My Time in Pensacola with the DFC Society

By

Larry N. Smith, M.D.

 

            In 2004, when I started writing my book Darwin’s War, about the 416^th Bomb Group’s experiences in World War II, I never imagined where the process would take me. Following its publication, I have been given the honor to speak to many groups over the last year about the book and the important missions that the 416^th BG flew to help win the war. Without reservation, though, the most meaningful and memorable event was my time in Pensacola, Florida, where I had the distinct honor of addressing the decorated members of the Distinguished Flying Cross Society.

            Having always been a devotee of WW II aircraft, I enjoyed the tours of the restoration facilities and the Naval Air Station Museum. Even though I am the progeny of a US Air Force officer, I find all aircraft from the WW II period historically interesting. The sight and sound of a radial engine on a P-47, a Navy Wild Cat or a B-25 Mitchell are all equally exhilarating. I must admit, though, that I have a weakness for A-20 Havocs and A-26 Invaders, because these were the aircraft that the 416^th BG flew for the US Army Air Corps during the war. It was unlikely that I would ever see these aircraft at a Naval Air Museum. Even so, because of having written my book Darwin’s War, I have a much deeper appreciation for the men who have flown aircraft of all types into battle. From the old biplanes to the modern-day weapons of aerial warfare, I have come to realize it is through memorializing the aircraft and the battles that we honor the men — and now women — who have flown them into harm’s way. This appreciation for all aviators was ratified by watching the Blue Angels perform their precision aerial display that chilly morning during the Pensacola reunion.

Prior to attending the reunion, at the request of Michael O’Neil, I had researched my father’s discharge papers and award record and learned that he had been awarded the DFC during WW-II in France, for valor under fire. This message of duty, honor, country, valor and sacrifice was symbolized to me with the posthumous recognition and induction of my father into the DFC Society. It was with great humility and pride that I accepted his membership into your society. I was equally humbled by being award an honorary lifetime membership in the society because of my father’s commitment to our country. As I stated then, I did not have the time to meet all of you personally, but I feel that I am now  part of the team as an honorary member of your elite group. I can only imagine, but never truly appreciate, the battlefield circumstances from World War II through Korea, Vietnam and now the desert wars of Iraq and Afghanistan under which the members of the DFC Society earned their recognition. Nevertheless, I can say, “Thank you.”

It was with this profound humility that I then addressed the membership and discussed the central theme of my book and reviewed the important missions that the 416^th BG flew during their time of service in the European Theater of Operations during WW II. Although only a small part of the overall war, their efforts and sacrifices helped bring the war to its successful conclusion. Without this global victory, life as we know it today would be profoundly different.  I would be negligent if I did not take time to thank those of you who have chosen to buy my book Darwin’s War. It was recently recognized with two finalist awards in the 2009 New Generation Indie Book Awards for History/Historical Non-fiction and Best Cover Design. Again, the two awards are an honor for a first-time author and are recognition and validation for the time spent writing and honoring the veterans of the Ninth Air Force’s 416^th Bomb Group. I must admit, though, that my greatest rewards have come in the form of letters, e-mails and phone calls from the remaining 416^th veterans or their family members, who have ranged from wives to great-grandchildren. Their comments of appreciation for the accurate representations of all the members of the group — from ground crew to pilots — has been recognition enough for a job well done. Any accolade beyond this is icing on the cake, but the awards help me appreciate that I have appropriately honored the men of the 416^th and those who made the ultimate sacrifice.

I am looking forward to the October 2010 Riverside reunion. The dedication ceremony of the Memorial and Flyers Wall is a noble and appropriate recognition for those who have risked it all. Let me close by saying thank you for having made my father and me a member of your society. I hope that I have conveyed to you all the sincere humility and honor with which I look upon this recognition. I hope the society continues to grow as new recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross are inducted, and I am proud to be part of it.

Reproduced with Permission of the Distinguished Flying Cross Society

 

 

 

Reprinted with permission of Aviation History from May 2009

 

 

 

Reida Rae’s Rebirth

Long after being put out to pasture, an Old Warhorse comes in from the cold at the New England Air Museum

 

By Larry Smith

 

 

 

 

Reida Rae being readied for another mission with the Ninth Air Force’s 416th Bomb Group (Light) in 1945.

 

 

Lieutenant Jack Buskirk pushed the throttles forward, listening to the throaty roar of the Douglas A-26 Invader’s 2,000-hp Pratt & Whitney R-2800 radials. Flying along with Buskirk on the new Invader, dubbed Reida Rae, on March 18, 1945, was bombardier-navigator Lieutenant Robert Hanna and gunner Staff Sergeant Herman Fessler. They were headed for Worms, Germany, along with other aircraft of the 416th Bombardment Group (Light), Ninth Air Force.

 

It was the 239th such mission for the 416th BGL. The Invaders were about to join five other Ninth Air Force bomb groups flying Martin B-26 Marauders near Worms, where they would pave the way for General George Patton’s mechanized Third Army to cross the Rhine River. Between 0958 and 1130 hours, the skies over Worms were filled with 223 Ninth Air Force aircraft dropping 345 tons of bombs. The Luftwaffe kanoniers manning anti-aircraft batteries claimed their share of retribution, however, firing up to eight high-explosive 88mm rounds a minute. Four 416th BGL Invaders and several Marauders were lost in the devastating barrage.

