# Ditching a B-24



## Milosh (Aug 28, 2013)

_View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WjadMxpXprk_

Of interest is the fuselage breaking where the upper turret would be.


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## Matt308 (Aug 28, 2013)

The whole time I was watching, I was under the impression that it was under control of an autopilot.  I'm amazed the pilots weren't dead, let alone hurt. Amazing. They walk out the upper hatch and come their hair nonchalantly.


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## Gnomey (Aug 28, 2013)

Remarkable footage! Thanks for sharing.


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## GrauGeist (Aug 28, 2013)

Noticed the engines tore free of thier mounts. Wonder if they're still down there...


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## N4521U (Aug 28, 2013)

NASA........ 1944??? whot?

Steel bottom?


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## GrauGeist (Aug 28, 2013)

Looks like this Lib was modified for this event. Re-inforced innards and even a dark level line painted against a light background on the fuselage.

This was a study for ditching techniques, perhaps?


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## vikingBerserker (Aug 28, 2013)

The man lands a B-24 in the water, climbs out and combs his hair. The greatest generation had some class!


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## GrauGeist (Aug 28, 2013)

vikingBerserker said:


> The man lands a B-24 in the water, climbs out and combs his hair. The greatest generation had some class!



*Like a Boss!*


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## Matt308 (Aug 28, 2013)

yep


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## tyrodtom (Aug 29, 2013)

Notice how they made some elbow and knee pads out of rags and tape.

That aircraft was reinforced in the bomb bay area, and it still broke.
I wonder what a regular B-24 , turrets and no reinforcing, would do under the same conditions.


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## Matt308 (Aug 29, 2013)

I can't believe that they risked two test pilots for something that they could have used a remote control flight control system. This is 1944.


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## GrauGeist (Aug 29, 2013)

Perhaps they wanted an evaluation of the deacceleration forces on crewmembers as well. That's just a guess, though.

The one thing that comes to mind though, is that a human's tactile responses would have been far greater than any remote pilot capabilities of that time period. In the video, you could see control surfaces compensating as the Lib contacted the water, trying to keep the port wing from dipping while keeping as much 70 degree nose up attitude as possible.


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## Matt308 (Aug 29, 2013)

With all the equipment removed at the end, there had to be a 3 axis accelerometer in there somewhere.


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## GrauGeist (Aug 29, 2013)

It would be interesting to know what all equipment they had installed for the test...

There certainly were enough ships and aircraft there during thevtest, including the special high frame rate camera aboard one of rhe ships to capture the ditching.

Also noticed how dang fast that launch got over to the Lib after it came to a rest.


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## Glider (Aug 29, 2013)

In Coastal COmmand the B24 was considered to be a very poor ditcher. The Fuselage would inevitably break around the bomb bay and it would sink very quickly. The bomb bay doors were considered to be the weakspot, about which nothing could be done.


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## Njaco (Aug 29, 2013)

The "Combing Hair" part had to be staged. In one scene you see them climbing out well before the launch arrived, so who was filming the comb sequence? Staged..........


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## GrauGeist (Aug 29, 2013)

With as many cameras, both still and movie, covering the event as they were, I am fairly sure someone was able to get them on film.

And don't say photoshopped!!


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## Matt308 (Aug 30, 2013)

I don't think that was staged actually. Perhaps multiple takes, but that looks like a pilot move.

I used to be directly involved in flight test activities for modern two and four engine large commercial airplanes and every one of the flight test pilots were type A characters. Legends in their own minds with idiosyncracies to match. Mr. Les Berven was a personal hero. He used to attend pre-briefs in bare feet and sit cross-legged against the wall directing flight test validation test scripts. And he was the chief test pilot for multiple $100M airplane type certification developments. Les was also the guy who certified the James Bond BD-5 jet airplane that flew through the barn. Mr. Berven was officially recognized upon his passing in a large article in Aviation Week for this contributions to commercial aerospace.

These type of guys were actual characters larger than life. I know, I lived it.

http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/archive/?date=20011223&slug=berven230


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## bobbysocks (Sep 3, 2013)

that's a dream job....walk in and ask " hey boss, what plane do i get to wreck in today?"


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## tyrodtom (Sep 4, 2013)

That seems like more of a nightmare job to me.


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