A B-17 Flying Fortress bomber not only makes a surprise visit during the first game of the 1943 World Series between the St Louis Cardinals and the Yankees, it nearly clipped the flagpoles on top of the stadium.
While flybys by military aircraft is a common occurrence at sporting events today, this particular flyby was not suppose to happen. Lt. Jack W. Watson of the U.S. Army Air Force and his crew, along with three other crews, were flying to Maine as a stopover to England and the war effort after a training session in Florida. As they passed New York City, The 21-year-old freckled-face Watson realized that the World Series was just starting and decided to do an impromptu visit, so his crew and the other three buzzed the stadium in formation.
And it was so much fun they decided to do it two more times!
By now the crowd and players on the field were giving their full attention to Watson and friends spontaneous airshow. But it was last flyby that rattled a lot of cages as Watson’s aircraft came a bit too close for comfort as one AP reporter noted that the plane “barely skimmed the flagpoles.”
New York Mayor Fiorello La Guardia, who attended the game, was outraged and demanded the Army Air Force investigate. Which they did, and since all pilots were needed for the fight in World War II, the four pilots, including Watson, were given a $75 fine and the matter was dropped.
As for Watson, he would go on to complete 35 missions in the war effort and in a radio interview remarked that he hoped Mayor La Guardia, would forgive him. La Guardia, hearing of Watson’s plea, sent him a cable stating:
“Delighted to get your message. All is forgiven. Congratulations. I hope you never run out of altitude. Happy landings. Will be seeing you soon.”