R and R Pages:
DEC. 10
Anecdotes:
Cook flying under the beach; kicking bombs out the bomb bay; -
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Your
487th Website is excellent!! Hank Del Percio 487th
henryjdelp@cs.com
Doug,
put Alesan instead of
The River Alesani
was flowing nearby the field that 's why the Americans
called the field Alesan without the I
Dominique
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Doug, you have
done a very good job on the site. I appreciate all your work. My dad was
with the 488th (crew chief) and
you have a picture of his plane: Lil
Critter from the Moon. The original name was Milk Run, but the CO
had a fit because of the implications, so he changed the name to go with the
Andy Cap character. This plane actually went down and the next one he named
after my mom: Arlene. Thanks
for the good work!
Sincerely,
Gordon R.
Ainsworth (son of S/Sgt Gordon Ainsworth)
Doug, I flew 16 missions on
Briefing Time as Navigator. Almost all with Bus Taylor;
all in lead. 489th
Squadron
Paul R. Gale
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mike Laney [mlaney1@cox.net]
LIL’ BED “WOOM” II
is Lil’ Bea Hind II, 6U 43-27647
edit from unknown
SECTION 8 – IDIOTS DELIGHT
I believe is 6W, not
sure of serial since all 6W’s had this name
edit from unknown
DEVIL’S HELPER
6B 43-27487
edit from unknown
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I have been to my
best friend i got all the photos, great job! never saw some photos, in one of them i
recognized the east coast of
Dominique
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
Herman Voss site http://home.bellsouth.net/P/PWP-486BombSquadron |
|
6 - W S/N#43-27505 A.W.O.L., "After Women or Liquor". First
mission 6-X "THE
ALICE L B-25-J" S/N 43-27491 This plane made it to the end of the war in
B-25J-1 "Devil"s Helper" 6B (B25J #327487) at Alesan, |
I wanted to write and congratulate you on your 487th web site. It looks
very good and complete for a new site. My name is Herman Voss, I have a small site dedicated to the 486th and my
brother-in-law John W (Jack) Sterett. Jack was
a tail gunner who flew 60 plus missions from May 44 through April 45. http://home.bellsouth.net/P/PWP-486BombSquadron
I hope to improve my site with a new one, I just bought books on Microsoft
front Page, and hope to start after the first of the year.
I have several pictures of 487th planes you might be interested in
seeing. I have attached a list of same, and would be happy to share these
with you. If you are interested, please send me your address and I will
send a C/D. Last October my wife and I visited the National Archives in
Best Regards
Herman Voss
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Doug,
Great site.
Also thanks for listing my dad's name with 7Z "Shirley
Ann". He was KIA on
Again thanks.
Bob Meek
Colonel AUS(RET)
Vice President American World War II
Orphans Network
Proud son and only child of 2LT Robert
H. Meek 487th BS 340th BG
KIA over the
At eternal rest in the
Transmitted via
the '57th Bomb Wing Research List'
******************************************************
Great site Doug and I hope it
will be linked to the Official 57th Bomb Wing Association that Vinny White is working on. Also hope you and all the
other folk on Erich's list server will join too, if you have not done so
already. You're the guys and gals that can keep the Wing going.
Victor
Hancock, Editor, Men of the 57th.
----------------------------------------------------
Doug’s Reply
I love the
detailed photos of the plane in Van Nuys. About ten years ago, I was
able to see a B-25J from the Confederate Air Force land at a show in
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Willy [ehetzel@northrock.bm] I was always in awe
of the men who flew in these planes before visiting a real aircraft and after
that, well, even more so. The space is
incredibility cramped, as someone noted the other day with reference to getting
into the bombardier’s space. The guys at
the back of the plane, the Radio/Gunner (my father’s position) and Tail Gunner
must have felt very isolated back there… the only way to the forward part of the
aircraft is over the bomb compartment which leaves just squeezable room to get
through. After actually being inside one
of these birds, I came away with even more appreciation of what they did. It amazes me that they went out and crawled
into those cramped confines day after day, flew hundreds of miles in freezing
conditions, with people on the ground and the air trying their hardest to kill
them.
Real Heroes!
Go for a visit… you will
really gain an entirely new perspective.
Best Regards;
Erich
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Hi Doug
I'm the co-author of the
McAllister Case, the book about Lt. McAllister (310th BG) al his aircraft Donna
Marie, shot down on
Also I'm member of the
research list of the 57th Bomb Wing.
Something about me , you can see in my web site www.giuseppeversolato.it
in Italian and also english language where you can
see also somethiung about the Squadron in which was
your father.
The 487th was involved , in
one of his last missions (20 april 1945), on a great
operation, the bombing of the German Army Headquarters in Italy at Recoaro Terme in the territory of
my town Vicenza, North East Italy. Here there was the commander of Germans , Gen. Von Vietinghoff-Schell.
A few day after this raid German signed the surrender
of German Army in
With other two friends I
wrote also a book about this mission, "Recoaro
1945, The surrender of German Army in
I think you can agree some
photos of the bombing in which the 487th was a protagonist
In the photos:
Some 1/48 models of B-25s of
the 487th and 487th involved in the mission.
The crew list of the 487th
in the mission One photo of the bombardment.
The box
score of the mission.
I have more other about the
487th.
Best compliments for your
wonderful web site.
All the best
Giuseppe
Versolato [gversola@tin.it]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
From: DTaddei@aol.com [mailto:DTaddei@aol.com]
Sent:
To: franck.allegrini@ct-corse.fr; douglas.cook@aramco.com
Subject: (sans sujet)
Doug and Frank,
the 8Y was the 327630. My friend Frank
thinks that the landscape seems to be the background of Calvi
Ile Rousse,
Frank told me the
right tale about the belly Landing, the pilot was Lt Charles Horton from
the 488th BS 340th BG , he was carrying the 340th BG
musicians band Orchestra to the Napoleon Bonaparte Hotel for a ball at ïle Rousse North West coast of
Frank's Father
recalls very well the crash.
I think that it
happened
Doug did you get
the 8Y photo ? As i read in
one of your message that it was difficult to get some photos i was wondering if a belly
Landing might be sent in your mail.
Frank j'ai reçu la feuille
du Certificat de remerciement
du 57th BW, donne moi ton adresse exacte et je te l'envoie par la poste.
Dominique
Doug
!
Whoooooaaaaaaahhhhhhhhh !!!!!?????? Where did you get such beautiful
treasures, sure your Father Album is one of the best i
ever seen about the 340th BG, this last photo confirms that i
was right it was the 8Y not
far from the beach of Lozari nearby Calvi. Congratulations, in 10 years of research, bit by bit
we have more details about certain events; do you imagine to
get such photo in the field. Fantastic, we do not drill oïl as you are doing and my son too with his horizontal
drill but we are drilling in History and this my
friend is the best well i ever dig.
As Frank Dean was
telling me 10 years ago " Dig my friend" and
you will learn something.
Thank
you Doug. You made my
day.
Dominique
I forgot to tell
you, no problem Doug about your photos, the medium bomber book is finished and
printed but as we hope to open a museum in
As i know that you live in Saudi Arabia, i
guess that i can't send you my book, just give
me an adress and i 'll send you my book.
Dominique
Doug,
from my archive this photo. A pilot of the 487th.
He is Lt. W.M. Hartman and
was in mission in the 7Y.
It may be that this photo
has been taken after
the end of war in the States.
It is well visible his
personal baggage with the badge of the Squadron.
Giuseppe
Nice image with the Black
Knight!
I was thinking last night
that you experienced the bombs the 340th BG was dropping from the other
end. I remember as a young boy asking my
father what he thought about innocent people on the ground getting one of his
bombs. I don't remember his exact reply
but I know he was proud to have done a job for his country and to have an
effect on the outcome.
Thanks
Doug
Yes Doug,
many people were involved and
killed in the bombardments... but it was the" price" of the Freedom of Italy.
People paid the terrific alliance of Mussolini and his gouvernment with the nazism.
Have you a
Merry Christmas and Happy New
Year
Giuseppe
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Hey Doug
If you ever make it to
Robert Ball - Crewmember
YAF B-25 D Yankee Warrior
GraveRobber [Graverob@toledointernet.net]
Hi Doug
It's too early yet in the year. We haven't got any dates set yet. We usually post them on the web site but that can get out of date real quick sometimes. Check back in about April.
WWW.Yankeeairmuseum.org Our B-25 was in W.W.II with the 340th, 489th.
Rob Ball
Hi Doug
She is 9-C, 43-3634. We
think she was named Ellen E. & Son. Unfortunately,We don't have a photo that shows Ellen E. with the
tail number at the same time. She was a replacement for the aircraft that were
destroyed by
I think the first 9-C was
"Talking for Joe" The 3rd was the one destroyed on the ground. The
4th 9-C was "Ruthie". The last (5th) 9-C was "Wabbit Twacks".
Rob Ball
Doug I have like many of us
been researching my Dad's time in a B-25. I have many pictures. He
was a tailgunner in the 486th. flew 51 missions . I have his missing crew members reports etc. Mike Laney helped me with that.
Dad's plane was shot down in 1943 on the way to a target. the crew survived and he spent 2 days in the water before
being rescued. As a kid I remember him talking about the plane and the
name on the nose was the Royal Flush. I have
pictures of it , not real good, but i have searched for more and any history on the
plane. This afternoon sitting at the computer and browsing through the
57th e-mails I came across yours and I was viewing your site with your fathers photos. These are great. I happened to
click on the unknown bomber site and I could not believe that you had a picture
of the Royal Flush. Kinda gave me the goose
bumps! If this was the plane that was shot down do you have any
suggestions on identifying tail numbers or how
to find which plane they were assigned to after the crash. This is a
486th plane so it is not unknown any more. Doug I am down in
Ron Holman [holman506@charter.net]
Son
of Ralph L. Holman
Hello Doug,
Would I be out of line to
ask for the pictures of your 486th planes. There are so many on your site that I don't
have, and would love to show them on my 486th site that I am redoing. At the risk of being greedy I could use all
of the 486th planes.
I like the changes you made
to your site, keep up the good work.
Thank
you Herman Voss Herman
Voss [hvoss216@bellsouth.net]
Hi Herman,
Yes you are welcome to them
just give credit to my father, Capt. Charles Cook- Pilot 487th Squadron.
You can right click, save
as, to copy them.
Cheers,
Doug Cook
Hi Mike,
I'm very glad to
hear from you. Its very possible that our
fathers knew one another. Since I have
found that my father flew the 7F on
Do you know what dates your father was stationed where? Dominic Taddei DTaddei@aol.com may be able to help you with some information especially if he can link you to Dave Mershon who wrote the 7F story.
I appreciate the photo search for my father. And to go a step further, if you can get photos scanned, I would be happy to expand my website to include your father's photos with full credit. This would be a great addition to the 487th site.
Looking forward to hearing more from you,
Doug Cook
Central Area Exploration Division
Saudi Aramco
From: mrtarkany@comcast.net [mailto:mrtarkany@comcast.net]
Sent:
To: douglas.cook@aramco.com; douglas.cook@aramco.com
Subject: 487th Bomb Group website - 7F Story - Please read...