 

Reida Rae somehow escaped unscathed. Buskirk flew the light bomber back to Laon-Athies aerodrome in France, then watched as it was refueled and bombed-up for mission 240, crewed by Lieutenants Claude Brown and Jim Kerns, to the marshaling yard at Kreutztal. Its engines had hardly cooled down after the first flight before the bomber was roaring down the runway once again.

 

The A-26 Invader was intended as a re­placement for the war-weary Douglas A-20 Havocs and B-26 Marauders the Ninth Air Force had been flying into combat since early 1944. The A-26 prototype, designed in part by Ed Heinemann, first flew in July 1942. Heine­mann’s contributions included its lami­nar-flow wing and double-slatted flaps, which helped increase its speed and gave it un­usual flat takeoff and landing characteristics.

 

With its higher cruising speed, longer range, larger bomb-load and enhanced firepower from eight forward-facing .50-caliber machine guns, the Invader was a formidable weapon. Extra firepower could be added via machine gun pods placed under the wings or on the fuselage. In addition, eight 5-inch rockets could be mounted on the wings’ hard points. That meant that after the A-26s made their bomb runs, they could really chew up some real estate, strafing and rocketing targets of opportunity. Most important, the rugged Invader could take plenty of punishment. Pilots particularly appreciated its outstanding single-engine flying dynamics.

 

Peacetime would see combat survivors like Reida Rae and other Invaders summarily dispatched to the target range, smelting furnaces or, with luck, into commercial, firebombing or other use. Since the A-26 was still a relatively new design when the war ended, with a dependable, state-of-the-art airframe, many warbirds went on to second careers.

 

A-26C serial no. 43-22499 was built at the Douglas Aircraft Company’s Tulsa, Okla., plant in 1944. Ferried across the Atlantic that December to Melun-Villaroche, France, it was assigned to the 671st Squadron, 416th BGL. Squadron members flew it in combat until Germany surrendered on May 8, 1945.

 

In 1948, Reida Rae was re-designated as a B-26C. Many B-26Cs saw U.S. Air Force service in the Korean War, as well as in France’s air force during its war in Indochina. Reida Rae was transferred to Japan in 1952, then back to France, where it was assigned to the 126th Bomb Wing at Laon-Couvron Air Base. Stationed with the 60th Troop Carrier Wing in Germany in 1953, it was dropped from the Air Force inventory in 1958.

 

The National Metals Corporation saved Reida Rae from the scrap heap, refurbishing the bomber for use as a corporate aircraft. It flew for several companies over the next 10 years, but was eventually abandoned in Bridgeport, Conn. When a group from the New England Air Museum discovered the venerable bomber there in 1971, it had already been stripped of many of its instruments and parts. They trucked it to the nearby museum, where it languished on outdoor display for the next three decades.

 

In November 2003, the Invader was at last moved inside the museum’s restoration hangar, and a crew of enthusiastic volunteers began their work. At the start of the project, restoration crew chief Carl Sgamboti re­searched Reida Rae’s history—first at Max­well Air Force Base in Alabama, then in the civilian registry, where he uncovered the plane’s corporate history. Sgamboti came across the 416th BGL’s history and learned about its crew reunions. Meeting with group members, he heard about Jack Buskirk, Bob Hanna, Claude Brown, Jim Kerns, Herb Sunderland and Herb Fessler, all of whom had flown in Reida Rae. Three had participated in the March 18, 1945, mission to Worms.

 

 

The Invader is stripped bare during an early stage of the restoration process.

 

 

The restoration team members, who range in age from 68 to 79, quickly realized that much of the work on a warbird this size was heavy and strenuous, and also daunting because original parts were so scarce. Original dials and gauges have been particularly difficult to find. But the crew has persevered, even locating some hard-to-find components. An­other problem was the high price of original parts. To keep costs down, the team began fabricating many items in the machine shop, using technical drawings as guides.

 

At the outset, the museum’s goal was to return the Invader’s Pratt & Whitney R-2800-79s to working order. But engine restorers found that corrosion had frozen the pistons inside the cylinder heads: Time and water seepage had done their worst. As a result, the team decided not to attempt a full restoration of the engines.

 

After hearing about the restoration during a 416th BGL reunion, Claude “Brownie” Brown, Jim Kerns and Sandy Brewster came to see their old plane. They met the volunteers who were working on Reida Rae, and shared with them their memories of wartime missions. The veterans were impressed with the work the crew had done; upon seeing the old warhorse, Brown commented, “I was re­minded of those who didn’t survive.”

 

 

Two old veterans visit an old friend. Pilot Claude Brown (left) and bombardier-navigator James Kerns flew in the Reida Rae.

 

 

At this point the restoration work is roughly 65 percent finished, with its completion date very much dependent on the museum’s ongoing fundraising efforts. For the dedicated team members who have worked so hard on this project, there’s plenty of satisfaction in a job well done. But most of those volunteers would agree that their greatest rewards have come from talking with the bomber’s wartime crewmen.

 

The New England Air Museum is located midway between Hartford, Conn., and Springfield, Mass., at Brad­ley International Airport in Wind­sor Locks, Conn. See neam.org for updates on Reida Rae and other museum restoration projects.

 

***

For more information about the history of the Reida Rae and the 416^th Bomb Group,

read the books

 

Darwin’s War

Science, Politics, Warfare, Faith, and Sacrifice

The 416^th Bomb Group’s Sacrifices to Defeat Eugenics

By L.N. Smith, M.D.

www.darwinswar.com

Or

Attack Bombers We Need You!

A History of the 416^th Bomb Group

By Ralph Conte

 

Both books are available through

www.Amazon.com

www.BookSurge.com