In their own words...

[bobbysocks]

Following its attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, Japan's primary goal was to capture the island of Java and force the surrender of Dutch forces in the Netherlands East Indies.
The Japanese military desperately needed the region's vast oil reserves and natural resources to support its war on Mainland China.
By February 1942, their forces had taken the islands of Tarakan, Borneo, Celebes, Ambon, Bali and the southern half of Sumatra.
In an effort to stem the Japanese advance, the American,British,Dutch and Australian governments formed a joint military command to coordinate the Allied defense of Southeast Asia. ABDA (American, British, Dutch, Australian)
- as the command was named - became operational in January 1942 and quickly established its primary supply base at the port of Darwin in Northern Australia. As supplies for ABDA forces arrived, they were routed through Darwin to the East Indies, Singapore and Mindanao in the Philippines.
In addition, Darwin was a vital staging point for air reinforcements bound for Java. While Allied bombers had the range to reach Java non-stop, fighters had to navigate a network of primitive island airstrips throughout the eastern East Indies. From Darwin, they staged through Penfoi Airfield on Timor to Den Passar Airfield on Bali and then onto Java. These reinforcements, especially the fighters, were critical to the survival of Java. Without them, Japanese air power would break Allied resistance and the East Indies would collapse. The Japanese quickly recognized the importance of Darwin as they moved into the eastern Netherlands East Indies. Their primary goal was the capture of Timor to cut off air reinforcements to Java. At the same time, its capture on 20 February would give them an air base only 600 miles off the north coast of Australia. To cover their invasion force and disrupt Allied supply efforts, an air raid on Darwin was simultaneously planned for 19 February 1942.

At nightfall on the 15th, a powerful carrier task force under the command of Vice-Admiral Nagumo Choichi departed Palau. His force included the 1st Carrier Fleet with the 1st Carrier Squadron (IJNS Akagi and IJNS Kaga) and the 2nd Carrier Squadron (IJNS Hiryu and IJNS Soryu). Although the 3rd Carrier Squadron (IJNS Shokaku and IJNS Zuikaku) had returned to Japan in late January, Nagumo's force was essentially the same as that which
had attacked Pearl Harbor. IJNS Akagi and IJNS Kaga had just returned from a refit at Truk, while IJNS Hiryu and IJNS Soryu had recently supported the invasion of Ambon. In support were the 1st/3rd Battleship Squadron (IJNS Kirishima and IJNS Hiei) and 8th Cruiser Squadron (IJNS Tone and IJNS Chikuma). The 1st Destroyer Flotilla with the light cruiser IJNS Abukuma (flagship), 17th Destroyer Division (IJN Ships Tanikaze, Isokaze, Hamakaze, Urukaze), 18th Destroyer Division (IJN Ships Kasumi, Arare, Kagero, Shiranuhi) and the destroyer IJNS Akigumo screened the task force. In accordance with orders he had received on 8 February, Nagumo put into Kendari on the 17th.
The following night, he made a high-speed run across the Banda Sea.
By dawn of the 19th, his strike force was in position in the Timor Sea to attack Darwin. The four carriers then launched 188 planes - 36 fighters, 71 dive bombers and 81 level bombers. 54 Japanese Army Air Force Ki-21 "Sally" bombers from recently captured Dutch airfields on Ambon and Kendari were to join them over the port as part of a second wave of air strikes. En route to Darwin, the carrier formation encountered a United States Navy PBY Catalina flown by Lieutenant Thomas Moorer USN. The PBY belonged to Patrol Wing 10 and was on patrol out of Darwin. One of the Kaga's Zeros, flown by Naval Air Pilot 1st Class Yoshikazu Nagahama IJN, broke formation and bounced the Catalina before Moorer's crew knew what hit them.
In his first pass, Nagahama shot out the PBY's port engine and ruptured the port fuel tank, causing flames to engulf the plane. Killing power on both engines to counter the drag caused by the dead engine, Moorer managed set down on the water in an extremely hard landing. As the crew scrambled into rafts the PBY disappeared in a column of flame and smoke. Observing the action, a small Filipino Flagged merchant ship - the Florence D - altered course and rescued the crew a short time later.
From her captain, Moorer learned that she was a blockade-runner under contract to the United States Navy to deliver supplies to American forces in the Philippines. Despite the presence of Japanese aircraft, the captain had already been unsuccessfully attacked several times and remained confident of his chances. The attack on Moorer's PBY had been so fast that his radio operator had been unable to notify Darwin.
As the Japanese passed over Melville Island, an Australian coastwatcher radioed a warning. However, 10 P-40E Kittyhawk fighters, led by a LB-30 Liberator, had just departed Darwin and it was assumed this was the same formation.
They were bound for Java via Timor.
However, had liaison between the Americans and Australians been better, the Australian duty officer might have realized that Melville Island was well north of their course. A second warning followed at 0937 as the Japanese passed over Bathurst Island. Father John McGrath of the island's Catholic Mission sighted it and radioed -
"AN UNUSUALLY LARGE AIR FORMATION BEARING DOWN ON US FROM THE NORTHWEST."

Again the duty officer took no action; as at Pearl Harbor on 7 December, Darwin's final chance to make last-minute preparations for the impending raid slipped away. Without radar, the port was unaware of the Japanese and they were able to approach the port undetected. Port Darwin itself had very few defenses of any kind and the recently departed P-40s had represented the only effective fighter cover. A cyclone had shut down the port from February 2-10, so the harbor was crammed with merchant ships waiting to unload. The port's communist-led stevedore union then staged a strike, further adding to the backlog. When unloading finally continued (using American troops armed with rifles and bayonets), the tiny port's single wharf could only unload two ships at a time.
The harbor contained nearly 30 ships.
Australian ships included the examination steamer Southern Cross; the boom vessel's Kookaburra, Koala, Kangaroo, Karangi; and the gate vessel Kara Kara. Also present, were the RAN auxiliary minesweepers HMA Ships Tolga, Terka and Gunbar; patrol boat HMAS Coongoola; depot ship HMAS Platypus; sloops HMA Ships Swan and Warrego; and the 24th Minesweeping Flotilla with the corvettes HMA Ships Deloraine, Katoomba and Lithgow. The hospital ship Manunda also awaited orders after being held in port when Singapore fell.

The American destroyer USS Peary and the United States Army Transports Meigs, Mauna Loa, Portmar and Admiral Halstead were also in port.
The seaplane tender William B. Preston was making preparations to head further south down the coast. They joined the British tanker British Motorist, which carried a full load of high-octane aviation gasoline. The Australian cargo ships Barossa, Tulagi, Zealandia and Neptuna (whose cargo included 200 tons of depth charges) waited to unload at the small wharf.
On Darwin's military airdrome were nine Hudson bombers of 2 RAAF and 13 RAAF Squadrons. Darwin's civilian airport was home to five unserviceable Wirraway fighters of 12 RAAF Squadron. Nine more of the squadron's Wirraways were on Batchelor Field, just outside of Darwin. Some distance away was Daly Waters, a primitive airstrip with eight more Hudsons.
A miscellaneous assortment of civilian aircraft rounded out the military planes. There were very little antiaircraft defenses at any of these bases.

As the Japanese formation approached Darwin, it encountered the 10 P-40s, which had taken off at 0915. En route to Timor, the American planes, belonging to the 33rd Pursuit Group, encountered violent weather just 20 minutes after takeoff and turned back to Darwin. Five planes landed to refuel, while the remainder patrolled the skies over Darwin. These planes now encountered the Zero flown by NAP 1st Class Yoshikazu Nagahama IJN.

