Just out of curiosity - Airplane Guys

However, there are a couple of genuine pics floating around of some planes lacking some serious amounts of wing that got back ok. They might even have landed successfully, but the pilots could have bailed out over friendly territory if it got too hairy.
They were our fathers or grandfathers (mothers or grandmothers) or their friends or contemporaries. Men or women in wartime find a a way to survive.
 
However, there are a couple of genuine pics floating around of some planes lacking some serious amounts of wing that got back ok. They might even have landed successfully, but the pilots could have bailed out over friendly territory if it got too hairy.


While I'm sure there are others, the Israeli F-15 that landed after losing most of it's RT wing is all that springs to mind. The F-15 is unique in that the fuselage is for all practical purposes a "lifting body." It creates lift independent of the wings. So the combination of one partial wing, one good wing and the lifting body fuselage was enough to keep it under control and in the air, albeit at a much higher landing speed... but doable obviously.

Pretty much any airplane (such as the P-47 above) with a rounded fuselage, doesn't enjoy the lifting body effect of the F-15's flat bottom fuselage. So, anytime I see a pic of a round fuselage airplane flying while missing one wing, I'm immediately skeptical.
 
https://www.facebook.com/reel/40520...fwIfwkRayxADU1ZuVT_hF8WHLVRAq7r-h4&__tn__=H-R
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I'm excommunicated from Facebook but think I have heard that one before. Is it the one with the British pilot at Frankfurt Airport?
No, Pilot announcement telling passengers there is a storm cell ahead. If all passengers swipe their cards for a $25 surcharge Spirit Airlines can afford to fly around the storm :smoke:
 
No, Pilot announcement telling passengers there is a storm cell ahead. If all passengers swipe their cards for a $25 surcharge Spirit Airlines can afford to fly around the storm :smoke:
No this one was A British pilot had just landed and was trying to taxi to the gate he was supposed to but keeps getting mixed up and the ground control guy gets frustrated with him and says something like "Sir have you never BEEN to Frankfurt before?" then the pliot who is also frustrated say" matter of fact I have, I didn't bloody land!"
 
The version I heard, answer pilot gave to the ground controller was 'Yes, but it was night and we didn't go below 12000 feet.'
I would trust your version. I think the one I heard was paraphrased. I heard it in a Flight class I took and it included other funny airport radio traffic between pilots and control.
 
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