Mediterranean Algiers Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - July 17, 1943, Algiers, Algiers                                Saturday july 17, 1943the stars and stripes weekly Page s Jeannette came Back Carrier command s c-47 s co to War by it Peterman Philadelphia inquirer correspondent Tail feathers gone a b m Mitchell named Jeannette recently returned to her base minus the left elevator and part of the left rudder and with the right elevator held Only by a few threads. Piloting her to a Safe Landing was 1st la Harry r. Logan of Bloomfield Conn. Members of the Crew shown left to right Are it. Logan 1st la Kenneth m. Seh Asinger Streeter n. D., Bombardier 1st la Lamont l. Cates Bessemer Ala navigators sgt. Rudy Sekermestrov Itoh Akron Ohio gunners sgt Thomas Val in tic Verona a radio operator and to ski. Joseph p. Rahel Adams mass Aerial photographer. An advanced Allied airbase july 14�?that poor relation in the family of american military aviation the troop Carrier command flying c-47�?Ts, have shouldered their Way into tile picture of flying fortresses a-20�?Ts and p-38�?Ts As Allied forces in North Africa acclaimed its part in the airborne invasion of Sicily. Perforated by 50-calibre bullets Tom by ack ack and tracer the plodding transport that went to War one year to the Day from the Date it entered troop Carrier services fought its Way Home like big brother b-17, but without any of the latter a Armor. The Story unfolded on every Field and in every group As the experiences of two night sorties were told by pilots and Crews who until the eve of the recent assault had been no nearer to combat than lugging loads of landmines into the Battle zone. The milk run life had indeed been a bore to these kids until the other night. They called their Job a the milk run a disdaining its Low Altitude hazards envying fighter and bomber pilots. They said that they had been they said that they had been trained to fight but trucking Battle wounded from the Field to base hospitals was the nearest they had come. But that was yesterday before Cinderella went to the Ball. Ringside seat a b-25 Over Sicily by pvt Paul s. Green stars and stripes staff writer an advanced medium bomber based the Baule of Sicily is All smoke and fire when viewed from More than 10,000 feet up in the sky perched in a b-25 grandstand seat. Anxious to see How the invasion looks like from the air i Rode along with a group of a wild willies on their Way to blast targets not so far ahead of advancing american troops. Just before the take off i met hic Crew that was to take me on my first bombing Mission. Here a the line up Pilot it. Dan Mcduff of Eagle pass Texas Copilot. It. John Sholund of Duluth Minn. Bombardier la Joe Boyle of Manhattan Kan. Navigator it. Arnold Bodine of Nunda n. Y. Radio operators sgt. Edward Ennis of Philadelphia Engineer gunner sgt. Ralph Newhouse of Blairsville a. And Turret gunners sgt. Hendrick Osowiecki of Thomaston Conn. It. Mcduff was flying a a Alley cat ii a a ship that belonged to capt. John bums of Berkeley Cai. Capt. Burns had crash landed the first edition of Alley cat at Bone a couple of months ago when it was peppered with flak holes during a sea sweep Over the Mediterranean. It. Mcduff insisted he was hot Sui it ers Vitious but lie pointed out the flight was not being made under the most favourable signs. First of All it was july 13. Secondly it was exactly 13 months to the Day that the Pilot was married. Soon we were heading out towards the sea. I was standing in the cramped space behind the Pilot and Copilot hemmed in by the navigator and tile Bombardier. We three got very close during the trip. It. Bodine the navigator figured i needed some entertainment and offered me the earphones. I put them on. And that female bbl announcer came through loud alternating with a hot jazz band and Long buzzes of Static. Then the news Quot Ragusa has fallen to american and Canadian forces. Palazzolo has been taken. Augusta is threatened by Allied  when the Mediterranean came into View la Mcduff turned around in the pilots seat and pointed downward. He shouted something but All i could hear was the one word  i picked up the . Sure enough. There were dozens of boats of All different sizes lying along the coast. As we crossed the sea. Groups of other ships steamed past Dart ing in As Many different directions All trailing White foam. Suddenly a bloated mass