DON'T MISS THE JOURNAL THE TAMPA BAY Official Publication of the 2ADA CONVENTION MAY 26-29 BE THERE ... FOR SURE! Veterans of 1 WORLD WAR II Volume 39 Number 1 Spring 2000 The Artist'Who 'Didn't 'Forget Our'Liberators BY RICK ROKICKI (458TH BG) BRITISH ARTIST FREDERICKT.SEARLE'S RENDITION OFTHE 458TH BOMB GROUP LIBS OVER BERLIN. rederick T. Searle was born in London and moved to Wymondham with his mother during the "Blitz" of F1940. His father went into the Royal Navy at that time. As a small boy, he became interested in aircraft and had a good collection of cigarette cards and "spotter books". The airfield at Hethel became active after the initial 389th aircraft arrived in November 1943, and naturally attracted the young boys in the area. Fred and his schoolmates often cycled to Hethel to watch the returning aircraft. He admits to being one of the "any gum chum?" lads, and says the Yanks were very generous with their candy and other sweets. (CONTINUED ON PAGE 6) DIRECTORY SECOND AIR DIVISION ASSOCIATION Honorary President JORDAN R. UTTAL 7824 Meadow Park Drive, Apt 101, Dallas, TX 75230-4939 Telephone: 214-369-5043 • Fax: 214-369-0758 OFFICERS President EC.(HAP) CHANDLER 18 Willow Glen, Atlanta, GA 30342-2023 Telephone: 404-252-5445 Executive Vice President FELIX LEETON 7325 Bonanza Place. Greenwell Springs. LA 70739 TABLE OF CONTENTS Tel 504-261-5300 • Fax 504-261-7197 'Ice President Membership EVELYN COHEN President's Message 491st Ringmaster Reports 6410 Delaire Landing Road, Philadelphia, PA 19114-4157 F.C. "HAP" CHANDLER 3 JOHN a LEPPERT 30 Tel. 215-632-3992 • Fax 215-632-8319 Executive Vice President's Message 492nd Happy Warrior Happenings Treasurer E.W.(BILL) NOTHSTEIN FELIX LEE IUN 4 40 Meadow Drive. Spencerport, NY 14559-1142 W.H. "BILL" BEASLEY 8 Tel. 716-352-3350 • Fax 716-352-4201 The Editor's Contributions STORIES Secretary and Director of RAY PYTEL 5 & ARTICLES Administrative Services DAVID G. PATTERSON Guest Editorial Happy Birthday Liberator! 28 Squire Court, Alamo, CA 94507-2230 BUD CHAMBERLAIN 7 Tel. 510-837-1667 • Fax 510-743-9940 DAVID NEALE 5 2ADA Representative Updates from the Honorary President "Jimmy" The Quintessential Airman Board of Governors CHARLES WALKER JORDAN UTrAL 6 STARR SMITH 9 9824 Crest Meadow, Dallas, TX 75230-5331 Ex-POW's Landing Is Happier This Time Telephone: 214-987-0467 • E-Mail: [email protected] Report from the Governors Representative RICHARD SABATINI 10 CHUCK WALKER 7 GROUP VICE PRESIDENTS Sculpture Photo Presented to 8AF Museum New Members 19 Headquarters RAY E. STRONG JOHN LEPPERT 10 320 Burlage Circle. Chapel Hill, NC 27514-2701 Folded Wings 26 Telephone: 919-967-2301 Cheerful Greetings: 2ADA Film Library 32 "You're Not Going to Finish!" 44th Bomb Group RICHARD D. BUTLER 16494 Wagon Wheel Drive, Riverside, CA 92506-5850 The PX Page 35 BOB BEATSON 13 Tel 909-780-7421 • Fax 909-780-1459 Letters to the Editor 37 Vultee Vibrators, Clouds of Dust, 93rd Bomb Group ALFRED ASCH and a Flight of Silver! Court, 6205 Meadow Rockville. MD 20852-3637 R.H. "BOB" OTTMAN 15 Telephone: 301-881-1376 GROUP REPORTS Dedication and Patience Deserve a Medal! 