B-24 Pilot Bob Ruiz

[Music] welcome to Peninsula seniors out and about we're at the Western Museum of Flight in Torrance let's go see what cindy has for us today welcome everyone to the Western Museum of Flight I'm Cindy maka the director today we are privileged to have a true American hero not only was he able to manage a difficult and demanding airplane but he was able to use that airplane to carry an enormous bomb load into a heartland an enemy territory delivered effectively and fight his way through the opposition to bring his aircraft back wounded but safe what a privilege it is today to have World War 2 Liberator combat pilot Bob Reese Bob I've spoken to many groups high schools and this is something this is really a pleasure to be here I'm sure glad I want to thank those that are responsible for me being here [Applause] [Music] [Applause] now just imagine a little of my past I'm a Southern California lad born and raised down here nine miles north of San Diego called Pacific Beach how many are familiar with Pacific Beach well it doesn't look like in my time it doesn't look like it yesterday I went to elementary and junior high there and I had to walk there nobody drove me I don't walk to those schools mile and a half away and then I graduate from the Hawaii high school La Jolla Jimeno La Jolla very good I graduated in the spring of 1941 and you know Hitler invaded the world war ii started when Hitler invaded Poland in September of 1939 and you know he went all over he had all of Europe and going to the North Africa if you don't know and and in 1940 was bombing London England so the we here we knew who was just the time before we'd be going in right anyway the drive started in 1941 and drafting from seventeen and a half to 35 that means you signed up and a month or two later that called you up and that you take a physical and you passed the physical you were 1a and if you didn't pass it you were one app at that time I knew guys that want to be preferred to be one F but anyway I waited and I enlisted in the I enlisted in 442 I was going to college at the time I started college but I understand in 42 summer of 42 yeah anyway when Pearl Harbor hit you all know on December 7th 1941 well if you were I don't know how many of you were here at the time but you know there was a blackout here in the coast all lights had to be out cars you drop a car in that words tape covering them what caused the windows of them and you carry flashlights when you walked around and you had air raid wardens come around and check you come around the house I remember this before when the service if you have you could see a light from the street they're coming not checked knock on your door and tell you where are you gonna turn the light on and gas rationing came into effect and guys ration three gallons a week and food was also you had coupons to go buy your food so civilians help here the civilian people went through a lot to not not just up service guys we I'm just trying to point that out too in case there are some here some young kids around or young people and I see there are they are anyway enough I am listening 42 and they called me in the early 43 now why did I want to go in the air force and not the be drafted I had never flown before but I also saw a movie years before All Quiet on the Western Front remember they're all flying the Western Front where they're in trenches and all that getting muddy and ain't k-rations sleeping on the where they were sleeping I said I said to myself that's not gonna be for me so anyway that's what and another reason your fly it's more dangerous when you volunteer to fly it's more dangerous than being on the ground because we were hit up there we're up there five miles and for your hint if you're in and if you're in pain you got to wait until we all get back home and so and and when I was up there and um Vitaly agreed before I got there was 50/50 50/50 percent who didn't come back but remember I was 20 20 21 years 21 years old when I was there flying that boxcar they call it the boxcar it was a darn good plane but you don't think of those things when you're young and you know you always think you're going to come back but it's a bit very serious I remember we had them all going to that leader but anyway I'm I won the service and for the first month I went to Lincoln Nebraska it's a learn army life to know army life man so far I had never been a mile away from my house on jobs anyway was to bring something you get up there wake you up and 5:00 in the morning go break with and you March all day it was this was I'm getting prepared for the service and then from there one month there and then because Santana was a pre-flight that's when you become a cadet if you do pass we went to Missoula Montana for three months to the University of Montana School and physical exercise that's we did for three months living the dormitories man you can't beat that living the dormitory and eating down there it was perfect so after three months if the diner Santa well therefore the first week you take tests in the morning and physical tests in the afternoon if you don't pass any test you're washed out and then