Living on a wing (and a half) and a prayer

2015-02-21T14:15:12-05:00

One Viper in mid-air lands with half a wing. Over the years there have been great stories and photos of of damaged aircraft landing safely. What are some of your favorites?

http://foxtrotalpha.jalopnik.com/this-f-16-viper-managed-to-fly-back-to-base-missing-hal [login to see]

This F-16 Viper Managed To Fly Back To Base Missing Half A Wing

Last October there was a nearly fatal collision between two F-16 Vipers from the 125th Fighter Squadron of the Oklahoma Air National Guard. All we knew at the time was that one of the jets went down in a field after the pilot safely ejected, while the other managed to land with a damaged wing. But "damaged" was putting it lightly. Half of the wing was completely sheered off. Two Air National Guard F-16s Collide Over Kansas Two Air...

Response by CW5 Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 21 at 2015 4:28 PM

2015-02-21T16:28:59-05:00

One of my favorite stories along these lines ended, unfortunately, in the plane crashing. That's the "Unbroken" story. Those guys went through hell in the sky and often did come back (as I recall), but the last time they didn't make it. I recommend the book and the movie to anyone who has not yet read or seen it.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1809398/

Unbroken (2014)

Directed by Angelina Jolie. With Jack O'Connell, Miyavi, Domhnall Gleeson, Garrett Hedlund. After a near-fatal plane crash in WWII, Olympian Louis Zamperini spends a harrowing 47 days in a raft with two fellow crewmen before he's caught by the Japanese navy and sent to a prisoner-of-war camp.

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 21 at 2015 5:30 PM

2015-02-21T17:30:33-05:00

http://theaviationist.com/2014/09/15/f-15-lands-with-one-wing/

Bah, you have half a wing left...a remarkable feature still, but the F-15 Eagle has one better, with an Israeli pilot landing with a "wing and a stubby". I think the F-15 is one of the most amazing fighter aircraft in history, as it has never been shot down in combat....but have managed to score more than 90-100 aerial victories.
v/r,
CPT Butler

How an Israeli F-15 Eagle managed to land with one wing

The famous episode when an Israeli Air Force F-15 was able to land with one wing. The F-15 is not only a famous MiG Killer. The legendary Eagle is also a very robust aircraft, that can survive some…

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 21 at 2015 5:35 PM

2015-02-21T17:35:49-05:00

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wclfY0Meruw

Here's another one that amazes me. Encountering turbulence sheared off the vertical stabilizer of the B-52F, and the aircraft was flown and safely landed. Of note, they actually redirected and landed at another airport.
v/r,
CPT Butler

B-52 with no tail

In 1964, a Boeing B-52 bomber on loan from the Air Force back to Boeing for flight test encountered heavy sheer turburlance which broke the entire verticle a...