A US WWII bomber has emerged from a melting glacier in Iceland 76 years after it crashed on it way to England.

The B-17 Flying Fortress bomber flew into the Eyjafjallajokull glacier in southern Iceland on September 16, 1944.

Miraculously all of its 10 crew members survived but the wreckage was abandoned and was covered and swallowed up by glacier.

Today, with global warming stripping the land of ice, the war plane has re-appeared, mangled and torn but still able to provide a fascinating glimpse into the past.


Locals examine the wreckage on the melted glacier in the south of Iceland.



https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8762209/US-WWII-bomber-emerges-glacier-Iceland-melting-climate-change-76-years-crash.html?ito=social-facebook

The US bomber was on it was to England after landing at Keflavik Airport to refuel.

However, the weather conditions were poor in Iceland and the bomber was caught in a down-draught before crashing into the ice cap.

Fortunately, the plane landed on soft snow and kept sliding along its fuselage until coming to an abrupt stop at a snow bank.

One of the plane's wings was ripped off and the engines caught fire.

Some crew members were thrown into the snow through tears in the fuselage while those left on board managed to escape the plane before it caught ablaze.

The American servicemen had no idea where they were and could not send an SOS to the US Air Force base.


The crew decided to leave the glacier after two days of waiting for rescue and headed into a valley where they were helped by farmers in the area of Fljotshlio.


The US authorities later carried out two expeditions to the crash site by the end of that month.

The first made it to the plane wreck and managed to retrieve some items from it.

However, the second group had to turn back without reaching the site.


Over time, the glacier swallowed the plane, but it is now slowly coming back to view due to melting caused by global warming.

Preserved B-17 Fortress pictured, flying over Houston, Texas, in October 2011.

Heat waves and forest fires has led to Arctic sea ice melting to the second lowest level on record, according to a new study.

wow

Good thing all the crew members survived. Would be nostalgic if any of the survivors are alive to see this

Global warming is real.

Oyibo pipu and record keepings are inseperable. Definitely, d parts will b taken 2 d museum


In my dear country, aboki 4 don pick d parts 4 scrabs b4 reasonable pipu go identify say na parts of plane wey crash sometime ago

76 years ago? That is still during Nigeria's colonial era.

And these metals and rubber still look fresh as if they were abandoned just 2 years ago. Pls which materials were used for the propeller and tyres?

Metal rods used in constructing our post colonial bridges in Nigeria have all rusted.

Bridges and houses collapsing everywhere. Even gas pipelines getting exploded due to age, not more than 30 years.

Wow,glad to hear they all survived

Wow!

Do they really all survive the crash
Are those not human bones?l

Check the Topic..
It should be Emerges, and not Energies

Nah eh! No qualms
This is so sophisticated

Thank God the all survived that year shaa

Explorer is the bomb..

Man of his own style wey no dey copy anybody.. Very innovative post


E get one guy wey wan be Slawormir wannabe, enupad.an, all his post always no point....

Notin reasonable


Nice one explorer, better people dey benefit from ur post..

Imagine wetin this earth don swallow.. there's this adage that says. " Ground no dey belefull"

Sometimes I wonder how these Icelandic names came up.. Which one is Eyjafjallajokull abeg?

Simplyleo:
76 years ago? That is still during Nigeria's colonial era.

And these metals and rubber still look fresh as if they were abandoned just 2 years ago. Pls which materials were used for the propeller and tyres?

Metal rods used in constructing our post colonial bridges in Nigeria have all rusted.

Bridges and houses collapsing everywhere. Even gas pipelines getting exploded due to age, not more than 30 years.

It was preserved in the ice... Dats y it still looks somewhat fresh..

Coder2Client:
Do they really all survive the crash Are those not human bones?l

Na Only you Sabi where you see the human bones o

Any reason for the news when same type of plane are still in their yard for reference.

SlyCharlie:
Na Only you Sabi where you see the human bones o

Don't mind me, d 3rd Pic looks like there bones in it

SlyCharlie:
Na Only you Sabi where you see the human bones o

Don't mind me, d 3rd Pic looks like there bones in it

Nbotee:


It was preserved in the ice... Dats y it still looks somewhat fresh..

Water (Ice) and metals are not friends so there's no way the Ice "preserved" the propeller which is made of metal.

Them no teach you for secondary school?

BluntNigerian:
Check the Topic..
It should be Emerges, and not Energies

Thanks bro, typo.

Eyjafjallajokull

What is this?

Dudes must have hit the eject button before the crash.

Would have been horrid to see preserved remains amongst the rubble

armadeo:
Dudes must have hit the eject button before the crash.

Would have been horrid to see preserved remains amongst the rubble

These planes don't have that, read through second post.

Explorers:


These planes don't have that, read through second post.

You are right. Those days, bombers have a hole on the floor of the carrier were they can escape from the impending crash, while their counterparts, the jet fighters will have to manually open their canopy to leave the aircraft.

dfrost:


You are right. Those days, bombers have a hole on the floor of the carrier were they can escape from the impending crash, while their counterparts, the jet fighters will have to manually open their canopy to leave the aircraft.

You can only leave the cockpit of a stable plane to jump out, not a spinning or burning plane.

The modern fighter jets have something beside the pilot seats, they pull it during emergency and it lauches the pilot together with the seat.

In the air, pilot detach from seat and open parachute.

dangermouse:
Global warming is real.

so Before humans weather changed eg ice ace.

Coder2Client:


Don't mind me, d 3rd Pic looks like there bones in it

bro shebi u know about nav controllers. Does that mean we would no longer use intents to navigating