The L.A. ethnic insurance fraud scam that targeted my family a few years ago was part of a huge, well known Glendale Armenian scam system that can somehow create false orthopedic x-rays, false therapist reports, and reams of legitimate-looking medical reports in order to sue innocent drivers for their full umbrella policy maximums. We were sued over $1 million for a minor, slow motion, no-damage rear-ending (that was on video), where the other driver was totally fine. But somehow he later developed "catastrophic spinal injury" and psychological phobia of cars and needed a million dollars in damages.
Our insurance co. settled with him for $150K, but of course, that gets passed along to us and their other customers, and everyone's rates go up!
A Wing And A Prayer
Before Jump Doors: The Insane "Wing-Slide" Technique of the 1930s.
The Soviet Tupolev TB-3, a legendary heavy bomber that served as the cradle for the Soviet VDV (Airborne Forces) long before modern safety standards existed, and the unique and harrowing deployment method that predates the standardized jump doors and static lines we know today.
Before the invention of dedicated troop transport aircraft with side doors, Soviet strategists had to improvise. The paratroopers would climb out of the open cockpits and hatches of the Tupolev TB-3 while in flight. They would then gingerly walk along the corrugated metal fuselage-battling the slipstream-to position themselves on the broad roots of the wings.
At the pilot's signal, they would simply slide off the trailing edge of the wing, pulling their ripcords manually as they fell away.
This method, often performed at air shows for high-ranking officials (including Stalin), was a terrifying display of courage and a testament to the "human factor" in early Soviet doctrine.