in hesitate Washington I mean you every Monday through Friday he took these tests that though they wake you up in the morning you'll fall out in groups and that renames and if your name was read you didn't pass so Archie go so I waited until Friday Reese's what laws laws law on the album and the alphabet so they start with the ABCs and I'm waiting for hours and I'm quenching one more time you know they didn't mention it so I passed anyway from there you start your training in in pre-flight and that's school in the morning physical in the afternoon that's every day for three months at the very end of three months then they tell you before we leave that whether you're going to be a pilot and navigator bomb dear everybody wanted to be a pilot but we had to have bumble ears and navigators so but I wanted to be a pilot so yes I became a pilot and now we were cadets before we were a be Asian students now we were cadets and from there I went to Lincoln the brine Oh to Santa Maria for primary and I learned to fly you got within a Stearman I mentioned this that somebody over here who came over in the Stearman right that's what I learned to fly learning slow rolls snap rolls loops and Shondells you know what I'm talking about right [Laughter] anyway heck of a nice little plane we spent three months there and after you if you pass they give you seven hours to solo that plane if you couldn't speak if you couldn't solve and if you didn't solve and seven hours out you'd go they had so many they weren't going to waste time with one person so you had a stolen seven you pass so I named after the primary I went to basic which is in Lemoore Fresno and Fresno there and proves a BT 13 but many of the BT 13 anyway and they gave you eight hours to solo that one it's a bit heavier plane and so forth and the same thing fly up fly any time during the day they sign you when you're going to fly and go to school and physical their physical all the time and anyway you got to pass everything or else let's throw you out then from there then it's three months and months I went to advance I was in Douglas Arizona that's where I flew the twin-engine when I got the 20s I knew I wasn't going to fly fighters so three months there and they gave you nine hours to fly that twin-engine 1890 and and I did that and Douglas Arizona's right on the border of Arizona and down there and my one of my fellow they were having the same same room shared which there was four to a room in advance and this one fella couldn't land the plane and the instructor the instructor told him tomorrow I'm gonna I'm gonna have to check you go up with a Czech pilot once they go to a check by you you might as well call it a day but on the way home on the way that following morning we met there at the plane and my instructor says Greece take rule of enable rules they rule Reis mother two boys were Roth and Ross we were roommates well I mention these things because of what happened anyway in rules couldn't Landon and he told me I know I can land a tree but he yells at me when I'm landing well you say that to me I plan to him to quiet down my land this plane for you so the following morning I told the instructor look nothing so tell me Greece what you think rule up with it today I can't die he the instructor the Czech pilot is not around so he came up we went up and I had him seat in the policy two foot and we're not ghosts nearby field and always all we did the shoot landings I had him fly the whole time shooting landed landed perfect so I went back and when we landed I saw the instructor and I told him what had happened oh great he says okay so mall you'll go up with me so he passed and I'll never forget I left and going to my room which was quite a ways and I can hear him yelling way back there hey breathe and he jumped on me and hugged me thank you thank you thank you little stories like that I remember because it made me feel great now the other sad part is my two other roommates we were flying at night and they called us in we were over the Tucson area and there was fire at them started the runway takeoff ever again we landed went to bed next morning I see this corporal going through the book through those stuffers of the my roommates there Ross and wrong they're the ones that cracked up they cracked up that night I imagine these things because we lost we lost I saw some we lost so many in training also without just in combat just think of that Dalton I don't want to think about it anyway we from there they assigned me to a b24 in Pueblo Colorado that's why I learned to fly and we got the crew in Pueblo Colorado that's a nice City well I made no public already nice nice yes anyway that's why food so and we flew there about three months had enough training and got the crew there flew formations flew rep repaired and go overseas and sure enough for three months they they sent us the Topeka Kansas where we got all our flight clothes a dress our gun our 45 and masked them oxygen mask headgear head we got it all that there enough Topeka Kansas and from there we went to New York caught a ship to take us over to England now the funny thing there getting on board that ship I can