223 - MERMOZ, Jean

MERMOZ, Jean 2 letters “Jean,” Toulouse, September–October 1930, to his “Dearest Mom”; 2 pages, each in-4, on letterhead from Le Grand Hôtel Régina and Grands Cafés de Toulouse. Account of his accident on August 30 and his parachute landing. September 4. He reassures his mother that he is getting better and better: “However, it will still take me some time to recover. I have muscle tears in my lower abdomen and an internal bruise caused by a bruised rib… no fractures. People have wondered how I managed to get off so lightly after a parachute descent with a speed estimated at 14 meters per second. I’m starting to walk a little more easily with a cane. In a few days, everything will certainly be back to normal. At 1,000 meters, as I was descending from 5,000 meters—where I’d climbed while carrying a 6,000-kg load—I was performing a three-minute speed base turn when I felt the fuselage twist and come apart. I tried to open the side door to jump out with my parachute… but it was impossible: the plane was spiraling out of control, and the warped metal frames prevented me from getting through, so I threw myself toward the open hatch above my head, but I couldn’t fit through because of my shoulders, and with my head sticking out, I saw the left wing break off. The 1,200-liter fuel tank split open behind me, flooding me with gasoline, then the roof tore apart, disintegrated, and I became one of the pieces of debris released by the plane, which was literally pulverized as if it had been struck head-on by a shell. I fell freely for about 150 to 200 meters before the parachute opened… and then I suddenly felt myself suspended in midair after a violent jolt. I looked up and saw pieces of the plane crashing down onto my parachute and tearing it in many places; one of them ripped off a 1.50-meter section, and naturally my descent speed increased. The tail of the plane passed 50 meters away from me. The impact with the ground was brutal; I landed on my legs, but the jolt snapped me in two”… His wife, Gilberte, added a few affectionate lines. October 17. The first page is written by Gilberte Mermoz to “dear Mom Gaby.” Then Mermoz reassures his mother… “On our return from Casablanca, we’re going to Marseille and from there to Paris for just a few days”… Enclosed is a handwritten letter addressed “Maman Gaby” to “My little Gilberte” and “My Jean” (3 pages, in-8 format). Provenance: - Jean Mermoz (1901–1936); - Gabrielle Gillet-Mermoz (1880–1955); - Then passed down within the family