Aviation History January 2022

b-17 pilot colin kelly: remembering a fallen WWII hero

shooting star

Lockheed’s P-80 paved the way for future american jet fighters p-51 pilot’s war: letters chronicle a wwii airman’s service and sacrifice bait and switch: how the israeli air force lured mig-21s to their doom JANUARY 2022

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10/18/21 1:15 PM

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JANUARY 2022

DEPARTMENTS

5 MAILBAG 6 BRIEFING 10 AVIATORS

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Two airplane crashes in the mid-1960s killed three American astronauts, changing key NASA flight assignments and the course of the space program.

By Douglas G. Adler

14 RESTORED A Boeing B-17C makes a test flight near Ohio’s Wright Field circa 1940.

features

A Bellanca Aircruiser loaded with uranium oxide that crashed in Canada’a Northwest Territories in 1947 was recovered and restored after enduring 27 years in the bush.

By Jim Trautman

26 Shooting Star

Lockheed debuted the first operational U.S. jet fighter late in World War II, but the P-80 proved most useful training the postwar generation of jet pilots.

By Stephan Wilkinson

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36 An American Martyr

B-17C pilot Colin Kelly died saving his crew a few days after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, providing his shellshocked country with the hero it badly needed.

By Philip Handleman

16 EXTREMES

44 Israel’s Bait-and-Switch

60 A photographer aboard the airship USS Los Angeles prepares to shoot the January 1925 solar eclipse.

In 1970 Israeli Air Force Mirages and Phantoms lured Soviet-flown MiG-21s into a dogfight over Egypt and shot down five of the fighters.

By Marshall Michel

52 Bringing Charles Home

The sister of P-51 Mustang pilot Charles Lee recounts his service and sacrifice in a personal paean to her World War II airman brother.

By Nina Lee Soltwedel

60 To Catch a Shadow

In 1925 scientists in U.S. Army Air Service planes and a massive Navy airship took to New York’s skies to observe and photograph a total eclipse of the sun.

By Damond Benningfield

The French Latécoère 631 was the world’s largest flying boat when it first flew in 1942, but its checkered service history and the rise of the landplane ultimately sealed its fate.

By Robert Guttman

18 STYLE

Showcasing products of interest to aviation enthusiasts and pilots.

24 LETTER FROM AVIATION HISTORY 66 REVIEWS 70 FLIGHT TEST 72 AERO ARTIFACT

ON THE COVER: Two Lockheed F-80C Shooting Stars from the 80th Fighter-Bomber Squadron drop napalm on North Korean anti-aircraft gun emplacements in Suan County on May 8, 1952. Cover illustration: Gareth Hector/©Osprey Publishing.

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CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: RUDY ARNOLD PHOTOGRAPHIC COLLECTION, NATIONAL AIR AND SPACE MUSEUM ARCHIVES; ROYAL AVIATION MUSEUM OF WESTERN CANADA; HOPKINS OBSERVATORY OF WILLIAMS COLLEGE (WILLIAMSTOWN, MA), LUKE COLE ’57 COLLECTION; SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION ARCHIVES

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ROMAN GLADIATORS FROZEN IN TIME FOR OVER 1,600 YEARS

Found: 1,600-Year-Old Roman Gladiator Coins Hold the Glory of Rome In the Palm of Your Hand

W

hen your famous father appoints you Caesar at age 7, you’re stepping into some very big sandals. But when that father is Emperor Constantine the Great, those sandals can be epic!

Constantius II, became Caesar at 7, and a Roman Emperor at age 20. Today, he is remembered for helping continue his father’s work of bringing Christianity to the Roman Empire, as well as for his valiant leadership in battle.

But for many collectors, his strongest legacy is having created one of the most fascinating and unique bronze coins in the history of the Roman Empire: the “Gladiator’s Paycheck”.

the Gladiators Paycheck

Roman bronze coins were the “silver dollars” of their day. They were the coins used for daily purchases, as well as for the payment of wages. Elite Roman Gladiators—paid to do battle before cheering crowds in the Colosseum—often received their monthly ‘paycheck’ in the form of Roman bronze coins.

But this particular Roman bronze has a gladiator pedigree like no other! Minted between 348 to 361 AD, the Emperor’s portrait appears on one side of this coin.

The other side depicts a literal clash of the gladiators. One warrior raises his spear menacingly at a second warrior on horseback. Frozen in bronze for over 1,600 years, the drama of this moment can still be felt when you hold the coin.

Surrounding this dramatic scene is a Latin inscription—a phrase you would never expect in a million years!

Happy Days are Here Again The Latin inscription surrounding the gladiators reads: “Happy Days are Here Again” (Fel Temp Reparatio). You see, at the time these coins were designed,

the Emperor had just won several important military battles against the foes of Rome. At the same time, Romans were preparing to celebrate the 1100th anniversary of the founding of Rome. To mark these momentous occasions, this new motto was added and the joyful inscription makes complete sense.

A Miracle of Survival for 1,600 Years

For more than sixteen centuries, these stunning coins have survived the rise and fall of empires, earthquakes, floods and two world wars. The relatively few Roman bronze coins that have survived to this day were often part of buried treasure hoards, hidden away centuries ago until rediscovered and brought to light.

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MICHAEL A. REINSTEIN CHAIRMAN & PUBLISHER DAVID STEINHAFEL PUBLISHER ALEX NEILL EDITOR IN CHIEF

Aviation History

Online

You’ll find much more from Aviation History on the web’s leading history resource: historynet.com

The Iconic MiG-21 “Fishbed”

During the Cold War, while the U.S. Air Force tried to create superfighters in small numbers, the Soviets worked to fill the sky with thousands of simple, lightweight, reliable jets. Enter the singleengine MiG-21, the most-produced supersonic fighter of all time. Despite its fearsome reputation, however, after some 30 wars more Fishbeds have been shot down than have downed opponents.

A Day in the Life of a Mustang Pilot

“Two years ago few of us had ever been in a plane....Now, with 26 missions under my belt, I know I’m part of a high-spirited team, men who will fight to the death for each other.” It’s November 26, 1944, and 20-year-old P-51 Mus­tang pilot William Lyons of the 355th Fighter Group describes the indelible details of the day, from his breakfast ritual to his part in the morning’s mission—escorting a 1,000-bomber raid on a German oil refinery.

Samurai of the Air

Legendary Zero pilot Saburo Sakai, Japan’s most recognized ace and the best-known Japanese pilot of World War II, first came to prominence in 1957 when his memoir, Samurai!, was published in English. But few knew the man behind the legend, who tallied more than 50 enemy aircraft destroyed or damaged during near-continuous combat in the war.

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AVIATION H

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JANUARY 2022 / VOL. 32, NO. 3

CARL VON WODTKE EDITOR LARRY PORGES SENIOR EDITOR JON GUTTMAN RESEARCH DIRECTOR STEPHAN WILKINSON CONTRIBUTING EDITOR ARTHUR H. SANFELICI EDITOR EMERITUS STEPHEN KAMIFUJI CREATIVE DIRECTOR BRIAN WALKER GROUP ART DIRECTOR MELISSA A. WINN DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY PAUL FISHER ART DIRECTOR GUY ACETO PHOTO EDITOR

ROB WILKINS DIRECTOR OF PARTNERSHIP MARKETING TOM GRIFFITHS CORPORATE DEVELOPMENT GRAYDON SHEINBERG CORPORATE DEVELOPMENT SHAWN BYERS VP AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT JAMIE ELLIOTT PRODUCTION DIRECTOR

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Aviation History (ISSN 1076-8858) is published bimonthly by HISTORYNET, LLC 901 North Glebe Road, 5th Floor, Arlington, VA 22203 Periodical postage paid at Tysons, Va., and additional mailing offices.

POSTMASTER, send address changes to Aviation History, P.O. Box 31058, Boone, IA 50037-0058 List Rental Inquiries: Belkys Reyes, Lake Group Media, Inc.; 914-925-2406; belkys.reyes@lakegroupmedia.com Canada Publications Mail Agreement No. 41342519, Canadian GST No. 821371408RT0001 The contents of this magazine may not be reproduced in whole or in part without the written consent of HISTORYNET, LLC

PROUDLY MADE IN THE USA

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A Bulgarian air force MiG-21bis flies a mission.

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Mailbag

BEAR FLYOVERS I thoroughly enjoyed the article “Bear of the Air”

by Stephan Wilkinson [November], as the Tu-95 Bear is a remarkable bomber. I would like to submit a minor correction to the claim that no Bear ever surprised a U.S. carrier. I was a supply officer on USS Bon Homme Richard (CVA-31) on two cruises in the Vietnam War zone in 1968 and 1969. On the first cruise we were overflown by a Myasishchev M-4 Bison, which two of our combat air patrol F-8 Crusaders intercepted. >

COURTESY OF FRANK SIMON

> The attached picture [above] was taken by an RF-8 photo bird. However, the 1969 cruise was different.

During the transit from Pearl Harbor to Japan, a Tu-95 recon bomber overflew us at mast height, unintercepted by our CAP, although we expected the Russians would try. The sea return hid the Bear from our air search radar until it was right on top of us. Naturally I don’t have a picture of that Bear.

Frank Simon Plano, Texas I was overflown by a Bear and lived to tell the tale.

In the fall of 1967 the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Staten Island was in the Bering Sea, close to the Russian coast en route to Operation Arctic West ’68. Shortly, radar showed a vessel moving from the coast in our direction and what appeared to be a trawler passed up our starboard side. Very soon after that a Bear bomber passed low ahead of us, and, incredulously I thought, dipped his wings. Notwithstanding the courtesy, it was a chilling experience for a 20-year-old American at the height of the Cold War. Christopher Chumley Yuma, Ariz.

HOLLYWOOD WAR EFFORT

I very much enjoyed reading “Operation Highjump” in

the September issue. I learned new things about it and the photos brought it to life.

I would like to set the record straight, though, on one small detail that was mentioned in the penultimate paragraph where it says that the Academy Award–winning film The Secret Land was narrated by “Robert Montgomery, Robert Taylor and Van Heflin, all of whom had served in the Navy during WWII.” While Montgomery and Taylor did, Van Heflin instead served as a lieutenant in the Army Air Forces advising on the use of motion cameras. He, along with a great many Hollywood actors, was assigned to the First Motion Picture Unit led

by Hollywood mogul and studio owner Jack Warner (of Warner Bros.).

As part of his service, Hef­ lin was sent on a short-term detail to the Ninth Air Force in Europe, where he and a group fellow Hollywood cameramen oversaw the installation of gun cameras in aircraft. This was an important contribution to helping the commanders of the Ninth assess the overall success of the missions flown by their men, to help their men improve their shooting skills and to boost morale of the pilots and gunners.

Jim Hester Laurel, Md.

MORE B-36 MEMORIES

“The Peacemaker” [July] was excellent. I was on temporary duty to Eglin AFB in 1956 at the time of the Firepower demonstration mentioned in the article. It’s hard to describe how awesome it is to witness 132 500-pound bombs released in train by a B-36. The run extended from the west end of the range to the east end, with the B-36 then descending to 1,500 feet and reversing course. This brought it past the stands within a half-mile with its characteristic growl.

The vibration literally shook the heck out of everyone.

Experiencing it was an unforgettable event, a sound always remembered.

Lt. Col. George T. MacDonald U.S. Air Force (ret.)

“practice interception” on October 28, 1956.

It was impossible to miss the great plane and my leader wanted a closer look as we flew over the Irish Sea. He tapped the back of his head, which was a signal to me to drop back to line astern (he still retained his wartime habit of never using the radio). We flew parallel to the American plane about 200 yards on our left. As we overtook it, all the guns tracked us as we slowly flew past—it reminded me of sailing past an old-fashioned man-of-war with multiple cannons. Your article says the guns were removed later, but that day they were mounted and appeared to be working well.

Eric B. Forsyth Brookhaven, N.Y.

The article about the B-36 Peacemaker brought back some distant memories for me, so much so I rescued my old flying logbooks from the musty basement to try to nail a date. In the 1950s I was a fighter pilot with a Royal Auxiliary Air Force squadron equipped with de Havilland Vampires. I was ordered to fly as wingman in a pair led by a very experienced pilot who had flown in WWII. Much of our flying was practice for operators learning ground-controlled interceptions. We were scrambled from RAF Ringway, in northwest England, to intercept a USAF B-36 flying in from the U.S. Because it carried nuclear weapons we were briefed to fly no closer than half a mile.

My logbook simply states

I appreciated seeing the B-36 Peacemaker cover story in the July issue. A couple of years after I had become a military aircraft buff, I learned my grandfather, Americo S. Cardi, helped construct Loring Air Force Base in northern Maine. My father, uncle and aunt have told me many stories of their experiences during the late 1940s and early 1950s while the base was being constructed. Since then, I have looked upon the history and story of this great airplane with pride, love and admiration. The B-36 will always be special to me not only for my family’s own contribution to it, but for the role it played in the dark early days of the Cold War. Steve Cardi Concord, N.H.

SEND LETTERS TO:

Aviation History Editor, HISTORYNET 901 North Glebe Road, 5th Floor, Arlington, VA 22203 OR EMAIL TO aviationhistory@historynet.com (Letters may be edited)

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briefing

Return of the Original Stealth Fighter curtain call Above and inset: Lockheed F-117A Nighthawks taken out of semi-retirement land at California’s Fresno Yosemite International Airport in September prior to the stealth fighters’ deployment on a training mission with the local Air National Guard unit.

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irplanes fly…and so does time. It has been 40 years since the world’s first operational stealth fighter, the F-117 Nighthawk, emerged from Lockheed’s “Skunk Works” to make its first flight from Area 51 at Groom Lake, Nev., on June 18, 1981. Its weirdly angular

airframe, designed to reflect and confuse enemy radar, was an aesthetic acquired taste, but an onboard computer system helped its pilot to handle its eccentric aerodynamics. Since its adoption by the U.S. Air Force in October 1983, it proved its worth in Panama in 1989, the Gulf War in 1990-91

and over Yugoslavia in 1999 (although in that last campaign one was destroyed and another damaged by surfaceto-air missiles). Never really a fighter so much as an attack bomber, the F-117 above all represented a major step in the development in 2005 of its successor, the Lockheed Martin F-22A Raptor, and

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OPPOSITE PHOTOS: CALIFORNIA AIR NATIONAL GUARD; TOP & INSET: MIKAEL CARLSON; BOTTOM: NATIONAL ARCHIVES

toward all stealth warplanes in future.

A total of 64 F-117s (five of them prototypes) had been built when the USAF announced their official retirement on April 22, 2008 (ironically just one year before production of the F-22A was canceled after 187 had been completed). As of January 2021, there were 48 F-117s in Air Force inventory.

They are being parceled out to museums throughout the country at a rate of four per year via the USAF Strategic Basing Process and the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force.

Time has not quite run out for the Nighthawk, however.

On September 13, 2021, two F-117As came out of semiretirement when they arrived at the Fresno Air National Guard Base. Temporarily assigned to the California Air National Guard’s 144th Fighter Wing, they spent a week flying dissimilar combat training missions. “The training against integrated forces that include the F-117 will challenge and sharpen pilots,” said 144th FW commander Colonel Troy Havener, “as well as build confidence in tactics and systems needed to defend our nation.” Given that they still constitute an airworthy asset, this might only be the start of a new role for the F-117s, bringing their unique characteristics into play in future limited research and adversary training missions, both with selected units and in larger exercises such as Red Flag.

Time flies…and for the time being at least, so does the F-117 Nighthawk.

Jon Guttman

nieuport news The Collings Foundation’s Nieuport 28, restored by Swedish rebuilder Mikael Carlson, stands ready for its Irish linen skin. Right: The historic fighter’s cockpit.

Air Quotes

“THE FIRST TIME I EVER SAW A JET, I SHOT IT DOWN.” –BRIG. GEN. CHUCK YEAGER, ON HIS ENCOUNTER WITH A MESSERSCHMITT ME-262

Authentic Nieuport 28 Revived

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ot on the heels of his faithful replica of a German Pfalz D.VIII (“Restored,” November 2020), Swedish vintage aircraft restorer Mikael Carlson is nearing completion of another World War I aircraft project, this time a French Nieuport 28 for the Collings Foundation’s American Heritage Museum in Hudson, Mass. While the Pfalz was reconstructed from the ground up, however, the Nieuport Carlson is working on is a rare original, undergoing restoration to airworthy status.

As of October 8, 2021, all major components of this example of the U.S. Army Air Service’s first fighter type are in place and the framework covered in authentic bleached Irish linen. “I started to paint the N28 this week and hopefully it will be ready for a picture in full camouflage in mid-November,” Carlson said. The color scheme will be that of 1st Lt. Douglas Campbell’s Nieuport N6164 as it looked on April 14, 1918, when he scored the first aerial victory by an American-trained fighter pilot in the USAS. “The Nieuport 28 will be test flown by me at my place in Sweden,” Carlson reported, “and after I am happy with my work and the behavior of the aircraft it will be returned to the American Heritage Museum.” On the same day Collings Foundation CEO Robert Collings remarked, “I just arrived back from Sweden on Wednesday and all I will say is the workmanship that Mikael is doing is simply amazing, he is probably without any peer when it comes to WWI aircraft.”

Jon Guttman

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BRIEFING

NAHI Winners Recognized at Reno

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who shipped it to Avspecs Ltd. in Auckland, New Zealand, for restoration.

Subsequently acquired by Charles Somers, TB252 arrived in the United States in April 2021 after its restoration. The NAHI judges awarded the Spitfire the Neil A. Armstrong Aviation Heritage Trophy as grand champion and the crowd honored it with the People’s Choice Award.

MILESTONES

People Power

T

he history of human-powered flight is filled with false starts and silent-film imagery of mustachioed gentlemen strapping on oversized wings and flapping away to no avail.

That all changed 60 years ago on November 9, 1961, when 38-yearold pilot Derek Piggott maneuvered himself into the tiny “engine” compartment of SUMPAC (Southampton University Man Powered Aircraft), a 100pound flying machine with an 80-foot wingspan made of nylon and spruce. A bicycle attached to the underside of the lightweight aircraft provided propulsion, driving both the wheels and the propeller.

Piggott, a Royal Air Force veteran who later worked as a stunt pilot in films such as 1964’s Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines, began pedaling furiously to attain the necessary 2 horsepower required for takeoff (and the .5 horsepower needed throughout the flight). He lifted a few feet off the runway at Hampshire’s Lasham Airfield and flew for just over 700 yards at about 20 mph to become the first person to achieve

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Robert and D’Marie Simon’s 1944 Beech D17S Staggerwing was selected as the best in the antique class, winning the Orville and Wilbur Wright Trophy.

Karl Johanson’s highly polished 1946 Globe Swift took the Paul E. Garber Trophy for classic aircraft, while Johanson’s 1967 Beech Debonair received the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Trophy for best contemporary aircraft.

authentic Restorations Among the entrants at the 2021 NAHI competition were the grand champion, a Spitfire Mk. XVI (left); a Stinson SM-7B (top); and a Fairey Firefly (above).

Gene Mallette’s P-51D, Sweet Mary Lou, received top honors in the military class, taking home the Henry “Hap” Arnold Trophy.

Nicholas A. Veronico Sky Cycle The first human-powered airplane takes flight at Lasham Airfield in England on November 9, 1961.

independent flight powered solely by human energy during takeoff, cruising and landing.

SUMPAC, as its name implies, was a project of Britain’s University of Southampton. Three aeronautical engineering postgraduate students designed and built the aircraft in an effort to win the £5,000 Kremer Prize for the first human-powered flight of one mile or more. While the three students fell short of that goal, their efforts paved the way for greater things to come: Just six months after SUMPAC’s pioneering flight, a de Havilland team achieved a human-powered flight of 995 yards, a record that stood for a decade. And in 1988 a Greek Olympian cyclist pedaled the longest human-powered flight in history, a fourhour, 71.5-mile aerial odyssey between the Greek islands of Crete and Santorini.

SUMPAC is now on display at the Solent Sky Museum in Southampton, England.

