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Narrative: Republic F-84B-36-RE Thunderjet 46-665, 48th Fighter Squadron, 14th Fighter Wing, USAF: Written off (destroyed) September 24 1948 when crashed during air display at the Rochester Fairgrounds, one mile south east of Rochester, New Hampshire. Pilot - Captain John Fairchild, USAF - was killed
According to eyewitness reports: "In 1948 Captain John Fairchild was killed during a F-84B Thunderjet flight demonstration before an estimated 12,000 people at the Rochester Fair. While leading two other jet pilots, Captain Fairchild’s jet experienced mechanical failure and caught fire, careening his jet toward what could have been a collision course with the packed grandstand.
I was in the fourth grade at Allen School in Rochester and I saw that airplane come apart in flight right after it passed by our school. It appeared to pull up sharply and a wing separated from the plane. Our whole school was outside to watch the demonstration.I tried to tell everyone what I saw but they thought it was my imagination. A short while later a boy came by on his bicycle and told us that there was an airplane crash. The newspaper articles called the pilot a hero for avoiding the grandstand at the fair but I think he was a victim of a poorly designed aircraft".
This month's video is about the 1948 Jet Crash during the Rochester Fair, I made contact with the pilot's sister and she was very helpful with providing info and picture of her brother.