Sunday Evening, April 27, 1952 – 15 miles west of Maryville, Tn

The sky was darkening ahead of them as the sun set behind them. The flight of two WW2 era F51s had left New Mexico earlier that morning and had enjoyed clear weather the entire time. Looking down off his left wing, the leader, Captain Howard B. Smith, saw the town of Crossville, with its lights starting to be turned on. Their destination, McGhee Tyson AFB, near Maryville Tennessee was only 10-15 minutes ahead. He picked out the lights of vehicles on State Road 70, which went from Crossville to Rockwood. It was a key landmark for them, as they wanted to stay south of it to keep from inadvertently entering the prohibited airspace around Oak Ridge. The flight of two F-51Ds, call sign Air Force 2901, had left Berry Field in Nashville around 6:08 CST for the short 35 minute flight and were ready for the long day to be over.

Passing the Watts Bar reservoir, approximately 20 miles west of McGhee Tyson ANG base, they were about to contact the McGhee Tyson tower to get landing instructions. The weather had been forecast to remain good enough for them to make the approach and landing in visual weather conditions. However, it was not to be. Flying at 6000 feet and a cruise speed of 275 mph, they inadvertently entered a bank of clouds that they had not been able to see beforehand. The lights below of civilization appeared periodically to them between the wisps of clouds but they quickly entered a solid mass of darkness, with no visual cues below and no horizon ahead by which to judge their aircraft’s attitude in relation to the ground.

The lead aircraft’s position lights gave off an eerie reflection of colors within the clouds that engulfed them. Captain Smith immediately called his wingman to “tuck it in”. This means to close up the space between them while you are still able to see the leader. Captain Moede’s only reference to maintain level flight is to stare outside at his lead’s aircraft and maintain his relative position in relation to it. Captain Moede acknowledged and began to slip to his left to get within a wingspan or less of the lead. But the clouds were thick, and the darkness did not help. He instinctively descended a few feet to ensure vertical clearance from the other aircraft. In a moment, the lead aircraft and its lights disappeared entirely. He briefly saw the glow of lead’s position lights as he slipped past him to the left side but they disappeared quickly. Losing all outside visual cues to maintain his aircraft’s flight attitude, he had to quickly put his eyes inside the cockpit on his flight instruments in order to just stay right side up. And from then on, he had to keep his eyes inside the cockpit, abandoning any hope of visually sighting his leader any more as long as they were in the clouds.

“Lead, I have lost you, and am on your left side now” was Captain Moede’s radio transmission on Channel Charlie, the interplane frequency.

Thinking quickly, Captain Smith replied “Roger, lets maintain this heading for awhile to see if you can rejoin, then we will begin a 180 degree turn to the right to get back out of this stuff”

“Roger” replied Captain Moede.

For about a minute or so the lead aircraft flew straight and level, to provide his number two aircraft a stable platform on which to rejoin. Unknown to them, there was a stiff 30 mph direct crosswind blowing them to the south. It had been simple to correct his heading for this while he was able to visually see the ground. But once in the clouds, there was no way to correct for this wind. It soon became apparent they would not be able to visually rejoin.

“Ok, starting the right turn” called Air Force 2901 lead, now estimating he was about 3 miles south of the airport.

“Roger” replied Captain Moede.

At some time through the turn, Captain Moede asked his leader:

“Lead what is the heading back to Nashville?”

“280 degrees” Lead replied.

“Roger”

“Two, I am going channel Able to talk to Knoxville Radio to get a clearance back to Nashville”

“”Roger” replied Captain Moede.

Captain Smith took his left hand off the throttle quadrant momentarily to reach across the cockpit and to punch the SCR522 VHF radio preset frequency button to channel Charlie. He kept his right hand on the stick to maintain the aircraft’s attitude.

Placing his left hand back on the throttle, he used his left thumb to push the “Push to Talk” button located on the side of the throttle:

“Knoxville Radio, this is Air Force 2901, currently IFR and unable to land at Knoxville, request a new flight plan to return to Nashville.”

