Jgwright

I just chanced upon this very interesting talk of Harald Bauer about his experiences at the age of 17 flying the He 162 as one of the 65 test pilots trained to check out the planes before they were delivered to the operational squadrons. It is quite long but I found very interesting and a very interesting question and answer session at the end. They were test flying on a runway with high snow banks either side of the runway and by the time war ended there were just 5 of the test pilots left alive the rest crashed on takeoff or landing off the runway. Makes our lives today seem very cocooned and I am so grateful never to have had to flight a war.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmJqjx9VVKM[/youtube]

John

erbroens

Thanks for sharing this one Jgwright, .. amazing testimony of survival in troubled times.




Best regards, Enrique.

pippip

My Feedback: (10)

Very interesting.... Well worth the time.

jp1961

If you want to read a fascinating book about early German jet aircraft, I recommend 'The History of German Aviation - The first jet aircraft" by Wolfgang Wagner. While the Heinkle 162 was designed to be flown by Hitler Youth, only experienced fighter pilots could fly it, something Germany didn't have toward the end of the war. The book has amazing pictures of Me-262, Heinkel He 162, and the rocket powered Me163.