Crashed airplanes and aviation accidents. They’re something we all hate to see, but at the see time also find deeply fascinating. They toy with our fears and with the small part of our reptilian brain that still can’t accept that mankind has managed to depart our terrestrial existence. They are also often an even bigger and more extreme version of the old cars we periodically find and photograph – entranced by how such resilient and seemingly permanent creations can so quickly be reclaimed by nature.
Covered in a fresh layer of snow, under a gray sky, we were introduced to the wreckage of an old Curtiss C-46 Commando shortly after arriving in the northern town of Churchill in the rural Canadian province of Manitoba. With its first flight in 1945, this C-46 suffered a partial engine failure shortly after takeoff back in 1979. The story goes that the crew of three turned it around, but clipped a pole in the process, bringing the airplane down a quarter mile short of the runway. Luckily all three crew survived, though two apparently had severe issues.
Now, the remains of the aircraft sit atop the coastline’s jagged rocks. In a way, the sight of it reminds me a bit of a mother hen warming her eggs. Or in this case, perhaps more of a bedraggled goose. Either way, it makes for a fun shot and story.
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Would you like to see previous Weekly Photos? View past travel pictures here. This photo was taken on a Canon T3i (600D)
