Curiosities 18 - The Cornfield Bomber

João Henrique Barboza Jorgetto • Nov 03, 2023

Sometimes, more than skill, technique, quality, effort, or training is required. What will happen will be defined by a simple detail: luck!

In 1970, more precisely on February 2, a Convair F-106 Delta Dart from the 71st Interception Squadron of the American Air Force was carrying out routine training, piloted by Captain Gary Faust.

After some maneuvers, the aircraft went into a flat spin, and even with the pilot's several attempts to stabilize the plane, nothing caused it to return to his hands, forcing him to eject.

That's where luck comes in, not so much for the pilot but for the USAF itself. The aircraft, after ejection, regained stability, probably due to the weight reduction and the change in the center of gravity, coming to "glide" from the 4 thousand meters high it was to the ground. Then you might think that the aircraft would crash to the ground; after all, it is without a pilot, but no, when I said it was a lucky story, it was luck!

One of the pilots on this training flight reported to the pilot over the radio that he could even return to the aircraft as it descended completely straight and decelerated as if it were being piloted. It is worth mentioning that during the attempts to recover the aircraft, the pilot carried out some standard landing procedures, such as lowering the flaps, which resulted in the plane's easy descent.

The Delta Dart landed on its belly, almost perfectly on a snow-covered cornfield, and even slid a few meters before stopping, leaving a mark of its trajectory. When emergency services arrived, they noticed the engine was still running. 

The plane was recovered, returned to service and used until 1988, when it was taken to the American Air Force Museum in Ohio, where it rests and enchants everyone with its curious case of unmanned descent.

It's also cool to know that the pilot heard a lot of jokes when he returned to base, as everyone questioned him about what the "emergency" would be for an aircraft that even lands alone! Haha!