They were within the Knoxville Air Defense Zone (ADIZ) and current regulations required a flight plan for all aircraft, civilian or military.

Captain Smith gave them the needed information and, after some confusion, was able to obtain a VFR clearance back to Berry Field in Nashville. All the while, trying to maintain a constant right banked turn and maintain aircraft altitude in the clouds, fighting vertigo.

His focus was on the attitude indicator in front of him, glancing momentarily to the left of it to monitor his airspeed, altitude, and change in heading.

As his aircraft completed the 180 degree turn, he rolled out with a heading of 280 degrees back toward Nashville, and, hopefully, clear air. At some point, he climbed to 7500 feet.

As he was finishing his conversation with Knoxville Radio, he abruptly broke out of the clouds and foung himself somewhere over the Watts Bar reservoir again. He could again see the lights of civilization on the ground below him and the stars above him. Behind him, the occasional flash of lightning reflected on an ominous solid mass of dark clouds. Breathing a sigh of relief, he switched his VHF radio channel back to interplane Charlie frequency to notify Captain Moede of the ATC clearance.

“Air Force 2901 number 2, this is lead, over”

Silence except for the occasional burst of static caused by nearby lightning. After a period of silence, he again transmits on Charlie:

“Air Force 2901 Number 2, this is lead, over”

With no reply, he thinks…. maybe he went over to Channel Able to get his own clearance back. He quickly switched back to Channel Able and listened to the Knoxville Radio frequency for any transmission. None were heard, just the same occasional static caused by a distant lightning discharge behind him.

He began switching to all the channels in hopes of obtaining radio contact with his number two aircraft.

Nothing.

The sky was clear all the way back to Nashville for Captain Smith on his lonely 30 minute journey. But a terrible numbing dread came over him – where was number 2? He didn’t remember much about the return trip, flying the course mechanically as his mind wandered. “I was getting sicker (mentally) all the time and didn’t check my course too much” he later replied to a question from the accident investigation board a few weeks later. He landed at Berry Field in Nashville without incident and immediately filed a lost wingman report.

Captain Donald H. Moede, a senior Air Force pilot with over 2500 flying hours, the father of a month old child left that morning in New Mexico with his wife, and a survivor of the 8th Air Force bomber war over Europe just 9 years earlier, was never heard from again.

THE PILOTS:

Captain Donald H. Moede AO-737616

Born January 18, 1921 in Red Cloud, Nebraska, Moede attended grammar school there. At some point, he moved to Wyoming where two of his sisters lived and graduated from Washington High School in Laramie, Wyoming. He took a job at a local hotel and attended the University of Wyoming for one year.

With Pearl Harbor and the entry of the United States into World War 2, he registered for the draft on February 16, 1942. A month later, he enlisted in the Army Air Corps on March 24, 1942 at Fort Francis E Warren in Wyoming and was accepted into the Aviation Cadet Program as a pilot.

Preflight Training

HIs first meeting with the US Army would have been at what they called PREFLIGHT. In preflight, he learned basic military courtesies, personal hygiene, rifle drill, marksmanship, the rudiments of code communications, and a respect for Army ways. As an aviation cadet, he was lower than the lowest enlisted rank in the Army, and as yet nowhere near an airplane. Its main focus was to militarize the cadet.

Primary Training

His next phase of training would have been Primary Flight Training.  This was usually done by contract schools (civilian pilot training schools) through the Civil Aeronautics Authority- War Training Service. Here he would get his first chance to fly an airplane and, in nine weeks of training, he would have obtained around 60 to 65 flight hours in a single engine aircraft such as the Ryan or Fairchild primary trainers before going on to the Basic phase.

