Safe Mode: On
Lockheed P-38 Lightning. Walk-Round, Pre-Flight and Flight

Jeffrey Ethell presents the P-38.

Just another masterpiece from the house of Lockheed and the incredible aviation design skill of Kelly Johnson.


Jeffrey Ethell was killed flying a P-38 not long after this was made. Apparently, like several young pilots training to fly the lightning, by the violent yaw that resulted from an engine cut out at low level, on take off or landing.

Loading the player ...
Embed Code
Plays: 845 (Embed: 0)

Added: Jul-15-2012 
By: gnark1ll
In: WTF, Other Entertainment, Weapons
Tags: p38 lightning, piston, fighters, world war 2, USAF, lockheed
Marked as: approved
Views: 1635 | Comments: 19 | Votes: 7 | Favorites: 8 | Shared: 6 | Updates: 0 | Times used in channels: 2
You need to be registered in order to add comments! Register HERE
Sort by: Newest first | Oldest first | Highest score first
Liveleak opposes racial slurs - if you do spot comments that fall into this category, please report them for us to review.

  • Great post!

    Posted Jul-15-2012 By 
    downhill2400 (1318.58)

    (3)

  • my favorite plane! love the look of that one.

    Posted Jul-15-2012 By 
    Amusing (5222.88)

    (2)

  • Jeffrey Ethell was not killed due to the cut out during landing or takeoff. He was killed due to not changing the fuel selector to reserve before the main tank on one engine emptied. Once the main tank for one engine emptied, that engine shut down. Due to Ethell not being rated and it being the first time flying the aircraft in which he crashed...he only had 6-7 hours total flying any P-38, he hadnt practiced a live "engine out" scenario and therefore could not control the aircraft pro More..

    Posted Jul-15-2012 By 
    Flanuva (253.10)  

    (2)

    • @Flanuva
      This is interesting also;
      http://www.avweb.com/news/safety/183014-1.html

      Posted Jul-16-2012 By 
      bs2502 (279.20)  

      (1)

    • @Flanuva Well Im afraid you misunderstood what I wrote. I said it was the engine cutting out at low level. I only added the other bits because this was a dangerous flight regime for such a thing to happen.

      In fact the accidetn report states that the accident was caused by flying below minimum speed with the flaps retracted, and as you say because the pilot failed to transfer fuel, causing an engine to cut. I just though it pointless to add the whole story since it wasnt the reason I posted the More..

      Posted Jul-16-2012 By 
      gnark1ll (540.46)  

      (1)

    • @Flanuva The pilot's father, who reported 10,000 hours of flight experience, of which approximately 3,000 hours of flight experience was in the P-38, also observed the aircraft during the accident sequence. Witness Ervin Ethell, who was located approximately three miles north-northwest of the crash site at the Tillamook airport (looking south) reported seeing the aircraft "3 to 4 miles from the end of the runway" and "about 3 to 4 hundred feet (in) height." He further reporte More..

      Posted Jul-16-2012 By 
      gnark1ll (540.46)  

      (0)

  • Great video, thank you. It would even be better in HD.

    Posted Jul-16-2012 By 
    Buckaroo (201.12)  

    (2)

  • Great post thanks.

    Posted Jul-16-2012 By 
    bs2502 (279.20)  

    (1)

  • Awesome Vid! Thanks for sharing!

    Posted Jul-16-2012 By 
    menotrustemuslims (247.24)  
    menotrustemuslims
    View Channel
    Send Message

    (1)

  • Saw one of these babies in a heritage flight with an P-51 and a F-22. Not gonna lie, I came a little.

    Posted Jul-16-2012 By 
    w0lf1o (46.80)  

    (1)

  • MY FAVORITE!!

    Posted Jul-16-2012 By 
    daddyroo5 (90.94)  

    (1)

  • 2 p-40's, bolted together with a center cockpit.

    Posted Jul-16-2012 By 
    jaydenfre (317.12)

    (1)

    • @jaydenfre That is the same Allison too isnt it? But with the Lockheed modded super charged turbo?

      The story of how this plane came about is properly interesting, and amazing. they really went by the 'use whatever we can get' philosophy in those golden days of aircraft design.

      Posted Jul-16-2012 By 
      gnark1ll (540.46)  

      (0)

    • @gnark1ll Yes,it's the same engine with turbochargers, the engine components could be assembled for right hand or left hand rotation, opposite on both sides for the p-38 counter rotation.

      Posted Jul-16-2012 By 
      jaydenfre (317.12)

      (1)

  • the p-38 was the USA's first heavy fighter. But far from being a "fork tailed devil" it was considered meat on the table for most good axis fighter pilots. If jumped by enemy fighters the P-38 was at a severe disadvantage. Any axis fighter could turn inside it, and until they fixed the compressibility problem anything could out-dive it.

    Posted Jul-15-2012 By 
    Hitler_Is_Amazing (2950.98)  
    Hitler_Is_Amazing
    View Channel
    Send Message

    (0)