The War of the Cottontails

The War of the Cottontails PDF Author: William R. Cubbins
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 312

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Book Description
A masterfully written story of a young American pilot's experiences as a member of the 450th Bombardment Group in the air war against Nazi Germany's Fortress in Europe in 1944. 30 photos.

The War of the Cottontails

The War of the Cottontails PDF Author: William R. Cubbins
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 312

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Book Description
A masterfully written story of a young American pilot's experiences as a member of the 450th Bombardment Group in the air war against Nazi Germany's Fortress in Europe in 1944. 30 photos.

The war of the Cottontails

The war of the Cottontails PDF Author: William R. Cubbins
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : it
Pages : 0

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Book Description


Shadow

Shadow PDF Author: Neil Hunter Raiford
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 9780786481491
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 252

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Book Description
This is the poignant and exciting story of a statistical anomaly, a B-24 bomber crew that completed 50 combat missions in World War II. This crew was part of the famous 450th Bomb Group, which was nicknamed the "Cottontails" because of their white rudders. As part of the 15th Army Air Force, they flew strategic bombing missions out of Manduria, Italy (in the heel of the boot) and struck strategic targets which were out of the reach of the 8th Army Air Force bases in England. The group lost 1,505 airmen in only a year and a half--the equivalent of losing their effective flying strength three times over. The book's title comes from the crew's bomber, Shadow, which in turn was named for the pilot's black cocker spaniel that flew with them on training missions. Based on interviews with the surviving crewmembers and their families as well as extant archival source material, the book details the childhood, training and post-war life of each of its 13 principal characters. Chapter One is a discussion of each man's boyhood years and Chapter Two provides details of the training that each received. In Chapter Three, the original crew of ten (Crew #4-N-33) was formed in Clovis, New Mexico. An assignment for training in Clovis and in B-24s meant that the crew had been designated for heavy bombardment. Chapter Four includes a description of the four main objectives for the crew, one of which was to participate in POINTBLANK, the Combined Bomber Offensive, which called for the destruction of German fighter aircraft plants, ball bearing plants, oil refineries, rubber plants, munitions factories, sub pens and bases. Details of the structural components of most missions are provided in Chapter Five. The crew completes its first missions in Chapter Six. In Chapter Seven, "Shadow" completes its last after taking enemy fire, and Chapter Eight introduces a new plane, Sleepy Time Gal. The book's Epilogue contains information about the post-war lives of the crew.

450th Bomb Group (H)

450th Bomb Group (H) PDF Author:
Publisher: Turner Publishing Company
ISBN: 1563112434
Category : Flight crews
Languages : en
Pages : 138

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Book Description
The 450th Bomb Group (H) contained the 720th, 721st, 722nd, and 723rd squdrons.

A Fallen Eagle

A Fallen Eagle PDF Author:
Publisher: Dog Ear Publishing
ISBN: 1598589377
Category : Biography
Languages : en
Pages : 230

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Book Description
"A Fallen Eagle" is the true story of a young boy from East Texas, who volunteered for service in 1942. He entered the service with only a high school education and limited experience, other than working on a farm. His desire to be a pilot drove him to overcome numerous obstacles to be accepted into pilot training. He persevered through rigorous training to earn his wings. After receiving his wings, he became a B-24 pilot assigned to the 722nd Squadron of the 450th Bomb Group. When his unit training was completed, he was assigned to the 15th Air Force, operating out of Italy. He flew missions over most of Europe and the Balkans. Through over 75 of his personal letters, he shares his experiences, both emotional and physical, as he went from being a farm boy to being a heavy bomber pilot. He flew in dangerous combat situations, saw the horrors of aerial battle, and ultimately, gave his life in the service of his country. The human side of the tragedy is told not only in his letters, but by letters of the crew's next of kin and government correspondence in the aftermath. The final chapter describes the detailed government process to recover, make positive identification, and return his remains to the states. CLARENCE P. COWART was born in Groves, Texas, grew up in Jasper, Texas and graduated from Texas A & M College. Upon his graduation, he entered the service at Ft. Bliss, Texas and graduated from Missile School. After serving his active duty obligation, he returned to East Texas and joined the Army Reserves. His first assignment was as a Platoon Leader in an infantry unit. His next assignment was in an Artillery Unit in Beaumont, Texas where he served in several positions. He served four years as Headquarters Company Commander in a support group. Through the years he served in several units, the last was as the Commander of a transportation battalion. After twenty-one years of service he retired as a Lt. Colonel. While serving in the reserves, his civilian jobs involved working in numerous positions in municipal government in Southeast Texas. He retired from the City of Beaumont. He and his wife, Dixie raised two children. They now have four grandchildren and one great granddaughter. They are retired and currently live in Lumberton, Texas. Colonel Cowart is active in the church where he attends, is an avid hunter, competitive shooter, and military arms collector. He operates a part-time design and inspection service from his home. His interest in WWII history led him to write "A Fallen Eagle."

