USAAF
5th BG
11th BS
Passenger Eddie Rickenbacker
Ditched October 21, 1942
MACR 900 and 802
Mission History
Eddie Rickenbacker was sent on a tour of the Pacific theater to review conditions, operations, and to personally deliver a secret message to General MacArthur.
Took off from Hawaii, bound for Canton. Went off course due to a navigation error due to an out-of-true octant. damaged in a pre-takeoff incident. The bomber ditched at sea.
Lost At Sea
The crew drifted at sea without food or water aside from an occasional fish and rain. Rickenbacker still suffered from the airline crash, his friend Hans Adamson sustained serious injuries in the water landing, and others in the crew were hurt to varying degrees. The crew's food supply ran out after three days. On Day 8 a seagull landed on Rickenbacker's head. Rickenbacker painstakingly caught it, and the survivors meticulously divided it equally and used some for fishing bait. They lived on sporadic rain water and similar food "miracles."
Rickenbacker assumed a role of leadership, encouragement, and browbeating to help the others survive, and encouraged them to turn to the Lord for solace (Psalm 46). According to Rickenbacker, each person on the rafts converted to Christianity after the experience.
The U.S. Army, unable to find them, intended to abandon the lost crew after searching unsuccessfully for more than two weeks, but Rickenbacker's wife convinced them to extend the search another week. Once again, the press reported that Rickenbacker had died.
Rescue
Navy pilots rescued the surviving members of the crew 24 days after the crash. All were suffering from exposure, dehydration, and starvation, on November 13, 1942, off the coast of Island X near Samoa. One serviceman had died and was buried at sea.
Rickenbacker completed his assignment and delivered MacArthur's secret message. No one ever made the message public. This accident later resulted in improved navigation tools for aircraft, and improved survival gear.
References
MACRs 900 and 802 incorrectly list the loss date as October 2, 1942.
"Seven Came Through" by Eddie Rickenbacker
B-17
