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Table of Contents

  • PROLOGUE - 1
  • CHAPTER 1: A SAMPLE OF WHAT’S TO COME - 4
    • The Roar That Gave Them Hope - 4
    • Ludwigshaven—A Mission to Remember - 6
    • Ploesti - 7
    • Nazis Kill 491st BG Crewmen - 15
    • When an Enemy was a Friend - 17
    • While Europe Appeased the Barbary Pirates, America Sent in the Navy - 19
    • 15th Air Force Mission to Brenner Pass - 21
    • “The Poor 100th” - 23
    • Memories of an Interlude in England in 1944 - 25
    • B-24 Bashing—The End 27 How the Spitfire Stole the Thunder from the Hurricane - 29
    • Incident On Kiel Mission - 30
    • Marine pilots flew medium-bomber missions - 31
  • CHAPTER 2: MISSION STORIES - 34
    • Big-B by Day - 34
    • The First Time I Saw Paris, June 2, 1944 - 36
    • Jinx Ship - 40
    • Nazi Hell Under My Blue Heaven - 44
    • North Sea Bailout—May 29, 1944 - 48
    • A Bit of Trouble Over Norwich - 50
    • Tondelayo’s Last Mission—Target: Politz - 51
    • Wings Of Memory - 55
    • Major Hackett remembers the mission: - 58
    • The following is a quote from Al Ciurzack’s diary: - 60
    • Mission to Zwichau - 63
    • The Hard Luck 492nd - 70
    • Second Time Around—August 16, 1944 - 73
    • The Thirteenth Mission - 74
    • The “Unforgettable Second”—That Was a Rough Mission! - 78
    • The Second Time Was a Charm! - 79
    • Yanks in Britain - 80
  • CHAPTER 3: ABOUT ME - 84
    • First 22 Years - 84
    • My 33 Missions: - 90
  • CHAPTER 4: MISSION STORIES - 118
    • “Drama Over Cologne,” 14 October 1944 - 118
    • “Drama Over Cologne” Part 2 - 119
    • A Textbook on Escaping - 121
    • That Specially-Remembered Mission for the 445th - 125
    • The Hamm Raid, April 22, 1944 - 126
    • The Infamous Kassel Raid, September 27, 1944 - 129
    • Being Jewish Was An Extra Risk For This Kassel Survivor! - 132
    • Operation Market Garden - 135
    • “Ordeal” in Paris - 139
    • Prisoner of War: Henry Morris’ Last Flight - 141
    • Regensburg - 145
    • Our Unforgettable Mission 23 Was Worth Every “Penny” Of It - 148
    • Let’s Not Forget What Happened to Lt. Edwin M. Helton’s Crew - 151
  • CHAPTER 5: PEOPLE - 154
    • Dedicated Control Tower Personnel - 154
    • Who Packs Your Parachute? - 155
    • Jane Windham, Flight Engineer, Killed in Crash - 156
    • Gen Jimmy Doolittle Dies - 157
    • “I Remember Billy” - 157
    • Major General Andrew S. Low, Jr., USAF—Retired - 159
    • Are These the Final Details of Glenn Miller’s Death? - 161
    • Hap Arnold: America’s First Airman! Army Air Force, WWII - 163
    • His Bravery Was No Act - 175
    • One Day in the Life of Aviation Ordnance - 177
    • “The Gunner”: The passing of an incredible era - 178
    • 448th Bomb Group Profiles - 181
    • Yanks in Britain 183 Soldiers, Sailors and Airmen of the Allied Expeditionary Force! - 186
    • 8th Air Force Nomads - 187
    • Rommel: Leader of the Afrika Korps; Master of Mobile Warfare - 189
    • A Viking in the 8th Air Force 190 Patricia’s Enduring Mission - 196
    • Hearty Hilda - 201
    • Issy was a Hero - 202
    • A Post-War Talk with Top Nazi Albert Speer - 204
    • Unsung People - 215
  • CHAPTER 6: MISSION STORIES - 218
    • The Ballantrae Disaster - 218
    • Mission 23: Baumenheim, Germany—19 March, 1945 - 220
    • Duneberg 221 Duneberg—April 7, 1945 - 223
    • After The Mission Is Over - 224
    • The Final Flight of the Original “Bird Dog” Crew - 227
    • My First Trip To Germany, And It Had To Be Berlin - 236
