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FM-2 Wildcat Recovered from Lake Michigan

FM-2 Wildcat U.S. Navy
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Key Takeaways:

  • An FM-2 Wildcat, lost in Lake Michigan in late 1944 after an engine failure during a training mission (from which the pilot survived), was recovered on the 71st anniversary of Pearl Harbor.
  • The historic warbird will be transported to the National Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola, Florida, for a multi-year restoration.
  • This recovery is the latest of 31 airplanes retrieved from Lake Michigan, which served as a crucial training hub for military pilots during WWII and is estimated to still contain 70 to 80 more aircraft.
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An FM-2 Wildcat that sat at the bottom of Lake Michigan for nearly seven decades was brought to the surface on Friday as the nation marked the 71st anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor.

The airplane was lost during a training mission after its engine failed on takeoff from a converted steamship in late 1944. William Edward Forbes, the pilot flying the Wildcat, survived the ditching.

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