His attack on Moorer's PBY had caused Nagahama to lose his formation, so he proceeded to Darwin alone. As a result, he was the first Japanese plane over the target. He sighted the five American Kittyhawks immediately and dove to attack.
The first indication the Americans had of Nagahama's presence came when Lieutenant Robert Ostreicher USAAF casually looked up and was shocked to see a Zero bearing down on him.
Ostreicher immediately jettisoned his drop tank and dove away.
The other P-40s attempted to follow, but Nagahama was too quick.
In a matter of seconds, he shot down Lieutenant Jack Peres USAAF and Lieutenant Elton Perry USAAF before they could react.
Both plunged to the ocean in flames.
Nagahama then shot up Lieutenant Max Wieck's (USAAF) P-40 so badly that he was forced to bail out. As Wiecks floated to the water, Nagahama also seriously damaged the plane flown by Lieutenant William Walker USAAF.
Barely out of flight school and unable to shake the Japanese pilot, Walker was badly wounded and barely managed to crash-land his mangled plane at Darwin.
The first elements of the main Japanese formation now arrived over the port and almost immediately encountered Lieutenant Ostreicher's lone Kittyhawk.
He made a number of attacks and claimed to have shot down one bomber and damaged another. Although his own aircraft was damaged by return fire, he was able to land safely at Darwin. It is possible that Ostreicher attacked two different formations, both belonging to IJNS Soryu. The first consisted of 18 B5N "Kates" which reported being attacked by fighters and having four planes damaged, but none lost. A second formation of 18 D3A "Val" dive bombers also reported being attacked by fighters. One was lightly damaged, while a second was forced to ditch in the ocean. A Japanese destroyer later rescued its crew.
The main fighter force now arrived over Darwin and began strafing AA positions and other targets of opportunity. One of their first targets was the auxiliary minesweeper HMAS Gunbar as she passed through the harbor boom. She suffered heavy damage and a number of dead and wounded before the Zeros moved on. The five P-40s refueling on Darwin's military airfield now tried to scramble. The 33rd Pursuit Squadron's commanding officer, Major Floyd Pell USAAF, was the first off the ground. He managed to reach approximately 100 feet before his plane was attacked by a flock of Zeros from IJNS Hiryu. Pell bailed out of his burning plane at about 70 feet, and his parachute barely opened before hitting the ground. He was still alive and crawling slowly when a group of strafing Zeros killed him. Lieutenant Charles Hughes USAAF did not make it off the ground and was killed in the cockpit as his Kittyhawk rolled down the runway. Lieutenant Robert McMahon USAAF got into the air and encountered three Zeros, which he managed to get behind. He claimed hits on one, but his landing gear then dropped, helping the Japanese gang up on him.
The Zeros badly holed the P-40 and wounded McMahon in the leg, but were unable to complete the kill before AA fire from the harbor drove them off.
As McMahon nursed his burning plane back to the airstrip, he encountered a "Val", which he hosed with gunfire.
The rear gunner slumped over his weapon but McMahon was forced to bail out before he could observe more.
This could also have been one of the planes attacked by Lieutenant Ostreicher. The attention paid to the three previous pilots undoubtedly helped Lieutenants Burt Rice USAAF and John Glover USAAF get airborne.
However, Rice came under attack almost immediately and his plane crashed in flames. He bailed out and drifted to the ground in a semiconscious state.
Glover tried to cover Rice's parachute, but he too was hit.
With his plane barely controllable, Glover headed back to the airfield.
There, he crash landed and was dragged from the burning wreckage by RAAF ground personnel.
At 0957, the level bombers began their run over the harbor and town at 14000 feet. One minute later, Darwin's air raid klaxons belatedly sounded.
Bombs struck the wharf, blowing the pier's train into the harbor.
Explosions destroyed water mains, oil pipes and much of the pier itself.
The bombs then slowly and methodically moved across the hospital, post office, police barracks and through the town's administrative district.
Many workers were killed with dozens more wounded and trapped.
With the water mains destroyed, it proved impossible to extinguish the fires that soon engulfed the town. Attacking singly, in pairs and in waves of three, 27 "Vals" now concentrated on shipping in the harbor.

HMA Ships Swan and Warrego along with the USS Peary and William B. Preston got underway, but USS Peary was buried under a rain of bombs.
Two bombs on the fantail demolished the depth charge racks, sheared off the propeller guards and flooded her engine steering room. A third bomb exploded in the galley. It was followed by a fourth, which penetrated her main deck and exploded in her forward magazine. A fifth bomb then gutted her engine room and the ship broke apart. Eighty officers and men perished in the hailstorm and flaming oil that surrounded the USS Peary. Among the dead was her captain, Lieutenant-Commander John Bermingham USN, along with all his officers. Only 40 enlisted men survived, most of them wounded.

The only officer to survive was Lieutenant W.J. Catlett USN who was ashore in the hospital during the attack.
As Manunda sent out rescue boats, William B. Preston blew through the harbor at high speed. Steering on her engines, she just missed the hospital ship's bow by mere inches, cleared the harbor and set a southerly course down the coast of Australia at full speed.
Shortly afterwards, Manunda - although clearly marked with white paint and red crosses - was near-missed several times by dive-bombers.
Postwar Japanese records indicated these attacks were in error and were not condoned. None-the-less, she suffered four dead, 76 shrapnel holes and over 100 indentaions in the hull with heavy damage to her upper works.
A direct hit then smashed the aft end of the bridge, causing much internal damage and starting seven fires.
Despite 12 killed and 47 wounded among the crew and medical staff, Manunda continued to provide medical care to wounded personnel during and after the raid.
At the same time, HMAS Swan was badly damaged by a near-miss.
The British Motorist was also badly hit and began sinking by the head.
Mauna Loa had her back broken by a direct hit and began to settle at the stern. HMAS Platypus managed to beat off her attackers, although three near misses immobilized her engine room and sank the lighter Mavie, which was tied up alongside. HMAS Katoomba was confined to dry dock, but sharp AA fire from her gun crews caused a dive bomber to miss. Zealandia took a bomb down her #3 hatch, which exploded deep in the hold. She then swung slowly into the wind, causing flames to fan up all along the ship.
As they spread fore and aft, her master gave orders to abandon ship.
As his crew went over the side, Tolga, Terka and several small harbor patrol boats moved in to take off her survivors and those of the British Motorist.

Neptuna and Barossa were unloading at the pier when both were hit.
With their boilers cold, neither could move as burning oil from the wharf's ruptured oil pipes gradually enveloped them.
Braving intense heat and flames, the naval tug HMAS Wato moved in and towed away the oil lighter moored to Barossa's side.
She then returned and towed Barossa to safety.
HMAS Wato beached the burning ship nearby and her cargo of timber for expanding the pier was allowed to burn itself out. Tulagi was also hit and beached to avoid sinking. She would later be pulled off and repaired with little difficulty.
Shortly after the raid ended, Neptuna's 200 tons of depth charges exploded, destroying what was left of the pier and much of the town.
Although her stern and engines disappeared immediately,the bow briefly remained afloat.
The carrier raid lasted less than an hour and these planes were gone before 1100. Bombers from Kendari appeared overhead at 1158.
They ignored the town and harbor, instead concentrating on the military airfield. What little the Zeros had left untouched, the bombers finished off, including the damaged fighters belonging to Ostreicher and Walker.
Although only six men were killed, highly accurate pattern bombing destroyed two hangers, four dormitories, mess halls, equipment stores and a number of other buildings, including the hospital. Sinking ships and shattered hulks littered the harbor and small boats darted everywhere, fighting fires and gathering wounded. Eight ships had been sunk, including USS Peary, British Motorist, Neptuna, Zealandia, Mauna Loa, Meigs, Mavie and the coal hulk Kelat. Three more - Barossa, Portmar and Tulagi - were saved only by beaching, although the latter suffered little damage and was soon repaired.
Ten others were damaged in varying degrees.
On the ground, the Zeros and bombers had destroyed virtually every Allied plane they could find. In addition to the 33rd Pursuit Squadron's 11 P-40s, one LB-30 and three USAAF Beechcraft biplanes used for liaison duties were also destroyed. In addition, Zeros from IJNS Hiryu burned three PatWing 10 PBYs in the harbor.
The RAAF lost six Hudsons with another one and a Wirraway damaged.
As hard as it is to believe, the raid could have been worse.
AA fire was extremely heavy, causing a number of attacks to fail.
Still, the Japanese lost only one fighter and two "Vals" over Darwin.
A third "Val" was forced to ditch in the ocean on the return flight, but its crew was rescued by one of Nagumo's destroyers. Another 34 aircraft were damaged in varying degrees, although the number written off upon their return to the carrier task force is unknown.
No Army planes were lost or damaged.
As the Japanese retired, dive bombers from the IJNS Kaga sighted what they reported to be a "camouflaged cruiser." Based on this report, IJNS Soryu and IJNS Hiryu each launched nine "Vals" on an armed reconnaissance patrol.
1½ hours later, the planes from the IJNS Soryu found the ship; it was actually the 3200 ton merchant vessel Don Isidore, which like the aforementioned Florence D, was also under contract to the USN as to blockade runner between Darwin and the Philippines.
The dive bombers scored five direct hits, leaving the ship heavily damaged.
In exchange, return fire lightly damaged one "Val."
Just 30 miles to the south, Florence D picked her distress call.
Don Isidore reported that she was under heavy attack with many casualties.
Her captain immediately changed course to render assistance.
He had barely done so when an Aichi E13A1 "Jake" floatplane appeared.
Launched from one of Nagumo's battleships or cruisers, it had likely been sent out to monitor the attack on Don Isidore.
Unarmed and with a top speed of only 10 knots, Florence D's captain decided it was useless to try and outmaneuver the floatplane.
He dropped anchor and ordered everyone to take cover.
The "Jake" then came around and dropped two 100 lb. bombs; fortunately the pilot was a poor aimer and both missed the ship by several hundred feet.
He then strafed Florence D several times before flying off to the west.
As the "Jake" disappeared, Florence D continued on course.
Approximately 90 minutes later, lookouts sighted the Don Isidore.
Although the two ships exchanged recognition signals, the latter did not slow down as she continued to the south.
She later lost rudder control and was beached on the north coast of Australia to avoid sinking. The Australian corvette HMAS Warrnambool rescued her crew on 20 February.
Florence D's captain now decided that it was too dangerous to proceed and turned back for Darwin. Unfortunately, his decision came too late; 30 minutes later, IJNS Hiryu's nine dive bombers found the freighter and launched an immediate attack.
Although only two bombs hit, the first exploded in the forward cargo hold, which contained 3-inch AA shells and a large quantity of .50-caliber ammunition.
The second exploded amidships and Florence D went down by the bow within a matter of minutes.
Moorer's men and the surviving crew eventually reached the north coast of Australia and were also rescued by the HMAS Warrnambool on the 23rd.
Once IJNS Hiryu's dive bombers were recovered, Admiral Nagumo turned for Kendari, where he arrived on 21 February.
The operation had been a complete success.
Not only was Timor taken without Allied sea or air resistance, but the vital air route to Java had also been severed. A series of devastating air strikes then let the Japanese achieve complete air superiority over Java, allowing their invasion convoys approach virtually unhindered from the air.
Unlike Pearl Harbor - where Nagumo's pilots had failed to hit fuel stocks, repair facilities and other shore installations - they were ordered not to make the same mistake at Darwin. As a result, it was annihilated as a supply base with 262 killed and 311 wounded. The port would later be rebuilt into a major supply hub, but played no further role in the Netherlands East Indies campaign. And although Japanese bombers attacked the port well into 1943, improved radar, AA and fighter defenses prevented another Australian Pearl Harbor.

