Flight deck crew swarm around a torpedo bomber that has nosed over during a landing accident aboard a U.S. Navy escort carrier. Short flight decks, pitching seas, and battle-damaged or low-fuel aircraft made such crashes a routine hazard of carrier aviation during World War II. Deck crews trained extensively to respond quickly to these incidents, working to free trapped aircrew, extinguish fires, and clear wreckage so flight operations could resume as swiftly as possible -- often within minutes, since a fouled deck left the ship unable to launch or recover aircraft. Project: 218487