FP-1942JA-Feb

Events vs Time Feb 1942

Feb. 10: Japanese troops enter Singapore after repairing causeway. Defense blunder now apparent all defenses concentrated on seaward end of island, leaving landward side exposed to enemy assault.

Feb. 15: General Tomoyuki Yamashita receives the surrender of Singapore from British General Arthur E. Percival. Australian 8th Division interned.

Feb. 18: Australian troops arrive Java.

Feb. 19: Australian and Dutch forces resist Japanese landings on Timor, but island taken following day. Japanese aircraft bomb Darwin, major naval and supply base for Allied forces. 238 dead and 224 injured, along with serious losses to Australian and U. S. shipping.

Feb. 27: Battle of Java Sea results in loss of Allied fleet of cruisers and destroyers.

Feb. 28: Japanese land on Java.

The Enemy was Closing In – what were Bases are now Targets

Singosari Fld at Malang, Soerabaja= Surabaya Jogja = Jogjakarta

Feb 1, 1942 6 planes from the 7th & 4 from 19th Group took off to attack enemy shipping in Balikpapan area at 0650. Mission abandoned due to weather. Returned Malang at 1215. Northcutt returned at 1140 with engine trouble.

No 40-3074	No 41-2427	No 41-2456	No 41-2458	No 41-2469	No 41-2472
Lt Adams	Lt Northcutt	Maj Straubel	Lt Cox	Lt Swanson	Lt Green

Lt Rankin and Smith leave for Jogja in K-131 at 0955.

Capt Broadhurst in from Bandoeng in B-18 No 36-338 at 1255. Lt Basye in B-17E No 41-2461 off for Jogja at 1445.

MF1 3 LB-30s take off from Jogja at 2245, 2300, and 2315 to attack enemy ships. Lt Dougherty, Lt Kelsay, and Lt Tarter pilots.

Feb 2, 1942: MF1r Three LB-30s landed at Jogja at 0800, 0805 and 0900. Lt Dougherty’s plane bombed and sank an enemy ship.

B-18 off for Bandoeng at 0900. P-Maj Straubel, CP-Lt R.M. Smith, E&R Sgt Pickett.

MF2 Eight B-17s of the 19th Group took off at 0930 to bomb warships & transports.

No 41-2453	No 41-2455	No 41-2456	No 41-2466	No 41-2458	No 41-2469	No 41-2470	No 41-2472
Lt Connally	Lt Mathewson	Lt Sargent	Lt Hillhouse	Lt Key A.E.	Lt Schmitt	Lt Casper	Lt Key F.M.

B24A No 40-2373 to Bandoeng at 1210. Lt Hillhouse in B-17E No 41-2466 returned from mission at 1325, faulty guns. At 1330 B-17E No 41-2460, Lt Boes pilot, took off Bandoeng for depot repair.

At 1450 Lt Michie arrived from Bandoeng in K-103 (courier plane).

MF2r: Seven B-17Es returned from mission at 1620. One ship sunk and another hit. No enemy pursuit.

At 1800 LB-30 No AL-609 arrived from Jogja. Lt Wade, pilot. He took off again for a reconnaissance of Ambon by moonlight at 2020, landing to be made at Darwin.

Feb 3 1942: Lt Teborek in K-101 (courier plane) off for Bandoeng at 0810.

MF3 Nine B-17s of the 7th Group off at 0905 to bomb enemy ships.

No 41-2453	No 41-2455	No 41-2456	No 41-2458	No 41-2464	No 41-2469	No 41-2471	No 41-2472	No 41-2483
Lt Preston	Lt Habberstat	Lt Dufrane	Lt Sargent	Lt Bleasdale	Lt Swanson	Lt Strother	Lt Hobson	Lt Northcutt

LB-30 No AL-533, Lt Crowder in from Jogja at 0915. Off for Darwin at 1005.

Air raid alarm sounded at 1015. Enemy aircraft sighted above field at 1040 (about 9 enemy “Dive Bombers 97” with belly tanks painted light grey with red ball insignia. Ground strafing attack began at 1045. Fires seen on field at 1055. High altitude attack by horizontal bombers at 1100 (about 20 airplanes at about 15,000 feet - type undetermined - attack weak). One B-17 with bomb load exploded at 1105. Another at 1110. Horizontal bombers flew back and dropped a few more bombs at 1115. In the meantime frequent diving attacks were made by the dive bombers. All Clear 1130.

Lt Cox in B-17C No 40-2062 took off for a local test flight at 0930. Still unreported at midnight.

MF3r Six planes returned from bombing mission at 0345. Lts Dufrane and Stother landed at Surabaya. Results of bombing -- undetermined due to weather. Lt Swanson had No 1 engine catch fire. Five men bailed out and ship was landed wheels up on sandy beach on Arenda Is. (5deg 05min S 114deg 40min E). Pfc A.J.Loway died of “oxygen want” in No 41-2464. In No 41-2472 Pfc Wood and Pfc Demott were wounded. One enemy fighter believed shot down.

LB-30 No AL-570 in at 1445 from Jogja. Lt Ezzard - Pilot.

Maj Straubel and Lt R.M.Smith both badly burned when shot down in B-18 No 36-338 near Surabaya. In C.B.Z. hospital. A Major Birch 0-665971 (?) in same ship died at hospital. No word of any other passengers at midnight.

Operations Diary disrupted

Feb 4-20 1942 2 LB-30 via Pacific & 3 B-17E via Africa Arrive

Ar 02-04-42 Pac	Ar 02-05-42 Afr	Ar 02-05-42 Pac	Ar 02-06-42 Afr	Ar 02-20-42 Aft
LB-30 No AL-567	B-17E 41-2492	LB-30 AL-515	B-17E 41-2488	B-17E No 41-2507
1Lt Cool Paul E.	1Lt Pritchard W J.	1Lt Helton Elbert	1Lt Bridges J D.	1Lt Willimams Robert L.
2Lt Parkinson T E.	2Lt Kendall Jr D E.	1Lt Fletcher A A.	2Lt Woods M C.	2Lt De Shaze Ar D.
2Lt Travis Euel A.	A/C Sampeck A J.	2Lt Rogers R S.	2Lt Balzanellli J	2Lt Wilks Rayburn A.
Sgt Truella John	Pfc Kleir H J.	A/C Appleton N R.	Sgt Nock G M.	Sgt Craig Dennis
S/Sgt Sexton Jack	S/Sgt Black D E.	S/Sgt Wilcox C B.	S/Sgt Sage W I.	Pfc Knight Forrest L.
S/Sgt Bone S P.	Pfc Schroder L J.	Sgt Thornell J B.	S/Sgt Smith J J.	Pvt Dietz Edward R.
Sgt Noller R R.	Pvt Charnesky H.	Sgt Fowler R R.	Sgt Chytil L A.
Pvt Stewart T J.	Pfc Leverly J R.	Pvt Wilhelm C F.	Pvt Johnson L A.
	S/Sgt Kennedy R.		Pvt Wingard J O.
	Cap Gottlieb J.D.
	Pvt Osborne E G.
	Lt Gibson W.J.

Operations Diary Continued

Feb 4, 1942: S-3 office moved from flying field -- Singosari field to the town of Malang this morning.

An air raid alarm sounded at Singosari and one LB-30 and (5) B-17Es were flown off the ground to avoid strafing. Two returned to Malang. One landed at Madioen (later returned to Malang) and the others went to Jogja.

Lts Strother and Dufane went from Surabaya to Jogja in their B-17Es.

ARF3 in the air raid of Feb 3 were: B-17D No 40-3074, B-17D No 40-3078, and B-17E No 41-2470 burned to the ground due to action of enemy straffer. B-17E No 41-2427 which burned partially yesterday burst into flame this morning (cause unknown) and burned to the ground. Dutch Koolhoven No K-103 which was being used as a courier plane was shot through the main spar and rendered unfit to fly without depot repair. No casualties or injuries at the field.

Cox & crew all died in crash of B-17C No 40-2062, which was shot down and burned about ten miles south of Malang

1st Lt	Cox Ray L.	0-380226
1st Lt	Huse John E.L.	0-21777
S/Sgt	Sowa John W.	6541524
Sgt	Karlinger Arthur E.	6579249
Sgt	Penney John S.	17023807
Pvt	Binghan Jack E.	20813175	131st F.A.
Pvt	Barnes Don H.	20813583	131st F.A.

The airplane was attacked by Japanese pursuit at the same time the field at Malang was being raided.

Straubel & passengers of B-18 No 36-338 which was shot down west of Surabaya by Japanese fighters all died in crash or in hospital.

Maj	Straubel Austin A.	0-17869
Maj	Burch Joseph A.	unk
2nd Lt	Smith Russel M.	0-417113
1st Lt	Boes Glenn H.	0-392741
2nd Lt	Kriel Erwin R.	0-398626
L/Col	Murphy	unk
S/Sgt	Pickett George V.	6550216

Feb 5, 1942: MF5 Nine crews prepared for an early missions. Four of the planes to be used were to come from Jogja and be serviced here. Two of the planes were stuck in the mud and failed to take off. Two arrived Malang at 0800. No. 2472 and No. 2456 had engine trouble and failed to join the flight. The flight departed Malang at 0930. Six B-17Es of the 19th Group took off to bomb ships at 0930.

No 41-2453	No 41-2455	No 41-2458	No 41-2464	No 41-2471	No 41-2483
Lt McKinsey	Lt Bohnaker	Capt Schwanbeck	Lt Tash	Lt Hillhouse	Lt Green

An air raid alarm sounded at Singosari at 0950. B-17E No 41-2456 – Reyes, Pilot and B-17E No 41-2472 Capt Parsel, Pilot, who were standing by took off within 5 minutes of the alarm. The “all clear” signal sounded at 1240.

No 41-2492 brought Lt W.J. Gibson from Batavia. He came to Batavia by airline from Palembang where he had been salvaging parts from B-17E No 41-2419.

MF5r Six planes No. 2458, 2453, 2471, 2455, 2464 and 2483 departed Malang at 0930 to attack warships in Balikpapan area. Air raid alarm was sounded for Surabaya just after take-off. The flight was called on the radio and told to proceed with caution. At 1020 the flight had assembled and reached a point 40 miles east of Surabaya, and just south of Madoera Island when they encountered eight "Zero” fighters. Six of the fighters made head on attacks and then numerous other attacks from the front and side. The tail gunner in No. 2464 is believed to have shot one down as it was on fire and falling. It was not seen to hit the water as it was necessary to concentrate on the other planes. One other plane was hit and damaged by a gunner in No, 2483. Enemy fighters seem to have changed their tactics from tail to frontal and side attacks. The flight failed to proceed on the mission due to the fact that the oxygen system No. 2483 had been hit and two top turrets were out of commission. The flight was instructed by radio to proceed to the south coast and stay in the air until 1500 to avoid the danger of having the planes caught on the ground. All planes landed at 1520 with bombs.

MF5r (second report) The flight of six B-17s which took off earlier returned at 1530. They had been attacked by eight “zero” fighters at 4000 ft off the south coast of Madoera. Two of the upper turrets failed to operate and one plane’s (No 41-2483) oxygen system was shot up so the mission was abandoned. One fighter was shot down and another damaged. Head-on, quartering frontal, and side attacks from the rear.

The two B-17E’s which took off when the raid alarm sounded also returned to Malang in the late afternoon. B-17E No 41-2466, Lt Preston, pilot, arrived Malang from Jogja.

ARF5 Air raid alarms delayed work today. The Alarm sounded at 0950 and the all clear at 1230. During this time a P-40 landed to get directions to Surabaya. He had been in a fight and lost his way. A new B-17E and a new LB-30 landed during the alarm. Lts. Pritchard and Helton were the pilots. Another Alarm sounded at 1500 when our planes were approaching. The "All Clear” came ten minutes later.

B-17E No. 2466. Lt. Preston landed from Jogja at 1730.

Lt Swanson and crew of B-17E No 41-2469 were picked up by Navy PBY and brought to Surabaya. Cpl Adamczyk had an injured leg and was left at the hospital. The remainder of the crew returned to Malang.

At 1506 Lt Crimmins returned from Arosbaja. (Swanson’s) Plane had been landed on beach. Built wooden runway and flew ship off.

Feb 6, 1942: Lt Hilton and crew of LB-30 No AL-515 left Malang for Jogja at 0820.

Nine B-17E’s took off from Singosari at 0920 when an enemy bombing force was reported over Madoera. They returned at 1530 after cruising over the sea south of Java and about 100 mi west of Malang. At 1610 B-17E No 41-2483 arrived from Bandoeng via Jogja. At 1615 B-24A No 40-2373 arrived from Bandoeng with Col Eubank and Maj Combs aboard. K-101 Lt Jacquet, pilot, arrived from Bandoeng at 1230.

ARF6 Nine planes No 2456-DuFrane, 2483-Linsay, 2455-Habberstad , 2460 Bleasedale, 2453-Rouse, 2458-Casper, 2471-Northcutt, 2466-Preston, and 2492-Pritchard of the 7th Group took stations at 6:00 ready for take-off upon sounding of air raid alarm. No. 2472 was placed in revetment and camouflaged. The nine planes listed above took off at 0910 for evacuation of Airdrome. Landed at 1520.

Lt. Baxter was assigned to Bandoeng to assist Lt. Col. Walsh. Lt Mosely is assigned as Armament

The following men have qualified as aerial gunners from the 131 Field Artillery:

				Battery			Battery
Fraser	William G.	Pvt	20815917	D	Jones	S.J.	D
Williams	Glenn A.	Pvt	20813805	D	Reynolds	N.T..	D
Connolly	James K.	Pvt	20813591	F	Connally	Adrion	D
Hale	Alton B Jr	Pvt	208113137	2 BTN Hq	Lyday	Ray C.
Hernandez	Hilario L.	Pvt	38026066	2 BTN Hq	Bills	Billy
Baldwin	Ray G.	Pvt	20813419	E	West	Bryson C.

B-17E No. 41-2488 with the following crew was assigned to the 19th Group this date: Bridges J D, Woods M C, Balzanelli J, Nock G M, Chytil L A, Johnson J H, Smith J F, Wingard J O

Feb 7, 1942: MF7 Eight B-17’s of the 19th Group took off at 0520 for a reconnaissance bombing mission. Objective was a carrier reported southeast of Makassar.

No 41-2453	No 41-2455	No 41-2458	No 41-2464	No 41-2471	No 41-2483	No 41-2488	No 41-2492
Lt Tash	Mathewson	Capt Key A.E.	Capt Key F.M.	Lt Bohnaker	Maj Combs	Lt Hillhouse	Lt McKinzie

B-24A took off for Bandoeng. K101 off for Bandoeng at 0830.

MF4br Lt Wade and Crowder in from Darwin in LB-30s No AL:-609 and AL-535. They had flown to Del Monte on Feb 4 taking off from Darwin at 0345 GCT. They returned to Darwin with 19th Group personnel. Wade landed Darwin at 0115 GCT and Crowder at 0245 GCT Feb 5. They landed at Malang at 1605 and took off for Jogja at 1700. They brought the following 21 officers and men with them:

Capt	Horrigan W.C.	0-20678
1st Lt	Brown Elmore G.	0-22057
1st Lt	Maddux Jr Sam	0-21589
1st Lt	Smith John H.M.	0-318448
1st Lt	Walker Jr Frederick W.	0-341110
2nd Lt	Bean Joe M.	0-426865
2nd Lt	Wasson Robert F.	0-426866
2nd Lt	Meyer Robert R. Jr	0-416325
2nd Lt	Holdridge Curtis J	0-417633
2nd Lt	Heold Edgar H.	0-425405
M/Sgt	Blair Madison B.	6553864
M/Sgt	Etheridge Heber E	6324997
M/Sgt	Wupperfeld John A.	R-1006838
M/Sgt	Stewart James E.	6540410
M/Sgt	Kilgore Roy	6222346
M/Sgt	Kelly Robert J.	R-544378
T/Sgt	Scott Geroge W.	6561212
T/Sgt	Kelsey Alex	6693386
T/Sgt	Carleson Lewis H.	6802201
S/Sgt	Ranaldi Patsy	6076539
S/Sgt	Benham Frank A.	6247415

Lt. Greene and Capt. Teats arrived from Darwin in one of the LB-308s. also.

The following officers arrived Sourabaya by U.S. Navy submarine from Corrigidor on February 7 and proceeded to Malang the same day:

Capt. Morris H. Shedd 0‑21498

Capt. Dean G. Hoevot 0‑22246

1st Lt. John W. Carpenter III 0‑21790

1st Lt. Harl Pease Jr. 0‑396206

1st Lt. Warner W. Croxton Jr. who arrived at the same time came to Malang on Feb. 9. His ser. No. 0‑21957

LB‑30 No, AL‑515t Lt. Kelsay, pilot, landed at Malang at 1730 in from Jogia.

B‑24 A No. 40‑2370 arrived from Bandoeng at 1800. Pilot – Capt. Davis.

MF7r The planes which took off at 0520 landed Malang at 1500 They patrolled an area bounded by 6^o 30’ S 120^o 26’ E, 7^o S 121^o 30’E, 6^o 20’S 121^o 30’ E. Poor visibility and overcast in the target area caused th mission to return after searching the area for 45 minutes. Two planes had previously left the formation – one because of turret trouble and one because of low oil pressure. Result of mission -- negative.

MF7r (second version) Course reconnaissance was then made from 6deg 30’ S 120deg 30’ E to Batahi strait, along Soembawa coast thru Alas Strait to 150 miles south of the coast, then parallel to coast of Java. No surface vessels of any type were sighted during the entire reconnaissance. One unidentified airplane was observed north Madoera Island at 6:15 L.C.T. believed to be PBY. The flight landed Malang at 15:00 L.C.T.

Weather take off was broken clouds, 5000'. Weather enroute was overcast at 25,000’ with several lower layers of broken clouds at various altitudes down to 1000', weather on landing was broken clouds 1000' with thunderstorms all directions

Airplane No. 2488 abandoned the mission at 7:00 am due to low oil pressure on #3 engine. The pilot was instructed to remain over coast south of Malang until 3:00 p.m. at which time he returned to Malang and landed.

Lt. Teats, Lt. Greene arrived Malang in LB-30 returned to duty.

Air raid observed.

The following officers and men were evacuated from Del Monte and reported to the 19th Group for duty this date:

1st Lt. Maddux Sam JR. 0-21589	2nd Lt. Bean, J., Navigator	M/Sgt Sulftidge, D. R. 6077351
1st Lt. Smith, J. H. M., 0-318448	2nd Lt Meyer, R. R, 0-416325	M/Sgt Kilgore, Roy, 6222346
1st Lt. Holdridge, C. J., 0-417633	2nd Lt Wasson, Navigator	M/Sgt Kelly, R. J. R-455378
1st Lt. Heald, E. H., 0-425405	M/Sgt, Blair, M. B., 6553864	T/Sgt Kelsey, Alex, 6693386
1st Lt. Nanney, S. M., 0-425408	M/Sgt Wupperfeld, J. A. R-1006838	T/Sgt Carleson, L. H. 6802201
1st Lt. Brown, E. G., 0-22057	M/Sgt, Stewart, J. E., 6540410	S/Sgt Ranaldi, P. , 6076539
		S/Sgt Benham, F. A. 6247415

Feb 8 1942: MF8 At 0735 nine B‑17 of the 7th Group took off from Singosari to bomb the occupied airdrome at Kendari II. Pilots and planes:

41-2456	41-2458	41-2492	41-2471	41-2455	41-2483	41-2483	41-2453	41-2464
DuFrane	Swanson	Princhard	Strother	Preston	Lindsey	Habberstad	Northcutt	Bleasdals

Swanson landed Pasirian. Strother landed Jogja. Lindsey, Northcut, Hahberstad, Bleasdale landed at Malang between twelve and one o’clock.

Three new B-17's No. 41-2486 ( Beck ), 41-2489 ( Hartison) 41-2494 (Lorence ) arrived from Java at 1800 hours. Number 41-2494 overshot field could not stop on wet surface and “cracked up” beyond repair at end of runway.

The airplane No. 41-2494 and following crew were assigned to the 19th Group.

P	Lorence	A.	2nd Lt	0-398751	E	Billen	T.L.	Cpl	12018062
CP	Prouty	R.J.	2nd Lt	0-430616	R	Cipriani	E.R.	Cpl	13012501
N	Worle	R. I.	2nd Lt		G	Gwinn	F. H.	Pfc	15058738
B	Walberg	D. E.	Pfc	16009443	G	Crabtree		Pfc	37009758

B-17D No 3066, Schaetzel, arrived from Darwin at 1800 hrs. The following 19th Group personnel returned to duty: Schaetzel, Work, Keiser, Vandevanter, Cottage, Baca, Byers, Hanna

Davis B‑24 A off for Darwin at 0035,

Connally (not of l9th) in Beechcraft in at 0630. Left Beechcraft here for use of Col. Eubank and went to Darwin with Lt, Kelsey who took off in LB‑30 No. AL‑515 at 0840.

MF8r Bombay tanks and 7 100 kg. bombs wore carried. The flight was intercepted by enemy pursuit (9 to 12 planes typos "0” and "96") at 60” 45” S 116” E, at 0905 Java time. The altitude was 14,000’ The enemy made co‑ordinated attacks from the front, front quarter and front underneath simultaneously. On the enemy's second attack Capt, Du Frane's airplane was hit and a great mass of flames burst from the bombay. The airplane continued to burn after the bombay tank was dropped and six men were seen to bail out as the ship descended. The enemy fired at the men In parachutes. The airplane exploded in aid‑air. Capt. Strother took over the lead of the formation when Capt. Du Frane left. On a subsequent attack (head‑on) Lt, Prichard’s airplane was hit caught fire, and exploded on the way down, One man boiled out of Lt, Prichard’s airplane, The remaining six planes in the formation (One had left the formation at 0845 duo to mechanical difficulties) finally reached cloud cover where heavy rains and turbulence made formation impossible. Return to base was made individually. In Lt, Habberstad’s plane Pfc. Homer D. Bilyen 6581616 was killed by enemy fire. Lt Lindsey's plane had its tail section shot up so bad that it took two men to hold the controls. when the plane hit the turbulent air It was Impossible to hold it on an even keel and it evidently spun. It was brought under control at 7000’. The navigator, copilot, and tail gunner all bailed out during the spin. Lt Lindsey, without the aid of a C0‑pilot, navigator, or a map, succeeded in righting his plans, finding his way home in unfavorable weather over strange territory,, and landing safely at Malang with one wounded man,, Pfc. J. R. Mackley, 6578531. Capt. Strother’s airplane was hit after he took the lead of the formation (another frontal attack). An explosion of a low pressure oxygen bottle blow out the hydraulic system and the bomb release mechanism in front of the bombay. Because an air raid alarm was in progress at Malang and because of the damaged condition of the plan, it was flown to Jogja and landed. Lt, Swanson landed at Pasirian because of bad weather at Malang and a low gas supply. No damage to airplane and crew all o.k. Capt. Preston's airplane was hit and a fire started in the bombay but he jettisoned both his bombs and bombay tank coincidentally with the hit, The tank was seen to be on fire as it fell free. Four of the five planes which landed at Malang were damaged by gunfire ‑ two of them seriously. Five enemy planes were shot down, two of them with the 30 cal. nose guns. The other three were shot down by the combined efforts of the top turrets, side guns, and tail guns. The bottom turrets were ineffective. No antiaircraft fire received, The planes landed from 1155 to 1615. Two unidentified surface craft were seen and reported to the Navy. Also a merchant vessel.