[bobbysocks]

The kamikaze pilot who chose life before empire- an oil leak and a kind commander saved a young recruit...

IN ALL ways but one, Shigeyoshi Hamazono is the kind of elderly ex-military man whom you might meet anywhere.
His back is ram-rod straight and his black shoes and grey suit are as polished and crisp as a uniform. His skin is tanned by the southern Japanese sun, and he looks closer to 70 than to his 81 years.
Even if you spotted the singeing that still affects his eyebrows, and the shrapnel fragments in his arm, you would never guess Mr Hamazono’s extraordinary story. For he was a kamikaze pilot, destined to die at 21.
Mr Hamazono resolved to die — gladly, as a sacrifice on behalf of his mother country — and flew to the boundary between life and death. Staring across it, to his own great surprise, he chose life.
He tells a story of young men like him, sucked into volunteering for a war they could not see beyond, who were nonetheless deeply ambivalent about the sacrifice of themselves and their comrades, and took great risks to save one another from death.
“I saw so many of these new young pilots, fresh out of training, arriving at the airbase in their fresh uniforms — the next day, they were gone,” he says.
“On the surface, they thought they had no choice but to be kamikaze pilots. But deep in their hearts, it wasn’t what they wanted.”
Mr Hamazono was born into a fishing family in southern Japan. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor in December 1941, he volunteered as soon as he could. He said: “My mother could hardly read but she wrote me a letter with the only words she could manage: ‘Don’t be defeated’ and ‘Don’t die’.”
It was the young Mr Hamazono’s bad luck to be fighting for commanders for whom these two priorities were mutually exclusive.
As Japan’s early success turned to a slow, grinding reverse, he had many narrow escapes as a naval fighter pilot. Then, in October 1944, he found himself in the Philippines, where the first Divine Wind Special Attack Squadrons were organised.
Service in the Special Attack Squadrons was to be entirely voluntary, and so a hundred pilots in Mr Hamazono’s group were handed a piece of paper, and invited to mark it with a circle, indicating that they volunteered, or a cross if they declined.
“Three men marked the cross,” he says. “And they were forced to go anyway. Some of them came back saying they couldn’t find the enemy, or that their fuel was running out. They were sent out again. I feel hatred towards those officers who made them go like that.
“One day, I was called in by the commander, and he said, ‘I’m sorry, but will you go tomorrow?’ I knew immediately what it meant.
“As a military pilot, there was no way to say no. I was grateful for my training, and the responsibility given to me, and my Zero fighter. This was my duty. That night all I thought about was my mission.”
With two other pilots, Mr Hamazono took off the next morning, bound for their target, a British cruiser. In two years of flying a Zero fighter, he had never had a technical problem — but now, suddenly, oil began to leak from his propeller and sprayed across his cockpit window, obscuring his vision. He radioed to his commander in the aircraft in front and was ordered to return to base. Then another order: to go not to Manila, from where he had flown, but to Taiwan.
“I had never cried before — that was the first time,” Mr Hamazono said. “He knew that if I landed at Manila I’d be sent out again the next day. I could have disobeyed his order, but the commander recognised that I had not decided whether to live or die. He recognised my feeling, and he saved my life.”
Mr Hamazono never recovered the will to die. He stayed in Taiwan, where the engineers obligingly lingered over the repairs to his aircraft. With an increasing shortage of airworthy planes, he was sent back to Japan.
By this time, in any case, the chances of the heavily laden, rickety aircraft penetrating the American air defences to get close to a ship, were almost nil. Two thousand kamikaze aircraft set out during the war, but between them they sank only 34 ships.
Suicide aircraft were supposed to fly with enough fuel for only a one-way trip; on his second mission, Mr Hamazono’s engineer made a point of giving him a full tank. But long before they reached their target, he and his comrades were cut to pieces by US Grumman fighters, and he alone limped home to live out the few remaining weeks of the war, training the new and younger pilots who were being hastily sent to their deaths.
He continued serving the Japanese defence forces until retirement.
“They used to tell us that the last words of the pilots were ‘Long Live the Emperor!’,” Mr Hamazono said. “But I am sure that was a lie. They cried out what I would have cried. They called for their mothers.”

[bobbysocks]

interview with a yak pilot...

"While trying to set a date and place for the interview with “our” pilot, we got the impression of him being strict man that prefers to keep his privacy and stay away from the public eye. Another thing that concerned us was that he said he flew 15 types of planes which puzzled us a bit.
So we had some concerns but hoped for the good. Meeting this guy we found him to be nice 83 old year man with good hand shake, very good memory (we brought some cockpit pics from the game and he loved to elaborate on them and thought that they are rather good) and above all an honest man that has no phony thing about him.
The pilot asked us to remain anonymous as he dose not want to appear in any public eye so we can only say that the interview took place in Israel and we will refer to him as “A” in the interview.
Since we had interpreter we can’t say we quote him in the most exact manner but we did our best to bring things in the right spirit and facts.
We had only one hour to complete the interview and so here is his story in very brief way:
“A” was born in Gomel in Belarus in 1923, In 1939 at the age of 16 he joined flight club in the city of Odessa and learn to fly Polikarpov-2 for 1 year, He joined the army at the age of 17 though the age of enlisting was 18, he was granted permission to do that after he had sent a letter to the defense minister. In September 1940 he joined the air force flight school in Odessa later towards the coming war the school was moved (orders) to Stalingrad were they became 1000 man combat flight school, When the war broke there was a thought to turn 600 man from them to regular soldiers but it was abandoned and all continued flying studies. They started training on PO-2 (Polikarpov biplane) than moved to Polikarpov UTI-4 (monoplane) and than to I-16.

PO-2 (Polikarpov biplane)

UTI-4 (monoplane)

