We had recently moved as part of the 60th Troop Carrier Wing from Rhein Main AB in Germany to a newly built base in a large mud hole in Dreux France. I didn’t feel like most of the locals except maybe some of the Girls, cared for us yanks. We usually got the same knocks, over paid, over sexed and over here.

I got to Germany in 1954 went directly to the 10th a good buddy of mine John Dersch went to the 11th six or seven of the others from Bolling AFB were mixed up in the three squadrons. We were all young guys that got out of Sheppard in the middle of 1953.

I stayed in and flew on old recips C45, B25, C47, T29, C131, C54 and C123J in Laos. Came back to Wright Patterson (SAC) stayed 2 years and retired and went back home, Maine.1973.

We started out from Dreux AB on August 11,1955 for Stuttgart Germany with nine C119 G aircraft, better know at that time as flying boxcars. We were going to Germany to pick up several busloads of Army troops. We landed at the base and loaded the troops for an orientation flight. These were just regular Army not paratroops so they were not familiar with all of the normal procedures such as fitting the parachutes for each person it was sop back then for all persons crew and passengers to wear chutes at all times while flying. We got set and took off on a nice clear day for a short flight around the local area near the black forest. After we were airborne we got into a nine-ship formation of three elements of three, leveled off at five thousand feet. My position on the plane was Flight Mechanic. In flight our job was to assist the pilot in setting the proper power and monitoring the instruments and various equipment and make an occasional walk down to the cargo compartment to check on the passengers and scan the engines for anything abnormal. My plane was in the # 2 slot that is behind and left of the #1 plane operated by the mission commander. The # 3 plane was behind and right of # 1. Off to my left was the # 4, #5 and #6 planes off to the right of #3 was #7, #8 and # 9.

I was sitting on the edge of the radio operator’s seat looking out at the 3 planes I could see that was 4, 5,and 6 off to our left. We had an Air Force Chaplain along for the ride he was in the cockpit and he and I was talking.

The Pilot in aircraft #7841 in slot #6 called the mission commander and said he was having problems with one engine and requested permission to leave formation and was given the o k. We in the cockpit could easily hear the radio transmissions.

The chaplain and I was looking out at the 3 planes on our left also we were all tucked fairly close together at that point, that is the formation was close together. 7841 appeared to descend then back up and into 3222 in the #5 slot 3222 lost his left boom and elevator went spiraling in and crashed. All I remember hearing was oh my God over and over. Aircraft # 7841 was maintaining a left wing low but appeared to maintain his altitude for 30 or 40 seconds then went into deep dive into the ground with a lot of smoke and fire same as 3222.I took a trip to the rear to check on my troops all was normal they had not seen anything thank God for that. The mission commander called for the other planes to line up on him and prepare to land. Normal landing. After we parked I went to the back, cargo compartment and told the troops and showed them the two balls of smoke they didn’t believe me.

The following stories were published in the Stars and Stripes news paper.

Disaster Near Stuttgart Takes
7th Army, AF Toll
Stuttgart, Aug. 11 (AP)

Army helicopters pilots who flew to the scene said there were no survivors. It was continual Europe’s worst postwar disaster. Nine giant C119 Flying Boxcar transports loaded with 7th Army troops had taken off on an afternoon air-transport exercise from Echterdingn Airfield, near Stuttgart.

Within 15 minutes two of the planes were charred wrecks. One crashed into the forest and the other into a clearing about 30 miles west of Stuttgart. Both fell just outside the picturesque Blake Forest village of Edelweiler.

Villagers said there was a "massive explosion" and both planes burst into flames as they crashed. There were reports that explosion was heard 50 miles away.

German police and volunteer rescuers rushed to the scene, but the fierce flames drove them off.

One plane carried a crew of five and 41 soldiers, the second carried four crewman and 14 soldiers, each carried a lot master, am Air Force noncommissioned officer reasonable for loading troops into and out of the transports.

(From Stuttgart, The Stars and Strips correspondent Jon Hager quoted 7th Army officers as saying the solders aboard the planes were from the 4999th Engr Bn at Karlsruhe. The men carried full field equipment.)

( From Wiesbaden, The Stars and Strips correspondet Tim Powan reported that an Air Force investigation into the crash was launched immediately.)

