Myflight12joes44 Posted May 5, 2020 Posted May 5, 2020 I'm watching " reach for the sky " and a question came to my mind. with both legs prosthetic and not bendable at the knees, How did he work the rudder pedals?
Beazil Posted May 5, 2020 Posted May 5, 2020 I wondered this about other pilots who did this as well. Doesn't sound like it was uncommon for injured pilots to do this. Something for me to look up. Cool!
Chief_Mouser Posted May 5, 2020 Posted May 5, 2020 (edited) No toe brakes on Hurricanes or Spitfires so he would only have needed to push the whole pedal rather than flex his feet. One leg was amputated above the knee and one below so there was flexibility in his remaining knee and, looking at this picture, the artificial one too. Edited May 5, 2020 by 216th_Cat 3
Lusekofte Posted May 5, 2020 Posted May 5, 2020 I hope there is a rudder trim on Hurricanes and Spitfire for his sake
41Sqn_Skipper Posted May 5, 2020 Posted May 5, 2020 4 minutes ago, 216th_LuseKofte said: I hope there is a rudder trim on Hurricanes and Spitfire for his sake Yes, rudder and elevator trim. 1
Beazil Posted May 5, 2020 Posted May 5, 2020 49 minutes ago, Feathered_IV said: Prolly had one of those sissy twisty grips. Aha!
[APAF]VR_Spartan85 Posted May 5, 2020 Posted May 5, 2020 Na his ship had straps on the rudder pedals, I believe he had to bail out and left his prosthetics behind...
Chief_Mouser Posted May 5, 2020 Posted May 5, 2020 I read somewhere that due to his lack of legs he had an advantage over 'normal' pilots. When encountering high g-forces etc he wasn't as susceptible to blackouts as the lower limbs being missing had the same effect as a G-suit - which prevents blood from the upper body going down to the legs. His had nowhere to go to in the first place. Truth? Sounds plausible.
ZachariasX Posted May 5, 2020 Posted May 5, 2020 6 minutes ago, 216th_Cat said: I read somewhere that due to his lack of legs he had an advantage over 'normal' pilots. When encountering high g-forces etc he wasn't as susceptible to blackouts as the lower limbs being missing had the same effect as a G-suit - which prevents blood from the upper body going down to the legs. His had nowhere to go to in the first place. Truth? Sounds plausible. You don't need such parascience to find a reason for why such a particular creature as Bader was more aggressive and could take a stronger beating than most of his peers. Many extraordinary people (at least, many among the few of them) are oblivious of how much better they are at things than the common man. Same goes for the Sailor. It may well be that Bader tried to explain their abilities in such a way. It would be very plausible as it gave him an upside for all the crap he had to endure because of his goof-up. Most people try to see silver linings in where there's clearly none. If it is what it takes to kepp you hanging on, why not?
RedKestrel Posted May 5, 2020 Posted May 5, 2020 2 hours ago, [APAF]spartan85 said: Na his ship had straps on the rudder pedals, I believe he had to bail out and left his prosthetics behind... I believe they even ended up paradropping a pair of prosthetics to him in the POW camp, with the cooperation of the Germans.
Chief_Mouser Posted May 5, 2020 Posted May 5, 2020 26 minutes ago, RedKestrel said: I believe they even ended up paradropping a pair of prosthetics to him in the POW camp, with the cooperation of the Germans. See picture in my post above. 1 hour ago, ZachariasX said: You don't need such parascience to find a reason for why such a particular creature as Bader was more aggressive and could take a stronger beating than most of his peers. Many extraordinary people (at least, many among the few of them) are oblivious of how much better they are at things than the common man. Same goes for the Sailor. It may well be that Bader tried to explain their abilities in such a way. It would be very plausible as it gave him an upside for all the crap he had to endure because of his goof-up. Most people try to see silver linings in where there's clearly none. If it is what it takes to kepp you hanging on, why not? Not sure that it qualifies as parascience but never mind. Here's Richard Branson talking about Bader and how he used to steal his legs ?. https://www.rafmuseum.org.uk/research/online-exhibitions/douglas-bader-fighter-pilot/douglas-bader-fighter-pilot-as-narrated-by-sir-richard-branson.aspx Cheers. 1
ZachariasX Posted May 5, 2020 Posted May 5, 2020 58 minutes ago, 216th_Cat said: Not sure that it qualifies as parascience There is just no data supporting the issue. Hence it is and remains speculation. And not science. Circumstancial explanations, however plausible, are not science. Especially when there is other bona fide speculation that also might explain a specific finding. I do admit that parascience wouldn‘t be an exact word for the issue, but I guess you understood what I was getting at. I very much did appreciate your image and the link you posted now as it led me to some nice articles about a very remarkable man, regardles of his centrifugation qualities. Thnx! 1
Chief_Mouser Posted May 5, 2020 Posted May 5, 2020 17 minutes ago, ZachariasX said: There is just no data supporting the issue. Hence it is and remains speculation. And not science. Circumstancial explanations, however plausible, are not science. Especially when there is other bona fide speculation that also might explain a specific finding. I do admit that parascience wouldn‘t be an exact word for the issue, but I guess you understood what I was getting at. I very much did appreciate your image and the link you posted now as it led me to some nice articles about a very remarkable man, regardles of his centrifugation qualities. Thnx! You're welcome. Douglas Bader was a hero of my dad's and he almost named me after him. Luckily for my mum, who wasn't keen on the name, Geoff Duke won his third consecutive 500c Motorcycle World Championship the year that I was born so I got that instead. No, not Duke! ?. 2
Trooper117 Posted June 10, 2020 Posted June 10, 2020 Read ''Flying Colours, by Laddie Lucas''... it will tell you quite an epic story of Baders life!
Cynic_Al Posted June 11, 2020 Posted June 11, 2020 On 5/5/2020 at 5:04 PM, [APAF]spartan85 said: Na his ship had straps on the rudder pedals, I believe he had to bail out and left his prosthetics behind... That's the first I've heard of that, but there is a lot of BS associated with Bader's story. Any citation? When he bailed out, he left one prosthetic behind, deliberately or by accident isn't clear. His biography states that he had to land on the remaining leg, which I believe would have done him serious to fatal damage. In a documentary, French witnesses to his landing stated that he actually landed in a tree, which for me explains his survival. Had he not he survived, perhaps the film Reach for the Sky would have been about Colin Hodgkinson, another WW2 fighter pilot in a very similar physical condition to Bader's, albeit as the result of a legitimate and difficult-to-avoid training accident.
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