Masters Of The Air
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Can't wait. As many know, but others don't, this is the third of the Speilberg/Hanks WW2 series. The first was Band of Brothers, which I believe is the best series of all time. The second was "The Pacific" which was about the Pacific theater of WW2. While good, it was very dark and difficult to watch. But it was the breakout of Rami Malek as an actor. He stole the show.
Also, as I've posted before, the man who hired me out of college was a man named Norman Graham from Jeannette PA. Norm was the lead navigator of the "Bloody 100th" (351st Bombardment Squadron) when the war ended. On lazy days he told us stories of:
I was so blessed to be hired by him and he's inspired me every day of my career.
Also, as I've posted before, the man who hired me out of college was a man named Norman Graham from Jeannette PA. Norm was the lead navigator of the "Bloody 100th" (351st Bombardment Squadron) when the war ended. On lazy days he told us stories of:
- Two missions as a waist gunner as he got to camp as a rookie and his orders were misinterpreted (all paperwork) and the commander told him to go to a specific B-17 as a waist gunner. A couple of weeks in, the captain found the mistake and went to leadership to let them know Norm was trained as a Navigator.
- Being part of a five-plane mission to bait German Jets (ME262) into a dogfight with P-51s
- Being lead nav and how to arrange 100+ B17s in formation for a strike deep in Germany
- Navigating with as sextant and slide rule while the air battle raged
- Trying to Nav over a target while being hammered by flak and german fighters
- Shooting down a German Fighter, he believed he was the only Navigator to have a "kill"
- Getting into a physical fight with a woman who lived in Hamburg whom he met at a holiday party in the 70's after she learned he was a B17 Crew Member. She attacked him when a mutual friend told her that he was the lead nav for the 100th. 526 B-17s hit Hamburg and the surrounding area on December 31st, 1944
- Visiting a German concentration camp.
I was so blessed to be hired by him and he's inspired me every day of my career.
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If you haven't yet, read the book. It is one of the best, if not the best WWII books I've ever read and I have read manyCan't wait. As many know, but others don't, this is the third of the Speilberg/Hanks WW2 series. The first was Band of Brothers, which I believe is the best series of all time. The second was "The Pacific" which was about the Pacific theater of WW2. While good, it was very dark and difficult to watch. But it was the breakout of Rami Malek as an actor. He stole the show.
Also, as I've posted before, the man who hired me out of college was a man named Norman Graham from Jeannette PA. Norm was the lead navigator of the "Bloody 100th" (351st Bombardment Squadron) when the war ended. On lazy days he told us stories of:
- Two missions as a waist gunner as he got to camp as a rookie and his orders were misinterpreted (all paperwork) and the commander told him to go to a specific B-17 as a waist gunner. A couple of weeks in, the captain found the mistake and went to leadership to let them know Norm was trained as a Navigator.
- Being part of a five-plane mission to bait German Jets (ME262) into a dogfight with P-51s
- Being lead nav and how to arrange 100+ B52s in formation for a strike deep in Germany
- Navigating with as sextant and slide rule while the air battle raged
- Trying to Nav over a target while being hammered by flak and german fighters
- Shooting down a German Fighter, he believed he was the only Navigator to have a "kill"
- Getting into a physical fight with a woman who lived in Hamburg whom he met at a holiday party in the 70's after she learned he was a B17 Crew Member. She attacked him when a mutual friend told her that he was the lead nav for the 100th. 526 B-17s hit Hamburg and the surrounding area on December 31st, 1944
- Visiting a German concentration camp.
I was so blessed to be hired by him and he's inspired me every day of my career.
By the way, if you read the links on Norm Graham above, there is a guy named "Paterno" who flew with Norm. I wonder if he is related.
My father was a bombardier on a B 24 with the forgotten 15th in Italy.Can't wait. As many know, but others don't, this is the third of the Speilberg/Hanks WW2 series. The first was Band of Brothers, which I believe is the best series of all time. The second was "The Pacific" which was about the Pacific theater of WW2. While good, it was very dark and difficult to watch. But it was the breakout of Rami Malek as an actor. He stole the show.
