Author Topic: A window in Time  (Read 615 times)

Offline DREDIOCK

  • Plutonium Member
  • *******
  • Posts: 17775
A window in Time
« on: February 10, 2004, 12:29:24 AM »
this probably belongs here

A window in Time
Found this while I was looking up some info for my mother in law who lost her brother (Joseph G Sorbino, B17 tailgunner 335th U/42-31533) Feb 22, 1944.

A true window in time. Some notations sad some quite humourous.
Its too long to post in one post here so The link for the site is on the bottom if anyone is interested in reading more

Drediock
DIARY OF MEDICAL DETACHMENT – STATION #167

FEBRUARY 1944

3 February – Briefing was held at 05.00 hrs this morning and the target announced was Wilhelmshafen, Germany. Bombing altitude was 25,000 ft, actually made at 28,500 ft. The increased altitude was due to the heavy condensation trails, which even at increased altitude, impaired visibility markedly and prevented good formation flying. The target area was 10/10th overcast and bombing done by pathfinder. Outside air temperature was – 43 degrees and there were five mild cases of frostbite, one placed in sick quarters.

No ships were lost and flak and fighters almost negligible. Thirty three aircraft from this command took part in the raid, Captain Briggs leading the group and reported what he believed to be a German B-17 flying alone over Germany, out of range.

A Medical Board, under Major Ernest Gaillard, Jr. was convened today to determine the mental status of Pvt J. of the 532nd BS. The case history was filed and he was found to be constitutional inadequate. Recommendation was made that he to held accountable for his acts and that he be discharged from the service.

4 February – Briefing at 05.15 hrs this frigid morning was take off at 08.45 hrs, with 33 aircraft from this command took off for the target, two areas in the city of Frankfurt, Germany. Bombing was by pathfinder through 10/10th overcast, from 20,000 ft where the outside temperature was – 35 degrees.

The briefing route avoided most flak areas but the route taken went over the heart of the Ruhr Valley both going in and coming out. All ships returned to base. There was no enemy fighter opposition and friendly fighters escorted the whole distance, P-47s, P-51s and P-38s were used.

There were no killed or wounded. Lt Kuhl had #3 and #4 engines knocked out by flak over Germany and displayed great courage and tenacity brought the ship home more than three hours after the formation. The landing gear would not come down and a beautiful crash-landing was made. Most of us had given the ship up for lost. Lt Fastrup’s co-pilot hit the landing gear switch instead of the flap switch and the ship collapsed on runway 28.

The body of 1st Lt Carl O. Baer, was washed ashore at Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, last night. When he ditched on 30 January he was in good spirits and wise-cracking on the radio. He will be buried at the U.S. Military Cemetery at Cambridge.

5 February – Twenty eight aircraft from this command took off at 07.45 hrs with the target designated as an airfield at St Avord, in France, just west of Bourges. The Air Division was led by Lt Col. Hall. Bombing was at 16,000 ft and hits were right on the nose in excellent visibility, while no flak or fighters were encountered. There were no wounded, no missing in action and no aircraft were damaged. A perfect mission.

The only event of the day was on landing when one ship could not get the ball turret guns out of the down position and had to grind them off on landing. We have had briefings seven out of the last eight mornings and five missions flown. The crews are in good shape.

6 February – This command provided 33 aircraft which took off for Nancy, France, the target being an airdrome. The weather was overcast and the ships returned without dropping bombs.

Lt Putek and crew were near the target when there was an explosion near the T.T. which set off flares and a severe blaze ensued. The ship landed at Dunkeswell, a U.S. Navy field, near Taunton, Devon. The ship had many 20m and flak holes, the nose was shot out, the ball turret shot up and partially burned, the cockpit windows shattered and rolled back while the wings and fuselage was riddled with bullets. Three officers bailed our over France and the following were injured and hospitalized at the 67th General Hospital, Taunton.

C/Landed 535th /42-40025

Putek, Henry
2nd Lt
OK
Coffman, Alfred T.
2nd Lt
MIA

Blalock, Conrad M
2nd Lt
MIA
Christiansen, Harvey
2nd Lt
MIA

French, Lifford N
S/Sgt
WIA
OK

Burgasser, Herbert J.
Sgt
WIA
OK

OK
OK


French – 2nd degree burns; Burgasser – facial wounds through flak.

Major Gaillard and Capt Bland visited the wounded on 8 February.

