"Page 80 (see also pages 83 and 84) has the photo as described above of P-38G-3-LO 42-12781 with its nose gear collapsed and both tailbooms broken in a downward direction. The accident took place at Wright Army Airfield, Ohio, date unknown."
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After a bit of looking around, the above serial 42-12781 is incorrect. The serial was 42-12791.
This particular P-38 was the one that had the tow relases installed and was used at CCAAF for glider towing experiments. At the time of the accident at Wright Field it apparently was flown by Edward L. Jett, later to use E. Lee Jett. At the time this accident occurred all glider experiments were being done at CCAAF, not Wright Field.
However, at that time none of the pilots who flew tugs such as Chet Decker, Lee Jett, Bob Cardenas, Floyd Sweet, Lloyd Santmeyer, Norman Rintoul, lived in Wilmington. They lived in Dayton, Dayton suburb, or Springfield and flew from Wright to CCAAF.
I find no CG-4A crashes at Wright Field during 1942-45. So, if the 42-12791 accident involved a CG-4A, the CG-4A won, or at least got stopped before it hit the P-38 and it was not damaged.
Interstingly, after instruction by Rintoul and Santmeyer, Lee Jett became the premier snatch pilot, doing over 2,000 snatches between 1942 and 1947. He flew all the planes that had a winch installed for snatcing gliders larger than a TG glider; XC-81D (human snatches), B-23 (snatches of XC-81D, BT-13, XCG-3, CG-3A), C-47 (snatch CG-4A, CG-13A (empty), Horsa (empty), CG-15A), B-17 (snatches of CG-4A, CG-13A, CG-15A, YCG-10A) and he commanded a glider exhibition war bond drive group including F/O Jackie Coogan.
_________________ Charles Day,
Silent Ones WWII Invasion Glider Test & Experiment CCAAF Wilmington Ohio
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