Come Back King?

22 February 2000, 05:59 PM

I read that

Georges Guynemer survived six crashes
to return to the air. Is that the record or is
there another Come Back King?

PeterL · 22 February 2000, 07:58 PM

According to what I was able to cobble to-gether from published French sources for my Storks site he was shot down SEVEN times. There is a rather distressing series of photographs showing a badly shot up GG being stretchered away from his Nieuport BeBe having made it back to the field, so that one doesnt count. I didn't note the number of times he is reported to have brought back a damaged machine.

He was the complete opposite of Fonck. Modest, painfuly shy, and heedless of his own safety, but what a fighter. He may not fulfill big Jim's survival criteria, but you might gather I admire him enormously.

Peter L

Billy_Bishop · 22 February 2000, 09:05 PM

I have a feeling that Nungessor would be the more likely candidate for "Come Back King". The number of injuries that man sustained, and yet kept on flying missions, it staggers the imagination.

VBR,

Al Lowe

Reinout · 22 February 2000, 10:21 PM

On the German side,

Rudolf Berthold crashed 3 times I think, and was wounded at least four times resulting in injuries that would have grounded most other men.

Kind regards,

Reinout