remember like it was yesterday what just guess what they were playing though I was hearing over there over there and we won't come home till it's over over there getting on a damn bomb I'm getting to him really something anyway we got on there we were on now we went on convoy which means you go as fast as the slowest boat ship and unfortunately officers were on the table checked and every morning I'd get up and look for the Sun as long as it was in the east as long as we were facing the Sun we know we were going I knew we were going to Europe that's what I said to myself but the old guys would come out later just because you're going names doesn't mean that you're gonna be going to Europe you could go around the the Cape down there and go to the Pacific every morning I'd get up and look for the Sun after 10 days were still a Sun was still there here's a guy the guy plant finally said no you're all going to England boy that was a relief what a difference between England the Pacific because in England we slept in Quonset huts it's in a bed in a restaurant or well like a restaurant and sleep good yeah but when you flew you flew at 10 to 12 hours I'm gonna tell you about a mission for a b24 or for all bombers they wake you up at 3:00 in the morning remember you're 19 20 21 through 202 years old most of the pilots on you were 21 my age yeah 21 anyway it wake you up and hitting yelled at you the guys come comes okay time to get up we'd get up not a word I said because now we know it can be serious and we get dressed we go outside and outside of the building is a restroom and now what you can wash up and when then from there we go to breakfast and breakfast they're gonna sit down dinner you're waited on by English gals waitresses they were they offer their services and not you get here pin drops when you're eating remember you don't want to think about it because at the time I was going when I got their chance they're coming back with 50% when I got there but when you you don't really want to think about that so anyway but in the back of your mind you it's there so anyway um we have breakfast good breakfast and there we go to briefing briefing the room about this size and chairs like you have there all the officers are there the enlisted men are another briefing and up on the stage is the map covered up and everybody is curious where we're going that's the first thing but I remember my first mission you go up with an experienced pilot because we don't know what to expect so I'm here for the first time I'm hearing this and we're going to Hannover when I pick at Hannover it's just well it's it's worst of Berlin it's about 100 200 miles from Berlin and but when they remove when they remove the curtain all the experienced boys there you hear oh no no that was dangerous that was one of the big targets anyway so I didn't know what we're getting into we got on the plane and or before before that from there after the briefing there we go change our clothes put on our flight clothes and that's a heated suit and then overall on top I'm getting our masks our head yeah I capped shoes and then we go out and the more we're doing that we have we have lockers and what we're doing this the priest comes around and yells out all you fishy fish eaters were having community in a hall here so all officials went on that communion you know that series when that boy comes on you never forget these things you never forget them anyway and make matters worse we get it from there you get on trucks to take you out to the plane well the crew is the crew that takes care of the planes they're scattered all over the field and then they open and you asked and they say the plane is fine so you get on get on board what was it my first mission so we had the experienced pilot flying on the left seat and I flew on the right so we went up and not a word everything is very quiet nobody's yappin and so we get on the runway to take us to the dresses Oh to the runway we started lining up and as you're as you line up on the runway to take off guess who's there at the runway not the head the good priest the chaplain he's right there for every plane takes up a sign of the Cross and you're looking at him and you say man this has got to be serious anyway so now my first flight so I'm not I don't know what the thing so here we take off with a nice sunny one I remember is on Sunday and was sunny like this just clear as a bell and so here we take off at 6:00 in the morning and we're climbing after we get to pass a channel then you start climbing you put your oxygen mask when you get 10,000 feet and keep climbing and you get to the target around you get to the IEP which is the initial point be prior to that you're loose you're flying loose not close but the IP to the target is when you lead tells you okay tuck it in tuck and get your planes close so get a good bump pattern down there I remember you're getting getting close and you're flying steady and no maneuvers you just you're sitting ducks up there for the Yak egg and sure enough we were close to the front and since we got too near the target here comes a shell boom boom exploding in front of us and and and