10 February – The ships were dispatched and recalled on 9 February, thus command called for a practice mission today.

For the past two weeks the medical department has been having quite a lot of psychiatric activity. There has been a Section VIII Board on Pvt J. 532nd – a case of hysterical amnesia; 2nd Lt H. 534th ; and a psychoses of unclassified type in Pvt S. 534th. Several consultations have been held on patients found not to be psychotic.

11 February – It was dark when 33 aircraft from this command took off at 07.15 hrs after an 04.15 hrs briefing (the sack is sure hard to leave at 03.30 hrs!). The target was Frankfurt, Germany, the bombing altitude 25,000 ft by pathfinder method through thick 10/10th overcast, in minus 45 degrees centigrade.

The group was led by Col Leber, who also led the Air Division. There were two pathfinder aircraft and the target was hit by visual bombing and the results thought to be good.

MIA 532nd G/42-31099

Laux, Robert V.
2nd Lt
EVD
Harrer, Donald G.
2nd Lt
POW

Wright, Phlemon T.
2nd Lt
EVD
Doyle, Judson F.
2nd Lt
EVD

Holton, John L.
S/Sgt
POW
Helfgott, Abe. A.
Sgt
EVD

Hamilton, Richard C.
Sgt
EVD
Cutino, Rudolph
Sgt
EVD

Glennan, Thomas J.
Sgt
EVD
Barr, Henry R.
Sgt
POW


Three men were wounded in action, as follows:-

S/Sgt Richard G. Morrison, 532nd BTG. 1. Wound, perforating, left ankle, entrance above & posterior to internal mallcolus, exit posterior and proximal to lateral mallcolus, mod. Severe. Caused by 30 cal bullet, high velocity.

1st Lt George A. Hoffman, 535th; received minor abrasions, ½ “ medial to left nipple.

S/Sgt Charles L. Carter, 534th ETTG, suffered burn, 2nd degree, left heel.

Contrary to expectancy there were only three cases of frostbite, and one was on the cheek of a previously bitten right waist gunner.

The men do not seem unusually tired after this mission and did not run into any strong enemy opposition.

19 February – The weather has been stinko for the past eight days and no operational missions have been flown.

On Monday, Feb. 14, a dinner meeting was held for the commanding officers and surgeons in the group and an attempt was made to present the psychiatric problems and their dispositions that confront the Eighth Air Force. All were kind enough to listen attentively but the memory of the hamburgers seems to remain a bit longer than the pearls of wisdom that were given by this poor narrator.

The chief topic of the week among the medical officers has been who was going on pass. I think I will settle the question in the near future and go on pass myself!

We had several accidents during the week. The first, Cpl John Vodden, of the British RASC, suffered a compound fracture of the right tibia and fibula and lacerations about the face, when he continued to travel when his motor cycle had stopped. His commanding officer, Major Lloyd, gave me an Achtung salute as he entered, and yours truly thought he was being addressed by the G.I. Joe of the army until the major identified himself. He turned out to be quite a cocoa guzzler and I believe only pride kept him from polishing off his third cup in as many minutes. Cpl Vodden was sent to the 121st Station Hospital at Braintree.

Later in the afternoon one of our own G.I.’s Cpl Irving T. Rossman, of the 533rd BS, was cutting wood and attempted to bisect his foot along with the log. He was given plasma before evacuation on account he was in shock.

To top Captain Bland’s rather interesting tour of duty, he was called to see two soldiers that a jeep had apparently taken off the base without permission and said jeep had piled into the truck that was returning with the local band. The two injured men were: Pvt Clarence J. Caswell, 534th BS. Diagnosis: 1. Wound. lacerated, cheek and sub orbital region, left, moderate severity and mild, respectively; 2. Wound. Lacerated face, leg, middle third, left, moderate severe.

Sgt Johnny T. Mills, 535th BS. Diagnosis: 1, Abrasions and contusions of forelegs, moderate severe. 2. Sock, post-traumatic.