Remarks.

1. It is almost certain that the two airplanes were lost as a result of bombay tanks being hit by explosive bullets. But for quick action, a third might have been lost for the same reason. The entire flight jettisoned their bombs and tanks,

2. The enemy attack on the bombardment formation was the best executed attack so far encountered,

3. Co‑ordinated attacks from head‑on and front quarters wore the first attacks Of this nature reported by friendly forces in this area, however, the flight which was attacked at 4000’ on Fob 5 was subjected to individual attacks from the front hemisphere.

4, The relative speed between attacking pursuit and bombardment was so great that top turrets could not traverse fast enough to fire on the enemy during head on attacks. The 30 cal nose guns were the sole defense against this type of attack.

5. In both cases where head‑on attacks were executed the bombardment formation was caught at a low altitude and climbing and the superior performance of pursuit enabled them to choose the avenue of attack. At altitudes in excess of 20,000’ the advantage is lessened to the extent that pursuit attacks have, to date, come from the side or rear and can be dealt with much more effectively.

MF8r (second report) The 7th Group lost two B-17Es with crews today, The pilots DuFrane and Pritchard. About ten men jumped from the two planes over the ocean - may possibly have reached Kanean Island. Three men jumped from Lindsey’s airplane - the airplane returned. The following was learned from this flight: (1) Pilots and co-pilots need back type chutes. (2) Jap fighters drop belly tanks before attack. (3) Enemy fighters have adopted a simultaneous: head on - above - head on below - right front quarter - left front quarter attack. (4) Bombay tanks are risky.

At 1720 B‑17D No. 40‑3066 Capt. Schaetzel, pilot, arrived from Darwin, He brought the following from Del Monte

1Lt. Ray W. Mc Duffee	0‑2361884
2Lt Staneill M. Nanney	0‑425408
M/Sgt. Dayton R. Selfridge	6077351

From Melbourne Depot: Capt. W. H. Smith, Capt. Keiser, Lt Vandevanter, Lt. Work, Lt. Cottage, Lt. Friedman, Lt. Hayman, S/Sgt. Baca, Sgt. Hanna, and Sgt. Byers.

3 B‑17E No. 41‑2494, No. 41‑24860 and No, 41‑2489, arrived from Jogja at 1730. No. 41‑2494 overshot on landing and damaged the airplane beyond repair.

Persons who bailed out Feb 8 & did not survive

	Bailed our of 41-2483			Crew of 41-2492			Crew of 41-2456
CP	2Lt. Francis E. Smith	0‑430627	P	1Lt. William J. Prichard	0‑317864	P	Capt J DuFrane	0‑22810
N	A/C Marvin J. Schmella	19022168	N	2Lt. Isadore Alfred	Unknown	CP	1Lt. R Negley Jr.	0‑22108
G	Sgt. F. T. Lewis	6833881	CP	2Lt. W. T. Morgan	0‑362538	N	2Lt. S. Patillo	0‑412152
			B	2Lt. F. 0. Lascombe	0‑398646	B	2Lt. W Burney	0‑426112
			E	S/Sgt. R P. Legault	6906400	E	S/Sgt J Coleman	6549391
			G	Pvt. Joseph Hines	7021410	G	Pfc. H L. Ellis	6581672
			R	Pfc. Ignatius Barron	6996085	R	Sgt L Keightley	6566286
			G	Pvt. Horace Salmon	18034759

Feb 9 1942 MF9a At 0635 5 B-17W of 19^th took off from Singosari to bomb ships in the vicinity of Makassar.

No. 2455	No. 2464	No. 2466	No. 2472	No. 2489
P Mathewson	P Schwanbeck	P McKinzie	P Key A. E.	P Hillhouse
CP Scarboro	CP Meyer	CP Smith	CP Webb	CP Furguson
N Wood	N McAuliff	N Rown	N Holan	N Penney
B Fesmire	B Henderson	B Miller	B Perkins	B Jones
E Rose	E Davis S/Sgt	E Clark	E Geckeler T/Sgt	E Durham
R Parks	R Whipp	R Reuther	R Lumatainen	R McMullin
G Elder	G Logan	G Hernandez	G Murdock	G Kersch
G Gardner	G Frazier (FA)	G Williams (FA)	G Bartee (FA)	G Baldwin (FA)

[Note: FA= new gunners from Field Artillery.]

MF8b (also independently reported as a Feb 8 mission) At 2230 the following airplanes and pilots took off from Jogja on a bombing mission to search the area south and east of Makassar for enemy ships:

AL-609	AL-521	AL567	AL-570
Dougherty	Ezzard	Cool	Tarter

One airplane No. 570 had trouble with his landing gear and landed at 0005 Feb. 9.

MF8br The 3 LB-30s returned to Jogja at 0750, 0825, and 0845, They searched the area, around Makassar and to the south and east of there but had no success. On their return two of then sighted concentration of Naval vessels off the south coast of Java one of which was reported to be a carrier.

Capt. Shed in B‑17E No. 41‑2483 off from Malang at 0835 for Bandoeng

MF9b At 0845 Lt Rouse in B‑17E No 41‑2486 took off to make a local reconnaissance to determine whether or not the report of the returning LB-30s was correct.

MF9br He landed at 1455 and reported concentrations, of Vessels which, when tied in with G-2 information led us to believe they were friendly. Their positions were reported, to the Navy.

MF9ar The five B-17s which took off earlier this morning returned between 1230 and 1423.: They abandoned their mission because of weather. Positions of vessels reported by the flight were relayed to the Navy.

The courier plane,, K 1010 Lt. Michie,, pilot In from Jogja to Malang at 1730.

Shedd in B‑17E No. 41‑2478 returned from Bandoeng at 1740. He left No 83 at the depot.

MF9ar (second report) The flight cleared on the field at 6:25 am. The route out was south to the coast of Java, East along the coast to Ala Strait, North through the strait and then direct toward the objective, an enemy convoy reported south of Makassar. The weather was good with low scattered clouds from 4,000 to 9,000 feet to a point 100 miles from the target. There a strong front was encountered with a line of intense thunderstorms running N.W. to S.E. The area around the target had an uneven overcast, the bottom ragged from 10,000’ to 10,000’. The mission was abandoned because of weather. A message was sent to the flight of the raid on Malang Field at 10:52 and the flight dropped their bombs in the ocean to increase their endurance in the air. Return trip was by same route -- landing at 2:23.

Ship No. 41-2472, Pilot Capt A. E. Key returned early, land at 12:27. 2nd Lt D. L. Holan was pronounced dead by the flight surgeon after ship landed. Lt Holan, Navigator, went from the navigators compartment to the radio room to operate radio guns when they were at about 20,000’. He called at short intervals each member of the crew to make sure he was in good condition. While at 28,000’ indicated, the co-pilot noticed an unusually long interval when Lt Holan did not call. On calling everyone answered except the Navigator. Investigation showed that he was sitting on the floor, his head bleeding, his oxygen mask was broken and pulled over onto one side of his face. Artificial respiration was given until landing. Ammonia respirators were used. Windows and doors of the compartment were closed and Lt Holan was kept very warm. We MUST use more care in the use of Oxygen!

An air raid warning alarm sounded on the field at 10-52 LCT shortly afterwards six small pursuit were seen circling the field wide a t approximately 18,000’; never attempting to descend of strike the field.

ARF9 At 11:07 a formation of seventeen silver-twin engine bombers were seen approaching at 15,000’ from the West. They were in two distinct but close formations, eight in one lot and nine in the other lot to the left. They continued their run directly for the field, their bombs striking the Field-Artillery Barracks area to the southwest of the field at 11:28. Fires were observed from this area. The two formations then separated, the one of nine heading north and the one of eight heading south. AT 11:39 the bombs from the eight were exploding again in the Field Artillery Barracks area. This formation continued their course and disappeared to the north.

It was apparent, during the raid, there was some activity over head, other than the usual run of enemy aircraft. Machine gun fire was heard and the diving of planes, both pursuit and bombers was observed.

The first lot of bombs dropped were of the 100 lb fragmentation type. The second lot of bombs were of the 300 lb demolition type. Fifty-four bomb-craters were counted. One native was killed, one American soldier and one native were injured from bombs during the raid.

The weather over and surrounding the field, before and during the raids, was broken-scattered clouds, base at approximately 12,000’. Each time bombing runs were made from clear unlimited, unobstructed areas from cloud formation. The all clear was given at 12:15 LCT.

Information was received at 10:10 am that an LB-30 sighted carrier and four destroyers 50 miles south of Malang. The following aircraft and crew were dispatched on reconnaissance to that area.

MF9c No 2486: P Rouse, J.A. 1st Lt; CP Fagan, D.W. 2nd Lt; N Meenaugh 2nd Lt; B Grant, J.W. 2nd Lt; E Lorber, V.J. Sgt; R Poulton, W.C. Pfc; G Pfoil (FA) Pvt; G Coburn, L.L. Sgt.

Take off at 8:34. Route was 260deg to a point 75 miles south of Java and then parallel to the coast to a point ten miles east of Bali Island. Route back was the same except it was 50 off shore. The weather along the entire route was low scattered clouds from 4,000’ to 7,000’. Altitude flown 28,000’ indicated.

MF9cr No aircraft observed, no anti-aircraft fire observed, surface craft: 1 convoy of 10 ships, 5 destroyers, 2 cruisers, and 3 small transports or auxiliary craft, were sighted at 10:05 at 9deg 10’ - 113 deg 30’ E on a heading of 95deg and an estimated speed of 15 knots. The plane returned to Malang landing 3:10 pm.

The following airplane and crew departed Malang 10:00 for purpose of ferrying airplane No 41-2483, which was badly damaged by gunfire, to the Depot at Bandoeng and to return ferry airplane No 2478. P Shedd, CP Burkey, C.M. 2nd Lt; N Weinberg, G.R. A/C; B Campbell, W. P. M/Sgt; E Mckenney, L. V. M/Sgt; r Warrenfeltz W. Sgt; G Androkovich, T/Sgt.

No 2478 with above crew returned to Malang landing at 1800 LCT.

MF9d From 2200 to 2230 four LB‑301s took off from Jogja at 10 minute intervals. Their objective was an aircraft carrier at 5”10' S 120” 20’ E. Planes and pilots:

AL-609	AL-521	AL567	AL-570
Basye	Helton	Crowder	Tarter

Lt. Tarter had trouble with the landing gear of No. 570 and landed at Jogja at 2400.

Java Operations disrupted --- to be continued

Hawaii to Australia -- Observation Duty for Carrier Task Force

Feb 10 1942 Maj Carmichael leads 12 B-17Es, attached to Navy for Carrier Task Force,

on 10 day trip from Hickam Fld Hawaii to Townsville Australia

Beginning on 10 February, five crews from the 22nd, six from the 88th, and one from the 38th Squadron of 7^th BG left Hickam Field to proceed to Australia, led by 88^th Commander Major Richard M. Carmichael (41‑2429). One of the first departures was San Antonio Rose (41‑2416) piloted by 1st Lt. Frank P. Bostrom of the 88th. Thrown together into a makeshift squadron, the twelve B‑17s were now attached to the Navy for Carrier Task Force duty in the South Pacific and were identified as such by their red and white striped tail rudders. They were supporting the Carrier USS Lexington (CV‑2) which was headed toward the Fiji Islands. Though each plane was to carry four 600‑lb bombs and a full load of ammunition, very little of the supplies that the group had brought to Hawaii were returned to them. Lt. George B. Munroe Jr was issued a sextant, an instrument with which he was unfamiliar, to use for navigation on the flight. He had been trained as a navigator using an octant, and it was a real job to convince the Hawaiian Command that he must have it to perform his job. He got his octant only after going to the Commanding General.

The formation was divided into A and B flights, with A flight led by Carmichael and B flight led by Captain Ted S. Faulkner, the 88th pilot who had been selected for the aborted Marshalls/Carolines photo project before Pearl Harbor. A Flight was to proceed to Christmas Island, while B Flight was to go to Palmyra Island and then to Christmas Island, following A Flight by three days.

The movement of bombers was anything but a mass formation. Bostrom's tail gunner, Pvt. Herbert M. Wheatley, remembered that, "We were alone the whole trip. We did not see another American plane." Wheatley remembers stops in Palmyra, Canton Island, Vity, Levu, Fiji, New Caledonia, and Brisbane. At New Caledonia, "After landing, Bostrom had us man the guns until he could determine whether it was in control of Vichy French. What a laugh! A few .50‑calibers and no gas. Where were we going? It was a miserable place.

"There were absolutely no mechanical problems on the trip. The most joy, if there was any, was seeing people gawking at the B‑17. Even the Aussies hadn't seen one with the tail gun."

Lt. Frederick C. Eaton, Jr. (41‑2446), with Lt. Henry M. Harlow as his Copilot, took off on the morning of 11 February on the first hop south to Christmas Island, a tropical layover rich with coconut trees. The airstrip had been carved out of the center of the coconut tree forest. Workmen building the field gave a tour of the island to some of the crews and supplied some with good luck charms to take on the trip. They gave Pvt. Howard A. Sorenson a knife made with shark's teeth mounted on its edges. Later, it was to come in handy. Among others aboard Fred Eaton's bomber was Corporal Richard E. Oliver, who just three weeks earlier had survived a Pacific ditching in an LB‑30.

On 12 February after spending the night on Christmas Island, Eaton's crew flew southwest to Canton Island in a trio of B‑17s. Canton Island was a small coral atoll that had one tree and a landing strip. The single tree, a coconut palm, had a platform mounted just below the palm branches and was a lookout post for the island. Most of the installations were underground, carved out of the coral. The mess hall and sleeping quarters were underground, and there were no facilities for transient personnel. The planes were serviced, and they continued their journey. Patrol aircraft flying out of Canton had spotted an enemy submarine in the area hours earlier.

On the 13th Eaton's crew left Canton Island headed southwest for Nandi, Fiji, flying formation through some of the worst weather they had yet encountered. It rained so hard they could not see out of the side windows. It was a wonder the engines kept running. The trip took eight hours 45 minutes. The flight passed a Navy flying boat which looked "...like he was standing still..." and landed at Nandi in the afternoon. The heat was stunning. Officers were quartered in grass shacks close to the field, and enlisted men slept in tents on the flight line.

Orders were cut on 16 February, on the letterhead of Headquarters Southern Bomber Command, directing the 88th to depart Nadi airdrome, Nandi, Fiji, that day and to carry out a search mission while proceeding to the next stop at Noumea, New Caledonia, enroute to Townsville, Australia. The orders indicated that the 88th would move onward from Noumea on the 18th, the same day the 22nd's bombers would depart Nadi.

As the journey continued for the dozen B‑17s on 16 February, the first flight left Nandi for New Caledonia about noon. Major Carmichael led this flight and was to land at the De Vemiulle Airport but found that it was blocked off. Carmichael circled the field many times trying to decipher the printing in white letters on the runway. It told him to land at a field 95 miles to the northwest. Carmichael proceeded northwest and located a runway marked "OK". He landed and in about fifteen minutes signaled other circling B‑17s with a signal light that it was safe to land.

The final leg of the Pacific crossing brought the dozen B‑17s to Townsville, Australia, some of them flying at 100 feet off the water with a tropical storm directly in their path. The trip from Hawaii to Townsville had taken ten days or more, including 38 flight hours.

Java Operations continued

Feb 10 1942: MF9cr At 07302 0825, and 0830 the three LB‑30's returned from their mission One of them could not locate the target but two of them did and bombed it. The results are uncertain. hot and heavy‑antiaircraft fire was received. One plane's propeller was bent from A.A. fire.

MF10 Six B-17E of the 7th Group took off at 0820. Objective was carrier at Sindjai (5”10'S 120”20’E). Pilots and planes

41-2488	41-2455	41-2472	41-2489	41-2464	41-2478
Strother	Horgan	Northcutt	Hardision	Maddus	Addams

MF10r The mission was abandoned because of weather and shortage of gasoline. Three of the airplanes had mechanical difficulties and the formation lost time in the air waiting for them. The flight landed at 1515.

Lt. Swanson returned to Malang from Pasirian at 1604. He had made a deferred forced landing there on the 8th.

At 1810 Lt. Skiles landed at Malang in No. 41‑2454. It had been at Jogja for repairs.

Feb 11 1942 MF11 The following planes and crew departed Malang at 0900 LCT for purpose of proceeding to Palembang I, for service and thence for night bombing mission:

No. 3066	No. 2454	No. 2455	No. 2458	No. 2464	No. 2466	No. 2472	No. 2478	No. 2486	No. 2488	No. 2489
Montgomery	Skilos	Teats	Keiser	Bohnaker	Pease	Hoevt	Schaetzel	Vandevanter	Bridges	Green
Holdridge	Shmidt	Greene	Ferrey	Woods	Keller	Norvell	Snyder	Carpenter	Beekman	Hinton
Tarbutton	Heyman	Oliver	Work	Carrithers	Weinberg	Cappalletti	Cottage	Etter	Balzanelli	Seamen
Waldberg	Reeves	Miller	Campbell	Burke	Perkins	Fesmire	Stone	Pippin	Nock	Jones
Billen	Britt	Geckeler	McKenny	Peel	Clark	Matson	Hewston	Andrekovich	Chytil	Rose
Cipriani	Beardshear	Hartzell	Warrenfelz	Shafer	Makela	Lorber	McMullin	Lytle	Johnson	Wilfley
Gwinn	Fraser	Kelm	Baca	Gilbreath	Logan	Richardson	Coburn	Souder	Wingard	Murdock
Crabtree	Simmons	Jones	Connolly	Greelz	Reynalds	Baldwin	Combs	Perry		Connally
Williams	McKinzie						Norgard			Kersch
	Hillhouse						Ruther
	Tash

MF11r At 0900 eleven B‑17's took off from Singosari for Air Raid Precautions. They were prepared for a special mission, orders for which were later cancelled.

At 0930 four B‑17's and four LB‑301s took off from Jogja because of an air raid alarm. They were prepared for the same mission as the B‑17's from Singosari.

The above planes all landed in the afternoon.

Feb 12 1942 MF12 From 0030 till 0220 eleven B‑17's of the 7th Group took off to attack enemy ships in the vicinity of Makassar. Ships and pilots:

41-2454	41-2466	41-2488	41-2478	41-2489	41-2459	41-2486	41-2462	41-2472	41-2449	41-2455
Strother	Habberstad	Beck	Northcutt	Swanson	Hardison	Key FM	Casper	Key AE	Mathewson	Preston

MF12r "B" Flight consisting of No. 78, No. 58 & No. 89 reported that they believed they hit a boat. No. 62 had an excellent bombing run but could not observe results due to clouds obscuring the target. AA. was light. No EA. seen. "B" Flight landed at Madioen. No 54, No 66,No 86, No 72, No. 49, and No 62 landed at Malang. No. 62 later took off, delivered some parts to Madioen, and proceeded to Jogja No. 55 landed at Jogja. No, 66 came back to Malang early because of engine trouble.

MF12r (second report) The flight departed Malang 0100 and proceeded to Makassar. Makasar was reported burning. Bombs were dropped on lights off shore -- results undetermined. The flight landed Malang 0700 LCT.

The two LB‑30's returned to Jogja, Wade at 0850 and Ezzard at 0740. No results due to an overcast covering the target area,

No.AL‑515,, Lt. Kelsay, pilot, arrived kalang from Darwin at 1538, discharged 12 pursuit mechanics and some freight, and took off for Togja at 16200

MF12b Three LB‑30's took off from Jogja at 2230 to bomb ships in the vicinity of the Anambas Islands.

AL-609	AL-521	AL-570
Dougherty	Fletcher	Cool

Three B‑17E took off from Malang at 0905 for Pasirian for dispersion. They returned at 1525, 1530, and 1625.

No. 2449	No. 2472	No. 2486
Pease	Hoevet	Keiser

The following were assigned to the 19th Group this date: P Jacques, P. D. 1st Lt; CP McAdams, M.L. 2nd Lt; N Dietch, W. A. 2nd Lt; B Heldreth, H. S. 2nd Lt; E Hawkins, J. T. Cpl; Guth, E.G. Pvt; Bunardzya, N.D. Pfc; Rentz, R. M. Pvt.

Air Raid Alert: These crews remained on the ground ready to take off.

No. 2449	No. 2453	No. 3066	No. 2484	No. 2486	No. 2488	No. 2498
McKenzie	Vandervanter	Montgomery	Evans	Keiser	Bridges	Schaetzel
Wood	Carpenter	Holdridge	Wagner	Ferry	Beekman	Snyder
Carrithers	Etter	Tarbutton	Busbee	Work	Balzanelli	Cottage
Burke	Souder	Walberg	Surgeson	Campbell	Nock	Stone
Peel	Androkovich	Billen	Filigenzi	McKenny	Chytil	Hewston
Shaffer	Lytle	Cipriani	Nelson	Warrenfelz	Johnson	Norgard
Groelz	Perry	Gwinn	Linelis	Baca	Wingard	Coburn
Gilbreath	Hale	Crabtree	Hillhouse	Connelly	Sage	Hernandez

Feb 13 1942 MF12br The LB‑30's returned to Jogja at 0630, 0645, and 0830. They were unable to locate the target due to instrument weather in the vicinity. Mission abandoned.

B‑17D 40‑3066 Capt Shedd pilot, took off from Malang at 0830 and went to Pasirian for dispersion. The following from Malang to Jogja: 2454 Skiles 0844, 2466 Habberstad 0848, 2449 Beck 0430, 2464 Preston 1010, 2462 Smith 1646.

(repeated report) Pasirian dispersal B-17D No. 3066 with the following crew departed Malang 0900 for dispensing the airplane. Shedd, Meyer, Peel, Shafer.

The above crew returned to Malang at 1700 in Beechcraft piloted by Capt Persel.

Three B‑17E went from Madioen to Jogja this afternoon.

Capt. Slingsby came to Malang from Madioen in a C‑39 at 1725.

Air Raid Alert: The following remained on alert ready to take off.

No. 2455	No. 2472	No. 2484	No. 2486	No. 2498
Adams	Teats	Beran	Rouse	Vandervanter
Railing	Breene	Putman	Carpenter	Webb
Rowan	Work	Leffing	Zatzke	Hoffman
Sage	Payne	Filley	Grant	Burke
Hewston	Provost	Carr	Androkevich	Kelm
Makela	Hertzell	Harmon	Poulton	Byers
Murdock	Petersen	Norton	Perry	Crabtree
Brown	Geckeler	Copley	Hale	Billen

Feb 14 1942 MF14a Eight B‑17E took off from Jogja at 0215 to attack a reported convoy approaching north coast of the Island of Bangka. They were instructed to attack by flight of 3's at dawn.

The above mission was ordered as a full effort against a large concentration of enemy vessels both naval and aux.

MF14a report All ships reached target area except No. 2455 which developed engine trouble and returned to Malang landing at 0710. No targets were sighted in the target area and planes were gassed up upon return to designated airdromes and told to stand‑by, At 1345 Hq called to say that everything was off for today but to prepare all in commission for T.O. at dawn tomorrow for another attack on same target. No. 86, 53 and 88 were ordered back to Malang from Bandoeng to prepare for mission.

Lt Vandevender in No. ___ landed at ___ and blow a tire. Arrangements were made for replacement tire to be sent to this airplane from Bandoeng. all other ships returned to Malang in the later afternoon between 1630 and 1730.

Lt. Godman arrived in Malang ship No. 3062 B-17D with P‑40 and A‑24 parts.