Also, as I've posted before, the man who hired me out of college was a man named Norman Graham from Jeannette PA. Norm was the lead navigator of the "Bloody 100th" (351st Bombardment Squadron) when the war ended. On lazy days he told us stories of:
- Two missions as a waist gunner as he got to camp as a rookie and his orders were misinterpreted (all paperwork) and the commander told him to go to a specific B-17 as a waist gunner. A couple of weeks in, the captain found the mistake and went to leadership to let them know Norm was trained as a Navigator.
- Being part of a five-plane mission to bait German Jets (ME262) into a dogfight with P-51s
- Being lead nav and how to arrange 100+ B52s in formation for a strike deep in Germany
- Navigating with as sextant and slide rule while the air battle raged
- Trying to Nav over a target while being hammered by flak and german fighters
- Shooting down a German Fighter, he believed he was the only Navigator to have a "kill"
- Getting into a physical fight with a woman who lived in Hamburg whom he met at a holiday party in the 70's after she learned he was a B17 Crew Member. She attacked him when a mutual friend told her that he was the lead nav for the 100th. 526 B-17s hit Hamburg and the surrounding area on December 31st, 1944
- Visiting a German concentration camp.
I was so blessed to be hired by him and he's inspired me every day of my career.
485th Bomb Group
831rst Squadron
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Yes, over 30 , I believe 27 with his original plane/crew, and additional missions as a make up bombardier on other planes that had lost personnel in previous missions.
Was shot down on final mission.
The greatest generation.
Perhaps you can confirm...I've been told that if a crew member can survive the initial capture, they were treated very well because a) they were officers and b) they were considered gentlemen. The challenge is that front line soldiers and citizens often would shoot to kill upon sight. But if a guy ended up getting captured he was treated pretty well.
He was never captured, shot down in Northern Italy, two or three crew members died, two or three crew members captured, five crew members walked to Yugoslavia with the aid of anti Mussolini Italian partisans and pro Tito Yugoslavian partisans.
From Yugoslavia, flown out on a clandestine aircraft that had flown in with armaments for Tito’s men.
Wow great story. Had to be a difficult journey to freedom. Hope he or one of you kids wrote it down with details.
Only know bits and pieces. My father did not talk about it and he passed away when I was 15. Most of what we know came from my uncle, older cousin and from the squadron historian who I corresponded with over the phone and through email.
We cannot imagine the hell of war. When I hear the National anthem at Beaver. I think of all the kids that died in that hell. I always tear up.
my family makes fun of me because I'll watch the hallmark channel, or whatever, with them. They'll go to bed and I put on the History Channel or whatever war stories I can find. They'll walk in and say "Oh, you have the Hitler channel on". And I'll respond "No, these are Japanese and they look nothing alike!". Seriously, I find it fascinating that a) the world can get to this place and b) our ancestors sacrificed so much for us to live as privileged as we do.
You have an error in ur 2nd bullet point. I believe you meant to type B25 instead if "B52". B52s are USAF from 50's and of course remain as a key peace of STRATCOM air platforms. Those guys are legendary. So cool you worked for him.Can't wait. As many know, but others don't, this is the third of the Speilberg/Hanks WW2 series. The first was Band of Brothers, which I believe is the best series of all time. The second was "The Pacific" which was about the Pacific theater of WW2. While good, it was very dark and difficult to watch. But it was the breakout of Rami Malek as an actor. He stole the show.
Also, as I've posted before, the man who hired me out of college was a man named Norman Graham from Jeannette PA. Norm was the lead navigator of the "Bloody 100th" (351st Bombardment Squadron) when the war ended. On lazy days he told us stories of:
- Two missions as a waist gunner as he got to camp as a rookie and his orders were misinterpreted (all paperwork) and the commander told him to go to a specific B-17 as a waist gunner. A couple of weeks in, the captain found the mistake and went to leadership to let them know Norm was trained as a Navigator.
- Being part of a five-plane mission to bait German Jets (ME262) into a dogfight with P-51s
- Being lead nav and how to arrange 100+ B52s in formation for a strike deep in Germany
- Navigating with as sextant and slide rule while the air battle raged
- Trying to Nav over a target while being hammered by flak and german fighters
- Shooting down a German Fighter, he believed he was the only Navigator to have a "kill"
- Getting into a physical fight with a woman who lived in Hamburg whom he met at a holiday party in the 70's after she learned he was a B17 Crew Member. She attacked him when a mutual friend told her that he was the lead nav for the 100th. 526 B-17s hit Hamburg and the surrounding area on December 31st, 1944
- Visiting a German concentration camp.