that's and the ship is doing this just bouncing and I'm here swept as sweat and it was just I'm tired you don't know what fear is I'm trying to experience this I'm telling you and I said oh what and then I'm telling myself what the heck did I get into man and then sure enough right next we're flying off this guy's wing and he gets a direct hit right on the wing the plane toast and I'm wiping myself there I'm telling you it's serious business and after that we drop our bombs an aeroplane pops up but we carried 6000 pounds the b-17 carried 5,000 pounds so it's a heck of a lower that you drop and you always are waiting for to get rid of your bombs anyway I'm we drop a thousand feet to get to the planes rose spread you out you can't get too close it's just spread out if whether you want to or not anyway you you rally and get back together because here comes the fighters and if they didn't have fifty ones and my early days there then it happened probably didn't have protection and here they come and I can see shells coming for everywhere every chance shell is up as a tracer so you can see them coming and you're sweating it but it's not gonna happen to you so anyway we get by then and here and all of a sudden were in the clear now we got to get home still everybody's quiet we're over we're over France but once you see England that's on all the chatter starts that's when the Gunners thought you happened did you see that did you see that well when we got back and landed my weight I had two waist Gunners one was 17 and the other one was 18 he came up to me and said you know what he was a he was an Italian descent and you know what he was doing he was praying all the whole time he didn't want to try that because you allowed to get angry and so listen I grabbed a hold of I forget what he called him and I don't worry I was just as scared as you were yeah anyway that was our first nation and then came the second third and fourth but they I on the next mission I don't we know you went on your own and but you think about what you saw the first mission but I guess they know it's not gonna be a rough one so it wasn't it wasn't a rough mission like the first one and that went on he's a heavy milder or life and that went on for 35 times I went to Berlin two or three times I flew there I was a wingman for Jimmy Stewart you know the actor Jimmy Stewart well I was his wingman I talked to him he was a heck of a nice guy and I never forget him when I talk to groups so don't forget Jimmy Stewart because he was one nice guy and he served his country [Applause] [Music] [Applause] I am I saw it Stewart last in 1984 in Palm Springs the last time I saw him if they had a reunion for the secondary division there in Palm Springs I mentioned this to a group I shall had talked to earlier that I serve ice that's the last time I saw him and you know this scalp pops up and says do you remember you I thought I had told her my answer to her was being the only American of Hispanic descent in the group yes he remembered me we're just through back I never ran I only ran in the two was Mary's of Spanish descent and two of them in the whole life I mean my whole time out in the service one was my brother who flew b-29s and my good friend the Fluke p-51 so that's how it was I don't know why they went more of them but maybe they didn't like to fly or something anyway and I haven't run into one yet I looked at all my talk on everything so anyway we landed we land about 12 hours 1012 hours later and go to debriefing nation and flag Stewart was in that debriefing group many times and they check and ask me what you saw and what would you do not fine you see a lot but when you're flying the plane you all you're looking has unexplained you're flying off oh so it's normally the Gunners that say what they what they saw they didn't have I didn't permit cameras as a base where I was you but my nose gonna sneaked one in and took these pictures well that's England that's a sad you go over there today and see all those cemeteries all these veteran cemeteries you know I know I didn't mention we lost four hundred eight thousand I'm American service people all over the world 400,000 the only guy that the only come country that Venus was uh Russia and China but that's a lot of kids because i ninety percent of those the past where teenagers are in their twenties I know in my base we were all in our 20s those that flew we're all in our twenties yeah that's what's sad about it and I don't want anyone to ever forget that either four hundred and eight thousand that's for Rose Bowls Rose Bowl was 100 mm there's four of those all that you see on mass of humanity forum my dad came here in 1900 he was fifteen sixteen from mazatlán Mexico how many been in miles of lon anyway that's our nursery he learned the nursery business from a gal that's quite a namesake Terence and your Kate session who was instrumental in landscaping Balboa Park so that's our nursery daddy that's our home which is still there today in Pacific Beach when he came to this country Dylan you didn't know how to speak English read or write he learned to speak write and read English because these are a lot of our