Un Hombre Encuentra Un Avión Perdido De Pearl Harbor Entre La Maleza, Inquieta A Los Nativos

En Trance

Su mente bullía con las historias de las criaturas ocultas que pululaban por estas partes de la selva. Gritó a su equipo que avanzara hacia la tierra seca que tenía delante.

De repente, el misterioso avión apareció a la vista. Aún estaba lejos, pero ahora su brillante superficie reflejaba la luz del sol que se filtraba entre los árboles. Se quedó congelado en su trance místico. ¿Qué habría dentro?

Fred Hagen

Cuando Fred se enteró del avistamiento y del misterio que lo rodeaba, decidió que haría lo que fuera necesario para encontrarlo.

Como arqueólogo, Fred siempre estaba buscando nuevos hallazgos. Su sed de exploración le llevó a muchas partes del mundo, pero también a su alma gemela.

Superar Los Límites

Fred Hagen y su colega David Tallichet eran conocidos por traspasar los límites de lo desconocido. Pero nada podía haberles preparado para esta aventura.

Volaban sobre la selva de Papúa Nueva Guinea. Durante kilómetros, todo lo que podían ver eran extensiones de verde. De repente, Fred lo descubrió. Los lugareños lo trataban como a una deidad y lo llamaban el “Fantasma del Pantano”.

Algo Blanco

La escena cambió bruscamente de pintoresca a mística cuando apareció el brillante objeto blanco que había estado rodeado de misterio durante décadas.

Tenía una forma realmente extraña, pero no pudieron distinguir si se trataba de la altitud o no. La sensatez les habría dicho que se detuvieran aquí, pero no estaban aquí para ser sensatos. Querían ir donde pocos humanos habían ido antes.

Más Cerca

Pidieron a su piloto que acercara el helicóptero al lugar, compuesto en su mayor parte por terrenos pantanosos. Cuanto más se acercaban, más rápido les latía el corazón.

Estaba medio sumergido en el agua, mientras que el resto estaba cubierto por la espesa y alta hierba. Al principio era difícil ver de qué se trataba, pero pronto tuvieron la certeza de que habían encontrado lo que buscaban.

Un Misterio Aguarda

El avión abandonado de la Segunda Guerra Mundial era todo lo que había imaginado. Incluso desde el aire, parecía tener una o dos historias fascinantes detrás.

Rápidamente se pusieron en contacto con algunos lugareños para que les ayudaran a adquirir el equipo que necesitaban para llevar a buen puerto su proyecto, ignorando todas las señales de advertencia de que no iba a ser una operación sencilla.

Un Lugar Maldito

Había una razón por la que Fred y su colega estaban recibiendo advertencias. De todas partes del mundo, la gente acudía en masa para presenciar el secreto que atormentaba a este denso pantano desde hacía décadas.

Muchos se habían aventurado hacia el Fantasma del Pantano para no volver jamás. Otros contrajeron la malaria y perdieron la razón. Los lugareños se mantuvieron a salvo manteniéndose alejados y venerando la zona como tierra sagrada.

Historia Y Leyenda

Los aldeanos de Papúa Nueva Guinea conocen todos los espeluznantes cascos ennegrecidos de restos bombardeados de cientos de aviones estrellados que yacen camuflados en los bosques tropicales montañosos y las selvas de las planicies de su tierra, impregnados de una historia espeluznante.

Pero ninguna es tan aterradora como la del Fantasma del Pantano. Incluso hoy en día, los aldeanos informan de formas que aparecen en los pantanos, como momias en una película de terror.

Puesta En Marcha

Pero a Fred y David no les importaba. Donde otros veían peligro, ellos veían aventura. Si realmente estaba maldito, querían verlo por sí mismos.

Así que en el momento en que todo su equipo estuvo listo, Fred y David llevaron a su equipo a la selva de Papúa Nueva Guinea para comenzar su misión. No sabían que estaban a punto de encontrarse con mucho más que un avión destrozado.

Hacia Lo Desconocido

Aunque Fred y David habían explorado muchos tipos de tierra, no estaban familiarizados con este terreno pantanoso en particular. Su energía menguaba rápidamente mientras se dirigían hacia la misteriosa aeronave.

Sin embargo, la pasión por explorar algo que había permanecido intacto durante décadas les espoleó. No sabían que les aguardaban más peligros que los fantasmas y las maldiciones.

