In recognition of Veterans Day, I would like to share with you all some shots taken a long time ago. I've tried to remember what I was told about them the best I can.
My father joined the Army in 1940 and was on leave with his family in Brooklyn when Pearl Harbor was attacked. He was of course instantly recalled. He started off in the Army in the Coast Artillery and was one of the original 'spotters', trained by the government to recognize enemy aircraft. When I asked him how he ended up flying B-24's when he started off in the Army, he just said "when a friend of mine heard the Air Force gave you 30 days of vacation, he convinced me we should take the entrance exam". Stangely, his friend did not pass the exam but he did. I have lots of photos of the Army service but will only post the AF-related shots.
He began his flight training in the infamous Boeing PT-17, the 'Stearman':
Eventually, he graduated from flight school, but not before the aerobatics lessons almost got him kicked out. His version of the story was that the advanced aerobatics made him completely airsick, and as he cleaned the vomit from the Stearman's interior his instructor would constantly goad him with "why don't you just give up Rizzo, you're obviously not cut out for this". His reply was "If you want me out, wash me out. But I'm not leaving."(Probably where my stubborness comes from). So they thought "OK, let's put him in bomber training". Which is where is acquired the moniker "Low and Slow Rizzo".
So with flying skills intact he moves up to heavy bombers. This takes him from domestic training in Utah and Seymour, Indiana, and then he is assigned to a crew and an airplane. It is the B-24 "Liberator", not as sexy as the movie-star B-17 but able to haul a larger payload to the targets in Nazi Germany. He spoke of the ferry flight to Europe: "We flew the plane to Brazil in preparation for the overwater crossing to Africa. It rained every day at almost 2pm in Brazil, then it would clear up and the Sun would come back out. We bought a monkey as a pet and he sat on our shoulders as we flew across the Atlantic. We eventually landed in Morocco and went for dinner but the monkey disappeared after we returned to the plane." As he told this story to a room full of family at Xmas 10 years ago, can you imagine the horror on the children's faces when he was asked "so what happened to the monkey?" and he simply responded "the Arabs ate him".
My Dad eventually found his way to Horsham/St. Faith field in East Anglia, Great Britain. His crew and units were, in his handwriting,
N is Navigator and B is Bombadier. This was the 8th Air Force. Here he is with the rest of crew 36
Dad ended up flying several versions of the B-24 in combat, most notably the 'D' and 'G' versions(the most notable visible upgrade being the improved turret for the nose gunner). They flew over 30 missions against the enemy in Germany and occupied France, including two missions over heavily-fortified Berlin(I won't deny wondering where their bombs fell during my visit to that city last summer):
"No Ball" indicates missions against the V-1 'buzz bomb' sites. He was also involved in the 'Azon' bomb trials, one of the first guided munitions. Here they are in action flying over the European countryside, on their way to the target:
On one mission, an anti-aircraft shell took out one of the engines and they had to feather the prop. Rhapsody in Junk was now lagging behind the rest of the formation, ready to be picked off by the Me-109's and FW-190's that circled like buzzards. Incredibly, the lead crew made the decision to slow the entire squadron by 12mph so that my father's crew could keep up. Probably the only reason that I can tell this story today lol!
Readying their aircraft for missions was always fraught with uncertainty:
But, they managed to keep that famous stiff upper lip
His main ride, "Rhapsody in Junk"
And some friends from fellow ships 'Lady Luck' and 'Downwind Leg'
Well I hope that was somewhat enlightening or entertaining. It sure helps me keep things in perspective when I think I'm having a 'bad day'.
Happy Veterans Day, and never forget what has been done for us so that we can live the lives of freedom and convenience we are accustomed to in America.
Thank you, Dad.
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