WWII Airplane discovered in the Sahara Desert - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

kerry · #1 05-11-2012, 02:34 PM

Crashed plane of Second World War pilot Dennis Copping discovered in the Sahara desert | Mail Online

MS Fowler · #2 05-11-2012, 02:50 PM

Reminds me of an episode of Twilight Zone.

cmac2012 · #3 05-11-2012, 02:54 PM

Dang, that's some rough looking real estate. And 200 miles from the nearest town? Wow.

Amazing how wrecks like that will sit for years undiscovered. Some years back, search teams were going through the Pasayten Wilderness (north of the North Cascades pass in WA state) looking for a lost hiker and found the several years old wreckage of a light plane with the remains of two passengers. Also found was several hundred K in cash. Conclusion was that they were going to Canada to buy drugs and their flight plan had not been known.

Makes you wonder. What would you do if you discovered wreckage like that?

MS Fowler · #4 05-11-2012, 05:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cmac2012

Dang, that's some rough looking real estate. And 200 miles from the nearest town? Wow.

Amazing how wrecks like that will sit for years undiscovered. Some years back, search teams were going through the Pasayten Wilderness (north of the North Cascades pass in WA state) looking for a lost hiker and found the several years old wreckage of a light plane with the remains of two passengers. Also found was several hundred K in cash. Conclusion was that they were going to Canada to buy drugs and their flight plan had not been known.

Makes you wonder. What would you do if you discovered wreckage like that?

What wreckage?

toomany MBZ · #5 05-11-2012, 06:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MS Fowler

Reminds me of an episode of Twilight Zone.

Me too.

Hatterasguy · #6 05-11-2012, 06:25 PM

Lots of stuff still laying in the desert, no one picked up the debris.

MS Fowler · #7 05-11-2012, 08:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by toomany MBZ

Me too.

We must be about the same age--you old guy.

kerry · #8 05-11-2012, 10:10 PM

Video:

WWII Curtiss P40 Found in Desert | Military.com

kerry · #9 05-11-2012, 10:16 PM

Whole set of photos:
https://picasaweb.google.com/114682566226043469349/Zdj_samolot?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCKjxkt6rkNTFKg&feat=directlink#

elchivito · #10 05-11-2012, 10:26 PM

Fascinating

toomany MBZ · #11 05-11-2012, 10:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MS Fowler

We must be about the same age--you old guy.

It's possible.

cmac2012 · #12 05-11-2012, 11:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MS Fowler

What wreckage?

That'd probably be me. If you had GPS, I guess you could submit an anonymous report. Or maybe bury them on the spot? Weird thing is, I've wanted to go hiking in the Pasayten for decades.

The Sahara.

I'm fixated on those pictures of that piece of desert. I'll bet there's not even any bugs out there.

For those guys who want to terraform Mars, I say warm up on this spot. You'd have the benefit of the Oxygen, air pressure, and gravity you grew up in, so that would reduce costs significantly.

MS Fowler · #13 05-12-2012, 08:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cmac2012

That'd probably be me. If you had GPS, I guess you could submit an anonymous report. Or maybe bury them on the spot? Weird thing is, I've wanted to go hiking in the Pasayten for decades.

The Sahara.

I'm fixated on those pictures of that piece of desert. I'll bet there's not even any bugs out there.

For those guys who want to terraform Mars, I say warm up on this spot. You'd have the benefit of the Oxygen, air pressure, and gravity you grew up in, so that would reduce costs significantly.

Oh THAT wreckage. What money? I never saw any money.....

retmil46 · #14 05-12-2012, 12:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MS Fowler

Reminds me of an episode of Twilight Zone.

Actually, there was a made-for-tv movie back in the 70's, starring Richard Basehart, that was a sci-fi/paranormal/fictionalized account of a similar find many years before - of a B-24 that became lost returning from a raid and over shot it's base on the North African coast, continuing far south until it ran out of fuel and crashed deep in the Libyan desert.

MS Fowler · #15 05-12-2012, 02:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by retmil46

Actually, there was a made-for-tv movie back in the 70's, starring Richard Basehart, that was a sci-fi/paranormal/fictionalized account of a similar find many years before - of a B-24 that became lost returning from a raid and over shot it's base on the North African coast, continuing far south until it ran out of fuel and crashed deep in the Libyan desert.

Maybe its the same story. What made me think of Twilight Zone was the story was told as a flash back by one of the members of the crew. The person listening did not believe the story, and thought the guy was suffering from a form of dementia--until the crew member fell asleep (or died). Them as the "listener" was leaving he found that the crew member's shoes were full of sand.

Memories fade after 50 years.