Air Forse officals who took off for the crash site Brig Gen Franklin Rose, commander of the 322d Air Div, Ramstein; Col Clyde Box, commander of the 60th Troop Carrier Wing, Rhine Main, and an inspector general team from USAFE Hq. The 322d Air Division in the parent unit of the 60th Troop Carrier Wing, to which the ill-fated transports.)

The Air Force said one plane developed engine trouble at 4,oo feet shortly after take off at about 1 pm. It lost altitude momentarily and then suddenly veered across the nose of another plane in the formation.

The first plane went down immediately. The second flew level for anmost a minute, then it plunged to the ground.

Within half an hour American and German firefighters were at the scen, but they were to late to help.

The first German to reach the spot said: "Everyone was dead. We stood there but could not help. We all cried like babies. I have never seen anything like it."

The firefighters were followed by U.S. military police. But they were also unable to aid their fallen comrades. All they could do was cordon off the scene.

Army helicopters went immediately to the scene. They were followed in a few minutes by light rescue aircraft from the home base of the transports at Frankfurt Rhien Main Air Base.

The Boxcars were from the 60th Troop Carrier Wing and were assigned to train men of the 7th Army in air movement.

Names of the men involved pending notification of kin.

It was the worst air U.S. military air disaster since June18, 1953, when 129 wee killed in the crash of an Air Force Globemaster near Tokyo.

The last big air disaster in Germany occurred , when 44 Sabena airline passengers were killed when the plane crashed near Rhein Main.

"I had just left my cornfield to go to another about 100 yards away when I heard a terrible grinding noise high above me. I turned to look up and as I did a big airplane fell into my cornfield. The explosion when it hit nearly deafened me."

Still shaken after his experience, Helmuth Beaurle, 45, talked nervously of the C-119 today which claimed the lives of 66 U.S. soldiers and airmen.

"We are used to the sound of airplanes, and I didn’t look up when I head the motors. But then there was that terrible grinding. And then it was all over in a flash. The plane that hit inn my cornfield dug more then a meter into the ground. I was still stunned by the explosion when I suddenly realized there was a second plane in the forest," he continued.

"I ran there first because I closest to it. There were some men working in the forest. Both planes were burning. We all rushed up to the one laying smashed in the trees. The flames were awful. We tried to get close but we just could not. We beat at the fire to keep it from spreading. Somebody ran off for help. The plane in my cornfield was a mass of flames too."

People started to arrive. We had the fire out in the forest. There was nothing we could do. I came back to the village. This is a terrible, terrible thing. All those young men, dead."

Editors Note: Author Unknown

They said the last group accident occurred April 2, 1955, when a planes landing gear collapsed at Athens. The last incidence involving a plane from the 10th Troop Carrier Sq. occurred in Belgium when a propeller fell off.

The 60th Gp said its planes had flown more then 4,386,005 miles without a fatality.

The 10th Sq received a 12th AF safety award less then two months ago for having completed a year of flying more than 7,000 hours without an accident.

Author Unknown

IN MEMORIAM

In grateful appreciation of a close comradeship, the Officer and
Airmen of Rhein Main Air Force Base, Germany, dedicate their
tribute to

NORMANN ERIC ANDERSON 2/Lt.--AO 3037123 31 August 31--11 August 55
ROBERT TAYLOR ASHER 1/Lt.--AO 2216330 27 July 30--11 August 55
RAY GEORGE NATH 2Lt.--AO 3037211 11 Febuary 33--11 August 55
LAWRENCE THOMAS DYE A/1c.--AO 11244949 --------11 August 55
GEORGE BERTRAM MCGINTY A/2c.--AF 19438941 13 January 34--11 August 55
DINO ALLERICO BERTOLO A/1c.--AO 11244949 1 March 33--11 August 55
OLIN MULL FRANKLIN A/2c.--AF 17500704 11 December 33--11 August 55
Doyle G. George A/2c.--AO 3015104 4 April 31--11 August 55
EUGENE LOUIS PESCI 1/lT.--AO 1854461 4 aPRIL 26--11 August 55
KENNETH WAYNE SMITH A/1c.--Af 14527729 ---------11 August 55

Memorial Mass 1000
Protestant Memorial Service 1100
15 August 1955
Base Chapel, Rhein Main Air Base