Two LB-30 No. 567 & No. 608 came over from Jogja to pick up 7th Gp. personnel and baggage. Landed at 1530 and departed 1630

MF14b The following planes and crews departed Malang at 3:10 am for Bombing reconnaissance operations.

2453-3KKS	2455-66AUB	2472-Z6	2486-P9VM	2488-SG7Q	2498-P9VT
Pease	Adams	Teats	Schaetzel	Rouse	Vandevanter
Fagan	Railing	Breene	Putnam	Carpenter	Webb
Oliver	Rowan	Work	Cottage	Zatzke	Hoffman
Stitt	Sage	Payne	Stone	Grant	Burke
Clarke	Hewston	Provost	Pecher	Androkevich	Byers
Whipp	Makela	Hertzell	Norgaard	Poulton	Billen
Logan	Murdick	Petersen	Colburn	Perry	Crabtree
Reynolds	Bruise	Geckeler	Hale	Bills	Kelm

Airplane No. 2455 (Adams) returned to Malang account engine trouble, landing Malang 0900. Airplane No. 2484 was scheduled on mission but failed to take off due to lights being out and engines rough.

MF14br The remaining five planes proceeded on mission. All planes became separated during the flight due to weather. No. 2486 started patrol at SE tip of Bangka Island and followed east to north and thence to west tip thence to Bandoeng. Patrol made at 25,000’. No boats were seen over entire patrol. Numerous boats were seen within 100 mile radius of Batavia. The plane landed Bandoeng. Proceeded to Malang landing at 1730. Pilot reports lack of information of our vessels in vicinity of target may have caused attack upon them. No. 2488 patrolled similar area at 30,000’ and made similar report. No 2488 landed Bandoeng and proceeded to Malang landing at 1730. No 2472 patrolled at 20,000’ over same area and made similar report. No 2472 sighted boat burning at 4deg25’S-106degE. A twin engine plane with single tail was sighted at 3deg30’S-106degE traveling fast. No 2498 landed at Kalidjati and blew a tire. Intelligence report was called in to Bandoeng. Plane will return here when repaired. No 2453 landed Bandoeng, serviced and departed for Malang. Bad wx was encountered and the plane landed at Jakja for the night. Intelligence report was called to Bandoeng.

Feb 15 1942: MF15a Three LB-30's of the 7th Group (11th Sqd.) took off from Jogja between 0200 and 0215. Pilots Lt Markey, Capt Crowder and Capt. Basyse. They were to bomb enemy ships in the vicinity of Palembang.

MF15ar After they had flown on instruments for about an hour and a half each. The mission was abandoned on account of weather, They landed at Jogja at 0613, 0705 and 0800.

MF15b The following planes and crews departed Malang at 0610 for bombing operations off the coast of Palembang.

No. 2455	No. 2458	No. 2472	No. 2478	No. 2486
Hoevet	Parsel	Keiser	Jacques	Key, A. E.
Tash	Norvell	McAdams	Ferry	Holdreidge
Bean	Cappalletti	Griffin	Dietch	Etter
W;berg	Gregg	Miller	Hildreth	Sounder
Hanna	Matson	Baca	Hawkins	Pippin
Cipriani	Lorber	Shafer	Guth	Perry
Gwinn	Sanders	Strohecker	Bernadzya	Connolly
Connally	Jones	Huffman	Rentz	Androkovich

MF15br The flight departed Malang at 0610 for bombing operation against naval boats in Strait of Bangka. The flight took a direct route, climbing at 25,500’ over the target. Weather out was broken clouds with tops above 15,000’. At the target there was a high overcast at 30,000’ with lower broken clouds at 8,000’. Each plane carried eight 300 Kilogram bombs. The attack was made at 1010 on a course of 70deg at 25,500’. Bombs hit to the left of several transports. One near hit was seen on auxiliary vessel. Due to broken clouds all bombs were not seen to hit. Later smoke was seen to be emerging from the stern of a cruiser. One single engine EA was seen flying low over vicinity of target but failed to close. Moderate to heavy AA was encountered over the boats. Five transports, three cruisers, one very large transport (possibly a carrier) was observed. Airplane no 2458 and no 2486 landed at Madioen at 1330 for service. They took off at 1630 for Malang, landing at 1730. Airplane No 2455, No 2472, No 2478 landed at Bandoeng for service. No 2455 departed for Malang, landing at 1745. No 2478 failed to take off due to delay in service. No 2472 took off for Malang but due to approaching darkness and bad weather landed at Madioen for the night.

Airplane No 2453 (Pease) returned from Jogja landing at Malang 1720.

MF15brs (second report) They bombed by flights and from 28,000’ true. One ship had 8 hung bombs and another had 4 but a hit was scored on one auxiliary vessel and another on a cruiser. Three planes used Bandoeng as an intermediate field and two used Madioen, The two which used Madioen and one of those which used Bandoeng returned to Malang, One remained at Bandoeng overnight and another went into Madioen overnight and another went into Madioen overnight when he could not make Malang from Bandoeng before dark. Ships and pilots: No 58 Parsels, No 86 Key, A.E., No 72 Keiser, No 55 Hoevet, No 78 Jacques No EA., but A.A. encountered. Heavy, on level, and behind.

MF15c Three B‑17 off the 7th Group took off from Jogja at 1115 to attack enemy ships to the north of Palembang.

MF15cr They abandoned the mission because of very poor weather which made it impossible to maintain formation. Pilots Beck, Smolser, and Bleasdale. They returned at 1405, 1450, and 1540.

Feb 16 1942 MF16 Six B-17 of the 19th Group took off from Malang at 0830 to attack enemy forces in the Telang, Moosit and Oelang Rivers. Ships and pilots.

No. 2455	No. 2481	No. 2484	No. 2486	No. 2488	No. 2453
Mathewson	Bridges	Key F.	Schwanbeck	Green	Hillhouse
Scarboro	Beckman	Burcky	Meyer	Hinton
Wood	Balzanelli	Weinberg	McCauliff	Seamon
Burleson	Nock	Campbell	Henderson	Jones
Gardner	Chytill	McKenny	Davis	Schudl
Elder	Johnson	Warrenfeltz	Whipp	Lytle	Lytle
Clevenger	Wingard	Bartee	Logan	Kersch	Kersch
Hale	Stewart	Williams	Baldwin	Hernandez	Hernandez

MF16r The flight departed Malang two hours late due to low fog and mist. At 0900 No 2453 (Hillhouse) returned due to all three generators being out and batteries low. The route out was along the north coast of Java. The flight stayed at 5,000’ underneath the overcast until reaching Semarong where the weather became broken. After climbing to 13,000’ the wx continued to be bad and later the overcast broke below an overcast until reaching a point 150 miles south of the target where the overcasts came together. The weather was obviously unpenetrateable for a flight and the formation turned back at 11:45. The route back was to a point on the west end of Java thence along the south coast. At 500’ ceiling with a moderate rain existed from Parigi for the remainder of the route. Airplanes No 2486, No 2488 No. 2455 and 2484 arrived Malang at 1530 and landed. Airplane No 2481, became separated form the flight due to wx and landed at Pasirian at 1605. The weather at Malang was ceiling 300ft, visibility 2 miles. Rain and mist. Five boats were observed at 5degS-106degE steering a course of 208deg.

MF16r (second report) One returned early (0916) with generators burned out (Lt Hillhouse In No. 2453). The others flew to within 75 miles of the target where a front prevented any further progress. The mission was abandoned and all ships landed Malang at 1530 except Bridges in No. 2481 who landed at Pasirian 1605,

Lt. Jacques in Malang from Bandoeng in No. 24789 at 0936. Returning from yesterday’s mission.

MF16b At 1007 four B‑17's took off from Jogja and three from Madioen. They were all from the 7th Group except one ship, Capt. Keiser in N0 2472, who is from 19th Group. [Airplane No 2472 with crew of Keiser, McAdams, Griffin, Miller, Baca, Shafer, Strohecker, Huffman, which were at Madioen, were ordered to join the 7th Group for their bombing operations this date.]

MF16br A rendezvous was affected and the planes proceeded to the target under ceilings of from 2000 – 4000’. One plane, No. 2452, Lt. Lindsey pilot, lost an engine and returned to Jogja but Jogja was closed in and he landed at Malang at 1525. The other six planes bombed and hit with 48 300 kg. bombs 2 transports and 2 barges in the Banjoeasin River. They bombed from 2,000 feet and were hit both by light anti aircraft fire and by fragments from their own bombs, All six planes landed Batavia and remained overnight. Bad weather prevailed all over the island of Java and the entire flight was made under extremely unfavorable conditions.

Lt Vandevanter in No. 2498 returned to Malang from Kalidjati at 1516. He was returning from the Feb 14 mission of the 19th Group.

Airplane No 2478 (Jacques) returned Bandoeng landing Malang 0940.

No 2452, 7th Group (Lindsay) landed Malang due to bad weather. He landed with one engine out.

Airplane No. 2498 (Vandervanter) returned to Malang from Kalidjati landing at 1500.

Feb 17 1942 MF17 The following airplanes and crews departed Malang at 0800 for bombing operations on Palembang Airdrome:

No. 2455	No. 2478	No. 2486	No. 2488	No. 2498
P Hillhouse	Schaetzel	McKinzie	Pease	Shedd
CP Fergerson	Snyder	Smith RS	Fagan	Greene
N Warson	Cottage	Work	Carrithers	Tarbutton
B Gooch	Stone	Furnald	Fesmire	Payne
E Cuningham	Pecher	Rose	Groetz	Provost
R McMullin	Lythe	Reuther	Richardson	Petersen
G Durham	Norgaard	Connally (FA)	Gilbreath	Geckeler
G Lyday	West	Brown D (FA)	Jones SJ	Sanders

MF17r The five crews listed above departed Malang 0800 for bombing operations against Palembang Airdrome. The route out was direct to the south tip of Sumatra in a line NE-SW. The flight climbed to 29,000 in order to get over the weather. The top could not be cleared. The second flight became separated from the first flight in the clouds. Both flights returned to Malang landing at 1420 LDT. All planes returned with bombs. Three friendly vessels were sighted 80 miles south of Malang at 1340.

Capt. Kaiser arrived Malang from Madioen in No. 2472 at 1812.

Lt. Kelsay in an LB‑30 arrived Malang from Bandoeng at 1740. Major Gen. Brereton, Brig. Gen. Harley, and Air Marshall Pierce were aboard.

B-17E No 2497 (Lt Coleman Stripling) arrived from the US at 1815. The plane overshot the field in rain and darkness and collided with B-17E No 2472 which had likewise overshot the field and was stuck in the mud at the end of the runway. Crew was:

2nd Lt Coleman Stripling 0‑41619i6 P

2nd Lt Elton D. Brown 0‑418657 CP

2nd Lt. L. B. Sogman 0‑430625 N

T/Sgt Elvin To Monorief 6655309 B

Pfc. Sherwood go Jackson 13022757 1

Pfc. Cyril 1. Moore 19011336 G

Pfc Robert A French 14025963 R

Pvt Virgil Calton 13034669 G

Airplanes No 2458 (Adams) and No 2484 (Rouse) were scheduled on the mission but failed to take off. No 2458 was stuck in the mud, No 2484 had a rough engine.

Airplane No 2481 (Bridges) was instructed to return Malang from Pasirian. He called later that in taxiing he had sunk in the mud and damaged two props. Steps are being taken to have the plane repaired.

B-17E No 2472 (Keiser) arrived with crew at 1705. Due to the wet surface the plane overshot the field and stuck in the mud at the end of the runway.

A party consisting of Maj Gen Brereton, Col Eubank, Air Marshall Sir Richard Pierce, Brig Gen Patrick Hurley, (Ambassador to New Zealand) arrived with Lt Kelsey in LB-30 at 1730 for the purpose of awarding decorations to members of the 19th Group. The following awards were made: [Diary is blank]

Feb 18 1942 MF18a Four B‑17's took off from Madioen at 0340 to bomb enemy ships and barges in the Moesi and Oepang Rivers. MF18ar The flight was abandoned on account of weather and the ships landed at Madioen at from 0500 0910, They were 7th Group ships and crews, Pilots and planes:

At 0615 Lt. Kelsay in LB‑30 No. AL‑521 took off Malang for Darwin. Gen. Hurley was aboard.

The following crew departed as passengers in LB-30 at 0630 for Australia for the purpose of bringing B-17D back home from depot: Hillhouse, Watson, Gooch, Cunningham, Durham, McMillin.

MF18b The following planes and crews departed Malang at 0630 for bombing operations against transports and barges in the Moesi and Oepang Rivers near Palembang:

No. 2458	No. 2478	No. 2484	No. 2486	No. 2488	No 2498
Adams	Hoevet	Key A	Jacques	Rouse	Parsel
Railing	Prouty	Holdridge	Lorence	Carpenter	Norvell
Epperson	Bean	Etter	Dietch	Zatzke	Cappeletti
Sage	Walberg	Souder	Hildreath	Grant	Burke
Hewston	Billen	Pippen	Hawkins	Clark	Kramer
Makela	Cipriani	Perry	Guth	Poulton	Matson
Brown RD	Crabtree	Logan	Rentz	Rice	Coburn
Tomerlin	Gwinn	Androkovich	Bunardzya	Hanna	Lorber

Crew in 2453 to Surabaya; Schaetzel, Snyder, Tarbutton, Brown DW, Paterson, Groelz.

Gen Brereton departed 12:30, 02-18.

MF18br The flight departed Malang at 0630 and started on a direct route to the target. Due to weather it was necessary to follow the north coast of Java. The weather over the 1st half the route was broken clouds 3 to 7 tenths with base of clouds at 8,000’ and top at 12,000’. The second half of the route contained a series of fronts extending in a NE-SW direction. The fronts were located in the vicinity 110degE-5deg15’S to 5deg20’S-107deg5’E. A high solid overcast at 13,000’ with layers of stratus and nimbus clouds accompanied by frequent rain showers. The flight turned back 100 miles south of the target due to lack of gas caused by extra flying to avoid weather. The weather at that time appeared to be unpenetrable but may have been avoidable, to the east had the flight had sufficient fuel. The flight was at an altitude of 20,000’ when it turned back. Eight 300 kilogram bombs were carried in each plane. No bombs were dropped, no EA and no AA was seen. All bombs were brought back to base. The flight landed Malang 1440.

The air raid alarm sounded at Surabaya at 11:45. The alarm sounded at Malang at 1215. The all clear sounded at Malang at 1250. A pursuit pilot (Lt Atkins) landed at Malang after having lost his way in a fight. He reports P-40’s attacked 17 Jap two-engine bombers at 2400 escorted by zero fighters. He saw three bombers shot down. later reports say five were downed. No bombs were dropped by enemy.

Lt Bridges and crew returned to Malang from Pasirian in B-17E No 2481 at 1445.

Lt Bohnaker and Shedd departed by train to Bandoeng to return here with new plane and crew.

MF18c Six B‑17's of the l9th Group took off Malang at 0630 to attack enemy ships in the Moesi and Oepang Rivers. MF18cr The flight was abandoned because of weather and the ships landed at Malang at 1415. Planes and Pilots:

No. 2498	No. 2478	No. 2486	No. 2484	No. 2458	No. 2488
Parsel	Hoevet	Jacques	Key AH	Adams	Carpenter

At 1125 there was an air raid alarm at Madioen, Three ships got off the ground and two others were left in the hangars. Nine ships strafed the field and hangars but only minor damage was done to the planes.

At 1338 Cap Schaetzel took off Malang in No 53 for Surabaya. He was to Take Gen Brereton and Air Marshall Pierce to Bandoeng,

At 1505 Lt Bridges in No. 81 arrived Malang from Pasirian

Feb 19 1942 Capt, Schaetzel arrived Malang in No. 2453 from Bandoeng via Surabaya.

At 0705 five A-24’s landed Malang for service and bombs. At 0720 two others landed for the same reason. This was the first mission for the 91st Bombardment (L) Sqd. The mission was delayed due to the necessity of adopting Dutch bombs to the racks. Two 50 kilo and one 300 kilo were carried on each plane. Pilots were:

A-24 Pilots	A-24 Gunners
Maj E. N. Backus	Pvt F. H. Larrondo
Capt Galusha	T/S H. A. Hartmann
Lt Summers	Pvt E. S. Macky
Lt Launder	Pvt W. L. Kidd
Lt Hamburgh	Pvt J.K. Bryning
Lt Tubb	Pvt D. A. Simpson
Lt Ferguson	Cpl I. A. Luenicho

MF19a Crews and planes were prepared for 0630 take off. At 0230 the bomber command ordered three planes to take off as soon as possible and the others at dawn. The target was given as 4 cruisers and two transports on the south coast of Bali. The first three airplanes were to bomb at night individually with single bombs. The first three planes cleared the airdrome at 0500.

No. 2478	No. 2484	No. 2498
Godman	Mathewson	Vandervanter
Carlisle	Scarboro	Webb
Meenaugh	Wood	Rowan
Wallach	Burleson	Fesmire
Provost	Gardner	McClellan
Michelson	Routher	Liimatainen
Wiest	Lyday	Kelm
Long CW	Elder	West

MF19a report Cap Godman in No, 2478 made 4 runs on the target (one at 7,000’ and three at 18,000’. On the first run AA fire was too hot, on the 2nd. and 3rd. clouds hit the target and on the 4th. bombs were salvoed when 2 "0" fighters attacked. The fighters did not catch the B‑17. Capt. Godman landed at 0935, Lt. Vandevanter in No. 2498 made two runs. Time 0755. His bombs hung on the first and fell short on the second. Altitude 4,000. Landed at 1000. Lt. Mathewson in No. 2484 bombed a cruiser at 4,000’ at from 0705 –0720. Missed with first 6 bombs‑but got one direct out of last 2 bombs. Landed 1005. All bombs ‑ 300 kg. AA reported hot, heavy, and close by all ships.

Three B-17Es returned from mission at 1050. Crews remained in planes prepared to take off if air raid alarm sounded. The planes were re-serviced and loaded with 8-300 kilo bombs.

MF19ar (second report) Two B‑17's of the 19th Group ‑ Godman in No. 78 and Vandevanter in No. 98 took off at 1240. They attacked at 1435 from 27,000 feet. No. 78 missed a cruiser when it turned after bombs were dropped. No. 98 got a waterline hit on a destroyer. They landed at Malang at 1545. 300 kg. bombs.

MF19b Four B‑17's of the 19th Group took off Malang at 0605 to bomb ships off Bali.

No. 2452	No. 2458	No. 2486	No 2488
Lindsey	Schwanbeck	Tash	Green
Knudsen	Meyer	Kellar	Hinton
Sampeck	McAuliff	Hoffman	Seaman
Hickey	Henderson	Stitt	Campbell
Land	Davis	Baca	McKenny
DeSimon	Whipp	Norgaard	Warrenfeltz
Loser	Wilfley	Strohecker	Rice
Schreve	Logan	Connolly	Sanders

MF19br Two runs were made at 13,000t but no bombs were released as the flight was attacked by 3 "0" and 2 "97" fighters at 0835. One "0" was shot down. They attacked simultaneously from the right and left front. AA. moderate but fairly accurate. Landed at 1410.

At 1245 an air raid alarm sounded at Malang. Two A‑24’s took off for ARP and proceeded to Bali. Capt, Galusha in No. 757 hit a transport with one 50 kg. bomb, was 10’ right with another and 40’ R with a 300 kg. bomb. Lt. Summers in No. 800 hit the stern of a cruiser with on 50 kg. bomb and was 60’ to the left rear with a 300 kg bomb. The other 50 kg. bomb was not observed. They dived from 11,500’ to 3,000’. Landing was made at Malang at 1540.

MF19c Three LB‑30's took off from Madioan at 0645 to bomb enemy ships at Bali. MF19cr The mission was abandoned when the formation was attacked by nine "0" fighters at 0845 at 3,000’ altitude. Two fighters were shot down. All LB‑30’s were shot up some. They landed at Jogja at 1045.

MF19d Two B‑17's took off from Madioen at 0800 to attack enemy ships off Bali. MF19dr One cruiser was bombed and hit from 14,000’ at 0955 and was smoking badly when last seen. Two "0" fighters attacked head‑on with no result. No. A.A, Landing was made at Madioen at 1420.

One B-17 Lt Casper pilot took off Madioen at 1230 for ARP when an air raid alarm sounded. He proceeded to the target and at 1420 bombed a destroyer from 28,000’. Eight 300 kg. bombs hit at the waterline the length of the boat. No, E.A. or A.A. Landed Madioen at 1600.

Two B‑17E No. 41‑2493 and No 41‑2503, were destroyed at Bandoeng today. No 93 was destroyed on the ground by a direct bomb hit and No 503 was shot down. They were scheduled for delivery to the 5^th Bomber Command.

MF19ar A three-ship formation of B-17Es took off from Malang at 0500am loaded with 8-300 kilo bombs, on mission to coast of Bali. Immediately after take off ship No. 12484 became separated from flight. After flight had taken course of SE until 80 miles off south coast of Java, it then took up course parallel to coast of Java and continued over and to the east coast of Bali, where ship No. 2498 became separated from leader ship No. 2478.

Ship No 2478 began attack at 7:45 making course of 165deg at 7,000’. No bombs were dropped due to low clouds and accurate and intense AA fire from enemy naval craft. Altitude was then gained up to 23,000’. As Clouds obstructed good run, a descent to 18,000’ was made where two runs were tried but due to cloud coverage over target no bombs were dropped. On fourth run 2 Zero fighters jumped the ship and the bombs were salvoed, results undetermined.

Ship No 2498 landed at 9:35 after losing leader near target picked as his target a separate destroyer at Cape Meboeloe. On first run at 7:55 at an altitude of 4,000’ bomb racks failed to operate and no bombs were dropped. On second run at 4,000’ altitude all bombs fell short of target. AA fire was heavy caliber at first, then pom-pom went into action. Both were fairly accurate. One fighter with fixed landing gear made an unsuccessful attack on them. Landed at Malang 1000.

Ship No. 2484 also in the same vicinity started his bomb run at 7:05 at an altitude of 4,000’. Six bombs were dropped but all failed to make a hit. A second run at the same altitude was made, dropping two bombs, the first one a direct hit on a heavy cruiser at center-right of ship. The second over-shooting the target. No enemy aircraft were encountered but AA fire was heavy and close.

Enemy naval craft observed is as follows: 4 destroyers, 2 transports of 8,000 class, 2 subs, Many barges

Weather at field was low scattered clouds, visibility poor. On route low scattered clouds to high broken cumulus over targets, thick layers of clouds starting at 2,000’ tops continuing on up to 25,000’ with intermittent rain areas.

MF19c These planes with the same crews departed Malang at 1240 for second mission of the day to Den Passac and Bali.

No. 2478	No. 2484	No. 2498
Godman	Mathewson	Vandervanter
Carlisle	Scarboro	Webb
Meenaugh	Wood	Rowan
Wallach	Burleson	Fesmire
Provost	Gardner	McClellan
Michelson	Routher	Liimatainen
Wiest	Lyday	Kelm
Long CW	Elder	West

Air raid alarm was reported at Surabaya at 1205. Planes and crews on the ground ___ up were alerted for take off. The air raid alarm at Malang sounded at 1240, at which time three B17Es departed on their second mission of the day. Two A-24 (Gulusha and Summers) took off for purpose of clearing the airdrome. Their mission was being help up for arrangement with Pursuits for escort. These two pilots proceeded to target and made direct hits on a transport and a cruiser with 50 Kilo bombs, other bombs were water line misses. (These pilots should be cited for their excellent start for their squadron war action.) Report of this operation was taken and called in to Bomber Command. The all clear at Malang sounded at 1320. Enemy planes did not reach Malang.

