First Sight of Combat...

   After we were squared away one of the older guys asked if we wanted to go out to the runway and watch the planes returning from the day’s mission. We jumped at the chance. Trucks were going and coming so off we went. A couple of planes with engine failure and casualties aboard were landing first. Most of the planes would taxi to the revetment area and park. One landed and stopped at the end of the runway, all the crew jumped out. The ambulance came along side and they unloaded a couple of guys onto stretchers. A B-24 has two ways to get into the plane, either through the bomb bay doors or through the nose wheel opening. Being nosy I climbed through the nose wheel, unprepared for the sight before me. They had taken a direct hit from a 20mm cannon and parts of the navigator were all over the nose compartment. Guess I looked pretty white when i climbed out, as Earley asked, "What happened?" All I could say was, "What the hell have we gotten into?"

   This was the first night we spent in our new home. It was required we always sleep under mosquito netting as the chances of getting Malaria were pretty good, with as many mosquitos as were always around. As soon as we had eaten, several poker games started up. Playing poker was always a good source of entertainment. If there were no flights scheduled for the next day, the games could go on all night. It was always required to check the orderly room bulletin board in the evening for a flight the next day. If your crew was scheduled, it was to bed early, as you were to attend a 5 AM briefing. It had just started to get dark when the damnest racket started up. From every direction came the howling of jackals. Sometimes they sounded as if they were right under our window. We were told to ignore them as they were harmless, more afraid of us than we were of them.

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Men of the 7th Bomb Group