TOP LEFT: JIM DUNN; TOP RIGHT & BOTTOM RIGHT: NICHOLAS A. VERONICO; LEFT: KEYSTONE PRESS/ALAMY

n immaculately restored Supermarine Spit­fire Mk. XVI took top honors at the National Avia­tion Heritage Invitational (NAHI) competition, held September 15-19, 2021, in conjunction with the Stihl National Championship Air Races at Reno, Nev. NAHI is the Concours d’Elegance of aviation, with aircraft judged on their restoration to original flying condition. Stan­dards for judging were set by representatives of the National Air and Space Museum.

Spitfire Mk. XVI TB252 was built by VickersArmstrong at Castle Brom­ wich, England, in January 1945. It flew 40 sorties with No. 340 Squadron, Royal Air Force, in Holland during World War II and is credited with five aerial victories.

After the war it was a gate guardian at RAF Acklington and RAF Leuchars. In June 1988, TB252 was sold to the civilian market and flew with the registration G-XVIE while owned by Historic Flying Ltd. The Spitfire passed to the late Tony Banta,

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Wright Wreplica

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t is neither a restoration nor a true reconstruction or replica, but a “lookalike” Wright Model B made its first test flight at Ohio’s Dayton-Wright Brothers Airport on October 2, 2021, with retired U.S. Air Force Brig. Gen. Jay Jabour at the controls. A five-year project completed by volunteers for Wright B Flyer, Inc., the evocative-looking airplane, called White Bird by its builders, is based on the first product of Wilbur and Orville Wright that relocated its horizontal surface from front to rear to act as a true elevator. With wheels added to the skids, the

Model B was also the first great success for the brothers when it came out in 1910.

A closer comparison with photographs and replicas will reveal that the lookalike does not have all the Wright stuff—a lot of concessions to safe flyability have been incorporated. Still, it achieves what is expected of it, as Wright B Flyer board president Don Adams explained after extending his congratulations and gratitude to the volunteers: “The White Bird will allow us to continue to provide education and entertainment locally, nationally and internationally, shar-

ing the story of the Wright brothers and the invention of manned, powered flight.”

Based at Dayton-Wright Brothers Airport, White Bird will be flying annually throughout the summer months. This year, however, it

updated flyer White Bird, a Wright Model B lookalike, flew for the first time on October 2 in Ohio.

continued flying into the fall, in order to rack up the testing hours required by the FAA.

Amphibious Herk proposed

TOP RIGHT: COURTESY OF NATIONAL AVIATION HERITAGE AREA; RIGHT & BELOW: AIR FORCE SPECIAL OPERATIONS COMMAND

S

ince its first flight in 1954, the Lockheed C-130 Hercules has taken its place among the most long-lived and versatile of transport aircraft, hauling troops and materiel, strafing ground targets with automatic cannons, taking off and landing at arctic airfields on skis or operating from all manner of rough surfaces. Now, however, the U.S. Air Force has unveiled a concept for the current model, the MC-130J Commando II, to extend its repertoire to 71 percent of the earth’s surface: the water.

At the behest of Air Force Special Operations Command, the Air Force Research Lab’s Strategic Development Planning and Experimentation office has revealed its first design of a MAC, or MC-130J Amphibious Capability transport, with large twin floats extending from the lower fuselage. In the

event of land bases being unavailable, the AFSOC believes that such an arrangement would allow the transport to carry out “runway independent” operations.

As it now stands, the artists’ conceptions omit an important component in an “amphibious” airplane: retractable wheels to keep the option of land as well as sea operations, as famously demonstrated by the Consolidated PBY-5A in World War II. During that conflict, in fact, floatplanes, flying boats and amphibians played a significant role for all powers involved, with the Japanese relying on a virtual parallel universe of specialized reconnaissance, bomber, dive bomber and even fighter seaplanes. Should the MC-130J MAC evolve its way into service, it would mark the resurrection of a military aviation concept dating back to World War I.

TOP LEFT: JIM DUNN; TOP RIGHT & BOTTOM RIGHT: NICHOLAS A. VERONICO; LEFT: KEYSTONE PRESS/ALAMY

no runway required Above and below: Artists’ conceptions of the proposed MC-130J Commando II show the twin floats that would allow the updated Hercules to operate on water.

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AvIATORS

Reshuffling the Deck

HOW TWO JET CRASHES DRAMATICALLY CHANGED NASA’S EARLY SPACEFLIGHT ROSTER AND ULTIMATELY WHO WALKED ON THE MOON

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arly in the U.S. space program, astronauts were few in number and flight assignments were exceedingly hard to come by. Two airplane crashes in the 1960s involving American astronauts set in motion a chain of events that altered the history of the early U.S. space program—and in some ways all of spaceflight history.

The first of these two crashes took place on February 28, 1966. Elliot See (accepted into Astronaut Group 2) and his partner, Charlie Bassett (accepted into Astronaut Group 3), were the prime crew assigned to fly the upcoming Gemini IX mission. Both experienced test pilots, they would have been spaceflight rookies on their Gemini fight.

See and Bassett were flying a Northrop T-38 Talon, with See at the controls and Bassett in the rear seat. The two were en route from Houston, Texas, to St. Louis, Mo., to visit the McDonnell plant where their Gemini spacecraft was under-

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backup plan Top: Gemini IX prime crew members Elliot See (left) and Charles Bassett sit in front of their backup crew, Thomas Stafford (left) and Eugene Cernan. Above: When See and Bassett were killed in a jet crash, the backup crew became the prime crew.

going final assembly. The astronauts were planning to perform some final checks on the capsule and log some additional simulator time.

See and Bassett were accompanied by two other astronauts in another T-38: their backup crew of Tom Stafford and Gene Cernan, with Stafford at the controls.

The crews were staggered this way so that no two potential mission commanders or pilots for the same mission could fly together—a situation in which an astronaut and his backup could potentially be killed in a single crash. Both crews had flown this trip many times.

TOP: NASA; ABOVE: ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH

BY DOUGLAS G. ADLER

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AvIATORS

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chosen as lunar module pilot on Apollo 11, for which he would be immortalized as the second man to walk on the moon. While some of this is speculation, had the crash in St. Louis not occurred, See and Bassett would have been well positioned to obtain flight crew slots in Apollo, quite possibly those that ultimately went to Stafford and Cernan, with Stafford and Cernan potentially taking the slots that ultimately went to Lovell and Aldrin. Thus, Bassett could have flown on Apollo 10 and commanded Apollo 17, and Cernan could have been aboard Apollo 11 instead of Aldrin, walking on the moon with Neil Armstrong on July 20, 1969.

Other downstream Apollo flight assignments likely also would have been affected.

The second crash of note also involved a T-38, this one flown by Clifton Curtis “C.C.” Williams, a former test pilot and a member of Astronaut Group 3. Pete Conrad had chosen Williams to join him and Dick Gordon on the backup crew for Apollo 9, putting them in line for the prime crew of Apollo 12, on which Williams was slotted to serve as lunar module pilot and thus walk on the moon.

On October 5, 1967, Williams was flying from Cape Kennedy to Mobile, Ala., to visit his dying father.

A mechanical failure led to an

uncontrollable aileron roll, and the plane crashed after a nearly vertical descent outside Tallahassee, Fla. Williams ejected, but he was too low and going too fast to survive.

Williams’ death left a hole in key flight crew assignments when NASA was knee-deep in Apollo mission planning. Alan Bean, another member of Astronaut Group 3, had been put into what he termed “left field” to work on the Apollo Applications Pro­gram (which would ultimately develop into the Skylab program, but at the time was widely viewed as a ticket to nowhere). Bean despaired that he would never fly on an actual mission. After Williams’ death, Conrad (one of Bean’s instructors at the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School) asked for Bean to join him on the Apollo 12 mission as lunar module pilot, but Deke Slayton, head of the astronaut office, turned him down. Conrad persisted and Bean made the final roster for Apollo 12, vaulting him from obscurity to a coveted flight assignment. Bean flew the mission, played a vital role in averting disaster when lighting struck the Saturn V rocket after launch and became the fourth man to

ripple effects Left: After See and Bassett’s crash, “Buzz” Aldrin (left) and James Lovell became the backup crew for Gemini IX and Gemini XII prime crew.

Above: The death of Clifton Williams (inset) created an opening for Alan Bean to walk on the moon (top).

walk on the moon. Due in part to his star turn on Apollo 12, Bean later commanded the Skylab 3 mission and became a world-renowned painter of Apollo-era scenes.

C.C. Williams’ sacrifice was acknowledged by a star on the Apollo 12 mission patch.

While it is hard to know exactly how history might have played out if the two crashes had never occurred, it is interesting to see how these events caused a significant reshuffling of assignments to the now-storied crews of these seminal spaceflights.

PHOTOS: NASA

As the jets approached Lam­bert Field the weather turned; rain and snow began to fall and a thick cloud cover obscured much of their vision. Given the poor visibility, Stafford and Cernan elected to pull out and circle the field before making a landing while, unbeknown to them, See and Bassett did attempt to land. Coming in both too low and too fast, they struck McDonnell Building 101, where their Gemini IX spacecraft was being assembled. Losing a wing, they tumbled into a nearby parking lot, where the plane caught fire. Both men died in the crash.

Upon landing, a confused and concerned Stafford and Cernan were met by James McDonnell himself, who told them of the loss of See and Bassett. The accident investigation, chaired by chief astronaut Alan Shepard, attributed the crash to pilot error.

The accident had a profound ripple effect on the entire Gemini and Apollo programs. Formerly backups, Stafford and Cernan were promoted to the prime crew of Gemini IX (renamed Gemini IX-A), thus putting them both in ideal spots to fly during the Apollo program. Stafford went on to command Apollo 10 and the Apollo-Soyuz flight while Cernan also flew on Apollo 10 as lunar module pilot and ultimately mission commander and moonwalker on Apollo 17, famously becoming the “last man on the moon.” Jim Lovell and “Buzz” Aldrin became the new Gemini IX backup crew, making them the de facto prime crew for Gemini XII. This turn of events set Lovell and Aldrin up for key assignments in the upcoming Apollo flights as well. Lovell ultimately flew on Apollo 8 and commanded the ill-fated Apollo 13 mission.

It is doubtful that without his stellar EVA spacewalk performance on Gemini XII that Aldrin would have been JA N UA RY 2 0 2 2

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Bad to the Bone Full tang stainless steel blade with natural bone handle —now ONLY $79!

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he very best hunting knives possess a perfect balance of form and function. They’re carefully constructed from fine materials, but also have that little something extra to connect the owner with nature.

If you’re on the hunt for a knife that combines impeccable craftsmanship with a sense of wonder, the $79 Huntsman Blade is the trophy you’re looking for.

The blade is full tang, meaning it doesn’t stop at the handle but extends to the length of the grip for the ultimate in strength. The blade is made from 420 surgical steel, famed for its sharpness and its resistance to corrosion.

The handle is made from genuine natural bone, and features decorative wood spacers and a hand-carved motif of two overlapping feathers— a reminder for you to respect and connect with the natural world.

This fusion of substance and style can garner a high price tag out in the marketplace. In fact, we found full tang, stainless steel blades with bone handles in excess of $2,000. Well, that won’t cut it around here. We have mastered the hunt for the best deal, and in turn pass the spoils on to our customers.

But we don’t stop there. While supplies last, we’ll include a pair of $99 8x21 power compact binoculars and a genuine leather sheath FREE when you purchase the Huntsman Blade.

Your satisfaction is 100% guaranteed.

Feel the knife in your hands, wear it on your hip, inspect the impeccable craftsmanship. If you don’t feel like we cut you a fair deal, send it back within 30 days for a complete refund of the item price.

Limited Reserves. A deal like this won’t last long. We have only 1120 Huntsman Blades for this ad only. Don’t let this BONUS! Call today and beauty slip through your fingers. Call today! you’ll also receive this Bad to the Bone Full tang stainless steel blade with natural bone handle —now ONLY $79!

T

he very best hunting knives possess a perfect balance of form and function. They’re carefully constructed from fine materials, but also have that little something extra to connect the owner with nature.

If you’re on the hunt for a knife that combines impeccable craftsmanship with a sense of wonder, the $79 Huntsman Blade is the trophy you’re looking for.

The blade is full tang, meaning it doesn’t stop at the handle but extends to the length of the grip for the ultimate in strength. The blade is made from 420 surgical steel, famed for its sharpness and its resistance to corrosion.

The handle is made from genuine natural bone, and features decorative wood spacers and a hand-carved motif of two overlapping feathers— a reminder for you to respect and connect with the natural world.

This fusion of substance and style can garner a high price tag out in the marketplace. In fact, we found full tang, stainless steel blades with bone handles in excess of $2,000. Well, that won’t cut it around here. We have mastered the hunt for the best deal, and in turn pass the spoils on to our customers.

But we don’t stop there. While supplies last, we’ll include a pair of $99 8x21 power compact binoculars and a genuine leather sheath FREE when you purchase the Huntsman Blade.

Your satisfaction is 100% guaranteed.

Feel the knife in your hands, wear it on your hip, inspect the impeccable craftsmanship. If you don’t feel like we cut you a fair deal, send it back within 30 days for a complete refund of the item price.

Limited Reserves. A deal like this won’t last long. We have only 1120 Huntsman Blades for this ad only. Don’t let this BONUS! Call today and beauty slip through your fingers. Call today! you’ll also receive this

Huntsman Blade $249*

genuine leather sheath!

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êêêêê

“The feel of this knife is unbelievable...this is an incredibly fine instrument.”

— H., Arvada, CO

Offer Code Price Only $79 + S&P Save $170

1-800-333-2045

Your Insider Offer Code: HUK610-01

You must use the insider offer code to get our special price.

Stauer

®

Rating of A+

14101 Southcross Drive W., Ste 155, Dept. HUK610-01 Burnsville, Minnesota 55337 www.stauer.com

shown *Discount is only for customers who useNot the offer code versus the actual size. listed original Stauer.com price.

California residents please call 1-800-333-2045 regarding Proposition 65 regulations before purchasing this product.

• 12" overall length; 6 ¹⁄2" stainless steel full tang blade • Genuine bone handle with brass hand guard & bolsters • Includes genuine leather sheath

Stauer… Afford the Extraordinary.®

Huntsman Blade $249*

genuine leather sheath!

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What Stauer Clients Are Saying About Our Knives

êêêêê

“This knife is beautiful!”

— J., La Crescent, MN

êêêêê

“The feel of this knife is unbelievable...this is an incredibly fine instrument.”

— H., Arvada, CO

Offer Code Price Only $79 + S&P Save $170

1-800-333-2045

Your Insider Offer Code: HUK610-01 You must use the insider offer code to get our special price.

Stauer

®

Rating of A+

14101 Southcross Drive W., Ste 155, Dept. HUK610-01 Burnsville, Minnesota 55337 www.stauer.com

shown *Discount is only for customers who useNot the offer code versus the actual size. listed original Stauer.com price.

California residents please call 1-800-333-2045 regarding Proposition 65 regulations before purchasing this product.

• 12" overall length; 6 ¹⁄2" stainless steel full tang blade • Genuine bone handle with brass hand guard & bolsters • Includes genuine leather sheath

Stauer… Afford the Extraordinary.®

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RESTORED

Eldorado Radium Silver Express

A RARE RESTORED BELLANCA “FLYING W” THAT PROVIDED URANIUM FOR THE MANHATTAN PROJECT WILL SOON BE ON VIEW AT A NEW MUSEUM IN WESTERN CANADA

BY JIM TRAUTMAN

T

he single-engine Bellanca Aircruiser cargo and passenger airplane was designed by Giuseppe Bellanca, who had built Italy’s first aircraft and emigrated to the United States in 1911. The transport became a workhorse for the mining industry in northern Canada, especially the Northwest Territories. The Aircruiser could be equipped with wheels, floats or skis, which made it perfect for the harsh conditions of the Canadian north. Due to the triangular-shaped struts supporting its high wing and fixed landing gear, the airplane was nicknamed the “Flying W.” In 1935 Eldorado Gold Mines Limited purchased Aircruiser CF-AWR and contracted with the Mackenzie Air Service of Edmonton, Alberta, for its operation. The Eldorado company had started in the 1920s searching for gold, then switched to mining silver. With the discovery in 1930 of uranium oxide at Great Bear Lake in the Northwest Territories, the company directors sought to tap the lucrative market for radium, which could be extracted from uranium ore. At the time a gram of radium brought $50,000 on the world market.

The Aircruiser, capable of carrying payloads of up to 4,000 pounds, was used to deliver uranium to Eldorado’s refinery in

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Port Hope, Ontario. In addition, workers were flown out of the Great Bear Lake mine for relaxation while sitting on the burlap bags of uranium oxide. It would later be revealed that the Canadian government knew about the potential adverse health impact of men sitting on bags of uranium oxide but ignored it. On return trips the aircraft carried supplies, dynamite and workers.

Located at Port Radium on Great Bear Lake, the mine was closed at the onset of World War II but reopened in 1942 with the start of the Manhattan Project and the drive to develop an atomic

bent-wing bird Top: The Bellanca Aircruiser undergoes a test assembly in April 2021 at the Royal Aviation Museum of Western Canada’s Winnipeg facility.

Inset: MacKenzie Air Service president Wilfred L. Brintnell poses with the new Aircruiser.

bomb. The mine and Port Hope processing facility became a key part of the top-secret project. In 1943 it became clear that the Germans were aware of the facility when, in his nightly broadcast from Berlin, propa­ gandist William Joyce, aka “Lord Haw-Haw,” stated that “People at the Eldorado

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ALL PHOTOS: ROYAL AVIATION MUSEUM OF WESTERN CANADA

mine in northern Canada would be bombed shortly by our Japanese friends.”

Security was tightened, but nothing happened.

CF-AWR was a workhorse in service of the Manhattan Project. With the end of WWII the demand for the uranium oxide increased and kept the Aircruiser in constant use. As the U.S. and other Western nations became major players in the nuclear industry, they relied on the Canadian ore. Tons of uranium oxide were mined but very little remained after refining for use in nuclear weapons or reactors.

In January 1947, while carrying a full load of uranium oxide, CF-AWR ran out of fuel, crashed and was damaged beyond repair near Sioux Lookout, Ontario.

The uranium was recovered but the Aircruiser then sat

for 27 years in the bush until volunteers from the Western Canada Aviation Museum, with the assistance of a helicopter from the Canadian Armed Forces, were able to recover what was left of the aircraft and transport it to the Winnipeg museum. The years of exposure to the harsh weather had rotted away the wooden structure and even the steel pieces were badly rusted. It was a difficult operation since trees and vegetation had grown over and into the aircraft fuselage.

Charged with preserving aircraft that played a major role in the region’s history, the Western Canada Avia­tion Museum employs specialists and volunteers in its Res­ toration Department. The goal of the restoration team on every project is to ensure the completed aircraft is brought back as closely as

possible to the original factory specifications.

The project was made more difficult by the fact that Bellanca had manufactured just 23 Airbuses (an earlier version) and Aircruisers.

The only other surviving Air­cruiser is in the Erickson Aircraft Collection in Madras, Ore. Studying that still-airworthy example was one of the first steps. Others on the restoration team traveled to the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C., to study and copy the original design drawings. The Erickson collection donated a spare set of wheels and tires to the team, though the Winnipeg museum Bellanca is being restored for static display.

Since the aircraft had been in operation for 12 years, parts had been replaced over time and there were some spares available. The team learned that several of the aircraft doors and windows had been incorporated into area trapper cabins. Machinists Dick Thornhill and Gordon Windat created a new aluminum gearbox. Gears, shafts and universal joints were also fabricated. A new instrument panel was constructed by studying old photos and the Erickson plane.

Ron Morrison, a restoration specialist who was involved in the project, said, “We’ve done so much with so

radioactive cargo Clockwise from left: Brintnell (left) and Stan McMillan deliver the first load of uranium in April 1935; the partially restored Aircruiser as it appeared circa 1985, with new fabric in place and the silver sealer applied and doped; museum volunteers work on the aircraft in 2006.

little for so long that we can do anything with nothing.”

Slowly over the years the aircraft began to take shape.

The woodwork, engine and fabric repairs were made and a correct propeller was located and installed.

CF-AWR received a fresh coat of paint in the original green and gold colors and the official registration markings it carried when it left the factory.

At present CF-AWR is stored at the Southport Aerospace Centre outside Portage La Prairie, Mani­ toba. There is a new museum under construction and all the aircraft are in storage until its opening in 2022.