MF19br The flight of four B-17Es listed above and led by Captain Schwanbeck departed Malang at 0605 for bombing objective at Denpasar, Bali. The route out was to a point 100 miles south of Malang thence NE to a pint 60 miles east of target, thence direct. The flight climbed to 18,000’ enroute then descended to 11,000’ in the vicinity of the target in order to get underneath the overcast. Two passes were made over the target but broken clouds prohibited the leader from making a sighting run, consequently no bombs were dropped.

The flight was intercepted by 5 EA three of which were zeros and two 97’s. Two “zeroes” attacked simultaneously from the left and right front above. Practically all guns in our planes fired on the pane on the left. It started smoking and passed out of sight underneath. It was believed shot down. The other plane fired and made two 30 cal hits in No 2458. They did not seem to be using cannons. Another simultaneous attack was made by two zeros from the left and right. One pulled away before getting in range, the other continued the attack and passed underneath the formation without firing. (Capt Schwanbeck reports that evasive action taken just as the fighter puts his sights on is the most effective solution to their head on attacks.)

Anti-aircraft was encountered over the target at 13,000’. Bursts appeared 3 or 4 at a time at about 50’ difference in altitude. Many bursts hit less than 100’ from our planes.

Two large transports were observed about 1 mile off shore east of Denpasar. Two cruisers were seen maneuvering in the channel outside the transports. One small freighter was seen anchored off the SE tip of Island of Java.

Weather enroute was clear over water off south coast with front paralleling coast just off sleeve. Broken clouds existed over the target with large cubus and scattered thunder storms in the vicinity.

The flight stayed together and returned to Malang, landing at 1410.

Airplane No 2452 (Lindsey) was attached from 7th Group.

MF19cr Three B-17’s with crews listed above led by Capt Godman departed Malang at 1240 to bomb warboats and transports at Denpasar. The route out was direct to South tip of Bali, then direct to target. The Weather was broken cumulus clouds at 10,000’ to 35,000’. Airplane No 2484 (Mathewsen) left the formation over south coast of Java due to cracked cylinder head. He returned to Malang landing at 1510. The two remaining planes continued to the target and chose individual targets. Godman attacked a cruiser with 8-300 kilo bombs from 27,000’ true. The cruiser turned as the bomb release line was reached and the bombs fell 200 ft right. Vandervanter attacked a destroyer and transport with the same bomb load from 25,000 ft. The bombs hit across the destroyer and along side the transport. It is believed one bomb hit the stern of the destroyer. Two bombs were near misses on the transport. The two planes returned direct and landed Malang at 1545.

These three crews were taken to solecta, a mountain resort nearby, where all enjoyed a two day rest with per diem for their expenses. This is the first time this has been put into effect. It is hoped more crews can be given this opportunity to relax.

Airplane No 41-2417, Capt McPherson, pilot, arrived form the US (Honolulu Route) and landing Malang at 1755. It tried to land at Denpasar due to wx at Malang but was fired on by the enemy who had taken the place the previous day. Many hits were made on the plane and T/Sgt Sam Ranger was wounded in the foot. He was hospitalized at Malang.

Feb 20 1942 MF20 Three LB‑30s of the 11th Sqd., 7th Gp, took off from Jogja at 0615 to bomb enemy ships off Bali. They were led by Capt. MF20r Wade and made an attack from 13,500’ at 0825 in which they each dropped 8 300 kg. Bombs. They got 3 direct hits and 8 waterline hits on a cruiser which was left burning. No EA but heavy A,A which did no damage. Landed Jogja at 1015.

Seven A-24s of the 91st Sqd., 27th Group took off from Singosari at 0645 to attack enemy ships off Bali. They were escorted by 16 P-40s. At 0812 they attacked diving from 12,000’ to 2,000’ – 4,000’. Major Backus in No 766 had all three of his bombs hit amid ship on a cruiser (each plane carried 1 300 kg bomb and 2 50 kg bombs and picked a separate boat for its target ‑ six naval vessels‑cruisers or destroyers. Lt Summers in No. 800 hit the stern of his boat with 2 50kg. bombs and missed the stern by about 50’ with the 300 kg bomb. Capt. Galusha in No 757 and Lt. Hambaugh in No. 610 each put 2 50's amidships and the 300 about 25’ off the bow on their ship. Lt Ferguson in No. 804 was 150’ right with all his bombs. Lt. Tubb in No 796 is missing. Landings were made at Singosari between 0919 and 0930. No. EA. encountered but AA fire put a hole in one airplane and might have been the cause for Lt Tubb diving in the water.

Missing

2Lt: D. B. Tubb 0‑411633 P

Pvt. D.S Mackay 19000309 G

2Lt R H Laundor 0‑429818 P

Cpl. I A Lnenioha 6581779 G

MF20b Three ships of the 7th Group led by Capt, Hardison took off from Madioen at 0840 to attack enemy ships off Bali. MF20br At 1130 they bombed and sank a large transport from 22,000’ (when last seen it was burning and listing). Moderate for 1000’ difference in altitude in salvo. Nine "0" fighters were sighted but did not close. Landing was made at Madioen at 1230.

MF20c Seven B‑17s of the 19th Group took off from Malang at 0642 to attack enemy ships off Bali.

No. 2455	No. 2458	No. 2478	No. 2484	No. 2486	No. 2488	No 2498
P Pease	Parsel	Bridges	Adams	McKinzie	Rouse	Keiser
CP Fagan	Strippling	Lorence	Railing	Smith	Carpenter	Ferrey
N Carrithers	Capalletti	Balzanelli	Weinberg	Work	Zatzke	Griffin
B Jones	Yiene	Nock	Sage	Heldreth	Grant	Miller
E Groelz	Matson	Chytill	Hewston	Billen	Clark	Hainkins
R Richardson	Shafer	Johnson	Makela	Cipriani	Poulton	Guth
G Gilbreath	Lorber	Wingard	Tomerlin	Gwin	Rice TJ	Bernardzya
G Williams	Coburn	Stewart	Brown RD	Crabtree	Bills	Rentz

MF20cr Led by Cap Parsel they bombed two destroyers, one of which was towing the other. Altitude of attack was 26,200’ time 1155. Two runs were made. On the first one ships racks stuck and another released only two bombs, The train fell short. On the 2nd. run the bombs hit between the two ships. AA was low and to the right rear. One "0" fighter attacked from the rear about 30 miles south of the target. It put 5 bullet holes in one B‑17. Your other fighters chased the formation but did not close, Landings were made at Malang between 1351 and 1455, Pilots and Planes; Parsal ‑ No. 58, McKenzie ‑ No 86, Pease ‑ No. 55, Rouse ‑ No. 88, Kaiser ‑ No. 98, Adams ‑ No. 84,, and Bridges ‑ No 78.

AR F20 4 B-17Es destroyed Several air raid alarms were sounded during the day but no raiders came. However, shortly after the last ship landed at Malang nine enemy "0" fighters were sighted above the field at about 10,000’. There had been no alarm. Four of the fighters attacked the airplanes on the ground many of which still had the crews in them. Five of the planes were set on fire (3 burned completely and 2 were extinguished and some parts may be salvaged), About four or fire men were injured among them Lt. Ferry, who received a compound fracture on one of his legs from a bullet. The enemy also strafed Madioen but no damage was reported. The planes which were destroyed at Singosari were all B‑17Es. Their numbers were: No. 41‑2455, No. 41‑24840 No. 41‑2488, No. 41‑2498, and No. 41‑2478.

Seven A-24’s at 0645 took off on bombing missions. Airplanes and crews were as follows:

1st Flight	2nd Flight
Maj Bacchus	Capt Galusha
Lt Summers	Lt Hambough
Lt Launder	Lt Tubb
Lt Ferguson

Sixteen P-40 pursuits came over field as A-24’s took off to escort A-24’s on mission. Co-ordination and timing excellent.

Seven B-17 Crews as above took off at 0840 to attack enemy cruisers or destroyers and transports off Klaeng Kong, Bali.

Second flight of two A-24’s landed Malang at 0945. One ship, pilot, Lt Tubb went into water during attack on cruiser, he did not pull out of his dive. Possible (1) hit by AA, (bombs did not release and could not pull up in time. Capt Galash, leading this flight reported hits with 50 kilo bombs amidship of a cruiser --- over bow about 50 ft with 300 kilo. Lt Hambaugh reported hits with 50 kilos on cruiser ??r LD) and near misses with 300 kilo.

1st Flight (Maj Backus leading) landed 1,000, with one ship missing, Lt Launder D???tl??

1. Maj Backus reported direct hits on cruiser amidships port side with ??? kilo bomb. Two 50 kilo hits on deck also. Recommended citation for Backus -- bombs released 2500 ft.

2. Lt Summers -- 300 kilo missed stern, estimated 50 ft. Two 50 kilos his stern of ship which appeared out of control after hit.

3. Lt Ferguson missed with all bombs, 150 ft starboard side.

4. Lt Launder unreported.

All A-24’s were camouflaged in revetments when an air raid alarm sounded at 1025 -- considerable friendly pursuits were seen to north but no enemy shops were spotted. All clear at 1740.

Four B17s landed Malang 1355; pilots as follows: No 55 Pease, No 58 Capt Parsel, No 86, McKenzie, No 88 Rouse

Airplanes #58 and # 86 were towed to hanger and revetments respectively for repair; remaining crews stood by airplanes in event of air raid alarm. Three other B-17’s of main flight landed 1455. Pilots as follows: No 78 Bridges, No 84 Adams, No 98 Keiser.

Airplanes were dispersed on field and crews left standing by.

MF20cr (second) First flight of four B-17s bombed two cruisers off Klaeng Keng; for the first time reported by this pilot the string of bombs fell short; last bomb hitting very near starboard side of small cruiser. Bomb racks on No 88 stuck, and were salvoed later. Only two bombs released from No ___, remaining six were salvoed.

Second Flight -- reported possible hits on two cruisers or DD’s. (Note: these two ships were close in line, appearing as though one was towing the other.) Bombs hit close on starboard side and between these ships thus: No smoke or flame was observed however. Flight was attacked by one “O” fighter at 24,000 ft. Holes in Bridges ship - (one explosion) no injuries or damages.

ARF20: At 1552 nine fighters appeared over Malang heading north at about 8,000’. No alarm sounded and check with Dutch Headquarters identified these as American Pursuits. About five minutes later 4 or 5 “O” fighters strafed the airdrome making first attack from N to S. (Note: The nine American Pursuits were not American Pursuits but “O”s. Strafing continued for about 5 minutes. A flight of 4 “O”s remained at altitude during the attack.

Three B-17s were burned to ground -- total loss.

One B-17 nose section burned before could be extinguished, all other parts OK.

One B-17 shot full of holes -- extent of damage unknown. (Both tires flat.) Quick action by many officers and EM saved considerable equipment out of these airplanes; ie, guns, ammunition, tail sections, wing tips, engines, etc.

During the heaviest strafing, a large airplane, believed to be an LB-30 was seen flying low south of the field, Lt Nanny left his shelter and ran to the radio truck parked near the hanger and radioed the airplane to keep away from the field. It turned and headed west no report of it since received. Recommend citation for Lt Nanney.

CASUALTIES OCCURRING IN RAID:

a. Killed: None

b. Seriously injured:

1st Lt James P. Ferrey, 0352477

Sgt C. W. Greelz, 6581250

c. Slightly injured:

Pfc Bernardzya, N. D. 6999625

Pvt Rentz, Ralph M. 20324856

Cpl Harborgh, Edward W., 16028568

Sgt Richarson, Arthur L., 6829694

Sgt C. O. Jones, 6849776

Sgt. Gilbreath, Harry L., 19051315

Pvt Wingard, Joseph O., 14029256

First strafing plane attacked No 98 on the field an completely surprised personnel around plane. Personnel started to the shelter when 2nd plane attacked. Personnel again lay on ground. Lt Ferrey was seen to be dragging himself along. McKinzie at barracks heard strafing and caught ride to edge of field. He ran across field and arrived in time to help Keiser carry Ferrey to shelter in sandy bay 150 yards away. This occurred while planes were still strafing. Citation of Keiser and McKenzie.

Crew assignments had been made for the following day and all crews were at the planes cleaning guns and servicing the planes. Lt Pease and Sgt Greelz were in the cockpit of No 55 when tracers started coming through the fuselage. Men in the field were saved by sand bag emplacements. Strafing planes were of the Navy 97 type with blue noses. They attacked individually and opened fire at about 800 yards and 150’ altitude. Method seemed to be to watch 30 cal tracer and when right to open fire with cannons. Our gun positions were not manned when the attack started. Some firing was done from the ground but about the time the EA were leaving. None were hit. They withdrew in a southeasterly direction.

Newly arrived B-17E crew of R. Williams Crew worked all night preparing every available plane for a mission the following day.

Feb 21 1942 MF21a Two LB‑30's flown by Lt Ezzard and Hughey took off from Jogja at 0235. Their objective was enemy ships in the vicinity of Bali with Denpasar Airport as secondary objective. One plane dropped its bombs on a tent camp and the other dropped on what it thought was the airport. No results, Five or six pursuit planes gave chase but did not close, Landed at Jogja at 0730.

MF21b Six B-17's of the 19th Group took off from Singosari at 0640 to attack enemy ships or the airport at Bali. Planes and pilots

No. 2453	No. 2458	No. 2472	No. 2481	No. 2486	No. 2507
Key AE	Hoevet	Cobb	Tash	Schaetzel	Green
Burcky	Prouty	Greene	Kellar	Snyder	Hinton
Etter	Bean	Dietch	Hoffman	Cottage	Seamon
Souder	Henderson	May	Burke	Stitt	Campbell
Androcovich	Davis	Hanna	Baca	Pecher	McKenny
Perry	Whipp	Dambacher	Kersch	Lytle	Warrenfelz
Hale	Wilfley	Marel	Norgaard	Brown	Rice
	Logan	Morris	Jones ?J	Petersen	Bartee

MF21br One ship lost two engines, another had a fire in the bottom turret, another had generators and electrical system go out, and the fourth had a gunner pass out from lack of oxygen (is now OK.). Capt. Schaetzel and Capt. F.M. Key completed a flight in which at 27,000' they went from Malang to a point 100 miles south of Malang then east till opposite east coast of Lombok,, north till directly east of Don Pasar Airport, then west to Bali. Visibility was excellent but they were unable to locate the airport. No ships were sighted on the whole circuit. Landings were made at Singosari between 1135 and 1305.

Lt Green in “07” landed at 1135. Bottom turret caught on fire but was extinguished after leaving flight. Did not complete mission.

Notified that four P-40s would be over Malang at 1200 to protect our returning ships.

At 1150 Lt Hoevet in No 58 landed with two engines feathered (#3 and #4) Hoevet did excellent job of flying and landing considering two engines out on same side. No 3 broken oil line No 4 believed cylinder head split. Did not complete mission. (Recommended for citation.) Hoevet would be killed when performing skip bombing test in Australia using B-17s. Mareba Field would be named after him.)

Lt Tash, No 81, leading 2 element landed at 1155. After Hoevet and Green pulled out of flight he tried to catch preceding element but could not, he turned back and overtook Hoevet remaining with him as some protection until landing.

Lt Cobb, in No 72 landed 1215. A rear gunner became violently ill and nearly passed out when at 26,000’. Cobb went down to 20,000’ until gunner was better but could not overtake flight. Returned to base.

Capt Key, AE, landed 1230. This ship remained in formation with leader. Landings were made several minutes apart in order to permit camouflaging and dispersion.

Capt Schaetzel in No 86 landed 1305. Schaetzel and Key made long flight around Island of Tombak, crossed target but unable to make bombing run due to haze and inability to spot target. No enemy naval or air activity was reported.

All ships were camouflaged or run in hangers, maintenance and repair started immediately. Report telephoned to Headquarters 1330.

MF21c Three B‑17's of the 9th Sqd., 7th Group, took off from Madioen at 1005. Their objective was enemy ships off Bali or the Denpasar Airport. No ships were sighted so the airport was bombed from 26,000’ at 1215, Results unknown due to clouds over target at time of impact. Eight 300 kg. bombs were dropped by each plane. No EA or AA Lt. Swanson ‑ flight leader, Landed Madioen.

Three "0"*fighters strafed Madioen and three others strafed Malang, No damage. No warning at Malan.

The air raid alarm sounded at 0853. At 0915 five “O” fighters were sighted about 5 miles SW (toward Malang) flying low, heard no firing at this time. The all clear sounded at 1000.

At 1010 three enemy fighters crossed field at low altitude, strafing. This attack was made before the warning could be given. Another fast attack was made by those strafers -- apparently at dummy planes on field. No damage was done. Two had belly tanks, one with [none]. All clear at 1100.

Air alarm sounded 1330. All clear 1430.

Received orders to make early morning mission to Denpasar with three B-17s. Information brought by Maj Broadhurst of Headquarters. Efforts redoubled on maintenance and camouflage.

Feb 22, 1942. MF22a The 19th Group sent two B-17Es against the Denpasar Airport on Bali,

No. 2472	No. 2486	No. 2507
Mathewson	Vandervanter	Godman stuck in mud
Scarboro	Webb	Carlisle
Wood	Rowan	Epperson
Burleson	Fesmire	Clark, DE
Gardner	McClellan
Routher	Liimatainen
Lyday	Kelm	Wiest
Elder	West	Long CW

MF22ar They took off at 0540 and attacked the airport individually from 23,000’ at 0720. Bomb load was 8 300 kg. bombs each. Lt. Mathewson in No. 72 started four or five fires on the field, hit the hangar, and set it and four or five planes near it on fire. Lt. Vandevanter in No. 86 hit the runway and started two fires on it, No EA or AA. About 16 twin engined planes were sighted on the field. Landing made at Singosari at 0830 by No 72 and at 0930 by No, 86. No surface craft sighted around Bali,

Ground fog delayed take off until 0530. Godman tried take off but wet ground retarded speed so much that a second try was made. While taxiing back ship became stuck in covered bomb crater. Other two planes took off 0530. Unable to take off. Lt Mathewson in No 72 landed at 0830, ship run into hanger. All clear sounded 0845.

(second report) Mathewson No 72 and Vandervanter No 86 climbed direct to target bombing run at 23,000’. Bombing individually. Vandervanter made run on NW-SE runway. Bombardier counted 12 airplanes parked along runway and three were burning after bombs hit.

Mathewson aimed at hanger on north edge of field. Three bombs hit short, three in hanger, two over. Four enemy aircraft counted parked around and near hanger, believed burned.

(Note: Perfectly executed mission which undoubtedly retarded enemy actions and destroyed planes and equipment. Recommend for citation, unusual courage and good judgment.)Air raid alarm sounded at 0720. Few minutes later one enemy fighter strafed field, firing on Dutch hanger (#3). No damage.

SA F22a Enemy strafers attacked Jogja and destroyed LB‑30 No AL 567.

SA F22b Enemy strafers attacked the Pasirian field and destroyed four B‑17's which were dispersed and camouflaged there. Three attacks were made at different time of the day. The numbers of the planes destroyed were: No. 40‑3072, No 40‑3066, No 40‑3070, and No 3062.

Air raid alarm sounded 1520. No enemy aircraft observed. All clear 1630.

Four P-40s over field above overcast and did not sight strafer.

Lt Carpenter in No 86 landed 0900.

Orders received to alert three crews for early morning mission 2/23. Crews alerted.

Orders received to begin preparations and plans for move to alternate base.

Lt Launder and his gunner, Cpl. Lnenichap returned to Malang this evening. They bad had a forced landing off Bali on Feb. 20. They sank a transport with their bombs that day.

Lt Launder and Sgt Lenicka (A-24 Pilot & CC) had oil line break and made crash landing on surf 20 KM north of Denpasar. They started walking north and finally came to a town. They were taken care of, fed coconut juice and bananas and carried across channel to Java.

Feb 23 1942 MF23 Two B‑17E of the 7th Group took off from Madioen at 0530, Their objective was the DenPasar Airport at Bali. Bombs were dropped from 27,000’ at 0835 by dead reckoning as clouds obscured the target from time to time, Results unknown. No EA, or AA. After the bombing a reconnaissance was made around the island of Bail at a distance of 25 miles off shore. Landing was made at Madioen at 1000. Pilots and planes were Capt. Preston in No 62 and Lt Lewis in No 61* a, third ship was forced to return because of engine trouble. Numerous air raid alarms sounded during the day. Singosari was bombed but no damage resulted.

No Malang mission ordered.

Malang Air raid alarm sounded 0655. At 0750 flight of nine enemy bombers crossed over field at about 20,000’ in general westerly heading. No bombs dropped on this run, believe our fighters caused this, there was considerable aerial activity, sounded like individual combat and attacks. One enemy bomber (leading first flight) began smoking. He pulled out of position, was replaced by leader of third element. Smoking plane took up lead of third element. Flight made wide circle to left and crossed field west to east dropping bombs. No damage done to installation of personnel. All bombs hit in open area, south of FA barracks. Flight continued in SW direction one ship still smoking badly. Altitude of bombers estimated 20,000’. Size of bombs, 100s or 200s.

One P-40 landed here about 0810 for servicing and ammunition. Took off 0910. All clear sounded 1000.

Preparations being made for move to another base. To send essential personnel with 22nd.

Air raid alarm sound 1120. No enemy aircraft.

All clear 1150. We’re loosing considerable valuable time by these false air raids. Native quite work and go anywhere from 5 to 10 KM from field. Discipline however is excellent.

Air raid alarm sound 1220. No enemy aircraft sighted. All clear sounded 1300.

Feb 24 1942 To Australia The following officers and EM departed for contemplated southern base (Australia) in B-17E No 507, 1245 JCT.

No. 2507	Passengers	Passengers
P Hoevet	Capt Schwanbeck	M/Sgt Etheridge
CP Prouty	Lt Pease	M/Sgt Griffin
N Cappelletti	Lt Bridges	M/Sgt Schumaker
E Davis	Lt Fagan	T/Sgt Stevems
R Whipp	Lt Rouse	Sgt Heron
G Logan
G Wilfley

Capt Schwanbeck in command of detachment to set up camp, if necessary and to look over situation.

Verification is being checked on reports that Sgt Sulfridge manned gun in a B-17D at Paserian while in was being strafed and shot down a Jap fighter.

B-17E No 61 landed about 1700, Pilot Lt Evans, for repair. Evans was enroute to Bandoeng. Airplane fixed and pilot instructed to take off at daylight 2/25.

Feb 25 1942 Echelon of officers and EM departed by train for new base in Java. (to catch ship for Australia)

MF25 The following airplanes and crews took off 0530 on bombing mission to Denpasar Airport, Bali:

No. 2453	No. 2486	No. 2507
Keiser	Key, AE	Godman
Holdridge	Burcky	Carlisle
Tarbutten	Etter	Eppersen
Nock	Souder	Wallach
Baca	Androkovich	Wiest
Shafer	Perry	Gwin
Chytil	Pippin
Tomerlin	Brown, DW	Long CW

Take off was scheduled for 0415 but delayed by low oil pressure and no left eng (#1 engine) on No 53. No 507s batteries were too weak to give boost or light.

Five minutes after take off Capt Key landed because of suspected crack in fuselage in about four feet from tail. Discovered by tail gunner. Inspection not yet completed. No 81 took off 0550.

