"Chris" wrote in message
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"Kyle Boatright" wrote in message
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"Happy Dog" wrote in message
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"Michael Ash" wrote in
In rec.arts.sf.science
wrote:
Douglas Bader lost both legs in a pre-WWII flying accident, and
re-enlisted at the start of the war. He claimed he could pull more
g's
in his Spitfire, 'cause there was no place for the blood to pool!

Not to change the subject, but I'm curious as to how a legless pilot
fares
in combat conditions. Rudder control is pretty essential when flying,
particularly in powerful propellor-driven planes like WWII-era
fighters,
and normally that's all done with the feet. Did he have something
special
rigged so that he could operate the rudders with his hands?

Wondered about that too. I don't know that you could do a safe takeoff
without rudder in a Spitfire.

moo

Bader had artificial legs. They almost resulted in his death, when one
or both of them got hung when he was trying to escape a crippled Spitfire
over France. He managed to escape the aircraft leaving both (?) of the
legs behind. The Germans found his aircraft wreckage and returned the
somewhat worse for the wear legs to him..

To complete the story, he had replacement legs dropped by the RAF whilst
he was in a POW camp.
Bader was also a persistent escapee, and the Germans took his legs off him
for a while to stop him.

Roger that. Without comment.

moo