On June 7th, 1944, a B-24 took off from Olmsted Air Base in Middletown Pennsylvania for a test flight. On board were 3 civilian technicians and 2 military pilots. Just as the bomber took off, electrician Norman Shuey Jr noticed that the engine was on fire. The pilot attempted to circle around back to Olmsted field but the Liberator kept losing altitude to the point where the captain told the crew that they were going to crash and they would have to jump. Norman, with no parachute training grabbed the chute that he was using as a seat cushion and put it on He then helped his Co-worker, 27-yr-old Carlisle native Wilfred Rainsford put his chute on. Norman stated that he saw the pilot stand up and state go ahead and jump, you only have 1500 feet, pull it quick. Rainsford was standing next to Norman with his chute on when Norman decided to dive head first through the bomb bay doors. His chute did open and he watched the plane hit the ground in Yocumtown in York County. Norman then ran over to the crash and pulled two burning bodies away from the wreckage. Newspaper articles state that Norman was transported back to the base and the story ends there. Norman Shuey Jr passed away in 2007 at 92 years old. Fortunately I located his son, Norman Shuey III, who agreed to tell his father's story starting with this fateful day.