389th Bomb Group BERNARD F. DRISCOLL Division Headquarters GEORGE REYNOLDS 17 431 Pool Road, Richards, TX 77873-9507 RAY STRONG 21 Telephone: 409-291-6253 44th News Midwest-Southeast Mini-Reunion 392nd Bomb Group J. FRED THOMAS DICK BUTLER 18 A Great Savannah Success! 8932 Biscayne Court #1318E, Huntington Beach, CA 92646 GEORGE COLLAR 19 Telephone: 714-536-2294 Open Letter to the 93rd The Balloon Bombers 445th Bomb Group FRED A DALE ALFRED ASCH 13 C. GRAHAM 20 Box 352, Mahomet, IL 61853-0352 389th Green Dragon Flares Tel 217-586-3136 Two for the Price of One BARNEY DRISCOLL 16 446th WILLIAM E. HENDRIX, JR 24 Bomb Group AUD RISLEY 392nd Bomb Group 682 Slade Avenue. Elgin. IL 60120-3066 In Retrospect: "The Poor 100th" Tel 847-741-7757 • E-mail: [email protected] J. FRED THOMAS 33 KENNETH KINNEY 24 448th Bomb Group CHARLES C. McBRIDE 445th Bomb Group In Retrospect: Fortress vs Liberator 18 Seaview Dr. No., Rolling Hills Est., CA 90274-5706 FRED A. DALE 23 Telephone: 310-541-5381 ALLAN G. BLUE 25 446th Bungay Bull 453rd Bomb Group LLOYD PRANG London Taxis Do It Their Way! AUD RISLEY 22 4251 Willow Street, Greenwood, IN 46142 BRITAIN BOUND TRAVEL CLUB 26 Telephone: 317-885-0224 The 448th Speaks "Ach du Lieber!" It's That Damned 458th Bomb Group CATER LEE 14 E.A.(RICK) ROKICKI Liberator Nose Gear Again! 365 Mae Road, Glen Burnie, MD 21061-4694 News of the 453rd from Flame Leap Tel 410-766-1034 • Fax 410-969-1452 3D STRATEGIC AIR DEPOT ASSOCIATION 27 LLOYD W. PRANG 31 466th Bomb Group JAMES H. LORENZ Killed on WWII Mission, 15th AF 5331 East Poinsettia Drive. Scottsdale, AZ 85254-4716 458th Bomb Group Airman to Come Home Telephone: 602-951-0343 RICK ROKICKI 11 MARK DAVIS 28 467th Bomb Group WALTER J. MUNDY 466th Attlebridge Tales Stillwater Airport 23020 Basin Harbor Court, Tehachapi CA 93561-9638 Memorial Museum JIM LORENZ 12 Telephone: 805-821-5101 BOB VINCENT 29 467th Poop 489th Bomb Group JAMES M. DAVIS from Group Pilot's Silver Wings Unearthed in England 2519 Shell. Midland, TX 79750-8421 WALTER J. MUNDY 22 TOM MOONEY 30 Telephone: 915-683-2443 489th Notes Shared Experience 491st Bomb Group JOHN D LEPPERT JAMES M. DAVIS 17 JORDAN R UTTAL 34 4383 Live Oak Blvd., Palm Harbor, FL 34685-4024 Tel. 813-784-1984 492nd Bomb Group W.H.(BILL) BEASLEY MEMORIAL TRUST BOARD OF GOVERNORS 1525 South Garfield Street, Denver, CO 80210-3022 Tel. 303-756-4766 • Fax 303-759-3684 PAUL R. KING, Chairman HILARY HAMMOND 1 Limetree Road. Norwich NR2 2NF. England 1 Beach Dr. Strumpshaw, Norwich NR13 4AS JOURNAL DAVID J. HASTINGS, Vice Chairman England Editor RAY PYTEL 'Westering," Salhouse, Norwich, Norfolk NR13 6RO, England EDWARD 0. INMAN PO. Box 484, Elkhorn, WI 53121-0484 T.J. DOWUNG Director of the Duxtord Imperial War Museum NOTE NEW AREA CODE! Tel 262-723-6381• Fax 262-723-7981 Assistant Cultural Attaché, U.S Embassy Duxford Airfield, Cambridge CB2 40R, England 24 Grosvenor Sq. London. W1A 1AE, PROFESSOR HOWARD TEMPERLEY HERITAGE LEAGUE England School of English and American Studies President NICHOLAS P. COOPER CRAIG A. BEASLEY University of East Anglia. Norwich, NR4 