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Originally Posted by Rain Man
Me scores 3 hits
-superficial damage to bomb bay
-PING! A shell hits a bomb, but it doesn’t explode
-port wing – outboard fuel tank begins leaking
Me scores 3 hits
-superficial damage to starboard wing
-radio room – the radio is knocked out of commission
-bomb bay – PING! Another bomb is hit, but doesn’t explode
Entering Bomb Zone
Poor Weather – Rain and mist
Light Flak – 3 hits
-superficial damage to tail
-tail – rudder is heavily damaged
-superficial damage to port wing aileron
Between the weather, the flak hit, and the damage to his controls, Hoover has no chance – 0% score
memyselfI is doing some calculations, and she’s worried about the fuel, with the port outboard tank now empty.
MemyselfI is now really worried about the fuel level. She thinks that there’s not enough to get back to base, and there may not even be enough to reach England. She takes the yoke, and logical confirms her calculations.
Me scores 2 hits
-superficial damage to nose
-nose – hoover takes a light wound to the stomach
Me scores 3 hits
-superficial damage to tail
-bomb bay – doors inoperable
-tail – port elevator is knocked out
Me scores 2 hits
-pilot compartment – unbeknownst to the logical and memyselfI, the landing gear mechanism is jammed
-nose – hoover takes a second light wound to the right foot
Me scores 2 hits
-radio room – control cables are damaged, but still operable
-waist – warrior5 takes a light wound to the forehead, dropping to the deck unconscious.
Fw scores 2 hits
-superficial damage to pilot compartment
-nose – hoover once again takes a hit, this time a serious wound to the right side of his head. He goes down in a heap, and dies of his wounds a few minutes later.
Fw circles, attacks again
The #2 engine sputters to a stop as Dreamsicle crosses over the coast.
Unfortunately, the bomb bay doors won’t open. Cursing, ebola calls up to the crew, and jennygump, now wearing her parachute, moves up to help him drag them back to the waist. They won’t be able to inflate the rafts ahead of time since they won’t fit through the waist door. They’ll have to hope that the plane stays afloat long enough to get the rafts out and inflated.
The #4 engine sputters to a stop.
In an enormous cascade of water, Dreamsicle slams into the English Channel. A massive wave washes over the pilot compartment, and the plexiglass nose shatters, sending water cascading through the front of the plane.
Navigator The Bad Guy (12), Ball Turret Gunner JennyGump (11), Right Waist Gunner EBOLA (5), and Left Waist Gunner Warrior5 pile out the waist gunner hatches, dragging the bulky rafts with them and struggling to swim in their chutes. As a team, they paddle away behind the wings as the nose of Dreamsicle begins to sink, The Bad Guy hauling the bloodied and woozy warrior5 to the left, and ebola heading right with two of the rafts. Jennygump waits with the third raft as water sloshes up to her thighs, then ducks out the left side with the third raft as soon as The Bad Guy is clear.
Bombardier Hoover (12) lies KIA in the flooded nose, and will go down with the ship.
Pilot Logical (12), Copilot memyselfi (12), and Engineer BigChiefDave (12) scramble out the top of the plane. After a moment’s hesitation to find the waist gun crew, they all take off their parachutes, dive off the top of the plane, and begin dog paddling, the two pilots heading left and the engineer heading right.
Tail Gunner cntrygal (12) waits until the plane settles, then calmly opens her tail hatch and scouts the situation. Climbing out onto the rising tail of the plane, she sees ebola swimming away from the plane, and dives in to join him after doffing her parachute.
Radio Op. Ecto-I (12) was in a tougher position to escape, and gets slammed into his radio room by the wave of water. Slogging through instant waist deep water, he makes his way to the left waist gun hatch and makes his escape as the tail starts rising into the air. Weighed down by his parachute, he struggles to get clear as the waist of the plane submerges.
Jennygump and ebola are in good shape, and are able to take a moment to shed their parachutes. With a flourish, jennygump pulls the inflation cords on the small raft that she holds, and it inflate perfectly.
On the other side of the plane, ebola inflates the first raft, and then the second. BigChiefDave joins him, and they help each other aboard. A moment later, cntrygal arrives and she too is pulled aboard into ebola’s raft.
On the left side, The Bad Guy keeps warrior5 afloat and safe as jennygump climbs aboard the raft.
Logical and memyselfI approach, but realize that warrior5 needs it worse. They hang onto raft as jennygump maneuvers it, and The Bad Guy and warrior5 climb aboard. A coughing Ecto-I also reaches the raft at that time and hangs on as well.
Only the tail of the plane is visible now, and the rafts paddle away as their trusty steed sinks below the seas. Once it’s clear, BigChiefDave and the Ebola/cntrygal team steam over to the overloaded boat, and logical and memyselfI climb into BigChiefDave’s raft. Ecto-I is hauled aboard the Ebola/cntrygal raft, and at that point the nine crew members wave in relief to the two P-47s circling overhead.
Twelve long hours later, and after three shift changes of escort fighters, the trio of rafts sees lights on the horizon. The Bad Guy fires a flare, and the crew rides home in style in a Lend Lease destroyer.
Water, water everywhere, and hoover’s in the drink.
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