When a Ball Turret Gunner Fell Without a Parachute!

On January 3, 1943, a formation of 72 B-17 bombers embarked on a mission over German-occupied France. Their objective was to target a heavily defended U-boat base in St. Nazaire, a critical site for German naval operations during the Battle of the Atlantic. Among the crew was a 24-year-old ball turret gunner named Alan Magee, serving aboard a B-17 nicknamed Snap! Crackle! Pop!. On what was his seventh and final combat mission, Magee was ejected from the aircraft at 20,000 feet without a parachute.