work was in La Jolla oh well oh yeah not a money in law that's why he's a progressed like he did and and we were able to live through it without because the Depression was not in the 1930s anyway um and one thing is momentum and I used that expression today when I talk to kids high school kids no drugs he well I couldn't no no drugs no gangs and school school school he emphasizes that here's a guy never went to school okay that's what he did and that's what I told the kids today and the teachers always thank me because it's so true I'm talking to kids today sure different than my time outside yeah they got a when the first place they don't teach history and second place I'm not saying all of them don't burn one of the ones off many that I've spoken to and the old you don't have physical physical exercise I can't believe that so anyway that's my dad working on the backyard here no that's the high school high school that I went to they knocked it down now it's a single-story it didn't look like yeah it looked like that when I went yeah that's my the Missoula Montana remember I mentioned some Missoula Montana that's all us recruits and then lean Boise what I'm there I can't see that one hey I'm there I'm there how's that closer look here right in the middle right in the middle the only in spanic in the group so you've got to pick me out that's Santana right there the entrance to the sign down the airbase I saw it look today it's the Orange County Fairgrounds but that's what it was doing the Warriors there's my mom my mother and dad and my brother we were cadets there yeah we were good that that's our base in desmos Arizona that's where I got my wings we flew out of that base they're reliable b-24 I don't want to a b-17 pilot popping up here and telling me [Music] when I see a baby sons Empire and I meant up there we go there we go there's brother than at home my brother was also professor after at a UCSD history professor he wrote 15 books which are out today he took my dad seriously school there was merry old England and and France over here that's a Health Alert baby that's where I was stationed I've been we've been back there I've taking my wife there on a couple of occasions and she knows she's been there we're up she's Ben's a health aware I flew out of she saw the whole thing so when I mentioned hazel she your mom she knows she meant a lot of my flying buddies back there too they're my group there this guy on the left the far left he lives he's our pilot next next next door very religious very religious and he wrote to his girlfriend every night every day he was right every time I looked in his room he was writing letters to his girlfriend but he was he went to church I think umpteen times a week anyway very religious when I had about 20 25 missions when you have about 25 missions you take up a green crew that just gets there a green crew has to go up with an experienced pilot I didn't know this but when I came home from a mission I looked up on the board my name wasn't on that board to fly the next day so the first time and the whole time I was there I went to the bar the officers bar there I never went there and start drinking and about 1 o'clock or 12 which I went to my room and mark mine my rooms where he played cards learn the English pound they exchanged that's where he learned it right there that's the way play aren't you a bunch of guys playing if you didn't fly we'd meet there play cards anyway I went as soon as I get in the room all the guys yell at me Avery's call operations they've been paging you all night I went in the hall got the phone call so I was they said forget it we got pink on next door to go in your place great so he went to bed bad morning I feel the whole room the whole place shake about 6:00 in the morning about nine o'clock here comes his navigator Bombardier foreign he came into the room guess what been cold got it this morning the guy that took my place he got it Christ in those days indigo they didn't go and inspecting what happened did this fail or that film alright so the plane crack drop so that's old George Hank I'm a nice guy echoing nice guy well that's the that's the 8th Air Force all these markings my marking was a top third from the left there's no lousy it's 389th so when you were up there you saw these tail markings so my group I thought that was a tail marking means anyone forget there was the 8th Air Force consisted of three divisions first and third or b-17 and the second was a b24 and each they had we had division had five wings five wings each wing had three groups and each group had four squadrons a squadron consisted of 12 planes so if you figure out real quickly you know where you got the thousand planes that bombed Germany when you see a thousand planes five miles up remember were five miles up and things down there look very small but remember five miles up and you're always on oxygen and when you're flying you're just looking at the next when you're flying the plane y'all do and look at the next plane alright this fella for from the left of Jimmy Stewart he was sick he was 6 foot 3 tall thin fella we have reunions there at the Phoenix club there in