Evening star., 1947-12-30
Six Of 8 in Big Crash
lin Alaska Snow Reach
Safety After Rescue
BY fhe kssoeiotsd Press

NOME, Alaska, Dec. 3O.-Six of
eight crewmen from a crashed
B-29 were back to safety today
through the heroism of two
Alaska bush pilots, but five
other men are still missing and
feared dead in the frigid wastes
of the Seward Peninsula 95 miles
north of Nome.
The bodies of two men. thought
to be members Of the three-man
parachute team that leaped to the
aid of the stricken flyers Saturday
night, were believed to have been
sighted less than 500 yards from the
crash scene. A driver and dog team
will attempt to locate them today.
An intensive search also will be
continued for the pilot of the Super
Fortress, 1t. Vern H. Arnett, Santa
Ana, Calf, and the navigator, 1t
Frederick I. Sheetz, Keyser, w. Va.
Neither has been seen since they
set out together Christmas night, 40
hours after their big ship plowed
into the side of a low hill. They
told fellow crewmen they would
seek aid at the Eskimo village OF
Shishmaref. so miles to the north.
The daring rescue was performed
by Frank H. Whaley of the Wien
Alaska Airline and William NUM-
of the NUM- Airline, both of Nome.
Make Hazardous Landing.
Flying in 40-below zero weather
they set their small, single-engine
planes down in hazardous landing
on the crest of a hill close to the
crumpled bomber, the Clobbered
Turkey.
They quickly loaded the six weak
but happy airmen into their ski
equipped craft, made a dangerous
takeoff from the snow-covered slope
and returned to Nome without
mishap.
Their aid was enlisted by the Air
Forces after military rescue opera
tions Saturday night and Sunday
met with misfortune.
The driver of the dog team,
Charles O'Leary, flown into the
crash scene yesterday in Morse
man plane piloted by Col. r. r.
Steward, was ordered to remain at
the disaster site and search for
bodies of the medical aid trio. Their
names have not been released.
Nome air base authorities said all
six of the survivors were in good
spirits and fair health despite
spending nearly six days and nights
in the sub-Arctic. where tempera-
lures lowered between 80 and 40
degrees below zero. One of the
men suffered a broken leg and an
other is being treated for frozen
face.
1t. Donald B. Duesler, San Fer
nando, Calf, the co-pilot, said the
accident occurred as the big bomber
winged southwark toward Nome
from the Eskimo village of Kotzebue,
near the Bering Sea.
Other Rescued Men.
In addition to 1t Duesler, the res
cued men include 1t. Francis
Setback, radar operator, of Okla
homa City: 1t. Lyle B. Larson, fight
engineer, ColfaX. Wis; T/Sergt. Will
bur E. Decker, electrical mechanic,
Plainfeld, N. j.: S/Sergt. Leslie r.
Ware, photographer. Waco. Ga.
and sergt. Olan R. Sanford, radio
operator, Whitney, Tex.
lNt I,n
was getting sleepy" 1t. Duesler said.
HE said No and said he did not
need me to spell him. Just then one
Of the crewmen yelled that the
ground was coming up.
II grabbed the wheel and pulled
it back. The nose came up and the
tail hit, breaking off. Then the rest
of the plane smacked into the hill
with terrific crash and turned ove..
The men had been given few
seconds warning and were braced
for the impact, so fortunately none
of us was badly hurt. After every
one got out, the front of the plane
began to burn and was destroyed,
along with the bulk of our emer-
gency supplies.
Fortunately we had some food
ard medical equipment in the back
END and got by all right until We
were rescued. We threw a canvas
tarpaulin over the tail end of the
plane and managed to build a fire
which kept going internationally"
The missing pilot, 1t. Arnett, has
been at the controls Of three of the
four B-29s from Ladd Field. Fair
banks, which have met disaster.
One of his planes crashed and
burned at the field December II,
1916, and a second, the Kee Bird.
crash LANDED in Northern Green
land February 81. Each time the
crewmen came through unharmed.
Rnnouo+ fo Aoor Inrkeon