Godman and Keiser landed 0845. Ships run into hangers immediately after landing.

Air raid alarm sounded 0855. One enemy fighter reported. All clear sounded 1115. No enemy sighted.

Following officers and men departed 1400 for Jokjakarta in B-17E No 5207:

No. 2507	Passengers
P Mathewson	Col Eubank
CP Scarboro	Maj Combs
N Woods	Maj Backus
E Geckeler	Capt Parsel
R Kershch	Capt Schaetzel
G Reuther	Capt Keiser
G Sage	Lt Tash

Above listed passengers with exception of Col Eubanks permanently transferred. (These passengers were assigned to Gen Brereton to reestablish the 7^th BG in India.)

Capt Hoevet in No 2497 landed 1825. Maintenance and repair began immediately. Capt Hoevet reported conditions at base not suitable for operations. Shortage of fuel, no ammunition or bombs, little food, no communications or transportation other than by air. Hoevet brought back letter to Col Eubank from Col Perrin.

Two crews alerted for mission tomorrow.

Feb 26 1942 To Australia Following crews and passengers departed Malang 0145 for South Base. All passengers to remain there, crews to return tonight.

No. 2453	No. 2497	Passengers	Passengers	Passengers	Passengers
P Teats	Key, FM	Maj McDonald	Lt Heald	Sgt Strahecker	Pvt Guth
CP Beekman	Holdridge	Capt Montgomery	Lt Norvell	Sgt Whitehead	Pvt French
N Hoffman	Tarbutton	Capt Morroco MD	Lt O’Bryan	Sgt May
E Clark	Baca	Capt Cummins	Lt Gregg	Pfc Elder
R Norgaard	Shafer	Lt Jacques	Sgt Payne	Pfc Bernardzya
G Colburn	Chytel	Lt Cobb	Sgt Peterson	Pfc Crabtree
G Billen	French	Lt Stripling	Sgt Randell	Pfc Michelson

Mathewson in No 2507 with Col Eubank landed 0610 from Bandoeng.

Air raid alarm sounded 0650. All clear 0715. No enemy aircraft sighted.

Air raid alarm sounded again at 0840. All clear 0930. No enemy aircraft sighted.

No mission ordered today.

Some bases around here must be catching hell, brings home value of rapid and careful camouflage when airplane is not flying.

B-17Es No 2453 and 2497, pilots Key and teats landed 1830 form south. Maintenance began immediately.

Received orders at 1400 to sent one ship on reconnaissance to Makassar area, Mission canceled.

Two A-24s No 41-15757, Pilot Galusha and No 41-15810 Pilot Hambough, took off 1815 on night bombing mission to Bali area. Results: unknown. Glide bombed 9,000’ released at 5,000’. These ships landed 2100. Following crew and passengers departed for south:(Australia)

No. _____	Passengers
P Godman	Capt Adams
CP Carlisle	Lt Kellar
N Eppersen	Lt Corrithers
E ?	Lt Snyder
R ?	Lt McAuliff
G ?
G ?

Missions Summary

Mission	Route – (Target)	Results
MF1	Malang >3 Balikapan>3 (Shipping) Djogia < 3	1 ship sunk
MF2	Malang >8 Balikapan >7 (Shipping) Malang <1 faulty gun < 7	1 ship sunk & 1 hit
MF3	Malang >9 Balikapan >9 (Shipping) Malang <6 1 died no oxygen Sourabaya < 2 2 wounded Arenba beach <1 eng fire 5 bail out	Unknown due to weather 1 EA shot down Author Adamczyk radio operator bailed out, put in hospital, makes it to Aus via US purchased “escape” ship airplane will be flown off beach on plank runway.
AR3	Air Raid on Singosari (Malang fld)	2 B-17D & 2 B-17E Lost
SD3	Strauble B-18 shot down	1 B-18 and 7 crewman lost
SD3	Cox B-17C shot down	1 B-17C and 7 crewman lost
MF5	Malang >9 Balikapan Borneo > 6 (shipping) Makabg < 3 < 6 guns & Oxygen out	Attack by 8 EA no bombs dropped
AR5	Air Raid on Malang
MF7	Malang > 8 Makassar Straight Malang < 8	Searched sea area between Borneo and Celebes but found no ships
RF7	19 rescued from Del Monte Feb 4	By LB-30 via Darwin
MF8	Malang > 9 Kendari (Air Field) Malang < 7 2 B-17Es shot down	9-12 EA shoot down 5 EA DuFrane & Prichard: 18 crew members bail out (died).
RF8	3 rescued from Del Monte	By B-17 via Darwin
MF9a	Malange > 5 Makassar Straight Malange < 5 1 dead no oxygen	Searched sea area between Borneo and Celebes but found no ships
MF9b	Jogja > 3 LB-30 Makassar Straight Jogjia < 3	Found no shipping Believed they sighted carrier
MF9c	Malang > 1B-17 Search for Carrier Malang < 1	Searched for carrier, found none
MF9d	Jogja > 3 LB-30 Search for Carrier Jogjia < 3	Returned to searched for carrier They believed they had seen. found none
MF10	Malang > 9 B-17 Search for Carrier Malang < 1 turns back <8	Searched Sindjai area for carrier bad weather found none
MF11	Malang > 11 B-17 Makassar Straight	Called off due to Air Raid
AR11	Air Raid on Malang
MF12	Malang > 11 B-17 Makassar Straight	Hit ships & saw them burning
AR12	Air Raid on Malang 12 ac on standby
MF12b	Jogja 3 LB-30 Anambas Island	Result unknown
MF14a	Jogja 8 B-17 Bangka Island area	Sea search, ships not found, bad weather
MF14b	Malang 6 B-17 Bangka island area	Sea search, ships not found, bad weather
MF15a	Jogja 3 LB-30 Palembang shipping	Instrument weather
MF15b	Malang 5 B-17 Palembang shipping	Saw boats in straight of Bangka
MF15c	Jogja 3 B-17 Palembang shipping	Bad weather
MF16a	Malang 6 B-17 Palembang rivers	Bad weather
MF16b	Jogja 4 B-17 Palembang rivers	Hit transports and barges
MF17	Malang 5 B-17 Palembang	At 29,000’ high weather low on gas, returned with bombs
ACL	Malang 2 new ships	New B-17 crashes into another both in mud & out of action
MF18a	Madiaeon 4 B-17 Palembang rivers	Telang, Moei, Oepang very bad weather
MF18b	Malang 6 B-17 Palembang rivers	Telang, Moei, Oepang very bad weather
MF18c	Malang 6 B-17 Palembang rivers	Telang, Moei, Oepang very bad weather
MF19a	Malang 3 B-17 Bali shipping	Partial success bomb racks fail
MF19b	Malang 4 B-17 Bali shipping	Attack by 3 EA 1 EA shot down, no bombs dropped
MF19c	Madiaeon 3 LB 30 Bali shipping	Attack by 9 EA abandon mission
MF19d	Madiaeon 2 B-17 Bali shipping	Attack by 2 EA hit 1 cruiser
MF20a	Jogja 3 LB-30 Bali shipping	3 direct hits
MF20b	Madiaeon 3 B-17 Bali shipping	Hit transports
MF20c	Malang 7 B-17 Bali shipping	Hits-n-misses
ARF20	5 B-17E Lost
MF21a	Jogja 2 LB-30 Denpasar	Partial success
MF21b	Malang 6 B-17 Denpasar	Couldn’t find field gun & oxygen problems
MF21c	Madiaeon 3 B-17 Denpasar	Airport bombed
MF22	Madiaeon 2 B-17 Denpasar	Airport bombed
ARF22	Jogja AL-567 LB-30 Lost
ARF22	Pasirian B17D 3062, 3066 2070 3072 Lost

35 missions 266 AC take offs 4 returns

33 Airmen Killed

Java AC Feb 1942

38 AC Feb 1 plus 3 US to Java = 41 to Java minus 27 = 14 to Australia

AC	No	Arrive	Lost	To Aus	B-17E	41-2453	013142		022542	B-17E	41-2488	020742	021542
B-17C	40-2062	010142	020442		B-17E	41-2455	012642		022142	B-17E	41-2492	020542	020942
B-17D	40-3062	010142	022242		B-17E	41-2456	011942	020942		B-17E	41-2493	021942	021842
B-17D	40-3066	020842	022242		B-17E	41-2458	013042		022542	B-17E	41-2494	020742	020942
B-17D	40-3067			012742R	B-17E	41-2461	011442		022442	B-17E	41-2497	021742		022542
B-17D	40-3070	022241	022242		B-17E	41-2462	021142		022442	B-17E	41-2498	020942		022142
B-17D	40-3072	022241	022242		B-17E	41-2464	012142	021442		B-17E	41-2503	021942	021942
B-17D	40-3074	020341	020342		B-17E	41-2469	012142	020442		B-17E	41-2505	021042		022542
B-17D	40-3078	022241	022242		B-17E	41-2472	011542		022542	B-17E	41-2507	022142		022542
B-17D	40-3079			012542R	B-17E	41-2478	012842		022142	LB-30	AL-508	012642		022542
B-17D	40-3097	Swoose		012742R	B-17E	41-2481	021442		022142	LB-30	AL-515	020542	021542
B-17E	41-2417	021942		022542	B-17E	41-2483	013142		022942	LB-30	AL-521	012642		022142
B-17E	41-2427	012842	020342		B-17E	41-2484	020942		022142	LB-30	AL-533	013042		022142
B-17E	41-2449	020942		022542	B-17E	41-2486	020742		022542	LB-30	AL-567	020442	020742
B-17E	41-2452	021142		022542	B-17E	41-2488	020642		022142

------------End of Diary-------------

Contributing Java Experience Authors

Our Java Experience by T. Swanson pilot

Within 3 days, Jan 25, they had us on our first mission. They gave us Fred Crimmons for a combat experienced pilot. We ran short of gas and. landed on a beach on the northeast edge of Java. We asked, the Dutch for some jacks and 300 plankas ("plankas" is Dutch spelling for English "planks"). The Dutchman said "300 plankas? Hell, there is not 300 plankas in all Java." They did lend us Ad Vink and his light house tender, the Polestar. He stood off shore while we used the one barn jack to jack up one wing as high as we could and put plankas under that wheel and shoveling a lot of sand too. Then we would jack up the other wing. We kept repeating this until we had our plane out of the sand and could build a short runway of plankas. One night Captain Ad Vink invited us to dinner in his cabin. He started off with a good dry martini and boy, after a hard day of jacking and shoveling it sure eased the pain. On Jan 28 we put in just enough gas to get to the field, ran up about 60 inches of manifold pressure, released the brakes and we were off the beach. The prop blast picked up those heavy plankas -- three inches thick, a foot wide and eight to ten feet long! Some of the plankas struck the horizontal stabilizer and put some holes in it.

We were each authorized one telephone call from Java to home. Both Earl and I put in our requests. We stayed up until after midnight trying to get our calls through and then up at six for a mission. After two weeks of this we were so tired we had trouble staying awake flying formation. I would backhand Earl and say "You fly this thing while I nap awhile." A few minutes later Earl would backhand me and say the same thing. Then the Nips would attack ending our napping procedure and put us in a scared wide awake mode. All this time, Gladys knew I was O.K. because I was trying to call her. It was sure good she did not know the true facts.

[02-08-42] On about the third mission, I was flying on Duke DuFrane's right wing. Just after takeoff a little gremlin yelled in my ear "Swanson, you are not coming back today". We were jumped by about 20 Zeros. They came directly at us head on with little lights blinking in their wings. I said "I'm not scared", but I looked down at the bag of my oxygen mask and it was hyperventilating. Later, I learned that the blinking lights were muzzle flashes, then I got scared! The best we can figure is that Tom Schumacher was flying on Dukes left wing. I noticed a flicker of flame through Duke's small radio operator's window and before I could pick up my mike and tell him to salvo everything, flames were coming out the side gunner's window. The crew started bailing out. That's quite a decision -- To bail out of a flaming B-17 full of bombs into a shark-infested sea. I guess they decided right because DuFrane's plane descended 2000 feet and exploded. We never found any of them.

When we returned to Malang it was under attack so we landed at a small auxiliary emergency field and promptly sunk up to our axles in mud. So the gremlin was right, but not in the way I thought. He almost made a coward out of me. We got about 500 natives and two good ropes and out we came. They sent Captain Montgomery over to fly the plane out -- I guess they didn't trust me yet.

I guess I borrowed. Al Key's plane while mine was being fixed. Al was real unhappy. He said "Ted, I lend you a perfectly good airplane and what the hell do you do? You take it out and get it shot full of holes!" I brought it back and there were only 20 holes in the wing.

Our mess sergeant ran out of food and the only thing be could find locally was nest ripened eggs. He could not fry them because they would run too flat, so he made them into a French toast mixture and the cockroaches would fall into it overnight and would end up nice and crisp on the toast. Then to make matters worse, they put the mess hall in the latrine. After waiting in line for a half hour breathing those intriguing latrine fumes and after eating delicious french toast with a couple of nice crisp roaches with Borden's sweetened condensed milk for syrup, we were so combatish we would fight anything or anybody! Now I knew why the staff of the 19th Group put the mess hall in the latrine!

[02-03-42] On 8 Februarywe made a raid on Balikpapan on the east coast of Borneo. We made our bomb run at 25,000 feet and were attacked by several Zeros, setting our No.1 engine on fire. They also hit us with a 20 mm explosive shell just below the left gunner's position and blew the sides out of a couple of ammo cans and several flying suits on the center catwalk. There was suit fur and shrapnel all over the back end of that plane, but not a scratch on any crew member. I gave an order to bail out over Arendis Island on the south edge of Borneo, then we landed our Queen wheels up on the tidal flats. Earl quickly put out the oil tank fire. The tide came in and almost covered the wings. The mosquitoes had, a feast and we had no sleep. Earl shook hands with the island chief and talked him out of a cooking pot for the dove I shot with our survival shotgun. The next day the US Navy picked us up in a Dutch Dornier flying boat. They were unhappy that we took so long to get out to deep water in our rubber life raft because we insisted on taking the Norden bomb sight with us. It sure made us sad to leave the Queen that had taken us halfway around the world, through several missions and off a beach. If we had just feathered the engine at altitude and let it get really cold, there would have been no hot oil to feed the flame and the fire should have gone out and could have easily flown back to base on three engines and saved the plane for all those urgently needed spare parts. So much for late information and questionable judgment.

[02-12-42]?We took off one night for an early raid on Palembang, Sumatra. We really experienced St. Elmo's fire that night. Each raindrop that hit the windshield fluoresced and each prop was a disk of fluorescent light. The bombardier, Neil Reynolds, came out of the nose like a scared rabbit. He screamed "Sparks are jumping off my machine gun a foot long!" It was a real eerie experience.

We were supposed to make our bomb run just below the cloud cover, but the clouds kept lowering so when we broke out and started the bomb run, we were at 2000 feet. We could see the ack-ack guns on the ships firing and then a black rose would appear in front of us. This continued for the entire run.

On another mission, a gunner, reported to be John Hines, called out, "I have been hit in the stomach". I could envision blood and guts all over the place. A Jap 30 caliber had ricocheted off the large wooden 250-500 round 50 caliber shipping box that we sat on the narrow catwalk below the side guns. We fed the ammo from this box through the flared bottom of a small ammo can so the gunner would not have to use valuable time to change cans when under attack. The bullet went through his flying jacket, through his flying pants and fell down inside his pants. He said it felt like a mule had kicked him in the stomach.

[03-02-42] We were moved from Malang to Madiun just before this mission. We stayed at Madiun until we evacuated Java on 2 March 1942 at midnight. We had picked up a new navigator, Thomas B. Joyce. We headed for Broome Australia and landed about 08:00. He missed his ETA by less than two minutes, and I never congratulated TB for this excellent job.

Our landing at Broome was one hour or one hour and one day from a big Jap raid on Broome that sank a Dutch flying boat full of refugees. We had 18 refugees aboard our B-17. Then down to Perth, where I got a little confused and landed at a small field of only 2700 feet! Now our problem was to get off and to the right field so we could get some gas. I should say "petrol". Some of the crew celebrated a little too much and got thrown in the brig. Earl couldn't talk the Aussies into letting them out so we had to take off for Melbourne without them. They said that was the longest damned train ride they ever want to take! When we arrived in Melbourne, the 19th Group was in the process of reorganizing. We got settled into the Regency Hotel and had a large meal of lamb, but I guess it was mutton because that night I was feeling real bad and had to go to the toilet one could smell the sheep jumping out of the barn. I felt so horrible the next morning that I checked in to sick call. The doctor sent a blood sample in for a check. After several hours, he said "That can't be, that's an Oriental disease". Then he told me that I had Yellow Jaundice. He put me in an Aussie hospital. My close friend to be was there. Our main no-fat meat course was TRIPE! After three weeks of a tripe diet, Jim Etter couldn't stand it any more and got us transferred to the U S Army 4th General Hospital. Of course, I didn't complain! They called us the Gold Dust twins we were so yellow. We drove the nurses nuts with our maverick bridge playing. After I was released from the 4th General, I checked into the Regency again. I put on all the clothes I owned, went to bed and shivered! Then walked the streets and shivered! I was real happy when they gave me a B-17 and sent me up to Cloncurry, Queensland where I recommended that they check Earl out as a First Pilot. Unfortunately, the check pilot said "No". I had made Earl do half the landings and take-offs on our entire trip to Java. Later, he was checked out O.K.

[04-??-42] Shortly after my arrival at Cloncurry, I came down with Dengue fever or bone-break fever which is a better name because you ache all over and the minute you twitch you feel great, but the second you relax it hits you again. After two weeks of twitching on an aspirin diet, you are so tired you don't know what ailed you, but by then the fever has run its course.

They immediately made me Train Commander to take the 30th Squadron to Mareeba on the Atherton tablelands 50 miles west of Cairns. It was quite a trip.

On 1 August I went up to Port Moresby as a spare flight leader and ended up spending all night helping other crews load their bombs. One crew had raised one bomb three times and couldn't hook the shackle on the bomb rack. Due to a design error the sling was made too long. By putting a pillow between sling and bomb, it solved the problem. On 12 August 1942, I was transferred to the 8th Service Squadron at Charlieville as Flight Test Maintenance Officer. My experiences there in the 45th Service Group is another story.

Many of the Replacement crews moved up to Port Moresby and participated in the subsequent year and a half fight to reach and take the Marianas.

Many of the original 19th BG, at Clark Field Philippines, returned to the States to form up new B-29 units for operations out of the Marianas, they would not return until Feb 1945.  (end Swanson)

Our Java Experience by T. Adamczyk radio operator Swanson’s crew

We were assigned to the 28th Squadron of the 19th Bomb Group; we enlisted members of our crew were quartered in the Dutch barracks where our sleeping quarters consisted of straw mats lying on the floor.

[01-25-42] Six days after our arrival at Malang, on the 25th of January, we were scheduled for our first bombing mission. Nine B-17s took off early in the morning - target, a Japanese convoy off the port of Belikpapen, Borneo. As we took off over the rice paddies and fishing weirs along the Javanese shore and headed for the blue, I couldn't help wonder if I'd see another sunrise. As we cruised along toward our target, slowly gaining altitude, those nine B-17s, bristling with machine-guns and loaded with four 600-pound bombs each, looked quite formidable - in terms of what our forces threw against the Germans in Europe they were quite puny.

After a three-hour flight, as we approached Belikpapen at an altitude of 25,000 feet, we spotted the convoy, consisting of several transports, a cruiser and two destroyers. The Japs threw some ack-ack at us, but at our altitude the black bursts were well below us. We dropped our bombs; from this height our supposedly highly accurate secret Norden bombsight was not too effective - the Japanese cruiser and destroyers had too much time to maneuver before the bombs reached their target. A hit was scored on a Japanese destroyer, but that certainly was not going to stop the Japanese on their drive to the South.

We saw no Japanese Zero fighters over the target, and after heading back for home and descending to a lower altitude where we could remove our oxygen masks and converse, there was a feeling of elation, of relaxation - this combat flying wasn't so bad! However, one of the B-17s in our formation developed engine trouble and lagged behind - it was attacked and shot up by a Zero. The plane returned to base safely; however, one of the waist gunners was hit in the leg above the knee by an explosive bullet and died due to loss of blood.

Our flight, however, was not over yet - we had counted our chickens too soon: we ran into a tropical storm off the island of Madura, a short distance north of Java. The turbulence was so violent that we could not fly through it - our tool boxes and loose equipment were flying around like match-boxes as we attempted to get through the storm. Lt Crimmins, one of the veteran 19th pilots, was our first pilot on this, our first mission; Lt. Swanson flew co-pilot, while "Rabbit" Longacre sat this one out. We had insufficient fuel to get back to our base at Malang, so Lt. Crimmins picked a stretch of beach on Madura Island, bounced our wheels on it to see if it was hard enough, and made an approach to land on it. We really sweated that landing out: Ferraguto, Forte and Sweeder sat bunched together on the floor of the radio-room, ready for the worst. I sat in the radio operator's seat, from where I could see the beach as we approached it - I could call out our altitude to the others. Strangely, I was not overly concerned, as if B-17s landed on beaches every day. When we made our touchdown, that landing was velvet smooth, and the roll shorter than any we had ever made.

So there we were, stranded on the beach, with no one but a bunch of Javanese natives around. After about an hour a Dutch three-engine Dornier flying boat spotted us, landed on the water off the beach and picked us up. Forte and Lt. Frumk1n stayed with the aircraft, while the rest of us were flown a short distance to the seaplane base at Soerabaya, Java. Here we got some very welcome chow and a good nights sleep in decent bunks.

We learned that three other planes of our nine-plane mission had to make belly landings in rice paddies when they too were unable to get through that tropical storm. So we hadn't done too badly - at least we had landed on our wheels. However, those wheels were half buried in the soft sandy beach, where they had sunk down to their axles after the plane had stopped it’s forward roll.

Lt. Crimmins was not about to leave this valuable aircraft which we had flown half-way around the world stranded here on this forlorn beach; he was what I would consider a genuine hero. Immediately following the high altitude bombardment of Clark Field in the Philippines on the first day of the war by 75 Japanese bombers, while the field and hangar line were under machine gun strafing by low-flying enemy aircraft, he had rushed into the burning hangar which contained his assigned airplane and started the engine to taxi it to a place of safety. However, he was wounded in the head and arms, and his plane was destroyed. On this mission he flew with our crew he still wore a bandage on his head wound, which had not yet completely healed.

After looking the situation over, he decided that if we could Jack our plane up enough to get the wheel s out of the sand and build a temporary runway, we could get the plane off. So he contacted the Dutch authorities at the Dutch naval base at Soerabaja; they agreed to send a ship with jacks and heavy wooden planks out to the plane. After all, this bomber had come halfway around the world to help them fight off the Japanese - that was the least they could do for us.

So, the morning after the Dutch seaplane had taken us to the base at Soerabaja, we got aboard a torpedo-boat which took us back out to our beach B-17. That was quite a ride on that speedy torpedo boat, although I was glad when it ended - I was getting somewhat seasick.

That night we all slept in the plane. During the night, the Dutch lighter carrying planks and large house-jacks arrived; early the next morning we went to work. We spent the rest of the day bringing the planks from the boat to the shore, quite a difficult task, since the lighter had to stay at least a hundred yards out from the shore because of the shallow water, and the planks were quite heavy, about four by twelve inches wide and quite long. Forte and Sweeder had a close call in the afternoon; they were on their way back to the shore in a small boat when one of those quick tropical storms came up and caught them on the water. They finally made shore about a half mile down the beach.