Basic Training

After completion of Primary training, he would move to a military base and enter the nine week Basic Flight Training phase. Here the cadets were given more advanced aircraft and were taught to fly in formation, fly by instruments or by aerial navigation, fly at night, and fly for long distances. Cadets got about 70 flight hours in BT-9 or BT-13 basic trainers before being promoted to Advanced Training.

As the cadets neared the end of their Basic Phase of flight training, they would be divided up into either single seat fighter aircraft or multiengine aircraft. This could be based on a multitude of factors, the pilot’s skill, or more likely, the needs of the US Army. If the US Army needed bomber pilots, they would all go to multiengine school.

Advanced Flight Training

Captain Moede was selected for Multi-Engine Advanced Pilot Training at Marfa Field, Texas, where learned to fly the Cessna AT-17 advanced trainer. 

In the nine week course, cadets were supposed to get a total of about 75 to 80 flight hours. Aviation Cadet Moede arrived in early December 1942 at Marfa Field and became a member of the first class to graduate from Marfa, Class 43 B. They graduated on February 6, 1943 and received their pilot wings and a commission as a second lieutenant in the Army Air Forces.

Transition Pilot Training

Transition Pilot Training: Upon completion of Advanced Pilot Training and becoming a second Lieutenant, Moede would have been allowed to go home on leave. He would then have reported to his Transition Pilot Training base where he would be trained in the combat aircraft the Army Air Force needed him in. The new Lieutenant Moede was selected to fly the B-17 bomber and would report to the Dyersburg AAF in west Tennessee.

He would first learn to fly the aircraft and learn its systems. He would also be issued his gear needed to fly combat missions, to include wool lined leather pants and coat, steel helmet, etc. The second phase of training was focused on bombing, gunnery and flying the aircraft under instrument flight conditions. These training missions were flown with full crews, each of them new to the aircraft. The third phase of training emphasized squadron and group operations, especially with formation flying in the combat “box” which was developed by Eighth Air Force to maximize the firepower of the bomber aircraft while also maximizing its defenses against attacking enemy fighters. Also long distance navigation, target identification was taught along with mock combat runs over targets.

Upon completion of training, he would be given his orders and transportation would then be arranged for him and his crew to proceed to his assignment. Sometimes the crew would pick up a new aircraft and fly it overseas. Other times, they would embark on a troop ship and join thousands of others in their journey to the war zone. He was selected to become a replacement pilot with the 100th Bomb Group flying out of Thorpe Abbots Airfield in East Anglia, England.

He arrived in England on September 18. 1943 to become a pilot with the 349th Bomb Squadron of the 100th Bomb Group. He would arrive at a time when some of the fiercest air combat would take place over occupied Europe.

At 22 years of age, one of his first missions was on October 14, 1943 with seven other 100th B17s to the heavily defended ball bearing plant in Schweinfurt, Germany.

Later to be called Black Thursday, sixty of the 291 B17s on the mission were shot down with 17 others landing back in England with so much damage they were written off. The 100th was lucky though as none of their aircraft were shot down.

He flew his 25th and last B17 combat mission in March 1944.

Newspaper clipping from the Lincoln Journal Star
Lincoln, Nebraska 23 Mar 1944, Thu  •

After completing his 25 missions over Europe with the 100th Bomb Group, Captain Moede returned to the United States and went on 21 days leave in April 1944 to visit his parents in Nebraska. He was then assigned to the the Air Transport Command where he flew four engine C-54s ferrying cargo and servicemen from and to Europe. In August, 1945 he was transferred to Wilmington, DE.

After the war, he returned to Cheyenne, Wyoming where he found a job with a Cheyenne hotel. He later became an auditor with the Wyoming state high way department. At some point, he joined the local Air National Guard unit, the 187th Fighter Bomber Squadron, flying F-51s out of Cheyenne.

With the advent of the Korean War, Captain Moede was recalled to active duty with the US Air Force on April 1, 1951. His national guard unit, the 187th Fighter Bomber Squadron, now a part of the active US Air Force, moved to Clovis AFB, New Mexico in December 1951.