Anaheim how many know the Phoenix club to German club the German club well that was taken as the old-timers of veterans these fellows are belong to veterans groups there were I I'm a member of that's the St the tail to the tail black with white in the middle well I absolutely after I went to work after this off on the side I work trying to we start a plant there in New Jersey pescado in New Jersey and then I slept enough we stayed at the Holiday Inn I'm bringing this up because you'll see I went back to go to the bar after working all day and I see this tall blond guy behind the bar and I hear is that and the accent he had I said I'm familiar with that accent where are you from Assam Germany Germany World War two Luftwaffe that's how he answered me bomber pilot b-24s oh I remember you were the what say what was your tail markings and I told him black with white stripe in the middle oh I remember you didn't that something 34 years later here's a bartender there was a fighter pilot was attacking us and you were having a drink man small world there's my plane right down the front beautiful that's Theo's yeah the cruise those nine guys er I'm top left in the right up there there's my crew the oldest guy there's 24 you know what they called him the rest of 1718 you'll call him pop there's my dear wife and I years later that's the end that's the only County Fair guns but that was Santa Anna at that time saying I don't hurt me air base that's what it looked like nothing around it was you know what surrounded today that's the Washington DC there's a group the honor of right how many have heard of the honor plate I may have been in Washington DC the memorials there hi everybody well I went with a Honor Flight about two or three years ago out of San Diego and we that's for a veteran you read it's a great feeling they got a charter plane out of San Diego took it right to Baltimore in Baltimore this bus to Washington DC and you spend all their they leave on a Friday spending all day Saturday at the 1/2 C memorial that is that's the World War Two memorial and you come back on Sunday but the groups you meet you see at the terminals man as [ __ ] waiting for you to come by and patting you on the back women make a special effort to come in hug you and and anyway think of a trip that goes on all the time there's one here in Orange County now so if you're on a flight I think donations is what helps they're everywhere in wanting to see the fellow that is with me and all that fell on the top right that fits on the top right he's the man that handles the flights out of Orange County and on the left side was this gal who we still see today my wife knows her Mel anyway I gotta mention this when she was a guardian four to two veterans in wheelchairs so my friend and I Kiefer 51 father we always we wanted to say hi to her and I remember actually we wanted a hugger but we'd get so closer than the I'm so those guys in real jest that's close enough I was close enough there he is my friend there that's fallen I we went to elementary junior high in high school the only one around the day in my my group I just talked to him the other day the only one who left all my old buddies are going that's that that's the Korean memorial lucky bouncers Club you can say that again man just plain luck you know waiting for everybody read it I got asked this question or ever again how many World War two guys do we have you World War two raise your hand please [Applause] you were very small very small and we're fading oh there's my two buddies they also of Spanish descent these two guys they flunked out they didn't pass they were with me in Lincoln Nebraska Missoula and in pre Friday flunked out of one guy couldn't fly the plane and the other guy couldn't fly instruments so they washed him out oh there's that guy that's me sleeping well don't forget when you fly for a pitch one you're up from three in the morning you go to bed about an eight or nine o'clock and evening you're tired so they thought they would take a picture of me that's where I slept top bunk I'll never get that room to Kwanza duck now there's my four yeah there's the oldest guy right there in the middle the radio operator and there's that fellow again cadet well the cadet there yeah I'm a cadet there yeah I think I was 19 or 20 I was 22 now that's the one that's over we're over here we were at the polygon club not long ago I I didn't speak but just they had these out in the hallway I didn't see him my wife spotted this on the hall that's a polygon club you don't know where the polygon club is open highway 5 and Newport well that's where that really exclusive club real nice there are the four officers that's me in primary in the when I saw where I learned to fly the statement we had to use those clothes because you're a cop open cockpit so you had to use that and there's that too overseas yeah so we were the mind below in the bottom middle that's a little Italian there was praying that over the target I belong to three veterans groups here in the Orange County one is the freedom committee how many have heard of the freem committee where's Dave we we comprised the world walk to Vietnam and