Using the house Jacks, we were able to jack the plane up enough to get the wheels out of the sand, placing some heavy planks under the wheels. Then we kept laying planks side by side, horizontally, away from the plane down the beach, thus making a short, runway. We had about a hundred natives working for us, and had quite a great time bossing them around.

That evening the captain of the Dutch lighter invited us to stay aboard his ship overnight. We gladly accepted his invitation - we got a good meal aboard, had some good Dutch beer, and good bunks to sleep in!

The following morning we finished the plank runway out to a distance of approximately 150 feet. We stripped the plane of everything we could to lighten it, such as ammunition, tool boxes, even our waist-guns. We pumped enough fuel into the gas-tanks to get the plane back to Malang, and were ready for the big moment.

[01-28-42] Only the pilot and co-pilot were aboard the plane - the rest of us stood by on the beach, to make the plane as light as possible - and for safeties sake too. We all had our hearts in our mouths as Lt Crimmins gave her the gun and the plane started down that short runway, the propwash sending planks flying backward. Once the plane got rolling pretty well, it no longer required the planks, and was airborne in as short a run as I've ever seen. As the plane lifted off amid the cheering spectators and made a bee line for Malang the rest of us went back aboard the Dutch lighter and headed for the naval base. The captain of the ship gave us a bottle of Bols gin, which helped us to celebrate the successful, but somewhat delayed, return of B-17E #12469 to base. Lt. Crimmins later was awarded the DFC for this accomplishment.

Our Second Mission-

[01-29-42] The following morning we caught a ride aboard one of our Army trucks to our base at Malang, a distance of about seventy miles. Two days later we and our B-17 were combat-ready; we took off in a nine-plane formation on another mission against the Japanese steaming down through the Makasser Straits. The weather was atrocious enroute - we could not get through to reach our target and returned to base without dropping our bombs.

That evening we enlisted crew members caught a ride into the city of Malang, a few short miles from the base. Java, along with most of the East Indies, was administered by the Dutch colonialists. The city of Malang was quite large, with a population of over 100,000 people, good restaurants, stores, most of the amenities of what was considered to be a modern city at that time. The native Javanese, members of the Melanesian race, were of small stature, very few over five foot tall. We were approached quite often on the street by young women, so short that they looked like little children, but old enough to ask the inevitable question, "Mac-Mac?", which in Javanese was the sales-pitch for the oldest profession in the world. They had no takers, as far as we were concerned. We found a restaurant where we had a good steak dinner, then proceeded to get somewhat inebriated on that good Dutch beer. Eventually, when we started looking for a ride back to the base, Leo Ferraguto climbed into the driver's seat of one of our GI trucks which was parked in the area. He was going to drive it back to the base; fortunately, he was unable to start it - the penalty for stealing GI trucks could have been quite severe. We were able to hitch a ride back to base, that is, all but Reynolds, our bombardier. He came in sometime later during the night - he had got hold of a goose somewhere and brought it back to the barracks. He swore it was a duck, and took it to bed with him, but got rid of it a hurry when it messed in his bed.

Our Third Mission-

[02-03-42] A couple of days later we took off on our third mission against the Japs. We were part of a six-plane formation, flying in the tail-end of two Vees. George Sweeder was manning the twin-fifty, manually operated tail-guns; Leo Ferraguto was in the power-operated top turret up front, while Reynolds and Frumkim each had a single 30-caliber machine gun firing forward. Norm Forte manned our Bendix power-operated bottom turret - this was an abomination, since one had to sight the target in a remote sight in a mirror while lying on one's stomach - this type of turret was soon replaced by a locally-controlled ball-turret on later models. I manned the waist guns - both of them. These were single flexible 50-caliber’s, one on each side of the aircraft aft of the radio-room. The fallacy of this system was that I could be manning only one gun at a time - the other side of the aircraft was unmanned. This too was soon corrected - shortly after this mission another gunner was added to the crew so that both guns were being manned.

Anyhow, on this mission the weather was beautiful. As we approached our target at an altitude of 25,000 feet, we could see several freighters, including a large troop transport, escorted by a couple of warships, in the harbor of Belikpapen, Borneo. Again there was some ineffective anti-air craft fire bursting below us. As our bomb-bay doors opened, in my position in the radio room I could look straight down through the open bomb-bay. What a sight! As we dropped our four 600-pounders I could follow their trajectory most of their way down. As they were released at first they seemed to drop behind the plane. Then they seemingly moved forward in an arc with the speed of the aircraft. I lost sight of them as they neared their target, then I observed the splashes in the ocean where most of our formation’s bombs fell - and I saw two hits on the transport: We did not hang around to see if it had sunk - whether it was our bombs or one of the other planes we'll never know.

As we turned homeward we spotted a single Jap Zero flying along with our formation several hundred yards off to our right. Lt. Longacre, our co-pilot, was coaching us gunners on the interphone to make sure that we were ready for the attack when it came, cautioning us to fire in short bursts. Suddenly the Zero turned directly for our formation, and, as luck would have it, picked our plane for its target, probably because we were tail-end Charlies. As I pressed the trigger grips on my right-side gun, it fired one round, then jammed. That was a helpless feeling - here comes this Jap plane spitting bullets at us - I couldn't fire back and no place to hide! There were at least two gunners firing out of each of six B-17s at that single Zero, yet on that first pass, as far as we knew, no one had hit him. Prior to our approaching the target area I had been kneeling on my heavy flying jacket - it was not needed in the tropical climate - as I watched at the open waist-gun window. As that Zero made that first pass at us, I thought I saw some smoke in our aircraft - when I picked up my flying jacket afterward I found it perforated with holes - it had been hit by an explosive bullet!

After that first pass, the Zero flew along on the other side of our formation, then turned toward us and came at us again. This time I was on my other gun, firing short bursts, as per instructions from Rabbit Longacre on the interphone. I would love to be able to say that we blew that Jap out of the sky; however, to be completely truthful, I must say that that Japanese pilot bore a charmed life - we may have hit his aircraft; if so, he seemed to be in control as he spiraled downward and disappeared.

Shortly thereafter our formation descended to a lower altitude to where we could take off our oxygen masks; we were beginning to relax back in the rear of our aircraft; I had a feeling of exultation - we had been in mortal combat, and had survived! I had no inkling of any problem, when Forte pointed out to our number one engine. The prop was feathered, and we could see some flames near the oil tank. Lt. Longacre came back through the bomb-bay and told us to get ready to bail out. We were over a small island off the coast of Borneo, with a long overwater flight ahead of us, and the possibility, or probability, of the oil fire spreading into the gasoline; our pilot thought we had better get out while we could.

So I helped Lt. Longacre pull the emergency door release on the rear exit of our B-17 - we were at an altitude of about 5000 feet. When the door flew off, Lt Longacre told me to bail out. I looked at him, as if to ask, do I have to? " He told, " Go ahead." And out I went!

As I went out the exit I immediately grabbed hold of the rip cord handle of my backpack parachute - I wanted to be sure I could find it. I had also loosened my fur-lined flying boots, anticipating the possibility of landing in the ocean. One was supposed to count up to some predetermined figure on bailing out of an aircraft - as far as I can figure I must have pulled that rip-cord almost immediately as I left the aircraft, before my body had time to decelerate. At any rate, when the chute opened I felt a terrific jolt, and a bad pain in my left knee. When I reached down to feel my left knee I could see that it was dislocated. As I descended I pushed it back into place.

Actually, I believe I would have enjoyed the ride down had not my leg hurt so. The sudden quiet after that noisy aircraft was quite a contrast. The landscape below looked beautiful - blue water, sandy beach, and green coral - and it seemed as if I was floating down like a feather. That is, until I hit the ground! I couldn't have picked a much better spot - I landed in about six inches of water, right off the sandy beach on the east side of the island. Even though the water and sand were soft, when I hit I felt quite a jolt - I knew right away that I was out of commission. As I lay there in the shallow water, catching my breath, a song went around in my mind, "I'm a Rambling Wreck from Georgia Tech." Tradition had it that one must hold on to his rip-cord after bailing out - I still held mine in my hand as I lay there. And I remember that I cut off the small pilot chute off the main chute with the six-inch hunting knife which we crew members carried; I wanted it for a souvenir. Amazing what goes on in peoples minds at such critical times!

After lying there a few minutes while regaining my composure, I began to wonder what had happened to the rest of the crew. Unknown to me, after I went out the door, Norm Forte was supposed to follow me - when he stood in the door at the exit he froze - the others behind him had to push him out. Ferraguto and Sweeder followed him out. As a result of Force's hesitation there was an interval between when I went out and when the rest of the crew bailed out; the others landed on the other side of the approximately one-half mile wide island. Reynolds, the bombardier, started out the forward bottom exit, changed his mind and tried to climb back up into the plane but Frumkin stepped on his fingers, so he had to let go. The other three members stayed with the plane and belly-landed it in the shallow water about, a mile off the eastern side of the island. They were able to extinguish the fire in the number one oil tank.

So there I was, all alone on this side of the island, lying in about six inches of water, not knowing if there were any Japanese on the island. Any movement of my leg hurt excruciatingly. Eventually, using my elbows, I was able to drag myself out of the water onto the beach and cropped my head against a coconut tree. We crew-members carried an Army Colt 45 semi automatic strapped to our belts. I pulled mine out of its’ holster and held it in my hand - if there were any Japs here I suppose I would have used it as long as I could. After a while I decided to fire three rounds into the air so that the others would know where to find me.

A short time later, here they came around the Island, along with some Melanesian natives in a boat of some sort. They were certainly a welcome sight! They made me as comfortable as possible lying there on the beach. Actually, the rest of the crew seemed to be enjoying the experience, and I could have too had I been a little more mobile. We were not hurting for food or drink - that was still available in our plane, which sat half-sub merged about a mile out in the water. Lt. Swanson got the 12-gauge shot gun which we carried in the plane and shot some type of guinea fowl on the island, which he cooked over a fire on the beach.

That night the mosquitoes almost ate me up - we had no mosquito nets to sleep under.

[02-04-42] No one seemed overly concerned about how we were going to get back to our base - I suppose expecting the worst in combat, we just accepted things as they were at the particular moment. The other planes of our formation had seen us go down on the Island - we were sure they would have us picked up somehow. Sure enough, about noon the following day a Navy PBY flying boat circled the Island and landed a short, distance out in the lagoon near where our B-17 lay in the water. The PBY could not come in too close because of the shallow water; however, our crew members got me into a rubber life-raft and we made it out to the PBY, where I was gently lifted aboard by some good strong U.S. Navy hands.

Untimely End for our proud bird

As we lifted off the water we passed over B-17E 12469. It's too bad we never gave her some exotic name. She was lying there so ignominiously, half in and half out of the water - we had flown half-way around the world in her, and she was a part of us.

On several occasions recently, retired Col. Swanson has expressed a desire to get as many of the crew-members together as possible, getting a sailboat and sailing over to the South Seas to see if our B-17 was still lying there on that reef. I am sure that either the natives cut the plane up to make pots and pans out of it’s aluminum, or the Japanese salvaged the p lane when they occupied the islands. But, the Colonel's expressed desires, only a dream, are indicative of how close a plane and it’s crew can become. Today, four of our eight-man crew are still in contact with each other. We lost contact with Frumkin, Reynolds and Forte; George Sweeder died of a heart attack a couple of years ago, but forty-five years later, Ted Swanson, Earl Longacre, Leo Ferraguto, I and our lovely wives had a delightful time together in July of 1986, at the Boeing Aircraft Corporation's 50th anniversary of the B-17 aircraft in Seattle, Washington. We still hear from each other at least at Christmas time - although we may be on the glide slope for landing after life's flight, if we had it to do over again we would have it no other way - we would fly together as crew-members on B-17-E 12469.

Escape from Java

When our rescue PBY landed at the Dutch naval base at Soerabaya, that was the last time I saw our crew as a whole. They bid me goodbye, and I was taken to the small Dutch hospital at the naval base, while they returned to Malang. They continued to fly together as a crew until forced to evacuate to Australia a few weeks later. Forte, Ferraguto and Sweeder stayed together as crew-members with the 19th Bomb Group, flying against the Japanese out of Australia and New Guinea until the following November, when they returned to the States. I ran into the three of them on two occasions, once while standing in the chow-line at Seven-Mile strip, Port Moresby, New Guinea; again, while standing in a chow-line at Mareeba, Queensland, Australia, where the 19th Bomb Group was operating out of at the time. The other crew members went their own separate ways.

[02-10-42] When the Dutch doctor at the hospital looked me over he assumed that my knee was only dislocated - as far as I knew they had no X-ray facilities there - a few days in bed would take care of it. It was not until I arrived at a field hospital in Australia when an X-ray revealed that the spine of the tibia bone in my leg was fractured.

So I lay there in the hospital cot, making the best of the situation. In the bed next to me was a Dutch marine, Jan Hage. He was about my age, and we became good friends. We had a great time teaching each other our respective languages - he tried to teach me a few words in Dutch or Malay, while I reciprocated in English.

Our favorite nurse was July - she was blond, well built, and, as far as I was concerned. an angel! She could not speak English, but between her, Jan and me, we got along just fine. I'll never forget the time I called her "mien liefling" - Dutch for "my darling". Was she surprised, and shocked! Jan almost ruptured a blood vessel laughing - but she liked it. Later, she asked me to go out- to dinner with her; however, the tides of war did not permit it. I have often wondered what Jan and July had to go through when the Japs overran the Island of Java.

A couple days after my arrival at the hospital we had a bomb alert - a large formation of Jap Betty bombers were heading for Soerabaja. July, the nurse, was scurrying around, trying to get patients under mattresses for protection. I could not get out of bed yet, so I had no choice but to lie there. When we could hear the irregular throb of the bomber’s engines, and the Dutch anti-aircraft guns begin to fire at them, we knew they were close. July and the others were able to get under the hospital cots - strangely, I was not afraid - I knew that I wasn't going to get hit. The Japs dropped their bombs on the base - none hit the hospital but a Javanese just outside the hospital door was hit in the throat by a piece of shrapnel. I kept a piece of shrapnel for a souvenir; however, it, along with my good-luck bracelet, was stolen from me in the hospital by one of the Javanese cleaning personnel.

After a few days my leg felt pretty good - the knee joint was stiff, but I could hobble around on it pretty well. I was getting a little concerned - the Japanese were invading the Island; although they did not bomb the hospital again, on several occasions I was able to see formations of their bombers flying overhead. In the beginning, the small Dutch Air Force and a few of our P-40s opposed them, but were soon overwhelmed. Except for one of our P-40 pilots who was shot down and badly burned on the first Jap raid on the hospital - he died during the night - I believe I was the only American in the hospital. No one of our military forces had contacted me. So I decided to take things into my own hands.

First of all, I had no shoes! All I had as far as personal belongings was my light flying coveralls - I had been jerked out of my flying boots when my parachute opened. I had no headgear. I did have a few Dutch guilders, so one morning I got a taxicab to the down town area and bought a pair of low-cut civilian shoes. They were the largest I could find, but far too small for comfort; however, they had to do in a pinch. I also bought a pith sun-helmet.

[02-25-52] The next day, on my own initiative, I left the hospital, made my way to the down-town area; here I found one of our GI trucks which was headed for our air base at Malang. When I got back to the base, I learned that all of the air crews had evacuated the base. The only Americans left were the ground crews, and they were leaving that evening by train. I could not find any of my personal belongings, my clothes, camera, etc - all I had was what I was wearing at the time - my flight coveralls, pith helmet, and tight low-cut civilian shoes. However, had I left the hospital a day later, I would have been left behind - I don't think I would be writing this account today.

That evening all the American personnel left at the Malang air base boarded a train at the local train station. We would travel by night, since the Japanese air force was active during the daytime, strafing targets at low altitude. We traveled on the train all night - we were headed for the port of Tjilatjap, on the southern coast of Java, from where we were to be evacuated by ship. After about a 200-mile ride on the antiquated train the following afternoon we arrived at the port.

The port was a hub-bub of activity - the situation with the Japanese was rapidly deteriorating. Our meager naval forces, along with a few elements of the Royal Dutch Navy, were battling it out with the superior Japanese naval forces in the Java Sea. The Japanese had already captured Singapore on the Malay peninsula to the north; a few hundred English and Australian soldiers had been able to make their escape to Java, and were now here at the port boarding whatever they could to escape to Australia.

We were in the same boat, literally. That afternoon we Americans, along with a rag-tag bunch of English and Australian troops, boarded a Dutch freighter, the Abbekerk.

Late that afternoon, at high tide, we sailed out of the port. There were quite a number of ships of all sizes leaving the port at the time. They were going to proceed together by convoy to Australia. However, the captain of our ship, the Abbekerk, was a hard-headed Dutchman; he decided to go it alone. His ship had a top speed of 22 knots, while the convoy would have to travel at a much slower speed. Again, it seems the Good Lord was looking out for us - that convoy was intercepted by units of the Japanese navy, and all of those ships were sunk.

Three to four hours after we had left the port, just before sunset, we were approached by a single low-flying plane. As it flew close by at a low altitude, presumably to look us over, we could plainly see the red circle of the rising sun of Japan -- the plane was a Japanese reconnaissance plane. Except for a single 4-incher mounted near the bridge of the ship, the Abbekerk was unarmed. Some of our old-time sergeants had obtained a single aircraft 50-caliber machine gun and mounted it on the top-deck - it had no grips to hold and aim it with, so they held and aimed it with a couple pairs of pliers.

The Japanese plane circled back toward us and made a low-level attack on our ship. It dropped two bombs which missed the ship. The ships four incher was firing away at the plane, while a couple of our troops stood out on the open deck manning the 50-caliber machine gun. As the plane made another pass I was out on the top deck, trying to hide behind whatever I could find - this time I'll have to admit I was scared!

After that second pass the Jap plane headed away from us and disappeared. I don't know whether our anti-aircraft fire had discouraged him or whatever; I was sure he was going to bring back the whole Japanese navy to sink us. In fact, I was ready to accept it - I had made my peace with the Lord. I had found an empty wine bottle which I filled with water - I tied it to my belt with a rope - I figured I would need it in the ocean.

After dark that evening we had a big tropical moon - under different circumstances I would have called it beautiful - however, at the time a few storm clouds certainly would have helped -- the ocean was as bright as day, and we were so visible! But the Japanese did not return; no doubt they were too busy with the convoy we had left behind.

As we headed southward at 22 knots toward Australia, the following day we began to feel a little more secure. The Abbekerk was not a passenger or troop ship - it was a cargo freighter, and had no accommodations for it’s human cargo. Most of the troops aboard slept out on the open top-deck. Field kitchens had been set up on deck, where we were fed field rations twice a day. I didn't feel much like eating that first day, with a slight case of mal de mer. I had to make one dash for the ships rail, and quickly learned that one must go to the leeward side of the ship to toss ones cookies overboard.

Those shoes I had bought in Soerabaja were bothering my feet, so I had removed them and had laid them down on the deck. One of the English or Aussie troops came along and swiped them - I hope they fit him better than they had fit me. I later found a pair of flying boots down in the hold of the ship, which I appropriated and wore from then on. (Adamczyk continued)

Del Monte Mindanao to Java to Broome Australia by H. McAuliff Navigator

Mid Jan 1942 Del Monte Fld Mindanao

While at Cagayan Mindanao we witnessed a wild fracas between a P-40 and a Zero – all around the sky with the Zero on the P-40's tail. Finally, the P-40 pilot put it down in the shallow water near the shore and was able to wade ashore unharmed.

A lot of the 30th Squadron ground crews, including the mess sergeant and a field kitchen, were on that little steamer and they set up camp on a bluff overlooking the bay. I really don't remember what we'd been getting for meals up to this point, but the mess sergeant's [Robinett] chow was a vast improvement. While all of this was good news, there was a dark side also.

Major Gibbs was shot down flying a B-18 from Clark to Del Monte. He was a fine officer and an outstanding Squadron Commander and was sorely missed.

Back at Del Monte a few days later, I was detailed to clear an emergency landing strip for P-40's. There were still a few of these flying around, but mostly as couriers. There were about 20 men armed with picks and shovels and we climbed into a truck and headed out several miles to what had once been a cane field. We were fairly well under way when a jeep drove up and the sergeant driving it said, "Lieutenant, you're wanted back at the field." So, I left the senior noncom in charge and left. There was a B-17 on the field and I was told, "Get your gear and get aboard, you're going out." There were others on board and I somehow wound up standing in the cockpit behind the pilot and co-pilot.

The reason for this flight, aside from picking up strays and taking them to Java, was to bomb Japanese ships reported to be concentrated south of Zamboanga on the extreme southwest corner of Mindanao. We made the bomb run at 20,000 feet I couldn't see the results from where I was standing, but the problem was that the bomb bay doors wouldn't close. This slows down the airspeed which is very bad news if there are fighters around. Since I had no particular duties and was closest to the bay, I was given the task of cranking the doors closed by hand.

This is a bear of an operation, as you have to straddle the catwalk and reach far down to the right to operate the crank. The mechanism seemed stiff and was hard to turn. The big problem was the lack of oxygen. The hose from the flight deck was too short for me to be able to use it while cranking, and after four or five turns I had to sit upright and lean forward to get a few gulps and then resume cranking again. The prospect of getting dizzy and failing through 20,000 ft. into the Sulu Sea was not an inviting one. Finally the job was done and we were clear of the target area, so we started a descent to a more comfortable altitude.

Malang Java

My first impression of Java was that it was beautiful. We came in over Surabaya a Dutch port and naval base, with the town spread out behind it. Everything looked neat and clean, a refreshing sight after the Philippines. We flew inland a few miles to a Dutch Air Force base outside the town of Malang. We were assigned to the Dutch Officers! Quarters - a long step up the civilization ladder from what we'd been used to. There weren't many Dutch flying officers around anymore. The ancient B-10’s and their crews had been used up. They were a gutsy bunch and had made low-level attacks on the Japanese fleet as long as they lasted.

Jan 22; A day or two after landing in Java, I flew my first combat mission. I looked forward to it, as I was sick and tired of taking this punishment on the ground. I wanted revenge. It didn't exactly turn out this way. This mission was to bomb the Japanese fleet which was strung out between Borneo and Celebes and its size was impressive -- there were battleships, carriers, cruisers, cargo ships, destroyers -- the whole works. As we reached the bomb release line, all hell broke loose. The anti-aircraft was intense and swarms of fighters attacked. The bombs were dropped, but I had no idea where they went -- I was completely dazed and terrified by the ferocity of the attack. The Zeros were coming in from astern and as one completed his pass, he was just off our right wing when he exploded in a million pieces. I guess our side gunner got him. It's weird, but my impression at the time was that of a turkey exploding in mid-air in a cloud of feathers and the bombardier sifting scrunched down in his armor-backed seat with only the top of his WW I tin hat showing. We pulled clear of this with some bullet holes in the airplane but no casualties and landed back at Malang.

At the time, it seemed impossible that anyone could get used to this terrifying kind of uproar, but in time I did and even became slightly blase about it - I think we all did. The moments of terror were still there, but it seemed like we weren't going to get out of this mess anyway, so why sweat it? The phrase, "What the hell, you want to live forever?," became a popular one.

The next two or three missions I flew were about like the first, since they were against the Japanese fleet which was in about the same place. From 25,000 feet we could see the ships turn as the bombs left the bomb bay and the best that I ever saw were some near misses and a hit on the stem of one ship. The ack-ack was intense and the Zeros aggressive.

