whelp.....i had suggested about the possibility of A.A.R.'s. so.......i'm in kind of a weird mood, and just did an AAR from last night.
the names are changed, or just plain made up out of my vivid imagination, to protect the innocent,,,,,,except for my planes name. she's named for grandmom.
in a strange sort of way, it's kind of fun to sit here in a quiet room, and to try and visualize what a pilot in real life must have felt in these situations. i try, may be right, may not be......but definitely a big
to them.
report follows::::::::
i got to the flight line to find my trusty p-38J ready for todays mission. she was fueled up, ammo loaded, glass was clean, and my "special"
beverages had been stowed next to the armored seat.
i gave her a cursory walk around, looking for any obvious defects, as todays mission was to be a low altitude sweep(i was soon to learn differently).
everything looked good, tires had good air pressure, no obvious hydraulic leaks, no latches left loose.
i climbed aboard, stowed the ladder, and settled into the cockpit. my crew chief helped me strap in, and then jumped down, to man the fire extinguisher
for engine start. i follow through my checklist, being sure switches are all positioned properly, prop and fuel settings are correct for start, etc.
i call "CLEAR!" as i hit the switch to wind up the inertia starter on #1 engine, i look, see Louie standing at the ready, and well clear of the prop arc,
i engage the starter, and watch the prop slowly spin. i prime her a lil, as she coughs to life, and i hear the ever so sweet sound of allison v-1710 music
roar to life.
allowing #1 to stabilize at idle, Louie moves over to #2, and readies himself, as i spin up the inertia starter, once again calling "CLEAR", and engage
the starter, watching #2 join in the symphony of allisons.
i love this aircraft, as these allison v-1710's never let me down, and should i suffer damage to one, i can easily feather the prop, and continue on home.
Catherine(named for my grandmother, who was the most important person in my life) always brings me home, regardless of battle damage.
oil pressure up on both engines, oil and cylinder head temps in operating range, i do a run-up on both engines, check all of my flight controls for
free and full movement, cycle both props, check mixture full rich, and head to the runway. on the way, i call out "p-38 taxing to runway 20, radio check
please?" i get a response from an outbound flight of bombers 5 miles out, calling loud and clear.
i take the active, give a final tug on my safety harnesses, re-check my gauges, and seeing everything in the green, i ease the throttles forward, reveling
(although i was nervous as usual when i head out on a combat mission alone) in the symphony of Allison music. she accelerates beautifuly down the runway,
and at 100mph, i let her fly herself off the ground, retracting my gear. i check the mirrors on the engine nacelles, to verify my nose wheel up and doors closed.
at 500 ft agl, i turn south, climbing. i level out at only 3,000 agl, as my i am looking for targets of opportunity on the ground today.
i set the mixture control to auto, guns switches all on, as I'm very close to enemy territory, when i get the call.
damaged b-24, lost all of his box, damaged, and out of ammo, looking for escort. he was there, alone, and helpless, still behind enemy lines.
this to me is more important than looking for targets of opportunity, as
there are 10 men on that aircraft. i radio him back, get his approximate location, and lift Catherine's nose to her maximum climb.
as i level out at 20,000ft, i let her accelerate to max. cruise speed, looking for the 24. i spot the 24, about 6 miles at my 2 o'clock, and as i radio them to
inform them of my position and that they have cover, i catch a glint out of the corner of my eye, slightly below us.
i inform the b24 of this, as i continue to draw closer to them, i don't see anything.
i then hear a nearly panicked voice on the radio.....it's one of the gunners, in sheer panic, as he calls it out. "FOCKE WULFE 7 O'CLOCK LEVEL,
CLOSING FAST!!"
scan the sky, and spot him, closing on us hard. 10 men depending on my, i firewall the throttles, as the allisons roar to life, giving me everything they've got.
I'm coming at him, from his 1o'clock, and I'm in a slight dive to give me a little more speed. as he looks intent on the bomber, i start to lead turn into him,
and he turns towards me, firing from my 12:30, and slightly above me. i take a few hits, but managed to avoid the full fury of his cannons.
as he passes me, he turns his attention back to the bomber, thinking i won't be able to get to him in time. he was wrong, as i had pulled up into a half
immelman, rolled out, and was already nearing 475mph, closing on him hard. i fired a short burst with 50's only, missing him, but he saw the tracers, pulling
up off of the bomber. he knew that had he pressed his attack now, he would not survive.
he maneuvered hard, doing all he could to spoil my shots, but he had already given me the advantage. all i had to do now, was wait for him to make a mistake.
i got a couple good hard bursts in with the full force of Catherine's 50's and her cannon, and observed parts shedding off of the 190. as i got in closer it appeared
to be an A5. realizing he had made a fatal mistake the brave 190 pilot did all he could do to try and turn the tables on me, but it was all to no avail,
as he had lost some maneuvering ability, and i believe i may have hit the pilot, as i observed some hits on the top of the canopy.
after the third pass, i observed his engine quit, as he seemed to enter a slow lazy spiral(much like the spiral I've witnessed many a b-17 enter). i started to
follow him down to confirm the kill, but i needed to find the 24, and verify he was ok. i could not raise him on the radio, nor could i find him.
being exhausted from the combat, my cannon empty, and my aircraft not feeling quite right, i decided to head back home. on the way back, i reflected a
little on the kill i had just scored. i always felt a little bad, as i feel that these brave pilots are kids compared to me. i have to do it though....it was him,
or 10 of my countrymen.
upon returning to base, and landing, i spotted the b-24 sitting just off the runway at the far end. she had taken serious damage, and was unable
to stop when she touched down, as her hydraulics(for the brake system)were completely gone. the pilot had steered her off the runway, and
as soon as they hit the mud, it dragged her speed down greatly.
i landed, taxied over to the maintenance hanger, went through my shutdown checklist, and shut her down. as i got out, i patted Catherine's glare shield,
and thanked her yet again, for being there for me, and making sure i got home safe and sound.
i lowered the ladder. climbed down, and as i ducked underneath the boom, noticed one of my rudders was missing. this had to be the cause of the weird
handling. as i walk forward, running my hand down Catherine's engine nacelle, i count my blessings once again, wondering when my number will be up.
i mutter to Catherine(myself?) thank you again grandmom........you keep bringing me home, and I'll keep bringing you home.
end of report::::
stills from gun camera to follow
