Posted on 10/06/2006 6:42:29 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
ATHENS, Greece - Greek military divers Friday successfully raised the wreckage of a German World War II Stuka bomber from the sea off the eastern island of Rhodes, the air force said.
The Junkers-87 dive-bomber was shot down in 1943 and will be conserved and displayed at the air force museum at an airport near Athens, air force spokesman Col. Ioannis Papageorgiou said.
Papageorgiou said there was no trace of the two airmen's bodies.
"The plane was raised a couple of hours ago, and I don't know yet whether there are any remains inside," he told The Associated Press.
He said part of the plane's tail section appeared to be missing.
The two-seater's wreckage was located two years ago by a trawler, which caught it in its nets seven miles offshore at a depth of 492 feet, and dragged it close to the island's southern coast.
Air force experts believe the plane was part of a Luftwaffe squadron operating from Rhodes that lost several Stukas to allied ships and aircraft on Oct. 9, 1943.
"Once we locate the serial number, we will be able to identify the plane, what squadron it belonged to and the crew," Papageorgiou said.
Fitted with a screaming siren for maximum psychological effect, the gull-winged, single-engine Stuka was a feared symbol of Nazi military power.
Used in action in the Spanish Civil War, it played a major role in the German invasions of Poland and France, but was outdated and severely outgunned by allied fighters by 1943.
Out of some 6,000 aircraft produced between 1936 and 1944, only two survive intact in museums, while the wrecks of three more Stukas have been salvaged.
I had one of those too, it was black plastic. My Brother had the "Flying Tiger" model, but he crashed it into a telephone pole. Next time I'm back in Jersey I'll have to check and see if my Mom still has it in the garage. No radio controlled stuff back in those days. I used to always have trouble getting the engine to start!! Semper Fidelis.
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." -Manuel II Paleologus
I remember hearing their dreadful screams. They were terrible, out-of-date aircraft, but were they terrifying!
It was a siren mounted on (I think) the wheel strut, controlled by the pilot when they started their dive.
I have to laugh when I watch movies, archive film, etc. with any airplane diving. They all go into the obligatory "Stuka siren scream".
It's short for Sturtzkampfflugzeug - which I presume means dive bomber. Kind of like Gestapo is short for Geheime Staats Polizei - secret state police.
Rudel also sank a Russian battleship with one well-placed bomb.
Also was the radio operator.
It's the symbol for WW II.
dont forget the russian battleship that he is credited with sinking.
The SBD of course!Faster and a little heavier bomb load. Ask the japanese navy which was better oh wait you cant,they are on the bottom of the pacific.
Ask the Poles, the French Army at Sedan, the British Navy at Crete, and just about anybody in the Soviet Army. They'll disagree.
didnt turn the war around like the dauntless did in the battle of midway.
Tailgunner, as already pointed out, and radio operator.
Take a look at the picture. He was the tail gunner.
He also sank a battleship, two cruisers and a destroyer. He was shot down or force-landed 32 times (several times behind enemy lines), always somehow managing to escape capture despite Stalin himself putting a 100,000 rouble bounty on his head. He was also wounded five times and rescued six stranded aircrew from enemy territory. The vast majority of his missions were spent piloting the various models of the Junkers Ju 87, though by the end of the war he was flying the ground-attack variant of the Fw 190. (wiki)
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