jfreakofkorn
Hero Member
Missing U.S. bomber lost over Siberia during Second World War is found after 70 years
US bomber loaned to Stalin that was lost over Siberia found after 70 years | Mail Online
The first pictures have emerged of a U.S. bomber lost over Siberia during the Second World War after its wreckage was found this summer.
The Douglas A-20 Havoc (DB-7) was loaned to Stalin under the World War II Lend-Lease programme but it crashed in 1943 en route from Alaska to the eastern front in Europe.
The crew of four is believed to have died when the aircraft hit the ground.
The plane was located in July in a pristine and remote mountainous area of Kemerovo region's 4,129 square kilometre Kuznetsky Alatau wildlife reserve.
A hunter in the remote taiga had reported seeing the plane as long ago as 1966 but could not retrace his steps or explain its location.
This year the reserve's director Alexey Vasilchenko, 52, found the plane while on an unrelated research trip.
One large part of the wreckage is plainly visible from the air on a ridge on Zelyonaya mountain, which makes it surprising that it was not located sooner, despite the remoteness of its location.
'Remains of the crew were not found,' the reserve's spokesman Nadezhda Eliseeva told The Siberian Times.
However, the plane's identification number F216 was visible on its fuselage, which leads to hope that the names of the crew of four who perished in the crash can be identified.
'The wreckage was discovered during research on other work. It was a chance discovery in the north of the reserve,' she said.
The aircraft had 'crashed to pieces with fragments of the plane covering a large area'.
The plane was one of 3,400 such aircraft supplied by the US to the Soviet air force as the Allies sought to restrain Hitler.
'When the team noticed big fragments of the plane, they said that it was hard to understand how previous expeditions failed to find them,' said Ms Eliseeva.
'As they walked towards the big parts of the aircraft, they saw and picked up smaller fragments strewn on the ground.
'They were surprised to see that the plane's metal had not lost its shine after so many years of harsh Siberian weather.
'The main thing they managed to detect was the plane's tail number which was F216.'
The reason for the crash is not known.
There were no hostilities in this part of Russia and the most likely explanation is seen as the plane losing its bearings in poor weather as it crossed mountainous terrain.
No decision has been made yet on what will happen to the aircraft wreck.
One option is to exhibit some parts in the reserve's museum.
During the Second World War - known as the Great Patriotic War to Russians - the USSR received more than $11 billion worth of military equipment and other supplies from the United States.
US bomber loaned to Stalin that was lost over Siberia found after 70 years | Mail Online
The first pictures have emerged of a U.S. bomber lost over Siberia during the Second World War after its wreckage was found this summer.
The Douglas A-20 Havoc (DB-7) was loaned to Stalin under the World War II Lend-Lease programme but it crashed in 1943 en route from Alaska to the eastern front in Europe.
The crew of four is believed to have died when the aircraft hit the ground.
The plane was located in July in a pristine and remote mountainous area of Kemerovo region's 4,129 square kilometre Kuznetsky Alatau wildlife reserve.
A hunter in the remote taiga had reported seeing the plane as long ago as 1966 but could not retrace his steps or explain its location.
This year the reserve's director Alexey Vasilchenko, 52, found the plane while on an unrelated research trip.
One large part of the wreckage is plainly visible from the air on a ridge on Zelyonaya mountain, which makes it surprising that it was not located sooner, despite the remoteness of its location.
'Remains of the crew were not found,' the reserve's spokesman Nadezhda Eliseeva told The Siberian Times.
However, the plane's identification number F216 was visible on its fuselage, which leads to hope that the names of the crew of four who perished in the crash can be identified.
'The wreckage was discovered during research on other work. It was a chance discovery in the north of the reserve,' she said.
The aircraft had 'crashed to pieces with fragments of the plane covering a large area'.
The plane was one of 3,400 such aircraft supplied by the US to the Soviet air force as the Allies sought to restrain Hitler.
'When the team noticed big fragments of the plane, they said that it was hard to understand how previous expeditions failed to find them,' said Ms Eliseeva.
'As they walked towards the big parts of the aircraft, they saw and picked up smaller fragments strewn on the ground.
'They were surprised to see that the plane's metal had not lost its shine after so many years of harsh Siberian weather.
'The main thing they managed to detect was the plane's tail number which was F216.'
The reason for the crash is not known.
There were no hostilities in this part of Russia and the most likely explanation is seen as the plane losing its bearings in poor weather as it crossed mountainous terrain.
No decision has been made yet on what will happen to the aircraft wreck.
One option is to exhibit some parts in the reserve's museum.
During the Second World War - known as the Great Patriotic War to Russians - the USSR received more than $11 billion worth of military equipment and other supplies from the United States.