Korean vets were on it some it's a line they're men no no that's not nothing and we meet the second Wednesday of every month and talk about old times but what we do is go out and talk to high schools and middle schools about your war or to clergymen it's amazing what little they know and the purpose is to hear the story from the one that was there not read out of a book what I told you is authentic that's the way it was no I'm not making up anything I was there I can say I saw that I couldn't yeah I'll never forget okay another thing that's the feeling to me the next is the the Honor Flight I belong that Gras go talk to the groups on that we're warned and ask for donations from groups or anybody to support these veterans to go to Washington DC and see those they're very grateful believe me that's that's a good purpose it's amazing what how it makes you feel when you see these people that you find this in yourself man they are grateful for what you did remember some broke offs words the greatest generation greatest generation before because we went through a depression and world war two there were 19 million of us in the service all brands of the service and lastly as the land air museum that's in the Orange County Airport I'm there every Friday from ten to one with my friend there my agent know anyway and Dave over there's another member up there anyway that's out there we talk to people from all over the world we got vintage planes we got the only thing we don't have we that we have we don't have the b-24 we don't have that plane there we have the b-17 I have to look at that every Friday anyway and they people over the world I think got a gal here because the guys ones all over the room and this one friend told it was they asked him questions told this gal if you wanted me a b24 pilot it bummed me bombs er me I'll take you over and so he I mean you plenty of pointed her pointed me out to her and yet here comes this gal running show me like this ready to hug me and I'm looking like then what's going on so she comes in hugs me yeah actually I hug her back so she was 15 years old when she was a German Jew she was 15 years old when we were bombing her place where she was living she was very grateful because the Germans were real close to they were in a pic take her capture taker who can't camp she lived in the forest for the rest of the war her with her parents so she was very grateful I've met guys I met a guy just another reason there was a Holocaust we all heard of the Holocaust his dad was in this group where the Nazis just blasted away at him and he fell in a trench but they didn't hit him I always wondered about that they couldn't got them all so he found the trench and the guy fell over him and then he left well he got up and walks out of there now that's playing like all them drugs were dead playing like I'm very grateful I'm gonna chance to sucker any questions he says there's a b24 and b-17 have this same missions that same targets we all had the same they weren't always together we wouldn't fly together all the time but most the time we did we just think of a thousand planes at five miles up and you see it jet streams all you see is jet streams all the what the pictures on the sides of plane that they're painted over in England if you want something painted on your they got guys that through that you give so much money they do that and the worst part I I'll never get this one plane was and then that's still published you can still see it delectable doors it's a big it's a big lady there and I hunt and naturally she doesn't have any clothes on and I I didn't like the flying next to that plane very disturbing washed out people those are washed out they stayed in the Air Force but they didn't fly yeah I didn't go to an infantry stay in the Air Force they become they still flew but not as pilots you want to know where the copilot was when I went on my first mission and he was he was in the same plane there was my crew our crew how long ago was it well after takeoff did we get to go to those gets the target it was normally around 11 in trouble o'clock at noon at noontime it was around normally be hitting the targets around noon yeah but shake up your tickets for four hours just to assemble up above just think of all those planes have to assemble the lead goes up and then planes just taken off all over he's dangerous that's northeast England it took us four hours to form before you start heading east he's asking because there's a foot wonderful earlier in the war your tour was twenty five missions and it's easier to explain that we had no fighter protection if we without we didn't have the fifty ones to protect you because it couldn't last that long and after they got fuel tanks say yeah that's why it made the 35 so that's why I ended up flying 35 missions they're asking yeah that came on some sort where I lost an engine over the taiga days I lost one engine over the target yeah I'll tell you that wasn't doing that I forget where it was but I hit one engine so I had three engines and I couldn't stay up with a group but we had dropped our bombs already but so I had to leave the group when you're leaving