Hi Doug
I was looking on the web for my dad's bomb group and came across your website. My dad was part of the 487th bomb group - 7f.
I saw a picture of the crew listed under the "willie saga" and saw that my dad's name was listed as unknown. Well, :)
The name of the man holding the ladder all the way to the left is Michael F. Tarkany, who was the crew chief T/Sgt.
He did live in
I'm curious to know.. did your dad ever tell you any stories, any information regarding his missions.. or do you remember him mentioning my dad? These stories are hard to come by, and we have pics with some facts but of course no stories.
Any information would be appreciated. We have a few photo albums my dad took during the war, and I will try to look for your dad's name on the back of pictures.
Best regards,
Mike Tarkany
Hope to hear from you.
-----
Hello
I am glad that the photographs were of use, I try now to send you the Accident
Report sheet after sheet (6 in total). I think that your father is cited in the
page 6 of the report! A.R. provide also 6 photographs pages with aerial views
of the landing strip (the B25 is badly visible). The photographs are of poor
quality, if you want, I send you it
tomorrow.
After disarmament and disassembling of instrumentation, Lil
Scooper stayed several days on the beach without guard. A friend, aged of
75years, tell me that a day, he go to Losari beach,
(about 3miles SW from l’Ile-Rousse), with an old man
who need a piece of metal to repair a motorcycle or a car, I don’t remember
well.
In addition, a sister of my grandmother remembered the day
when she saw that plane dismounted on a truck, which passed on the road in
front of a family house. It was probably in February 1945, Lil scooper returned
to her home base. The report tells us that she could be repaired, perhaps she
flied again?!
Best
regards
FranckFranck Allegrini
[franck.allegrini@ct-corse.fr]
Attached are the pictures
and additional data regarding my late father in law Sgt. Don Kenney for your
website on the 487th.
Let me know if this transmission is too much & I can resend them
piecemeal. There should be one pdf, one Word doc & 41 jpgs.
Most of the titles to the
pictures are taken directly from the handwritten notes Don made on the
back. A few were blank so I added a
title. I am certain that the
Thanksgiving picture was from 1944 & not
1945 as noted.
There are also a couple of
pictures he got from other flyers including his Navy buddy Eddie with what
appears to be a B-24. I love the
"Dirty Dozen" reference circa 1944!
Also some family pictures with his Mom, Brother Frank & Sister
Anne. I do not know who the person in
the B-29 picture is: I assume he obtained this from a fellow flyer later.
The pdf
appears to come from a unit reunion but I do not believe that Don
attended.
The Word doc is a narrative
that I prepared based on what we know about his experiences.
Please credit all materials
to his widow Marilyn Kenney & her children.
If we dig up more materials
I will send them to you. Thanks much for
maintaining this website; it means a lot to his family that folks still
remember & honor the sacrifices men like Don Kenney & the rest of the
487th made.
Terry McGill
I signed the Guest book on
your website. Thank you for putting together such a great piece of
history. I was just looking through a family photo album last night and
came across the picture attached…hopefully your computer doesn’t choke on the
size. It is my Great Uncle Albert William Schang…Crew
Chief for the 487th 7J aircraft. I only knew it was my Great
Uncle before I found your website. It’s amazing what history you find
when you look.
Thanks again for spending the
time to put together such a great website. If you have any contact with
other people in my Great Uncles crew, let me know.
Dennis Schang [Dennis.Schang@toyoda-na.com]
Dennis Schang
Manufacturing
Engineer
Phone (423)
585-2933
Fax
(423) 585-2502
Hi David,
Thanks for
writing. I appreciate the kind word about my Uncle Orrin. He was
fortunate to have had good friends.
If you can suggest
any changes or additions to the website, I would
be glad to accommodate.
If you have a
digital copy of the Arizona Harris article, I
would love to see it.
Sincerely,
Doug Cook
Northwest Arabia Team Leader
Central Area Exploration Division
Saudi
Dhahran
From: David & Jennifer [mailto:sunpir8@cox.net]
Sent:
To: Cook, Douglas J.
Subject: Orrin
Hi,
I knew Orrin in the last
years of his life. I met him here in
Sincerely,
David Vitagliano
Center for Success
At-Risk Coordinator
480-444-6382
Hello
My daughter found all of the picture's on the computer. My, how familiar most of them are!
I am Iris Hyland, wife of Harvey
Hyland. He is standing next to your father in the picture of the McKinley
Jr. High picture. The little short one. He
was only 5' tall and they stretched him so he would be 5'1".
The McKinley Jr. High is a plane from the "kids"
from
I will tell you a little about
him. I have his "Log Book". He completed "71"
complete missions while he was in
He had a baby daughter, Sandra Harlynn while he was there. She was born on November
20, 1944. We also had
I will be 83 years old on April 6th. I have the three children, two in-law children (Deb's husband passed away 11 years ago), nine
Grand children
and 10 Great Grand children. I have often wondered about Mac, Sy
and Bob. I know after George's ship went down and he finally got back, he
was sent home. I was in
It was wonderful looking at the pictures and will check on buying the book.
God Bless you and your family.
Iris M. Hyland
ca
I knew your father in
As a matter of fact, we were
on the same boat that carried us to
My phone is: 310-271-5644.
Hoping to
hear from you.
David Konigsberg
310-217-5644
rose [snoopy100@adelphia.net]
Hi David,
It's certainly a pleasure to
hear from you. I live in
I take it that you got this
contact from my website. http://www.reddog1944.com/
If you have any suggestions or corrections, I
would be glad to hear them. More
importantly, I would be honored to put a web section about your WWII
experiences and a bio about you. Do have
photos that can be scanned? I could put
them up with credit and rights reserved to you.
Pictures on my web pages cannot be copied (e.g. right mouse click copy
is disabled).
If you remember my father,
do you have any stories to tell about him?
Did you know Mac McLaughlin,
Harvey Hyland, Bloomberg, or Sarengelli? They appeared in my father's
I look forward to hearing
more from you.
Doug Cook
--------------------------------------------------
Hi again David,
I see your name appearing on
the roster for the
Do you recall that
mission? I posted this reference on my
website:
http://members.northrock.bm/~ehetzel/aboutdec1044.html
MISSIONS DECEMBER 10, 1944 THE ENTIRE 310th, 319th , 321st , and 340th
BOMB GROUPS WERE SENT TO BOMB RR BRIDGES in BRENNER PASS at CALLIANO, OSSENIGA,
ROVERETTO, and DOLCE.
http://www.giuseppeversolato.it/News/dettaglio.asp?IdNews=35
340th BG 487th BS - SN
43-27570 - 7H WHITE LITENIN
(see attached- know anyone in that photo?)
I hope I am not being too
demanding of your memories and perhaps sensitivities to them. You are the first contact I have had from the
487th who recalls my father.
Cheers from
Doug Cook
David recalled that Charlie
was one hell of a poker player. David
bet big on a hand he was sure to win but lost to Charlie who had four
kings. David explained that gambling was
big in the 340th Bomb Group in Alesan,
David vividly recalled the
deadly German bombing and strafing raid on the Alesan base in May 1944. He realized how vulnerable they were intheir tents at night.
After that, each tent had a foxhole or trench dug next to it to dive
into for cover.
He began as a copilot for 20 missions with Buck Parish as his
pilot. When he became proficient at
landing, he became pilot. David flew 65 B-25
combat missions plus six weeks flying C-47 transport before shipping back
home.
From: Bob Knox [mailto:rknox@sc.rr.com]
Sent:
To: Cook, Douglas J.
Subject: 486th Bomb Squadron Photos
Dear Mr. Cook,
Let me introduce
myself. My name is Robert Knox (most folks call me Bob) and I am a
teacher of World War II history. In the 1960's while in school, I worked
part time for TV repair shop here in
He leaned over a counter and
withdrew a large photo album filled with photos of B-25's, wrecked German
aircraft and other views. Many of the photos were of nose art from the
486th Bomb Squadron. I borrowed the book and had many --but not all -- of
the photos photographically copied by one of the local
Anyway, I have different
photos from the ones on your web site (which is terrific, by the way) and
include the following: 6J - Ladies Delight; 6E - 43-28080; 6C which
I think is the "The Kewanee Kid II" (hard to read the
name); San Antonio Rose;
Briefing Time; Queen Mary,
Sweat and Pray; 6N; 6U; 6Y and a great shot of 6E -43-28080 tail markings
centered in the flak damaged outer starboard wing. Also a photo of Mr. Pulos in uniform
with his hand grasping a bullet or flak hole in the tail of a wrecked
Ju-88 Bomber. Also included in this collection is a 3/4
left-rear view of a damaged Me-109F-4/Tropical Version fighter in a wicker-like
revetment with a black (maybe red) 15 outlined in white on the fuselage just
aft the cockpit.
Are you interested
in having copies of these photos (for free, of course). I just
want to share them with you to promote and expand the history of this B-25
unit. E-mail me back if you are interested. If you could also tell
me how to get a crew list of the men of the 486th, I'd like to know which
aircraft Mr. Pulos few one. I suspect he flew
some missions in 6J - Ladies Delight, as there are several photos of this
particular aircraft.
Thanks,
Bob K.
Dear Bob,
I am sorry to have
taken so long to get to your email. I was traveling in the States and
have just returned to my desk in
I would be very
interested in getting copies of the photos. Have you scanned them?
If so you could send as email attachments. I would like to put them up on
the website with credit to John Pulos and to
you. It would also honor John if you have any more information or
anecdotes he may have shared with you.
I will see if I
have any mission sheets from the 486th that may help.
Dominique Taddei may be able to help and is
copied on this. He will be interested in the photos also since he
is the curator of a museum in
Hope to hear back
from you,
Doug Cook
Saudi Aramco
From: Bob Knox [mailto:rknox@sc.rr.com]
Sent:
To:
Subject: Re: 486th Bomb Squadron Photos
Hi Doug,
Sure good to hear from
you. I, myself have been "out of the country" for most of
August. Took a tour of the Canadian Rockies -- What
great scenery. Anyway, It's been a while
since I tried to attach photos to my e-mail, So, what I going to do is attempt
to send three or four at a time until I get the hang of it.
Dear Bob,
All three sets of
photos came through and I have them saved.
I will be glad to include them with the photos I have for the 486th
Squadron with credits to you and John Pulos. I looked at the 486th mission
sheets I have from Herman Voss but they only go from
Thanks again,
Doug Cook
From: Butterbaugh, Todd
[mailto:butterbaught@ReadingRock.com]
Sent:
To: Cook, Douglas J.
Subject: research for any of my grandfathers records / memories
Doug,
I am in search of any information about my
grandfather. From some old photos that I have gathered from his basement,
I know that he was in the 340th BG 487th BS. Here
are a couple of the images that I have put onto a contact sheet. His name
was Telmo Suarez. He also went by Ted. If
you have any information, please let me know. If you can identify anyone,
please let me know also.
Thanks
TODD M. BUTTERBAUGH
PROJECT ESTIMATOR
READING ROCK, INC.
