Suspended in a small turret below a bomber flying at 10 kilometers altitude in freezing temperatures, ball turret gunners faced death every moment as they fired at enemy planes. Only 40% of those who went on these missions returned alive, the rest falling victim to enemy fire in the sky.
These gunners had no parachutes due to space limitations and had to endure emergency crash landings without landing gear. The smallest member of the crew was typically assigned to this role, suffering in cramped conditions and relying on occasional water provided through a small pipe by the pilot.
During World War II, this deadly job inspired the famous 1945 poem “The Death of the Ball Turret Gunner,” capturing the grim reality of their experiences. The poem’s final line poignantly reads: “When I died they washed me out of the turret with a hose.”
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