resembling a i Pancake with a puffy Center appeared on one Side. That was Pantelleria the Island pounded by these same Mitchells Day after Day and twice a Day until its surrender. Approaching the sicilian coast More and More boats were observed in adjoining Waters. Peering through the glasses i could see tinier boats leaving the bigger ones and zigzagging towards Shore like a litter of puppies separating from its Mother. The Pilot and Copilot strapped their chutes on. Then it. Sholund turned to me and hollered. Quot Mac wants you to put on your Chute before we get Over the  i reached Back for a Chute picking it up rather gingerly by the confusing arrangement of straps. Trying to remember what the navigator told me i pushed my arms through the straps As if i were putting on a Field pack. Much to my Surprise i found i had it on correctly. But then i had a Little trouble because i found myself All tangled up with the wires from the earphones the Cord holding the glasses and the Chute straps. Finally i unscrambled myself and stared awhile at the Bright red rip Oord on the Chute. Then i shot a glance at my helmet. Nothing like making sure about things. I looked out to the Side and was surprised to see some smoke rings lazily rising several thousand feet below. An ack ack unit was trying to put up some resistance but the aim was indecently bad. I wondered if the rest of the a Crews had retreated farther to the North. In front of us Black dots fell away rapidly from the planes As they passed Over the target. Suddenly the Calm voice of our Bombardier announced Quot bomb doors  i rushed Over to the Drift meter and looked Down. Angry Clouds of dark smoke swirled and Eddie upward As the eggs dropped in the target area. Later the official report will say laconically the target was Well  far below an enemy fighter was observed in a Field near the target. I can to blame the Crew for its reluctance to take to the air. Not with those swarms of p-38 s buzzing around us on All sides. It was easy to see who was master of the skies that afternoon. Twice during the trip we saw fighters approaching. The first group turned out to be p-40�?Ts, the second were spits. Not one Axis fighter challenged us during the Mission. Rest in peace a 4 i i  w ii ii i in i i the coughing coffin has coughed its last breath by to sol Milton Lehman stars and stripes staff writer Allied head broke through and scratched the Finger of a sgt. Thomas p. Redly of Astoria l. A just badly enough to make him wrap Gauze around it. The bombs hit their target and then two bursts of flak struck the left engine and broke the Hydraulic lines. Advanced quarters. July 16�?flak, Fate or War whatever you choose to Call it has finally caught up with the coughing coffin. This Veteran of All b-26�?Ts, with a prayer scrawled on her Side and enough patches on her body to make an arabs garment look like whole cloth has finally flown her last combat Mission. Monday she took off on her 49th or 50th Mission no one was exact sure which it was. She went out with her formation the Veteran of them All on a Mission to Milo Trapani Ai drome in Northern Sicily where the ack ack was heavy. Strangely just before she took off someone finally deciphered the name of the thoughtful private who wrote the prayer on her Side in fort Wayne the prayer that read a a god bless the Crew of this plane. I will say a prayer for your Safe  the private a name was j. Regan. Another thing happened monday. First it. Criswell who took Over piloting tile coffin during the tunisian Campaign was unable to Fly her and a new Pilot was assigned to take her out. He was 1st it. Kart Friederich Mehner when the prayer ship came Over the target she Drew her usual High quota of Flake she had been nicknamed the Magnet because according to her Grews Quot if there a any flak in the sky Well get  but something happened monday that had never happened before. In previous missions no matter How badly shot up she was no member of the Crew had Ever been hit. Monday one piece of flak twice before this matter of losing an engine had happened before a twice. This time Mehner promptly feathered his left Pron and headed for Home. When he hit the coast he had lost about 2,500 feet Altitude and he had to nurse her into the Field. When he tried to pot his wheels Down before Landing his Hydraulic system did no to have enough juice and Only the left and nose wheels went Down. With