Haunted Plane For Monday Mystery...!

Many strange tales come out of wartime and, and you can imagine, many involve war machines.

This particular story , found on Listverse, is about an aircraft known as Pippo.

Pippo, The Ghost Plane

In World War II, the Italian population was taking quite a beating. Their own fascist government and its Nazi allies terrorized them, while the Allied forces considered them an enemy. Still, the people in Northern Italy had an even bigger (and stranger) fear: something was out to get them, and it was personal.

That something was a mysterious plane called Pippo.

No one knew where Pippo came from, what type of plane it was, or who piloted it. Even its allegiance (whether it was loyal to the fascists or the Allied forces) remained a mystery. Pippo came from nowhere, and it was said that it fired its machine guns at anyone foolish enough to get in its way. It was recognized by the distinctive “pip-pip” sound of its engines (hence the name) and was mostly heard at night. Mostly.

Many people were terrified of Pippo, which they felt was a mystical presence that was specifically after them. You had to block all lights in your house or Pippo might open fire. Its various lethal payloads were said to include exploding pens, poisoned candy, and powerful bombs. If Pippo was bored, it would open fire on innocent farm workers.

Although Pippo sounds like a bogeyman-like ghost character, historians agree that there was something behind the myth. In reality, the plane known as Pippo was probably a series of British reconnaissance planes of the de Havilland Mosquito type (the plane model had a distinctive engine sound similar to that of Pippo) that flew all over the countryside at night. Still, Pippo the demon plane remained a ghost in collective consciousness, a means to make the horrors of war tangible. Even in the ’90s, it was still a well-known memory in Northern Italy.

This must have scared a lot of people, especially when so many folks were jumping at shadows due to the war. Bad enough when you have some idea who is trying to kill you, but even more maddening when phantoms are getting in on the act.

Coffee inside again today.