In 1941 when the war started, the school was moved to a spot near the Don river and when the Germans got close to 100 km’ the school was moved to Kazakhstan where they got to train on YAK-1.At that time all the flight instructors were sent to fight the Germans and new flight instructors were appointed from the students,” A” was among the newly elected guides. ”A” served as fight instructor till October 1944.Then it was decided to send the school instructors to combat duty so they will get actual fight experience and return to be better guides and pass their knowledge to the students. “A” was sent to the”1st Belarus front” were he flew the YAK-9T as close escort for IL-2, The whole plane unit was under the command of the artillery commander of the front and their act was to defend IL-2 who had an artillery officer on board instead of rear gunner and was sent to locate German units and inform the artillery they’re whereabouts. They flew in 7 to 9 planes a flight – 1 IL-2, four to six YAK-9T as close escort (no close than 500 m’) and 2 more YAK-9T as high altitude escort.
Q: Did you have radio control on board?
A: Only flight leader and his #2 had tow way radio, all the others had receiver radio only.
Q: What were the German planes you were up against?
A: Mostly BF-109 variants, FW-190 and Ju-87 also.
Q: Did you encounter German fighters?
A: No, at that time of war they were week and would not go up against larger fighter group, only to pick on one or two planes.
Q: Did you try to seek for German fighters?
A: No, our job was to protect our most important IL-2, allowing it to be shot down was not an option.
Q: Did you encounter AA fire and hits?
A: We knew the places of AA guns so we went around, I got hit only once and my trim was damaged.
Q: What was your place in the flight?
A: I was #2 of the of the escort leader.
Q: Did you fly a lot and get combat fatigue?
A: No, we had easy times – sometimes we didn’t fly for a week and we had nothing to do.
Q: How many combat sorties did you fly in the Belarus front?
A: 25.
Q: Did you have problems hitting targets with the 37 mm’ gun of the YAK?
A: No, it had strong recoil but I had my sight and had no problems hitting targets.
Q: Was the YAK physically demanding to fly?
A: Not at all, we flew 400 to 450 kmph and there were not such loads at that speed.
Q: At what height did you start to use supercharger?
A: We activated supercharger and used oxygen masks above 5000 m’ but since I didn’t usually fly that high I didn’t use it.
Q: How did you manage the prop pitch?
A: We use to change prop pitch only on long distance flight in order to conserve fuel otherwise it was at 100%.
Q: How did you find the YAK-9?
A: I liked it very much, it was very good, relievable and simple, could be flown by any average pilot, easy to take off and land. It had no compressed cockpit and no heating system so it was very cold in the winter-we use to ware arctic suits. We use to have our fuel tank filled up and that would degrade the plane behavior, the “hunters” of us who went to pick up German planes, got their tanks partially filled for better dogfight ability. The YAK-3 was better plane and had better organized cockpit without all the radiators sticking up as in the YAK-9, the French Normandy Niemen got it.
Q: What did you do after Belarus?
A: I was stationed in Belarus till the war in Europe was over, Than we moved to Mongolia to fight the Japanees in the same roll as in Belarus, Got to fly two combat sorties and the war was over.
Q: What about after the war?
A: I became squadron leader and flew the La-9, La-11, Mig-15, Mig-17, got to train on Mig-19 but in 1958 the air force was forced to make cuts and the program was stopped.
Q: What plane did you like best?
A: Mig-15/17, they are almost the same.
Q: What about prop driven, La and sort?
A: I liked the YAK better - it was much easier to take off and land.
Q: Did you have to use a lot of pedals during take off?
A: It wasn’t such problem, after the tail wheel was up I needed to use more pedals in order to compensate for increased tendency to fly sidewise because of the torque.
Q: What next after the cuts?
A: I was offered to be 2nd in command for wing leader position but my wife said “enough” and I left the air force with full pension benefits.
Q: Did you take the flight as a job or really like it?
A: Oh I loved flying very much and wish I was flying till this day."

This is the second session we had with a yak-9 ww2 pilot. This time he agreed to publish his name - Boris alterman.
At the beginning of the session we showed Boris the sim (FB 4.06). Without too much explanation, we asked him to give it a try. The set we used was X52 joystick and throttle (no pedals).
The next 5 minutes were extremely moving and exciting, something that all who were present will never forget - Boris alterman, an 83 years old man, using a cane, transformed in seconds into a sharp professional pilot, looking and moving as a much younger man.
He started flying the Yak-9, immediately doing a few perfect rolls. While performing it, his legs moved instinctively trying to push the (nonexistent) pedals, and his body moved in anticipation of G forces.
Performing loops was much more difficult, because he tried to evaluate his situation according to his body position (and being unfamiliar with the view system). When in stall situation, he again tried to push pedals.
Boris flew the sim for 5 minutes. We could tell he was enjoying very much, despite the unfamiliar joystick system and sim functions. He said that in order to really play he would need to practice for a few days, since the feel of the sim is different than reality, due to the lack of gravity and G forces on the body. The joystick in the sim responds too strongly, the rudder in reality was not difficult to press.

The next phase was the interview. We kept the FB tracks playing, and so what we have is based also on comments to what he saw on the screen

About his ww2 service: He served in a unit named: “The aerial unit for reconnaissance and intelligence no. 117” (we have the name in Russian, not sure about the exact translation). As mentioned in previous interview, he flew escort missions for IL2 artillery observation plane.

Battle formation: when escorting IL2, a pair at the same level, 1 k”m to the side and behind, the other pair in front and higher. 4 other planes flew high cover. Hight differences - 500 meters.

Communications: At the beginning of the war, only a few of the airplanes had radio receivers, and even fewer had transmitters. When a pilot saw an enemy plane, he moved his wings to draw attention. By the time he flew combat missions, 1945, all planes had 2 ways radios.

Navigation: IL2 pilots used maps; combat pilots did not have time for that. Therefore, they relied upon visual objects and learning the area. There were no beacons. In case of cloudy weather, they flew under the clouds.

Airfields: improvised, as they were chasing the retreating Germans into Prussia. They used agricultural fields; sometimes metal nets were spread on them. The net was 500 meters long, 100 meters wide, size 5X0.5 meters.

Take-off ‘s and landings: at the center of the strip, flaps 15 degrees down. With the brakes pressed, applying full power and than idle – a few times, to warm the plugs. Letting go of the breaks, throttle ahead, applying rudder. Lifting the tail slowly to keep the propeller blades from hitting the ground and the fuselage from turning right or left (depending on the direction of the motor)

Shooting: 200 meters (not recommended) and less, the closer the better. At the beginning of the war there were no cannons – only 7.9 machine guns
.
Dog fighting a Messerschmitt with Yak 9: depends on the abilities of the pilot. If he were able to anticipate the opponent’s moves, and act before him, he would win. It was extremely important to stay on the inside of the opponents turn radius. And again – it is up to the pilot and not the plane.

Head on – the FW could dogfight head – on, due to the star like engine that could sustain damage, protect the pilot and continue to operate. The Yak 3 could not, because it had a radiator, but the LA could.

Use of rudder in turns – always. Keep the ball in the center.

The Normandy Niemmen – he visited their sqd a few times, but communication was difficult due to language differences. They flew different missions – intercept – protecting general Zacharov’s army. Once, after landing, someone brought out a football. Everybody, including mechanics that fixed the returning airplanes, and preparing others for missions, left their jobs and ran to play football.
At the end of the war Stalin gave them 33 new Yak 3 (from the factory) as a gift to France.

I-16 (in the background he saw TB3 with 2 I-16’s): Boris laughed as seeing a dinosaur coming to life, and said that indeed they were in use. The I-16 ‘s engine would not shut off immediately, if the joystick was pushed forward, or even if the plane flew inverted. There was enough fuel for 2 or 3 minutes. The Germans were happy to fight these planes, as they shot them down easily.

P39 Aircobra – they had no doors, but a sliding canopy. The engine was not strong, in the last year of the war they changed to Kingcobra. Why did the Americans consider it as not feet for dogfight? – “It is the dancer’s legs, not the floor”.

Hurricane – extremely inflammable, turned into a ball of fire quickly (you should have seen the ed look on his face when he saw the Hurricane).

About Yak’s and LA’s: Boris flew all models of Yak, except the 3 model (he was supposed to fly one, but the gift to France prevented it), and LA 7, 9,11. He considers the Yak a good plane for mediocre pilots, and the LA for a higher-level pilots, in part because they are more difficult to land.

[bobbysocks]

The third part of the interview, is in fact, from the second session. It details an after war training flight experience where he almost lost his life in an inverted spin.

“After the war, I flew in a 2 seats trainer with a new trainee. The guy was at least 10cm taller than me, much heavier, and blocked completely my front view. We reached 2000 meters, me strapped only in the belly straps, and than I passed the control of the plane to the trainee. I told him to pull the stick upwards, combined with weak pressure on the rudder, and than to recover from the situation.

The trainee pushed the rudder hard - all the way, and the plane inverted upside down – and started an inverted spin. I could not reach the pedals, because I was lifted from the seat (downwards in fact) and my head bounced against the cockpit glass. I ordered the trainee to react, but he just dropped his head on his shoulder and did not move – completely paralyzed. Meanwhile, the plane made at least two spins, and lost some 1000 meters.

I pulled myself with my hands strongly into the seat (upwards in fact), and tried to push the pedals. I could not because the trainee (who was bigger, heavier and stronger than me) would not let go. Finally I opened the glass between the seats, knocked him on the head strongly, and only than he let go of the pedals. I managed to level and recover at 200 meters.

The commander of the flight school came to see us right after we landed, to ask us what had happened, as he was watching us from the ground. He sent us to the clinic, as our eyes were filled with blood from the opposite G forces, and told me to take the rest of that day off.

As for the trainee – he was too afraid to fly again, and was sent to the AA forces, where he made a good career. He used to send me a greeting card every year, at the date of that event, to “our new birthday”. Many years later, I flew with some officers to the Ukraine where we were ordered suddenly to land at a certain airport. I was surprised to find the trainee, who has become a high-ranking officer in the AA forces, waiting. He saw my name on the flight list, and decided to take me for dinner!”

[bobbysocks]

The military zeppelin USS Macon was meant to be a floating American aircraft carrier over the Pacific Ocean -- but it crashed, sank and has been lying on the ocean floor for more than 70 years. Now scientists have discovered and documented the unique wreck off the coast of California.