513.874.2345 fax: 513.874.2361
direct: 513.454.0046
Todd,
Thanks for the
email and pictures. Ted was definitely
in the 487th given the plaque with the “black knight” emblem. I’m guessing the time frame was in 1945 near
the end of the war since the quonset
hut picture does not look like the base in Alesan,
If you know his
SSN or military ID number you can try to get his service records:
I have copied this to a
historian in
Cheers from
Doug Cook
Central Area Exploration
Division
Saudi Aramco
Phone
966-3-873-7724
Todd,
I have begun a web
page for Telmo (Ted) Suarez. I will
update it when we can find out more about his service record or the photos. Your grandfather did proudly serve in the
487th squadron and I’m glad to have the submission to post.
http://www.reddog1944.com/487th_Sq_Telmo_Suarez.htm
Cheers from
Doug Cook
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Doug,
Thank you so much
for your help. The web page looks great! You don’t know how much
this means to me. Once again I thank you.
Todd M.
Butterbaugh
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hello Dominique and Doug,
I found these pictures among my many
and thought you'd be interested. I was 4' 11" so you can see how
short he was. These were taken in 1943.
My son and daughter-in-law said they
cannot find the album of the planes, etc. But, I do believe they have
them and don't want to give them to me in case I don't give them back.
If I find any more I will send them to
you.
More later,
Hi
You made a very
attractive couple. I will gladly add
these to the web page. If your son and
daughter in-law don’t want to part with the original pictures perhaps they can
get them scanned. If they don’t have the
equipment ( a computer scanner is inexpensive) it can
be done at someplace like a Kinkos or even a Walgreens
photo shop. I would be glad to reimburse
the expense. I feel connected because
Cheers from
Doug Cook
-----Original Message-----
From: Cristina McCoy [mailto:ccgm@satx.rr.com]
Sent:
To:
Subject: corsica
Hello,
Thank you for your website. It has helped fill in some pieces of my
Dad's experience.
during WWII.
My Dad was assigned to a support unit (324th) for your
Dad's
squadron. His name is
Juventino Guerra, a
records for his
unit. Thank you for explaining the reason for the
bombing Alesan
base. My Dad did
not share much information about
his experiences during WWII. It was
only after I
married and had children, that
Dad began to tell a few stories,
the
bombing of the
Alesan base among them.
Dad is 90 years and suffers from Alzheimer's Disease, so obtaining
any new/more
information about his time in
My brother visited today, and mentioned that the Ken
Burns' "War"
episode which aired
last night was about the bombing
at the Alesan base. I missed it, but
will try to purchase
the episode to better understand
that day.
We have many pictures from Dad's assignment in
few months, I'll
check to see if I can find any
of your Dad.
Thank you again for sharing your Dad's story and
history. May God
bless all those
who fought, and those who gave
their lives during WWII.
Sincerely,
Cristina Guerra McCoy
Hi,
Thanks for writing.
My father rarely talked about the war either and conspicuously never
mentioned the Alesan raid. How can I get
a copy of the TV piece on that incident?
Thanks,
Doug Cook
Dhahran,
From: Roger Juglair
[mailto:rogerju@libero.it]
Sent:
To: Cook, Douglas J.
Subject: Courtesy for pictures on your site
Good Morning Mr Doug,
I am
Roger Juglair. may be you find my name in Don Kaiser site, I am
preparing a book on my town bombing raid on 23rd august 1944, fot illustrate him I need some picture of planes of
340th Bg so I ask to you to be autorized
to use them.
Waiting for
your wishes.
Your's
faithfully.
Juglair Roger
NB: Escuse
me for my pityfull english
Roger,
I would be glad to
help. I need more information on what
you need. What is your town?
I find this data
from Herman Voss- the 340th BG (486, 487,488, 489)
raids that date were in
I have no
information of specific planes that flew these missions. If you want some representative photos from
these squadrons, let me know which ones and I can provide them with assurances
that they will be properly credited.
I am very
interested in the story of the raid on your town. If you can provide me with details, stories,
and / or photos, I would be glad to put up a web page documenting it.
Cheers,
Doug Cook
BARBARA CONNOLLY
[princessbarbi_b25@msn.com]
Wow, Doug.
. .Saudi ? Now-a-days, anyone can be anyone, are you the Ambassador ? I have a really cool photo of 321st
BG,445th BS, Dick Krause, all decked-out in robes with a beard (i'd say in his 60 's) NO way could I have recognized him !
No, I am one of the
New-kids on the block, in fact, in every way. My Dad/Ed Ennis, 321st BG,
447th BS, passed
Last Nov 1st, Vinnie gave me
permission to add "a few photo's" into the 57th Wing Albums.... after
I passed 2000, (In the 321st BG) he gave me permission to go into all Groups,
at Easter, someone broke into the 57th Gallery and left some inappropriate
remarks, Vinnie changed to a NEW Gallery (Nice !) but
ALL photo's lost their Text... mine had names, dates, serial #, nose-art,
etc. so after crying like a baby for a week, I
got my "get-up-and-go OUT and got going ! I am now also almost
finished re-naming ALL of the other photo's
too, in all Groups. I speak with George Underwood a lot, Fred
Lawrence, and many of the men, I love those guys !
As the ball rolls downhill, not always fair, I am now in the 340th BG
at last, I placed and re-did the rest of Clair Clark's yesterday.
http://57thbombwing.com/gallery2/v/MenOf57th/321stBG/
My Dad/Ed's 321stBG
My Dad's Album http://57thbombwing.com/gallery2/v/MenOf57th/321stBG/447thSquadron/Edward_C_Ennis_T_Sgt/
I have more than 500 photo's of other men/groups, and now over 800 in the
"fun" general Categories
http://57thbombwing.com/gallery2/v/Aircraft/
I would like to represent
YOUR Dad now, To say that your site (s) are marvelous, is an understatement
! I would like to start on his album, but will need you to forward me the
actual photo's, now I can run 2 programs, and look up the info as I go, but I
need the photo's, Please. After that, I need all other's you can send, or
direct me to (Todd Butterbaugh got me first, and his album went in before you
placed his site in yours)... also, Dave Koenigsburg
is going to be sending scans, while I have placed a small, not very good album
on him to get started. I even got something out of Jerry Rosenthal,
a grumpy-wonderful man, I ma the one who got him the "Little Bell" last
Spring (The "men" call me PRINCESS, and I love
them all.
When the Squad Histories came up
digitalized, last Nov. John "Butch" Fitzgerald (446th BS) did what I
did, and most others, he started in his Dad's time-frame, I already had the
321st Printed, and dozens of Pilot/Crew Logs, and Diaries....which I sent him,
and he has "quite literally" typed in the War-Diary
"word-for-word", added the Logs, and now Dave Charville
(445th BS) has gotten us the Missions, Butch is adding them now. I
am matching ships to serials for Bob Haney, and progress is being made all
around. OH, Butch has agreed to continue on and "write" ALL of
the Groups !
Paul Gale came for a very short
visit, on his way to Alaska, but I photographed 300 pages of the books he
brought me to see. . .
OK, enough out of me, I am only
doing so good because no one has said that I may not ! HA
! Our history, with all of these people involved, is going to be
HUGE when all added together ! We are all so
very excited about it, and I am in a hurry, as I love
talking to the Vets themselves, and getting the stories. Thanks for the
time this has taken from your important day, and PLEASE say YES
! and send me all of the photo's you can
(One vet sent OVER 250 !, I scanned them in and sent right back !)
A pleasure to meet you Doug,
remember you know a whole LOT more than I, Please give me all corrections,
news, new idea's....anything ! Blessings, Barbi
I am pretty PROUD of MY Dad / http://www.warwingsart.com/12thAirForce/ennis.html (1/2
done)
From: Roger Juglair
[mailto:rogerju@libero.it]
Sent:
To:
Subject: Courtesy for pictures on your site
My town is
Pont-Saint-Martino, actually Pont San Martino.
I want to describe all the
missions of 23rd august 1944, and a short history of 340th BG, so I need
picture illustrating airplanes of the Group and for 488th aand 489th BG a picture illustrating any plane partipate to this mission
Thjans for your reply
Roger
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> B-25s in formation from
my father's war album: Credit 487th Squadron
Thanks for your collaboration,
For the 23rd august I have
reconstitute all missions on
So I need pictures for plane
involved in this attacks.
Now I am at work and I can't
send to you any material but only a picture of my town before and after the
attack on wich there the two bridges considerated target.
Thanks for all
Roger
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
….I sent Roger all of Chas.
Cook’s 488th and 489th Squadron Plane photos
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thanks,
you
are great,
for
the raid were ordered the following plane
488th
8J -N.43-27695
Pilota
Sec.Pilota KROENING
Puntatore ROSENTHAL
Op.
Radio SQUIRE
Mitragliere WOYTEK
Mitragliere LOCKHART
8K -N.43-27504
Pilota GROSSKOPF
Sec.Pilota HOLTZ
Puntatore PFEFFER
Op. Radio ZIEGLER
Mitragliere EWAN
Mitragliere RICKE
8T -N.43-27669 -
Pilota ASWAD
Sec.Pilota HOWARD
Puntatore DAVIDSON
Navigatore BURGER
Op.
Radio LAZOR
Mitragliere SNOW
Mitragliere HIDGINS
8E -N.43-35983
Pilota GROSS
Sec.Pilota KING
Puntatore FISCHER
Op. Radio GREENBAUM
Mitragliere GASPERINO
Mitragliere ROSIN
8M -N.43-4055
Pilota SHIPNMAN
Sec.Pilota LACEY
Puntatore MOODY
Op. Radio DAY
Mitragliere BARTELL
Mitragliere SLIMOWITZ
8B -N.43-3990
Pilota HELLYAR
Sec.Pilota KIRK
Puntatore ROBINSON
Op.
Radio FOND
Mitragliere ILJANA
Mitragliere TAFOYA
8P -N.43-276657
Pilota REAGAN
Sec.Pilota SALLEN
Puntatore HELLER
Op. Radio MIROCNICK
Mitragliere RACKNYER
Mitragliere SMITH
8U -N.43-4064
Pilota CLIFFORD
Sec.Pilota GMACHL
Puntatore YOHANNAN
Op. Radio GREEN
Mitragliere KLINKNER
Mitragliere SIMS
8N- N.43-27752
Pilota RAPP
Sec.Pilota STEED
Puntatore O’BRIEN
Navigatore SLOAN
Op. Radio
Mitragliere GORSKI
Mitragliere HIGGINS
8R -N.43-27474
Pilota McDONALD
Sec.Pilota VERTREES
Puntatore BARDNELL
Op. Radio MARTIN
Mitragliere BLAND
Mitragliere RYBA
8Q -N.43-4025
Pilota SWIFT
Sec.Pilota RITTER
Puntatore ATKINSON
Op. Radio GOODELL
Mitragliere PORTER
Mitragliere KERKHAN
8Z -N.43-27537
Pilota
Sec.Pilota MUMMEY
Puntatore HOUSEHOLDER
Op. Radio McGLOIN
Mitragliere CHESNEY
Mitragliere BERTAGNA
489th
S
-N.43-34080 – “Knock Out”
Pilota
Sec.Pilota CLINCH
Navigatore STEWART
Op. Radio
Mitragliere DIETERT
Mitragliere
9X -N.43-4000 – “Queen Mary” [Sent photo from Chas. Cook
collection]
Pilota INSLEY
Sec.Pilota SCHRAMECK
Puntatore HOEFFLINGER
Op. Radio MISKOY
Mitragliere DI
MARTINI
Mitragliere SHINE
9Z- N.43-27667– “Coming
over Hun” [Sent
photo from Chas. Cook collection]
Pilota CRITTENDEN
Sec.Pilota ROUSE
Puntatore BRODEK
Navigatore O’CONNELL
Op. Radio ANGLAND
Mitragliere ONIDI
Mitragliere CRESCENZI
9W -N.43-27659 -
Pilota McLAIN
Sec.Pilota HARPER
Puntatore RICHMAN
Op. Radio COOPER
Mitragliere CUMMINGS
Mitragliere
9T-N.43-27485–“
Pilota CONVIS
Sec.Pilota McKINLEY
Puntatore SIMPSON
Op. Radio EIKHOFF
Mitragliere REINHARD
Mitragliere BROWN
9H -N.43-27705 – “Black Jack” [Sent
photo from Chas. Cook collection]
Pilota INSLEY
Sec.Pilota SCHRAMECK
Puntatore HOEFFLINGER
Op. Radio MISKOY
Mitragliere DI
MARTINI
Mitragliere SHINE
Some year later I interwiewed former Lt. Rober
Burger, bombardier leadre for this mission.
