The Bluffton news. [volume] (Bluffton, Ohio) 1875-current, 1945-03-29
even fr It was activated on tie
Fourth of July.

Fourth OF July.
/ read it my face must have turned
white: know that tears came to
my eyes, for felt them burn. But
| didn't care. / was ordered to re-
port in Running, China, to General
Chennault, as Commanding Officer
of the 23rd Fighter Group which was
to be activated from the AVG on
July 4, 1912. wiped the tears from
my eyes and looked out on an i'm
proving world. | could hear the
birds singing again, and people
were laughing; | knew was tire
luckiest man in all the world.
I carefully folded the radiogram
to show my grandchildren when the
war was over and went out to look
at my ship. For had something
else on my mind too. I was going
to go into Burma the next day on
four of the damnedest strafng and
bombing raids the Japs had ever
seen. It would be my swan-song
from Assam and ! had to celebrate
III SOiile way OF announcer.
told my crew to load a 500
pound HE on 'tOld Exterminator, /"
and walked around looking the old
ship over. Somehow l figured that
Kittyhawk had had lot to do with
getting me the greatest job in the
war. It's not every man who finally
gets what he has always wanted in
the Army-after being pulled out of
fighters for being too old, after be-
ing an instructor for four years, aft
er being shanghaied into being a
Burma-roadster, important as the
job had been. Well, I had got what
/ wanted and I felt as though /
could jump over the moon. pat
ted the leering sharks mouth on old
4l-l456, and caressed the prop that
had taken me in and out of many
messes. Then I left, while they
pulled the belly tank and put the
big, fat, yellow bomb under the bel
ly, and frightened the sway braces.
The sight of that bomb made me
feel pretty good.
Next morning before dawn I was
in the air, my course set for Homa-
lin. As climbed out above the
clouds | began to recite poetry In
rhythm with the engine. To the
verses of "Gunga Din" I dropped
my first bomb of the day on the
docks of Homalin. Then flew back
home with the words of the Galley
Slave" going out over the radio in a
private broadcast to the world. On
my next trip I dropped a five-hun-
dred-pounder on a barge at Bhamo
and came back and strafed the
much-abused Myitkyina. My third
attack was on the railroad station
at Mogaung and strafed the empty
freight-cars in the yard. I had to
use a belly tank on the fourth trip.
and so / couldn't take big bomb.
But loaded on six eighteen-po pound
frags and set sail for Lashio. I re-
membered to drop the belly tank
before I went down into the anti
aircraft, and dropped the six little
frags in two of the big green ware
houses by the railroad tracks. /
shot up the field but saw no planes,
and finished my ammunition by
strafing the main street of the town.
| saw two plate-glass windows spat-
ter across the street like artificial
snow from Christmas tree, and |
laughed Historically as two figures
ran from a pagoda.
That day landed back home tired
and happy. More orders had come
for me: was to go to Delhi before
/ went to China. I went there the
next morning with Long Johnny"
Payne.
When l had received my official
instructions from headquarters in
Delhi, and had been wined and dined
by good friends-war correspond
ents like Berrigan, Magofin, and
Briggs-I came on back to pack my
things in Assam. I tried to take the
old fighter ship with me, but my
crew had chiselled a new Allison
engine from somewhere-had proba-
bly, stolen it from some ship, but I
didn't know where. So I went on
over in a transport, expecting to
come back later and ferry "Old Ex-
terminator" to his new home.
AS we came down into the rain
over the lake South of Running, l
never have felt so good. This was
another step to the East, towards
Japan, and when I got out and saw
all those sleek-looking fighting ships
that my Group was going to receive
from the AVG in five days, my spir-
its scared another mile in the air.
was through with all that lonesome
"one-man war" stuff. From now
on we'd be fighting as a team, with
bombers escorted by fighter ships in
proper force to represent America.
| had already met most of the
members of the First American Vol
unteer Group, but it was an even
greater pleasure to meet them now
Some of them were men who were
going to stay with the 23rd Fighter
Group and fight under me. Of all
the honors that I ever have re-
ceived or ever will receive, the
greatest to me will always be the
honor of being given command of
that great group of sky fighters un-
der the Command of Gen. Claire L.
Chennault.
During the four days that followed
I took over the military equipment
of the Group from the Commander
of the squadron that was based at
Running, and got my headquar-
ters staff organized In this Army,
Master Sergeants showing officers
what to do have always been the
backbone of a fighting force, and