United States Air Force and Its Antecedents

United States Air Force and Its Antecedents PDF Author: James T. Controvich
Publisher: Scarecrow Press
ISBN: 9780810850101
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 200

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Book Description
This bibliography lists published and printed unit histories for the United States Air Force and Its Antecedents, including Air Divisions, Wings, Groups, Squadrons, Aviation Engineers, and the Women's Army Corps.

Liberator Pilot

Liberator Pilot PDF Author: Vincent Francis Fagan
Publisher: Charles Watry
ISBN: 9780914379027
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 130

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Book Description


The Best War Ever

The Best War Ever PDF Author: Michael C. C. Adams
Publisher: JHU Press
ISBN: 1421416689
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 183

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Book Description
The most readable—and searingly honest—short book ever written on this pivotal conflict. Was World War II really such a "good war"? Popular memory insists that it was, in fact, "the best war ever." After all, we knew who the enemy was, and we understood what we were fighting for. The war was good for the economy. It was liberating for women. A battle of tanks and airplanes, it was a "cleaner" war than World War I. Although we did not seek the conflict—or so we believed—Americans nevertheless rallied in support of the war effort, and the nation's soldiers, all twelve million of them, were proud to fight. But according to historian Michael C. C. Adams, our memory of the war era as a golden age is distorted. It has left us with a misleading—even dangerous—legacy, one enhanced by the nostalgia-tinged retrospectives of Stephen E. Ambrose and Tom Brokaw. Disputing many of our common assumptions about the period, Adams argues in The Best War Ever that our celebratory experience of World War II is marred by darker and more sordid realities. In the book, originally published in 1994, Adams challenges stereotypes to present a view of World War II that avoids the simplistic extremes of both glorification and vilification. The Best War Ever charts the complex diplomatic problems of the 1930s and reveals the realities of ground combat: no moral triumph, it was in truth a brutal slog across a blasted landscape. Adams also exposes the myth that the home front was fully united behind the war effort, demonstrating how class, race, gender, and age divisions split Americans. Meanwhile, in Europe and Asia, shell-shocked soldiers grappled with emotional and physical trauma, rigorously enforced segregation, and rampant venereal disease. In preparing this must-read new edition, Adams has consulted some seventy additional sources on topics as varied as the origins of Social Security and a national health system, the Allied strategic bombing campaign, and the relationship of traumatic brain injuries to the adjustment problems of veterans. The revised book also incorporates substantial developments that have occurred in our understanding of the course and character of the war, particularly in terms of the human consequences of fighting. In a new chapter, "The Life Cycle of a Myth," Adams charts image-making about the war from its inception to the present. He contrasts it with modern-day rhetoric surrounding the War on Terror, while analyzing the real-world consequences that result from distorting the past, including the dangerous idea that only through (perpetual) military conflict can we achieve lasting peace.

Straight and Level

Straight and Level PDF Author: Jack Botts
Publisher: iUniverse
ISBN: 0595261310
Category : World War, 1939-1945
Languages : en
Pages : 198

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Book Description


Navigating the Course

Navigating the Course PDF Author: David Fanshel
Publisher: Half Meadow Press
ISBN: 098367860X
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 244

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Book Description
David Fanshel's memoir of his childhood in the Bronx during the Great Depression, and his years training and serving as a navigator in the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II is an illuminating narrative of major events in the first half of the 20th Century. At the same time, the dynamics inherent in growing up in a large immigrant family is a story of ongoing relevance for individuals of all backgrounds even to the present day. David Fanshel was born in New York City in 1923, the third child of Russian Jewish parents. As a teenager in the midst of the Depression, David watched his father struggle to support the family. When tragedy struck in 1936, the network of extended relatives saved the family from disaster, but could not spare them from the stresses of their circumstances, which had significant ramifications for the younger generation. When war was declared in December 1941, David, a freshman at the City College of New York, enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps, and served three years active duty from 1943 until 1945. He was commissioned as a navigator and flew 39 missions with the 15th Air Force 450th Bomb Group, 722nd Squadron, in Manduria, Italy, a tour of duty with a very low survival rate. The only Jewish member in an air crew of ten men, the shared experiences in meeting the demands of combat had a transforming influence upon him to expand my view of the world and my place within the human stream.