The tragedy unfolded unusually slowly for an aviation catastrophe: The crew fought to control the USS Macon for more than an hour. US naval officers threw fuel canisters overboard in an attempt to reduce the weight of their vessel. The canisters imploded on their way to the ocean floor. Meanwhile, the Macon -- the largest rigid airship ever constructed in the United States -- sank inexorably downward, the safety of the Moffett Field hangar just within reach.
The Macon hit the water surface only five kilometers (three miles) off the Californian coast, along the latitude of the Point Sur lighthouse near Monterey, on Feb. 12, 1935. The zeppelin broke apart and sank into the deep water. Two of the 83 crew members died -- the low number of deaths is likely due to the fact that the Macon sank in slow motion.
Neither enemy fire nor sabotage was to blame for the giant airship's doom (and a giant it was: longer than three 747 jets parked nose to tail). A heavy storm above the picturesque stretch of Californian coast known as Big Sur tore off the Macon's vertical tail fin. The airship's structural framework was so badly damaged that the Macon broke apart when it hit the water.

A riddle at the bottom of the ocean

Why and how that happened is the question an interdisciplinary research team now wants to answer. While an investigative commission formed by the US Navy following the catastrophe was able to determine that shoddy repair work was to blame for the crash -- a test flight above Texas had led to damage to the structural framework earlier -- the results reached by the commission were never definitively proven. The commission's researchers had to content themselves with speculation -- after all, the evidence for their hypothesis lay 450 meters (1,476 feet) below the ocean surface. Scuba divers are still unable to reach that depth today, although treasure hunters and dealers in military paraphernalia are sometimes equipped to go there. However, the location of the wreck was kept secret precisely in order to prevent plundering.

It was only in June 1990 that Chris Grech, the deputy director of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) discovered the first pieces of wreckage on the ocean floor. Several high-tech searches had been unsuccessful during the 1980s. Grech finally discovered the Macon's remains in the middle of a deep-sea reservation area. Its existence is the only reason why what Grech calls a "unique time capsule from another era" has remained untouched for more than 70 years. If commercial fishing had been allowed in the area, dragnets would long since have destroyed the ghostly remains at the bottom of the ocean.

In late September of this year, scientists from MBARI and the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) joined forces with the US Navy. They left Monterey on board the research ship Western Flyer in order to systematically survey the area. Until then, the scientists had to work with low-resolution sonar images of the wreckage, but now an underwater robot, the remotely operated vehicle (ROV) Tiburon, was able to explore the Macon's final resting site -- and take close-up pictures.

A chapter in the history of military technology

"The primary goal of the mission is to conduct comprehensive documentation of the site of the USS Macon's loss that can be used to evaluate the archaeological context of the craft," according to a NOAA statement. But the scientists are also secretly hoping to find the Macon's tail fin -- the part that turned out to be the weakest link in the construction, during the airship's final, ill-starred ocean flight.

Grech, the project's director, says he's noticed changes since his last visit. "A lot of the wreck is covered up," Grech told the New York Times. "It's easy for sediment to build up over time, and some large objects have moved."


Water currents along the Californian coast could pull the Macon's remains so far apart that they would become useless to historians. That's why the September expedition documented every detail of what it discovered, producing a mosaic of photographs. Paradoxically, the most easily recognizable objects on the photographs are the remains of four small Curtiss F9C-2 "sparrowhawk" fighter planes. The airship was intended to function as an airborne aircraft carrier -- an enormous, cigar-shaped vessel that would carry the small, agile biplanes much further into the airspace above the Pacific Ocean than they would ever have been able to venture themselves. The propeller-driven fighters were meant to fly reconnaissance flights above the ocean. As early as the 1920s, the US Navy was preparing for a war in the Pacific.

"The planes don't look damaged," Grech told the New York Times, pointing out that the wings of the planes are intact and that their bright yellow color and blue and white Navy star are visible. What is more, five of the Macon's giant Maybach engines can also be seen lying on the ocean floor off Point Sur, along with parts of the airship's canteen and the officer's quarters. An aluminium chair, a metal cabinet, a desk and several shelves offer insight into the interior design preferences of the 1930s military.

No tail fin, no corpses

The Macon consisted of a rigid framework made from aluminium alloy; the framework supported a canvas hull. Inside the hull, helium tanks ensured the overall construction was lighter than air. While the giant airship's overall weight was more than 200 tons, the lightness of its construction materials has turned out to be the very factor that poses special difficulties for today's underwater archaeologists.

Only two thirds of the wreck have been discovered and mapped, according to Grech. When they returned to the port of Monterey, the scientists had to face up to the fact that the Macon's missing tail fin -- the decisive component of the crashed airship -- has yet to be discovered. "It's either buried under sediment or in one of the canyons," Grech told the New York Times. Nor was any sign of the two victims of the crash discovered. Bruce Terrell, a marine historian at NOAA, told the New York Times that the researchers "had not seen any indication of human remains."

The loss of the USS Macon in 1935 marked the end of the US Navy's dirigible program, which already had a 20-year history then. The program had long been criticized for the high costs involved -- costs especially well exemplified by the USS Macon, the most expensive aviation object of its time. Following the Macon's crash, concerns about costs were compounded by security-related arguments, and the aviation program no longer seemed justifiable. And yet the airship the New York Times called the "high-tech wonder of its day" was off to a good start: The construction was considered especially safe, since it contained no flammable hydrogen, but only helium, which cannot explode.

Two years later, the most famous of all airship disasters demonstrated just how dangerous the use of hydrogen -- which is lighter and cheaper than helium -- can be: On May 6, 1937, the German airship LZ 129 Hindenburg caught fire on the Lakehurst airfield in New Jersey, where the USS Macon had been stationed for a brief period of time as well. Filled to the brim with hydrogen, the Hindenburg caught fire while landing on the airfield -- 36 of the 97 persons on board died. That day, military strategists lost whatever interest they may still have had in the use of airships for military purposes.


picture 1- The USS Macon flying over New York harbor in 1933.

picture 2- The wing and cockpit of one of the Curtiss Sparrowhawk biplanes that went down with the USS Macon. The tube at lower right was a telescopic gun site. Just above the cockpit is the frame for the "sky-hook" that allowed the biplane pilot to dock with a trapeze hanging beneath the belly of the USS Macon.

[bobbysocks]

601 Squadron: Millionaire flying aces of World War II

from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-11951642

Seventy years after the Battle of Britain, the BBC has retraced the story of a little known amateur RAF squadron formed in a London gentlemen's club and composed of aristocrats and adventurers. But their privileged upbringing did not shield them from the brutal realities of war.

Born into high society in 1914, William Henry Rhodes-Moorhouse was determined to follow a family passion for flying.

His father had built and designed planes and flown in World War I, becoming the first airman to win the Victoria Cross, the highest award for bravery in battle.

Flying at just 300ft (91m), William Barnard Rhodes-Moorhouse volunteered to drop a single bomb on a strategic rail junction near Ypres in the face of intense ground fire. He made it back to British lines, but died of his wounds shortly afterwards.

Young Willie, his son, was able to fulfil his dream, thanks partly to his school friend George Cleaver, whose family owned a plane. He had his pilot's licence by the age of 17 before leaving Eton.

After extensive travelling, he returned to settle in England where, so family lore records, he "fell head over heels in love" with his wife-to-be, Amalia Demetriadi. A strikingly attractive woman, she was approached in a London restaurant by a talent scout to be screen-tested for the role of Scarlett O'Hara in Gone With The Wind. A private person, Amalia declined.

For Amalia and Willie, life must have seemed to be bursting with promise. They were well off and enjoyed invitations to the south of France and skiing trips to St Moritz.

A keen sportsman, Willie was selected for the 1936 British Winter Olympics team, but an accident on the ski jump prevented him from competing. But war was looming and short of funds, the RAF had its eyes on amateur pilots like Willie, George and Amalia's brother Dick. It could not maintain a large peacetime force, but if war came, it would need to mobilise fast.

As early as the mid 1920s, the first Chief of the Air Staff, Lord Trenchard, had come up with the idea of auxiliary squadrons, amateur pilots who could be rapidly recruited and deployed on the outbreak of war.

The first auxiliary squadron, 601, later to be known as the Millionaires' Squadron was, according to legend, created by Lord Grosvenor at the gentlemen's club White's, and restricted to club membership.

Recruitment under Grosvenor involved a trial by alcohol to see if candidates could still behave like gentlemen when drunk. They were apparently required to consume a large port. Gin and tonics would follow back at the club.

Grosvenor wanted officers "of sufficient presence not to be overawed by him and of sufficient means not to be excluded from his favourite pastimes, eating, drinking and Whites," according to the squadron's historian, Tom Moulson.

The squadron attracted the very well-heeled, not just aristocrats but also sportsmen, adventurers and self-made men. There would be no time for petty rules or regulations. But Grosvenor was nonetheless intent on creating an elite fighting unit, as good as any in the RAF.

