INTERVIEW with Lt. William Zimpleman, September, 1945

From the US NATIONAL ARCHIVES

ANNOUNCER: At Weihsien, the DUCK team received word that a downed American flyer, Lt. William Zimpleman, was being hidden in the area by Chinese patriots. Lt. Hannon immediately made effort to contact Lt. Zimpleman, and on September 6, Lt. Zimpleman reached OSS headquarters.

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: I am William V. Zimpleman. On February the 20th of this year, I left on a fighter sweep from a base in Free China. While over the target, I had the misfortune of getting… hhh…

ANNOUNCER: You came when you arrived at the target, Lieutenant … You came down in a dive to strafe the target. Is that right?

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: That’s right. Uh. Diving my last pass, I had steam come up in the cockpit, so I immediately knew that I had been hit and had only a few minutes to plan my escape.

ANNOUNCER: That’s when you were pulling out of your last pass.

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: That’s right. That’s right.

ANNOUNCER: And what is that an indication of – steam coming out from the cockpit?

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: That I’d received a hit in my cooling system.

ANNOUNCER: I see. And that meant what? What would happen with a bullet in the cooling system?

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: That my engine would soon be out of coolant and would be too hot to run. It would freeze.

ANNOUNCER: I see. And about what altitude were you when you made this realization?

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: I was on the deck.

ANNOUNCER: Uh, you were on the deck?

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: Yes, I was on the deck. I was near the ground just a few feet.

ANNOUNCER: I see. I see.

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: I pulled up to about 2,500 feet and headed in the direction that I figured was the safest.

ANNOUNCER: I see. And what did you see underneath you? What was the condition of the terrain under you?

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: It was a bay. All water.

ANNOUNCER: A bay. All water. What did you do then?

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: I prepared to bail out ‘cause I knew I had only a few minutes -- and headed for the nearest land, the nearest terrain that I figured the safest.

ANNOUNCER: That was across the bay?

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: That was across the bay.

ANNOUNCER: About how wide was the bay?

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: About ten miles.

ANNOUNCER: That must have seemed the widest ten miles you ever saw.

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: It looked very bad.

ANNOUNCER: And you moved the hell out until you got across the bay.

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: Just as I got to the edge of the land, it started spitting and froze …right near the patch of land.

ANNOUNCER: I see. And then what happened?

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: I started losing altitude, but I still hadn’t reached the part I had intended to… started for.

ANNOUNCER: What is the sensation of a plane without adequate landing? What’s the sensation of going down and out?

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: Like a rock. You go down very fast.

ANNOUNCER: You’re really conscious of falling.

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: Yes, gliding, but a very steep glide down.

ANNOUNCER: I see. And what plan did you have in mind then?

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: Well, uh, to bail out when I got to the least altitude to be safe.

ANNOUNCER: You had to open up your hood… of the…

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: I had released my canopy sooner…

ANNOUNCER: Yes.

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: Sooner.

ANNOUNCER: You released the canopy immediately.

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: I released the canopy before my engine stopped.

ANNOUNCER: I see.

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: To be safe.

ANNOUNCER: I see. And then you waited to what altitude before you jumped?

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: About a thousand feet.

ANNOUNCER: You were watching the altimeter. At a thousand feet you went out. Did you fall clear of the plane?

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: Yes, it was very … it worked out very fine. The plane went straight down. I missed the tail. It went right over me.

ANNOUNCER: And did you wait ‘til you had seen the tail passed before you pulled the rip cord?

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: That’s right.

ANNOUNCER: Uh. And then did you see the plane handing?

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: No, I didn’t. No, I didn’t. I was watching… (laugh)…

ANNOUNCER: You were busy.

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: …other things.

ANNOUNCER: Uh, did you see the plane afterwards?

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: Yes, I saw the plane afterwards. It was burning.

ANNOUNCER: Yes. And, uh, were you aware of an opening shock?

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: Uh, yes. I… But not much…very slight.

ANNOUNCER: I see. And then you had only a few hundred feet to fall.

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: That’s right.

ANNOUNCER: What was your sensation coming down as far as expecting trouble?

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: I expected enemy troops – Japanese. I could expect nothing else. I was near water and everything.

ANNOUNCER: In that area there’s nothing but Japanese.

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: Right near the target.

ANNOUNCER: And as you came down, did you notice anyone below? Had anyone seen you?

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: Yes, I could see many people. Many people who had seen me were coming out of the village.

ANNOUNCER: Uh, these were villagers.

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: Yeh, that’s right.

ANNOUNCER: And, uh, when you landed, did you land safely? Did you hurt yourself?

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: Uh, I landed…when I landed, I pigeoned my ankle. I started running, but it was impossible for me to get away.

ANNOUNCER: I see. And people came crowding around and said, “Ding hao.” And then you said, “Ding hao.”

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: No, I… No, I… Not long I was rescued by friendly troops.

ANNOUNCER: Oh, Gol. They came right on up!

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: And kept the civilians away. I had no contact with civilians. They didn’t know where I went.

ANNOUNCER: That must have been a relief to you…to know what happened.

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: For the full length of time I was with them – which was 6 ½ months – they kept me safe.

ANNOUNCER: And then Lt. Hannon, who had come with the Duck Mission in Weihsien, contacted you and you came back.

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: That’s right. After this time, my first contact with my own people – with the Duck Mission at Weihsien.

ANNOUNCER: Lieutenant, nice having you back. I hope you’ll be home.

LT. ZIMPLEMAN: I’m very glad to be back.

ANNOUNCER: Thank you very much.

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