. Pretty cool seeing B17 flights listed. He is now working towards his private license after all these years away from flying.
Roger used to volunteer at Planes of Fame in Minnesota, talking to museum visitor and telling them about the B17. He was offered rides in the B17 they had there, but he tells me he always declined. His last flight was a bad one and he doesnt care to risk reliving that. He still has nightmares all these many years later.
Anyway, just thought I would share this info about Roger, a great guy and a gentleman in every sense of the word.
Check it out.
http://www.cessnat50.org/photos.htm Dago