On 8
MISSIONS SUMMARY
OF12th et 15th Air Force on
|
Time |
Coord. |
Target |
Group |
Type |
N* |
Bombs |
Tonnage |
Losses |
|
7.35 |
T 4012 |
Iles Pomegues (T 397115) |
86th FG |
P 47 D |
8 |
15 |
3,75 |
|
|
8.00 |
Strafing |
Lyon -Orange |
4°FG (FFL) |
P 47 D |
8 |
|
|
|
|
8.50 |
T 4113 |
Iles Ratonneau |
27th FG |
P 47 D |
8 |
16 |
4,00 |
|
|
9.15 |
S 2446 |
Montpellier |
321st BG |
B 25 J |
18 |
72 |
32,69 |
|
|
9.25 |
N 3215 |
Branoux-la-Paillade |
340th BG |
B 25 J |
18 |
72 |
32,69 |
|
|
9.45 |
N 9254 |
Montélimar (bridge N885564) |
321st BG |
B 25 J |
15 |
47 |
21,34 |
|
|
9.55 |
X 8967 |
Saint Alban du Rhône |
310th BG |
B 25 J |
6 |
24 |
10,90 |
|
|
9.55 |
X 8967 |
Givors |
310th BG |
B 25 J |
6 |
24 |
10,90 |
|
|
9.55 |
X 8967 |
Givors |
310th BG |
B 25 J |
24 |
96 |
43,58 |
|
|
10.00 |
S964854 |
Avignon |
319th BG |
B |
17 |
68 |
30,87 |
|
|
10.00 |
S964854 |
Avignon |
3éme BG (FFL) |
B |
12 |
24 |
10,90 |
1 |
|
10.00 |
Escort |
Wien, St Polten (Autriche) * |
Escorte 15th AF |
P51-P38 |
400 |
|
|
1 |
|
10.00 |
Bombing |
Wien, St Polten (Autriche) * |
Bombardier 15th AF |
B24-B17 |
472 |
|
|
11 |
|
10.06 |
L 841076 |
Covigliaio (FI) |
320th BG - 442 BS |
B |
8 |
32 |
14,53 |
|
|
10.06 |
L 841076 |
Covigliaio (FI) |
320th BG - 444 BS |
B |
11 |
44 |
19,98 |
2 |
|
10.26 |
|
Castiglione dei Pepoli (BO) |
17th BG |
B |
18 |
144 |
65,38 |
|
|
10.30 |
Q 857897 |
San Pietro a Sieve (FI) |
17th BG |
B |
15 |
55 |
24,97 |
|
|
13.00 |
T 4012 |
Iles Pomegues (T 397115) |
86th FG |
P 47 D |
5 |
10 |
2,50 |
|
|
14.00 |
Strafing |
Carpentras - Orange |
4°FG (FFL) |
P 47 D |
8 |
|
0,00 |
|
|
14.10 |
T 4113 |
IleRatonneau |
27th FG |
P 47 D |
6 |
12 |
3,00 |
|
|
14.30 |
N 8755 |
Cuneo - Demonte - Argentera |
4°FG (FFL) |
P 47 D |
8 |
16 |
4,00 |
|
|
16.05 |
N 7847 |
Valvighéres |
324th FG |
P 47 D |
11 |
21 |
5,25 |
|
|
16.50 |
T 8586 |
|
79th FG |
P 47 D |
3 |
6 |
1,50 |
|
|
17.15 |
T 4012 |
Iles Pomegues |
4°FG (FFL) |
P 47 D |
8 |
16 |
4,00 |
|
|
17.30 |
J-172864 |
Pont Saint Martin |
340th BG - 488th BS |
B 25 J |
12 |
48 |
21,79 |
|
|
17.30 |
J-172864 |
Pont Saint Martin |
340th BG - 489th BS |
B 25 J |
4 |
4 |
1,82 |
|
|
17.45 |
H-691637 |
Borgone Susa |
321st BG |
B 25 J |
6 |
12 |
5,45 |
|
|
17.45 |
H-691637 |
Coazze |
321st BG |
B 25 J |
12 |
24 |
10,90 |
|
|
17.55 |
T 397115 |
Iles Pomegues (T 397115) |
86th FG |
P 47 D |
8 |
16 |
4,00 |
|
|
18.15 |
H-691637 |
Borgone Susa |
310th BG |
B 25 J |
18 |
72 |
32,69 |
|
|
18.19 |
S964854 |
Avignon r/r Bridge |
340th BG - 486th BS |
B25 J |
14 |
56 |
25,42 |
|
|
18.19 |
S964854 |
Avignon r/r Bridge |
340th BG - 487th BS |
B25 J |
8 |
32 |
14,53 |
|
|
18.19 |
S964854 |
Avignon r/r Bridge |
340th BG - 489th bs |
B25 J |
7 |
1889 |
102,01 |
|
|
18.50 |
S 5880 |
Nice |
4°FG (FFL) |
P 47 D |
8 |
16 |
4,00 |
|
|
19.10 |
S 5880 |
Nice |
324th FG |
P 47 D |
8 |
16 |
4,00 |
|
|
19.15 |
S 7182 |
Monaco |
86th FG |
P 47 D |
5 |
10 |
2,50 |
|
|
23.45 |
|
Po Valley - Nice to Savona - Rhône
Valley |
47 BG |
A 20 |
12 |
|
|
|
Hi Roger,
You have more
mission information than I do. I see that at least some of the
planes I sent from the 489th fit your mission list. From
your photos yesterday, it seems that the town I found on Google Earth is not
yours. Also, the mission was a big risk for civilian casualties with the
bridges right in the midst of historic buildings. I can assure you that
the B-25 bombing missions in
I don’t know how
you feel about these young men- 18 to 25 years old- given the grave
responsibility to carry out these missions. Many did not return. I
know my father (487th BS) saw many of his friends go down in flames
but he did not talk about it. He did the job he was assigned to do and
brought his crew back alive after each of 70 missions.
Was any of your
family hurt in the raid? If so, I offer my condolences but am glad that
Doug Cook
From: Roger Juglair
[mailto:rogerju@libero.it]
Sent:
To:
Subject: Courtesy for pictures on your site
Hi Doug,
Our Air Force bombed Abissinia(with
mustard gas !!), finally Allies bombed and invaded
We lost the war and any victims was for Mussolini decision.
Allied bombing killed 50.000 civilians. the
cost on civilian lives maded by fascist and nazi Army was the same.
I am in conctact
by mail with Burger and I had the pleasure to spoke with Mr
Greenbaum, so I know the situtation
american soldiers and
pilots. They risk their lives for our freedom, many of
them died for grant to us democracy.
For the reason of the bombing
of my town, probably was the possibility the German Armored forces passed from
Piccolo San Bernardo Pass. A very difficult way, probably the HQ made an error
on evaluation of the danger this way of communication was.
130 peoples died, on this day
14
This was the war, the Hitler
and Mussolini war, all charges, also the aAllied's mistakes are on charges of them
Sincerely
Roger
PS:
I wrote from my work bureau.
Robert w Gaffney
[thegaffer1@juno.com]
Dear Doug: My Uncle George P. Gaffney (Bud) 36503953
was in the 12th
Air Force,
340th Bomb Group (M), 487th BombSqd. I know he served in
He served as an electrician
for the B 25 bomber, the Red Ass. He was insturmental
in developing a radio bomb release for which he received the Legion of Merit.
I have a copy of the 487th
Squadron Album. There is a photo in
which your father appears on page 109.
If there is additional information of interest I would be happy to
forward it to you.
Bob Gaffney E-Mail
thegaffer1@juno.com
Robert,
Thanks for the email. I have the 487th Album that was printed about
May 1944 just after they arrived in
The radio release technique
from the lead plane greatly increased bombing accuracy. My father's bomb run photos specify if they
were radio release. I would be very
appreciative if you could send documentation of your uncle and his invention so
we could put up a web page dedicated to him and the success of radio release
bombing (see attached).
Thanks,
Doug Cook
From: Esther Owen
[mailto:eowen@valint.net]
Sent:
To:
Subject: 487 bomb sq.
Mr. Cook,
Thanks for maintaining your
web-site dedicated to the men of the 487th bombardment squadron. My father flew
in that unit from April 1944 thru December of 1944 and was the pilot of the Sky
Demon serial 43-4039 7Y. He was 1st.Lt. Howard L. Owen and we did not know much
about his wartime experiences as he didn't talk about it much. After his death I
acquired his military papers and some very faded pictures and
then the other day found your site which brought together a lot of
unanswered questions. In some of the papers I found notes he had made in
reference to different planes he flew in besides the Sky Demon, 7Q, 7V, 7W, 7Z
to name a few. In his notes I found were he had written that the Sky Demon
had been shot up badly on
Donald L. Owen
son of
Lt.
Howard.L.Owen
Donald,
Thanks for writing
and your comments about the web site. I
have enjoyed documenting whatever I can about the 340th BG and the
487th BS specifically. It has
been fitting together pieces of a puzzle to get some insight into what our
fathers went through. Thank you for the
info about “Sky Demon”. My father had
more photos of it than any other plane in his album. I would like to add the lines below that I
have underlined to the section on Sky Demon if I can get your permission. I
believe the word after Frags is
Thanks,
Doug Cook
Hey Doug,
Please go ahead and add those lines on your
site as I'm sure it may be something other families might be interested
in. I am gathering up some of my dads papers and have been seeing some of
the names on your site including your fathers name on one of the records of
Dads when he received an Air Medal. I am in the process of taking digital
photos of that and scanning what few pictures we have. I also have a program
from the 487th B.S. second anniversary which I will attempt to photograph and
send to you. That was dad's home address after the war and even though Dad had
several addresses in his papers he told me that he never made an attempt
to contact any of those he served with other than his life long friend Paul
Parker whom we all knew growing up.
