RAVENS WHO “ROLL”

Wairarapa Times-Age, 20 November 1943, Page 4

RAVENS WHO “ROLL”

KEEPING PACE WITH AIR AGE TALL TALE FROM ALEUTIANS The rugged raven of the Aleutians lives away back off the familiar air routes but has proved that he can meet the air age on its own terms, according to a story in the current issue of “Air Force,” an official American service journal. ! Shortly after American airmen moved on to one of the rocky Aleutian islets, they began to notice a change in the character of the somewhat dour birds that had been scratching out a chilly and bored existence. A fighter pilot first observed a string of ravens flying alongside his ship, trying to copy his manoeuvres. He would do a slow roll and the ravens would follow; he essayed a snap roll and the ravens fairly jerked themselves around. Very soon, he reported, the birds became so expert they were making him look a little silly, so he nosed down for a landing. To his disgust, ‘the ravens peeled off and set themselves down like “hot” pilots, in perfect formation. “Didn’t even let down their flaps,” he snorted. (This is one of the tall tales brought back from Alaska by Army airmen, the service journal explained).