77J, England 3459 Celebration Drive. West Valley City, UT 84120 Wychwood, Colney Lane. Cringlelord, Norwich. Norfolk NR4 7RE CHARLES WALKER Tel 801-250-8565 • 801-252-3042 MRS. FRANCES DAVIES 9824 Crest Meadow. Dallas, TX 75230-5331 USA 57 Church Lane, Eaton, Norwich NR4 6NY, England 2ND AIR DIVISION MEMORIAL ROOM JOHN WHITEHOUSE ROGER A. FREEMAN The NR14 8EW Trust Librartan Merlins, Hawkes Lane, Bracon Ash, Norwich DEREK 5 HILLS May's Barn. Dedham, Nr Colchester, Essex. England C07 NEW 2ADA/Fulbright Librarian JUDITH A JEROME England DAVID 0, GURNEY LT. COL W.D. WUEST AIR SECOND DIVISION MEMORIAL ROOM Bawdeswell Hall, East Defeham. Norfolk NR20 4SA 14 St Andrews Close, Hingham, Norfolk NR9 4JT, England Be' S!reet Norwich Norfolk NR1 3AD. England 2 PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE SECOND AIR DIVISION ASSOCIATION BY F.C."HAP" CHANDLER (491ST BG) MILLENNIAL REFLECTIONS THE 2ND AIR DIVISION ASSOCIATION aroline and I ended this century in Pensacola, Florida. traces its initial meeting to 1948 in Chicago, We were guests of our good friends, Anne and Cameron Illinois. It was organized as a nonprofit cor- Head, on their beautiful yacht, "Miss Anne." What a change poration in the State of Illinois on January from New Year's Day in 1945! We were going all out in the cold 10, 1950. Members of the original Board of and mud, flying in some of the most horrible weather imag- Directors were 2nd Air Division veterans inable, to support our beleaguered comrades on the ground. Marilyn Fritz, Howard W. Moore,Jordan R. What a difference the years have made! Uttal, and Percy C. Young.The association's While in Pensacola, we had the opportunity for our first look purpose is to advocate and support an ade- at the massive Naval training facility, including the Naval Air quate, effective and efficient Army, Navy and Museum. Navy airmen usually complete their training in Pensacola and proceed to flight Air Force at all times; to perpetuate the friend- ships and memories of service together in assignments from there. I understand that all aerial navigation instructors at Pan American had the 2nd Air Division, 8th Air Force in Eng- learned their craft at sea. Thus, the more things change, the more they are the same. Navigators land during World War II; to support finan- return to the sea to master the art of flying in the oceans of air. cially, and in any other way, the Memorial Trust of the 2nd Air Division as represented FUTURE THOUGHTS by the 2nd Air Division Memorial Room of the Norwich Central Library; and to undertake The morning paper's blaring headlines of January 27th proclaimed a major reorganization of such other activities as may from time to time Coca Cola. Coke is probably the world's most recognized brand and the pride of Atlanta's, if be deemed appropriate by the membership. not the world's, business community. Their new president announced job cuts and early retire- ment of senior executives, stating that "the world has changed rapidly in the last two years." Coke REGUIAR (Voting) MEMBERSHIP in must take drastic steps to maintain and enhance its market position.