Under their next commander, Sir Philip Sassoon, the squadron acquired a growing reputation for flamboyance, wearing red socks or red-silk-lined jackets as well as driving fast cars. Wealthy enough to buy cameras, they even took to filming their escapades.

There were other auxiliary squadrons, but none was as exclusive or elitist as 601.

The Millionaires had a reputation for escapades and flouting the rules, says Peter Devitt from the RAF Museum. "But they could not have got away with it without being an efficient and effective fighting unit. They were very serious about their flying and their fighting."

Heavy losses

Days before the German invasion of Poland in 1939, 601 squadron was mobilised. Stationed at RAF Tangmere in West Sussex, by July of the following year, Willie, Dick and George were on the front line.

The German air force, the Luftwaffe, was targeting Allied shipping in the Channel in an attempt to lure the RAF into combat.

On 11 August 1940, in one of the opening skirmishes of the war, 21-year-old Dick Demetriadi was shot down off the Dorset coast.

Willie had lost his best friend, but he also had to break the news to Amalia that her brother would not be coming home.

The following weeks saw intense raids on southern England as the Luftwaffe attempted to destroy the RAF and seize control of the skies to allow an invasion.

Willie and the Millionaires of 601 Squadron were in the thick of the fighting. After heavy losses, the squadron was pulled back to Essex, only to find themselves in the front line again as the Luftwaffe targeted London.

From an initial strength of about 20, they had lost 11 men in action, with others injured or posted to other squadrons.

The replacements were a more mixed crowd. And while many of the Millionaires' traditions survived, they were no longer the band of aristocrats and adventurers who had started the war.

Other squadrons suffered heavy losses too but the RAF pilots were destroying two German planes for every British loss. Willie was responsible for shooting down nine aircraft. On 3 September, he and Amalia were invited to Buckingham Palace where Willie was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.

It was to be one of their last times together. Just three days later he was shot down.

Other members of 601 squadron survived the Battle of Britain, including Willie's friend George "Mouse" Cleaver, who shot down seven planes before an eye injury which ended his flying career.

But by the time the Luftwaffe called off its assault and the invasion of Britain was cancelled, the RAF had lost 544 pilots.

Churchill immortalised "the few", but for each man lost, there were wives, parents and sisters left behind, women like Amalia.

It was not fashionable for women like Amalia to go to work and, after the war, she lived within modest means, tending her garden and - like many of the wartime generation who had lived through rationing - recycling everything.

She never remarried, although there were certainly offers, and lived a quiet life until her death in 2003.


Average age of RAF pilots was 20 Two huge bombing raids on London on 15 September 1940, known as Battle of Britain Day It marked a heavy defeat for the Luftwaffe, which lost 61 planes to the RAF's 31 A week earlier, the Germans had switched tactics from targeting RAF bases to focusing on London This gave Fighter Command some breathing space to prepare to defend the nation

Willie's body was recovered from his plane and his ashes buried alongside his father The Victoria Cross was sold to raise money for the W.B. Rhodes-Moorhouse VC Charitable Trust which makes donations to RAF charities Willie is pictured above with Amalia, who died in 2003

[bobbysocks]

Fokker D.XXI over Holland

written by pilot Carl Steensma, a civil KLM pilot who flew Fokker D.XXI’s in the LVA. On May 10th 1940 he had to escort 2 T-V bombers on their way to the airfield Waalhaven, which was captured by German para’s.:




We’ll see….

The weather was beautiful on that day, May the 10th. At 2000 metre there was only some Cumulus. The two T-V’s took off to bomb Waalhaven. We followed them immediately. The fighters would be flying around a lot, above the T-V’s.. and we’ll see…

… a Heinkel
Even before we arrived at Rotterdam, I saw a Heinkel flying, below and to the right. I steeply dived upon him, with the intention to fly past and underneath it while firing. Then I would pull up and take a shot at it from straight under it.

..tracers..
The idea worked out quite nicely, but the moment I fired my 4 machineguns, I had a real fright. Tracers flashed right in front of me and for one moment I thought I was being shot at from behind.
In all my life, I had never fired tracers, not even practiced with it. And nobody had thought of informing me about this very useful ammunition.

...disengaging
Meanwhile, the Heinkel was a few hundred meters above me and I steeply pulled up my kite, almost vertical, and I sprayed the port engine, the hull and the cockpit, too. In order to get away quickly, I cut the throttle and with a quick roll, I dived away. Then I pushed full throttle to gain height again. The last I remember of the Heinkel was a silhouette turning to the left. I was alone, eh well….

…but German fighters everywhere..
When I was circling, I saw Me 109’s at greater altitude then me. Me 109’s to the left and right
A neat ‘Kette’ fare above. I still know exactly what I thought: “Look, that’s a real piece of art. What I was doing seemed to me very amateurish and clumsy…and most unreal.

…me in my KLM clothes…
Then I was, over Waalhaven in my KLM uniform, under a clear blue sky in a D.XXI with deadly ammunition. The place where I got my first licence. The place where the enemy was. The place that had to be bombed by the T-V’s. And I had to make it possible by downing all the flying Jerries in the sky…madness.
…being attacked
The way they attacked didn’t surprise me. From far I had seen how they dived on their prey from a small group in neat formation, one after the other and after a long furious blast disappeared the heights again.
I was much more manoeuvrable, but that was about it. I had to make a mess out of it, turning from the right to the left like a madman and see what would happen.

..victory over a German fighter..
..The last attacker tried some kind of sloping looping. By flying directly in his line, I forced him to dive steeper and longer than he probably intended to do. I got on top of him with half a roll and when he pulled up, I fired for what I was worth. I kept the straight line, out of which he couldn’t escape because of his high speed. In the middle of the line of fire, debris suddenly started to fly. Around me I saw some smoke becoming darker and darker.. the last dive of that Me 109.

..being shot myself…
Surprised about the ease of things, I ascended with roaring engine in order to gain altitude… and was totally surprised by some big noise. Fire seemed to spray between my legs and I literally freezed from terror.

…but I could escape
The instrument panel was destroyed. Oil poured over my feet. Loose fabric was on the right wing. And my right leg felt funny. I felt with my hand and it became smeared with blood.
----
After this, Steensma escapes in a cloud. Although the flaps and breaks don’t work he manages to land on Schiphol. There he had to be carried out of the plane. The bullets had ripped though his KLM uniform, right under his arm and also between and through his legs. The plane was a write off as there was no time to repair it.
During the war Carel Steensma tried to escape to England. His leg had to be amputated in a German prison.
On the 4th of May 2006 he died at 93.

[bobbysocks]

THE GREEK PZLs IN OPERATIONS

The first aerial engagement was on the very day the war was declared by the Italians , the 28th October 1940. , with a squadron of SM-79 escorted by CR-42 attacking Thessalonica. The few PZLs that got up were found outnumbered as part of the squadron was moved to the western Albanian front. Yet, they did dash against the agressors and were able to disperes them effectively so that no harm was done to the city or the harbor. One PZL came down in flames but the CR-42 were rather ineffective despite their superiority. Then on the 2nd of November 1940, over the VII (Greek) division’s front in Epirus, 3 PZL-24s of 21 Fighter Sq,mixed F & G types, attacked a hostile formation of fighter-bombers , possibly Cant Z-1007 bis (Alcyon). During the action F/Lt Sakellariou & Sgt Papadopoulos were shot down and killed in action. The third PZL managed to escape.

The same day also saw the first Greek aerial success when a formation of Cant Z-1007 bis bombers tried to bomb again Thessalonica. Six PZLs of 22 Sq. , supported by A/A fire, engaged the enemy. F/Lt Marinos Mitralexes, after unsuccessfully expending all his ammunition against an Italian bomber, he rammed it sawing off its rudder with his propeller’s blades. The bomber crashed to the ground out of control, while Mitralexes successfully crash-landed his own aircraft. During the same action Sgt Epameinondas Dagoulas claimed one more bomber. Mitralexes was decorated with the Golden Order for Valour and later on with the Flying Cross, War Cross, Golden Cross of St. George’s Order with Swords and the Phoenix Order with Swords .

During the evening hours of the same day another formation of 15 enemy bombers, escorted by 7 fighters, raided the city of Thessalonica once again. Aircraft of 22 Sq. took off under the leadership of the unit’s commander, Cpt Andreas Antoniou, who shot down one enemy fighter for the loss of one PZL-24, whose pilot, Sgt Konstantinos Lambropoulos, bailed out safely.

Next day, 3 November, 5 fighters of the same unit tried to chase off a formation of 9 Italian bombers and fighters heading for a third time against Thessalonika. F/Lt Konstantinos Giannikostas claimed one enemy fighter.

14 November 1940. Nine PZLs of 23 Sq. shot down two CR-42s and damaged a third, which was later destroyed during crash-landing. Unfortunately the Greek pilots who claimed these victories are not known.