you're out by yourself boy you're a sitting duck for the fighters so anyway where they look for clouds I got in the clouds as to navigator give me directions back to the base and I stayed in the guy I flew instruments all the way out of Paris then I think his channel and I saw England I tell the boys the first airstrip you see to let me know where it is it's like a land this thing okay because we're losing altitude all the time we're on there guy you know one of the Gunners says three o'clock three o'clock that's over here so I spun it around there's the old strip and as I'm landing I lose the other engine likely on either side not the same or harder cracked up I got more hugs that day I'll tell you [Music] my advanced trainer in Douglas Arizona was a twin-engine 89 beautiful ship beautiful how much fuel did I have in the plane winner when I landed you had you have ties my flight engineer on that one all I know is where we could last longer there be seventeen that's what sure then my Gunners have any kill that they shoot down any enemy aircraft well I'll tell you yes they did but the main one is when they shot when they didn't dream but we saw the two six two German jet the first fighter that comes up with no propellers and I remember he hit the plane right that I was flying off of and I see this thing come in with no props no problem the first jet first German jet it shot this a shot at this b-24 and it'll be twenty four to start doing this and this second one right after about 24 to lift over in the back just went down that's what normally happened it luckily yeah it was that guy not be did I fly the same plane all the time no I didn't you were assigned a plane or what plane to fly a debriefing and all the tails all had letters on ABC and so forth on d-day oh well I was there but I just got there so I didn't picture participated about a month or so later bombing parts of friends yeah but I Battle of the Bulge you where the Battle of old I was there I was there America and John I gotta mention this and I went to France one time for go down to southern France and I'm playing the elements of three three three three and right in front of these three I was right to the second element and right over the target two planes put on a good hit go down I didn't see I don't see any flak and I said man those guys must be dead eyes down there no flak so we went dunking and I saw the guy I had 30 we had about 32 mission 33 almost at the end and I was a man I'm not an expose on my butt's or our guys are that Deadeye that they hit they shoot they don't waste bullets they don't want shells they hit you so I tell the mom and drop your bombs we're not at the target yet drop your bombs go a drop them it wasn't much of a charge in any way so we got back and guess what the Seventeen's I've gotten there were low late getting out of there and we are early coming in so 17 dropped their bones on that element other three ships b-24 did we have escorts when I got there they had just started the 51 escorts that bar well what are you calling mom got under the wings yeah yeah and we were sure happy to see them although we can hardly tell the difference they're way up there along with the Nazis you can't tell friends are full but we had them yeah yeah I'm keeping contact some of the crew mates only one and he passed away hello no changes 15 years ago oh yeah yeah he passed away hey did I have the same crew yeah we were together the whole time all 10 of us a bunch of nice bodies are often most of the East Coast nice guys nice guys no unfortunately when you get together through all my truck where I did my training I repeat I was a Fresno and in Fresno Santa Maria Fresno and Douglas Arizona that's what I did on my training my training if you go to the Lions Air Museum nitro you again you're innocent one here a lot of stories real stories from people that were there there's four veterans Flyboys there's some other guys with some other little Wars there Dave Wednesday over here but he he's too fast for me through the fast planes anyway yeah but you're gonna ask him a day big we have got way up one two guys one guy was shot down on the tail to be 17 and he was in the tail when he was coming down five miles up and he was thrown out of the tail and he woke up when he was fifteen thousand feet pulled to shoot he was appealed up here for three or four months did I have fun always better enjoy being in service I did it's one is I'll let them make one exception there were times over the target that I didn't enjoy myself thank you thank you for watching Peninsula seniors out and about I'm Betty Wheaton see you next time [Music] you

Channel: PeninsulaSrsVideos

Views: 25,934

Rating: 4.8439426 out of 5

Keywords: WWII History, Veteran, B-24, P-51, B-17, Western Museum of Flight, Lyons Museum, Hispanic, diversity, Air Force, documentary, US Army Air Corp, World War II, Distinguished Flying Cross, Berlin, D Day, Battle of the Bulge, Betty Wheaton, Nazi Germany, Paris, crash, P-47, La Jolla, Pacific Beach, Immigration, San Diego, shot down, combat, war hero, WWII Memorial

Id: 9MKSJH0KNvg

Length: 58min 30sec (3510 seconds)

Published: Wed Feb 13 2019