At Clovis, he brought his wife, Rose Marie Moede (Zahradnik) and they had their first son, Dan S. Moede, in April of 1952. There were some medical problems involved and the child was flown to Brooks Medical Center in San Antonia, Texas for further treatment. After several trips to San Antonio, Captain Moede was able to bring his son back to Clovis just a few days before the April 27, 1950 flight.

The Unit: 187th Fighter Bomber Squadron

As a result of the Korean War, the 187th and its parent, the 140th Fighter Bomber Wing were federalized and brought to active duty on 1 April 1951. The unit was ordered to the new Clovis Air Force Base, New Mexico, and arrived in December 1951. The federalized 140th Fighter-Bomber Wing was a composite organization of three activated Air National Guard units, composed of the 120th Fighter Squadron (Colorado ANG), the 191st Fighter Squadron (Utah ANG), and the 187th FS. The 140th and its components were equipped with F-51D Mustangs, and were re-designated as Fighter-Bomber squadrons on 12 April 1951.

The Airplane: F-51 Mustang

Versions of the Mustang used after WWII

The early models of the Mustang, the P-51A, P-51B, and P-51C; were all discarded at the end of WWII.

The P-51D was the “main” Mustang version of WWII and the Korean War. It was 32’3″ long with a 37′ wingspan. It was powered by a Packard V-1650 liquid-cooled piston engine, a license-built variant of the Rolls-Royce Merlin. The armament was six AN/M2 .50cal machine guns in the wings, with a total 1,880 rounds of ammunition. A 500 lbs or 1,000 lbs bomb could be carried, and each wing had five pylons for T64 HVAR unguided rockets. The maximum speed was 380kts and the ceiling was 41,900′. The extremely maneuverable and fast P-51D was the first American squadron-level fighter to use a g-suit for the pilot, in this case the Berger-G model from 1944 onwards.

During WWII, a total of 11,503 of this variant were built. They were the most common American fighter in the early post-WWII era.

Preliminary Report

The Flight: Sunday, April 27, 1952

The flight from Nashville to Knoxville was done entirely VFR. This means they were following Visual Flight Rules (VFR) and were responsible for their own navigation and clearance from other aircraft and terrain. The forecast weather had to meet certain criteria to fly VFR, which it did. There was no radar, modern GPS, TACAN, etc. The pilots would rely solely on “Pilotage” and “Dead Reckoning” for the flight. The flight of two F-51 Mustang fighters left Berry Field in Nashville at 1808 CST. They notified the Nashville Flight Service Station (FSS) of their departure time and both climbed quickly and leveled off at 4000feet MSL on an easterly 097 degree heading toward their final destination McGhee Tyson AB, just south of Knoxville, Tennessee.

It had been a long day for them, having left their home base of Clovis AFB, New Mexico earlier in the day. There was some type of delay at Clovis but the four hour flight to Nashville had been uneventful, with light traffic on the Sunday afternoon and clear weather. The refueling stop at Berry Field gave them a chance to recheck the weather. And Captain Moede briefed Captain Smith on the high terrain just east of the Knoxville airport. With their late start, they would be arriving in Knoxville just after dark. But the weather had been nice all day and the forecast for their arrival time was for a 4500 feet overcast and 3 miles visibility. The unpressurized F-51 was a “reciprocating” engine powered aircraft, and as such, was more efficient at the denser, lower altitudes. Jets were a few years away for the Air National Guard.

