The Marine Who Spent 40 Hours Falling To Earth

(via Popular Mechanics)  In the summer of 1959, Marine Corps Lt. Col. William Rankin was flying his Vought F-8 Crusader on a routine mission off the coast of the Carolinas. Rankin and his wingman were soaring at 47,000 feet, to clear a thunderstorm underneath them.  Suddenly Rankin’s single-engine fighter began suffering engine failure, and he was forced to eject. That’s when the real flight began.