18 November. On the 18th PZL-24s of 22 & 23 Sqs engaged in combat with Italian fighters over Morova. Valkanas, of 23 Sq, desperate to claim his first victory, rammed on purpose an enemy fighter. Italians on the other end, claimed half of Royal Hellenic Air Force’s aircraft as destroyed, on paper at least ! During the same fight Sgt Demetrakopoulos was shot down but took to his parachute.

20 November. A section of 4 PZLs of 21 Sq were engaged with 3 CR 42s and a Capproni bomber over the Small Prespa Lake. The bomber was shot down by the Squadron’s C.O. Cpt Ioannis (John) Kellas. Only hours later 21 Sq. had all its PZL-24s replaced by British biplanes Gloster Gladiator. Although maneuverable they were prone to frequent mechanical problems due to overuse during their previous service in Britain’s fights against Italian and German aircraft. Yet one of the British pilots Lt 'Pat' Pattle was able to shoot down at least 21 Italian planes with a Gladiator becoming the first RAF scorer at the time

The last engagement for the year came on 3 December 1940 over the region of Moschopolis, when 6 PZLs of 23 Sq. fought against 18 CR-42s, during which P/Officer Konstantinos Tsetsas fell victim of the enemy’s numerical superiority.

During 1941 Royal Hellenic Air Force was significantly supported by the arrival of RAF units in Greece. Greek serviceable aircraft at that time were down to 19 PZL-24s, 2 Bloch MB 151 and 7 Gladiators. From January 1941 onward RHAF (Royal Hellenic Air Force) changed its tactics according to those of its British ally, the RAF, trying to gain control over an area by flying numerous standing patrols over the battlefield.

At 09.30 of 8 January 1941, over Ostrovo, 9 PZLs of 22 Sq. and 6 Gladiators from 21 Sq. attacked a formation of Cant Z1007bis, Cptn Gregorios Fanourgakes of 22 Sq. claiming one as probably shot down. The same Greek formation was later engaged in combat against 9 CR-42s and one Romeo 378bis over Celoure, where Captains Antoniou and Nikolaos Scroubelos claimed one each as confirmed destroyed.

Bad weather during the rest of January prevented further action until the 25th of that month, when the enemy appeared again over Thessalonika. Concentrated actions from 21 & 22 Sqs resulted in one more Cant Z1007 confirmed destroyed by Antoniou.

During the evening hours of that eventful date 7 PZLs and 7 Gladiators from the very same two squadrons attacked against 8 BR-20 bombers over Cleisoura, where Antoniou scored his first “double” of the war –a rare feat in those days. One more was claimed by Staff Sgt Panagiotes Argyropoulos of 22 Sq. A third one was destroyed by the guns of Cptn Kellas of 21 Sq. Two more BR-20 were also destroyed fell to the guns of one more PZL and one Gladiator, although the names of the two victorious pilots remain unknown to this day, raising the score of the day to 6 confirmed destroyed without loss to the Greek side.

January 1941 came to an end with one more Greek success on the 28th, when PZLs from 22 Sq. attacked an enemy bomber formation heading to Thessalonika. Cptn Savellos, former commander of 24 Sq, later transferred to the 22nd, shot down one Cant Z1007. Greek success on the 28th, when PZLs from 22 Sq. attacked an enemy bomber formation heading to Thessalonika. Cptn Savellos, former commander of 24 Sq, later transferred to the 22nd, shot down one Cant Z1007.

A curious incident took place on 8th of February, showing to the extreme the varying capabilities and fighting skills of Greek fighter pilots: during a reconnaissance over Cleisoura, 7 Gladiators of 21 Sq. and 8 PZLs of 22 & 23rd, all attacked against a lone two-engine Italian bomber, which, thanks to the skills of its pilot and the inexperience of the Greek pilots, managed to escape safe and sound!

On the February 9th it was the turn of 24 Fighter Sq. to show up, when the unit’s Bloch MB 151 attacked Italian bombers over Thessalonika . One Cant fell to the guns of Staff Sgt Eleftherios Smyrniotopoulos. Meanwhile a large dogfight took place over Cleisoura between 8 PZLs of 22 & 23 Sq. plus 4 Gladiators of 21 Sq. against 30 Italian bombers escorted by 12 fighters. F/Lt Mitralexes claimed one CR 42 trailing black smoke as probable. Cptn Kellas shot down two fighters and one more was claimed by Stf. Sgt Demetrakopoulos of 21 Sq. Two other pilots belonging to the same unit claimed one probable fighter each. Dagoulas of 22 Sq. on the other hand, described by the archives as …“…a wise and dangerous to the opponent fighter pilot, always on the forefront of the fighting”, added one confirmed destroyed to his tally. There were losses to the Greek side also: two badly damaged fighters were crashed while trying force-landings on their bases.

On 10 February, a mixed patrol of 21, 22 & 23 Squadrons, consisting of 11 fighters in all, attacked three Italian bombers over the area Boubesi-Cleisoura-Premeti, resulting in the probable downing of one bomber by Cptn Fanourgakes.

11 February. Two Gladiators of 21 Sq. on a patrol searching for enemy aircraft reported in their sector, were surprised and shot down by Italian fighters. The pilots, Cptn Anastasios Bardivilias and Stf Sgt Kostorizos, were killed after having damaged two Italian fighters.

15 February. Cptn Fanourgakes claimed one bomber, out of a formation of three, as probable over the Tepeleni area.

On 20 February a fierce scrap took place over the Sendeli area, when a massed force of 19 Greek fighters from all available squadrons –in other words the whole of Royal Hellenic Air Force- escorted friendly bombers. 10 Romeos 37 and 15 G-50s attacked out of the blue and in the ensuing melee the 7 PZLs of 22nd Sq lost contact with the rest of the formation due to a radio malfunction, and were forced to bear the brunt of the fighting on their own. 4 Italian fighters were shot down by Antoniou, Fanourgakes, F/Lt Michaletsianos and Dagoulas. The PZL of the unit’s commanding officer, Antoniou, was badly shot up but the pilot crash landed safely at Premeti.

On February 23rd a mighty formation of Greek fighters consisting of 3 Gladiators of 21 Sq, 5 PZL of 22 Sq and 9 PZL of 23 Sq, engaged 7 Italian fighters but this time, instead of their numerical superiority the battle ended as a Greek defeat, with the death of F/Lt Scroubelos and Staff Sgt Chrissopoulos, whose Gladiator was destroyed while crash landing.

On April the 2nd , 1941, over Florina, took place the last major aerial battle between Greek and Italian aircraft, when 8 Gladiators of 21 pursued 10 Cant Z-1007 bombers. Reportedly two bombers were shot down with no further details. Four days later the German invasion of Greece drew the final curtain to the fighting days of the Royal Hellenic Air Force. Until that moment the Greek fighters fought to the bitter end with whatever they had, along with the experienced RAF which during the two-month period of November-December 1940-41, shot down a total of 42 Italian aircraft for the loss of 16 British aircraft. Without the British support the Greek fight would never have had stood a chance.

Greek Squadrons had flown a total of 1531 hours –mainly: 21 Sq 513h, 23 Sq 455h, 22 Sq 455h, 24 Sq only 158h due to problems with its Bloch MB 151. All those resulted in the confirmed destruction of 64 victories with another 24 probable. Greek losses were 19 aircraft.

Although the number of Greek losses is more than verified, serious doubt was raised during post-war research as to the verification of the victories, since according to the pilots combat reports, the sum of total enemy aircraft shot down was down to a mere 22 confirmed plus 12 probable! Even the sum of confirmed plus probable victories would only give us 34 victories. So the only way the total of 64 can be brought up is by adding the 31 victories reported by the Greek A/A defenses. It still remains unknown if that “mistake” was done in purpose or it was just the result of confusion between confirmed, probable and shared victories -a problem quite complicated even in much more experienced Air Forces of the Allied world, such as the RAF and the USAAF, even as late as 1944-45. On the other hand the Italians have reported not only larger numbers of victories but very often of wrong types ; some 20 Spitfires were mentioned as shot down while no such types were flown in these air battles.

Even against the mighty Luftwaffe of 300 Me-109s & 110s the Greek pilots, while almost considered defeated, at least in the air, managed to score some last victories to the German aerial armada. On 6 April, the very day of the invasion, a German reconnaissance aircraft Hs 126, was shot down, shared between Cptn Antoniou and F/Lt Antonio Katsimbouris. A second aircraft of the same type was shot down, this time shared among three pilots, Cptn Doukas, F/Lt Kontogeorgios and Katsimbouris. During the same day a Dornier 17 bomber was shot down by F/Lt Oikonomopoulos. On April the 15th one more Hs 126 was destroyed by Staff Sgt Pericles Koutroubas of 23 Sq, killed in action later in the day. The remnants of RHAF from all four fighter squadrons were all scrambled in a dogfight over Bascilikee, trying to fight off a large formation of German bombers escorted by fighters. One Gladiator, one PZL and one Bloch were shot down and Staff Sgt Georgios Mokkas was killed. Whatever was left of the Greek fighter force was destroyed on the ground by the subsequent German raids against the airfields.

