The Bluffton news. [volume] (Bluffton, Ohio) 1875-current, 1945-07-05

my eyes. Anti-aircraft was begin
ming to dot the sky with black and
white puffs. AS I dove almost to the
level of the bombers, I could feel
the ack-ack rock my fighter ship. I
kept Sing to watch for the enemy
fighters that must be coming. The
white stars on the upper wings of
the bombers below were like an
American flag waving, and it gave
me the same feeling that I get when
| see home after a long absence.
AS loud as could against the roar
OF the engine, I shouted: "Come up,
| you devilsl"
l saw the yellow bombs begin to
fall in long strings, imposed on the
dark green of the world below. They
got smaller and smaller as the noses
pointed slowly down. Remembering
my movie camera, / tried to take
pictures of the explosions. The
| bombs seemed to take years to fall,
and | began to think they were all
duds. The ack-ack burst closer as
the Japs got the range while we
went straight in. I know / was
never more excited in all my life.
l yelled, "Okay, Hirohito-we have
lots more where those came fromi"
l kept looking behind and under us
for the bombs to burst.
| And then saw the first white ex-
plosion-right on the docks of Kow-
loon. After that they came so fast
you couldn't count them. I let my
camera run as the explosions turned
from white to black-there were oil
fires now. ] could see the fash of
the anti-aircraft guns from the North
shore of Hongkong Island, as we con-
tinued across Victoria harbor. I
risked another look at the target: il
was covered with smoke from one
end to the other. Then I got my
eyes back to searching for enemy
interceptors-we had to be extra
careful now.
Why in hell didn't the bombers
turn for home? They had dropped
the damn bombs, but they were still
going on endlessly towards that point
of Shek Tong Tsui. All of us were
keyed up. But then the long javelin
OF B-25's began to turn to the right.
Mission accomplished - now they
had the down-hill run to base, and
began to get that old feeling of re-
lief. Then, somehow, felt cheated.
Where were the enemy fighters?
raised my camera, sighted again,
and took the formation as it swung
over the burning docks.
Then, as I glanced about, I saw
them, Silhouette after silhouette,
climbing terribly steeply towards
the bombers. know now that they
had got there from Kai TAX below
In four minutes; they had made the
sixteen thousand feet in that short
time. ! felt my camera drop to my
lap, hit my knee, then drop to the
metal floor of the fighter. was fum-
bling now for the mike" button on
the throttle; then I was calling:
Bandits ahead Zerooooos! AT
eleven o'clock" Fumbling again for
the throttle quadrant, showing ev-
erything as far forward as I could,
marvelled at the steepness of the
climb the enemy ships were main
tanning. called: "Zeros at twelve
o'clock" to designate their direction
clock-fashion from u.s. I heard Tex
Hill reply: Hell, see EN-" could
hear the jabber of the Japs still try
ing to block our frequency.
was diving now, aiming for
the lead Zero, turning my gunsight
on and off, little nervously check
ing again and again to see that the
gun-switch was at "on." jerked
the belly-tank release and felt the
underslung ffty-gallon bamboo tank
drop off. We rolled to our backs
to gain speed for the attack and
went hell bent for the Zeros. I kept
the first Zero right in the lighted
sight and began to fire from over a
thousand yards. for he was too close
to the bombers. Orange tracers
were coming from the B-25's too, as
the turret gunners went to work.
: .FiYe hundred yards before / got
to the Zero, saw another P-40
bearing the number Isl speed in
and take it. That was Tex Hill. He
followed the Zero as it tried to
turn sharply into the bombers and
shot it down. Tex spun from his
tight turn as the Jap burst into
flames. / took the next Zero-they
seemed to be all over the sky now.
l went so close that I could see the
pilots head through the glass can
opy and the little tail-wheel that was
not retracted, and I knew it was a
Navy Zero-the little wheel was built
for the arresting-gea of a carrier.
My tracers entered the cockpit and
smoke poured back, hiding the can
opy, and ! went by.
AS turned to take another shin
below me, ! saw four airplanes fall
ing IN flames towards the waters of
Victoria harbor. / half rolled again
and skidded in my dive to shake
any Zero that might be on my tail.
| saw another P-40 shooting at
Jap, but there was a Zero right on
his tail. I dove for this one. He
grew in my sights. and as my trac-
ers crossed in front of him he turned
into me. I shot him down9as his
ship seemed to stand still in the
vertical bank. The ship. was three
or four hundred yards from me. and
it fell towards the water for a time
fbo caay1al