The new Royal Aviation Museum of Western Can­ ada will be located on the main transportation loop of Winnipeg’s Richardson International Airport. The central location will make it easier for visitors to view the historic aircraft collection, including the rare Eldorado Radium Silver Express.

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EXTREMES

France’s Big Boat

THE LATÉCOÈRE 631 MAY HAVE BEEN THE ULTIMATE FLYING BOAT AIRLINER BUT ITS SERVICE RECORD LEFT A LOT TO BE DESIRED

BY ROBERT GUTTMAN

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the company set up its own airline, for which it built its own airplanes. The airline subsequently became one of the founding components of Air France. Latécoère built its first flying boat in 1926 and established itself as one of the leading producers of such aircraft by the mid-1930s.

The Latécoère 631 originated from a 1936 request from the French Civil Avia­ tion Authority for a flying boat airliner with accommodation for at least 40 passengers and a range of 6,000 kilometers (3,728 miles).

The result was a graceful all-metal, high-wing flying boat powered by six 1,650hp Gnome et Rhône radial engines. The aircraft was 142 feet long, with a wingspan of 188 feet and gross weight of 157,300 pounds. It fea-

Gallic pride Top: A French Latécoère 631 moors at the English Channel port town of Hythe. Inset: Latécoère 631-02 visits Rio de Janeiro in late October 1945. Note the open nacelle platforms, used to access the Wright R-2600 radial engines.

tured an unusual and elegant V-tail with endplate fins and rudders, as well as stabilizing floats that retracted into the outboard engine nacelles to reduce drag, both features carried over from the Latécoère 611 four-engine maritime patrol bomber.

Although construction began in 1939, work on the project became protracted due to the outbreak of WWII, and the prototype did not make its maiden flight until November 4, 1942. Soon

TOP: PA IMAGES/ALAMY; INSET & OPPOSITE TOP (BOTH): OLD MACHINE PRESS; RIGHT: HISTORYNET ARCHIVES

P

rior to World War II most large, long-range multiengine airliners were flying boats. Part of the reason for that was the weight of a land-based airliner’s landing gear, which was thought to exact a greater penalty on performance than the aerodynamic drag imposed by a flying boat’s hull.

An additional consideration was the lack of the long runways required to accommodate big landplanes compared with the ready availability of suitable bodies of water from which flying boats could operate. A further incentive was the widespread belief that a flying boat would have a better chance of surviving if it had to ditch in the ocean.

During the 1920s and 1930s many large flying boat airliners were developed by Dornier in Germany; Martin, Sikorsky and Boeing in the United States; and Britain’s Saunders-Roe and Short Brothers. Less well known were the “big boats” developed by the French, mainly because they operated principally in Africa, Martinique, South America and the Mediterranean Sea. Arguably the finest of those were created by Latécoère.

For that matter, among the largest and possibly the most elegant such aircraft ever produced was Latécoère’s—and France’s—last, the Model 631. Unfortunately for its builders, it enjoyed a less than stellar safety record and represented the end of the era of flying boat airliners.

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version accommodated 46 passengers and was powered by 1,600-hp Wright R-2600 Twin Cyclone radials.

It wasn’t long, alas, before the graceful-looking aircraft began experiencing problems. On October 31, 1945, a propeller blade separated from one of the engines, damaging another engine before slicing a 10-foot hole through the hull. Although the pilot managed to land the aircraft successfully, two passengers were killed.

Worse was to come. On February 21, 1948, a Laté­ coère 631 crashed into the English Channel during a snowstorm, killing all 19 people on board. On August 1 of that same year, another “Laté” 631 disappeared during a scheduled transatlantic flight, taking 40 passengers and 12 crew members with it. Although Air France ceased flying the 631 after that, the aircraft remained in service with other operators, mainly as cargo planes.

Even then, bad luck continued to dog the big boats. On March 28, 1950, another Latécoère 631

crashed during a test flight due to failure of the aileron linkage, killing all 12 on board. Finally, on September 10, 1955, a wing broke off a 631 during a cargo flight in Africa, resulting in the deaths of 16 crewmen and passengers. Of the total of 11 Latécoère 631s built, one had been destroyed by air attack, one survived a fatal in-flight accident and four were lost in fatal crashes—not a very admirable service record.

The Latécoère 631 was the largest flying boat in the world when it first flew in 1942, exceeding even the mighty Martin Mars in size.

Only Britain’s SaundersRoe Princess and Howard Hughes’ Hercules, neither of which appeared until after the war, were larger.

By the time the 631 entered commercial service, however, the airlines were no longer impressed by the giant flying boats. The war had witnessed the proliferation both of big multiengine bombers and airfields constructed to

Last hurrah Clockwise from above left: The Latécoère 631’s cockpit was notably spacious; passengers disembark from Latécoère 631-08 (shown in service with France Hydro), which crashed in a storm in Cameroon during a cargo flight on September 10, 1955, killing all 16 on board—the last flight of any “Laté” 631; the elegant 631 in its glory days.

accommodate them. As a result, once hostilities ended there were plenty of places from which to operate large land-based airliners.

Furthermore, as their engines became more efficient and powerful, such airliners were proving far more economical and profitable than flying boats. Consequently, even without the fatal crashes, the Latécoère 631’s days were already numbered by the time it began its modest production run—along with the entire era of the majestic big boats.

TOP: PA IMAGES/ALAMY; INSET & OPPOSITE TOP (BOTH): OLD MACHINE PRESS; RIGHT: HISTORYNET ARCHIVES

after that, however, the Allies landed in the Vichy French North African colonies of Algeria and Morocco, to which the Germans reacted by overrunning all of continental France. In the process, they seized the Latécoère 631 prototype and transported it to Germany. There it underwent flight testing on Lake Constance until it was destroyed in a raid by Royal Air Force de Havilland Mosquitoes in April 1944.

Meanwhile, with the help of the French Resistance, Latécoère managed to conceal from the Germans the components of an incomplete second aircraft until it was assembled and flown on March 7, 1945.

After the liberation of France, the second Latécoère 631 became an object of national pride because it was tangible proof that the French aviation industry still existed. For some time after the war it was also the only French airliner capable of transatlantic flight. A total of 10 were eventually produced, the first four of which went to Air France. The production

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STYLE We turn our gaze to

the aviation masterpieces of artist William S. Phillips

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On Wings and a Prayer $595, Anniversary Edition, Limited Edition of 125, 30” wide x 20” high

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STYLE STYLE ART

Freezing Time A favorite among aviation art collectors, William S. Phillips’ paintings feature planes that soar high above wispy clouds, blazing sunsets and colorful landscapes. His technique empowers our mind’s eye to fill in the emotional blanks while his expert handling of light and shadow expands the canvas borders. His dynamic paint­ ings tell complete stories in one singular frame.

Phillips’ notable accom­ plish­ments include a commission by the Royal Jor­ danian Air Force for a series of paintings that now hang in the Royal Jordanian Air Force Museum in Amman. In 1986 the Smithsonian Institution’s National Air and Space Museum held a one-man show of his work—one of only a handful of artists to be so honored.

Among other accolades and honors, Phillips was selected to be a U.S. Navy combat artist, and he was awarded the Navy’s Merito­ rious Public Service Award and the Air Force Sergeants Association’s Americanism Medal. In 1991 three of his works were among the top 100 in “Art for the Parks,” the annual fundraiser for the National Park Service. Twice his paintings received the Art History Award from the National Park Foundation.

Phillips was selected as the fall 2004 artist in residence at the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. In 1997 the U.S. Postal Service commissioned his art for a sheet of 20 stamps titled “Classic American Aircraft” and again in 2005 for stamps titled “American Advances in Aviation.” His prized aviation prints are available through The Greenwich Workshop at greenwichworkshop.com.

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Pride of Arizona $225, Canvas Edition, Limited Edition of 125, 8” wide x 16” high

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STYLE STYLE The Long Ride Home Personal Commission, $595, Canvas Edition, Limited Edition of 112, 31” wide x 21” high

Splitting a Pair $195, Canvas Edition, Limited Edition of 75, 16” wide x 12” high

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STYLE Sunset Recovery $195, Limited Edition of 200, 24” wide x 18” high

Dauntless Against a Rising Sun $1,250, Anniversary Edition, Limited Edition of 100, 36” wide x 24” high

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STYLE FUTURE FLIGHT

Avian Aviation

The Beta Technologies Alia-250 takes its inspiration from the Arctic tern, the furthest-migrating bird that visits every ocean and every continent on Earth.

This eVTOL (electric vertical takeoff and landing) aircraft weighs 6,000 pounds, with a wingspan of 50 feet, and seats five plus the pilot.

United Therapeutics, an American biotech company involved in the development of artificial organs, is the first to order the Alia-250. The company hopes to employ the aircraft for the distribution of human organs. United Parcel Service, along with its subsidiary UPS Flight Forward, was second up with an order for 10 Alia-250 aircraft and an option to purchase up to 140 more. The first delivery of the sleek birds is expected in 2024. More information at beta.team.

GOODS

Pieces of History Boeing 747-400 manufacturer serial number 29111 was the last passenger airplane of its type in action for EVA Air. After 19 years of service and millions of passengers, it was retired in 2017. Pieces of the aircraft are available as limited-edition collector’s items or key and luggage tags at aviationtag.com.

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LETTER FROM AvIATION HISTORY

LEST WE FORGET

W

in memoriam Top: The 355th Fighter Group Memorial at the site of a former World War II base in Steeple Morden, England, includes the names of 246 men who lost their lives while serving there. Inset: P-51 pilot Charles M. Lee’s name is among those etched in the memorial.

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hen it comes to covering military aviation, those three words could serve as this magazine’s mission statement.

They are etched on the 355th Fighter Group Memorial at the former site of the group’s World War II airfield in Steeple Morden, England. Dedicated in May 1981, the memorial includes a P-51 Mustang propeller and spinner as well as a chunk of granite that was originally part of the airfield’s control tower.

For the memorial’s May 2003 rededication, two outer panels were added with the names of the American and British pilots, airmen and support personnel killed while serving at the airfield. Among those 246 names is Mustang pilot Lieutenant C.M. Lee. Charles Lee was just 22 when he was shot down during a ground-attack mission over Saint-Dizier, France, on August 8, 1944. His sister Nina was seven at the time, and the loss of her brother naturally had a profound effect on her and the rest of the Lee family. Later in life, Nina decided to tell her brother’s story in a pair of booklets filled with letters and photos the family had diligently preserved. The result is a carefully compiled chronicle of one young man’s combat experiences and ultimate sacrifice (story, P. 52).

Lee is one among many unsung heroes who have given their lives in the defense of freedom.

Were it not for the efforts of family members like Nina or monuments like the 355th memorial, their sacrifices would be forgotten.

Contrast Lee’s story with that of another fallen WWII hero, B-17 pilot Captain Colin Kelly Jr.

(story, P. 36). Kelly’s selfless act, coming just three days into the Pacific War, made national headlines and quickly grew to legendary proportions.

It contained all the elements of a classic tale of heroism—a bomber crew exacts revenge on the Japanese, then is beset by the enemy, has their airplane shot up and the captain saves the surviving crew but goes down with the ship. Kelly’s story was amplified through countless retellings and became fodder for recruiting posters and patriotic advertisements with the Alamo-like theme “Remember Colin Kelly.” Eighty years later, many still do.

Of course not all sacrifices contain heroic elements and not all military aviation losses are the result of combat. Most people know the name of the second man to walk on the moon, “Buzz” Aldrin, but how many recognize the names of naval aviator Commander Elliot See and Air Force Major Charles Bassett? Those two NASA astronauts were killed in the crash of a T-38 Talon trainer in February 1966, causing a domino effect throughout the U.S. space program that ultimately sent Aldrin to the moon as the Apollo 11 lunar module pilot. See and Bassett, as well as astronaut Clifton Williams, a Marine Corps major killed in October 1967 in another T-38 crash, are largely forgotten today but their sacrifices are no less important for it (story, P. 10).

Military aviation is dangerous business and the stories of fallen airmen can sometimes be difficult to digest. But in the 32 years this magazine has been published, it has served no higher purpose than to tell these stories and make them part of the historical record—lest we forget.

TOP: ROBERT CAMP: INSET: COURTESY OF THE LEE FAMILY

BY CARL VON WODTKE

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SHOOTING STAR AMERICA’S FIRST OPERATIONAL JET FIGHTER WAS QUICKLY OUTCLASSED BY SWEPTWING SUCCESSORS AND SAW ITS GREATEST UTILITY AS A TRAINER OF PROP PILOTS BY STEPHAN WILKINSON

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ground-pounder A Lockheed F-80C Shooting Star overflies a North Korean T-34 tank during a ground-attack mission, in a Keith Ferris painting. Although credited with the U.S. Air Force’s first air-to-air jet victories, the F-80 was soon relegated to ground support.

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birth of a legend Above: Lockheed test pilot Tony LeVier flies the second Shooting Star prototype, the XP-80A Gray Ghost, near California’s Muroc Army Airfield. Inset: Clarence “Kelly” Johnson examines a model of his sleek jet-powered fighter.

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But had it not been for the British, all they would have displayed on rollout day was the world’s fastest glider. It would have had no engine. The United States had so thoroughly forsworn jet engine development that it lagged behind even Italy, to say nothing of Germany and Britain.

It was not for lack of trying. In the late 1930s, Lockheed had started work on an axial-flow turbojet called the L-1000. It was designed by Nathan Price, a creative Lockheed engineer who, not surprisingly, would go on to contribute heavily (and anonymously) to the P-80 design. Price had already invented a cabin-pressure regulator for the Boeing 307 that made airliner pressurization practical, and he was credited with making the Lockheed P-38’s turbocharging system a success.

British designer Frank Whittle had invented the

jet engine (in parallel with the German Hans von Ohain), and by the time the P-80 was envisioned, the only Allied turbojets in limited production were the Whittle W.1 and de Havilland’s Halford H-1, a cleaned-up version of the W.1. In the fall of 1940, in the midst of the Battle of Britain, the British sent to the U.S. all of its jet engine, radar and proximity-fuze research, as part of the Tizard Mission, named for British radar pioneer Henry Tizard. The ostensible purpose was to persuade the neutral U.S. to turn its production capability toward manufacturing this emerging technology. But an unspoken motivation was that after Dunkirk the British feared they might well lose the war and if that happened they wanted the U.S. to inherit their weapons technology.

In April 1941, General Henry H. “Hap” Arnold

PREVIOUS SPREAD: KEITH FERRIS, ASAA; ALL PHOTOS THIS SPREAD: LOCKHEED MARTIN ARCHIVES, EXCEPT OPPOSITE LEFT: HERITAGE ART/HERITAGE IMAGES VIA GETTY IMAGES

IN 1943 IT TOOK JUST 143 DAYS FOR LOCKHEED DESIGNER CLARENCE “KELLY” JOHNSON AND HIS ELITE TEAM OF 128 SKUNK WORKS ENGINEERS AND FABRICATORS TO CREATE THE P-80 SHOOTING STAR.

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PREVIOUS SPREAD: KEITH FERRIS, ASAA; ALL PHOTOS THIS SPREAD: LOCKHEED MARTIN ARCHIVES, EXCEPT OPPOSITE LEFT: HERITAGE ART/HERITAGE IMAGES VIA GETTY IMAGES

learned of the Whittle-powered Gloster E.28/39 prototype, the first Allied jet to fly, during a secret tour of the British aircraft industry. He was stunned, though he was already aware of the German jet genesis. That September, a U.S. Army Air Corps officer with a briefcase of Whittle W.1 blueprints handcuffed to his wrist flew from England to Lynn, Mass., where the General Electric Com­ pany, already well-versed in turbine technology through its turbochargers, set to work building what would ultimately be called the J33 turbojet engine. In its early form, two of them would power America’s very first jet, the Bell XP-59.

Lockheed had been lobbying hard for the contract to build that airplane. After all, the company had already created, at least on paper, the earliest American jet fighter, to be powered by the L-1000 engine. Lockheed’s L-133, again designed largely

by Nathan Price, was an exotic blended-wing/ body canard with slotted flaps and low-drag twin engines mounted inside the fuselage.

Yet the War Department told Lockheed to lay off pursuing jet technology any further and to put its effort into building and improving the P-38 Lightning. The company could play with jets after the war. But in the spring of 1943 U.S. intelligence revealed that Messerschmitt was preparing an airplane that would become the only jet to see air-to-air combat during World War II: the Me-262. (The Gloster Meteor did shoot down V-1 buzz bombs but never a manned aircraft.) The U.S. needed a fighter with another 100 mph of airspeed—and quickly.

So why did Bell initially get the nod to come up with a jet? Some say it was because of the company’s reputation for creating outside-the-box designs such as the twin-engine pusher YFM-1 Airacuda

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and the tri-gear, mid-engine P-39 Airacobra (with the company’s pioneering helicopter work yet to come). Others suggest that Bell was less encumbered than other airframers with work building critical fighters, bombers and transports.

The P-59 was a why-bother design, even though it was in a sense a proof-of-concept project never seriously intended to be a fighter. It turned out to be 50 mph slower than the P-40 and 75 mph slower than early P-47s and P-51s. That didn’t stop Bell chief test pilot Jack Woolams from frequently working his favorite prank: pulling alongside cruising P-38s and the like with his propless mystery plane while wearing a gorilla mask and a derby, smoking a cigar.

When the need for an Me-262 beater became obvious, Bell was ordered to supply all of its P-59 documentation to Lockheed, especially the work done in preparation for the XP-59B. Not to be confused with the production P-59B, the XP-59B was intended to be a much-improved single-engine version of the P-59. To this day there are Bell fans who insist the P-80 was just a cleaned-up version of the XP-59B, a claim that one suspects would have had Kelly Johnson doing lomcováks in his grave.

The very first XP-80 prototype, informally called Lulu Belle, was powered by a de Havilland

putting theory into practice Left: Turbojet pioneer Frank Whittle’s W.1 engine served as the model for General Electric’s first jet engine, which was ultimately developed into the J33 that powered all P/F-80s.

Above: Lockheed’s first jet aircraft design, the futuristic L-133, never left the drawing board. Below: The original prototype, the XP-80 Lulu Belle, fronts a lineup of Shooting Stars on the ramp at Muroc.

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TECH NOTES F-80C SHOOTING STAR

1. Gunsight 2. Turn and bank indicator 3. Attitude indicator 4. Magnetic compass 5. Radio compass 6. Altimeter 7. Airspeed indicator 8. Rate of climb indicator

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9. Exhaust temperature gauge 10. Engine tachometer 11. Fuel pressure gauge 12. Oxygen cylinder pressure gauge 13. Emergency fuel system indicator lights 14. Gunsight light rheostat 15. Gunsight switch 16. Clock

17. Parking brake handle 18. Fuel gauge 19. Control column 20. Generator load meter 21. Oil pressure gauge 22. Accelerometer 23. Hydraulic pressure gauge 24. Throttle

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OPPOSITE: NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE U.S. AIR FORCE; TOP: U.S. AIR FORCE; INSET & BOTTOM: LOCKHEED MARTIN ARCHIVES

Goblin engine provided by the British. In fact, the Brits gave Lockheed two Goblins, both originally intended for the de Havilland Spider Crab, which would become the Vampire. They were at the time Britain’s only functioning Goblins. Lockheed needed the second Goblin because it had ignored de Havilland’s warning that the intake ducts had to be strongly built due to a powerful lowpressure area inside each duct. During a ground run, Lockheed’s too-thin ductwork imploded, sending debris through the engine and ruining it.

Lulu Belle had been built under a used circus tent ringed by a bunch of battered wooden pallets. Lockheed was busy with production programs ranging from Army Air Forces fighters to Navy patrol bombers, and it had no room to spare for an off-brand experimental program. The tent quickly came to be called the Skunk Works, and since it was far from all other Lockheed buildings, Johnson could operate it under his own rules.

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he XP-80 first flew in January 1944, from Muroc Army Airfield. Within five minutes, test pilot Milo Burcham was back on the ground, spooked by the sensitivity of the controls. “You’ve got a 15-to-1 [aileron] boost and a hot ship that’s naturally sensitive,” Johnson told him. “Maybe you were overcontrolling.”

Mollified, Burcham tried again and on his second

flight had Lulu Belle up to an unprecedented 490 mph. Lulu Belle would soon notch a speed of 502 mph, making it the first U.S. aircraft to exceed 500 in level flight.

