Posted on 06/07/2024 8:38:15 PM PDT by Morgana
Retired American astronaut William Anders, who was part of the Apollo 8 mission in 1968, has died after his small plane crashed into Puget Sound in Washington State.
The 90-year-old died after the small aircraft he was piloting crashed near Orcas Island on Friday, resulting in a fireball as the plane hit the water.
Officials with the United States Coast Guard Pacific Northwest said the crash happened just before 11:45am on Friday.
Video footage shot on the Sound shows the plane flying high in the sky before it plummets as it begins a dive.
Just before the plane began to level off, the aircraft hits the water at speed with not enough altitude for Anders to pull up safely, resulting in a huge splash and fireball.
His son Greg Anders, confirmed his death saying: 'The family is devastated. He was a great pilot and we will miss him terribly.'
The San Juan County Sheriff's Office detailed how the aircraft was an old model that had been flying from north to south when it crashed down into the water and sunk.
The plane that crashed was a vintage Air Force Beech T-34A Mentor that belonged to Anders who was a resident of San Juan County.
Station Bellingham, Air Station Port Angeles, Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife and the U.S. Coast Guard are responding with search and rescue efforts.
Anders' mission fifty six years ago on Christmas Eve 1968, came after a tumultuous year of assassinations, riots and war drew to a close in heroic and hopeful fashion with the three Apollo 8 astronauts reading from the Book of Genesis on live TV as they orbited the moon.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
Crashing?!
Pure bullschiff. You need to explain why people who want to keep historical aircraft flying are “some of the worst people on the planet”. As for your claim of “greed”, wtf are you talking about? These aircraft are extremely expensive to buy or restore, and equally expensive to maintain and fly. And the T34 he was flying might technically be called a warbird, but it is a training aircraft that shares a heritage with the Beech Bonanza, an excellent plane that I flew when I was working on my instrument rating.
So much for there not being old and bold pilots.
One could have gone out with such an intention — and then had survival instincts kick in.
“You got to admire anyone who is still flying at age 90. RIP Mr Anders.”
RIP
One of my earliest heroes. The Tigers had just won the World Series and Apollo 8 went to the moon on Christmas Eve. RIP
I wonder if he was listening to John Denver music.
Touched a nerve did I?
If there was a fireball he had plenty of fuel.
Maybe Anders purchased used parts from the same place Denvers got his that killed them both?
Hardly. You offered nothing of substance, and I have very little tolerance for BS.
Huh?
Very sorry to hear this - but makes me wonder what happened, he was a flying ace - but also 90 years old.
Sad but ironic: a guy who routinely shot into space atop thousands of pounds of explosive rocket fuel dies in a plane crash.
He suffered a medical issue.
No able bodied pilot with any experience would put an aircraft in that nose attitude unless he was doing aerobatics. Anders was not conscious.
It looks like he was doing a barrel roll and didn’t make it.
Good interview with Bill here....from 6 years ago, he was in great shape then:
https://youtu.be/YJ0xo1NcHK0?si=owFbWbdbykdegoAh
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