El Corazón De La Selva

Cuando Fred se detuvo a beber un trago de su petaca, vio por el rabillo del ojo que algo se movía en el agua. Se quedó inmóvil y miró lentamente hacia el movimiento.

Su mente se agitó con las historias que había oído sobre cocodrilos y anacondas gigantes que vagaban por estas partes de la selva. Giró la cabeza y no vio nada, pero fue suficiente para que gritara a su equipo que avanzara hacia la tierra seca que tenía delante. De repente, sus corazones se aceleraron.

Seductor

El misterioso avión estaba a la vista. Desde la distancia, reflejaba la luz del sol con tal intensidad que parecía que les estuviera llamando por su nombre, incitándoles a acercarse.

Sus ropas estaban mojadas y sucias de cintura para abajo después de caminar por el pantano, pero la humedad y el sol les impedían pasar frío. Su paso se aceleró.

El Descubrimiento

Fred, David y su equipo ya habían superado uno de los retos más premonitorios de su misión. Ahora, todo lo que tenían que hacer era seguir caminando hacia la luz brillante.

Caminaron durante horas por el implacable paisaje de la densa jungla hasta que por fin llegaron al lugar. El silencio envolvió al equipo mientras todos permanecían asombrados ante lo que veían.

Cara A Cara Con El Fantasma Del Pantano

Nadie conocía la historia detrás de este avión. Por eso Fred y David estaban empeñados en averiguar más sobre sus misteriosos orígenes. Ahora, cuando estaban a un brazo de distancia de él, no podían absorber los detalles lo suficientemente rápido.

Por su estructura, sabían que era un avión de la Segunda Guerra Mundial. No era de extrañar, ya que Papúa Nueva Guinea fue un hervidero bélico y una importante zona de conflicto durante la guerra.

Tierra De Guerra

Todos los años, los entusiastas de la guerra acudían en masa a Papúa Nueva Guinea para ver por sí mismos los restos que yacían esparcidos por algunas partes de las islas.

Debido a su situación estratégica, se convirtió en escenario de numerosos enfrentamientos entre australianos, japoneses y estadounidenses, todos los cuales habían establecido bases militares en distintas zonas. Fred y David esperaban sentir aquí una hondo conciencia de la historia. Pero no vieron venir lo que les esperaba.

Secretos Revelados

Lo que el pantano había estado ocultando durante tantos años era en realidad un enorme avión de la Segunda Guerra Mundial en condiciones increíbles, que permanecía prácticamente intacto.

Los lugareños lo llamaban el Fantasma del Pantano porque estaba muy bien escondido en la selva y creían que estaba encantado. ¿Por qué había un avión tan grande en medio de la selva? ¿Quién lo pilotó? ¿Qué ocurrió? Estaban a punto de averiguarlo.

Salvamento

La ubicación del avión era probablemente la razón principal por la que estaba en gran parte inexplorado. Las profundas tierras pantanosas también hacían casi imposible sacar el avión del lugar para estudiarlo más a fondo.

Pero eso no impidió que Fred y David intentaran encontrar una forma de rescatar y estudiar el avión, sacarlo de allí y devolverle su antiguo esplendor. Primero, entraron en el interior.

Entrando

Sus cuerpos temblaban de emoción al entrar en el avión. Tenían la esperanza de que gran parte del interior se conservara igual que el exterior.

Desgraciadamente, cuando entraron, pudieron ver que estaba saqueado. Toda la mecánica y el armamento del interior de la aeronave habían sido saqueados durante décadas. Por suerte, David era capaz de identificar fragmentos de su historia.

Experiencia Con Aviones

Como veterano de la Segunda Guerra Mundial, David tenía mucha experiencia en todo tipo de aeronaves. Incluso se dedicó a coleccionar y restaurar aviones militares. Ese era su principal motivo para venir a esta misión.
Su colección incluía aviones increíbles, como un bombardero B-25 Mitchell y un P-40 Tomahawk. Pero este hallazgo los superaría a todos.

La Fortaleza Voladora

David descubrió rápidamente que el tipo de avión atascado en el pantano era exactamente el mismo que él había pilotado durante la Segunda Guerra Mundial. Se trataba de un B-17E Flying Fortress.

Una vez que supieron qué tenían entre manos, empezaron a intentar salvar el avión en la década de 1980. Pero, haciendo honor a aquel sobrenombre de “fantasma del pantano”, sufrieron contratiempos y tardaron décadas en completar la dificilísima tarea.

