Final Flight: The Mystery of a WW II Plane Crash and the Frozen Airmen in the High Sierra

256 Pages·2010·5.13 MB·English

by  Peter Stekel

Praise for Final Flight
“Stekel has breathed warm life into these long-lost World War II airmen who
disappeared while on a training mission in 1942 … [he] skillfully weaves the
crew’s fate in these rugged mountains with his own quest to unravel the
mystery.”
—Eric Blehm, bestselling author of The Last Season, The
Only Thing Worth Dying For and Molly the Owl
“Peter Stekel has captured the history, geography, and the mystery surrounding
this inspiring tale of the High Sierra.”
—G. Pat Macha, author of Aircraft Wrecks in the Mountains
and Deserts of California
“This book will make you proud of America and proud of mountaineers.”
—William Alsup, author of Missing in the Minarets and Such
a Landscape!
“Final Flight is a thoroughly enjoyable read, a detective story [that] combines
classic investigative reporting with a personal love of the mountains …”
—Douglas H. Clark, Ph.D. Associate Professor, Geology
Department, Western Washington University
“Peter Stekel’s search for the cause of the crash of four ill-fated WWII airmen
leads to … [an] invigorated appreciation of the dedication of the men and
women of the Greatest Generation and … those who gave their life in service of
their country.”
—Michael Sledge, author of Soldier Dead: How We Recover,
Identify, Bury, and Honor Our Military Fallen
“Among the wildest places on earth, the remote and isolated Sierra Nevadas
hold secrets from the past that only now are being discovered.”
—Karen F. Taylor-Goodrich, Superintendent, Sequoia &
Kings Canyon National Parks
“Those who love the high country will find this a fascinating read.”
—William Tweed, coauthor of Challenge of the Big Trees: A
Resource History of Sequoia and Kings Canyon National
Parks

FINAL FLIGHT: The Mystery of a WWII Plane Crash and the Frozen Airmen in the High Sierra
1st EDITION 2010
Copyright © 2010 by Peter Stekel
Front cover photo and frontispiece copyright © 2010 by Peter Stekel
Maps: Lohnes + Wright
Cover design: Steve Sullivan, STEVECO International; Larry B. Van Dyke
Book design: Larry B. Van Dyke
Book editor: Julie Van Pelt
ISBN 978-0-89997-475-0
Manufactured in United States of America
Published by: Wilderness Press
Keen Communications
P.O. Box 43673
Birmingham, AL 35243
[phone]
www.wildernesspress.com
Visit our website for a complete listing of our books and for ordering information.
Distributed by Publishers Group West
Main cover photo: Aerial view from about 15,000 feet of Mount Darwin and
Mount Mendel, from the northeast.
Frontispiece: Mendel Glacier.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, or by any means electronic,
mechanical, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the publisher, except for brief
quotations used in reviews.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Stekel, Peter.
Final flight: the mystery of a WWII plane crash and the frozen airmen in the High Sierra / Peter
Stekel. -- 1st ed.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-89997-475-0 (pbk.)
1. Aircraft accidents--Investigation--Sierra Nevada (Calif. and Nev.)
2. World War, 1939-1945--Missing in action--United States. 3. Missing persons--Investigation--Sierra
Nevada (Calif. and Nev.) 4. Airmen-- United States--History--20th century. 5. Beechcraft 18 (Airplanes) I.
Title.
TL553.525.C2S74 2010
363.12’4650979487--dc22
2010007775
W
hen I was twelve years old I went away to summer camp in the High
Sierra. My mother was fond of saying that I never came back.
This book is dedicated to her.

Contents
Prologue
Chapter 1 A Body in the Glacier
Chapter 2 Home from the Mountain
Chapter 3 Who Is the Frozen Airman?
Chapter 4 The More I Know, the Less I Know
Chapter 5 Playing Detective
Chapter 6 First Discovery: 1947
Chapter 7 What Was Recovered: 1948
Chapter 8 The Frozen Airman Is Identified
Chapter 9 The Frozen Airman Is Not Alone: August 2007
Chapter 10 My Report
Chapter 11 On the Trail of the Second Airman
Chapter 12 Understanding the Beech 18 AT-7 Navigator
Chapter 13 The Boys
Chapter 14 Their Training
Chapter 15 They Weren’t the Only Ones
Chapter 16 It Rained Cats and Dogs All Day
Chapter 17 Carried by Flight: A Scenario for Disaster
Chapter 18 East to West: A More Probable Scenario
Chapter 19 Please Remember Me
References
Acknowledgments