I was so blessed to be hired by him and he's inspired me every day of my career.
I’ve been waiting 2 years for this series to be released. Praying it does not disappoint. Early on the causality rates of day bombers over Germany were astronomical.
Just found out this past summer that my uncle worked on the team that developed the proximity fuse. It was a critical development that protected England from V2 rockets and was instrumental in taking down the Luftwaffe which turned the path of the war by making the skies safer for our planes. Was also critical in the Battle of the Bulge.
My cousin didn’t know any details other than his father told him he was the team over forty years after the war. That’s how dedicated to the secrets and the country that generation was.
Proximity fuze - Wikipedia
A poignent book I was recommended is Masters of the Air by Donald Miller. One key statistic is more airmen were killed in the war over the sky than Marines in the Pacific. Striking and sad.
I once read somewhere that you were better off being a POW in Europe because of the fanaticism of the Japanese and their strict adherence to codes of honor. I have heard stories about the Battan death march where they wouldn't hesitate to shoot or behead prisoners who fell out of line, I am familiar with the Malmedy massacre during the Battle of the Bulge, but that was the exception in Europe where it was the norm in the Pacific. It amazes me after reading about how Japan treated allied pow's how any of them could resist punching a Japanese male if he passed him on the street.
Agreed but it is hard to sort out. First airborne killed many Germans on DDay who had surrendered because they had no resources to deal with them. Market garden too. I know Korea was no treat for Korean POWs
It was our obligation to reach our kids about these things. My kids are patriotic but one us a far left contrarion.
When you refuse to forgive people, you give them control over you. .
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I've rewatched Band of Brothers around 10 times since it came out in 2001. Never gets old. I've watched The Pacific twice. It's good but not nearly on the level of BofB, which I think is the best tv series ever. Have high hopes for Masters of the Air. Part of the reason BofB was so good is that it was based on Stephen Ambrose's book of the same name. Never read Masters of the Air but hope it has the same tightness of story, character dev, dialogue and drama as BofB.
I totally agree with your take. My only critique is that BoB kind of whitewashed a lot of the horror of war. For example, in episode 2 when the lieutenant mows down captured Germans because they really had no way to accommodate POWs and they couldn't let them go.
And to BoB versus Pacific, BoB is a much easier story to tell. It starts late in the war and focuses on a less than one-year initiative starting June 6th, 1944. The Pacific stars much earlier and has to meld together initiatives all over small islands all over the South Pacific. The first episode is the Battle of Tenaru which took place in August of 1942. The second is Guadalcanal which took place starting Aug 42~Feb 43. Also, BoB takes place in Western Europe which is very similar, culturally/environmentally/topografully (sic) to the USA. While BoB was probably more entertaining, I leaned more watching The Pacific.
BTW, my uncle was decorated for saving two Marine's lives at Tarawa. As I understand it, Tarawa was the first of the island-hopping strategy of the Marines. Tarawa was considered a test case. The concept was to attack at low tide as the Tarawa beach was steep and it would give them more room to establish a beachhead. Unfortunately, the coral reefs 1000 yards offshore were only 4 feet from the water's surface and the Higgins boats required 5 feet. the first wave got stuck on the reefs and were used as target practice by the Japs. The Marines ended up wading onto shore while facing withering machine gun fire. The admiral in charge suspended the landing and the first wave of marines had to make do with only what they could carry that first night on the beach. The next morning they launched the assault again and had success. My uncle's Higgins must have gotten stuck. There were two Marines wounded and my uncle jumped off the Higgins boat and dragged them back to it. It then, apparently, headed back to the ship. We have the newspaper article.
One from the Greatest Generation. Today's Gen Z'ers should take note. True patriots.
I remember hearing proximity fuses devastated Japanese aircraft in Pacific. Navy relied heavily on them.Just found out this past summer that my uncle worked on the team that developed the proximity fuse. It was a critical development that protected England from V2 rockets and was instrumental in taking down the Luftwaffe which turned the path of the war by making the skies safer for our planes. Was also critical in the Battle of the Bulge.
