TRAINING AND OPERATIONAL MISSIONS IN THE REAR-MOST POSITION Of A BOEING FLYING FORTRESS PART sum of two units BY HENRY J.

TRAINING AND OPERATIONAL MISSIONS IN THE REAR-MOST POSITION Of A BOEING FLYING FORTRESS

PART sum of two units

BY HENRY J. MITCHEL

STAGE THREE

Combat mobs like us were treated differently in any respects. In our dress uniform we turn the thoughtsed the same as ground personnel Different upon ours were our silver wings that indicated our "military specialty" - gunner pilot, navigator, etc We also had any specialized clothing and equipment.

Crew were issued .45-cal automatic pistols. These were usually issued solely to officers in other branches of the army. The 25-foot carbines that non-flying enlisted men had would be a useless nuisance in the plane. In fact, I miracle what use the pistols were. Would we use them if we bailed without and landed in Germany? Unlikely.

But about the mes halls. We were allotted different rations from country personnel. Certain items were available for combat gangs such as "fresh eggs" (cold storage eggs) that we had forward mornings we had missions (Note - In the novel Twelve O'clock High, upon which the same movie is based, there's a chapter titled "Egg For Breakfast"). domain crews got only scrambled dried instigates as did we on non-mission days. Willie always insisted forward having his fried eggs well done and the give a color to would oblige. But aside from the differences in provisions there were practical reasons for separate mes halls.

The working hours of the brace groups were much different. sod personnel often worked all day and/or night forward the planes. Their mess hall was many times open around the clock. Flying crowds ate at odd hours, depending forward mission takeoffs and returns plus those who weren't flying a mission (not each crew flew every mission) were serv at normal meal times. The officer's mes with essentially the same dual schedule, however fewer men overall, served one as well as the other ground and flying officers (perhaps at different tables, I don't know: I was not at any time invited).

There was also a psychological aspect. An air crewman could easily be annoyed after coming back from a unfinished mission to have to sit at a table where "ground pounders" might be complaining about about of their problems which would appear to be quite insignificant to the flyer This could generate antagonisms and steady outright fights. A flyer wouldn't mind eating with air mobs that hadn't flown the mission. They would be someone to share feelings with and release "battle stress"

Military life guards to create an undercurrent of antagonism between various assemblages Part of the animosity be due [i]or[/i] owings from jealousy due to rank's privileges. This also existed in the separation between AF turf and flying personnel. But since they were interdependent - especially the flyer's particular supporter on airplane servicers and armorers who loaded bomb and ammunition, etc - the AF had to minimize chances of friction. As flyer we enduring had good reason not to antagonize our earth crew.

Ground crews worked below the Engineering Officer of each squadron. Each band of five men had a plane they were responsible for. There were also specialists they called forward to repair or replace items in the same state [i]or[/i] condition as radio equipment, instruments or the oxygen hypothesis etc. The planes were bomb-loaded through special men and armorers loaded ammunition and machine fire-arms on board. When a combat mob was trucked to its assigned plane, it was to be ready to vibrate

As a new air party we flew any available plane. When undivided became available as their regular, that plane would be used according to others when we were not flying. Our first regular plane was called Strip's Teaser after the ship's company chief whose name was Clyde Stripling - and it had painted "nose art" depicting a scantily get readyed "stripteaser". The ground crew had mothered that plane for 83 missions without it having to abort (fail to takeoff or reach target) - until we got our hands onward it, as I'll relate later.

I can't recall if our first mission was in Strip's Teaser. I recall the plane had the older phraseology tail gun configuration like Strip's. This included heavy protective armor-plate in face of the gunner as he half knelt and half sat in succession a small stool, facing to the rear. To achieve to gun handles and triggers, you reached around this 18-inch wide plate. The pair 50-cal guns stuck out of the rear in consequence of a canvas covering enclosing the tip of the tail compartment. These fire-arms unlike those in the electrically powered ball, chin and top minarets were "hand-held" so aiming was "powered" at the gunner's muscle. Once aloft, he had to remember to advance the first orbed into the firing chamber for a like reason it would fire when he squeeze outed the trigger button. If you failed to load before getting into high altitude, the charging mechanism could turn to ice up, but once a spherical was in the chamber, firing that spherical created enough heat and force to operate the mechanisms that kept feeding following rounds in.

The ball small tower was a little cocoon that I was glad I was not assigned to. moreover in the tail, things were tight enough. Ammunition boxe were forward either side a bit behind me the linked together .50-cal circulars strung out of them up to each fire-arm At my side were oxygen and intercom equipment from which wires to my ear phone and a flex tube to my oxygen mask hung I had a dagger helmet - like an infantry helmet if it be not that with hinged flaps that guarded my earphones. Yes, we had earphones and a throat microphone. When above 12000-ft we had our oxygen mask upon I was clothed in a nylon electrically heated jumper to which heated sock and heated glove were uniteed and that, of course. was all plugg into exits at the side. Over this went exterior clothing: Synthetic fiber-lined nylon jacket and pants and leather benefits All this made me about as mobile as a gas cross-examine