“Older Men Declare War but It Is Youththat Must Fight Anci Die. Robin

“Older men declare war But it is youth that must ‘ ‘ fig ht a n ci d ie . Herbert Hoover-1944 Robin Olds By Duncan Craighead could have done it at the time, we wouldn’t be in “The problem with the Vietnamese situation the mess we’re in today — the mess few people was not the fact that we were there, it was how seem to realize we’re in. We lost worldwide we went about it. That we were there was proper. respect for the way we conducted ourselves in If we had done what we should have done, the Southeast Asia, and for our desertion of the South way we should have done it, and the way we 21 piece of the we wanted was a and didn’t care. All That was the big Cambodianls, the Laotians, the war ended. Vietnamese, the you lose action before Pacific. When us in those days. everyone else in the South stepped on, thing with world power1 you get respect as a and you are abused. held in contemPt’ world you are useful than love in Respect is a lot more politics.” resident been a Steamboat Robin Olds has years in the previously he spent thirty since 973. started as a West States Air Force. He brigadier United and retired as a Point cadet in1940’ deal with The following pages General in 1973. world affairs from military involvement in his starts from the beginning. 973. The story who 1943 to Air Corps officer father was an Army in “My and was commissioned learned to fly in W16 Hawaii after met my mother in World War I. He on July 14, was born in Honolulu war and I and, as a the stayed in the service 1922. My father We lived in one up in military life. result, I grew shingtoni another: Honolulu, place and like that. Though I Virginia, Kansas and places we was pretty lucky because was an army brat, I went rough those days. I didn’t move much in Hampton, grammar and high school in most of stationed at Langley Virginia, while Dad was are of my early memories Field nearby. Most of used to sit at pilots. As a little boy I airplanes and there was a party at of the stairs when knew the top the pilots talking. I house and listen to our wanted to do. flying was what I war on and France declared “When Britain had just en- September of 1939, I germany in shingtOn. I Point prep school in 55 ME-J09’S.” tered a West to the Canadian “Two of us attacked school and went down left the to join the R.C.A.F. said I wanted learn to Legation and me how old I went to Arizona to at me and asked “After graduatiOni I gunnery. A man looked didn’t impress Texas for aerial was 19 but that P-38s; after that, told him I parents’ fly join my first was. I have to get my back to California to said I would Then, went over- him. He home and asked my training squadron. We I went operational Our permission. Well, he hit the roof just before D-Day. then a colonel, and seas to England in 1944, interdiction dad, who was entered West Point in were mostly tactical 0nsequentIyi I early missions and — hard! graduatei I installations if I could against German because I knew in France railroads, I went Army Beating up 1940. regular commi55iOt. The transPortati0I systems. would receive a never occurred ammo dumps and my career. It strafing airfields, bombing Air Corps would be infantry officer. also escorting heavy might become an things like that. We were to me that I family to attend raids ifltO germ any.” the first one from my bombers on their signment “I was West Point, but all my General Olds’ toughest military academy at with a What was the the iIitary starting that time? ancestors were in point is, nor- during a year of combat, a 1700’s. West would be hard to say. In fellow in the early entered in 1940 “It was the time when curriculum. I to you. There a four year Europe. lot can happen That was mally, already going in 55 German ME-109s. war was conflict two of us attacked You have to when the America into the to say the least! Harbor brought my very exciting, the timing is Pearl was a sophomore. In that sometimes, when December 7, 1941. I training. understand for you against on class started flying ggre55iveness will win junior years my the fall, it was right, matter of fact, on that summer of 1942. In very high odds. As a Ger That was the of 1944, would numbers were to the class, the class particular mission, of announced that my pretty hectic. There were too many Things became mans’ 5advantage. involving graduate in 1943. just 0mpressed visualize an aerial battle were eliminated, was them. Try to greatest danger, No academics On top of that number of aircraft. The remaining months. at a a large mid-air collision. It into the training, every other day, from bullets, is a football and flight But, we aside a tough schedule! nearby base It was 22 Squadron commander in Europe, “I was a 22-year old major.” doesn’t matter who is involved, friend or enemy, frame, you have been there forever, and you are a collision will have the same result. It’s really mentally and physically reduced to a one-day-at- the greatest threat in any air battle. In that a-time solution to the problem of continued particular circumstance, the Germans were existence. Under those tensions, the fact of hampered by the sheer weight of their own killing becomes totally impersonal, so long as it numbers. There were many times when we remains oblective, and not the other way strafed German airfields and we suffered heavy around.” losses everytime we did that.” The air war in Europe intensified as the Allied One of the biggest moral questions of any war Forces got closer to Germany. One of Hitler’s is what does it feel like to kill another man. most important weapons was the let airplane, General Olds had an honest answer. which no other country had at that time. We “Man has been at war and killing his fellow asked General Olds if he ever met one of these man since the dawn of time. The moral question jets in the air. has been argued for an equal length of time; by “A pilot in my squadron shot down the very ph ilosophers, theologi ans, reform ists, first German let encountered. It was lust a fluke. conquerers, poets, writers, students, you name The German pilot very stupidly let himself get it. However, I don’t think the moral issue is what trapped. Some of the lets were caught while you have asked. If I understand the question, you trying to land. That wasn’t very healthy for us. have asked me what it feels like to kill another You could get them, yes but you were sublect man. My answer is simple. It feels great, massive ground fire. We had a lot of battles with compared to the alternative! Remember, for their lets. Their rocket planes, too. those truly involved in a war, civilians and “Hitler was no air power genius — thank God soldiers alike, emotions run deep. You hurt, and he wasn’t or we might all be speaking German you hate. You see others killed around you and today. He didn’t know how to use those jets you kill so as not to be killed. You kill to stop the properly. He used them to support his ground killing and you kill because the issue at stake is troops. The dumbest thing he could have done! beyond the point of any other solution. You kill Finally, when he employed them against the because you are where you are, doing what bombers, it was too late for Germany. you’re doing, and other places and times simply “In many respects, much of the German do not exist. After a short time in your time equipment was more advanced than ours. Not 23 all, but certainly the ME-109, which was didn’t get into that one but spent my time as a designed back in 1933 or 1934, was the most base commander training others, then as a staff advanced fighter in the world at that time. It officer. held the world speed record for years. Their tanks were better than ours, too. There was little comparison. I believe their basic artillery piece, the 88 mm, was superior to anything that we had. “In contrast, we had masses of aircraft and weapons, but we also had something more im portant — national will — the sense that we were in the right and the courage to carry out our convictions. “I recall that our last mission in Europe was on May 8. I think the surrender was on May 10. The war kind of trickled off toward the end — it was a matter of the Allied authorities trying to find someone to negotiate with. On our very last mission we did shoot down another German let. This occurred way down over Austria, near lnnsbruck. That’s such pretty country. I felt we had no business being there. The question wasn’t asked, but I am compelled to broach the sublect. You must remember that an awful lot went on in occupied Europe that was really horrible.

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