I HOPE a lot of people have read the amazing story Sgt Nicholas Alkemade – the gunner who had to bale out of an aircraft without a parachute and survived a fall of 18,000 feet. I can understand if he had jumped with a chute and it did not open properly as
I HOPE a lot of people have read the amazing story Sgt Nicholas Alkemade - the gunner who had to bale out of an aircraft without a parachute and survived a fall of 18,000 feet. I can understand if he had jumped with a chute and it did not open properly as that would have slowed him down a bit but remember when you fall from a aircraft you drop at 32 feet per second per second. In my time of parachuting there were what we called roman candles that was when the chutes came out in tangled mess and very few men walked away from that.
What an amazing story but there are many more at the Ely RAF Museum at Witchford like that of ex-sgt Arthur Dockrill.
Stories like these should never be forgotten and Arthur is now in his 90s. The story is now on my website and I must thank Barry Aldridge for all his help with this.
EDDIE HOLDEN
Ely Road
Little Downham
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