Feb On one occasion when were in an old D model without tail gun or turrets, we had a Zero on our tail. So the pilot (Swanbeck) went up and over a B-17E off our right and down under it -- whatever it took to keep the E's tail gun between us and the Zero. As time went on, it was obvious that we weren't doing much damage to moving ships, but we were thinning out the ranks of the Zeros considerably.

As the lead navigator of a formation of six B-17 E aircraft, I had set the course from the Dutch airfield at Malang eastward along the south coast of Java toward the Straits of Bali. It was February 17, 1942, and we were after a Japanese carrier reported to be close inshore to the island of Bali.

On turning north up the strait, we had to drop down to 12,000 feet to get under a heavy overcast. Within minutes we sighted the carrier. We were dead on target and it looked like a perfect run for the bombardier. As he got the bombsight lined up, I watched the carrier and could see fighters leaving the deck.

In a matter of minutes, six Zero fighters were at our altitude and coming straight for us in a head-on attack. I could see the leader open fire, but there seemed to be no return fire from our formation. There was a .30 caliber machine-gun in the compartment and I grabbed it and thrust it through the metal gunport in the Plexiglas nose. I knew that it was no match for the 20 millimeter cannon of the fighters and not nearly the range. But the rate of closure must have been close to 500 mph, so I did the only thing I could, filling the space through which the Zero had to fly with all the fire I could. I thought I must have hit some part of him, as he quit firing and went into a shallow dive along with his entire flight beneath our formation. I could hear our rear guns firing while we headed for cloud cover.

I learned later that the twin .50 caliber turret guns had malfunctioned, as was the case with three other airplanes in our formation, so the little .30 caliber gun I was firing played a more important part in the battle than I'd expected. When I got off the gun, I saw that the bombardier had removed the bombsight from its mount and realized that the bombs had not released and that we were heading for cloud cover lugging several tons of dead weight. Why this happened, I don't know - possibly the gun firing directly over his head and hot empty shell casings flying around might have distracted him.

Far more important than this was why the turrets had malfunctioned. These new E type B-17s had been flown hurriedly over the Atlantic, across Africa and India. to give us some replacements in Java. The crews probably had not had time to become thoroughly checked out on them -- and we had had little or none. These guns were a fairly sophisticated piece of equipment with electric optical sights, so the maintenance had to be done carefully. The upshot of all this was that a factory representative was flown out to give our people the necessary instruction and training.

Months after this fiasco was over and done with, I learned that I had been awarded the Silver Star for gallantry in action and being instrumental in breaking up the enemy attack. The citation went on to say, "One Zero was shot down."

There was one night mission that was kind of a hair-raiser. It wasn’t danger from the enemy this time, but from the weather. It was as black as I'd ever seen it and we were following the airplane in front of us. All you could see was the dim red light on his tail and we were trying not to lose him or overrun him all the way up to Macasar. The Dutch wanted us to bomb their oil fields there so that the Japanese couldn’t use them. There were fires in one area which the first of our flight had started, so we unloaded in the same place. Down below, there were flashes of what looked like sheet lightning but may have been naval gunfire.

We finally got out of there without colliding with another airplane and got into calmer weather and landed back in Malang.

The dining arrangements at Malang were unique to say the least. Each evening we boarded a bus at the airfield and went into town. It was a paved road weaving its way through trees and past scenic terraced rice paddies. The bus would stop every so often to let a large group of monkeys cross the road. I noticed a huge black python entwined in the lower branches on one of the trees - waiting, no doubt, to drop down on some unwary monkey.

The bus took us to the Palace Hotel, a very plush affair in the middle of beautiful, well-kept grounds. Once inside, we trooped into the dining room, which was really a large banquet hall with two long tables running down the length of the room from either end of the head table. Col. Eubank, the Group C.O., sat at the head table with some of his staff and some high-ranking Dutch officers. The tables had large bowls piled high with exotic looking fruit of all shapes and colors. Behind the diners, waiters stood in turbans and bright costumes ready to serve the next course. It was a far cry from life in the "gully" at Del Monte. The routine here was that a sheet of paper from the head table was passed down the line from hand to hand containing only a list of names. If your name was on it, you flew the next morning and boarded the bus back to the field after dinner. If you were not on the list, you had the evening off.

On one such free evening, I ran into some American submarine officers. They had heard that it was possible to get a phone call through from the Malang telephone office to the United States, so I went with them. I don't know how the Navy always seemed to get the word about this sort of thing and we didn't. It proved to be surprisingly easy. I gave the girl at the desk the number, city, and who I wished to speak to and was directed to one of the several phone booths in the office. I'd expected some kind of restriction or censorship, but there was none of that, and presently I heard Marjorie answer the phone. She gave a yelp when she recognized my voice and I was able to tell her I was in Java and still all in one piece. She hadn't heard anything since the war started and didn't know if I was dead or alive. It was a thrill to hear her voice and it boosted her morale. This was a tough time for the wives and families of Army personnel in the Philippines, as there was no means of communicating.

Things kept grinding away in Java. I was flying about every other day. The 7^th Group were equipped withB-17Es and had flown them to Java over the Atlantic-Africa-India route and we inherited some of them, to replace our worn down D models. The airfield at Malang was attacked and strafed several times. On one such raid a B-17 near the hangar was set afire and exploded. Pieces of it flew in all directions. The force of the explosion was so great that one inch steel armor plate sailed over the hangar roof, crumpled like a piece of tinfoil.

We continued to pound away at the Japanese fleet with the usual results - more Zeros shot down than ships damaged. On one really bad day, the Jap fighters were waiting for us just as we cleared the coast of Java with full bomb loads at about 8,000 feet, climbing slowly to our bombing altitude. The plane next to ours in the formation was hit and caught fire. It continued to burn and crashed into the sea.

Sometimes a mission starts out wrong and stays that way from beginning to end. We had a newly arrived Major from the 7th Group leading this one. He had instructed all planes to check in with him on the radio prior to take-off. Someone failed to do so and the Major got out of the lead ship, strode out where he could be seen by all and stood, arms akimbo, glaring at the offending party. They finally got the word and he went back to his airplane. Those of us who had been through strafing raids are sweating heavily while this went on. Eight airplanes, engines idling, with full bomb loads, fuel, and crews, would have been a prize target for a lone Zero patrolling the early morning sky, and he could have wiped us out with one pass.

The final faux pas took place as we sighted the Japanese fleet from 25,000 ft. Our leader ordered the formation broken up -- each airplane to select a ship for an individual attack. This is asking for it when fighters are around -- and they were -- as you lose the protection of concentrated fire that a formation can unleash. There was ack-ack and we took a hit on the right wing. As we withdrew, we saw the leaders plane go into a shallow dive which became steeper and kept on going until it splashed into the sea. There was no radio message, just silence, so we never did know what happened.

This was tragic, as he was well liked and respected by those who knew him in the 7th Group. The 19th had learned something about combat flying the hard way too, and it was a costly business. Our own troubles were just starting. The hole in our wing was not large, but the ack-ack had blown out the tire on the right landing gear and I wondered how Schwanbeck was going to handle this one. He did a pretty slick job of keeping the left wheel on the ground with the flat tire on the right just skimming the grass, and then ground looping it when we'd lost enough speed -- with no damage to the airplane.

The over-all command structure at this stage of the war was sort of a nightmare made up of British, Australian, Dutch and American troops, all under the command of a Dutch Admiral who couldn't speak English. This meant that a bilingual officer had to be on the bridge of the non-Dutch ships to explain the Admiral's orders, which probably explained why some of the naval action got screwed up. This was the same body, I think, that selected our targets. If so, the British must have prevailed at the last session, as our next mission was to Singapore.

We never got there. Shortly after leaving the western end of Java we ran into some weather which grew steadily worse as we continued on, and finally got so violent that we had to turn back. Over Java once more, we received Malang's radio message that the field was under attack and to stay away until the "all clear” was given. So, round and round we flew over the west end of Java with the ceiling getting lower all the while and winding up at about 1,000 feet to stay under it before we were able to head for home.

The operation in Java was winding down faster than I knew. On one of the “free" evenings. I was sifting around a plush planters club with some fellow officers and some Dutch civilians including some "white" Russians who had escaped the revolution of 1918 and the conflicts and wars that followed between the Whites and the Reds. The Dutch had allowed them to settle in Java but they were technically stateless persons and none of them, Dutch or Russian, were under any illusions as to the treatment they'd get at the hands of the Japanese when they occupied the country.

Presently, a bus arrived -- much earlier than usual - and a lot of the group left. A few minutes later, I realized that they ALL had left. I still thought there would be another bus - there usually was. Instead, about 15 minutes later a blonde young woman in a Dutch Army uniform came sailing into the room and said, "if you are Lt. McAuliff, come with me -- and hurry!".

Outside was a motorcycle with a side car which I piled into and she took off like a scared rabbit. We sailed down the road - she sure could drive that thing - and out on to the field to a B-17 with all four props turning. The door opened and several pairs of hands yanked me inside and the airplane started its take-off roll. Inside, sifting on the floor, were all the guys who had left on the bus - a glum-looking lot. I think we all felt really bad at having to leave the Dutch to go it alone, but there was little more that we could do except get our airplanes blown up on the field. There had been enough of that at Clark. Many times since, I've wondered what happened to that Dutch girl, hoping that somehow she made it out of there. I didn't even have a chance to thank her.

We landed at Broome on the west coast of Australia in the morning. The Japanese had worked the place over, causing a lot of damage. A row of PBYs anchored near the shore had been strafed and sunk, the hangar had been hit, and there was debris scattered about the field. There was also a large mob of people milling around trying to get sorted out under confusing and conflicting directions.

A B-24 taxied in from the runway and we went over to see what that was all about. It turned out to be Ben Funk whom I had known at March Field, who was the pilot. He loaded as many as he could on the airplane - including a very pregnant Dutch woman - and we headed for Perth, 1000 miles to the south. I never dreamed that a B-24 could be so crammed full of people, and, to a man, we were all praying that the Dutch woman could hold out until we reached Perth.

This was the end of our air travel (the Dutch lady made it, thank God), and we were put on a troop train headed east across the Great Australian Desert for Melbourne. The Australian troops seemed young and noisy, very friendly, and curious about us. The cars were old wooden antiques from a by-gone age and as it was extremely hot, all the windows were open and flies, dust, and smoke from the steam locomotive came inside.

The trip took four days and we slept sitting up -- when we could. I don't recall eating anything other than sandwiches provided by some volunteer ladies when the train stopped briefly at small little settlements along the way. Doug Keller and I had invested in a couple bottles of Scotch before leaving Perth and we kept a poker game going to ward off the boredom of the trip. (McAuliff continued)

The Java Experience by Ed Teats Pilot cont.

Early in February, the Nips came over on a strafing party while I was absent on a ferrying mission to Australia. It is one personal gripe I want to settle some time with the Japs.

A few days earlier, Jim Connally told me that he wanted me to fly a plane out to Australia for overhaul. I was hoping that it would be mine. The engines were worn out, for they had 500 hours on them without major overhaul, but the plane itself was in perfect condition. It barely had a scratch on it. When I found out that I was to take out an old, battered wreck, one that was all shot up, I was griped.

It had no hydraulic system. Three of the engines seemed to be running okay aside from a slight roughness, but the fourth had been hit, and a 37 mm anti-aircraft shell had hit and weakened one of the wings. It had to be flown with one wing about 10 degrees below the other, so that it just crabbed and sobbed along at low altitude and low speed. We made the flight out to Australia in seven hours, the last two and a half hours on three engines.

The following day an engine failed at a critical time of the take-off, when we could neither get off the ground on three engines, due to the heavy gas load, nor ground-loop because we had no effective brakes. In the few seconds available, we did every thing possible to avoid a crack-up, but the plane was demolished.

One of my best friends and one of the Army's best navigator, Lt "Mac" McAllister, was fatally injured.

I got back to Malang on the 7th to discover that the day before the Japs had strafed the field. Two planes, fully loaded with gas and bombs, were caught on the runway and blew up. My old "78" was burned in a bunker (dispersal bay).

All that remained of it was a charred carcass on the bunker, and an area of burned grass. My feeling wasn't one solely of sentimental regret at losing a plane whose capacity and idiosyncrasies I knew as familiarly as I knew the back of my hand. That was part of it, but my main gripe was that it was a good plane, one badly needed in operations and it was gone.

The long shadow cast by the little men of Nippon was stretching across Java.

Singapore fell on February 15.

It was the key to the defense of .the Netherlands & Indies, and the doom of Java was sealed..

As far as we were concerned, Java rapidly was becoming untenable. The Japs were in position where they could hit our bases at will. Early in February, they were getting in close.

They poured down through Macasar and Malacca straits, gobbled Borneo and Macassar and started to hammer at the mass of islands forming the Indies' east flank. Palembang fell on Feb. 16, after a savage defense by the Dutch, who wiped out one entire force of Jap parachute troops two days earlier. Darwin was bombed for the first time on Feb. 19, and the next day, the little men invaded Bali and Timor.

The 19th group had participated with sea forces in smashing at the big enemy invasion convoy which came down through Macassar strait in January. We had the force only to hurt them-not to halt them.

We were to busy and too fagged then to see the drama of the whole show. All we grasped was that for the second time in less than three months, a delaying action would have to be broken off by withdrawal in the face of overwhelming enemy offensive superiority.

On February 24, our first plane-load of group personnel who were not available for combat duty went south to Broome, Australia. The following day, two of us flew out a group of personnel not available for or requisite to combat operations and put them down at Broome, roughly 900 miles in an air line southeast of Malang.

The pressure was on. We left Malang at 9 o'clock in the morning, got into Broome at 8, gassed up and flew north at noon, and got in at Malang at 6.30 P.M., and we made the entire trip with one bad engine, and 5 1/2 of the 6 1/2 hours of the return flight on three engines.

The night of the 26th, more personnel were evacuated by air.

The following day the four ships which I mentioned yesterday took off at 6 o'clock in the morning to look for the big Jap convoy coming down from Indo-China and which we anticipated to land invasion forced somewhere on the north coast of Java between Surabava and Semarang.

Unable to complete the mission due to trouble with our almost worn out engines and ordered not to return to Malang because it was under almost constant attack; Capt. Fred Key, Dean “Pinky" Hoevet and I landed at Djodjakarta, an air base a few miles inland from the south central coast of the island approximately 150 miles southwest of Malang.

It was out of the frying pan in to the fire, for the field at Djodjakarta was expecting a raid any time. The operations officer told us that a yellow flag was flown for the alert, but that when a black ball was run up on the mast of the control tower, it meant that enemy planes had been sighted. We stood by our planes at the end of the runway. when the yellow flag went up, we started our engines, and the black ball was still rising toward the mast-head when we roared past, on our way. We had no intention of playing fish in a barrel to Jap strafers.

The alert happened to be a fake although we didn’t learn that until we returned. We knew that we had an hour or so to kill so we loafed down along the south coast sticking close to the clouds, ready to duck for cover if any Nips showed up.

On our way back, we spotted a large formation of enemy planes far above us off toward the west through the low scud clouds. We sat down almost on the wave caps in an effort to avoid detection and sometime later we saw them head back east.

The first word we received on landing at Djodjakarta was that the United States sea plane tender Langley had been bombed and, later, that she had been sunk. We had no doubt whatever that this big formation which we had seen and evaded was that which bombed the Langley and we estimated that had we flown 50 miles east we would have seen her.

(The Navy Department announced on April 3 in Communiqué 65 that the Langley, an old 11,000-ton seaplane tender and the United States first aircraft carrier, “was sunk after prolonged attack by the enemy south of Java in late February.” The same communiqué disclosed that most of the personnel was rescued by the tanker Pecos, which itself was sunk in enemy action a few days later. J.M,M)

We were able to grab about three hours’ sleep before taking off for Broome with a load of personnel. The crew worked all of the rest of that day on the ship, and at noon on March 1, Ed Green, who was Maj O’Donnell’s co-pilot on their famous flight out of the Philippines in the hand fueled B-18, and I started back for Djodjakarta.

We flew together all the way up. The visibility was poor. A lot of stuff was socked down all over the mountains and we had difficulty finding the proper spot along the coast to turn in. Ed had lowered his wheels for identification purposed and was turning inland to approach the field and I was preparing to follow him when my tail gunner reported a strange two engined plane promptly increase it’s speed. We chased it for ten minutes before getting slightly above it and closed enough to be in favorable position to attack. With all guns manned, we closed to within 500 yards before we could see RAF markings on the vertical tail surface.

We had no means of communications, of course, since we didn’t know what radio frequency the plane might be using, but he hadn’t altered course or made a false move -- and the Royal Air Force markings seemed to settle the matter. Satisfied, we turned and flew back to our base and reported about the incident to the Dutch operations officer. He smiled grimly.

“Oh yes,” he said, “effective ... lets see ... just three hours ago; two types of British planes are to be considered hostile.”

The plane we had overtaken was one of the types. The Japs caught some planes on the ground at Singapore and Palembang which it had been impossible to demolish or evacuate. They promptly fixed them up and used them for reconnaissance. It was beautiful irony that for some reason we had been in position to blast that Jap crew into the ocean, or some place hotter than their own rising Sun -- and didn't.

We had to use all of our persuasion that night on the Dutch. They wanted to blow one of the runways, leaving only the other open. We were afraid that the debris tossed up by the demolition would riddle our planes, which were scheduled to leave just before midnight with the last of our remaining personnel. When we were forced to leave Malang the previous day because it had become untenable under constant attack, a clean-up crew of our men demolished all of our property which could not be taken out or repaired. Some of the 7th Group boys had been drifting in all that day from Madiun. They had had the Hell bombed out of them that day and the day before, and Madiun also was untenable.

We managed to persuade the Dutch to hold up their demolition until we took off, and ad 10:45 o'clock on the night of March 1, we took off for Broome. At that time our planes were in such bad condition that a maximum safe load of 30 personnel to each one had been established. That was the maximum load we were supposed to carry because the flight from Djodjakarta to Broome is entirely over water, and if we were forced down by an impossible overload, we would be out of luck, having no extra rafts and few life vests.

At the last minute, twenty fellows showed up, most of them American pursuit pilots who had been shot down and had been beating their way out through the bush. -With the two planes Ed Greene and I flew up from Broome that day we had seven planes on which to load all remaining personnel and they were full.

Captain "Shady" Lane, a fighter squadron commander and a class mate of mine at Randolph and Kelly fields, who was to ride with me, asked me if I could take any extras. I explained the situation to him but told him that if any of them wanted to risk it, we would gamble. We took five of them, and sent the others over to Greene, who took five more. The other ten climbed aboard some of the other planes, for I saw them at Broome later.

Broome Australia

My plane, loaded to the guards, hit Broome just at sunrise, refueled immediately, and went on through to Perth on the Southwest coast of Australia, 7 1/2 hours and 900 miles in a direct air-line farther south.

Out of the preceding 60 hours, we had spent 40 of them in the air without sleep. The whole crew did that. It corresponds to the job the fellows did at Midway, when they flew 40 continuous hours of combat. The five planes which joined Greene and I that evening at Djodjakarta, landed there from the last bombing mission U.S. planes conducted in Java.

Every flyable plane we had was in action up to the last minute, either bombing in a desperate last minute effort to hold off the Nips until evacuation was completed, or until the planes were unfit for bombing use. On the morning of the day we left Djodjakarta, a strafing raid on the field damaged two "Liberators" so badly that they had to be destroyed that night to prevent their use by the Japs.

It had been our intention to fly from Perth straight through to Melbourne, a distance of 1800 to 2000 miles, and we came out on the field in the morning with that thought in mind. Just as we were making preparation for our take-off, Major Hobson, who was there with 5 or 6 planes of the 7th Group, and who was acting as commander of our detail of gypsies, received an urgent message from Broome. It directed all available planes to stand by for immediate evacuation of "surviving" refugees from that port.

Broome is just a little fishing port, much used by Japanese pearl fishermen before the war, situated almost on the edge of the great Sandy Desert of central west Australia.

There are only two ways of getting out of it, other than by walking -- by water or air. It is one of the most desolate places I have ever seen.

The message concerning evacuation of "surviving" refugees was puzzling at first, but not for long. The day before -- March 3 -- the Japs had strafed it unmercifully.

We abandoned all plans for flying east, ripped out our one bomb tank and replaced it with baggage racks, and took off once again for Broome.

The day before, the civilian evacuation or Java had been, at its height: Sunderland flying boats, Australian and Dutch Catalinas -- literally everything that would. fly -- were concentrated there. The Dutch were flying civilian evacuees, principally women and children, out of Java, and the Aussies were picking them up at Broome and flying them on south.

These evacuees -- wretched folk who had left their homeland, and many of them their heroic loved ones, with hardly more than the clothes on their backs jammed the air field, waiting for land plane transportation. There were some on the beach. Still others were either in small boats or already had boarded the flying boats.

Then the Zeros came in -- off carriers, we assumed. There was practically no protection. About 16 flying boats were caught on the water and riddled. One of our ships-either an LB-30 or a B-24, but in any event one or the North American Liberator type --was just taking off with 24 people on board, but had not gained altitude. So far as we were able to learn, the sole survivor of that plane was a sergeant who was in the water 24 hours and who came staggering up on the beach while we were there, clad only in shorts. We took him out with us that night, wrapped in blankets to present illness from long exposure and shock.

The place was a shambles. It was no place to tarry. As rapidly as we could, we rounded up our complement, loaded the baggage racks, refueled and at 11:15 took off for the last time from the grim port of Broome.

March 7 Melbourne Australia

We flew directly through from Perth to Adelalde the following day over country no member of the crew ever had seen before and finally put down at Melbourne on the 7th of March.

Just two planes of the original group that had been based at Clark Field survived to make Australia. One was a B-17C, which still is being used as a ferry plane for the transport of freight and personnel. The other is the justly famous B-17D, known to the American public as “Alexander the Swoose" -- the plane which Lt General George H. Brett used as his personal plane in directing the Allied air forces in the Australian theater, and in which he flew back to the United States. It was the same plane which had been flown out to the Philippines from Hawaii by Lt Weldon Smith, and from Del Monte to Australia to Malang.

P-40’s and A-24’s on Java

Our total air force in Java at the time of the evacuation in late February and early March included the 7th and 19th Bombardment Groups, one squadron of A-24 dive-bomber and, so far as we knew, one squadron of P-40 pursuits.

It is only courtesy to call the two bomber forces “groups.” They were hardly better than provisional squadrons, with few planes; few maintenance personnel and only enough combat. personnel to crew the planes we had.

The gang of P-40 pilots did a wonderful job. They were north of us, in the vicinity of Surabaya, and the Japs couldn't locate the field they operated from until the very last. Even we, knowing where it was; could not detect it from the air.

Maj Charles Sprague, who commanded the pursuit squadron, and Colonel “Buzz" Wagner tossed a coin in Australia to see who would take the P-40s into Java. Sprague won. He is reported missing in action. Buzz stayed in Australia to train new pursuit pilots, and only a few weeks ago, he was killed on a routine flight in Florida.

My recollection is that Sprague brought his bunch of wildcats into Java in the latter part of January and what a hard-hitting, hard shooting bunch they were! They fought the Japs from water-level to the ceiling; they flew their planes until they literally were shot to pieces around them -- and thumbed their noses at the odds.

At the very last, those boys were strafing landing barges and transports off the coast in the area between Pekalongan and Semarang, where the main Nip invasion force hit in its successful effort, as it turned out very soon, to split the island. The Japs had established a firm beachhead and while advance elements were striking east, and west along the coastal roads, heavy anti-aircraft batteries were employed to protect the main landing operation.