Both pilots were very experienced, both having flown in WW2. The flight leader, Captain Howard B. Smith, had about 3500 flight hours. The wingman, Captain Donald H. Moede, had around 2533 flight hours. They were both from Wyoming where they had joined the Wyoming Air National Guard’s 187th Fighter Bomber Squadron in Cheyenne after the war. Flying the F-51D in the National Guard was good duty, a little extra money and a country-club atmosphere. The “country club” came to an end with start of the Korean War in June 1950. Over 80% of America’s Air National Guard forces (Some 45,000 men) were recalled into the active USAF on April 1, 1951. This included the 187th FS, and it was moved to Clovis AFB in December 1951 to become part of the active duty 140th Fighter Bomber Group. Two other National Guard Squadrons, the 120th FS from Buckley ANG Base in Colorado and the 191st FS from the Utah ANG in Salt Lake City joined them there. The USAF came into being in 1947 and the aircraft designation changed from the “P-51” (for Pursuit) to F-51 (Fighter) the same time.

About 40 miles west of Knoxville, around Rockwood, the darkness had settled in, with the visibility dropping to 3 miles. At around 6:40 CST, just as they were passing Oak Ridge, about 20 miles from their destination, they inadvertently entered a layer of unseen clouds. Captain Smith had been maintaining a course just south of the direct course from Nashville to Knoxville to ensure they did not enter the P-781 Prohibited Area around the Oak Ridge Nuclear facility. Staying just south of State Highway 70 ensured this. (Also known as IFR – I Follow Roads method of navigation).

Captain Smith immediately called for Capt Moede to “tuck it in” (move closer together) so the aircraft could maintain sight of each other. Normal procedure for a visual formation of aircraft inadvertently entering clouds is for the lead aircraft maintain a steady heading so he can transfer smoothly to flying on instruments only. The lead aircraft is responsible for navigation. The other aircraft keep the lead in sight and is only looking out at the lead aircraft, not inside the cockpit at his instruments. Close formation normally means to within half a wing span or less, or 5-10 feet separation. After assuming instrument procedures, the lead aircraft would call for a slow steady 180 degree turn to go back the way they had come, and hopefully, leave the clouds. However, Captain Moede radioed back that he had lost sight of Captain Smith’s aircraft and had passed under him and was now on the lead’s left side. Captain Smith then called for a right 180 degree turn which Captain Moede acknowledged.

While in clear weather, all of Captain Moede’s references for flight had been focusing on his lead aircraft. Aircraft attitude, airspeed, heading, path over the ground were not the focus of his attention. Maintaining his position in relation to his leader was his main focus. Once separated from his lead aircraft, Captain Moede’s had to react quickly and bring his focus back inside his cockpit on his instruments to maintain control of his aircraft in the clouds. This is normally a key moment in any flight as it takes awhile to shift your focus from outside the aircraft to your instruments. Vertigo, or spatial disorientation, is very common in these instances. But the pilot must fight the urge to believe his internal sense of balance and use his instruments to do that for him.

Once he has control of the aircraft, his next priority for Captain Moede would be to ensure separation from his leader’s aircraft. A veteran of many bomber rejoins in the clouds over England in WW2, he was well aware of the air-air collision possibilities. Many a bomber was lost when it collided inflight with other bombers lost in the thick clouds. He probably ensured he had clearance from his lead by slipping further to the left side of lead, then assuming the same heading of lead to parallel his course.

Knowing of the mountainous terrain ahead, and no way to ascertain his position over the ground, his next priority would be to obtain vertical clearance from the ground. He probably began a climb straight ahead to an altitude that would ensure his clearance from mountains, probably to 7-8000′. The F-51 could climb quickly.

The next step would have been to make an 180 degree turn to reverse his course back to the west and into clear weather that they had just left. However, he would want to do this in coordination with his leader to ensure aircraft clearance. The normal way to do this is to have the lead turn first, then the following aircraft would maintain the original heading for 15 to 60 seconds, then turn. The turn had to be to the right to avoid the prohibited airspace over Oak Ridge.

During the turn, he would have tried to maintain a steady bank angle and turn rate so as to not overtake his leader. Once he arrived at his new heading, he would have rolled out wings level.

We know there was a thunderstorm in the area over the Smokies from reports of people on the ground. They had also reported a lot of static on their radios, which is usually caused by the discharge of static electricity in the thunderstorm.