On another note, Dad's first mission was on
13 May- quote"Germans
raided, fiters above us
about
I would like to tell you how I ended up with
Dads diary, a year or so after dad passed away I was going thru his papers with
my brother, in the box mixed up with everything was a leather "Pilots
Navigational Kit" very deteriorated and as we took papers, pictures
and some of the navigational pieces out I discovered a small pocket, in that
pocket was this little ruled booklet(one and a half inches square), very
brittle and in it was a record of dads missions(70) while stationed on Corsica.
We have since been trying to decipher it as some places are barely legible.
When Dad came home(December 1944) he was stationed at Douglas Arizona teaching
others how to fly B-25's and a friend from there told us that he knew Dad
in the war and that Dad had volunteered for every "Dam" mission that
he could. That man 1st Lt. Paul Parker was either in 487th or one of the other
Bomb Squadrons on
With this e-mail I will attempt to send you a
picture of Dad's crew, its one of the few that are
clear enough to scan. On the back in hand writing it says left to right,
Kenny(Hill), myself, Angelo(Triunfo), Quinlin(?), Olly(Oliver Buendel), Ray(Heckman)
Please let me know if the attachment comes thru and I'll send
more pictures and photo's of documents. You can post
the picture if you want. Thanks again for keeping this site up, its got to be a great history lesson for all of us and today
as a veteran I salute you for keeping our fathers memories alive.
Donald Owen
-----Original Message-----
From: jimmy1017@grandecom.net [mailto:jimmy1017@grandecom.net]
Sent: Thursday, January 17, 2008 10:17 PM
To:
Subject: 487th. sqn.
Doug,
I am a former B-25 pilot with the 487th. sqn. I was in
to Dec.30, 1944. I flew 66 missions . My name is shown on the mission sheets as
J.A.Littlefield. I have really
enjoyed your web site very much. I have picture
of airplanes and the sqn. area that I would be happy to
share with you . My
E-mail address is jimmy1017@grandecom.net. Please let me
know if you would like
to see them. I remember your
father's face but don't remember anything else
about him. I don't think that I
ever flew in the same plane with him.
A former
87 year 487th pilot,
(Capt)
James A. Littlefield
8601
(940)898-0370
Hi Jimmy,
It is an honor to have you respond to the website!
Yes,
I would very much like to have anything you would like to
share. I would be glad to put up a
webpage dedicated to your service. Any
photos would be credited to you and they are somewhat protected from direct
copy.
It would be nice to include a brief bio and any stories/anecdotes
you would like to tell. Training and promotions... Post WWII... Also, you could
include any service awards and/or news clippings pertaining to your service. Your immediate family and a photo...
Perhaps you have one or access to a scanner. Scanners are
inexpensive. Could get the items scanned as a .jpg file at 200-300 dpi
resolution? This can be done at an office store like Kinkos
also. Once scanned,
you can email them here as attachments.
Please include captions identifying the plane or crew.
Thank you again for contacting me and offering to
share. You had an important place in
history. I will try to call sometime
soon.
Sincerely,
Doug Cook
> From:
> Sent: Thursday, January
17, 2008 10:17 PM
> To:
> Subject: 487th. sqn.
>
> Doug,
>
> I am a former B-25
pilot with the 487th. sqn. I
was in
> May 21, 1944 to Dec.30,
1944. I flew 66 missions . My name is shown on
> the
mission sheets as J.A.Littlefield. I have really
enjoyed your web
> site very much. I have
picture of airplanes and the sqn. area
that I
> would be happy to share
with you .
> My
> E-mail address is
jimmy1017@grandecom.net. Please let me know if you
> would like to see them.
I remember your father's face but don't
> remember anything else
about him. I don't think that I ever flew in
> the
same plane with him.
>
>
> A former 87
year 487th pilot,
> (Capt)
James A. Littlefield
>
>
>
> (940)898-0370
> Hi Jimmy,
>
> It is an honor to have
you respond to the website!
>
> Yes, I would very much like to have
anything you would like to share.
> I would be glad to put
up a webpage dedicated to your service.
Any
> photos
would be credited to you and they are somewhat protected from
> direct
copy.
>
> It would be nice to
include a brief bio and any stories/anecdotes you
> would like to tell.
Training and promotions... Post WWII... Also, you
> could include any service
awards and/or news clippings pertaining to
> your
service. Your immediate family and a
photo...
>
> Perhaps you have one or
access to a scanner. Scanners are inexpensive.
> Could get the items
scanned as a .jpg file at 200-300 dpi resolution?
> This can be done at an
office store like Kinkos also. Once scanned,
> you
can email them here as attachments.
Please include captions
>
identifying the plane or crew.
>
> Thank you again for
contacting me and offering to share. You
had an
> important
place in history. I will try to call
sometime soon.
>
> Sincerely,
>
> Doug Cook
>
Jan 26, 2008
Hi Doug,
Sorry that I didn’t get back to you. I have had a photographer put a lot of
previously unprinted pictures on a disk. These negatives were developed by me
in a tent over on
Thanks,
Jimmy
Hi Doug
Sorry I'm so late in sending
you this but I have been in
I will send you a list of
the photos this weekend. I have to get my son to help me .
I also have other photo that I will send.
Thanks,
Jimmy
From: Michael Zwierko
[mailto:purduemjz@msn.com]
Sent: Sunday, February 17, 2008 7:03 AM
To: dtaddei@aol.com; ralph.gimenez@warwingsart.com
Cc: Cook, Douglas J.
Subject: 57th Bomb Wing in
Gentlemen,
You may not remember me, but I am the US Navy officer whose great uncle, 1LT Casimir Klujsza, was the
bombardier onboard B-25C "TUFF STUFF" when it was shot down on a
mission [Feb 13] 1944 [supplies mission between Nemi
and Lake Alband]. Thanks to you, I was able to
start piecing together facts regarding the 487th BS as well as the details
about my great uncle and the two B-25's that carried the name "TUFF
STUFF". I appreciate your generous research assistance thus far and
would like to help contribute to the shared knowledge database. Mr. Cook,
your website has been a wonderful and invaluable resource in my research
as well.
Although my great uncle has long since passed away, I recently received one of
his personal WWII photo albums and a shadowbox from my
aunt (who is responsible for his estate). She knows that I have an avid
interest in my great uncle's life and she preserved these items for me to honor
his memory. The shadowbox contains his "Caterpillar" and
"Goldfish" cards (for bailing out of a damaged aircraft and surviving
a water recovery) along with photos, ribbons, his wings and "Black
Knight" leather bomber jacket patches. Looking through his photos,
some have already been documented so he must have traded with other members of
his unit. Other photos are undocumented as far as I know. Most
photos feature my great uncle (there are even shots of his war dog, Rosie), but
there are numerous others that feature members of the squadron along with
aircraft, including partial shots of B-25J "TUFF STUFF" that I have
never seen before. There are also what appear to
be bombing reconnaissance photos with lat/long info on the negative.
Although the photographs aren't of the highest quality and album isn't all
that big, there are some pictures which may be useful in preserving
the history of the 487th BS.
More than anything else, I would like to honor my great uncle and the men he
served with in the 487th BS. If high resolution scans of these items
would be of use in documenting/preserving the collective history of the 487th,
please let me know what I can do to help.
Best regards,
Michael Zwierko
Michael,
As you can see by
my the growth of my web-pages from submissions by people like yourself, I would
be honored to put up a section dedicated to your great uncle. I recommend the scans to be set for “photo” at
300 dpi. It’s amazing what detail can be
revealed then. Also, if you can put
together a short bio and caption any of the photos, that
would really add to the value. If he had
any medals or citations, please try to document those as well. If the files are too large to email, you can
send me a CD at:
Doug Cook
POB 12253 Saudi
Aramco
Dhahran, 31311
I am currently
honored to be working with Capt. Jimmy Littlefield, an 87 year old former pilot
from the 487th. I just
received a CD from him with his photos that we are documenting.
I look forward to
working with you. This project has
helped me get closer to my father’s history and touched the lives of many other
families.
Sincerely,
Doug Cook
From: jimmy1017@grandecom.net
[mailto:jimmy1017@grandecom.net]
Sent: Saturday, February 16, 2008 8:21 PM
To: Cook, Douglas J.
Subject: RE: 487thSqn
I left college at Christmas
break 1941 and went to work at a primary flying school at
I really worked hard to
finish early because they promised us leave for the no. of days that we
finished early. I finished at the same time as the class ahead of us. Since I
had almost 30 days leave, I rushed down to Base HQ. I got the papers to clear
the base, when I returned them completed, the Sgt. told that I could be gone
until midnight tomorrow night. Seems they were short a crew and guess who took
their place. We were sent to
Photo Captions:
Pictures
049---Alesan, digging
foxholes after raid, lt. to rt. Ray Spurling (with
shovel) John Miller, ? , Sgt. Boaz, Flt
050- Spurling
& Miller
051-Same
052-
053- Out bound mission
054- Sqn.
tents
055- Tent on the extreme
left is the latrine
057- Tents on left are
Officers quarters, next is the communications trailer, trailer and water tank
are Maj. Parsons quarters,
on the right
is the latrine, that was dug by some personnel,
who were caught inside a house of ill repute in
as punishment.
058- Mission returning.
059- Spurling
& Miller
060- Edwin Kenyon & Boaz
061- Boaz & Miller
062- John Miller
063
064
065
066
067
068-Spurling
069- Invasion of
070- Miller
071- Road to airfield
072 Sqn.
area
093- Lt Crandall & Lt.
Reimer
121- Littlefield, spurling & Miller"s Home
137 Lt. Rushing'
s cub that he flew from
145- Sqn.
officer's club on extreme right
164-188-190- James
Littlefield
Hi Doug,
Hope that you have gotten
the names for the pictures, it's mostly an explanation
of the pictures. I don't remember seeing the sqn. album, or it got lost when they lost my things on the trip
back to the states. I saw my crews picture on your website. It was a picture taken at
I was born in
Jimmy
From: Michael Zwierko
[mailto:purduemjz@msn.com]
Sent: Sunday, February 17, 2008 12:17 PM
To: Cook, Douglas J.
Subject: RE: 57th Bomb Wing in
Doug,
Thank you for the quick reply. It will take me some time to get the data together,
but it will be put on a CD as there are far too many photos to email at 300 dpi
a scan.
I was perusing your site and there is a group photo on the "Squadron
Album" page that shows your father on the far left and my great uncle
to his left with the dog "Rosie", so their service obviously
overlapped. I noticed that most of the mission crew lists on your site
are for late 1944 into 1945. Is there a resource where I might
be able to research earlier crew lists to find my great uncle's missions?
I know for a fact that he was part of the crew of B-25C "TUFF STUFF"
the day it was shot down, but I am guessing that the bombing mission aerial BDA
photos in his album represent some of his actual drops as bombardier. He
died in 1991 and I was too young at the time to get that in-depth with him
about his time with the 487th (I'm only 30). There are no surviving
family members that know enough about my great
uncle's service in WWII to provide detailed descriptions and that is why
I have undertaken the task to research it myself. I wish I could go
back in time to when I was a kid listening to him and his stories about
the war, I have so many questions I would ask
him. Unfortunately, I only have detailed information from what was
uncovered after he died.