The second prototype, the XP-80A, was a quite different airplane—almost two feet longer and wider in wingspan, 25 percent heavier and with 1,000 pounds of additional thrust from its Whittle-based GE engine. That GE I-40 would become the J33, the engine that in various versions powered every P/F-80, T-33 and even early F-94 Starfire ever manufactured.

Lockheed put a rudimentary back seat into the cockpit for Johnson. From it he solved the problem of “duct rumble,” the noise produced by warring airflow deep inside the engine intakes. Johnson deduced that it was caused by a turbulent boundary layer of air interfering with a smooth flow into the engine. The solution was the louver-like, boundary-layer-eating air scoop that can be seen just inside the intakes of every production airframe thereafter.

tests and trials Clockwise from above: Kelly Johnson (right) congratulates test pilot Milo Burcham after the XP-80’s maiden flight on January 8, 1944; the two-seat EF-80 was used to test the feasibility of a prone pilot position; this P-80A was one of 30 Shooting Stars of the 55th Fighter Group based at Germany’s Giebelstadt Army Airfield in April 1946.

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1. Adjustable light 2. Oxygen cylinder 3. Ammunition box 4. Armament junction box 5. Command radio 6. Instrument panel 7. Bullet-proof windshield 8. Gunsight 9. Seat 10. Fuel level gauge 11. Fuel tank

schräge musik In a concept likely borrowed from the Germans, motorized upward-firing twin .50-caliber machine guns were tested in an F-80 as a means of attacking enemy bombers from below.

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P-80A SHOOTING STAR

12. Intake-air duct 13. Command radio antenna 14. Fuselage aft section joint 15. Elevator-control differential 16. Airspeed pitot 17. Tailpipe support track 18. Tailpipe 19. Remote compass transmitter 20. Tailpipe clamp 21. Elevator tab motor 22. J33 turbojet engine

23. Intake-air seal 24. Engine mount 25. Aileron booster unit 26. Wing spars 27. Aileron torque tube 28. Elevator push-pull tube 29. Identification radio 30. Sub-cockpit junction box 31. Battery 32. Identification radio antenna

With no engine or prop up front and the four .50-caliber guns removed, the P-80’s nose bay afforded room for a second pilot. This opportunity was exploited for tests of a prone-pilot position to reduce the effects of high-G maneuvers.

With a canopy and flight controls installed, the test pilot was able to demonstrate at least some resistance to G forces. He was also able to demonstrate how quickly he became nauseated and how difficult it was to fly the airplane while lying down.

Another problem: He could fly maneuvers that

33. Elevator and aileron control assembly 34. Nose gear 35. Rudder pedals 36. Fuselage nose section joint 37. Cartridge-case ejection doors 38. .50-caliber machine guns (6)

overstressed his safety pilot, sitting upright in the cockpit behind him.

Another unsuccessful P-80 experiment involved motorizing the machine guns so they could be cranked into a full-upright firing position, a concept likely borrowed from the fixed but semiupright guns the Germans called Schräge Musik.

As it was with the Luftwaffe, the intent was to fly under invading bombers and fire upward into their bellies. But the hammering recoil of four .50s drove the P-80’s nose down, making it impossible to aim the guns.

One unmistakable Shooting Star component was the airplane’s shapely, tapered wingtip fuel tanks. The XP-80A was the first of the line to carry tip tanks and the first airplane in the world to be fitted with them. Johnson invented the tip tank and in May 1944 patented the idea. His patent application cagily shows an airplane with a P-80 planview, but with a propeller and without the jet intakes or exhaust.

Johnson’s tip tanks slightly reduced the P-80’s total drag since they acted as wingtip endplates and reduced tip vortices. They also improved roll response and helped with spanwise loading of the wing. The only thing they didn’t do, with a capacity of just 165 gallons each, was substantially increase range.

Early P-80s had an abysmal accident record— not necessarily through any fault of the airplane

ALL PHOTOS THIS SPREAD: U.S. AIR FORCE; DIAGRAM: SAN DIEGO AIR & SPACE MUSEUM

TECH TECH NOTES NOTES

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as may T-birds as it did Shooting Stars, and they went on to train, according to some estimates, a quarter million new jet pilots.

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ome Lockheed fans insist the P-80 served in World War II. One well-regarded aviation historian maintains that 30-odd P-80As were sent to the Philippines in the summer of 1945 to fly in the invasion of Japan but were grounded for a month because somebody forgot to include their batteries and tip tanks. The anecdote is true except for the fact that it happened in 1946, a year after the war ended. Others have claimed that four P-80s were seen on Saipan during the final weeks of the war, though there is no evidence of this.

What did happen, however, is that two P-80s were sent to England and two to Italy during the final weeks of the war in Europe. The former two were quickly lost to accidents and there is little evidence of the airplanes in Italy having flown any combat missions, despite much theorizing that the two often went steaming off in search of Me-262s.

Some say they were sent to Italy specifically to shoot down marauding Arado Ar-234 high-altitude reconnaissance jets. In fact, the deployment was a simple test of the USAAF’s capability to maintain and operate the jets under combat conditions, and they were never put in harm’s way.

The P-80 may not have contributed to WWII, but it quickly became an effective PR tool soon thereafter. A flight of three made a record-break-

making history Above: On January 26, 1946, Colonel William Councill stands in a P-80 in which he set a transcontinental speed record, averaging 545 mph nonstop from Long Beach, Calif., to New York City. Below: P-80s of the 416th Fighter Group gather at D.C.’s Washington National Airport after having flown the first transcontinental jet mission in 1946.

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but often because of the inability of propellertrained pilots to operate them properly. Even the most experienced fell to the needy P-80’s demands.

Milo Burcham died in the third production proto­ type when its engine flamed out on takeoff in Octo­ber 1944. Another killed American ace of aces Richard Bong on the day the U.S. dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima. (Bong had only himself to blame. In an age that largely skipped checklists, Bong, with only four hours and 15 minutes of P-80 time logged, forgot to turn on his P-80’s auxiliary fuel pump for takeoff.)

There was an ace-of-the-base mentality among many returning WWII combat pilots, who were used to the near-instant responsiveness of piston engines and the controllable drag of huge propellers that could be shifted in and out of flat pitch.

They didn’t need anybody to teach them how to fly a new airplane, but the P-80 offered no such flexibility. New Shooting Star pilots would find themselves approaching a landing far too fast in their slippery ship and would pull off all the power.

Bad idea. It took as long as 14 seconds for a J33 engine to spool back up and provide useful thrust, and often that was too late.

Another bad idea was that new jet pilots would frantically firewall the power lever when they found themselves on the back side of the power curve with an unresponsive engine. Early J33s couldn’t take the rush of fuel and either flooded or caught fire.

It was also a time before the concept of density altitude was fully understood—that air got thinner and less supportive the hotter and higher it became. Many a P-80 ran out of runway before its wings were ready to lift. By the time the P-80 was little over 2½ years old and still in limited production, 61 of them had been involved in accidents.

Lockheed realized that it needed a jet trainer, which it created by lengthening a standard P-80 airframe by 4 feet 6 inches, making room for a back-seat instructor pilot. Thus was born Lockheed’s most successful jet of all time, the T-33 “T-bird.” Lockheed built well over three times

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off to war Clockwise from above: Ground crewmen load a 500-pound bomb onto the wing of an 80th Fighter-Bomber Squadron F-80C in Korea; a Shooting Star drops napalm on a North Korean logistical center at Suan in May 1951; an F-80C pilot confers with his crew chief prior to a mission; an armorer prepares one of six .50-caliber ammunition cannisters carried by an F-80.

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ing transcontinental crossing in January 1946— the first-ever in jets—and in August of that year Shooting Stars won the Bendix Trophy, jet-class Thompson Trophy and Weatherhead Jet Speed Dash Trophy at the National Air Races. In 1947 the Bendix and jet Thompson trophies again went to P-80s.

That year also saw a modified P-80R called Racey set a world absolute speed record of 623.7 mph. (It lasted only two months, until a Douglas

D-558-1 Skystreak upped the top speed to almost 641 mph.)

In 1950 the F-80C made its bones when it went to war in Korea. By that time, the 900 Shooting Stars in the Air Force inventory constituted roughly half of America’s fighter force, and many WWII piston-engine fighters had been relegated to National Guard and Reserve squadrons.

War-weary P-51Ds had to be hastily recalled to service, however, when F-80Cs turned out to be too fast to maneuver with the piston-engine Soviet Lavochkins and Yaks the North Koreans were flying. Still, F-80s on the second day of the war shot down four Ilyushin Il-10s—single-engine ground-attack aircraft that were improved versions of the WWII Il-2 Sturmovik—in what were the USAF’s first jet victories.

Four months later, on January 1, 1950, F-80Cs from the 51st Fighter Interceptor Wing engaged three Soviet-flown MiG-15s in the world’s first jet-versus-jet combat. Lieutenant Semyon Kho­ minich claimed one of the F-80s, killing 1st Lt.

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Frank Van Sickle Jr., but the Air Force insisted his Shooting Star had been hit by flak, not a MiG. A week later F-80C pilot 1st Lt. Russell Brown scored hits on a MiG-15 and claimed a victory, though years later it was determined that the Soviet MiG pilot had made it back to base.

In any case, the MiG was almost 100 mph faster than the Lockheed. Largely because of this, the F-80 was relegated to a ground-attack role, leaving MiG-bashing to the newly arrived North American F-86 Sabre.

Four F-80C fighter groups were based in Japan and the commute to Korea left them with little fuel to fly useful missions. The solution was “Misawa tanks,” which were essentially faired barrels welded up by technicians at Misawa Air Base, in northern Japan. The largest Misawa tanks held 265 gallons.

Early ones, however, lacked internal anti-slosh baffles. During steep run-ins against ground targets, partial fuel in a Misawa tank would flow forward and on the pullout would slosh rapidly aft.

This caused at least one fatal accident when the overstressed tank tore off an F-80C’s wingtip and then took out a horizontal stabilizer.

Another try at lengthening the F-80’s short legs was the world’s first in-combat aerial refueling, on July 6, 1951, when three RF-80As gassed up from a Boeing KB-29 tanker over the Sea of Japan. This effectively doubled the reconnaissance planes’ range. The receiving probes for the tanker’s drogue protruded from the nose of each tip tank, however, and the refueling procedure proved too lengthy and cumbersome to adopt operationally.

F-80s flew almost 100,000 sorties during the Korean War and were credited with shooting down 37 North Korean aircraft. But in return 14 Shooting Stars were lost to aerial combat, 113 to anti-aircraft fire, 150 to accidents and 16 to unknown causes. Total losses were equal to 35 percent of all the F-80Cs manufactured. This was well over double the loss rate during the Vietnam

War for F-4 Phantoms, then the most vulnerable fixed-wing aircraft of any combatant nation.

By the mid-1950s, Shooting Stars were antiquated enough that they were being sent to South America as part of the Military Assistance Program for members of the Organization of American States. F-80Cs went to Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Uruguay to replace P-47s. Only Peru ever used one in anger, to make low next-time-I’ll-shoot passes over a local garrison that had mutinied.

Some of the last active F-80s were the six used by the FAA, with civil registration numbers, for high-altitude navaid inspections during the 1960s.

Today, not a single P/F-80 remains flyable, even among a warbird community that has shown the tenacity to restore some of the oddest and most complex of military airplanes to flight.

I have my own tiny place in Shooting Star history. In July 1948, my grandfather took me to the opening-day airshow at New York’s new Idlewild Airport, which would eventually become JFK. President Harry Truman also attended, to give the opening address, and he was accompanied by a three-ship of F-80s in his flight from Baltimore aboard the Air Force One of the day, a DC-6 that he’d named The Independence. Before his speech the next day, the F-80s flew a low pass over the VIP bleachers—low enough that they blew off Truman’s trademark fedora. It made the front page of many a newspaper.

Lost in the crowd, I didn’t see it happen. But like Forrest Gump, I was there.

Contributing editor Stephan Wilkinson suggests for further reading: Shooting Star, T-Bird & Starfire: A Famous Lockheed Family, by Lt. Col. Rhodes Arnold; Lockheed P-80/F-80 Shooting Star: A Photo Chronicle, by David R. McLaren; and F-80 Shooting Star Units Over Korea, by Warren Thompson.

t-bird two-seater A restored T-33 trainer operated by the Planes of Fame Museum flies over California in August 2021. The T-33 was Lockheed’s most successful jet of all time, with more than 6,500 manufactured.

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AN AMERICAN MARTYR EIGHTY YEARS AGO, B-17 PILOT COLIN KELLY MADE THE ULTIMATE SACRIFICE SO THAT HIS CREW COULD LIVE, AND IN THE PROCESS SPAWNED A LEGEND BY PHILIP HANDLEMAN

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Running the gantlet In a painting by Robert Taylor, Captain Colin P. Kelly’s Boeing B-17C is raked

by Mitsubishi A6M2 Zeros after having dropped its bombs on a Japanese invasion fleet off the Philippine coast on December 10, 1941—one of the first American offensive actions of World War II.

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ready or not Top: A Flying Fortress of the 11th Bomb Group is prepped at Iba Field in the Philippines in 1941 before the country fell to the Japanese. Inset: Kelly, shown here as a young aviation cadet, entered his first and final battle in an unescorted B-17C.

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During the surprise attack launched from Japa­ nese aircraft carriers, barely a glove was laid on the enemy airplanes while 18 U.S. vessels were either sunk or run aground, including five battleships. No less than 347 U.S. Army and Navy aircraft were destroyed or damaged. The American death toll was 2,403.

Japan’s rampage continued at strategic loca­ tions across the Pacific in the days that followed.

Indeed, the very next day, the Japanese attacked Clark Field, the American air base about 40 miles northwest of Manila in the Philippines. Despite advance warning of the outbreak of hostilities, 18 B-17 Flying Fortresses were destroyed on the ground. Fortuitously, other B-17s had been dis­ persed elsewhere in the Philippines at the time.

B-17s of the 19th Bombardment Group’s 14th

Squadron were at Del Monte Field on Mindanao, 600 miles south of Clark. One of the unit’s pilots, Captain Colin Purdie Kelly Jr., was a highly regarded 26-year-old West Point graduate and former B-17 instructor. He and his squadron mates were hopelessly outnumbered and out­ matched by the Japanese forces but would soon begin striking back.

On December 9 the squadron’s commander, Major Emmett “Rosie” O’Donnell, led a small contingent of B-17s to a barebones airstrip closer to Clark. By some accounts this was San Marcelino Airfield in Zambales province, but by another telling it was Mariveles Airfield in the adjoining province of Bataan. Regardless, conditions were austere, food had to be flown in and the crews slept that night in their bombers or under the wings.

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THE OFT-REPEATED TRUISM THAT AMERICA WAS ILL-PREPARED FOR WORLD WAR II MANIFESTED ITSELF STARKLY AT PEARL HARBOR IN THE EARLY MORNING HOURS OF DECEMBER 7, 1941.

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cious three bombs in train rather than as a cluster.

The first and second fell short and alongside the ship, while the third bomb was believed to have struck its starboard side. It was one of the first offensive salvos against the Japanese since the attack on Pearl Harbor three days earlier and the crewmen, seeing what they perceived as a plume of smoke rise from their target in addition to trails of oil in the water, were elated at their apparent success.

Kelly wasted no time turning his B-17 toward Clark Field in an effort to make it back before being detected. However, A6M2 Zero pilots of the Tainan Kokutai (naval air group) who had been providing air cover for the disembarking troops and their ships looked up from 18,000 feet and saw the solitary bomber that had just targeted the fleet. Some two dozen Zeros gave chase.

One of the pursuers was famed ace Saburo Sakai, who later wrote that he was shocked the B-17 had penetrated the convoy’s extensive fighter screen and that it was alone and unescorted.

Referring to Kelly, the ace opined, “The pilot certainly did not lack courage.”

The Flying Fortress, which enjoyed a speed

veteran enemy Above: This 1942 photograph of Japan’s famed Tainan Kokutai (naval air group) includes ace Saburo Sakai (middle row, second from left), whose postwar memoir detailed Kelly’s bravery. Below: Japanese troops advance across Luzon soon after invading.

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efore sunrise on the rainy morning of December 10, Major O’Donnell flew into Clark to obtain orders. He radioed his men to join up with him at the crack of dawn—the bombers were going on the offensive.

At Clark they would take on bombs and receive targeting instructions.

Three of the squadron’s already obsolescent B-17s were cleared into Clark. One of these earlymodel shark-finned Flying Fortresses, a B-17C, was commanded by Captain Kelly. During fueling and bombing-up, an air raid alarm sounded, forcing Kelly and his crew to depart with only three 600-pound bombs instead of the standard complement of eight. The other two B-17s soon followed them into the air.

Kelly had received orders to locate and attack a reported Japanese aircraft carrier in Philippine coastal waters. The search was focused in the vicinity of Aparri on the northern coast of Luzon.

While passing near Aparri, the B-17C’s crew observed a Japanese landing force coming ashore, supported by a flotilla of ships firing a barrage against coastal defenses.

Perceiving the landing force as the more immediate threat, Kelly had his radio operator/gunner, Private Robert Altman, contact Clark Field for permission to deviate from orders and instead strike this target of opportunity. When the radio responses essentially put the question on hold, Kelly got tired of waiting. He advised his crew that they were going to target the largest vessel below, which he believed to be a battleship.

The captain flew a couple high-altitude practice bomb runs for the sake of his bombardier, Ser­ geant Meyer Levin. On the actual run at 22,000 feet, Kelly gave instructions to release their pre-

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Holding the forts Top: The B-17D was the latest model Flying Fortress available in the Philippines in December 1941.

Above: Ground crewmen load a surviving 19th Bomb Group B-17D with 100- and 500-pound bombs, probably at Del Monte Field on Mindanao, Philippines, early in 1942.

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advantage as long as it operated at the higher altitude, stayed safely out of firing range of the pack of Zeros pursuing from Aparri. Suddenly, though, three Zeros from another fighter wing unexpectedly came on the scene from above and ahead after having strafed Nichols Field south of Manila.

According to Sakai, who witnessed events from behind the fleeing American plane, these fighters “sliced across the B-17’s course” but were unable to maneuver effectively due to the thin air at the high altitude, and “the bomber continued serenely on, almost as if the Zeros were no more bothersome than gnats.”

Frustrated, the three errant Zeros joined up with seven from the main pack. Together they formed a

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nside the B-17’s tight working spaces, the crew frantically attempted to cope with the rapidly unfolding mayhem. The first rounds had torn through the length of the fuselage, instantly decapitating Tech. Sgt. William Delehanty, the left waist gunner. Staff Sergeant Jim Halkyard, the right waist gunner, had moments before handed Delehanty a lit cigarette and narrowly escaped the same fate as the shells whizzed by.

A cascade of hot lead had slammed into the flight deck, knocking out most of the instruments.

Additional rounds hit the radio compartment’s oxygen bottles, causing them to explode and wounding radioman Altman. The bomber got to within five miles of Clark, but by then the port wing was on fire and flames spread to the cockpit, engulfing it in smoke. Flames also streamed from

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single line to the bomber’s rear and fired at the elusive plane one at a time. This tactic, amid a steady stream of defensive fire from the B-17’s waist guns and belly-mounted “bathtub” turret, also proved unavailing. The airborne encounter with the newon-scene American bomber reportedly threw the fighter pilots off their game, as the B-17’s size made scale and distance hard to estimate.

The combat dynamic changed when the Flying Fortress started to descend for landing at Clark Field. Sakai zoomed in from behind and below with a Zero on each wing. The absence of a tail gunner’s position in the B-17C created a hole in the bomber’s cone of fire and gave the pursuers an opening. With guns blazing, the ace kept shooting at the big bomber until “pieces of metal flew off in chunks.” Out of ammunition, he peeled off to make room for the first of his two wingmen, who pressed the attack. Before the second wingman began to fire, “the damage was already done” and the bomber nosed forlornly earthward, albeit with wings level.

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the bomb bay and the elevator control cables had been severed.

