During the Second World War, Japan attacked parts of China, causing some people to leave in a hurry. One wealthy family loaded as many belongings as they could into a transport plane, which was leaving the country. Among the items were two Steinway concert grand pianos. As the plane approached the mountains, it was having difficulty gaining altitude. When the difficulty became serious enough, it was decided to discard the two pianos.
As the plane fought to gain altitude, the pianos were pushed out of the open doorway. With 50,000 to 60,000 pounds of tension on each instrument, one can imagine the tremendous explosion as they struck the rocks. It was reported to be a spectacular sight, but it must have been a very sad one for anyone associated with those 9 foot Steinways.