My great uncle "Charlie" was a real hero of mine and probably one of
the most influential people in my life. I am incredibly proud of him
and your website has helped me connect with his past in a
very real way now that I am old enough to fully appreciate his service.
My family and I are grateful for resources such as your website and I look
forward to working with you as well.
Mike
--------------------------------------------------
Mike,
I look forward to
working with you. I can search my Dad’s
487th BS Album which has most of its material from before May 1944
(approx date of publication). It will
not have specific mission sheets but it does have bomb run photos and crew
photos. Do you know you uncles’ dates of
service? I do have sheets that tell by
date and squadron what the mission target was.
Actual mission sheets are on microfilm at
The
If you know his
SSN or military ID number you can try to get his service records:
Regards,
Doug Cook
From: jimmy1017@grandecom.net [mailto:jimmy1017@grandecom.net]
Sent: Tuesday, February 19, 2008 8:26 PM
To: Cook, Douglas J.
Subject: Re: 487thSqn Webpage up- still in progress
route going over Hi Doug,
The web page is great, I never expected anything to ever
see anything like like
this. My thanks to you, Doug,
it's great.
I have some other pictures to send you, but am having
trouble getting them to
transmit. They are crew
pictures, mission pictures and a better picture of the
Fourth of July bash.
The person in the Free White & Filty
picture is Ray Spurling, my co-pilot. I
arrived at Alesans
on May 21, 1944. On the route going over, we flew from
to Ascension Island then to
Roberts Field in
flight south of
I'll will get the pictures to
you soon. Doug,
again
thanks for what you are doing. The 487th. Sgn. will live for a long time.
Jimmy
Hi Jimmy,
Have a look again.
I put up two more sub-pages for Missions and Alesan Life to test the
links. I would love to get more mission
pictures. I will correct the Free White
and filthy picture caption. I worked on
most of the pictures to enhance brightness and contrast. I think they show much better now. Do you have any more pictures of 487th BS
planes? The great pictures you have are
mostly 489th BS.
Long live the Black Knights of the 487th!
Cheers,
Doug Cook
Hi Doug,
Here are 3 pictures that might clear up some idenity
problems. No. 0001 Rt. to Lt. Whalen, Williams, Sqn.
Bomb, ??? Kline. Kenyon,
& Littlefield. No. 0002 is my crew, Lt. to Rt. Spurling,
Kenyon, Miller, Whalan, Littlefield
& Boaz. 0003 Lt. to Rt. Lincks, Faylor, Crandall, Littlefield, Miller,
Front row Whalen @ ???.
I'LL will send some others tomorrow.
Jimmy
Scan0001
Rt. to Lt. Whalen, Williams, Sqn. Bomb, ??? Kline. Kenyon,
& Littlefield.
Scan0002
my crew, Lt. to Rt. Spurling,
Kenyon, Miller, Whalan, Littlefield & Boaz.
0003 Lt. to Rt. Lincks,
Faylor, Crandall, Littlefield, Miller, Front row
Whalen @ ???.
Hi Doug,
I am sending the same picture back to you to see if it attached. Please Let me know.
In regard to7D, It's been a longtime since that happened ,
I can't say that it was my skill and determination that got us back. I did what
I had been taught to do to get the plane and crew back. It was something a lot
of pilots did from time to time. We were hit over the target and lost the right
engine and on this mission we were breaking left and down after we had dropped
our bombs so I lost a lot of altitude. The B-25 could maintain altitude on one
engine but couldn’t climb. we tossed out some
equipment that wasn't tied down in order to clear the mountains on
the mission as have it noted in my log book was Fano. I didn't keep very good records. 7D had no name or
nose art. We were leaking fuel
but we couldn't see it.
Do you have a colored picture of RumDum? I think it
was 7M I think that I flew my last mission in it. I am building a radio
controlled model of a B-25 and would mark it like 7M.
Jimmy
340th Bomb Group "Any Time, Any Where"
From: Mark McCandlish
[mailto:markmccandlish@c-zone.net]
Sent: Thursday, February 28, 2008 6:45 AM
To: BARBARA CONNOLLY; Cook, Douglas J.
Subject: Re: Mark McCandlish/Artist/Researcher
Hi,
Barbi, Doug--
Thanks,
Barbi, and I'll be happy to correspond with Doug if
he is interested. I have a personal interest in talking to him, since I
read recently where several researchers discovered what seems to suggest that
oil production below the ocean floor is "abiotic" that is, is an
ongoing biological process, that in one sense
disqualifies crude oil as a "fossil fuel". Apparently bacteria
in the Earth's crust are constantly creating more while digesting hydrocarbons
leaching into the rock from the oceans above (or something like
that). I guess that really shoots holes in the "peak oil"
theories we keep hearing about. Meanwhile, crude oil prices crept above
$105.00 a barrel on the international markets.... Ahem.
Warm
Regards
----- Original Message -----
From: Cook,
Douglas J.
Sent: Sunday, March 02, 2008 3:21 AM
Subject: RE: Mark McCandlish/Artist/Researcher
Hi Mark,
You have many
great B-25 shots on Barbi’s site from the 340th
BG 487th BS. I would like your permission to copy some of them
to my website;
I would credit you
and John Sutay as all right reserved. Can
you tell me more about John. Is he a
curator/archivist at NASM? Was he on
As to oil under
the ocean floor, abiotic means ‘no life involved’. Crude oil comes
from organic rich source rocks that are buries deep enough to get warm enough
(>250 deg F) to crack the kerogens in the rock
into oil and gas. The organic kerogen in the source rocks came from once
living algae and plankton that died, accumulated, and were buried (fossils) in
an oxygen starved ocean basin. The oil and gas slowly migrates into a
porous reservoir rock such as sandstone or limestone and is trapped there.
My job as an oil prospector is to find that trap and convince Saudi
Aramco to drill for it.
Bacteria may work
on woody organics in the relatively shallow subsurface and generate “biogenic’
methane. To date this is not an economic source of gas. On
the flip side, bacteria can eat any oil accumulation shallower than about 5000’
below the surface. I have participated in many research expeditions in
the
Oil is not being
created by organics from the ocean leaching down into the rocks.
Thanks and
regards,
Doug Cook
Sr. Geophysical Consultant
Saudi Aramco
From: Mark McCandlish
[mailto:markmccandlish@c-zone.net]
Sent: Sunday, March 02, 2008 10:11 PM
To: Cook, Douglas J.
Subject: Re: Mark McCandlish/Artist/Researcher
Hi, Doug,
Say, thanks for clearing up the information on "abiotic production" of oil in the crust. The article I read in the paper had it completely backwards! That's what the newspaper gets when they send someone with no technical background in to do an interview! Your job sounds very interesting. As an avid scuba diver,
with open water dives down to 150 feet (yeah, right; all of five minutes, LOL) I have always loved the ocean environment. If I hadn't been an artist, I might have been a marine biologist.
You have built a terrific website! I was really amazed at how extensive and detailed it is. Of course you can use the images. I have shots of several of the B-25's I saw over there. I think you'll enjoy looking through them. Just let me know how you'd like me to send them-- resolution-wise that is. (Or if you would prefer to copy them off the 57th BWA site.) There are programs available for resizing scanned images, as you are probably aware. I can even crop and detail small areas up to 3600dpi if you like. The resolution on these older shots doesn't quite hold up to that level of scrutiny, though.
Barbara said you might be interested in one of the "The High & The Mighty" prints, but I'm also available for private commissions if you wanted to document a particular aircraft your father flew in.
I think it's wonderful that you have dedicated so much effort to capturing the historical records and personal accounts of your father and the other great veterans who defended us back in WWII.
I feel a surprising connection with you already, inasmuchas your father passed away on my birthday, March 25th, 1994-- the first year Michele and I left southern California for Redding, (north of Sacramento) where we have lived for the past fourteen years. The mission depicted in the print took place exactly fifty years and one day prior to his passing. I guess they call that "synchronicity".
I haven't talked to John Sutay
since around the time I did the painting about seventeen years ago. He
may be deceased. I seem to recall his eyesight was failing
him. He may have had Retinitis Pigmentosa
(excuse any misspelling) or a similar disorder. The original 4 X 5
negatives I had professionally copied were from another veteran. His name
eludes me at the moment but I recall he lived in
Let me know how you would like to proceed.
Warm Regards,
Mark McCandlish
Hi Mark,
Thanks for
contacting me.
The pics from the 57th wing site are good resolution
for me. How should the credit be documented? Mark
McCandlish and John Sutay?
I’m still not sure who took the original photos or is that undocumented?
You can’t get any better than 4x5 format for original negs. I used to have a Rolleiflex
twin lens reflex camera and RolleiMarine housing for
U/W photography back in the stone age. Now
digital rules!
Who was John Sutay? Was he an archivist or a veteran who was
there?
My father’s
pictures were mostly 1” x 1” contact prints that I scanned at 300 DPI. I
was amazed at how much more detail was visible!
I am sincerely
interested in taking you up on a commissioned piece dedicated to my father or
more generically to honor the 487th BS to have a wider appeal for
sales. I’ll have to give it some thought for which plane and subject to
capture.
http://www.artprints.com/-ap/The-High-and-the-Mighty-Posters_p925_.htm Awesome!
I have recently
been in contact (email and phone) with David Konigsberg and James Littlefield
who were pilots in the 487th with my father. It has been an
honor to talk to them and to try to document their experiences on my website.
By the way, my techno-savvy daughter is appalled at my lack of html
skills in webpage authoring. I have settled into just using MS Word and
brute force!
Wow!
Synchronicity is strange! My birthday is March 25, 1955. My maternal
grandfather died on my 8th birthday and Dad died on my 39th
birthday. Chills????
Another
question: What sparked your enthusiasm for WWII aviators? I
see your great work on B-25’s and F-14’s on the web. Any
others?
We have a Saudi
air force base just outside our perimeter. We see F-15’s and Brit
Tornado’s up close and personal! When the F-15s land you can see
the pilot and here the hydraulics from the plane. Rarely at night they take of
on afterburners and ride a purple pillar of fire straight up to 40,000 feet!
Cheers from
Doug Cook
Hi Mark,
Hi,
Doug.
Thanks for
contacting me.
You're welcome.
The pics from the 57th wing site are good resolution
for me. How should the credit be documented? Mark
McCandlish and John Sutay?
Actually, I think Barbi may have goofed on that one. I seem to recall
that the set of negatives I was allowed to make contact copies of at a
professional photolab in
I’m
still not sure who took the original photos or is that undocumented? You
can’t get any better than 4x5 format for original negs. I used to have a Rolleiflex
twin lens reflex camera and RolleiMarine housing for
U/W photography back in the stone age. Now
digital rules!
I know; I feel
like such an antique processing my 35mm film at Walmart!
Who was John Sutay? Was he an archivist or a veteran who was
there?
(Answered
above).
My father’s
pictures were mostly 1” x 1” contact prints that I scanned at 300 DPI. I
was amazed at how much more detail was visible!