Kelly had his hands full just keeping the B-17 steady as he ordered his crew to abandon the fiery plane. Halkyard and Altman, along with Private Willard Money, the assistant radio operator, pushed against the aft hatch to evacuate, pulling their ripcords as soon as they cleared the doomed aircraft. Meanwhile, navigator 2nd Lt. Joe Bean and bombardier Levin sought to exit via the bottom hatch, only to find it was stuck, likely from corrosion caused by months-long exposure to humidity and salty air. The two men struggled to break the hatch open, succeeding in the nick of time. As soon as they broke free and jumped from the burning plane, it exploded.

At Clark Field, air and ground crews counted the parachutes that popped open one after the other until six canopies floated earthward. The last was that of Kelly’s copilot, 2nd Lt. Donald Robins, who had reached the upper escape hatch just as the severely crippled ship ignited in a fireball, at once badly burning him and propelling him away from the airborne inferno. Kelly went down in flames, having stayed at the controls to keep the mortally damaged bomber as stable as possible during the bailouts.

Sakai had dived in parallel with the ill-fated bomber as it hurtled toward the ground, keeping a distance of several hundred yards. He observed the first three crewmen bail out at 7,000 feet and then the B-17 dipped into a cloudbank, causing him to lose visual contact. About that time, he said, “I remember having a feeling of tremendous respect for the pilot, who had ordered his crew to escape while he was apparently attempting to save his aircraft.” None of the Japanese pilots saw the B-17 explode or impact the ground, so for the time being they were denied credit for the kill.

Kelly’s B-17C was the first Flying Fortress lost on an offensive mission against the Japanese, and the sacrifice of its commander became a source of inspiration for a U.S. population looking for positive news from the bleak Far East war front. Press dispatches reported that the bomber had sunk the Japanese battleship Haruna. In the passion of the

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moment, as Americans yearned to find a hero in the desperate days following Pearl Harbor, there were even reports that Kelly had deliberately dived his plane “down the funnels” of the enemy vessel.

Subsequent information revealed that Haruna was not even in the engagement and that the ship Kelly had likely targeted was the heavy cruiser Ashigara, which was not damaged. However, the 648-ton minesweeper W-19 was hit, run aground by its crew and later written off as a total loss. In addition, the 5,000-ton light cruiser Natori went to W-19’s aid and was damaged by a near miss, as were two troop transports.

The other two Flying Fortresses from Clark Field had each made their own lone attacks minutes after Kelly departed the scene. A B-17D piloted by 1st Lt. George Schaetzel dropped its bombs from 25,000 feet and reported no hits.

Schaetzel’s bomber was attacked by Nakajima Ki-27 army fighters and one engine was shot out, but he managed to bring his plane back to San Marcelino with his crew uninjured. Another B-17D, piloted by 1st Lt. Guilford R. Montgom­ery, reached Aparri and dropped its bombs, claiming to have left an enemy ship burning. On the way back to base, however, Montgomery encountered bad weather and ran out of fuel, forcing him to ditch in the sea off Zamboanga. He and his crew were unhurt and subsequently rescued.

Calm Before the storm Above: Kelly (right) and a squadron mate reflect the casual setting that was the Philippines in late 1941. Below: Another view of Iba Field prior to the outbreak of hostilities shows a lineup of Seversky P-35 fighters across from the 11th Bomb Group B-17.

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In spite of the damage the Flying Fortresses had managed to inflict, Sakai went so far in his postwar memoir to state that from his vantage point it appeared all three bombs dropped by Kelly’s B-17 fell harmlessly into the sea. Regardless, the actions of the captain and his crew were no less heroic for together these men had pressed the attack against tremendous odds. And, once the bomber had been irreparably stricken, Kelly’s selflessness allowed his surviving crewmates to escape.

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Homefront hero Top: On September 14, 1942, Colin Kelly’s mother was among the first in the United States to receive a “V-Home” certificate celebrating a patriotic home. Above: Kelly’s sacrifice grew to near legendary stature on patriotic posters and advertisements.

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n the wave of patriotic fervor that swept across the country following Pearl Harbor, Americans latched onto the iconography of one of their fellow citizens making the ultimate sacrifice so that others might live.

Many believed that this courageous pilot had earned the Medal of Honor, as had been erroneously reported by some media outlets. Indeed, Maj. Gen. Lewis H. Brereton, commander of the Far East Air Forces, recommended Kelly for the nation’s highest military honor.

But General Douglas Mac­ Arthur, commander of all U.S. Army forces in the Far East, was swayed by his headquarters staff, who felt the cir­ cumstances warranted the military’s second highest decoration. Accordingly, Kelly was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Cross. The fallen pilot was also awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for his successful over-water navigation in a flight of nine B-17s from Wake Island to the Philippines three months before America entered the war.

When word of the heroic act in Philippine skies reached the small northern Florida town of Madison, where Kelly had grown up, the Tampa Tribune sponsored the establishment of a charitable fund to benefit his 19-month-old son, nicknamed “Corky.” The day after Christmas, Kelly’s widow, Marion Wick Kelly, sent a letter of thanks to the newspaper’s editor, stating that the “Corky Kelly fund…is one of the finest trib-

utes one could pay my husband.”

A week after the mission, by historical happenstance the 39th anniversary of the Wright brothers’ first successful powered flight, President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued a letter “as an act of faith in the destiny of our country” addressed “To the President of the United States of America in 1956” requesting that Kelly’s son be appointed to his late father’s alma mater, the U.S. Military Academy. That future president was Dwight D. Eisenhower, himself a hero of the war and a West Point graduate. In 1959 President Eisenhower honored the request, and four years later Colin P. Kelly III—once the little boy known as Corky— graduated from the academy.

Colin Kelly III eventually became a priest and transferred from the armored corps to the chaplaincy, returning to West Point as its assistant chaplain. He concluded his military service as a lieutenant colonel and then served as pastor of Trinity on the Hill Episcopal Church in Los Ala­ mos, N.M., not far from the government labora­ tory whose development of the atomic bomb brought a definitive end to the war that had been marked at its beginning by his father’s martyrdom.

On May 23, 1987, in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of the graduation of the West Point Class of 1937, a bust of Captain Kelly was unveiled in the Regimental Room of the Cadet Mess Hall. On hand were the deceased captain’s son and grandson, Colin Brent Kelly. The ceremony’s attendees were reminded that the academy’s 1937 yearbook, the Howitzer, had prophetically described the future representative of America’s righteous wartime defiance as having “a temper, perhaps, but one that rises to defend the principles that he cherishes.”

As to the fate of Kelly’s six surviving crewmates, radio operator/gunner Bob Altman was taken prisoner and survived. Copilot Don Robins, seriously injured in the bailout, was hospitalized and later died. Bombardier Meyer Levin went on to fly as many missions as he could wrangle, earning the Silver Star but losing his life in January 1943 when his B-17F ran out of fuel and ditched in the Gulf of Papua off the southern coast of New Guinea.

Gunner Jim Halkyard joined the Filipino guerrillas but was evacuated for medical reasons and made a career of the Air Force. Radioman Willard Money operated a weather radio station on Min­ danao with the guerrillas until the island was liberated, then left the Air Force but reenlisted and rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel. Navigator Joe Bean continued flying bomber missions in the Southwest Pacific, staying in the postwar Air Force and, like Money, becoming a lieutenant colonel.

One of the things the crew members had in common was unreserved esteem for their former commander. As Bean succinctly put it, “His crew thought highly of him.”

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he USAF’s most public consecration of Kelly today is through the display of the life-size portrait that hangs at the entrance to the World War II Gallery at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force in Dayton, Ohio. Completed in 1942 by Yale Uni­ versity art professor Deane Keller, who subsequently enlisted in the Army himself, the painting is an unabashedly glowing celebration of wartime gallantry and a paean to a heroic combatant.

Looking more mature than his years, Kelly stands under the imposing structure of his mighty bomber, ready for the mission and the fate that awaits him. He wears a classic shearling-lined brown leather flight jacket with matching leggings to fend off the biting cold at altitude. He is shown holding the tools of his trade: an aeronautical chart in one hand and headphones in the other. Tucked underneath the chest strap of his seat-pack parachute is a “Mae West” life preserver.

The telltale fins of early-model B-17s are visible on an airfield in the background. A few squadron mates can be seen preparing for takeoff and an armorer stands at the ready with a bomb-laden cart. In the prominent sky, clouds compete with shafts of light as a big Flying Fortress barrels by with propellers whirling. When you look up at this

period painting on your way into the cavernous hall immortalizing the machines and airmen who won the world’s most consequential air war, you see a determined captain who exemplifies the sacrifices of his generation.

The legend of Colin Kelly ran deep—the early WWII hero was an exemplar for American bomber pilots and air crewmen. Though not mentioned by name, he was surely among those “great captains” General MacArthur referenced in his famous 1962 farewell address to the Corps of Cadets at West Point, one of “a million ghosts” in the long gray line who would rise up from their graves if subsequent graduates began to falter, “thundering those magic words: Duty, Honor, Country.”

One for the ages Deane Keller of Yale University painted this heroic portrait of Kelly that now hangs in the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force in Dayton, Ohio.

Longtime pilot and aviation historian Philip Handleman’s most recent book (with Lt. Col. Harry T. Stewart Jr.) is Soaring to Glory: A Tuskegee Airman’s Firsthand Account of World War II. Further reading: The Legend of Colin Kelly: America’s First Hero of WW II, by Dennis E. McClendon and Wallace F. Richards; Samurai!, by Saburo Sakai with Martin Caidin and Fred Saito; and Bloody Shambles, Vol. 1, by Christopher Shores and Brian Cull with Yasuho Izawa.

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Phantom Menace A McDonnell F-4E Phantom II of the Israeli Air Force shoots down an Egyptian MiG-21 during 1973’s Yom Kippur War. A secret mission three years earlier also saw the IAF destroy enemy MiGs—this time piloted by Egypt’s Soviet allies.

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ISRAEL’S BAIT-AND-SWITCH IN 1970 THE ISRAELI AIR FORCE TOOK A PAGE FROM COLONEL ROBIN OLDS’ 1967 VIETNAM WAR OPERATION BOLO, LURING SOVIET-FLOWN MIG-21S INTO AIR COMBAT AND SHOOTING DOWN FIVE BY MARSHALL MICHEL

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THE END OF THE 1967 SIX-DAY WAR LEFT ISRAELI FORCES ON THE EAST SIDE OF THE SUEZ CANAL AND EGYPTIAN FORCES ON THE WEST SIDE, BUT THERE WAS NO PEACE AGREEMENT, ONLY AN INFORMAL CEASEFIRE. Delta destroyer Above: Prior to the 1969 delivery of new Phantoms from the United States, the Dassault Mirage IIICJ served with distinction as the IAF’s supersonic mainstay. Both Phantoms and Mirages played roles in Israel’s audacious Rimon 20 operation in 1970.

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On March 8, 1969, a frustrated Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser declared an end to the ceasefire and started the “War of Attrition.”

Egyptian artillery began a heavy bombardment of Israel Defense Forces (IDF) positions on the eastern side of the canal with the hope of forcing the Israeli government into concessions or a withdrawal. The IDF artillery was no match for the Egyptians, so the Israelis responded with heavy Israeli Air Force (IAF) strikes on Egyptian artillery and military positions along the canal.

Egyptian MiGs tried to stop the attacks, but their poorly trained pilots were decimated by the well-trained Israelis flying French-built delta-wing Mirage IIIs—“Triangles.” The Egyptians began to move SA-2 surface-to-air missiles close to the canal to protect their artillery, prompting the IAF

to launch a series of attacks against the SAM sites.

On September 5, 1969, the first F-4E Phantom IIs arrived in Israel from the United States. The Phantom—quickly dubbed the “Hammer” by the IAF—brought a new dimension to the conflict as it took over most of the attacks on the missile sites. By late November 1969, the SAMs had been neutralized and, for the next four months, the Egyptians did not attempt to advance any more missiles toward the canal.

But the Egyptians showed no willingness to negotiate. Israel escalated the air war beginning in January 1970 with Operation Pricha (Blossom), as Phantoms began to fly bombing raids deep into Egypt to attack strategic targets such as the Egyptian commando headquarters. The Israelis hoped the strikes would force President Nasser out

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PREVIOUS SPREAD: ILLUSTRATION BY ANTONIS KARIDIS; OPPOSITE: PHOTOSTOCK-ISRAEL/ALAMY; ABOVE LEFT & BOTTOM RIGHT: COURTESY OF MARSHALL MICHEL; TOP RIGHT: ISRADECAL STUDIO COLLECTION

of office or at a minimum compel him to declare a ceasefire.

The new January deep strikes by Phantoms were very damaging and did indeed threaten the Nasser regime. But rather than accede to Israeli demands, on January 24 Nasser flew to Moscow to plead—indeed demand—that his Soviet sponsors provided Egypt with a reliable air defense network.

A major defeat of their main Arab client state was unacceptable to the Soviets, so beginning in March 1970 the USSR sent the complete 18th Special Anti-Aircraft Rocket Division to Egypt.

The unit was equipped with the latest SA-2 SAMs and the newer SA-3, and also included three squadrons from the 135th Fighter Aviation Regiment of the Air Defense Forces equipped with the MiG-21MF. Soon there were 10,000 Soviet advisers in Egypt helping the Egyptians to extend the SAM missile sites toward the Suez Canal.

The Soviet MiG-21 “Fishbed” units were based south of Cairo and did not share air bases with the Egyptians, so there was little interaction between the Russian and Egyptian pilots. The Soviets did not bother to request information about Israeli tactics from their Egyptian counterparts, mocked the Egyptian pilots’ courage and disparaged their flying skills. Since few Soviets spoke Arabic, they brought their own radar controllers, which made it easy for the many Russian-speaking immigrants in Israeli intelligence to monitor Soviet radio transmissions.

After the Soviets arrived, Israeli Minister of Defense Moshe Dayan became concerned that Russian personnel would be killed in the deeppenetration Phantom attacks, so in April 1970 he halted the deep strikes and the IAF returned to attacking the new SAM batteries approaching the Suez Canal. But despite repeated strikes on the batteries, the Soviets slowly advanced the missile sites closer to the canal, and on June 30 Sovietoperated SAMs downed two Israeli Phantoms. In July the new sites shot down two more F-4s, killing one of the IAF’s most outstanding squadron commanders, Shmuel Hetz.

While the SAMs took a toll, the air combat story

was different. There were regular air battles over Egypt south and west of Suez City, an area dubbed “Texas” by the IAF pilots because they styled themselves as gunfighters in the Wild West (IAF pilots preferred to rely on their internal cannon instead of air-to-air missiles). The battles resulted in heavy Egyptian losses, which made the Egyptians reluctant to engage Israeli fighters.

The arrival of the F-4s provided new air-toair capabilities—long-range radar and AIM-7 Sparrow radar-guided missiles—that the Mirages lacked. To catch the MiGs, the aggressive Israeli fighter pilots began setting traps for the Egyptians codenamed “Rimon” (Pomegranate), with the F-4s and Mirages working together. One such trap involved flying transport aircraft or helicopters into the Suez Canal area and, when MiGs were launched toward them, Israeli fighters flying below the Egyptian radar climbed and intercepted them. During the War of Attrition, close to 100 Egyptian MiGs were downed in air combat against the loss of only four Mirages, with two pilots bailing out over Israeli territory.

New arrival Clockwise from top left: IAF commander Mordechai “Motti” Hod (left) and Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir join pilot Avihu Ben-Nun in examining the cockpit of a justdelivered F-4E; a pair of Phantoms (with later checkerboard tail markings and refueling probes) from 69 Squadron, which Ben-Nun led during Rimon 20, fly a mission; Israeli ground crewmen symbolically cover a new F-4E’s U.S. national insignia with the IAF’s Star of David.

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Special OP Above: Ben-Nun (left) briefs defense minister General Moshe Dayan (right) on the Rimon 20 operation. Right: Avraham Salmon got the first aerial victory of the operation before splitting credit on the final MiG kill.

Below: One of the 117 Squadron Mirage IIIs that participated in Rimon 20 taxis at an Israeli air base.

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minister Dayan ordered the IAF to break off contact whenever they appeared, much to the Israeli pilots’ frustration.

This Israeli reluctance to confront the Soviets seemed to embolden them, and they moved their SAM sites closer and closer to the Suez Canal.

The IDF chief of staff, Lt. Gen. Chaim Bar-Lev, and IAF commander Brig. Gen. Mordechai “Motti” Hod began pushing Dayan hard for more aggressive actions against the Soviets. On July 25 the dynamic changed when Soviet MiGs attacked and damaged an Israeli A-4 Skyhawk that had to make an emergency landing at a base in the central Sinai desert. After the attack on the Skyhawks, Prime Minister Golda Meir changed course and decided to confront the Soviets.

The IAF developed an operation, Rimon 20, in which it would send seemingly vulnerable aircraft into Egyptian airspace to induce the Soviets to attack. The concept was similar in execution to the Vietnam War’s Operation Bolo, led by legendary U.S. Air Force fighter pilot Colonel Robin Olds (see sidebar, P. 51). The first part of Rimon 20 would simulate a high-altitude flight of two photo­ reconnaissance Mirage IIIs. But instead of the normal two unarmed photo Mirages, the force would consist of four fully armed Mirages flying in tight formation to give the appearance of a twoship recon flight on Soviet radar.

The second part of the operation consisted of a four-ship flight of F-4Es that would simulate an A-4 ground-attack mission along the canal.

Meanwhile, four Mirages would fly low under Soviet radar coverage well to the south of the F-4s and four more Mirages would be on quick-reaction alert at Rephidim air base in the central Sinai.

Each participating squadron was told to fill the attacking force with its best pilots. There was intense competition in the squadrons about which pilots would fly the missions and, under the watchful eyes of IAF commander Hod and the wing commanders, each squadron commander picked the best pilots, mostly MiG killers.

The “bait” flight simulating the reconnaissance aircraft would consist of four Mirages from 119 Squadron from Tel Nof air base. Squadron commander Lt. Col. Amos Amir led the flight, Asher Snir was number two, Avraham Salmon number

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ALL PHOTOS THIS SPREAD COURTESY OF MARSHALL MICHEL

three and Avi Gilad number four.

The four F-4Es that would fly the A-4 attack profile over the canal came from Ramat David air base’s 69 Squadron. Their pilots hoped to use the Phantoms’ long-range radar to locate the MiGs and perhaps launch their Sparrows. The four-ship element would be led by squadron commander Avihu Ben-Nun. His number two was the second deputy squadron commander, Aviem Sella; number three was deputy squadron commander Ehud Hankin; and Uri Gil was number four. Since the F-4s had been mainly used for ground attack, their pilots’ victory scores were not as robust as the 24 of the Mirage pilots in the bait flight—“only” seven MiG kills in the Phantom flight.

The low-altitude flight of four Mirages from 117 Squadron also came from Ramat David, led by squadron commander Uri Even-Nir, with Itamar Neuner as number two, Yehuda Koren as number three and Kobi Richter as number four. A reserve flight of four Mirages from 101 Squadron, led by squadron commander Iftach Spector, would sit on alert at Rephidim.

The operation was scheduled for July 29, and on the 27th the commanders and flight leads flew to Tel Aviv for the overall mission briefing at Sde Dov airfield. At the briefing Dayan told the group they were going to fight the Soviets and made it clear that they were to shoot down as many MiGs as possible. At the same time, Brig. Gen. Hod also emphasized that while the IAF pilots would use their normal tactical two-ship flights, in which the first member of the flight who spotted the MiGs led the attack, the pairs must stay together. It was critical that no IAF aircraft be shot down—“their number doesn’t matter, ours must be zero!” As usual Hod would hold a stopwatch on the battle.

“We were told it was time to show the Russians what ‘Texas’ is,” Ben-Nun later said of the briefing. “We were very excited, not afraid, but we did not know what to expect, because we thought the Russians would have different and more advanced armament.”

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hen the July 29 mission was postponed, many of the IAF pilots thought the government had lost its nerve, but it was rescheduled for the next day.

At 2 p.m. on July 30 the four fully armed Mirage IIIs from 119 Squadron took off and began to fly

Team players Clockwise from top left: Three IAF Mirages and a pair of F-4s take flight; Ben-Nun (left) shakes hands with wingman Aviem Sella following the wildly successful mission; Sella is debriefed after having scored a MiG victory in the fight.

a standard reconnaissance profile, starting with a low-altitude flight into Egyptian airspace in the far south on the southern shores of the Gulf of Suez, where the Soviet MiGs were known to operate.