Poor Captain Bland finally got to bed at 4 am, and with the bed clothes rising and falling about four foot with each respiration gave articulate evidence that said Captain Bland was completely pooped upon retiring. He was able to sit up and take nourishment about noon the following day.



http://www.381st.org/histories/medical_02-1944.html


__________________
"who am I?... WRONG ANSWER"
Death is no easy answer
For those who wish to know
Ask those who have been before you
What fate the future holds
It ain't pretty

Offline DREDIOCK

  • Plutonium Member
  • *******
  • Posts: 17775
oh and for nose art folks
« Reply #1 on: February 10, 2004, 12:31:12 AM »
oh and for nose art folks.
The site also has some very good nose art

All actual nose art from the 381st bomber group



Im sure we all can relate to this one LOL


 http://www.381st.org/default.asp



__________________
"who am I?... WRONG ANSWER"
« Last Edit: February 10, 2004, 12:33:40 AM by DREDIOCK »
Death is no easy answer
For those who wish to know
Ask those who have been before you
What fate the future holds
It ain't pretty

Offline DREDIOCK

  • Plutonium Member
  • *******
  • Posts: 17775
amazing true story
« Reply #2 on: February 10, 2004, 12:35:23 AM »
From the same sight

PROOF that the ground in AH is Overmodeled! LMAO

The Miraculous Survival of Matt Berk & Wade McCook

In what has to be the most miraculous survival of WW II, 2 crewmen of the 381st Bomb Group survived a 22,000 ft descent in the tail section of a B-17 without parachutes. This information was gathered from Matt Berk, including letters he supplied from the principals involved which he received after the war and conversations with Matt Berk and with Michael McCook, Wade's son

The date was October 8, 1943. The mission was to Breman, Germany. The plane was "75".

Flying deputy lead position, the No. 4 engine was lost over the target and when the lead ship went down, "75" took over. A few minutes later, fighters attacked and No. 3 engine ran away. The loss of 2 engines prevented them from staying with the group and they were forced to drop back to another group. They kept dropping back until they were alone. As soon as they were alone, the fighters attacked continuously. The order came, "Prepare to bail out, we may have to abandon ship."

One of the waist gunners called, "Oxygen out on the co-pilot's side" and they were ordered to switch over to the other side. The ball turret gunner informed the pilot that gas was leaking from the No. 2 engine, covering the bottom of the ship and that firing one of his guns could set the ship on fire. He abandoned his position.

Twenty minutes after dropping their load, out of ammunition and badly damaged, the glass nose was knocked out, either by an overhead attack or a loose propeller from the windmilling No. 3 engine. The navigator and one of the waist gunners managed to escape the ship through the forward escape hatch.

At about this time, Wade McCook, the tail gunner made it to the other injured waist gunner, Matt Berk. When the nose glass blew off, the ship went into a dive for a few seconds before breaking in half at the waist. McCook and Berk were trapped in the aft section with no way out. Berk, half dead, lost conscious and McCook could only hang on as the entire tail section wafted to the ground like a leaf!

McCook was captured by the Germans, suffering only small cuts and bruises from his ordeal. He told the Germans that the other man in the tail was dead but he was mistaken. Berk was transported to a German hospital where he regained consciousness three days later and learned the extent of his injuries which included a split jaw, one arm in a cast and unable to walk without the aid of a crutch. He was eventually repatriated back to the United States in a prisoner exchange and went on to work as a crash investigator for the Federal Aviation Agency.

Wade McCook returned home after the war, moved to Tucson, Az. where he lived for a while before re-enlisting in the Air Force. He went to Korea as a crew chief and was killed in a mid-air collision between two B-29's.


According to 381st records the aircraft was B-17F #42-29941 (MS-R) "TARFU and T.S. Too" of the 535th BS.

Pilot Manchester, Edwin R. KIA
Copilot Jukes, Elton D. KIA
Navigator Smith, Marvin L. POW
Bombardier Moore, Keith D. POW
Top Turret O'Donnell, James J. KIA
Radio Darrington, Lovenzo M. KIA
Ball Turret Tucker, Arthur L. KIA
Left Waist Berk, Matthew (NMI) POW
Right Waist
Budzik, Anthony L. KIA
Tail Turret McCook, Wade (NMI) POW
Death is no easy answer
For those who wish to know
Ask those who have been before you
What fate the future holds
It ain't pretty

Offline AKKarma

  • Zinc Member
  • *
  • Posts: 78
A window in Time
« Reply #3 on: February 14, 2004, 10:27:14 AM »
DREDIOCK,

  Thanks for posting this.  It's humbling to think of the kind of horror these guys faced on a daily basis.  If you like, you can tell your mother-in-law that I will take my bugle outside at sunset on Sunday February 22nd to sound Taps for her brother S/Sgt Joseph G. Sorbino and his crewmates.



