B-17 Accident during Memphis Belle Movie Filming

[Django]

Yeah, thanks for posting the pics from filming! Neat.

[Jesse C.]

I've always assumed that the wreckage was used for the post-crash fire scene in the opening sequence..can anyone confirm?
SN

No, this was not used for the opening scene. They actually built a mock up for the scene and then the accident happened. Kinda eerie how they look almost alike in the end.

[Larry Kraus]

It's hard to see much detail in the video,but the narration mentions a white puff of smoke from the right side of the aircraft just before the loss of control.I'd speculate that it might be caused by the right brake locking up for whatever reason.That could definitely make directional control a major problem prior to lifting off.

[bomberflight]

We had a thread going on the making of the movie last year

viewtopic.php?f=3&t=28829

It's my hope that "someone" will try and document the making of the movie while images still exist and they're not consigned from the shoe box in the garage to the garbage trash can

Maybe it's a winter 2010 WIX project to get all those images scanned for posterity ? I'm guilty of not doing this so far

Maybe we need Scott Thompson at Aero Vintage Books to write it up and publish it if there's enough material available ?

++ Added Footnote ! The link I posted in the thread mentioned above no longer works ~ but I went into my Flickr account and fished this out to share .....

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bomberflig ... 766788836/

[mustangdriver]

I'd be more than happy to volunteer for that. I have a pretty good scanner and will have the time in the winter. Let me know if anyone is interested.

[B-17 Buff]

It was a brake lock up and swing on take off that caused the crash - it happened at a critical speed/ point in the take off role as evident in the news reel. French IGN a/c F-BEEA (the only B-17 at the time still earning a living). Lots has been discussed on this topic over on the flypast forum over the years! I have pictures of the crash but cant seem to upload them here at the moment!

Indeed Billy Zane did buy the Vertical Stabilizer for his house and the remains did look very similar to the mock up produced prior to the accident happening...

[ZRX61]

[Fortress Fan]

"It was a brake lock up and swing on take off that caused the crash - it happened at a critical speed/ point in the take off role as evident in the news reel."

Is this the official outcome,? I thought it was something else.

[ZRX61]

"It was a brake lock up and swing on take off that caused the crash - it happened at a critical speed/ point in the take off role as evident in the news reel."

Is this the official outcome,? I thought it was something else.

I think it also hit something right next to the runway, a light perhaps?

[p51]

"It was a brake lock up and swing on take off that caused the crash - it happened at a critical speed/ point in the take off role as evident in the news reel."
Is this the official outcome,? I thought it was something else.

I remember talking to Tallichet’s people about this right after they got back to the US. They all swore that the French crew had shoehorned the wheel onto that aircraft and how it didn’t fit right when it was being mounted and that they were aware of that. I’ll never forget what one of them said, “What really caused that crash? French pride, that’s what!” Bear I mind, there’s always infighting and backstabbing among some airplane crews, I know it all too well, but these guys swore they were there and knew about the bad fit of that wheel even before the crash happened.
Still, I wonder why though no effort was made to film the remains, maybe a scene of some of the cast walking by, looking at it to remind them of the cost of their job and then walking on.

I think it also hit something right next to the runway, a light perhaps?

a tree and a gravel pile for sure, I don't there was any poles out that way.

[ZRX61]

a tree and a gravel pile for sure, I don't there was any poles out that way.

I think it was just a runway marker light or 2... & the ditch didn't help matters much either.

[Mike]

I think the mock-up used for the movie crash scene was based on a Percival Sea Prince or Pembroke IIRC.

I've got some shots from the filming which I'll post up at the weekend.

Oh, and sorry I missed you at Camarillo on Sunday ZRX61

[Fortress Fan]

Ok, well it certainly hit a pile of gravel, but that was quite a way off to the right of the runway, also the tree was further away as well.
Not sure about "shoehorned the wheel onto that aircraft", as I never saw any of the B-17 's with a flat tyre, (Only Daves B-17 at Duxford).

From the video and pictures I took at the time, from standing on the runway facing the direction of the take off run, you could see skid marks but the B-17 went over to the left some way quite rapidly, before suddenly veering off to the right, then in a straight line directly into the large pile of gravel on the taxi way, hitting engine 4. You could see the prop marks in the gravel, then further on the left wing struck a tree, cutting a large wingtip shape section out of it.

Also after the subsequent fire had been put out, and looking at the torn off engines, to me and several others, also talking to the pilot, that he suffered a sudden massive overboost on the number 4 engine, halfway into the takeoff run (the carb had melted and the only burnt part on this engine and nacelle was the rear cowlings covering the carb) this lead to him veering over to the left rapidly, then after he managed to get the B-17 straight again, the number 4 engine lost all power. hence the B-17 veering over to the right, after getting the B-17 back in a straight line, about 35 degrees off the runway centreline, he opted to try and continue the take off on 3 engines.

We all believed that if the gravel had not been there, he would of achieved this.

This is purely my interpretation of events that day.
I was supposed to be on that flight, but was ill in the morning so stood down.
But my girlfriend at the time was on board, for her first flight in a B-17, just never quite got airbourne.

She hates flying now, understandably.

[ZRX61]

I was supposed to be on that flight, but was ill in the morning so stood down.
But my girlfriend at the time was on board, for her first flight in a B-17, just never quite got airbourne.
She hates flying now, understandably.

She's looking at it from the wrong perspective. I've stepped off a few motorcycles over the years (last time it shut down the 5 & 14 North & the 210 connector) but I still like riding bikes. It's the bloody crashing part I hate