Warbird Information Exchange

Many, many times I have tried to put myself in the shoes of the many WW2 veterans who flew so many missions throughout the war. For the life of me, I just cannot get close to realizing just what horror they must have endured. I've read all the books, seen all the film footage, etc. ... but nothing comes close. It really never will. I know that youth creates a false sense of courage and the thought that "the other guy" will get it, was always in their minds, but there's no way any of us could ever imagine the true terror of going on a mission with such odds against us of not surviving, unless we were actually there. And those hero's are leaving us so fast now. My questions to you:

1. Would you rather have been a fighter pilot? as opposed to a bomber pilot, dive-bomber pilot, torpedo pilot? And would you like to be the leader of the mission or follow the leader of the mission?

2. Would you rather have had someone else be the pilot on command and you either be a co-pilot or gunner, etc.

3. Would you have rather been a supply, cargo pilot (C-47, C-46) or patrol pilot (PBY) to possibly avoid real heavy combat missions.

4. Would you have rather been any of the above pilots in the Pacific or Europe? USAAF, USN, USMC?

5. If you had a choice of allied countries you could be any of the above pilots? ... which country and why?

6. Are you the hero type or someone who just wanted to get home without being in harms way?

7. Remember, being a fighter pilot is all glamorous, but you are always alone and every aspect of a mission falls on your shoulders. Would you want this type a responsibility?

8. Would you rather be a leader that never flys the missions, but sends young men on these missions, well knowing that many won't come back. I understand the need to send them, but how would you feel personally?

I've really thought about all this many times, I'm no coward, I think I'm a leader type, but how can I say I would embrace being a hero type when it really mattered? ... would I panick and turn away from a dogfight or dive right in?

My answers:

1.) I think my personality would say I would want to be a fighter pilot. I like the fighter's ability to get out of trouble using manuevrability. I think I would have want to fly a Spitfire or Mosquito. I like the Mossie because it flew some really exciting, dangerous, and sneaky missions. I would have been scared sh*tless to fly bombers. The crews of all those planes really stuck their neck out for us.

2.) I would prefer to be PIC.

3.) As exciting as being a fighter pilot would be, I imagine that if given the option I'd prefer to have my life as far out of danger as I could, so flying a PBY or C-47 would be nice. Obviously, back then they didn't have too much of a choice though.

4.) Again, I don't think pilots got much of a choice. If I could, I would like to have been sent to Europe, and fly with the RCAF or RAF, but then again the weather was nicer in the Pacific theatre, so maybe the RAAF.

5.) RCAF, RAF, or RAAF.

6.) I think that I would try and keep myself coming home after each mission as best as I could. I'd try my best to fly smart and try to accomplish the goals of the mission. I think most of all I'd like to be a lucky pilot.

7.) Seeing as how I quite often like to work alone, I might be better suited for fighter missions. Obviously, as a team of aircraft the mission would more easily attained.

8.) It would be tough to sit on the ground while sending young men into combat, knowing that you'd be safe while their lives are on the line. But, in the back of my mind I would glad I wasn't on the front line. As a pilot though, and having served long enough to attain a CO position or some sort of "safer" desk job, I think I would want to be out there flying. If I were to be in that position I would probably think that my skills and experience would be best used out there, to avoid sending inexperienced pilots to their death.

and as your last comment was eluding to, I think I would be scared as sh*t to jump into a dogfight. I expect that I would hang back from the big fight and wait for the right opportunities to present themselves.

And on a final note.... I'm glad I never had to deal with the stresses, the highs, and the lows of flying WWII aerial combat. It's scary stuff. When I really think about it. Anything could happen. I could have a mechanical or structural failure and crash, I could be taken completely by surprise and shot down, or I could survive the war totally unscathed. The difference between those options is merely luck and being in the right/wrong place at the right/wrong time.

I look forward to hearing what over people say.

Cheers,

David

Here it goes:

1- I think most pilots have, or had the urge to be a fighter pilot. This is one way, if not the only, they can prove to themselves, as individuals, that they are good in what they’re doing. So yes, I would have been a fighter pilot.

2- I think this has to do more to you, and everyone, from the way you act and react to stressful situations on your normal day to day life. In a group of people you always see who’s a natural leader and who is not. The way I see myself I would not be that one for a while, but after much learning could eventually turn out to be one. I’m not saying I’m good or something, but eventually you get the hang of leadership as times passes by. But many have this inside themselves as a natural thing. The basic question you could ask is: In your line of work today, do you have the skills, knowhow and courage to lead a team? Here in WIX you can always tell who is good and who has less knowledge (myself for example). Again, I’m not saying these people will succeed under a stressful situation, but they at least show some kind of natural leadership. Or WIX wouldn’t have MVP’s or CO-MVP’s for that matter.

