Emergency, Vandalism Mar 'Apology' Flight

It's hard not to note the irony. A former Luftwaffe pilot who returned to Britain this year to apologize for his World War II bombing raids escaped unharmed after his Mooney M20T lost its engine last week near Marshfield.

BBC News reports Willi Schludecker, 88, was flying to Bath August 1 with friend Chris Kilminster when the Mooney's engine cut out soon after takeoff.

For Schludecker, it was the 10th time he's faced an emergency situation in 66 years of flying... but for Kilminster, who organized Schludecker's trip last April to reconcile the German pilot's actions during the war, it was his first-ever flight.

Fortunately, Schludecker's skills haven't waned over the years. "It was a potentially life-threatening incident, but Willi was absolutely relaxed," said Kilminster, 61, after the incident. "He just hugged me afterwards. That was Willi's 10th crash -- he has had nine in his flying career, but this was his first civilian one."

During his service with the Luftwaffe, Schludecker twice earned the Iron Cross for his 120 bombing raids over Britain, including three missions over Bath in 1942. He was flying his Mooney to the British city to apologize for the "dreadful harm" he did to Bath from his Dornier 217E-4.

Perhaps it's simply a sad coincidence... or, maybe, some grudges still run deep. The BBC notes Schludecker's Mooney was later vandalized, the thieves causing over $58,000 in damage.

FMI: www.warbirdsresourcegroup.org/LRG/index.html