The Mirages then climbed and turned north at 35,000 feet, the standard altitude for a photorecon mission, in tight formation to look like a two-ship photo flight on radar. The Triangles then continued flying the normal route toward Suez City, using the standard reconnaissance radio calls.

Twelve Soviet MiG-21MFs took the bait and launched from two separate bases to intercept the “reconnaissance” Mirages. At about the same time the F-4s from 69 Squadron simulating the A-4 attack struck an Egyptian radar site, and eight

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deadly “triangle” Above: Technicians attend to a Mirage at an IAF air base in 1971. Inset: Iftach Spector, who led the mission’s reserve flight from Rephidim air base, sits in the cockpit of a Mirage.

Below: An IAF gun camera sequence shows an AIM-9D Sidewinder missile destroying a MiG.

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more MiGs were launched from additional bases and sent toward the supposed Skyhawks.

Israeli fighter radar controllers detected the MiGs. The F-4Es began to close on them from the east, but the low flight of four 117 Squadron Mirages was well south of the Phantoms on station over the Sinai and was experiencing problems. The leader and number two were forced to abort with engine trouble, so Yehuda Koren and Kobi Richter, numbers three and four, entered the fight as a pair late.

The first two four-ship MiG formations approached the bait Mirages, call sign Arbel, in trail from the west and the Mirages turned east to bring the MiGs closer to the Red Sea border between Israel and Egypt. The MiGs were 20 miles behind them as the Mirages approached the Red Sea and turned back west. Flight leader Amir called “Arbel, drop tanks” as the Phantoms also climbed into the battle, but the F-4s had a confused radar picture, so they entered the fight without firing their AIM-7s.

Avraham Salmon, number three in the bait flight, saw two MiGs first slightly high to his left at 11 o’clock behind two F-4s. He turned to attack them and fired an AIM-9D Sidewinder at one of the MiGs. The missile made a large barrel roll before hitting and destroying the MiG. Salmon called “Arbel Three has shot down one!” and

watched with surprise as the MiG pilot’s parachute opened immediately—probably blown open—and the Russian began his slow descent from 30,000 feet as the battle raged around him.

Meanwhile the lead pair of bait Mirages flown

by Amir and Asher Snir went after the second MiG-21 flight. Snir saw two MiGs as they passed overhead and turned hard left to attack them, but Amir was temporarily blinded by the sun and lost sight of Snir, who was attacked by a second MiG. Amir heard Snir call “Arbel Two has a kill” followed by “Arbel Two has been hit, heading back, plane is under control,” so he tried to find a MiG for himself. The swirling dogfight circled the falling parachute, and the Israelis used the chute as a marker to call their position—“Arbel Four is four kilometers west of the chute heading north at 17,000…”

The F-4 pair of Ben-Nun and Sella flew through the fight trying to find targets while using their speed to keep MiGs from closing from behind, but Sella found himself at 15,000 feet with a MiG on his tail. He performed a high-G barrel roll and easily forced the MiG into an overshoot—Sella later said that “the Russian made every mistake in the book”—and pulled behind the MiG as it spiraled down from 15,000 feet. After two or three turns, at 2,000 feet Sella arrived at a firing position and launched an AIM-9D. It seemed to hit the MiG, but when the smoke cleared the fighter was still flying. Sella fired a second Sidewinder but before it arrived the MiG broke apart and the Soviet pilot bailed out.

The two 117 Squadron Mirages flown by Koren and Richter came into the fight at low altitude,

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OPPOSITE ABOVE LEFT: ROLLS PRESS/POPPERFOTO VIA GETTY IMAGES; OPPOSITE INSET: ISRAELI AIR FORCE; LEFT: COURTESY OF MARSHALL MICHEL; ABOVE RIGHT: MARK POSTLETHWAITE; RIGHT: U.S. AIR FORCE

then jettisoned their external fuel tanks and climbed. They looked down on a sky full of maneuvering aircraft—F-4s, MiGs and Mirages—as well as crisscrossing missile contrails. Spotting a flight of four MiGs below, they dove on them, scattering the enemy aircraft in all directions. The two Mirage pilots picked out a lone MiG and pursued him. The Soviet pilot maneuvered wildly as he descended, and Richter fired a Shafrir missile that did not guide, then could not get his second Shaf­ rir to launch. Koren then tried to fire his Shafrir but could not get a missile tone, so he closed for a cannon attack from behind and below the MiG. The F-4 leader, Ben-Nun, had also seen the same MiG but apparently not the Mirages, and the Israelis began a high-speed chase just above the desert. Ben-Nun fired a Sidewinder that exploded but the MiG kept flying at high speed.

His backseater, Shaul Levi, told him he had a lock on the MiG with the Phantom’s radar and BenNun fired the AIM-7 Sparrow, which streaked over Koren’s cockpit and destroyed the MiG. Meanwhile, after his first kill, Avraham Salmon went after a second MiG. He fired a Sidewinder that detonated close to the MiG and then closed for a cannon shot as Iftach Spector, who had been scrambled from alert at Rephidim, joined the battle. Spector was just behind Salmon’s Mirage and fired two AIM-9Ds at the MiG. The missiles passed above Salmon’s cockpit and exploded behind the MiG, but it seemed undamaged and was still able to accelerate away. Salmon followed and emptied his cannon at long range, then, low on fuel, he and Spector gave up the chase.

The battle was over in less than four minutes. The shorter-range Mirages had to land at Rephidim to refuel while the 69 Squadron F-4s returned to Ramat David, where they performed a high-speed flyover followed by a “wet down” and wild celebration by the rest of the base. After the Mirages landed, Koren found that his Shafrirs had been knocked off their racks when he jettisoned his fuel tanks, which was why he could not get a missile tone as he chased the low-flying MiG. After the battle, one IAF pilot commented, “The Rus­sians were terrible, but at the beginning it bothered us a bit, because we were used to an opponent that knew what he had to do to fight you—even if you were better. But for the Russian it seemed they were simply doing aerobatics instead of aerial combat.”

In the end the Israelis had shot down five MiGs during the battle—two by F-4s and three by Mirages. The fifth MiG that Salmon and Spector had fired on crashed on landing, and the two split the victory credit.

For many years, the battle was kept secret.

The commander of the Soviet air force arrived in Egypt the day after the battle “for a vacation in Luxor,” but it was later learned that when the

general landed he gave the Soviet contingent very clear instructions: “Whoever talks to friends in the squadron or to family about this battle will leave Egypt, and the plane he flies on will take off for Siberia.” The Israeli pilots were also forbidden to discuss the engagement and could not paint Russian flag kill markings on their aircraft.

mig killer Ben-Nun exits the battlefield at low level after shooting down a Soviet-flown MiG-21, in an illustration by Mark Postlethwaite.

Marshall Michel is a retired U.S. Air Force colonel who flew F-4s and F-15s and was the air attaché to Israel from 1976 to 1980. He recommends for further reading: Israeli Mirage and Nesher Aces and Israeli F-4 Phantom II Aces, both by Shlomo Aloni; and Israeli Phantoms: The “Kurnass” in IDF/AF Service 1969–1988, by Andreas Klein and Shlomo Aloni.

USAF’S OPERATION BOLO One of the most famous air engage­ ments of the Vietnam War, Operation Bolo was led by Colonel Robin Olds (right), commander of the 8th Tactical pack,” who flew Fighter Wing “Wolf­ F-4C Phantoms from Thailand’s Ubon Royal Thai Air Force Base. In late 1966 North Vietnamese MiG-21s were regu­ larly attack­ing bomb-laden F-105D fighter-bombers while avoiding the escorting F-4s, so the 8th Wing devised Bolo as a trap to lure the MiGs into a fight.

On January 2, 1967, Olds led several flights of F-4s into North Vietnam over an undercast, using the same radio call signs, routes, altitudes and formations as an F-105 bomb strike. The ruse fooled the North Vietnamese radar controllers and the MiG-21s came up to intercept what they thought was an F-105 formation, only to encounter Olds’ F-4s. In the ensuing battle the Phantoms shot down five MiG-21s. As a result, the North Vietnamese did not try to intercept American formations for the next several months.

M.M.

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BRINGING CHARLES HOME THE STORY OF P-51 PILOT CHARLES LEE’S WORLD WAR II SERVICE IS A REMINDER OF THE SACRIFICES MADE BY COUNTLESS YOUNG MEN IN THE DEFENSE OF FREEDOM BY NINA LEE SOLTWEDEL

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dangerous duty Flying a North American P-51B Mustang, 1st Lt. Ralph K. Hofer of the 4th Fighter Group strafes a train east of Calais, France, on D-Day, June 6, 1944, in a painting by Wade Meyers. Two months later, on August 8, 1st Lt. Charles M. Lee was shot down near Saint-Dizier during a similar ground-attack mission while piloting a P-51B.

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boot camp In preparation for his military service, Lee trained for a month in Company B, 401st Infantry Reserve, at Fort Sheridan, Ill., as part of the Citizens Military Training Camp program established in 1915 by the U.S. Army.

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When Charles graduated from high school in May 1939, Dad had a heart-to-heart talk with him about the world and the threat of war. He asked Charles what he would want to do if he was in the military. “Fly, Dad,” Charles responded.

Dad counseled him to do what he could to prepare for being drafted. If he wanted to fly, then he would have to attend college for two years and hope to get accepted into the Aviation Cadet program. In September 1939 Charles entered the University of Wisconsin, where his curriculum

included subjects required before taking the test to become an aviation cadet. In May 1942, having passed the cadet test, Charles was accepted into the Air Force Enlisted Reserve Corps as a private.

He was told to go home and await orders.

Five months later, on October 20, 1942, Charles received his orders for active duty, beginning a series of travels to several different training camps before earning his wings. After undergoing 36 weeks of intensive training, including 229 hours and 35 minutes total flying time, Charles gradu-

PREVIOUS SPREAD: WADE MEYERS; ABOVE & OPPOSITE INSET: COURTESY OF THE LEE FAMILY

ON FEBRUARY 6, 1922, MY BROTHER CHARLES MADISON LEE WAS THE FIRST OF FOUR CHILDREN BORN TO ELLIS AND NINA JENSEN LEE OF RICHLAND CENTER, WISCONSIN. I WAS THE LAST, BORN IN 1937.

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ABOVE LEFT: COURTESY OF JAMES WILLIAM MARSHALL; TOP RIGHT: IWM/FRE 4586; BELOW: IWM/FRE 443

into the arena Lee (above left) flew early Mustangs with the 357th Squadron, 355th Fighter Group (top right), from Steeple Morden field (below). Inset: Before his deployment he presented a teddy bear to his sister Nina.

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ated from the Army Air Forces Southeast Training Center on October 1, 1943, and received “the treasured silver wings of the Army Air Forces pilot.”

Commissioned a second lieutenant, he was given leave to visit home for a short time that October.

On his way home, during a short layover in Chicago, Charles bought a teddy bear at the Union Station gift shop that he presented to me on his arrival. It became very special to me.

All too soon it was time for Charles to return to his duties. He journeyed to Tallahassee, Fla., where he trained on the new North American P-51 Mustang, and in early January 1944 to Fort Hamilton, N.Y., prior to deployment.

On December 31, 1943, Charles wrote home: “Now I will tell you some things that you must not repeat: I think I’m going to England, and will get P-51’s in combat. I won’t tell you why I think so, but accept it as a guess, and do not in any way give out any information. It is important, for we pilots are fairly valuable now, and information is very much sought after by the enemy.”

In January 1944 Charles departed aboard the

ocean liner Île de France to his official posting, the USAAF base at Steeple Morden, in Cambridgeshire, England. But first the fighter pilots were sent to the 496th Fighter Training Group at Goxhill so that they could become acclimated to flying in England’s weather. There were 69 pilots from Tallahassee who made the journey up to that point as one unit, but from there they were sent in smaller groups to different fighter squadrons all over England. Ten of the pilots, including Charles, joined the 355th Fighter Group’s 357th Squadron, under the command of Colonel William “Wild Bill” Cummings. In a letter after the war, Charles’ squadron mate Ralph Schutt noted, “I am sorry to relate that only four of us finished our combat tours.”

The stability of finally being in a group, having his own plane and “getting on with it” gave Charles a sense of satisfaction. His training was paying off.

On March 10 he wrote from Steeple Morden: “Yes, I’m finally in a group now—all I’ve to do is sit around and wait for my chance at a mission. That takes a while, I guess.” The letters that followed (excerpted here) described his combat service:

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the target, and ran into a whole flock of FW 190’s.

So I stuck on my leader’s wing for quite a while, and then an FW 190 came right up in front of me.

So I shot at him. I didn’t have any gunsight—the damn thing had gone out on me—but I shot anyway. I got hits on him from one wingtip to the other.

Then he skidded up and looked at me. So I shot again! This time I got hits from his left wingtip to his fuselage. He started smoking and spiraled through the clouds. I claimed a probable on him. I know I damaged him, but don’t know for sure if I got him, so that’s what it has to be—probable. But then I messed up—lost my leader—so I climbed up to 28,000 feet and batted for home.

April 8 Flew two missions this week—am resting now from one. Didn’t see anything. I sweated out my engine, though—it cut out over the target. I lost 8,000 feet before it started. The other day, we went pretty far in. I saw Munich. Went down on a field, but only damaged an ME 110. Had to concentrate mostly on a damned gun that was shooting at me.

They made me mad as hell, but I know for sure I got two of the gunmen—sprayed the hell out of them. Those guns, when pointed at you, blink like a light going off and on—kinda scary.

April 28 Yesterday marked the end of one month of combat flying for me. In that month I flew 57 combat hours, and in the last two missions, I flew element leader. That’s what I’ll be from now on. It means that I have another man flying on my wing and that I’m in charge of both of us.

fresh-faced Lieutenant Lee smiles for a portrait early in his service with the Army Air Forces. Inset: He soon exchanged his AAF shoulder patch for an Eighth Air Force patch.

March 27, 1944 Today I went on my first mission.

It was a pretty long one—just about five and a half hours. So, as you can well imagine, I have a darned sore hinder. Just try sitting for that long in one spot, strapped down, and see what I mean.

When I came back I made one of the best landings I’ve made yet—really three points and smooth! And, besides—I got to fire my guns! We went down and strafed a Nazi airdrome. I got a “damaged” on a Ju 88 that was on the ground, and I shot the hell out of the control tower. Wasn’t over 20 feet off the ground for most of the time there on the deck. We made a second pass and my flight leader got hit. I had tracers going just in front of my plane, but they missed me. He, my leader, crash landed later. The worst part is coming home—seems that you’ll never see this island— and the hinder gets worse all the time.

March 29 Well, I’ve been on my second mission, this time into dear old Nazi-land itself. We got in close to

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May 15 Today, I was promoted to First Lieutenant and now wear a silver bar. That also means a raise in pay so I can increase my allotment. Also, my confirmations on the two damaged I claimed came through. So, all claims are now confirmed: one probable and five damaged, and one gun emplacement shot up. I have 84 combat hours now, but the length of the tour has been put to 300 hours instead of the 200 hours it was before. That puts further in the distance the time I’ll get home, but will probably shorten this war. That 84 hours is almost 20 missions. I flew six out of seven days last week, all climaxed by the longest raid for the fighters in this war.

May 20 Dad, there’s one thing for sure I know I can do— that’s fly in fog. Recently I hit some bad stuff on the coast. Flew at 10 to 20 feet all the way home.

Visibility was 500 yards that day, and I got three other men home okay. This low stuff is really fun.

The sensation of speed and all that—but it gives gray hair, too.

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May 25 Very recently I flew three missions inside 30 hours—one in the morning, one late in the afternoon, another the next morning. A total of 13 combat hours inside the 30. One was to Berlin, the others in France—saw the Alps in the last one. The thing that makes me feel good about it all, though, is that on the last one, I flew as flight leader—had three other ships on me. My regular flight leader is grounded, so that makes me deputy flight leader now. I’ve rounded out 108 hours in two days less than two months. At this rate, I should get home next fall, just like last year.

OPPOSITE, FROM TOP: COURTESY OF THE LEE FAMILY; HISTORYNET ARCHIVES; CLOCKWISE FROM ABOVE LEFT: COURTESY OF THE ESHELMANN FAMILY; IWM/FRE 439; NATIONAL ARCHIVES

June 7 Just a short line to tell you that I’m okay and did not fly at all yesterday—instead I was in the hospital.

I get these terrific headaches from too much flying—flew five in a row and then got one. I still have part of it, but am staying in the barracks for a while.

June 20 The war seems to be going okay—as you can see in the news, we do have air supremacy—and probably another two years will see this thing finished over here. There is a tremendous job ahead of us, and it will be no “this summer” affair as far as I can see. I’ve thought about myself these last few days and realize I have one hell of a way to go to be a man. Hope some day I can say that—and at the same time, a human being.

June 25 I flew a six-hour job today and led the squadron all the way. That is a much harder way to fly—there is no one to “fly on,” and at high altitudes over here, there isn’t much horizon. A lot of halfway instrument flying must take place. I’m at 178 hours now.

The other day, I led a flight on a glide bomb job.

I got an ammunition train in a marshalling yard. I put five of six right in the yard. The resulting explosions flamed at least 1,000 feet high. In the melee, I added two more nicks: one on a prop blade, one on the right wing. That’s the seventh in my plane now. The damn thing is getting quite patched.

July 10 My time is up to 197 hours now—just three short of two-thirds of a tour. As yet, I’ve destroyed none, but have recently shot up two more locomotives, and a couple of Huns with rifles who were pot-shooting at us when I took my flight after the locomotives.

August 6 This last week, I’ve been flying quite regularly, and have only 59 more hours to go. I am in need of a rest—it is getting so that one mission makes me so damned tired that I must have 12 hours’ sleep before doing anything. I ought to go to the Flak home [rest and recuperation centers operated by the American Red Cross], but doubt if I will.

My tour should come to an end by the first week next month, then I shall be given some instructor’s job—or some similar drudgery for three months— then perhaps home for a 30-day furlough.

combat-ready Clockwise from above left: Lee named his P-51B for his fiancée, Ann Marquette; pilots of the 355th Fighter Group attend a briefing at Steeple Morden; a German train explodes during a strafing attack by American fighters in late summer 1944.

There were times, here and there, when Charles flew two sorties in one day, notably three days before D-Day and again on June 8. He had completed 58 operational sorties with a total time of 248 hours and 55 minutes before a mission to Saint-Dizier, France, on August 8.

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decorated veteran Lee shakes hands with 355th Fighter Group commander Colonel William Cummings after receiving the Air Medal. Below: Lee (kneeling, third from right) and wingman Charles Salinski (to his right) were among the 355th pilots awarded Air Medals at the May 15, 1944, ceremony.

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Ten days later my parents received a dreaded telegram from the adjutant general stating, “The secretary of war desires me to express his deep regret that your son First Lieutenant Charles M. Lee has been reported missing in action....”

The telegram was the beginning of an ongoing exchange of letters between Dad and various individuals at the War Department expressing his growing sense of grief and frustration at the lack of information about Charles’ fate. He naturally wanted to know what caused him to be missing in action—how it happened, where it happened and where was his son?

The responses Dad received over the next year seemed to be along the same lines: “We are working to learn the details; we continue to seek information from those in Europe,” etc. Dad was convinced that Charles’ fatigue was the primary cause of him being MIA. He blamed the doctors for clearing him to fly in spite of his fatigue, and he blamed General Henry “Hap” Arnold for upping the number of required hours from 200 to 300.

One letter to Dad, written by Brig. Gen. Leon

W. Johnson on July 23, 1945, succinctly stated the War Department’s perspective. Although it was probably very hard for Dad to digest, I believe it may have helped him see the other side of the argument. Johnson wrote: “…As far as locating your son or at least his grave, I can only give you the assurances which others have given, that is, that search parties have been doing and are doing everything they can to clear up these matters. “…[T]he youngsters were willing to do anything ever asked of them. They were magnificent; their commanders wanted to save them, but if they acted too conservatively, they would prolong the war and thousands of other Americans would be killed. “…There is no question of being tired; everyone was tired after a period of prolonged operations.

Certain situations developed where the continuous operation did well to shorten the war and everything moved at top tempo. You have only to look at the photos of the ground soldiers in action to see utter fatigue; the same applied to all services.