The Big Dream

According to Fred, the restoration of the plane was their greatest dream. “Because for some reason it captured the imagination of people from around the world…” he stated.

The plane was first nicknamed the Flying Fortress. This happened when a journalist saw the plane during a test flight back in 1935 and remarked that it looked like a flying fortress. But what about its backstory? How did the plane get stuck in the cursed swamp?

The Japanese Attack

Just one day before the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the Swamp Ghost was sent out on a special mission. Instead of flying with the Kangaroo Squadron that day, it was sent out on one of the earliest bombing missions of the Second World War.

But then disaster struck. The Japanese invaded the island of New Britain in Papua New Guinea. Swamp Ghost would be the first to the scene and, with that, suffer disastrous consequences.

The Downfall

In February of 1942, the Swamp Ghost was dispatched to attack Japanese ships on New Britain Island. But the majestic Swamp Ghost would tragically never return from its mission.

The plane started experiencing problems when the bomb bay doors wouldn’t open. They made second passes at their target before they were able to finally get them open. But now, they’d attracted anti-aircraft fire from the Japanese troops. It was the beginning of the end for Swamp Ghost.

Technical Malfunction

A dogfight ensued after the Swamp Ghost made its second pass on its target, which luckily was successful as they were able to get the bomb bay open finally. The Swamp Ghost managed to take down three enemy fighters out of a dozen.

Then suddenly, the Swamp Ghost was hit by the enemy. Thankfully, the plane didn’t explode, but one of its wings was majorly damaged. It was leaking fuel and crashing fast in the New Guinean wilderness.

Crash Landing

The Swamp Ghost was due to return to the New Guinean capital city of Port Moresby, but the crew couldn’t make that happen with a punctured wing and the massive fuel leak. Then the pilot spotted a perfect place to make a crash landing.

He thought he saw a soft wheat field that would be a perfect place to make a crash landing. But what he thought was a large wheat field ended up being something far more treacherous.

The Middle Of Nowhere

It was a swamp that was inhabited by deadly and ferocious crocodiles. The Swamp Ghost made its crash landing in the swamp, and miraculously, none of the crew members were seriously injured.

However, the crew was now stranded in a dangerous swamp in the middle of nowhere. Not knowing where they were or where they were going, they set off to find civilization and help to get back to their base located in the capital.

A Brief Reunion

The entire crew devastatingly all caught malaria while attempting to traverse the dangerous swamps. Fortunately, they came across a native who helped them and took them back to his village.

The kind local nursed them back to health, and they were reunited with US forces in the New Guinean capital of Port Moresby. The crew was welcomed back as heroes, but their celebration didn’t last long. They were almost immediately sent out on a new mission.

Perseverance

Mike Oliver of Richmond was born while his father, Capt. Fred Eaton – the original pilot of the Swamp Ghost – was missing in action. “Often in my life the courage and the perseverance that Dad and his fellow crew members demonstrated gave me the courage to face some of the challenges we’ve all met in life,” he said.

It had taken the pilot and his crew six weeks to escape that steaming swamp and find help – they all had endured six weeks of fighting through the humidity, malaria, and crocodiles. But what of the plane they left behind?

Lost In Time

While the crew of the Swamp Ghost was redeployed on a new mission, their Flying Fortress was all but forgotten. As time went on and the war ended, no one thought twice about the Flying Fortress, and it was time to go home.

For decades, the plane was only known to a few locals in the nearby areas. US forces completely forgot about the plane, and no effort was made to recover it from the wreck site.

The Most Famous

Then, it was rediscovered in 1972 by Australian troops flying over the area. The news hit international media, and the Swamp Ghost became famous.

The Flying Fortress is one of only four other planes of its kind, and of all the wrecks that took place over Papua New Guinea, the Swamp Ghost is the most famous of them all.

Untouched

In July 1992, a historian named Maclaren Hiari was “crusading to have his government relinquish the ‘swamp ghost,’ a historic U.S. B-17E bomber so well preserved in kunai grass and mire that there was still coffee in cockpit thermoses when it was discovered.”

But it wasn’t to be. The Swamp Ghost – untouched, intact, and true to its curse – languished in the mire for another six decades.