To maintain clearance from his lead aircraft, Captain Moede had probably flown further east before his turn back to the west. At some point, he probably entered the violent downdrafts and turbulence caused by a thunderstorm. If you never have flown in a thunderstorm, you have missed a wild ride. Once caught up in the turbulence, your main goal is to maintain an upright attitude as the turbulence can rock your aircraft violently up or down several hundred feet almost instantaneously. And it would have been a noisy ride. You are along for the ride. Hail hitting the aircraft would not be uncommon. And the heavy torrents of rain would be lashing out at your aircraft. Occasional flashes of lightning and St Elmo’s fire would add to your ride.

Once rolled out on his reciprocal heading, his first priority would probably have been to try to get out of the severe turbulence caused by the storm. With a 30 mph wind from the north blowing him south and no navigational aids to tell him his position, he would have to use his own judgement as to where he was.

No one knows why he was descending when he hit Huckleberry Knob 200 feet below its crest. But he probably did not realize he was still over the mountains and had been blown further south of course.

Aftermath

Sunday night, 27 April 1952

1849 CST (1949EST) – The Knoxville Interstate Airways Communication Station notified the Maxwell AFB Flight Service via Atlanta ARTC of the disappearance of the F51. This would set into action the US Air Force Rescue and Recovery system at Maxwell.

2000CST (2100EST) – Once Captain Moede’s aircraft was determined to be overdue, the Civil Aeronautics Administration (Now the FAA) Interstate Airways Communication Station (now called Flight Service Station) Knoxville, Tennessee advised the Tennessee Highway Patrol and the Blount County Sheriff’s Department to be on the lookout for one call sign AF 3655 F51, originally enroute Knoxville from Nashville along with call sign AF 2901, another F51. Last contact with AF 2901 was at 1845 CST (1945EST). At that time, he changed destination to Nashville on account of weather. Lost wingman. Broadcast weather information to AF 3655 numerous times and also advised him that AF 2901 had returned to Nashville. Corbin advised Kentucky Highway Patrol.

2122 CST (2222EST) – The Tennessee Highway Patrol advised the Knoxville Interstate Airways Communications Station they would call their unit at Crossville and have them check that field. Suggested to ARTC Atlanta that they have Asheville contact North Carolina Highway Patrol and have them be on the lookout, since aircraft may have continued on a SE heading.

Monday – 28 April 1952

A team from the Maxwell AFB, AL Air Search Rescue Center arrived at McGhee Tyson AB with several search aircraft and some 25 Air Force personnel. The search force consisted of two B-29s, a C-45, and a T-6.

The 105th Fighter Group detachment at McGhee Tyson AB also contributed a seven F-47 Thunderbolts.

The Tennessee Wing of the Civil Air Patrol also sent 18 civilian light aircraft from Greenville, Morristown, Cleveland, Johnson City, Chattanooga, and Knoxville.

CAP Colonel John Oman of Nashville, Tennessee CAP Wing Commander, took personal command of the CAP portion of the search mission and coordinated with the USAF team.

Captain L. H. Baily, the USAF search director from the Fifth Air Rescue Squadron at the Maxwell FB Air Search and Rescue Center stated “The ship could have gone down in the rugged Smokies or Cumberlands, or anywhere between here and Nashville. I’m appealing to anyone with any information to call me at the 105th Fighter Group’s Alert Post here at McGhee Tyson AB. The number is Maryville 3978.” “Usually, after such weather conditions and time lapse, it can be assumed that the pilot bailed out or crashed”.

3:10 pm EST – Monday Afternoon – A Tennessee Civil Air Patrol plane piloted by a dentist from Nashville, CAP Colonel John O. Crawford sighted what appeared to be aircraft wreckage.