3- No, I would jump to fighter pilot. During WWII you didn’t hear much of the horrors that were happening in the front. Although many pilots nicknamed their B-17’s as Flying Coffins, rather than Flying Fortress, especially during the 1943 raids over Europe, much of this information didn’t really reach home. If they did, they were discarded. They, in those times of crisis, were willing to do their best and to defend their country from an evil empire.

4- If I had the choice, I would choose Europe and USAAF.

5- US that is where I live, but that’s an obvious answer. We had the best equipment available and we were the forward spear of the fighting forces. Please, understand that I’m not diminishing the allied forces that fought against the Axis Empire. Everybody did their job and everyone did it well.

6- For a good cause, that I truly believed, I would put myself in harm’s way. I, myself, am not one to run away when the whole world is for clamoring for your commitment.

7- Maybe it’s all glamorous the way we see it today. But it really could be a horrifying experience. On top of that most missions were based on team effort. You had to rely on a group of professionals to get things done.

8- A leader without real experience, for me, is not valid. For instance, if you have a boss, would you like for him to lead you into something without him having any experience in your line of work? A good leader has to be charismatic, know what he is doing and already have done it. As an example, I think the best coaches (in Football, Baseball) are those who, themselves, were players in the past.

Cheers,
SC

Here's something else that has been a thought in my mind .... You're a 19 year old waste gunner in a B-17, you're on another mission that Lt. Smith has taken you on several times and has told you to just be sharp and do your job and he'll bring you home. And he has so far, so you believe that whatever Lt. Smith says will be a fact. You feel this sense of safety with your two pilots and that they would never not get you home. All of a sudden your falling from the sky, you have no idea what just happened, but your falling to earth. You can see B-17's flying by and away from you. Everything is surreal now, everything is so fast, yet in slow motion. All you hear and feel is wind. You have no real thoughts in your mind that make sense, but you seem to instintively open your shute and now things show down for you to try to figure out what happened. You are now beginning to understand that you are no longer a waste gunner, that you are simply floating to earth. You see a few shutes around you and this gives you a sense that you're not alone and when you get down the others will help you to understand what happened. Now your floating, time is slower now and you stop trying to figure out what happened and start looking down to where you are going. You start to think about what happens next. Where will you sleep tonight? who will feed you? will the people below be nice? I didn't hurt anyone personally. Or god forbid, will they be mean and try to kill you with a pitchfork or gun you down? but you see a few shutes near to you, they'll figure it out, won't they? .... is my war over now, will I be able to go home soon, I don't want to play war anymore. I just want to go home.

This is a dream I have had many times. Anyone else?

I'd highly recommend, "Fading Wings, Faded Glory" by John Dinnou. (out of print but still available)
It tells the story of my Dad, John, Frank Carter and Dick Dowiatt, four 19 year old kids through training and the war.

A great insight to reality. Read this then answer the questions...

I spoke with Dad, John, Dad's crew chief and all said, they had no great emotional tie to the war (1943) but wanted to fly those big, high HP aircraft.

Interesting perspective. They were still pretty brave SOB's.

_________________
"There are old pilots and bold pilots but few old, bold pilots."

If you ever been in a car crash, that is also life threatening, the story you told is the same what happened to me. Obviously I didn’t end up in an occupied country but the sensation was, in a way, the same. You don’t know it’s going to happen, but when it happens you know you’re in it. When everything stops, low whispers become loud cries, people you didn’t notice are jumping to help you and all of a sudden you’re in full alert, adrenaline is pumping in your veins, but you are shaken and confused. After accessing the damages, the next thing you want is to go home. That’s what I felt.
SC.

What gets me is the amount of responsibility some of these guys had despite their ages. Paul Tibbets was just 31 when handed the Silverplate information. Von Richtofen was just 26 when he was killed. Dick Bong was 25. The Apollo 11 crew were in their late thirties when they went to the moon. Just think about everything they (and the other astronauts) had to accomplish while in their twenties in order to get as far as a crew assignment.

It just blows me away how capable these guys and the other thousands who went in, did their jobs with honor and precision were.

That was sort of off topic- sorry