The Waterbury Democrat., 1944-12-09
Dy JAMES l.. ,KILGALLEN International News Service Stan
 Correspondent


 Correspondent
 AFHQ, ITALY-For drama, hu- man interest and the application of the grit of our young Americans, few stories of this war surpass that of 25-year old Sergeant Peter G. Tierney of Rochester, New York, a 18th AAF B-A Liberator radio op- erator-gunner
 Sgt. Tierney, one of the real heroes of the war, was the last man to he evacuated from Rumania of more than 1000 Allied airmen, mostly Americans, who were shot down and made prisoners there. He was repatriated October Il.
 Today Tierney, @ slight, freckled, Irish-looking youth, lies in a body cast in a hospital in Italy recuper- ating from injuries he received when he was shot down over Ploesti August 10 last.
 For weeks he lay in a serious, al- most hopeless, condition in small ''enemy" hospital at Puchenii, Ru- mania. Uultimately the new, life saving drug = penicilIin-bOught by American War Bonds worked its miracle. He Is receiving the best medical care it is humanly possible to give - medical care that was able te save Tierney's life and will save that of many others, if War Bond sales hold up. The parachutes bought, the penicillin made, the planes flown - all are demOnstra- tiOns of the dollars from home on the fighting fronts abroad.
 Tierney's home is at 58 Field St. in Rochester. His father, Francis T. T1erney, was Sergeant First Class in the Signal Corps in the first World War. Young Tierney was graduated from Aquinas Institute, Rochester, 1886 and later became an employe of the Eastman Kodak Company in Rochester. He en- tered service July 21, 1942.
 He has a son, Peter G. Tierney, IT., born in September while he was undergoing the penicillin treatment in Rumania.
 He became an experienced radio operator-gunner. He began flying combat missions last April. He has flown a number of missions over Germany, has been over Munich three times. Other of his oustand- ing missions were over Vienna, Aus tria, and Bucharest, Rumania, as well as Blechhammer in Upper Si- lesia and Toulon Harbor, France.
 It was on his forty-eight mis- sion that he was shot down - over Ploesti. It was a mission that this brave young man will never forget. The target was the great oil fields of Ploesti. The Liberators stood by ct their base for @ while because of bad weather.
 After taking of they crossed Italy, the AdT1atic and Yugoslavia. Slight flax was encountered over Yugo- Blavia. Then into Runania, toward what was probaly the most heavily defended target in the world.
 Within view of Ploesti, Tierney could see large clouds of black smoke rising from the target, evi- dence of the hombers ahead. When Tierneys formation of Liberators turned into the flax there were . few bursts from the ground. but they were wide and high.
 It was the third time in all his forty-elght missions that Tierney was wearing his flax suit and para chute. He had c "hunch."
 Standing by the left waist sun, it seemed Co Tierney that things were going well. But, suddenly, large bright flash of flame appeared tn front Of him.
 He closed his eyes. But, without looking, he kmew that his plane had been blown apart.
 IIe found himself flying through tho cir with no plans around him.
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