Simviation Forums

[size=11][color=#000000]On a blustery night 65 years ago, Frank Sutliffe and Richard Heimann heard the roar of airplane engines over their Mill Valley homes followed by a flash of light on the side of Mount Tamalpais. The two 12-year-olds talked about it the next day with their buddies at Park School and decided they would check it out after the bell rang.

Little did they know that they would be the first to stumble upon a haunting scene of mangled metal, charred supplies and burned flesh.

Sutliffe and Heimann, now 77, are two of the boys who found the wreckage of a Navy seaplane that crashed and killed all eight aboard Nov. 30, 1944. Last week they were intrigued to hear that a group of pilots from Gnoss Field in Novato and a park ranger who is an expert in Marin plane crashes recently trekked to the remote site to mark the crash's 65th anniversary.

"I wonder what's still up there," Heimann said. "I bet there are a lot of bits and pieces left."

Fascinating story. What I find most intriguing is the part about the orange Japanese bicycles. I would have to ask what made a 12 year-old boy in California in 1944 think they were Japanese.

The Army dentist who identified the bodies later said there was one other man aboard the plane not listed among the casualties. Rumors that it was somebody of considerable rank, possibly involved in the Manhattan Project, or that one of the names listed as killed was a pseudonym for a high-profile mystery man have not been proven.

It's surprising how many aircraft in unexplained crashes are rumoured to have been carrying a mysterious extra passenger, usually of high rank or involved in a top secret project. I would have to ask if this is based on fact or simply wishful thinking.

Mount Tamalpais was also the site of a number of brutal murders of Hill Walkers, etc, carried out by serial killer; David Carpenter in the late 1970's...>>>

http://www.francesfarmersrevenge.com/st ... penter.htm

A documentary of the events was covered on British Television.

A popular area for much of my FS 2004 Flights in the San Francisco Bay area. I often "Fly" over Mount Tamalpais to admire the "Bay" scenery!...>>>>

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Tamalpais

Paul.