Posted:
By: Brian Copeland
On: 10/16/2004
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I am writing a novel that deals with the life and times of a WASP flyer. In this work of fiction she marries a 17 pilot. I have a question about the B17 and flight ops.
In this story I am writing the pilot in order to lighten the ship calls to the crew to take everything not bolted down and pitch it in the north sea. The navigator gets on the intercom to tell the pilot that at the current loss rate in altitude the plane won't make the coast.
Here's my question: would a pilot be able to pump off fuel so that he lightened the weight yet still have enough to make it to the beach. I know that the 17 had to have a pump in order to transfer fuel from one side to another, but did a pilot have the mechanical ability to, as a last resort, dump fuel in order to lighten the weight of the plane?
With a 4 and a 2 year old this is a work most definitely in progress. I don't have a lot of time to waste and I wanted to make sure that the story I am telling is accurate. I wanted to know if you had any OWHs ( older and wiser heads) who could answer this question for me
many thanks in advance
brian copeland
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