[gwdsoldat]

Interesting point- all we have is the word of the Beobachter to his son (Manfred) some years ago who says this is how they left the aircraft. In addition- thinking of A1+LN - the Bordmechaniker did not manage to escape from the aircraft- & when his body was found it is my understanding he was NOT wearing a parachute. Also- I had always assumed that parachutes would be carried in a rack, & then strapped to the chest (as in the US B17 for instance). But the excellent picture above (together with other pictures I have seen recently that seem to show crews wearing chutes outside the aircraft) seem to disprove the wearing of chutes of that type. It seems to me that in the case of A1+LN that the pilot & Beobachter were either BOTH wearing - or not wearing- their chutes- they just landed too close together for there to have been much of a delay in leaving the aircraft. The question is- how long would it take to strap a chute (as shown in the above picture) on? Any thoughts anyone?