TRAPPED PILOT RESCUED
Germans Save Life Of U.S. Officer (N.Z. Press Association—Copyright)
BERLIN, September 19. A United States Air Force pilot, trapped in the cockpit of his Sabre jet, was rescued today by a former German Air Force pilot, seconds before the aeroplane exploded, the United States Air Force headquarters at Landstuhl announced.
The American, Lieutenant William B. Garvey, crashed on an autobahn when the engine failed soon after the take-off.
Gunter Dittet, the former Luftwaffe pilot, and another German, Kurt Wordel; ran after the aeroplane, climbed on the wing, and found the pilot unconscious in the cockpit, with a leg trapped. They ripped a metal part loose to free him, and a few seconds after they got him to safety the aeroplane exploded. Anyone unfamiliar with the equipment with which a jet pilot is strapped into his cockpit might have found it very difficult to get him out.
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Bibliographic details
Press, Volume LXXXIX, Issue 27151, 22 September 1953, Page 11
Word Count
149TRAPPED PILOT RESCUED Press, Volume LXXXIX, Issue 27151, 22 September 1953, Page 11
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