AKKarma

Offline Rasker

  • Silver Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 1265
A window in Time
« Reply #4 on: February 19, 2004, 11:04:16 PM »
speaking of miraculous survivals, there are at least two cases on record of a British and a Russian pilot both surviving jumps from 15 or 20 thousand feet in which the parachute did not open and the lucky pilot landed in a VERY deep snowdrift.

Offline DREDIOCK

  • Plutonium Member
  • *******
  • Posts: 17775
A window in Time
« Reply #5 on: February 21, 2004, 11:32:09 AM »
Thanks. Im sure she will greatly appreciate that.
You a military bugler or just something you do as a hobby just curious

The particular action in question  if memory serves correct. the flight ran into something like  over 160 enemy fighters  mostly 190s Yet only 6 planes were lost in action due to fighters. Pretty remarkable I think.
If you havent done so yet check out the rest of the site.
some pretty facinating stuff there.
Managed to find his burial plot in europe and everything which was somethign she didnt even know existed inasmuch as she said they were told there were no remains to return.
Alsgetting to read the actual afteraction reports as they were written at the time.
Kinda reminds me of the scene in Memphas Belle when he is reading the letters from the families of those shot down and they are showing combat footage

Quote
Originally posted by AKKarma
DREDIOCK,

  Thanks for posting this.  It's humbling to think of the kind of horror these guys faced on a daily basis.  If you like, you can tell your mother-in-law that I will take my bugle outside at sunset on Sunday February 22nd to sound Taps for her brother S/Sgt Joseph G. Sorbino and his crewmates.



AKKarma
Death is no easy answer
For those who wish to know
Ask those who have been before you
What fate the future holds
It ain't pretty

Offline DREDIOCK

  • Plutonium Member
  • *******
  • Posts: 17775
A window in Time
« Reply #6 on: February 21, 2004, 11:40:13 AM »
I remember some years ago on a news report they had some guy who had a camcorder with him when he jumped and his chute didnt deploy not only did he survive but survived relitively unscathed.  Landing I THINK in a soft marsh type area.I definately remember you could hear him yelling after he hit "Im alive Yahoo I dont beleive it thank god Im alive!"
heh ya got that right brother

Another News item I remember another guy jumping with his Camcorder and was so exited about filming the experiance he forgot to put on his chute before he jumped. On the film you can see the view he had and hear him commenting on it. then when it came time to deploy. all you heard was him saying "oh no".
Unfortunately his landing was far less fortunate.

Quote
Originally posted by Rasker
speaking of miraculous survivals, there are at least two cases on record of a British and a Russian pilot both surviving jumps from 15 or 20 thousand feet in which the parachute did not open and the lucky pilot landed in a VERY deep snowdrift.
Death is no easy answer
For those who wish to know
Ask those who have been before you
What fate the future holds
It ain't pretty

Offline Guppy35

  • Radioactive Member
  • *******
  • Posts: 20387
A window in Time
« Reply #7 on: February 23, 2004, 12:40:41 PM »
I got to know a former 301st BG B17 Tail gunner a while back.  He too had ridden it down trapped in the tail section.

As he wrote it for his family, and that he was kind enough to share with me:

"Hurriedly I snapped my chute in place and made ready to leave the stricken plane.  The full realization of our plight settled upon me as  watched the metal skin shriveling on the wing ribs as the fire slowly weakened the structure.  I looked to the ground and trembled.  It was white with snow, five miles down.  It was the longest look of my life.

We were within about fifty miles of the Russian lines when suddenly the ship lurched and everything went black.

The next thing I knew, we were in a dive.  The ammunition containers on my left had broken loose from the ship and were laying across my body.  My left arm was caught beneath the catwalk.  I was fully awake and struggled to free myself for I knew I must bail out or die with the plane.  I felt my strength leaving and I realized fully that I was hopelessly trapped.  With the last ebbing moment of my conscuiousness I offered a simple prayer, 'Dear God, I'm coming-goodbye my love.'

It was though I were an anonymous actor of an unknown part in a hazy dreamland.  I wondered why I should be lying on the cold ground.  What a strange looking looking old lady stood over me. Shots were being fired and I feared she might be hit.  I wonderd who I was as my thoughs drifted away into a haze."

He'd ridden that 17 down from 27,000 feet and somehow survived the crash.  He never really totally recovered from the trauma of the event.  His best friend was in the nose and died as he watched as the Germans hauled them away in a horse drawn cart.

Dan/Slack
Dan/CorkyJr
8th FS "Headhunters