no flaps to retard her Speed it. Mehner told his co Pilot 1st it. Ray e. Kiefer of Scottsdale pa., to Cut All the switches. Then while the Crew braced themselves for the Shock the plane came in on two wheels for her third on engine Landing faster this time and More dangerous Tolian Ever before. She settled on her nose wheel first and then on her left wheel. She ran erect for five seconds. Then her right Wing went Down and she swirled in the dust and the Crew fearing she would go up in flames jumped out. She fooled them and held on. But it was the end of her combat Days. Capt. David l. Sch Cut. The groups engineering officer making arrangements to put on another Wing on her and a new motor has decided to Send her Back to the states to Tram new b-26 pilots. Today their planes stood up graciously at the Edge of runways while Crews counted the scars and began Patching them. Today the pilots were excitedly comparing notes on what the boys from Syracuse threw at them or How they had escaped Axis flak on sunday night proved their value according to a Survey of photographs and reports which were brought Back by observers the first nights operation was successful and the troop Carrier command anticipates a brisk business in the future. These pilots who dropped american parachutists Down around Gela to seize that important port and nearby air bases proved their value in the Surprise attack under the cover of night and their ponderous planes demonstrated that even the beast of Burden sometimes kicks up its heels when Given an incentive of High explosives. Consider the Case of the a Geronimo piloted sunday night Over the Southern coast of Sicily by capt. James a Farris a 27-year-old former Oil company clerk at Saratoga Texas and an airman of 14 months standing. A few minutes before reaching the drop Point with the paratroopers a Shell smashed into the starboard Side of the fuselage knocking out a Hole four by six feet while a fragment from the Shell Silt the aluminium and every rib from Hole to rudder. Passing through the plane the fragment ripped off a door As a second ack ask blast carried away a portion of the left Stabilizer. The explosions also blew away a Large piece of equipment and the Impact was so great that Farris said it Felt like a motor crash in the pilots Cabin. Insisted on jumping the air plane spun at a right Angle and nearly pulled the controls from my grasp a he Bald. Quot for a second did no to realize what had happened then finding myself out of formation i began a violent evasive action. I saw three planes burning on the ground and red tracers everywhere As machine gunners sprayed us As if potting flight ducks. The conduct of the Crew was orderly and courageous especially sgt. Walter a. Kawohl of Chicago who administered morphine to the wounded and the navigator la Richard Walkowiak. Of East Chicago ind a who bandaged a trooper s broken leg. Quot meanwhile i had Cut into a less dangerous spot to give the parachutists a fighting Chance to reach ground. But i be got to hand it to those boys one who had been pretty badly hit by shrapnel insisted on leaping with the others although he had been ordered to remain in the plane. Then we tried to sneak out to sea again but they kept shooting at us for 16 minutes  skimmed Waves slowed Down by the holes in the fuselage Farris re trimmed the plane using excessive Power. He skimmed the Waves All the Way Home. At one time his co Pilot it. Joseph Baxter of Lumberton miss., went aft to examine the damage and came Back to report that half the ship was missing. Nevertheless the flying half of the ship continued on and Farris hit the deck at a Speed to make a Safe Landing. One engine was so hot that it  Stop when the switch was Cut off. Farris and three other members of the Squadron who had safely returned made the Cook produce a big stack of wheat cakes which they had heartily consumed before retiring. �?�01ve them half a Chance a said col. Jerome Mccauley of Denton Texas a a and  always bring you  and that pilots Point out is the same thing they be been saying about the flying . Anderson Heads bomber command London Brig. Gen. Frederic l. Anderson has been appointed commanding general of the United states 8th bomber command based on England. Only 37 years old Gen. Anderson came to England two years ago As a major to study the rap bombing technique i Over Europe. He was promoted to Brig. Gen. Early this year