I know, one guy
from the unit sent me a 1 X 1 of Vesuvius as seen from the Pompeii Airdrome a
few day before it erupted. It was just sending
out a little smoke at the time.
I should try
scanning it if I can find the little guy!
I am sincerely
interested in taking you up on a commissioned piece dedicated to my father or
more generically to honor the 487th BS to have a wider appeal for
sales. I’ll have to give it some thought for which plane and subject to
capture.
I would love to
work with you on that. If you want to publish a lithograph, I have
published all four of the ones I sell. For a thousand sheets in four color, with separations, you're probably looking at between
$5-6K. I learned a lot about the process and what to look out for.
My original intent
was to depict a flight of B-25J's flying past the eruption of Vesuvius, but
they didn't make it into the Mediterranian MTO until
about April-May of 1944 from what I could tell. The eruption actually
accelerated that move, since 88 B-25C's and D's were lost during the
eruption. Mostly to falling "ejecta" about the size of a man's
head falling out of the smoke and ash overcast. It punched holes through
everything; even the tin roofs of the squadron Quonset huts! But
ultimately there were no B-25J's around
I have recently
been in contact (email and phone) with David Konigsberg and James Littlefield
who were pilots in the 487th with my father. It has been an
honor to talk to them and to try to document their experiences on my website.
By the way, my techno-savvy daughter is appalled at my lack of html
skills in webpage authoring. I have settled into just using MS Word and
brute force!
I can sympathize,
since I am self-taught on the computer. It took me a long time to figure
out that LOL meant "Laugh out loud" and not "Lots of
Love". Then there was "WTF".... LOL Not something I use BTW...
Wow!
Synchronicity is strange! My birthday is March 25, 1955. My maternal
grandfather died on my 8th birthday and Dad died on my 39th
birthday. Chills????
Most
definitely.
Another
question: What sparked your enthusiasm for WWII aviators?
I was telling Barbi that back in the 1960's I used to watch "Twelve O'Clock High" on TV and had the distinct feeling that
I had BEEN there. Kind of a reincarnation type of
thing I guess. I think I was a P-51 pilot
or something, because from the moment I layed eyes on
one in the air, it just grabbed me like nothing else I can name. But to
answer your question, that's where the interest started.
I see your
great work on B-25’s and F-14’s on the web. Any others?
Yes, there is one
print featuring a set of F-16's engaging some Iraqi MiG-25's in
"Mixing It Up At Nine G's" . The
background here is based on an actual photo I shot hanging from my ejection
seat straps in the back seat of an F-4 Phantom flying inverted over
And there's an
F/A-18A Hornet vs Soviet Mig-29 encounter in
"Stung By A Hornet". This was my first
piece that I published.
We have a Saudi
air force base just outside our perimeter. We see F-15’s and Brit
Tornado’s up close and personal! When the F-15s land you can see
the pilot and hear the hydraulics from the plane. Rarely at night they take of
on afterburners and ride a purple pillar of fire straight up to 40,000 feet!
The newer F-15E is
an amazing bird, but doesn't hold a candle to the maneuverability of the
F-16. I've had some stick time in both aircraft, although the F-15 and
F-16 I flew in were both two seat, trainer
models. In 1985 or thereabouts I bagged a media orientation ride in one
of the F-15's that replaced the F-106's that I worked on with the 318th Fighter
Interceptor Squadron (FIS) up at McChord
AFB, Tacoma, Washington, (circa 1974). The F-15 has a buffeting condition
due to its wing design and G-force limitation of about 7-8 G's. The whole
aircaft shudders like it's going to fall apart.
You can see this same kind of effect in a few of the F-14 Tomcat shots
with Tom Cruise in "Top Gun" if you watch closely. He's really
in a cockpit at speed. The buffeting becomes evident right as the editor
cuts to the next shot. The F-16, on the other hand, is like a shorty surf board. Highly maneuverable and very
sensitive to pilot input. I could barely control it at first. Just
the slightest movement, and ZOOM! It was
half a mile over in another direction! It could pull up to 12 G's but
most pilots can't keep their head awake above 9.3G's. I passed out at
about 9.1 ! It was quite a sensation...
Not a quick bang! yer out! but a slow, tunnel-vision experience that gradually
encroached on my field of vision culminating in a small window of black and
white imagery (normal size) like a 3 inch window at arm's length. Then it
got blurry, faded, then the sound slowly faded
too. Then I was gone. My color vision was the first thing to
go. It was literally like watching a old B&W
TV!
I look forward to
our future correspondence.
Salutations from
Mark
Cheers from
Doug Cook
Hi Jimmy,
Sorry I took so
long to reply. I have been out of the
country and just got back to my desk.
The picture came
through just fine.
I will certainly
be able to use it. I think my father was
on that mission and has a similar picture.
I will post this on your web page.
I haven’t yet read all my emails but I will be happy to use any other
pictures you have.
Thanks a million.
Doug
From: JAMES LITTLEFIELD
[mailto:jimmy1017@grandecom.net]
Sent: Monday, March 31, 2008 10:06 PM
To:
Subject: Emailing: Bomb pic 02
Hi Doug,
At long last I Think that I
will be able to send you some more pictures. I attended a computer class today
and I think that I can do it. Please let me know if it worked ok. The web site
really looks good . I really appreciate the work and
effort that you put into it. I'm sorry that it took me so long to send the pictures.
Jimmy
Korsika - The raids on Borgo-Poretta and Alesani from the German perspective
http://home.comcast.net/~dhsetzer/taghon/Korsika_index.htm
http://home.comcast.net/~dhsetzer/taghon/Taghon.pdf
From: Michael Zwierko
[mailto:purduemjz@msn.com]
Sent: Sunday, February 17, 2008 12:17 PM
To:
Subject: RE: 57th Bomb Wing in
Doug,
Thank you for the quick reply. It will take me some time to get the data together,
but it will be put on a CD as there are far too many photos to email at 300 dpi
a scan.
I was perusing your site and there is a group photo on the "Squadron
Album" page that shows your father on the far left and my great uncle
to his left with the dog "Rosie", so their service obviously
overlapped. I noticed that most of the mission crew lists on your site
are for late 1944 into 1945. Is there a resource where I might
be able to research earlier crew lists to find my great uncle's missions?
I know for a fact that he was part of the crew of B-25C "TUFF STUFF"
the day it was shot down, but I am guessing that the bombing mission aerial BDA
photos in his album represent some of his actual drops as bombardier. He
died in 1991 and I was too young at the time to get that in-depth with him
about his time with the 487th (I'm only 30). There are no surviving
family members that know enough about my great
uncle's service in WWII to provide detailed descriptions and that is why
I have undertaken the task to research it myself. I wish I could go
back in time to when I was a kid listening to him and his stories about
the war, I have so many questions I would ask
him. Unfortunately, I only have detailed information from what was
uncovered after he died.
My great uncle "Charlie" was a real hero of mine and probably one of
the most influential people in my life. I am incredibly proud of him
and your website has helped me connect with his past in a
very real way now that I am old enough to fully appreciate his service.
My family and I are grateful for resources such as your website and I look
forward to working with you as well.
Mike
5/4/08
Mike Hello again,
I just
wanted to know how your research project was going and to let you know about
some updates to my website. Your email underscored that I had been
neglecting material I have that predates my father’s entering the theater *late
Mar, 1944). I have scanned most of his 487th squadron album that
covers the inception of the 487th up to about May, 1944.
To guide
you down through the tree:
http://www.reddog1944.com/487th%20Squadron%20Index.htm
http://www.reddog1944.com/487th_Squadron_Album_History%20of%20the%20340th.htm expanded history
http://www.reddog1944.com/487th_Squadron_Album_Continued.htm bombing up to about
April 1944. At least one new picture of 7C in flight and missions
your uncle no doubt participated.
http://www.reddog1944.com/487th_Personnel.htm
alphabetical personnel listing to about May
1944- I don’t find a Zwierko, what
was your uncle’s name?
Please
keep in touch,
Regards,
Doug
Cook
From: Michael Zwierko
[mailto:purduemjz@msn.com]
Sent: Tuesday, May 06, 2008 10:26 PM
To: Cook, Douglas J.
Cc: mrtarkany@comcast.net; tmcgill@insdra.com;
Dennis.Schang@toyoda-na.com; iris@mchsi.com; rose; Butterbaugh, Todd; BARBARA
CONNOLLY; Robert w Gaffney; jimmy1017@grandecom.net
Subject: RE: 487th BS 340th BG TUFF STUFF
Doug,
Thank you for the updates, it is great to see more history uncovered and
presented to the masses! My great uncle is indeed on the crew listing you
linked, but his last name was not Zwierko, it was Klujsza
(Casimir, better known as "Charlie").
His
I am wading through a lot of his stuff and it is taking longer than expected
due to outside issues taking a much higher priority. I am working on it,
however. I have obtained his handwritten mission logs for all of his 51
missions and he was extremely thorough in his descriptions and details up until
his last missions (his early logs are the most comprehensive, his later logs
feature a date and a tail code). I am going to have these included in the
scans. Lots of target photos and other memorabilia.
My aunt has all of the love letters he wrote to my great aunt, but they are
personal and I would rather not make them public. Suffice it to say,
there is a lot of new history to report.
Thank you again for the updates and extra data. As always, if you see
anything about 1LT Casimir Klujsza
or either of the B-25's called "TUFF STUFF/7M", I am very interested.
Take care.
Mike
Mike,
I’m glad you got
something out of the latest uploads. I look forward to getting your scans
and will be honored to dedicate a page to Charlie Klujsza.
Regards,
Doug
Mark,
Thanks for the material on the 487th BS "Dogface
Squadron". With your permission, I
would like to post it with a credit to you.
Regards,
Doug Cook
-----Original Message-----
From: Navarro, Mark [mailto:mnavarro@utmb.edu]
Sent: Thursday, May 22, 2008 11:31 PM
To: Cook, Douglas J.
Subject: Dogface Squadron
Hi Doug
I found these documents at an antique shop in
website when I tried to find
more information on the squadron and
thought you might like to take a
look.
Regards
Mark Navarro
From: Ann Buechler
[mailto:teh_annah@hotmail.com]
Sent: Sunday, June 08, 2008 6:51 AM
To: Cook, Douglas J.
Subject: A few questions
Mr.Doug
Cook,
My name is Ann Buechler and I am currently doing some research on my
great-uncle that was in the same squadron as Charles Cook. If Mr. Charles Cook
is by any chance still alive, I was wondering if you could please ask him about
a 2nd Lt. named Harley Anderson from
Thank you much.
Ann Buechler
Hi Ann,
Thanks for writing
to me. I am inspired to keep expanding
the web pages about our WWII Air Corps vets and fallen heroes especially as a
research place for families like yours. My father passed in 1995. I have been in contact with a few surviving
vets of the 487th but their service was in 1944-45. Action in
This part of the
website shows mission photos from
http://www.reddog1944.com/487th_Squadron_Album_Continued.htm
This article
somewhat documents what the 487th Squadron did for the GI’s on the
ground in that part of the campaign in support of Messina Straights, Randazzo, and
http://www.reddog1944.com/Dogface_Squadron.htm
If you have any
more information on your great uncle you want to pass along (what was his
position on the B-25, training photos, stories from letters home, him pictured
with family, etc.), I would be happy to post it on a new web page and dedicate
it to him.
