A Plane With No Propellers!

Heroes Remember

A Plane With No Propellers!

Transcript

Which actually were like a four engine fighter, those Lancasters could do anything. Like one time over Hamburg we had two of those Me 262's after us. We'd never seen a jet, you know we'd seen these, these German fighters. Anyway, we were over Hamburg a day time trip and tail gunner says, "Fighter, fighter, starboard go!" So, flew, put the Lancaster in a course route to the starboard and so I got my camera to take a picture of this, cause I knew he'd break to the port. So, the funniest thing, I got the camera, and I look and here's that plane with the big crosses on the wing wings, sitting out there, with no propellers. And I put the camera down because I thought our tail gunner shot his propellor's off. It never struck me what it was, it was a jet. We'd never seen a jet before, I'd never seen an air plane with no propellers. So I put the camera down and ah, then by the time I got it up there's two black puffs of smoke and he was gone. But I kept watching where he went, he went off to our port course he's going about five hundred miles an hour we're going two hundred. But it's a good thing I kept my eyes peeled, where he went, cause he turned, he made a U-turn and he came back And all I saw was a little, a little thing in the distance, and this little thing got bigger. And all of a sudden it grew wings and I realized it was his coming, him coming back at five hundred miles an hour, I'd never seen anything going that fast. So all I had time to do was yell, "Skip, port!" And he says, "I see him." And he stood that Lancaster on it's wings, which it could do and just dove right down, of course out of his gun sight sights because he's going so fast. And so they, we got through those two attacks, because he was going five hundred and we were going two hundred, all you gotta do is make a, if you see them, and do a sharp turn he can't get his guns bearing on ya so... Oh yeah it was a, it was an experience. Like I said, controlled terror every second you're up there.

Description

Mr. Taschuk recalls his first encounter with a jet - the German Me-262.

Neil Taschuk

Mr. Taschuk was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba. His father, a Russian immigrant, fought for Canada in the First World War. Mr. Taschuk joined the air force along with many others from the community, and was sent overseas as soon as he had earned his wireless air gunner (WAG) wings. He was assigned to a Lancaster in Bomber Command's 434 Squadron. Given the casualty rate at the time, it was a near death sentence. Against huge odds and having experienced numerous near misses, he and the rest of his crew were one of few in bomber command who were never injured in any action, training, or other mishaps.

Meta Data

Medium:: Video
Owner:: Veterans Affairs Canada
Duration:: 02:37
Person Interviewed:: Neil Taschuk
War, Conflict or Mission:: Second World War
Location/Theatre:: Germany
Branch:: Air Force
Units/Ship:: 434 Squadron
Occupation:: Wireless Air Gunner

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A Plane With No Propellers!

Heroes Remember