Battle Scars

Located in the Agaiambo Swamp, the Swamp Ghost sat abandoned for 64 years. The Pacific Aviation Museum in Hawaii explains that the Flying Fortress is “arguably the world’s only intact and unretired World War II-era B-17E bomber.”

“It’s a one-of-a-kind example of an aircraft that played an indispensable role in winning WWII. And it is the only B-17 in the world that still bears its battle scars”. But this wasn’t all.

A World War II Favorite

Since its introduction in 1938, the B-17 was still the third-most massively produced bomber of all time. During the war in the Pacific, the B-17 bomber was used in raids against Japanese shipping and airfields.

The bomber was a strategic resource in the war and was responsible for dropping 640,000 tons of bombs (out of 1.5 million total) on Nazi Germany. But what did any of this mean for Fred and David?

A Vision Of Modernization

The B-17 bomber was part of President Roosevelt’s vision to modernize the US military. But after the end of the war, the B-17 bomber was quickly phased out of use by the US Air Force.

Most of the bombers were returned to the United States, where they were sold for scrap and melted down. Only a few bombers remained in use, mainly for secondary roles such as transport, air-sea rescue, and photo-reconnaissance.

Holy Relics

Fred and David’s salvaging operation was finally completed in 2006, but only four years later would they receive permission to return the aircraft to American soil.

But to the local villagers, the bomber was a relic on holy land. They had to be persuaded to hand over the Swamp Ghost. They even performed a ceremony to appease the spirits in the swamp. Still, not everyone was happy with the chief’s decision to let Fred and David remove the relic.

Son Of A Local Chief

Augustin Begasi, who happened to be the son of a local chief, set out to make sure that the B-17 bomber wasn’t removed.

He even went as far as to organize a group of people to help him intercept the plane before it could be moved to a barge offshore. Would the Swamp Ghost make it out?

Claiming Ownership

The salvagers, Fred and David, claimed that the villagers wanted to extract money because the barge was in their waters. In any case, Begasi and his posse were dispersed by police — who they believe were bribed to help get the plane out.

But Begasi couldn’t have stopped it anyway. The Swamp Ghost was lifted out by a Russian-built military helicopter. He could only watch helplessly as it was lifted out to the barge.

Salvage Rights

“They should have given us money, because it was our accustomed land,” Begasi said. “The plane would bring tourists, but now there is nothing. That village has no name now. If they left it there, it would have a name by now.”

Many Papua New Guineans lamented that one bureaucrat had given up their local treasure. Especially since the U.S. Air Force gave up the salvage rights for any crafts lost prior to 1961, they believed they had legal ownership over the plane.

A Blow

Aviation enthusiast and blogger Justin Taylan said that the removal of the Swamp Ghost was a huge blow for the area.

It meshed itself into the island landscape until treasure hunters tore it away for profit, he claimed. Speaking about the plane, he said: “It’s a ghost, and its spirit seems only to have grown.”

Pearl Harbor

The first showing of the B-17 Flying Fortress was in Long Beach, California. Surprisingly, many of the people in attendance were friends and family of the original crew of the bomber.

Everyone in attendance was thrilled to see that the long-lost plane had finally returned to the United States. The bomber remains as a memorial for a horrific war that claimed millions of lives.

A Full Restoration

Now that the plane has been returned and is safely stored in the Pacific Aviation Museum at Pearl Harbor, the owners of the B-17 bomber plan to fully restore the Flying Fortress back to its former glory.

In total, the cost to restore the World War II B-17 bomber might exceed $5 million. After the B-17 is fully restored it is due to be moved to Hangar 79 on Ford Island.

Cargo Cults

Today, many people of Papua New Guinea are still upset about the Swamp Ghost’s removal. The plane attracted tourists from far-off places and some local cultures even formed spiritual beliefs surrounding the plane, known as “cargo cults”.

This is a system of beliefs, generally formed in highly underdeveloped societies, in which its members hold superstitious beliefs about items that fall from the sky from more advanced civilizations, such as technology or cargo.

War Wreckage

Papua New Guinea was a very important strategic territory in the South West Pacific during WWII. Over 600 US planes crashed over the country alone, not including other allied or enemy forces which would equal thousands of planes.

Due to the terrain in Papua New Guinea, many of the crash sites are located in near-impossible-to-reach areas due to its dangerous and impassable terrain such as tropical rainforests, rugged mountain chains, savannas, and swamps.

