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Aircraft Wrecks in the Mountains and Deserts of the American West
F-105D
A routine
training mission ended in an accident on
December
7, 1967
when two Republic F-105D Thunderchief fighter bombers were practicing combat
tactics over a remote area of the
Sequoia
National Forest south of Lake Isabella, California. One of the F-105’s flown by
USAF Major Robert Delaney entered a nose high flat spin from which recovery was
not possible. Major Delaney made a successful ejection and was promptly rescued,
but his aircraft remained missing for some time due to the rugged terrain and
subsequent snowfalls. The wreckage of Republic F-105D #61-0059 was finally
discovered early in 1968. Bruce Basura and Doug Crawford visited the crash site
in 2006 and is kind enough to share his photos with us. This wreck is unmarked.
The remarkable ‘60’s
Viet Nam
era camouflage still looks new today even after 40 years of exposure to the
elements.
The
remains of #61-0059 are very hard to find today.
Click on thumbnail to see large view!
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