    • “Crunch Landing” at Seething - 238
    • Dessau Was No Picnic! - 241
    • It’s A Small, Small World After All - 243
    • 448th’s Mission to an Underground Oil Storage Facility - 245
    • Half A Mission Gets You - 252
    • Mission With a Surprise Ending - 254
    • Not a Happy New Year’s Day - 255
    • Over the Rainbow - 260
    • Paralyzed With Fear - 264
    • Wesel, Germany: D-Day at the Rhine River, 24 March 1945 - 267
    • Mission No. 18: “D” Day, June 6, 1944 - 271
  • CHAPTER 7: ALMOST EVERYTHING - 281
    • This and That - 282
    • International Travel - 289
    • Fact or Fiction - 294
    • From the 491st BG Ringmaster’s Magazine - 295
  • CHAPTER 8: OTHER STORIES - 299
    • How We Spent V-E Day - 299
    • Ernie Pyle’s Column on the St. Lo Air Raid—25 July, 1944 - 303
    • The 1919 U.S. Army Air Service Flying Regulations - 306
    • Tales of the 44th: Return to Kjeller - 307
    • Norway Remembers Americans’ Sacrifice - 310
    • Princess’ Death Ends Fairy Tale - 313
    • The Revenge of Corporal Weinberg - 315
    • We are the Mustangs, Your “Little Friends” of World War II! - 318
    • California, One-Way! - 320
    • France to England in a Life Raft - 322
    • The Mighty Eighth Air Force Heritage Museum - 324
    • Shot Down by the Battleship Archangel - 325
    • Midnight - 327
    • The Freckleton Tragedy - 329
    • Oradour sur Glane Saturday, 10th June, 1944 - 330
    • Mike’s Flag - 332
    • The Father Of Aerial Bombardment - 333
    • More On The Luftwaffe Sturmgruppen - 334
    • How The Nazi Generals Justified Their Defeat - 337
  • CHAPTER 9: ARIS A. MALLAS - 342
    • Brief biographical sketch on: Aris A. “Bob” Mallas - 342
    • Military Experiences of Bob Mallas - 348
    • Three Incidents Relative To Combat Soldiers - 353
    • The Holland Trip… The Reaction of One of Our Allies - 356
    • I Leave Europe and Return Home - 358
    • Part l—The Stage is Set: - 359
    • Part Two—The Surprise! - 363
  • CHAPTER 10: FLYING STORIES (MOSTLY) - 368
    • My B-24 Experience - 368
    • From “Before I say Adieu” - 369
    • The American Eagle Squadrons - 369
    • Some Stats on WWII Era Aircraft Losses - 371
    • My Shortest Mission - 371
    • The “Liberalization” of the Soviet Air Forces - 372
    • Russian Excursion—World War II Style - 373
    • OSS Code Name: Carpetbagger - 375
    • Recovery Team Gets First Glimpse of B-24 Crash Site in China - 376
    • Stevens and Holm—Ditching With Nose Turret Shot Off - 377
    • On The Trail of “Wabbit Tracks” - 378
    • Lest We Forget - 379
    • From BOMBER LEGENDS—Dear Editor - 380
    • Impact of Air Combat - 380
    • You just gotta “hand it” to this guy! - 381
    • Pilot dead, 2 others injured, nose battered, B-24 returns. - 382
    • Drama Over Cologne, 14 October 1944 - 384
    • Buzz Bombs: D-Day Was Too Late - 385
  • CHAPTER 11: NON-FLYING STORIES - 387
    • USAAF Air Transport Command - 387
    • B-47 Stratojet - 388
    • Bits and Pieces of a Tour - 390
    • Journal Editor Visits with “Hump” Fliers - 392
    • Let’s Play Tag!!! - 394
    • Landing in “Neutral” Switzerland - 396
    • Lest We Forget: “The Black March” - 398
    • The Tempelhof Experience 1949-1951 - 400
    • Reflections on Tonopah Lights and Delights - 404
    • Chivalry In Adversity - 406
    • How Did My Brother Die? - 410
    • Taps—Do You Know the Whole Story? - 415
    • Auf Wiedersehen - 416
  • CHAPTER 12: ME AGAIN - 418
    • Biography 1945-2008 - 418
  • EPILOGUE - 439

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