My cousin didn’t know any details other than his father told him he was the team over forty years after the war. That’s how dedicated to the secrets and the country that generation was.
Proximity fuze - Wikipedia
en.m.wikipedia.org
The proximity fuse brought about the creation of the kamikaze. The fuse was such a devastating weapon that it was deliberately held back from artillery use, only being allowed over water because the army was terrified the Germans might get a hold of one.
True. But they were so effective that the Army insisted on using them. Read one report it took 1,000 rounds of flack to take down a single plane. The proximity fuse was around 50/kill. (Numbers are from memory so don’t plagiarize them😉)
I didn't have to personally deal with it, I can empathize with people who did. My father was a Marine who enlisted near the end of the war and wound up in China. I found a photo album he had of his time there, it started off with pictures of soldiers and the country. I then turned one page and was greeted with pictures of be headings and a massacre. I put the album down and never picked it up again.
They did finally get released for artillery use towards the end of the war and were just as devastating.
Episodes One & Two are now available to view on Apple TV. Looks like they are dropping an episode per week.
www.max.com
- One - Led by Majors Cleven and Egan, the 100th Bomb Group arrives in England and joins the 8th Air Force’s campaign against Nazi Germany.
- Two - The 100th bombs German U-boat pens in Norway. With the help of Lt. Crosby’s navigating, a damaged B-17 struggles to get back to Britain.
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This happened years ago at the airport I learned to fly at - one day an airplane landed with that had the spinner painted with the back / white corkscrew. Long story short, the guy was a German fighter pilot in WWII. He and his wife moved to the States years after the war. He never bought into all the Hitler / Nazi stuff, he was just regular German Luftwaffe.
Of course he told us many stories of flying in WWII. He knew the war was lost from the beginning, but once he started going up against P51's it was over. He said the only game changer would've been if the Germans would've had the Me 262 (and subsequent jet technology) a year or two earlier.
Very interesting guy that just loved flying, afterwards, he would regularly stop at our airport when he was in this part of the country.
have you read "A Higher Call" by PAs own Adam Makos? Great book that walks through the life of a German and an Amercan pilot who have an encounter in WW2. The german moved to north America and the writer were able to reunited the US and German pilots when they were in their 70s.
The German started in North Africa and was one of the first to fly the Me 262. He was an engineer and knew the problems with the engine. He helped perfect using it. One of the issues was that gas engine pilots used change of speed/throttle when fighting. The jet engines couldn't take that and he helped pilots realize it and stop using change of speeds in the plane. There are also a few horrific details for those pilots. One being that the jet took more fuel and the pilots actually sat on the fuel tanks. Thus, being burned alive was a high probability. Pilots started to keep a pistol within easy reach to kill themselves when being burned alive was inevitable.
Lastly, the German pilots description of the fall and post-war life were interesting. Basically, this pilot walked away from the airdrome in uniform and quickly changed knowing he'd be shot as a deserter when Berlin fell. However you couldn't get shoes. So he went to apply for a job collecting and cleaning bricks. While standing in line, someone noticed his Luftwaffe boots and took him into an alley and beat him up along with several other guys. Apparently a police officer saw them go into the ally and saved his life. Ostensibly, they beat him up for not giving his life defending the motherland and them having to live through the ordeal of allied carpet bombing.
Justin Bieber starring? No thanks. (not really - but you have to admit there's a resemblance)
a little underwhelmed with first 2 episodes. Compared to BOB and Pacific was not as engaging, did not draw me in in terms of story telling and character. Will keep watching, but was expecting more interesting story development.
Agreed. They jumped right into action though. But the characters haven’t been developed and they are kind of hard to like.
In the good side, they have been good at showing these crew members were just kids. Secondly, how fast things happened. My friend who was in the 100th told me the waist gunners were useless. They couldn’t follow the speed of the fighter planes. By the time they acclimated, the fighters were gone. Lastly, conditions were outrageous. 50 below zero at that altitude with no heating in the planes.
I’ll also point out my friend said the days near the base were outrageous. The gals loved the yank aviators and that caused the local men to hate them. Lots of women and fights.
The visuals are amazing: landing the B17 in Greenland, gunners shooting at fighters that were just a blur, just seeing the layout of the inside of the "Fort." The story, characters, casting OTOH, just ok.