If you know any
more specifics we may be able to get some info from other govt. archives: Date of the mission he was shot down and his
Service number (military ID #) would be most helpful.
You can try to get
his service records:
I was successful
getting a gold mine of records for my father-in-law.
For a fee you can
get the MACR Missing
Air Crew Report) report:
http://www.accident-report.com/prices.html
or
http://www.airforcehistory.hq.af.mil/faq/MACR.htm
I would be happy
put up a section dedicated to him if you can put some of his story together.
Regards,
Doug Cook
Dhahran
Ann,
Here’s more:
http://www.reddog1944.com/487th_Squadron_Album_History%20of%20the%20340th.htm
Harley was a pilot and we have his Service
number. He was killed in action on 10
Sept 1943.
This page shows
crews from that era and names “
http://www.reddog1944.com/487th_Squadron_Album_History%20of%20the%20340th.htm#Crews
Missions on 10
Sept 43:
http://www.reddog1944.com/340th%20Bomb%20Group%20Missions2.htm
Ann, your latest
history files shows that Harley’s fatal mission began Sept 9 1943 (night
mission to Grazzanise L/G). Sept
10 was shown in the squadron album as the date of Harley being killed in
action.
487th Bases:
http://www.reddog1944.com/487th_Squadron_Album_History%20of%20the%20340th.htm
El Kabrit, Egypt, March
1943
Medenine,
Tunisia, March 1943
Sfax, Tunisia,
Apr. 1943
Hergla,
Tunisia, 2 June 1943
Comiso,
Sicily, 2 August 1943
Catania,
Sicily, 27 August 1943
San Pancrazio, Italy, 15 October 1943
Foggia, Italy, 19 November 1943
Pompeii, Italy, 2 Jan. 1944
Guado (Paestum), Italy,
23 March 1944
Corsica, 14
April 1944
From: Ann Buechler
[mailto:teh_annah@hotmail.com]
Sent: Sunday, June 08, 2008 5:35 PM
To: Cook, Douglas J.
Subject: RE: 487th Squadron : A few questions
Doug,
I'm heading over to my grandmother's house today and she is the one that was
given all the photos of Harley. If I am lucky, maybe they still have some of
the letters he sent home. I can see if I could borrow them and scan them,
then send them to you. I know, from what my
grandmother has told me, he was a co-pilot. However, she doesn't remember much
else, since she was only nine when he died.
Also, I did some digging around and here are copies of his enlistment
information and his death.
Harley H. Anderson
Second Lieutenant, U.S. Army Air Forces
Service # O1704114
487th Bomber Squadron, 340th Bomber Group, Medium
Entered the Service from: Minnesota
Died: 10-Sep-43
Buried at: Plot D Row 13 Grave 26
Sicily-Rome American Cemetery
Nettuno, Italy
Awards: Air Medal with 4 Oak Leaf Clusters, Purple Heart
I also found his enlistment papers.
Name: Harley H Anderson
Birth Year: 1920
Race: White, citizen (White)
Nativity State or Country: Minnesota
State: Minnesota
County or City: Rock
Enlistment Date: 6 Sep 1942
Enlistment State: Georgia
Enlistment City: Moody Field Valdosta
Branch: Air Corps
Branch Code: Air Corps
Grade: Staff Sergeant
Grade Code: Staff Sergeant
Term of Enlistment: Enlistment for the duration of the War or other emergency,
plus six months, subject to the discretion of the President or otherwise
according to law
Component: Army of the United States - includes the following: Voluntary
enlistments effective December 8, 1941 and thereafter; One year enlistments of
National Guardsman whose State enlistment expires while in the Federal Service;
Officers appointed in the Army of
Source: Enlisted Man, Regular Army, within 3 months of Discharge or former WAAC
Auxiliary
Education: 4 years of high school
Civil Occupation: Upholsterer
Marital Status: Married
Height: 70
Weight: 138
I hope this is helpful. Thank you!
Ann
Doug,
I asked my grandmother if she had anything of Harley's when I saw her today.
Unfortunately, she only has a photo of him with my Great-Aunt Florence, his
wife, and a photo that you have on the site. He's standing by the Rum Dum,
between Sather and Crane, looking away from/above the camera. Anyway, the story
is that my aunt had everything of Harley's in a trunk after he died, and after
she married again, the trunk became lost and no one in our family knew what
happened to it. Such a loss. I also recieved an email from Mr. Setzer, whose father also served
in the same squadron. He had found information about the fatal mission.
My grandmother is very interested in my research and is excited to know that I
am in contact with relatives of men that Harley served with.
Thanks,
Ann
Doug,
Here are a few scans of information about Harley for you. I will have to e-mail
my cousin to get a high-definition scan of the photo you already have. The
first one is a photo of Harley and my Great-Aunt Florence at the beginning of
his training. The three other scans are information about his mission and his
death.
Ann
Subject: RE: New webpage dedicated to
Harley Anderson
Doug,
I know you have done so much for both me and my Grandmother and I greatly
appreciate it, but I have one more favor to ask you. I wish to come in contact
with some of the men who my great-uncle served with. Do you know anyone or
their families who might have served around the same time Harley did? A list
would be just enough. I can do the rest, but I don't even know where to begin
to find the names...
Also, I hope to soon contact my second cousin-our family and hers are on bad
relations-in hopes of her knowing the where-abouts of
her mother's treasured chest filled with Uncle-Harley's things. Either way, I
greatly appreciate your compassion and your persistence in helping me find
information on Harley.
Ann
Ann,
This may be like
finding a needle in a haystack but through my website I did find one man, David
Konigsberg, who knew my father because he contacted me. They were in theater beginning Mar 1944 after
Harley.
I am sending you a
dated list of 487th Squadron reunion attendees (credit Hank Del Percio) and the personnel listing up to May 1944 that
included Harley. You can try to
cross-reference and start calling.
Hi Doug,
I had a very nice reunion
with my radio-gunner this past weekend. His Son-in-law and his Granddaughter
come with him. We had a nice visit after 63 years.
I'm hoping to send a picture
of the nose art of a plane that I flew and would like make my model look like. I think that this plane was 7U but I'm not
positive. I'm hoping that you know and also know the serial number of this
plane.
Jimmy
From: JAMES LITTLEFIELD
[mailto:jimmy1017@grandecom.net]
Sent: Wednesday, July 16, 2008 9:54 PM
To:
Subject: July 4th.
Hi Doug,
Here is a
picture of me and JoeWhalen. Joe was my radio-gunner.
Hi Doug.
This is our 4 July 1944
celebration at Joe's Place. We had hamburgers and cokes etc. Ray Spurling is no. 4 from the left and I am the raunchy one in
the 7th. space from the left. I think that maybe I
have learned how to send pictures , I hope. I had a
man come out today to help me straighten out my computer and show me what that
I was doing wrong. I sure hope that this will get to you, let me know if you
get this and another that I sent earlier today.
Thanks
Jimmy
From: JAMES LITTLEFIELD
[mailto:jimmy1017@grandecom.net]
Sent: Tuesday, July 22, 2008 12:33 AM
To: Cook, Douglas J.
Subject: a picture for you
Hi Doug,
Here's another bomb picture
that I don't think I have sent.
Jimmy
Hi Jimmy,
I got the picture
and it read
Thanks and best
regards,
Rub al
Khali Team Leader
Area
Exploration Department
Saudi
Aramco
Phone 966-3-873-7724
Personnel Listing:
http://www.reddog1944.com/487th_Personnel.htm
Another tactic:
Join this group
and make a request for contacts through their forums:
Join this group
and make a request for contacts through their forums ( 57th
Bomb Wing; 340th Bomb Group; 487th Bomb Squadron)
You will find that
many family members are on the same quest but be patient- you may find the
needle in the haystack.
Regards,
Doug Cook
From: JAMES LITTLEFIELD
[mailto:jimmy1017@grandecom.net]
Sent: Wednesday, July 02, 2008 10:19 PM
To: Cook, Douglas J.
Subject: Noseart
Hi Doug,
I had a very nice reunion
with my radio-gunner Joe Whalen this past weekend (sent July 2, 2008). His Son-in-law
and his Granddaughter come with him. We had a nice visit after 63 years.
I'm hoping to send a picture
of the nose art of a plane that I flew and would like make my model look liket. I think that this plane was 7U but I'm not positive.
I'm hoping that you know and also know the serial number of this plane.
Jimmy
Hi Doug.
This is our 4 July 1944
celebration at Joe's Place. We had hamburgers and cokes etc. Ray Spurling is no. 4 from the left and I am the raunchy one in
the 7th. space from the left
Here is a
picture of me and Joe Whalen. Joe was my radio-gunner.
Jimmy
Hi Jimmy,
I got the picture
and it read
Thanks and best
regards,
Doug Cook
Area Exploration Department
Saudi Aramco
Phone
966-3-873-7724
From: JAMES LITTLEFIELD [mailto:jimmy1017@grandecom.net]
Sent: Tuesday, July 22, 2008 12:33 AM
To: Cook, Douglas J.
Subject: a picture for you
Hi Doug,
Here's another bomb picture
that I don't think I have sent.
Jimmy
From: Dan & Cyd Setzer
[mailto:dhsetzer@comcast.net]
Sent: Tuesday, July 22, 2008 3:52 AM
To: ;
Subject: There is a Catch...
Dear Folks,
I am working on a paper that I am calling, "The Historical Sources for the Events in Joseph Heller's Novel, Catch-22."
In the paper I attempt to make three points:
1. Due to its content and artistic merit, Catch-22 will remain a classic of world literature for generations to come.
2. As far as the events depicted in the novel are concerned, Joseph Heller did not make anything up.
3. Due to the close connection between
the historical events on
It is still very much a 'work in progress,' but I am to the point where I need the input from a panel of experts. If you have the time to glance at a few pages, please let me know if I have made any factual errors. Also, if you are aware of connections between the novel and historic events or people that I have missed, please let me know that also.
There are still details to clean up and, before I go public, I do need to be polite and ask Don Kaiser, Bud and others for permission to use the photos that I flitched from their web sites to illustrate some of the points I needed to make.
I will deeply appreciate any feedback you are able to offer...good, bad or ugly.
Please take a look (1MB PDF file): http://home.comcast.net/~dhsetzer/JHeller_draft.pdf
--
Daniel Setzer
Son of Sgt. Hymie Setzer, 340th BG 487th BS
http://home.comcast.net/~dhsetzer
Dan,
I am as a son of a
487th Squadron vet and as much interested in 340th BG
history as anyone. I have tried several times to read Catch 22 and just
can’t get through it. If you have read Harry George’s “Georgio Italiano” you will read a
veteran pilot’s words tearing Catch 22 to pieces. Google Harry George
“Georgio Italiano and
you will find the reference or try Amazon where I bought my copy.
Regards,
Doug Cook
Area Exploration Department
Saudi Aramco
Phone 966-3-873-7724