A Nation Divided

One of the challenges of finding anything in the area are the physical boundaries of the terrain and population. The topography of the country renders a singular national identity almost impossible to achieve.

Currently, there are about six million people who live in Papua New Guinea, most of whom live in remote and secluded areas and are loyal to their local clans only. They live a simplistic lifestyle of hunting wildlife and growing crops.

Caught In The Middle

When WWII came around, the people of New Guinea found themselves in the middle of the conflict due to their strategic location between the Japanese Empire and allied Australia.

The Papuans didn’t fight in the war, but they did help by acting as service bearers, mainly carrying supplies and the wounded across the rugged mountainous terrain and steaming treacherous jungles. The country quickly became a graveyard and a memorial for the war, as evident by the Swamp Ghost.

Baffling

The three surviving crew members of the Swamp Ghost seem to be the only people who are totally uninterested in the plane’s future. “After so many years and so much discussion, I’ve got sick and tired of talking about it,” said George Munroe.

“A lot of people got taken with that plane, which baffles me. I’m just not very interested. To me, it’s just trivia. We certainly weren’t that heroic. None of us saved a maiden in a burning building.”

Final Resting Place

Having made its way back across the Pacific, the B-17E, one of the rarest World War II bombers in existence, was moved to the Pacific Aviation Museum on Ford Island. Restoration is underway in Hangar 79, which guests can visit on a special “Swamp Ghost tour.

The Pacific Aviation Museum has more than 50 aircraft in its collection, including The Curtiss P-40 Warhawk, the Mitsubishi Zero, and The Stearman Biplane. Now, The Swamp Ghost, in its final resting place, is also on display. And the Swamp Ghost is just one tragic relic of the era.

More Out There

There are many incidents where the jungles have given up their secrets and relics – like the Swamp Ghost.

However, there are still over 200 American and Australian warplanes that languish, rust, and fall apart in the hard-to-reach places in the muggy jungles, still waiting to be rescued and returned home. The Liberator was one of them.

World War II B-24 Liberator

The Liberator left from Ward’s Field, Port Moresby, for the Nadzab Air Base, near Lae on the Pacific island’s east coast, at about 2:40 P.M. on March 22, 1944.

It was on a courier flight and packed with 19 soldiers – pilots, bombers, and medics. News came into headquarters that it had been shot down.

Deeply Hidden

It was yet another crash that left families and friends without answers for years.

What made it worse is the location of where the plane had gone down was, at best, unbelievably vague. It was like looking for a needle in a haystack and remaining that way for decades.

No Closure

All the while, those left behind feared the worst. Had their sons or husbands been captured by the enemy or executed?

It wasn’t until a team from the army’s Central Identification Laboratory at Fort Shafer, and members of the Papua New Guinea museum staff got involved did the case finally make any headway.

Revisiting The Case

It started with a general review of all documents. Then, one staffer had to make the long, hot trek to the nearest village where the wreck might be located.

After all, the locals knew the jungle better than anyone. As the young assistant sat before the intimidating elder, he got the shock of his life.

Meeting Resistance

The translation was jarring. They knew exactly what he was talking about. However, they didn’t want to disturb the resting spirits and bring bad fortune to their village.

They had already given rites to put them at peace and refused to let anyone touch the site. Tensions grew high as the New Guinea officials had to step in.

Tentative Agreement

The plane could stay. The museum just wanted to take back the remains – remains which didn’t belong to the land.

There were grieving family members that were still alive and needed closure. Through an intense negotiation, they finally came to an agreement.

On The Mountain

The team would be led 8,856 feet up the slopes of Mount Thumb, where the rusting metal coffin waited.

The team would be allowed to piece together the bodies and take them away, but only as long as the elders could perform additional rites and rituals during the process. The scene unfolded into something quite surreal.

New Kind Of Rescue

The team had excavated under all sorts of conditions, but having smoke, chanting, and singing around them made the process take on an entirely new atmosphere.

It felt calming and honorable – a fitting way to save those 19 men that had perished. It also brought out a new fact.

Sad News

The news reached the families and was bittersweet. There was no doubt, after so long, that their loved ones had perished. But now, at least they knew that they hadn’t been dragged away to endure a painful death. Empty coffins and blank gravestones could now be complete.

In order to protect the privacy of those depicted, some names, locations, and identifying characteristics have been changed and are products of the author’s imagination. Any resemblances to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, are entirely coincidental.