Evening star., 1943-07-28
Hungry Officers Hope
Their Flying Chef
will Be Grounded
BY the Associated Press.

oy tAe ASoOClhtco ETcSB.
A u. S. BOMBER STATION IN
ENGLAND.-A voluble, stocky, BUSH
haired little sergeant of italian par
entage has gone from mess cook to
Flying Fortress gunner since he
joined the Army, but all the officers
at this station, including Capt
Clark Gable, hope he gets grounded
and sent back to their kitchen.
Whenever the name OF Sergt. Paul
Joseph Posti, 30, of Boston and Los
Angeles is mentioned the officers
say:
Hes a good cook"-and smack
their lips in fond recollection Of the
many savory dishes he used to pre-
pare for them.
Wait" pleads the agitated Sergt.
Posti," until I've sweated out my
missions completed combat duties)
and after I've had little leave I'll
come back and cook for you"
The boys" means the little SER
geant, ARE just looking for an
excuse to shanghai me back into
the kitchen"
"6o ICWAA SHOI.
Versatile, American-born Posti,
whose accomplishments include pro-
f1ciency as linguist and sleight-of-
hand artist, was chef In civilian
life, cooking in hotels and restau-
rants in Boston, St. Louis, Holly
wood and Los Angeles. At Holly
wood he worked at the Brown Derby
and at a Universal Studio res
taurant.
He said he still received royalties
from a cookbook published through
Boston firm.
Sergt. Posti enlisted as a cook.
The Army sent him to gunnery
school. Then Posti found himself
aboard Flying Fortress as a waist
gunner.
But before his bomber eschelon
roared off for England, Sergt. Posti
ran into trouble.
The circumstances are somewhat
clouded. Posti's version is that he
had permission to stay out, but his
commanding officer said he failed to
report back to camp on time from
leave. Anyway. sergeants don't
argue with captains, and Posti found
himself busted" back to a GI pri-
vate.
Officers Benefit.
Into a mess kitchen he went And
In an officers mess he stayed for
several weeks after arriving in Eng
land-to the great delight OF his
seniors. One of them was Capt.
Gable, who, Posti recalls, once gave
him and his staff a $50 tip back in
Hollywood.
Sergt. Posti says he likes to cook
but he didn't like staying here while
his former Flying Fortress comrades
were fighting over Europe
Frequent petitions to his COM
manding officer eventually were re-
warded with reinstatement as a SER
geant waistgunner. Gleefully Sergt.
Posti discarded his chefs cap.
On his very first raid-to Huls,
Germany, on June 22-Sergt. Posti
shot down an enemy fighter.
The boys are still chuckling over
the little sergeant's latest exploit
during the American attack on the
st. Nazaire submarine base June %.
Tried Pistol Attack.
On that mission Sergt. Posti few
as waistgunner on the Fortress
Belle of the Bayou piloted by First
1t. Jack H. O'Mohondro Of Crowley,
La. Sergt. Posti poured out so much
lead at enemy fighters his machine
gun burned out. AS the Fortress
started home, lone Focke- -WuH
bore in on Sergt Posti's side.
Sergt. Posti's gun was useless. Un-
daunted, the resourceful sergeant
pulled out 38-caliber revolver he
always carries on raids, and emptied
it at the German.
Nav. didn't really expect to
stop him with that pistol" grinned
Sergt. Posti afterward, but that
Focke-Wulf was coming right at me
only about LOO yards away-and
there was helpless"
The German. Sergt. Posti said.
paid for his folly. The ball turret
gunner Sergt. Russell r. Nelson of
indianapolis, shot him down.
Sergt. Posti speaks italian. French
and Spanish. While working In
California, he said he sometimes did
special work as an interpreter for
the Glendale Police Department.
| Sergt. POsti is the son of Mr.. and
Mrs. Charles Posti of Boston. His
father Is commission broker.
IWPR Official Mnx Run