But, this extra effort and drive was the thing which defeated the mighty German nation; it was the thing which saved thousands of other Americans the grief you are undergoing. “…Our boys knew the score; they were tired, yes; scared, yes at times; but perfectly magnificent; willingly going forth to fight for that in which they believed. I am proud to belong to a country which can produce boys such as your son.”

A year and one day after Charles went missing—the same day America dropped an atomic bomb on Nagasaki, effectively ending World War II—Maj. Gen. Edward F. Witsell wrote to my parents: “In view of the fact that twelve months have now expired without the receipt of evidence to support a continued presumption of survival, the War Department must terminate such absence by a presumptive finding of death.” On December 18, 1945, Witsell wrote with some information about Charles’ last mission, saying that “Your son’s aircraft was seen at 2:25 p.m. to crash at St. Dizier, France, and was lost as a result of antiaircraft fire.”

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ALL PHOTOS THIS SPREAD COURTESY OF THE LEE FAMILY, EXCEPT BOTTOM RIGHT: STEVE NELSON

The letter included details from one of Charles’ wingmen, 1st Lt. Edward P. Ludeke, who said that Charles’ P-51B had been struck by fire during a strafing run, began trailing smoke and flames, turned on its back and crashed.

In March 1946 Dad and Mom received a letter advising that Charles had been posthumously awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, Purple Heart and more Oak Leaf Clusters to his Air Medal. Another year passed before they received a letter from Brig. Gen. G.A. Horkan with a picture of the U.S. Military Cemetery Champigneul in Marne, France, where Charles was buried.

In January 1948, another wingman, Charles Salinski, initiated contact with Dad and provided a full description of the event: “The day Charles went down, I was on my last mission and he was about two or three missions from completing his tour of duty. We were strafing an anti-aircraft tower and he was just ahead of me. He finished firing and pulled up, then I started to fire. Out of the corner of my eye I saw his plane pull up steeply and falter. They had evidently hit him as he passed over them. He was only about 3,000 feet up when he started to dive, so it was over in a split second.

It should be a consolation to you to know that it happened quickly and was over before he had a chance to realize it.”

Salinski and Dad exchanged several letters, and I know Dad was extremely grateful for his frank and complete answers.

In May 1946 Public Law 383 had authorized the Army to spend $200 million to repatriate GIs, sailors, Marines and civilian federal employees who had died abroad between September 1939 and June 1946. In July 1947 my parents received a form letter elaborating on the Public Law along with pamphlets that would help them decide if they wished to have Charles brought home.

More than a year after Dad and Mom filed a Request for Disposition of Remains Form, they received an acknowledgment that provided information from the official report of burial: “The remains of your son were originally interred on 9 August 1944 in the Communal Cemetery of Etrepy, Marne, France. This report of burial further discloses that his remains were buried by the Mayor of Etrepy, France, and the grave was marked with a large wooden cross with the inscription ‘aviateur allie charles m. lee, 1944.’”

By 1949 all the worry and stress was easing. My parents received a lengthy telegram on March 9, advising that Charles’ remains were en route to the United States, and confirmed the delivery destination was Richland Center. Dad and Mom began to make preparations for his final interment.

Charles finally came home on April 27. I still recall that day, when Dad said to me, “Nina Kay, do you want to go to the train station with me?

Charles is coming home today.” Of course I said

yes. We drove to our small town’s train station and watched as two men maneuvered the shipping container from the boxcar into the back of the funeral home truck. The funeral home folks brought the casket up to the house for a day before the burial service. Dad sat for hours on the bench in our front hall that next day, his hand resting on the beautiful bronze casket that held Charles’ remains, as he remembered and mourned. His boy was finally home…home for all time.

As long as I am alive, my memories of Charles will be alive as well—as treasured as that now-raggedy, much-loved teddy bear.

Final tribute Top: After he was briefly interred at Etrepy’s Communal Cemetery, Lee was reburied at the U.S. Military Cemetery Champigneul until his parents brought him home. Above: The author’s son, Eric Soltwedel, takes a ride in a P-51D in 2013.

Nina Lee Soltwedel performed extensive research to compile two booklets about her brother Charles, from which this article is adapted. In 2008 her son Eric visited Steeple Morden and in 2013 took a flight in a P-51D while carrying a photo of Charles. Further reading: Angels, Bulldogs & Dragons: The 355th Fighter Group in World War II and Our Might Always: The 355th Fighter Group in World War II, both

by James William “Bill” Marshall; and Steeple Morden Strafers 1943-45, by Ken Wells.

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TO CATCH A SHADOW IN 1925 SCIENTISTS SOUGHT TO USE AIRPLANES AND AN AIRSHIP AS AERIAL PLATFORMS TO OBSERVE AND PHOTOGRAPH A TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE SUN BY DAMOND BENNINGFIELD

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aerial observatory USS Los Angeles flies over New York City sometime during its 1924-1932 operational career. In January 1925 the German-made giant was pressed into service for an unusual mission.

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lair of the beast Above: Los Angeles loiters outside its hangar at Naval Air Station Lakehurst, N.J., in 1928. Inset: Captain Edwin Taylor Pollock, superintendent of the U.S. Naval Observatory, directed the eclipse expedition.

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The U.S. Navy airship carried seven scientists and 500 pounds of telescopes and other skywatching gear to observe a total solar eclipse. The plan called for the dirigible to station itself near the center of the moon’s shadow as the shadow raced across New York and Connecticut and out to sea. Astron­ o­mers counted on Los Angeles to provide a stable platform for observing the rare spectacle.

Los Angeles wasn’t alone in the shadowy skies of the Northeast. A fleet of 25 airplanes—report­ edly the largest military aviation operation since World War I—took off from the Army Air Ser­ vice’s Mitchel Field on Long Island, carrying astron­omers, reporters, radio broadcasters, and still and motion-picture photographers.

The shadow passed directly across New York City just after 9 a.m., making it perhaps the mostviewed solar eclipse in history. Astronomers pre­ dicted that the path of totality—the zone where the moon completely covers the sun—would bisect Manhattan Island, covering everything north of about 83rd Street (they were off by 13 blocks).

Despite bitter cold, with temperatures in the single digits, millions of New Yorkers packed the streets, parks and hillsides. They “wrapped them­ selves tighter in shawls and blankets, stamped their feet, beat their hands and exhaled clouds of fog,” The New York Times reported. Men and boys hawked bits of exposed film, smoked glass and other eye protection, sternly warning of the “dan­ gers of going blind” for those who went without.

Astronomers staked out positions all along the eclipse path, from Minnesota across the Great Lakes to the East Coast. Experience showed, how­ ever, that Mother Nature didn’t always cooperate with eclipse viewing, so scientists turned to aviation as an insurance policy against clouds or fog.

Navy aircraft had carried some astronomers and their cameras aloft during an eclipse in 1923.

Although the results were disappointing, the U.S. Naval Observatory (USNO) wanted to try again, using winged aircraft and both of the Navy’s diri­ gibles, Los Angeles and Shenandoah. The helium supply was too low to support both airships, how­

PREVIOUS SPREAD: NAVAL HISTORY AND HERITAGE COMMAND; ABOVE: RELL CLEMENTS JR./NAVAL HISTORY AND HERITAGE COMMAND; INSET: U.S. NAVY

WHEN THE AIRSHIP USS LOS ANGELES HEADED TOWARD THE ATLANTIC OCEAN FROM ITS BASE AT LAKEHURST, N.J., ON THE FRIGID MORNING OF JANUARY 24, 1925, IT WAS CHASING A SHADOW.

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LEFT & BOTTOM RIGHT: SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION ARCHIVES; TOP RIGHT: LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

PREVIOUS SPREAD: NAVAL HISTORY AND HERITAGE COMMAND; ABOVE: RELL CLEMENTS JR./NAVAL HISTORY AND HERITAGE COMMAND; INSET: U.S. NAVY

ever, so the Navy assigned the job to Los Angeles. It couldn’t fly as high as the airplanes, but it could carry more people and equipment, and astrono­ mers hoped its great size and slower speed would make it a steadier platform for observations.

Los Angeles had been built by Germany’s Zeppe­ lin company. It arrived at Lakehurst in October 1924 and was designated ZR-3 by the Navy. First Lady Grace Coolidge christened the ship on Nov­ember 25 at Naval Air Station Anacostia in Washington, D.C. The behemoth measured more than 650 feet and was powered by five 400-hp Maybach V-12 engines, which produced a cruising speed of about 48 knots and a maximum speed of 65 knots. It was lofted by 2.7 million cubic feet of helium, held in 14 cells.

Winter threatened to keep both Los Angeles and the airplanes grounded, though. “It was not clouds, but wind that caused the immediate trou­ ble,” according to an official USNO report. A powerful cold front blew through the area the day before the eclipse, bringing the coldest weather of the season and strong northwest winds.

Preparations for the airship’s departure were scheduled to begin at 3 a.m. on January 24, but gusty winds kept Los Angeles in its hangar. Con­di­ tions had calmed enough by 4 a.m. to board the 42 officers, crew and expedition members while still inside the hangar, although 11 men were asked to disembark and reboard later. The hangar doors finally opened and the 300-man ground crew began wrestling the airship outside.

“As it emerged into the outside air, it began to perform somewhat in the manner of a balky mule,” the USNO report stated, “and would carry all the men with a sudden rush many feet swiftly in one direction and suddenly in another. In the meantime the would-be passengers were trying to follow its eccentric movements, to avoid col­ lisions with men on the guy ropes, to keep from falling over the frozen hummocks of the field or

sunseekers Clockwise from far left: Science Service editor Watson Davis suits up for the airship flight; astronomers view the solar eclipse from the Naval Observatory’s roof in Washington, D.C.; U.S. Bureau of Aeronautics chief photographer Walter Richardson climbs into the observation basket on Los Angeles to shoot the eclipse.

from slipping down on the icy spots. One sudden gust carried the ship many feet up into the air, men hanging to the ropes in what seemed a desperate predicament.” Ground and air crews brought the giant beast under control, however, and it departed at 5:22 a.m.

T

he expedition was directed by 54-year-old Captain Edwin Taylor Pollock, superin­ tendent of the Naval Observatory and a veteran of the Spanish-American War and World War I. Los Angeles was under the com­ mand of the ship’s executive officer, 37-year-old Commander Jacob H. Klein Jr., who had been awarded the Navy Cross for his service as a World War I destroyer skipper. Klein was one of four American officers to fly aboard Los Angeles during its trip from Germany.

As the airship droned northeastward, the fleet of aircraft departed Mitchel Field, home of the 9th Observation Group. In all, 35 planes, includ­

“ONE SUDDEN GUST CARRIED THE SHIP MANY FEET UP IN THE AIR, MEN HANGING TO THE ROPES IN WHAT SEEMED A DESPERATE PREDICAMENT.” JA N UA RY 2 0 2 2

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ing more than a dozen assigned from other bases, were on hand for the exercise, although frozen engines kept 10 of them on the ground. The participating aircraft included de Havilland DH-4Bs and Martin MB-1 bombers.

Mitchel Field’s commanding officer, Major William N. Hensley Jr.—the first American to fly nonstop across the Atlantic, aboard a British airship in 1919—had issued special orders to all pilots the day before. “Mitchel Field was so thickly covered with planes that traffic rules had to be drawn up,” the Times explained, “and a set of orders was issued regulating the use of the air in order to prevent collisions in the swarming skies during the darkness of the total eclipse.”

The airplanes began taking off at 7 a.m. and split into multiple groups—one headed for New Haven, Conn., another for Greenport on Long Island. “One of the oldest sciences, astronomy, collaborated with one of the newest, aeronautics, today in adding to the accumulated wisdom of the ages,” wrote an Associated Press reporter. “Uncle Sam’s army air service abandoned the pursuit of war lore to work with scientists, lifting them two or three miles above the earth’s crust that they might better record data of the total solar eclipse.”

One scientist, 25-year-old Willem Jacob Luy­ ten of Harvard College Observatory, pulled double duty, acting as a reporter for the Times. He flew with Major Davenport Johnson, a squadron commander at Mitchel Field who had been awarded the Silver Star for his service in France during the war.

Luyten and Johnson were on station south of Waterbury, Conn., at an altitude of 15,100 feet when the sky went dark at 9:11 a.m. “In the whole

zone of totality there could not have been a better observing point, not a point where one could realize better the grandeur of this overwhelmingly impressive phenomenon,” Luyten wrote.

By then Los Angeles was abuzz with activity as well. The airship was about 19 miles off Montauk Point, at the eastern tip of Long Island. Scientists and crew had begun their final preparations not long after dawn, as the moon began inching across the sun’s face. There was no heat in the airship, so expedition members wore fur-lined coats, and everyone who could spent time in the galley, noshing on “ice-cold bananas, sandwiches, and hot coffee,” the USNO reported.

Astronomers originally considered conducting all their observations from atop the airship, but quickly dropped the idea. Instead, they set up most of their gear on the starboard side of the spacious passenger cabin, with some in the galley or in a doorway at the cabin’s rear. Some of the windows had been removed to provide a clearer view.

The photographic equipment included two pairs of telescopic cameras, one to view the inner portion of the corona, the sun’s hot but faint outer atmosphere, which was the primary target of most of the eclipse-watching scientists. A second pair of cameras would capture the corona’s dimmer outer portion.

A scientist from the Bureau of Standards operated a spectrograph, which split the corona’s light into its individual wavelengths in an effort to measure its temperature and composition. Chief photographer Alvin K. Peterson operated from an open cockpit, taking both still and motion pictures. “His position was a very exposed one and his fingers and cheeks were partially frozen,” the USNO report noted, “yet he declined all suggestions that he leave his designated post before the completion of his task.”

Members of the airship’s crew were recruited to assist the astronomers. They kept time, logged positions and looked for any comets that might be visible near the eclipsed sun. One crewman was tasked with turning a crank on a camera mount once per second to compensate for the airship’s forward motion.

TOP LEFT & ABOVE RIGHT: SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION ARCHIVES; BOTTOM LEFT: U.S. AIR FORCE; OPPOSITE TOP & MIDDLE: LIBRARY OF CONGRESS; RIGHT: NAVAL HISTORY AND HERITAGE COMMAND

shadow chasers Clockwise from above: Crew and astronomers pose prior to boarding Los Angeles: (from left) Chester Watts, George Peters, Frank Littell, expedition leader Pollock, photographer Richardson, U.S. Navy chief photographer Alvin Peterson and editor Davis; Peterson (left) and Richardson show off one of the expedition’s cameras; physicist Sam Burka (left) and Lieutenant George Goddard prepare to photograph the eclipse from a de Havilland DH-4B.

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TOP LEFT & ABOVE RIGHT: SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION ARCHIVES; BOTTOM LEFT: U.S. AIR FORCE; OPPOSITE TOP & MIDDLE: LIBRARY OF CONGRESS; RIGHT: NAVAL HISTORY AND HERITAGE COMMAND

As totality approached, Los Angeles was cruising at an altitude of 4,500 feet, with three of its engines switched off to minimize vibrations. Clouds partially covered the sun as little as five minutes before totality, but vanished shortly before the sun did.

The moon’s shadow swept over the airborne giant in an instant. “Picture, if you can, a summer thunderstorm which blackens a distant area of the sky and as it approaches appears very threatening,” Lieutenant Herbert V. Wiley later wrote.

“The whole sky grows darker as the storm develops. The firmament takes on an ominous aspect.

Suppose that instead of the usual hour for the storm to develop and approach, all this happened in three seconds. Then you have an idea how this shadow appeared over the great relief map of southern Connecticut and Long Island Sound and swept down on the airship.”

When the sun vanished, the astronomers furiously clicked pictures, changed film and logged their observations—totality lasted just 2 minutes, 4 seconds. Then the first rays of sunshine emerged from behind the moon and the brief night ended.

After the partial phase of the eclipse ended an hour or so later, Los Angeles headed for home, skipping a planned flyover of New York. It arrived at Lakehurst at 2:30 p.m. The wind was still blowing at 16-22 mph, so “considerable trouble was experienced in landing,” the USNO reported. “It took an hour to bring the ship to the ground.”

During the process, Los Angeles vented an estimated 300,000 cubic feet of precious helium, worth $20,000, the AP noted.

During the cruise back to base, Watson Davis, an editor for Science Service, transmitted a report describing the airship’s work. There was too much interference for a voice broadcast, so he used Morse code. “Perhaps when the plates of today’s expedition are developed, a new element, or a new secret, will be revealed to science, just as years ago helium was discovered in the sun during a total solar eclipse, long before it was known to earth,” he reported.

Alas, the optimism was all hype. The big airship wasn’t as stable as astronomers had hoped.

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It pitched and rolled throughout their observations, blurring the pictures (a problem shared with photos snapped from the higher-flying airplanes).

“This angular movement combined with the vibratory movements, due to the engines, made the resulting photographs a series of overlapping images....As it is, their principal usefulness is to indicate the difficulties that airship observers of eclipses must surmount if they are to expect satisfactory results from such expedi­tions,” the USNO noted.

While it was a disappointment for astronomers, the flight yielded some positive results for the Navy. Airship crews gained precious flight and ground experience and the service garnered positive publicity for its airship program.

Another government agency profited as well.

The day of the eclipse, the Post Office reported that one shipment of movie film to points west was the most expensive package yet for its fledgling airmail service: $536.14—a record haul from the quest to catch a shadow.

Damond Benningfield is a freelance writer and audio producer in Austin, Texas. Additional reading: In the Shadow of the Moon: The Science, Magic, and Mystery of Solar Eclipses, by Anthony Aveni; and USS Los Angeles: The Navy’s Venerable Airship and Aviation Technology, by William F. Althoff.

catching history Top: President Calvin and First Lady Grace Coolidge view the eclipse from outside the White House.

Above: A photo taken in Highland Falls, N.Y., shows the “diamond ring” formed by the sun as it emerged from the moon’s shadow.

Below: Onlookers surround Los Angeles, in an undated photo.

10/21/21 8:25 AM

W

REvIEWS

75 YEARS OF THE ISRAELI AIR FORCE Volume 1: The First Quarter Century 1948-73

by Bill Norton, Helion & Company Ltd., 2020, $29.95.

> The Jewish settlers’ air arm started inauspiciously as the Sherut Avir, or Air Service, on November 10, 1947, and then transitioned into the Heyl Ha’Avir, or Israeli Air Force, on May 26, 1948, 12 days after the creation of the state of Israel and the beginning of its War of 66

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Independence. The author describes how the feisty little air force scraped together an eclectic fleet of airplanes that ironically included the Avia S-199, the Czechoslovakian version of Germany’s Mes­ ser­schmitt Me-109G. In those early days, many of the pilots were combat-hardened

foreign volunteers.

The book offers extensive details of the IAF’s role in Israel’s consequential conventional wars, providing a blow-by-blow account of the preemptive airstrikes against Egyptian air bases in June 1967 that cemented victory in what came to be known as

hired guns An international array of volunteer pilots serving with Israel’s 101 Squadron pose with one of their Avia S-199s, a Czech-built version of the Messerschmitt Me-109G.

the Six-Day War. The concluding chapter describes the harrowing tale of the 1973 Yom Kippur War, in which Israel was caught off guard but successfully snatched victory from the jaws of defeat.

Packed with incredible archival photos, color profiles of key aircraft and renderings of unit insignia, this history of the IAF’s first quarter century is highly recommended.

Philip Handleman

HISTORYNET ARCHIVES

Retired U.S. Air Force officer Bill Norton has spent years researching and writing about the history of the Israeli Air Force. In advance of the IAF’s 75th anniversary in 2023, he has produced the first volume in a comprehensive three-volume set that benefits from information released since the publication of his 2004 book on the subject. Norton presents the material in an evenhanded way, shunning hyperbole while acknowledging the IAF’s many impressive accomplishments. >

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10/21/21 4:02 PM

LUFTWAFFE SPECIAL WEAPONS 1942-45

by Robert Forsyth, Osprey Publishing, 2021, $50.

As the tide of World War II turned against Nazi Germany, an outnum­ bered Luftwaffe turned to a remarkable array of aerial weaponry intended to counter Allied quantity with the quality of futuristic tech­ nology. This took the form of a vast menagerie of advanced aircraft, some of which made it into the air, as well as the weapons they carried. The latter category gets a com­ prehensive survey, complete with a wealth of photos and graphics, in Robert Forsyth’s new book.

