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To: JoelShep
Look for a book titled "Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo" by Ted Lawson. Lawson was command pilot of the #7 plane off the Hornet, and managed to forget to put down his flaps prior to takeoff. He missed sticking it into the water by about 6 feet, when his plane staggered off the end of the deck, and in fact dropped out of sight of the deck personnel before he gained enough airspeed to fly.

After the raid, Lawson's crew flew on to China, and ran into a storm off shore. It was getting dark, and so Lawson figured he could land on a beach, wait 'til dawn, and find the airstrip in daylight. The B-25 lost an engine as they came in on final, over the water, and hit the surf at about 120 mph. Lawson's left thigh was ripped open from crotch to knee as he flew thru the canopy, the co-pilot suffered the same to his right leg, the bombardier, McClure, was slashed up when he went thru the nose greenhouse, and the navigator broke both shoulders.

The crew washed ashore, still alive, and the only unhurt man, Thatcher, the gunner, connected up with Chinese guerillas, who smuggled the whole crew on stretchers to Chungking. Lawson wound up losing his leg above the knee to infection, and then got home to write his book.

You have to wonder if clinton, or baldwin, could have done it for real...

55 posted on 04/18/2002 11:08:06 PM PDT by jonascord
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To: jonascord
Good post But after watching pearl harbor and who they had play J.D. still makes me want to barf. Do you thing I can sue for Phy. damage ?
56 posted on 04/19/2002 1:23:52 AM PDT by quietolong
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To: jonascord
As a matter of fact, under the "Letters of Marque" provision, the idea of guided missles is not totally out of bounds. Why should "guided" missiles be a federal monopoly? Socialism is letting the government do your thinking for you.

Besides, there is actually no reason that someone could not or should not be able to put a package into orbit. If we had waited for the government to provide us with airplanes and automobiles, everyone would still be walking...

59 posted on 04/20/2002 11:37:32 AM PDT by jonascord
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