The plane wreckage was sighted on the east slope of a 4600 foot mountain peak in the Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest by two CAP observers in Col Crawford’s aircraft. The observers, both from Nashville, were CAP Lt George D. Lunday and CAP Warrant Officer D.M. Vincent,. Crawford stated “We had been searching the area for about 40 minutes when Lieutenant Lunday caught the reflection of the sun on a piece of metal. We made several sweeps over the spot and finally determined that it was the wreckage of a plane” “We stayed there for about 30 minutes until the other planes arrived and confirmed the find”

Tuesday – 29 April 1952

6:00 AM EST – An H-19 rescue helicopter from the 644th Troop Carrier Squadron (Light) at Sewart AFB near Nashville took off and proceeded to McGhee Tyson AB in Knoxville.

Piloted by Captain Albert P. Lovelady, the helicopter picked up Captain (Medical Officer) William F. Payne and two airmen from the Maxwell Air Rescue Service. They took off from McGhee Tyson at 0800 EST and proceeded to the crash site, about 50 miles south of the airport. A Maxwell AFB Air Rescue C-45 was on station over the crash site and directed the helicopter in. The closest landing site was on Hooper’s Bald, a a little over a mile from the crash. They landed there, after some difficulty due to turbulence, at 0820 EST.

Leaving the helicopter pilot to stay with the aircraft on Hooper’s Bald, Captain Payne and the two Fifth Air Rescue Squadron Airmen took off north on foot toward the crash site. The C-45 continued to circle the crash site. About half way to the crash site, they were met by two forest rangers who had been at the crash site and guided them back to it.

At the scene, there were four other men present. One was a government photographer from Fontana Dam and another was a Forest Ranger. The other two men were loggers who worked nearby. Johnny Long and Elmer Rogers worked out of a logging camp about three miles from Huckleberry Knob. They both stated that on that Sunday, 27 April 1952, there was heavy rain and a high wind storm from about 5:30 PM EST until they went to bed at 8:30 PM EST

The airplane appeared to have hit the ground on a 280 degree heading at approximately a 20 degree nose down attitude with wings level, at a cruise speed of approximately 300mph. The point of impact was estimated to be 200-300 feet vertically from the top of the knob at about the 5400 foot level. From the top, it was maybe 1500 feet down the side of the mountain.

The airplane was completely destroyed and parts were thrown approximately 400 feet forward and approximately 300 laterally. The slope where impact was made was estimated to be about 45 degrees. The left landing gear was found 75 feet from impact, the right landing gear 150 feet. The aircraft engine block rested 300 feet up from the impact point. The propeller and spinner was 400 feet up from the impact point and right of centerline about 100 feet. Two blades of the four blade prop were completly torn off at the hub and were located near the point of impact.

The body was placed in oiled silk and sealed as much as possible. They then returned to the helicopter. It took about 2 hours because of the difficulty in covering the mountain country with the load. The loaded everything onto the H-19 and returned to McGhee Tyson AB where they landed at about 1230 EST.

Tuesday – 29 April 1952

3:30 PM EST – At approximately 3:30 pm (EST), Major David W. MacMillan, the 187th Fighter Bomber Squadron commander from Clovis, New Mexico, went to the scene of the accident to positively identify the aircraft as F-51 44-73655.

Sunday – 4 May 1952

A week after his death, Captain Moede was buried in Cheyenne, Wyoming. His wife, Rose Marie Moede (Zahradnik). and her infant son, moved back to Cheyenne to live. She died on September 4, 2015.

Wednesday – 7 May 1952:

A reclamation crew was dispatched to the site and began disposal on 8 May 1952. It is estimated it will take two days to clear up the site.

The USAF Accident Report

https://flyersfate.com/?page_id=101

http://www.wwiiaircraftperformance.org/mustang/P-51D-manual-5april44.pdf

And, coincidence? A little over a year earlier, another F51 crashed under similar circumstances, 20 miles north of Huckleberry Knob, just west of Cades Cove in the Smokies.

Johnson City Press Johnson City, Tennessee 06 Apr 1951, Fri