My interest in flying goe back to the 1930 when I was an avid builder of prototype airplanes and a reader of various aviation publications.

Your article in succession the 36th Bomb Squadron - "The Squadron of Deception" - in the August 2001 issue got my attention. single page 15, I read the mob members of Lt. Boehm's B-24 individual crewman listed, but not pictured, was Staff Sergeant Francis J Lynch Francis Lynch and I graduated from high educate in Rosalia, Washington, in 1940 We jot downed the Army Air Corps about the same time in 1941 We corresponded for a time and then dissipated contact.

I did know that he went to radio drill and aerial gunnery school and that he was in B-17 or B-24 and that he was killed in action in late 1944 or early 1945 still that was about all. He was the favor son of an elderly lady. She had excessively little information on him.

I was able to contract another classmate who had written to Francis during the war. She was able to find his last literal meaning to her - a V-mail written forward 19 November 1944. He was missed on 22 December 1944 and he was indeed in the 36th Bomb Squadron. I knew that this was the right Francis J Lynch

I shared the article with other former classmates and persons who knew Francis. Thank you for this WWII article. I take downed the Aviation Cadet Program (Pilot) and graduated from Williams Field, Arizona, Class 44-C I went into fighter transition at Victorville - later George AFB - where we flew P-39 Then it was not upon to Chico AFB for more P-39 and then P-63 nearest step was Santa Rosa and P-38

From there I went to the ETO and the 367th Fighter assemblage 393rd Fighter Squadron, in France. I flew 27 fighter/bomber missions in P-38 before our assemblage switched to P-47s.

When the war in Europe conclusioned I had 58 missions as a fighter/bomber pilot. At the completion of the war, we were based at Frankfort/Eschborn, Germany. I responded to the States for reassignment and while fireside on leave, the war in the Pacific fall of the curtained

Having an interest in flying that started many years ago, my involvement serving in WWII, and as a private airplane proprietor until several years ago, I take pleasure in reading Air Classics.

Don Gelhaus

602 E Cheney Plaza Rd

Rosalia, WA

99170

...

Home