[bobbysocks]

Stolen Hurricane flies into history books

Two amateur historians have uncovered the story of an audacious spy, who infiltrated the RAF in the middle of World War II and escaped back to Germany in a stolen RAF Hurricane.

Augustin Preucil came to Britain along with scores of other Czech pilots when mainland Europe fell under Nazi domination.

The first clue to Preucil's treachery came when Richard Chapman, an historic aircraft enthusiast who lives in Germany, came across some old photos from the German National Aviation Museum in Berlin.

Dating from 1941, they showed an RAF Hurricane on display among German aircraft.

The squadron markings were clearly visible and Mr Chapman, intrigued to know how the Hurricane got there, set about tracing the aircraft.

Steep dive

Mr Chapman enlisted the support of Roy Nesbit, an air historian with 20 books to his name, and who had himself served in the wartime RAF.

Together they established that the plane belonged to "55 OCU" - an Operation Conversion Unit which trained foreign pilots converting to British aircraft.

What's more they found an official loss report relating to the plane in the picture; it said that the plane, and its pilot Augustin Preucil, had been lost, presumed crashed, in the North Sea off Sunderland.

Preucil had taken off with another pilot, a young Pole, to practice dogfights over the sea.

The Pole returned to base reporting he had seen Preucil in a steep dive and assumed he had crashed.

Gestapo

In fact Preucil had flown his machine across the North Sea to Belgium.

There he landed on a farm and was offered food and shelter by the farmer and his family .

But Preucil immediately betrayed them to the Gestapo and the family were imprisoned.

Preucil went on to work for the Gestapo mainly by infiltrating Czech political prisoner groups in concentration camps; it is known that some of those he betrayed were shot.

When Germany was finally defeated Preucil was captured by the Czechs and put on trial for treason.

He was executed in 1947.

'High regard'

So how was it that Preucil was able to be accepted by the RAF and remain undiscovered?

Roy Nesbit says that in the early 1940s Britain welcomed many pilots from Poland, Czechoslovakia, Greece, Holland and France whose countries had fallen to the Nazis.

"They were very valuable to us" he said.

"The Czechs, especially were courageous. We had a very high regard for them.

"They had a fervent feeling to fight the war, often they were more ferocious than we were. But Preucil was an exception. He was a complete traitor."

Mr Nesbit says that the pilots wouldn't have been very carefully screened and it would have been easy for Preucil to dupe the British authorities.

RAF morale

Mr Chapman believes that Preucil would have had a lot of information of use to the Germans.

"He went from one unit to another and must have gathered a lot of information about RAF morale and, of course, its shortcomings."

Mr Chapman says that in his experience the Preucil story is unique.

"This is the first time I've heard about an agent in the RAF" he said.

The Preucil story leaves many questions unanswered, the most important being who was his handler?

Roy Nesbit thinks he must have been working for a German controller here in Britain.

But so far there are no clues as to the handler's identity and Mr Nesbit believes the files that would reveal it are still classified as secret by the government.

[bobbysocks]

galland talks about the pilots rebellion..

Galland: Yes, he had many problems, but he was basically an intelligent man and well educated, from the aristocracy. He had many weak points in his life, and he was always under pressure from Hitler, yet he never contradicted him or corrected him on any point. That was where he made his greatest mistakes. This weakness increased as the war dragged on, along with his drug addiction, until he was nothing. As far as our Luftwaffe was concerned, he was even less and should have been replaced.

WWII: Isn't it true that regardless of Göring's position the fighter pilots looked to you for leadership most of the time?

Galland: Yes, that was true.

WWII: What were your impressions of Hitler, since you spent months in his company and knew him very well.

Galland: Yes, I did spend months around him, speaking and having meetings, but I don't think anyone ever really knew Adolf Hitler. I was not very impressed with him. The first time I met him was after Spain when we were summoned to the Reichschancellery. There was Hitler, short, gray-faced and not very strong, and he spoke with a crisp language. He did not allow us to smoke, nor did he offer us anything to drink, nothing like that. This impression was strengthened every year I knew him as his mistakes mounted and cost German lives, the mistakes that Göring should have brought to his attention. Other officers did, and they were relieved, but at least they did the right thing and voiced their objections. For Göring to willingly follow along was a terrible situation for me personally.

WWII: So you feel Hitler should have replaced Göring as head of the Luftwaffe long before things became terminal?

Galland: Sure, if Hitler cared, but who would take Göring's place and stand up to Hitler, to do what was right? People were not lining up for the job, I can tell you. Hitler was unable to think in three dimensions, and he had a very poor understanding when it came to the Luftwaffe, as with the U-boat service. He was strictly a landsman.

WWII: Well, of all the men you led and are friends with today, are there any who simply stood out as great leaders apart from their records as aces?

Galland: Oh, my, that would be a long list, and you also know most of them. Of all the names you could mention, I think perhaps the greatest leader was still Mölders. All the rest are still very good friends of mine, but we are old men now, and life is not as fast as it was in the cockpit. However, as their leader I also made many mistakes. I could have done better. I was young and inexperienced with life, I guess. It is very easy to look back retrospectively and criticize yourself; however, at that time it was very difficult. My situation was that I had to fight with Göring and Hitler in order to accomplish what they wished, but without their support, if that makes any sense. Göring was a thorn in my side, and Hitler simply destroyed our country and others without any regard for the welfare of others.

WWII: What led to the Fighters' Revolt in January 1945?

Galland: Basically, it was the problems we were having with Göring, and the fact that he was blaming us, the fighter pilots, for the bombings and the losing of the war. All of the senior Kommodores brought their grievances to me, and we chose a spokesman to represent them. I sat on the panel and arranged for the meeting with Göring.

WWII: Your spokesman was Günther Lützow?

Galland: Yes, Lützow was a great leader and a true knight, a gentleman. When they all sat down with Göring, he told Göring that if he interrupted, which he always did so that he could show his importance, nothing would get accomplished. Lützow, Johannes Steinhoff and myself had voiced our grievances many times, but since I was not invited to this meeting, Hannes Trautloft along with Lützow kept me informed as to their recommending that Göring step down for the good of the service. Well, I was fired as general of fighters, Steinhoff was banished from Germany and sent to Italy, and Göring told Lützow that he was going to be shot for high treason.

WWII: What was the atmosphere like, and what were the Kommodores' opinions of the meeting?

Galland: Well, Göring knew that he did not have their loyalty, and we knew that we could not count on Berlin doing anything to help us, so we were alone, as we always were. At least now it was in the open, no pretenses.

WWII: What do you recall about the death of ace Walter Nowotny, and do you feel that his death had any impact on Germany's Messerschmitt Me-262 jet fighter program?

Galland: I had been telling Hitler for over a year, since my first flight in an Me-262, that only Focke Wulf Fw-190 fighter production should continue in conventional aircraft, to discontinue the Me-109, which was outdated, and to focus on building a massive jet-fighter force. I was in East Prussia for a preview of the jet, which was fantastic, a totally new development. This was 1943, and I was there with Professor Willy Messerschmitt and other engineers responsible for the development. The fighter was almost ready for mass production at that time, and Hitler wanted to see a demonstration. When the 262 was brought out for his viewing at Insterburg, and I was standing there next to him, Hitler was very impressed. He asked the professor, "Is this aircraft able to carry bombs?" Well, Messerschmitt said, "Yes, my Führer, it can carry for sure a 250-kilogram bomb, perhaps two of them." In typical Hitler fashion, he said "Well, nobody thought of this! This is the Blitz (lightning) bomber I have been requesting for years. No one thought of this. I order that this 262 be used exclusively as a Blitz bomber, and you, Messerschmitt, have to make all the necessary preparations to make this feasible." This was really the beginning of the misuse of the 262, as five bomber wings were supposed to be equipped with the jet. These bomber pilots had no fighter experience, such as combat flying or shooting, which is why so many were shot down. They could only escape by outrunning the fighters in pursuit. This was the greatest mistake surrounding the 262, and I believe the 262 could have been made operational as a fighter at least a year and a half earlier and built in large enough numbers so that it could have changed the air war. It would most certainly not have changed the final outcome of the war, for we had already lost completely, but it would have probably delayed the end, since the Normandy invasion on June 6, 1944, would probably not have taken place, at least not successfully if the 262 had been operational. I certainly think that just 300 jets flown daily by the best fighter pilots would have had a major impact on the course of the air war. This would have, of course, prolonged the war, so perhaps Hitler's misuse of this aircraft was not such a bad thing after all. But about Nowotny....