Failed attempt to recover Douglas A-20 bomber

The excavation of the American bomber Douglas A-20, planned for today, failed, as museum staff were told by the capricious Baltic Sea, which presented the excavation team with a so-called dead wave. Due to the constantly deteriorating weather conditions, the next attempt will probably take place in spring 2014.

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The wreck of the bomber rests at a depth of about 15m not far from Rozewie. Due to easy access, its position was kept strictly secret, so that the museum staff could secure all the important elements inside and around the wreck.

Preparations for the whole operation took several months, but as it usually happens, our dear Baltic Sea had other plans for that day. The impact of the waves was so strong that the crane with which the plane was planned to be lifted was not able to maintain a stable position. As Dr. Benedykt Hac from the Maritime Institute in Gdańsk explains, an attempt to retrieve it in such conditions could have ended in the total destruction of the bomber.

Failure does not derail the plans for the find:

“Although the wreck could not be lifted, but earlier, for almost two weeks, divers from the Central Maritime Museum excavated dozens of different elements of the wreck, equipment, parts related to its weaponry. They cleaned it, dug it up, checked it for any dangers,” Hac added.”

The specimen found in the Baltic Sea has waited in its sands for several decades as if closed in a time capsule. After being found by employees of the Maritime Institute, it momentarily ignited many heads. This resulted in the preparation of the excavation action described by us, which is to have its finale in the Aviation Museum in Krakow.

An additional attraction is the condition of the aircraft, which researchers have described as very good. Despite the fact that the Douglas A-20 was produced in thousands of copies, only a dozen or so have been preserved to this day. In the whole of Europe there are only 2 such aircrafts (12 in the world).

Archaeologists will be able to shorten their wait by examining the artefacts excavated during recent dives. Probably after the bomber is excavated, it will make a wonderful complement to the whole in the Aviation Museum in Krakow.

Source: PAP