The B-17 Gunner Who Fell 20,000 Feet with No Parachute (And Lived) - A True Story

Alan Magee was a B-17 Bomber Gunner in World War II with one of the most amazing survival stories of World War II. He had an amazing ordeal when he was thrown from the aircraft at 20,000 feet with no parachute. This was made using the World War II flight simulator IL-2 Sturmovik Great Battles series. Hope you enjoy! Please like, comment, and subscribe.

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[markporter]

My grandfather was a navigator on a B17. During one of his missions his plane took fire and shrapnel struck him on the forehead flooding his oxygen mask with blood. This forced him to remove his mask but at altitude he couldn't breathe and passed out. One of his crewmembers found him and thought he was dead but rather than let him go down with the plane through him out. Once he had fallen far enough to get some oxygen, he regained consciousness, found himself in free fall, and deployed his parachute. He landed in a German family's back yard. They rendered him first aid and were happy to do so as they explained that their son was a POW in England and had been treated well by the Brits. Eventually the Germans rounded him up and he spent the remainder of the war in Stalag Luft 3. Upon returning to the states, he went on to become a lawyer in San Antonio, TX until he died in 1991. They definitely deserve the title of "Greatest Generation"!

[miked]

"We are enemies, but I am first a doctor" I sincerely hope that doctor made it thru the war and enjoyed a life of peace afterwards.

[coling]

Flt/Sgt Nicholas Stephen Alkemade, had a similar story, he was rear-gunner on a RAF Lancaster named "Werewolf" in 1944 that was set on fire by a JU-88 night-fighter in raid over Berlin.. Alkemade found his parachute had been burned, and rather than go down in a burning bomber ; he jumped..  from about 18 000 ft..!! .. and landed without injury ( apart from a twisted knee ) on snow covered fir trees..  German captors at first couldn't believe his claim. but the Luftwaffe investigated and confirmed his story. The Germans even gave him a certificate of his action. Alkemade was made a pow for the remainder of the war.  He lived until 1987.

[johnmeadows]

That is amazing. My nephew had the same kind of experience when he was at West Point. His parachute failed to open during training and he fell to earth, but survived with a broken back. He is now doing well, and living in Switzerland.

[janpost]

One of the things that might have contributed to his survival is the fact that he was unconscious. This way you are unable to brace for impact and your body is thus relaxed and much more able to absorb the impact without breaking tightened muscles and such.
That said, this was an absolute miracle and incredible story. Glad I heard about it.

[mantia]

This is NOTHING short of a miracle. And the fact that the German doc was there, and actually helped him adds to that.

[walterfechter]

That bomber crewman not only had angels on both shoulders, but he also had angels all around him.

[benatx]

Very thoughtful that a monument was erected in the B17 crews honor. Good job telling this story. Thank you

[SimonAmazingClarke]

I'd never heard of this one. But I know of the rear gunner who had a similar experience in a Lancaster. He landed in thich tree's and bushes which saved his life.

[TJ]

Thanks for watching guys! Obviously there were some challenges I had to overcome with the visuals of this video. (No B-17s in my flight sim, Very few actual images of this event, And they don't have the option for bodies to fly through glass roofs in my games lol). But I did my best! Hope you guys enjoy and appreciate you supporting me as I get sponsors to support my content :)

[mojoneko]

Lucky guy. I'm surprised he ever got in an airplane ever again.. I read an account in a history book years ago of another WWII bomber crew member who survived falling from +20, 000 feet without a parachute. He was the tail gunner on a bombing raid over Germany during winter. His plane took a direct hit to the bomb bay right after opening the bomb bay doors for the drop and blew the plane apart. He found himself falling to earth still in the tail section. He had no parachute on since the tail gunner position was too tight to wear one. It was stowed behind him and was lost from the explosion. He pushed himself out of the tail and was free falling and saw his burning parachute go by. He ended up falling through a stand of tall spruce trees and landed in deep snow that broke his fall. From what I remember he didn't sustain any major injuries. After the Germans captured him and took him to a prison camp, the German camp commander had a ceremony and gave him a medal.. : )
See if you can dredge up this story it would make a good episode for your channel. I think the book I read it in was on the history of the parachute but it was back in the 70's.. Thanks for the video!

[fastone]

I spent a lot of years skydiving I’ve probably seen like 10 or 12 people go in and only one survived and that was a miracle in fact when I called the sheriffs office back to tell them to rush it he still alive they thought we were kidding

[DavidJones-ocup]

Wow!! Great story. Never heard this one before. I don’t have words to describe his survival. It’s a pity that he wasn’t about to thank the doctor who took care of him. Says a lot of good about his character too. Thanks for sharing this.

[brokenbridge]

A very interesting story of survival. Shame Mcgee never learned about the doctor that saved his arm.

[bramverkleij]

It clearly wasn't his time to die, someone from above was watching out for him. Great story.

[thatguy]

My dad didn’t wear his flack jacket because it weighed too much with the parachute… he was hit with flack on a mission.
He never said anything about getting hit to his command, but had the scars…. He didn’t say anything, because he didn’t want to get in trouble. He wore it from then on through his 35 missions.

[DONALDSON]

I recall the same thing happening to a Lancaster bomber gunner. Aircraft on fire and he couldn't reach his chute so jumped out. Think he landed in trees and snow drift and survived with minor injuries

[sclogse]

Way back there was a short film done of this with a wild background and an actor who screamed his head off, passed out, then woke up still falling and started screaming again. You could download the film. The background had bombers and zeppelins at Dutch angles which worked to add a crazed energy to it. Hope you find it.

[ssm]

I´ve heard that a Lancaster tail-gunner experienced almost the same. He landed in some pine trees and deep snow

[davidhimmelsbach]

One tale told: a B-17 flying out of the 15th Air Force was cut in half by a newbie BF-109 pilot. The sole survivor being the tail-gunner. The shock knocked him out. When he came to, the tail was gliding backwards towards the earth. It landed so sweetly that he just walked out to daylight. He was captured, so it took quite a while for his tale to make the rounds. IIRC, he didn't even get a Purple Heart.