Some weaponry in For­ syth’s collection may not

be all that startling—the Junkers Ju-88P may have carried a 75mm automatic cannon, but so did the North American B-25H. No American fighter, however, carried a 30mm cannon into battle…let alone four, as did the Messerschmitt Me-262.

Nor did Allied fighters mount 20mm cannons at an angle to ambush night bombers from below, as did German planes armed with Schräge Musik. As Allied bomber formations became tighter for mutual support, the Luftwaffe tried to break them up with an arsenal of rockets fired forward or vertically

AIR BATTLES OVER HUNGARY 1944-45

HISTORYNET ARCHIVES

by Dmitriy Khazanov, Helion and Company, 2021, $45.

Some Americans consider the Battle of the Bulge the last major German offensive of World War II. In fact, there were several after that, mostly attempts to either hold Budapest and the Danube River against Soviet forces or, in the last offensive of all, Operation Spring Awakening from March 6 to 15, 1945, to retake them.

Up to now, little about these epic battles has appeared in Western histories and most that have covered them tend to focus more on the German and Hungarian sides. In Air Battles Over Hungary, however, Russian military aviation historian Dmitriy Khazanov presents the Soviet perspective on the offensives around Debrecen (October 6-29, 1944) and Buda­ pest (October 29, 1944–February 13, 1945), as well as the “Balaton Defensive Operation,” the Soviet response to Spring Awakening. Since losing control of the Danube would open up Soviet access to Austria and Germany itself, the Germans transferred aircraft from the west to increase their strength in Hungary to 600 planes, piloted by such hardened veterans as Erich Hartmann, Gerhard Barkhorn and Hans-Ulrich Rudel.

Soviet air strength, however, exceeded 1,000 up-to-date air­ craft, flown by aircrews whose tactics and skill reflected hardearned lessons of the previous few years.

Air Battles Over Hungary should provide welcome balance for students of air power over the Eastern Front. And with its wealth of color profiles representing a cross section of all aircraft types involved in the campaign, it will also appeal to painters and modelers.

Jon Guttman

from single- and twin-engine fighters—including the X4 wire-guided missile.

Rockets and remote control also figured in airto-surface missiles such as the Henschel Hs-293 and the Fritz-X (the first opera­ tional “smart bomb,” whose

victims included the Italian battleship Roma), while simpler wing mountings for Panzerfaust rockets converted Bücker Bü-181 trainers into would-be tank killers. A chapter is also devoted to the Mistel concept, in which the airplanes themselves became the missiles, guided to their targets by piggybacking manned fighters.

All in all, Luftwaffe Special Weapons 1942-45 is a handy reference guide for WWII aviation historians. It makes clear that while the Germans were able to create an impres­ sive array of technology that has contributed to modern military aviation, they never produced enough of any single type to save the Third Reich from its final downfall.

Jon Guttman

EAGLES OVER DARWIN

American Airmen Defending Northern Australia in 1942

by Dr. Tom Lewis, Avonmore Books, 2021, $42.95.

The Japanese occupation of the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia) in the early months of 1942 placed their forces within striking distance of Darwin, the principal city and seaport in northern Australia.

When the Pacific War began, most of the Royal Australian Air Force had been deployed overseas. Consequently, during the desperate spring and summer of 1942, Darwin’s sole fighter defense was provided by the U.S. Army Air Forces.

Eagles Over Darwin recounts the story of the 49th Fighter Group’s defense of northern Australia from February to Sep­ tember 1942. Although this episode has been almost forgotten in the United States, it is still well remembered in Australia and particularly in Darwin, home of the book’s author.

The American pilots were at great disadvantage. None of them had any combat experience, while their Japanese adver­ saries were all seasoned combat veterans. In addition, the Americans were equipped with Curtiss P-40E Warhawk fight­ ers that were adequate for the low- to medium-altitude fighterbomber role but were at a disadvantage when pitted against the vaunted Mitsubishi A6M2 Zero. And indeed, the 49th’s airmen suffered terrible losses early on, but managed to learn from their mistakes and eventually overcame their Japanese opponents. The gallant story of the 49th Fighter Group is one that deserves to be better remembered in the U.S., and Eagles Over Darwin tells it exceptionally well.

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REvIEWS THE SCHNEIDER TROPHY AIR RACES

The Development of Flight From 1909 to the Spitfire

by Jerry Murland, Pen & Sword Books Ltd., 2021, $34.95.

speedsters on floats Above: Jimmy Doolittle stands with his Curtiss R3C-2, in which he won the 1925 Schneider Trophy Race. Left: The Gloster Napier IVB (foreground) and Supermarine S5 at the 1927 race.

Beyond the mere glamour and prestige associated with the competition itself, the Schneider Trophy races exerted a major influence on aircraft design. First run in 1913, the races were dominated by Deperdussin, Nieuport and Sopwith airplanes, which later came to dominate World War I combat aviation.

By the same token it was no coincidence that the interwar races were dominated by companies that would subsequently produce some of the greatest fighter aircraft of World War II. Indeed, as the author explains, Britain’s Supermarine Spitfire and Italy’s Macchi MC.202 fighters were direct descendants of Schneider Trophy racers.

The Schneider Trophy Air Races recounts the fascinating history of a series of competitions that exerted a disproportionate influence on 20th-century aircraft development. Without them, the Spad, Nieuport and Sopwith fighters might not have existed during WWI, nor the famous Spitfire during the Battle of Britain.

Robert Guttman

SPECIAL DUTIES PILOT

The Man Who Flew the Real “Inglourious Basterds” Behind Enemy Lines

by John M. Billings, Pen & Sword Books, 2021, $29.95.

Like a lot of boys who grew up in the 1920s and ’30s, John Billings was crazy about aviation from an early age and knew he wanted to spend his life flying. In fact, Billings’ motto became “The time the soles of your feet aren’t touching the ground doesn’t count.” He managed to realize his ambition by enlisting in the U.S. Army Air Forces after the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Following a minimum of required study at college, Billings was called up to begin flight training, which at that

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time consisted of 13 weeks each of primary, basic and advanced training, as well as another 13 weeks on the type of aircraft he was to fly operationally, the Consolidated B-24 Liberator. Fully qualified as a plane commander, Billings flew a B-24 overseas to join the Fifteenth Air Force in Italy.

After 14 bombing missions Billings and his crew found themselves transferred on short notice to a special unit assigned to support the Office of Strategic Services, the

predecessor of today’s CIA. There Billings flew another 39 dangerous and highly secret missions, carried out at night and at altitudes as low as 300 feet. Those included

the insertion of OSS agents, which he later learned inspired Quentin Tarantino’s 2009 film Inglorious Basterds.

The exploits of those agents, whom the author knew personally, were far more harrowing and unusual than depicted in the movie.

An accomplished pilot with decades of experience in military, airline and medical aviation, Billings is also an excellent writer. This memoir presents his unusual story in a fast-paced and highly readable style. It is also good to see the B-24 receive some overdue recognition after being far too frequently overshadowed by its more famous B-17 stablemate.

Robert Guttman

TOP: NATIONAL ARCHIVES; BOTTOM: CSP ARCHIVE/ALAMY

Air racing greatly contributed to aviation development during the early 20th century, and of all the peacetime competitions the most prestigious and glamorous was the Schneider Trophy Race. Unlike the famous Thompson, Bendix and Pulitzer races, which were American only, the Schneider Trophy races were international, with the competitors sponsored by their respective countries. Moreover, the nation whose representative airplane won the trophy three times within five years was permitted to permanently keep it. Thus, winning the Schneider Trophy became a matter of national prestige.

Another major difference between the Schneider Tro­ phy races and their contemporaries was that they were exclusively open to seaplanes.

As a result, competing aircraft were not only required to fly a circuit in the fastest time but also had to survive being moored on the water for 24 hours and endure the strain of taxiing a given distance in open water. Thus, unlike many others of the era, Schneider Trophy racers had to be built as practical seaplanes rather than all-out speed machines.

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AVIATION

TOP: NATIONAL ARCHIVES; BOTTOM: CSP ARCHIVE/ALAMY

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STATEMENT OF OWNERSHIP, MANAGEMENT AND CIRCULATION (required by Act of August 12, 1970: Section 3685, Title 39, United States Code). 1. Aviation History 2. (ISSN: 1076-8858) 3. Filing date: 10/1/21. 4. Issue frequency: Bimonthly. 5. Number of issues published annually: 6. 6. The annual subscription price is $39.95. 7.

Complete mailing address of known office of publication: Historynet, 901 N Glebe Rd, 5th Floor, Arlington, VA 22203. 8. Complete mailing address of headquarters or general business office of publisher: Historynet, 901 N Glebe Rd, 5th Floor, Arlington, VA 22203. 9. Full names and complete mailing addresses of publisher, editor, and managing editor. Publisher, Michael A. Reinstein, Historynet, 901 N Glebe Rd, 5th Floor, Arlington, VA 22203; Editor, Carl von Wodtke, Historynet, 901 N Glebe Rd, 5th Floor, Arlington, VA 22203; Editor in Chief, Alex Neill, Historynet, 901 N Glebe Rd, 5th Floor, Arlington, VA 22203. 10. Owner: Historynet, 901 N Glebe Rd, 5th Floor, Arlington, VA 22203. 11. Known bondholders, mortgages, and other security holders owning or holding 1 percent of more of total amount of bonds, mortgages or other securities: None. 12. Tax status: Has Not Changed During Preceding 12 Months. 13. Publisher title: Aviation History. 14. Issue date for circulation data below: September 2021. 15. The extent and nature of circulation: A. Total number of copies printed (Net press run). Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 41,962. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 46,336. B. Paid circulation. 1. Mailed outside-county paid subscriptions. Average number of copies each issue during the preceding 12 months: 22,912. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 22,764.

2. Mailed in-county paid subscriptions. Average number of copies each issue during the preceding 12 months: 0.

Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 0. 3. Sales through dealers and carriers, street vendors and counter sales. Average number of copies each issue during the preceding 12 months: 5,808. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 7,588. 4. Paid distribution through other classes mailed through the USPS. Average number of copies each issue during the preceding 12 months: 0. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 0. C. Total paid distribution.

Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 28,720. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date; 30,352. D. Free or nominal rate distribution (by mail and outside mail). 1.

Free or nominal Outside-County. Average number of copies each issue during the preceding 12 months: 0.

Number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 0. 2. Free or nominal rate in-county copies.

Average number of copies each issue during the preceding 12 months: 0. Number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 0. 3. Free or nominal rate copies mailed at other Classes through the USPS. Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 0. Number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 0. 4. Free or nominal rate distribution outside the mail. Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 618. Number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 646. E. Total free or nominal rate distribution. Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 618. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 646. F. Total free distribution (sum of 15c and 15e). Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 29,338. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 30,998. G. Copies not Distributed. Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 12,624. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 15,338. H. Total (sum of 15f and 15g). Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 41,962. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing: 46,336.

I. Percent paid. Average percent of copies paid for the preceding 12 months: 97.9% Actual percent of copies paid for the preceding 12 months: 97.9% 16. Electronic Copy Circulation: A. Paid Electronic Copies. Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 0. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 0. B. Total Paid Print Copies (Line 15c) + Paid Electronic Copies (Line 16a). Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 28,720. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 30,352. C. Total Print Distribution (Line 15f) + Paid Electronic Copies (Line 16a). Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 29,338. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 30,998. D. Percent Paid (Both Print & Electronic Copies) (16b divided by 16c x 100). Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 97.9%. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 97.9%. I certify that 50% of all distributed copies (electronic and print) are paid above nominal price: Yes. Report circulation on PS Form 3526-X worksheet 17. Publication of statement of ownership will be printed in the January 2022 issue of the publication. 18. Signature and title of editor, publisher, business manager, or owner: Shawn G. Byers, VP, Audience Development & Circulation. I certify that all information furnished on this form is true and complete. I understand that anyone who furnishes false or misleading information on this form or who omits material or information requested on the form may be subject to criminal sanction and civil actions.

BOEING METAMORPHOSIS

Launching the 737 and 747, 1965-1969

by John Fredrickson and John Andrew, Schiffer Publishing, 2021, $29.99.

Boeing is the most important civil aircraft manufacturer in the United States today. Two reasons for the company’s dominance are the 737 and 747 airliners. Introduced during the second half of the 1960s, they dominated the industry for decades and continue to influence airliner design to this day.

Designed for the short-haul regional and intercity airline markets, the 737 was intended to replace the venerable Douglas DC-3 and to compete directly against the newly introduced DC-9. In order to cut costs Boeing deliberately incorporated as many components as possible from its existing 707 jetliner into the new 737.

Unlike the 737, which was designed to satisfy an existing market, the 747 broke entirely new ground as a high-volume, long-haul jet airliner of unprecedented size and range. Nothing like the 747 had ever been offered to the airline industry before—it completely revolutionized air

travel. In addition, Boeing buried its competition, selling nearly three times as many 747s as Lockheed L-1011s and Doug­las DC-10s combined. Eventually Lockheed ceased producing airliners and Boeing ended up buying out McDonnell-Douglas.

Unlike most aviation books, Boeing Metamorphosis is not about flying or aeronautics.

Instead, it provides a fascinating look inside the highest levels of Boeing’s corporate management to reveal the interpersonal relationships and management decisions that resulted in the creation of two of history’s most iconic airliners.

The period the book covers was also one of transition, as Boeing shifted its emphasis from military to civil airliner production and more than quadrupled the size of its production facilities. It is a story that the authors, who have many decades of experience at the highest level of Boeing’s corporate structure, are eminently qualified to tell.

Robert Guttman

THE LINDBERGH-SIKORSKY CONNECTION

by Igor I. Sikorsky Jr. and Vincent J. Tanner Sr., Page Publishing, 2021, $16.95.

The years between the end of World War I and the beginning of World War II saw aviation transformed from a sideshow attraction into a major global transportation industry. Two of the driving forces behind that change form the subject of The Lindbergh-Sikorsky Connection.

An expatriate Russian who immigrated to the United States after the Russian Revo­ lution, Igor Sikorsky was among the true aviation pioneers, having built and flown the world’s first successful helicopter, of which his company is still among the leading producers. While his name is now mainly associated with helicopters, before WWI Sikorsky also designed, built and flew the world’s first multiengine airplane and he became one of the early exponents and producers of successful longrange multiengine airliners.

Although renowned for his New York to Paris flight, Charles Lindbergh was no mere daredevil aviator. Convinced of the future of air travel, Lindbergh became a leading

figure in the promotion and development of the aviation and airline industries, had an important role as an aviation consultant and took an active part in planning and surveying new international airline routes for Pan American Airways.

Both Sikorsky and Lind­ bergh competed for the $25,000 Orteig Prize for the first nonstop transatlantic flight. Although Lindbergh ultimately won it, Pan Am selected Sikorsky’s amphibian airliners for its Caribbean and South American routes.

Flying Sikorsky amphibians and accompanied by his wife, Lindbergh personally surveyed many of those routes for Pan Am. It was the beginning of a long personal and professional relationship that, the authors argue, exerted a profound effect upon the development of aviation in the 20th century. This interesting book, cowritten by an individual who, as Sikorsky’s son, was in a position to know, reveals the details of that little-known relationship for the first time.

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10/22/21 2:54 PM

FLIGHT TEST

BOMBING HITS OF 1941

MYSTERY SHIP

Can you identify this early U.S. Navy jet fighter? See the answer below.

Lockheed YO-3A Quiet Star

LESSERKNOWN LOCKHEEDS Match the plane with its distinction…such as it was.

A. Loughead F-1 B. Lockheed Vega Explorer C. Altair D. YO-3A Quiet Star E. XB-40 F. XP-58 Chain Lightning G. Lockheed-Detroit YP-24 H. XF-90 I. AH-56 Cheyenne J. Little Dipper

Almost silent nocturnal observation plane of 1966 B-17 with increased armament to escort other B-17s Twin-boom long-range fighter, intended P-38 replacement First fighter design to use the re-spelled Lockheed name 10-passenger flying boat of 1918 Helicopter gunship design cancelled in 1972 Low-wing monoplane, least successful of wooden Lockheed Vegas 8. “Flying motorcycle” meant for postwar civil use, cancelled in 1944 9. Innovative but underpowered Cold War “penetration fighter” 10. Lockheed Sirius with retractable landing gear

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

2. A Fairey Swordfish from which carrier disabled the German battleship Bismarck on May 26, 1941?

A. Ark Royal B. Furious C. Indefatigable D. Victorious 3. Which aircraft from the carrier USS Enterprise sank I-70, the first Japanese submarine loss, on December 10, 1941?

A. Grumman F4Fs B. Grumman TBF-1s C. Douglas SBDs D. Douglas TBDs 4. Which capital ship, previously damaged by Bismarck, was sunk by Mitsubishi G4M1s and G3M2s on December 10, 1941?

A. Hood B. Prince of Wales C. King George V D. Repulse 5. With what airplane did Henry T. Elrod bomb and sink the destroyer Kisaragi off Wake Island on December 11, 1941?

A. Brewster F3A-2 B. Grumman F3F-2 C. Douglas TBD-1 D. Grumman F4F-3

ANSWERS: MYSTERY SHIP: Vought F6U-1 Pirate. Learn more about it at historynet.com/aviation-history.

LESSER-KNOWN LOCKHEEDS: A.5, B.7, C.10, D.1, E.2, F.3, G.4, H.9, I.6, J.8. BOMBING HITS OF 1941: 1.D, 2.A, 3.C, 4.B, 5.D 70

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TOP: NAVAL HISTORY AND HERITAGE COMMAND; BOTTOM: NASA

>

1. Which Royal Navy aircraft carrier did Junkers Ju-87s of X Fliegerkorps badly damage but fail to sink in January 1941?

A. Argus B. Ark Royal C. Eagle D. Illustrious

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10/18/21 1:09 PM

AERO ARTIFACT

aim for the stars The January 24, 1925, eclipse of the sun was one of the most anticipated celestial events of the 20th century.

The 128-mile-wide path of totality began in northern Minnesota and swept in a southeasterly arc over the Great Lakes, New York, Connecti­ cut and Rhode Island. The U.S. Naval Observatory commissioned dozens of Army airplanes and a Navy dirigible to help scientists monitor the event (story, P. 60).

Meanwhile, 149 observers positioned in Manhattan pinpointed to within one city block the southern range of totality—the demarkation line was 96th Street.

But this was not just a spectacle for scientists. With a population of more than six million in New York City alone, the eclipse was likely the most viewed in history up to that time. Throngs flocked to hillsides and rooftops to watch the sun disappear behind the moon.

Vendors were eagerly on the case, selling tinted glasses and bits of smoked glass to help protect sunwatchers’ eyes, while pamphlets like the one at right contained strips of exposed film through which to watch the eclipse, as well as details on the locations and arrival times of the moon’s shadow, which sped across the Earth’s surface at 2,300 mph.

For New Yorkers, it was the chance of a lifetime—and then some. A total eclipse won’t pass over the city again until May 1, 2079.

featured film Exposed photography film embedded within 10-cent eclipse primers helped protect the eyes of thousands of sungazers on January 24, 1925.

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HOPKINS OBSERVATORY OF WILLIAMS COLLEGE (WILLIAMSTOWN, MA); LUKE COLE ’57 COLLECTION

10/21/21 4:24 PM

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510726 ................................$9.50 Mini Backdrops 5.5x8.5 master.indd 5

4/16/21 4:39 PM

B-24 Liberator of the Mighty 8th 8.5x5.5" backdrop card

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U.S.M.C. Lewis “Chesty” Puller, 194150 $42.00

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U.S.A.A.F. Navigator England, 1943-45 $42.00

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U.S.A.A.F. Bomber Captain, England, 1943-45 $42.00

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George H. W. Bush U.S. Navy, 1944 $42.00

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U.S. Lieutenant General Omar Bradley, WWII $42.00

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U.K. Prime Minister Winston Churchill, 1940-45 $42.00

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Rosie the Riveter, 1941-45 $42.00

British Field Marshall Bernard Montgomery, 1944-45 $42.00

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U.S.M.C. Women’s Reserve 1941-45 $42.00

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U.S. Sailor in Whites, 1941-45 $42.00

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10/19/21 2:28 PM 10/19/21 6:11 PM