The situation in Java was identical with that which had existed in the Philippines save for geography, so far as we were concerned.

There weren't enough pursuit ships to supply fighter protection for us, so they were used for reconnaissance and interception and, at the last, were thrown in against the Jap landings. They were fighting overwhelming enemy superiority in the air and they were fighting with ships of steadily deteriorating efficiency, due to non-existence of effective maintenance.

The caliber of our pilots is the best indicated by the fact that knowing they faced hopeless odds, knowing that all they could win was a few precious hours of delay, they slashed at the Nip landing operation on the north shore at low altitude in the face of violent anti-aircraft. It has futile, it was suicidal -- but it was magnificent.

One boy -- I can't recall his name -- was shot down a couple of times. On his last trip he was shot down right over the beachhead and landed by parachute just out side the Jap lines. He wriggled out of his ‘chute harness and sprinted across the fields for the highway. Fortunately for him; a native boy was pedaling along the road on his bicycle... but not for long. The pilot dismounted him sort of unceremoniously, jumped on the bicycle and with the Japs in close and hot pursuit,. poured on the coal. Either he was ones on of the fastest bicycle peddlers in the Dutch East Indies or the Japs were lousy shots. He got away without a scratch.

He was one of the group of 20 extra passenger-evacuees we had not counted on but whom we hauled aboard on the last evacuation flight out of Djodjakarta on the night of March 1.

Of the 18 passengers we had aboard our ship, nine were fighter pilots. They had been shot down all over the island and some of them had been beating their way through the brush trying to reach Djodjakarta for hours and even days.

We didn't have enough parachutes for them... we didn't have enough life-vests... we didn't have enough rafts... but they didn’t care, they were hell-bent on getting out of Java, but only in order to re-form, re-equip and go back after the Nips.

The dive-bomber pilots had their big show in the mass air and sea attack on the Jap invasion force off Bali a few days before we began our evacuations. They flew their equipment until it was worn out. One pilot told us that the engines on those A-24s had so little compression that you could turn the prop of a cold motor with one hand. There were no replacements. (continued)

Mission to JAVA to Expedite Blockade Runner Ships to the Philippines

By Bobb Glenn Gen Hurley’s Aid

Patrick J. Hurley was an attorney by profession, and a statesman who had served as Secretary of War in Herbert Hoover' s cabinet. During World War II, President Roosevelt made him his special representative for a number of assignments. Some of these were military and some were diplomatic. Hurley carried these out with energy and fearlessness. At age 59 he was recalled to active duty and given the rank of Brigadier General.

9 February 1942

Allied forces in the Philippines are compressed into the Southern half of the Bataan Peninsula and Corregidor.

The Japanese continue their advance down the Malay Peninsula toward Singapore.

Vice Admiral Kondo, Southern Area Fleet Commander issues final orders for the bombing of Darwin, Australia.

Royal Albert Park Apartments Queens Road, Melbourne, Australia

It has been one month to the day since I brought the convoy of cars from our former headquarters in Brisbane to Melbourne, a journey of more than four days down the eastern coast of Australia. Commanding that convoy was the last official act I performed as aide to Lt. General George Howard Brett. In the fast-paced period that characterized those first few months of the Pacific War, Washington ordered Brett to Java as Deputy to British Field Marshall Sir Archibald Wavell even before I arrived in Melbourne. As it turned out, I spent the first month in Melbourne as aide to Major General Julian Frances Barnes, the new commanding officer of United States Army Forces in Australia. Barnes had selected me as his future aide last December when I was working in the Signal Office at the Brisbane headquarters. Now I had the opportunity to serve him.

News 02-12-42 The Japanese pour across the causeway between Jahore and Singapore. Java is bombed on a daily basis.

Office of the Commanding General, USAFIA St. Kilda Road, Melbourne, Australia

Brigadier General Patrick J. Hurley's arrival at our headquarters did not surprise men I had known he was coming even before Barnes knew because the official copy of his orders was placed by the Signal Officer upon my desk. As the General's Aide, one of my most important duties was to screen all messages coming in or going out of headquarters. Thus, I already knew that Hurley had been sent by the Chief of Staff in Washington, General Marshall, on a special mission to speed the critical flow of supplies to MacArthur's forces holding out on Bataan and Corregidor. Hurley was well known in Washington political circles. A Secretary of War in the Hoover administration, he had remained active in national politics. My uncle, Arthur Hyde, had been Secretary of Agriculture in the same cabinet, but until today I had not had the pleasure of meeting Hurley. Tall (almost six feet, four inches), and with a handle-bar mustache, Hurley was an imposing figure. He also had a friendly manner and an air of confidence about him.

To my surprise, General Barnes tells me he is loaning me to Hurley. My orders are to accompany Hurley as his aide. We are to fly to the Netherlands East Indies on a special mission. Our plan is to leave for the airfield at 6 p.m. I hurriedly brief another officer in my routine duties for General Barnes and "draw" a 45 caliber pistol. A quick trip to my quarters for a few personal items, and I am ready to go. It is not until 8:30 p.m., however, that our plane, a Douglas army transport, lifts into the air from Melbourne's Laverton Airfield. I am suddenly aware that in our rush to the airport, we have missed supper.

What will it be like to be aide to General Hurley? My experience as aide to two other generals had only shown me that aide assignments can vary from one general to another.

With General Brett we were in a fast-moving situation and I carried out assignments with very little contact or supervision. Brett's style at the time was to go over carefully with me what he wanted done and then turn me loose to do it on my own. This was especially true of my assignment to take the convoy of staff cars across Australia.

With Barnes I was in more direct contact with the General on a daily basis. He had me assist him in much of the routine of his office. My daily screening of all of the messages in and out of the Headquarters was an example of this. He kept me informed of his concerns and what he considered unimportant so I would know which matters he wanted called to his attention. In a sense this was in some cases a duplication of what came to him through his Chief of Staff. It was, however, a double check that the General felt comfortable with. When the General made an inspection trip, he always had me by his side. I would act as secretary, making notes of things that came to his mind that he wanted action taken on later. During the period he was sick and confined to his quarters, I was his messenger to his Headquarters. I also, at this time, took care of a number of personal errands and contacts of which he was not capable.

My prior experience had taught me to expect anything and everything. By the time I was assigned to Hurley, our transportation out of Melbourne had been arranged for. I no doubt would have many further arrangements to make along the way. Since a great deal of our time would be spent in traveling, I assumed I would be a sort of a traveling companion, helping with whatever problem came up.

February means it is summertime here "downunder" and so a dusky light lingers in the sky at the beginning of our journey. The flight is uneventful, and we arrive at the outskirts of Sydney some time after 10 p.m. Sydney's Mascot field is located somewhere in the midst of this city of some two million. I am sitting in the co-pilot's seat as we circle the city, and I begin to speculate, along with the American pilot, as to where the field might be among all those thousands of shielded lights down below. Sydney is under a wartime "brownout," which means lights are shielded but not extinguished. Many are visible, especially at a low altitude. The procedure, he tells me, is to make a good guess and then go down low enough to tell if you are right or not. We find what must be the field, but in the pilot's opinion it appears to be just a shade small for our plane's size, and we hold our breath until the plane is safely on the ground. The Australian military officer on duty is impressed at welcoming an American general, and several rounds of drinks are on the house. I am just finishing my second beer when the car arrives to take us into the city. I get us checked into the plush Australia Hotel for the night.

News 02-13-42 The Japanese bomb Cabcaben bario and refugee camp on Bataan. Forty-eight civilians are killed and over one hundred burned or injured.

Mascot Field, Sydney, Australia

Our wake-up call fails, and we leave for the airport without any breakfast. The cookies I hurriedly bought as I was leaving the hotel are passed around to provide a poor substitute for a proper breakfast. Several Australian flying cadets are practicing landings of their Gypsy Moths and provide us with something to look at while our plane is being serviced and checked. Finally at 8:30 a.m. we are in the air and on our way to Brisbane. Fifty minutes out of Sydney our right engine begins to smoke. We all notice it and soon a small red flame flickers out from the engine. The co-pilot comes back to the passenger and cargo area and tells us we are turning around and will fly on one engine to the big Royal Australian Air Force depot at Richmond, about forty miles from Sydney. He adds that just prior to landing, the smoking engine will be restarted, observing that it's "better to burn out one engine than lose the entire plane." We approach the landing field, trailing smoke, but the pilot makes a safe landing. The trouble turns out to be nothing more than a blown-out spark plug and can be replaced but it will take about three hours. As we have missed breakfast, our thoughts turn to an early lunch. We head for the local Officers Mess and they serve us a simple, but adequate lunch while our plane is repaired and checked again. We are airborne again at 1:30 p.m. and without further trouble, arrive at Amberley field, Brisbane about 5:30 p.m. The local base section commander, Col. A.L.P. Johnston, is at the airfield waiting for us to arrive. During the ride from the airfield, I start to pick out some of the familiar landmarks I recognize from my days here last December. I am delighted to see Col. Johnston has arranged for us to spend the night at Lennon's Hotel where I lived and worked in the headquarters Signal Section. As I knew we would, we have an excellent dinner and a good night's rest. Lennon's, a new multi story hotel, was built in the modern, plain style.

News 02-14-42 Japanese begin landing on Sumatra, the island northwest of Java.

Aboard a Douglas Army Transport Plane Over Queensland, Australia

With a long flight to Darwin ahead of us, we are out at Amberley Field early. We takeoff at 6:45 a.m. Soon it becomes apparent to me that we have left the coastal area of Australia behind us as we head out over the vast, undeveloped center of Australia. The land goes on and on and much of it begins to look the same from the air. The long flight grows monotonous. Hurley has tired of talking and has dozed off. I start to watch the crap game in progress on the floor of the center aisle. The co-pilot has just crapped out and is passing the dice to the pilot. "Who," I ask, "is flying the plane if both of you are in this crap game?" "It's on automatic," replies the pilot as he throws the dice. Would you like to fly it?"

In a flash I realize that the pilot either thinks that I am pilot, which I am not, or, that a pair of eyes in the cockpit would be better than an unattended automatic pilot. True we are now flying over an isolated part of Australia, and the chances of a mid-air collision seem almost nil. It is startling, however, to think that the lives of one of our Generals plus eight or ten other ranks would be entrusted to an unattended automatic pilot or a non-pilot such as myself. In the end, the temptation to control a two-engine plane in flight is too much, and I accept at once. I test the controls to get the feel of the plane. My only comparison occurred back home when a friend let me fly his little single engine, two-cockpit biplane, for a few minutes while airborne. I am surprised at how easily the big plane handles. I conclude that the C47 (military version of the Douglas DC3) is a good aircraft. I continue flying using controls necessary to keep us on our assigned course. Two hours later the pilot returns and takes over. One fuel stop is necessary on this long flight and this gives passengers a chance to walk around and stretch their legs. We stop at the small Western Queensland town of Concurry. A small Australian military unit is running the airstrip. They are not prepared to feed us but send a soldier Into town in a jeep to get us some food. He comes back with cold mutton sandwiches and lemonade. The sun is out full force in the Australian summer, and the heat and flies are almost unbearable. I decide cold sandwiches are better than a hot meal after all. We are glad to get back into the air.

Hours later, at about 5:30 p.m., we get our first view of Darwin Harbor in the distance. On our landing approach, I count thirteen American and Australian ships in the harbor. I remember thinking almost absentmindedly what a good target they would make. Colonel Frank La Rue, the army's base section commander for Darwin, is waiting for us at the Royal Australian Air Force field. We ride with La Rue in his car to the Hotel Darwin on the Esplanade that faces the outer harbor and the Timor Sea. This brand new, two-story hotel I learn is the pride of the small community of Darwin. It is quite pleasant and situated beautifully with its fine view of the water. We know we won't be spending tonight here. Our plans are to have dinner and a short rest in the evening, as we leave for Java later tonight.

Dinner is rushed as Hurley wants to visit the docks while there is still light. There is a lot of activity at the docks because a convoy is being formed with orders to sail to Koepang in a last ditch effort to reinforce Timor. The convoy is to include detachments of Australian troops and U.S. artillery on four transports. The escort will be the cruiser U. S. S. Houston, the destroyer U.S.S. Peary, and two Australian Navy sloops. They are expected to leave around midnight tomorrow night. Men and equipment are being loaded onto the transports. The one ship Hurley decides to go on is the cruiser Houston. Captain Rocks meets us at the gangway and shows us over his ship. He is concerned about one of his gun turrets that has been put out of action in a recent engagement. We look at the twisted metal, and while it is not completely destroyed, it looks beyond local repair.

On our way back to the hotel we see a sailor limping along toward the docks. Hurley has the driver stop the car so he can ask the sailor where he is going in his present condition. The sailor replies that he has been in the hospital but on finding out that his ship is leaving he got up and walked out so he could sail with his buddies. He said his ship was the Houston. (History will show that the Houston was sunk in the next few days in the Battle of the Java Sea).

Back at the hotel, Hurley manages to sleep for an hour while I organize our luggage and make final arrangements for leaving. An hour later, at 11:45 p.m., we climb into an LB30 Liberator heavy bomber, wave good-bye to La Rue, and head out into the darkness over the Timor Sea.

News 02-15-42 The Timor replacement convoy leaves Darwin around midnight. The Japanese carry out intensive bombing of Corregidor. A Japanese task force of four carriers, two battleships, three heavy cruisers, and twelve destroyers leaves Palau and moves southward through the Molucca Passage in the Arafura Sea, north of Australia. Singapore falls to the Japanese. General Arthur Percival surrenders some 130,000 men.

In the nose compartment of an LB30 Bomber over the Timor Sea.

Because I must make sure that the luggage gets on, I am the last to board the plane. By this time, the main entrance has been closed, so one of the ground crew directs me up into the nose compartment. This is the place where the bomb sights and the bomb release equipment are kept. In front and to the sides are wide windows from which I can see the engines. Behind and below is the nose-wheel well with the wheel retracted up into the fuselage. Because of my last minute entrance into the plane, I have not been shown how to get back to the main cabin and there are no lights or directions. It is beginning to get cold, and I make an attempt to find my way back to get some blankets. I get tangled up in some control wires and think it best to turn back. There must be some simple way to get back but in the darkness I cannot find it. My cool cotton uniform is not enough clothing for a night flight at cruising altitude. Also my legs are starting to become cramped, and I feel a very strong desire to stretch out at full length. I see someone's barracks bag that can be used for a pillow. I curl around the retracted nose wheel and pull my raincoat over me for a blanket as I prepare to go to sleep. I know our estimated time of arrival so I set the "alarm clock" in my brain for one hour before the pilot will open the floor out from under me for the landing.

I do, in fact, get some sleep and wake up on schedule just a few minutes before dawn. We are at a lower altitude, and it is not so cold. I can make out the water below me so I know we are still over the Timor Sea. I have one of the sandwiches I brought aboard the night before. It is dry and made out of stale army bread, but I find it delicious, nevertheless. It is now starting to grow light, and this makes me feel better. I am now crouched before the big front windows watching for the first sight of land. Soon, I see one of the most beautiful sights I have ever seen. Java has been called the "Green Gem of the Pacific" and now I understand why. From my vantage point in the nose I take in every detail as we fly lower and lower toward our destination. Now that it is light I easily find my way back to the main cabin. Hurley greets me with the not-too-exciting news that the navigator has made an error and we are twenty-five miles off course. He tells me we will be a few minutes late in landing in Malang. If I had known, I thought to myself, I could have had a few minutes longer sleep.

At 6:30 a.m. we land at the military airfield near Malang. This is my first trip to a forward area that is being bombed on a daily basis and I am shocked at what I see. Everywhere I look I see another of our wrecked aircraft. The serviceable ones are either protected in revetments or have wooden coverings over them to resemble shacks. Colonel Eubank, the 7th [& 19th] Bomb Group commander, is at the airfield to meet us. He drives us into town to his house for breakfast. The town of Malang is very clean and fresh looking and the colonel has acquired one of the better places to serve as his house and headquarters. Breakfast is very lavish and features a lot of fresh fruit. I enjoy it more than any meal that I have had since leaving Melbourne. Eubank looks at his watch and casually remarks that we had better leave the field by eight as he is expecting a raid by nine. We take his advice, and our meal comes to an abrupt end. We are in the air on our way to Bandoeng by a few minutes after eight.

In the air I have my first chance to get acquainted with our pilot and crew. Our pilot is Lt. Kelsay who only arrived in Malang the 26th of last month. Kelsay, a young Lt. like myself has already seen plenty of action with the 7th Bomb Group.

Our rear gunner becomes sick, and I volunteer to take his place. In this exposed position I have a very good view of the country we are flying over. I see several smoking volcanoes and numerous terraced rice fields. The coloring is a mixture of every conceivable shade of green. By noon we have made it to Bandoeng without incident. The approach is a beautiful sight. Out of the sea of tropical green, the immaculate white houses with red tile roofs make a vivid contrast. On the ground, I find spotless streets and a simple, industrious, happy people. I do not see any evidence of poverty.

We go at once to the Savoy Hotel where Generals Brett and Brereton are waiting for us. I needed no introduction to Brett as I had been his aide during the preceding month. He greeted me in his quiet, friendly manner. As a Lt. General, he is Deputy Commander in Chief of Wavell's ABDA command. This was the first time that I had met Major General Brereton. An energetic little man, he made a marked contrast with the tall, deliberate Hurley. Brereton had been air officer in the Philippines on December 8 when most of MacArthur's air power had been destroyed on the ground at Clark Field. Now he is in command of Wavell's air arm at the ABDA command. As they and Hurley have a quick conference, I have a chance to look at the hotel and make arrangements for our rooms. This is a large, multistory big-city hotel. Even so, it has blended in with its tropical surroundings by the use of plants and vegetation in its interior decoration. As I am talking to the clerk at the front desk, the air raid warning sounds. No planes appear and we soon get the all clear. Next we have a very fine ten-course lunch, served in the Javanese style. This means that you are supplied with rice and then ten waiters pass by you for you to choose from their platters. We are offered various kinds of meat and chicken cooked in sauces, fish and shellfish, curries, and cooked vegetables. General Brett advises us to be selective and only choose a few items of compatible flavors at each meal.

During lunch, talk turns to the critical position that Java is in. Brereton for one is already looking for his next base of operations when Java falls. (We do not know it at the time but this turns out to be India). After lunch, Brett suddenly decides that instead of staying here we should go up to the headquarters at Lembang. We leave in such a hurry that I do not have time to pay for the ten-course lunch or the rooms.

Lembang is about twelve miles up into the mountains. The drive is pleasant and cool enough that we have the car heater on before we arrive. The Hotel Montagne is a small resort hotel that has been taken over by the military. The hotel is a single story rambling complex to conform to the informality of a recreation resort. A main building houses the lobby, dining room, bar, and meeting rooms. Sleeping rooms are grouped in separate buildings to take advantage of the magnificent mountain views. We have time to get settled in before dinner. As at the Savoy, the meal is served in the Javanese fashion. General Wavell and his staff dine here so the atmosphere is exclusively military. Before we eat, we stand while a loud speaker blares out, one after another, the national anthems of Java (our host country), The Netherlands, England, Australia, the United States, and finally Nationalist China. This evening I have time to visit with several of my Lt. friends who are stationed here.

I learn that the Dutch have an excellent intercontinental communication facility nearby in the Bandoeng hills. Probably, this was one reason for choosing this area as the headquarters site. Java is heavily populated with almost 40 million people. I now learn that it is also a land of rain forests, swamps, jungles, and more volcanoes than anywhere else in the world. My bed tonight is hard and not very comfortable, but nevertheless I have a wonderful sleep.

News 02-16-42 The bombing of Bataan intensifies. Both Bataan and Cabcaben Fields are hit. The Timor reinforcement convoy is attacked by 35 enemy bombers and 9 flying boats. None of our ships are sunk but the lack of air support causes Wavell to order the convoy back to Darwin.

Hotel Montagne Lembang, Java

This morning I feel refreshed after a good night's sleep. I step out of my room and see a most beautiful view. My room faces away from the street and from it I can see the nearby volcano in a natural setting of trees and small native huts. After breakfast, I walk to headquarters. Getting into Wavell's headquarters turns out to be a startling experience. A group of four Javanese guards at the gate raise their loaded rifles and point them directly at me as I approach. I quickly hand one of them my simple, hand-written pass and await their reaction. My pass goes from one to the other as each one studies it carefully. They exchange a few words in their language. Suddenly, they smile, my pass is handed back, and I am waved into the headquarters. I talk a Dutch Transportation Lt. into loaning me a car so I can drive into Bandoeng to do some shopping. I am warned about the amount of foot traffic along the roads and the mounting tension with the native population. "Try not to hit anyone, but if you do just keep on going," is the current advice being given. I get into town without mishap and find a number of well-stocked stores. Much of the merchandise is from China and other parts of the East. I buy a set of carved Javanese Heads, an ivory "Canton Ball," and a carved Chinese figure. Most of the merchandise in the stores is handmade rather than manufactured. I stop for coffee and am amazed at the beautifully decorated pastries available. All are lavishly done by hand.

I am back at headquarters in time to have lunch. Hurley is having lunch with Wavell and is kind enough to have me included. This afternoon, Hurley has me sit in on a conference he has with Brereton. I am expecting something about the blockade runner ships, but they are not mentioned. Brereton relates how Sumatra and Bali on each side of us have just fallen. He predicts Java will be next. His long range bombers need to be moved farther from the front, and he is thinking of India. In passing I see Vice Admiral Conrad Helfrick, the Naval Commander, and several other high-ranking Dutch officers. When off duty, the officers frequently congregate in the bar at the hotel. The favorite drink is beer or the Dutch standby, Rots gin.

News 02-17-42 The Japanese carrier force reaches the Timor Sea, immediately north of Australia.

HQ of General Sir Archibald Wavell ABDA Command, Lembang, Java

After breakfast, Hurley informs me that Wavell has agreed to release the ships and that we will be leaving later today. I am filled with mixed emotions. I will be sorry to leave this beautiful, interesting place, but with the deteriorating war situation I realize we should get back to Australia now that our mission has been completed. There is time for one last drive to town before lunch, courtesy of my new friend, the Dutch Transportation Lt. After an early lunch at the hotel, I busy myself with our luggage, paying bills and saying goodbyes. The hotel manager is trying to tell me something, but it is hard to understand because of his accent. In a few moments I begin to understand. The word about the fall of Singapore has filtered down to him, and he, with reason, is agitated. No doubt he is calculating how many days it will be before it will be Java's turn.

General Brereton leaves with us as he needs to go to Malang to conduct an awards ceremony. We leave in our Liberator shortly after noon. Along the way, we run into one of those tropical storms that make Java such a green place. It was unpleasant and rainy all the way into Malang. As we land, sprays of water come up into the plane through the bomb-bay area.

The rain has let up for the moment but the field is wet and very slick. The awards ceremony for some of the pilots is taking place in one of the hangers. Out of the open hanger door, we see a flight of bombers returning from their mission. We witness one slip off the runway. Most make it but with difficulty. Eubank is naturally more interested in seeing if his planes get safely on the ground than he is in what Brereton and Hurley are saying. He keeps inching closer to the open door. Hurley is the last to speak. He is part American Indian and always ends his speeches with the "Choctaw" war cry. Today he outdoes himself in volume and intensity. The already nervous Eubank turns white as a sheet and visibly stiffens.

After the ceremony, we all go to the nearby Palace Hotel for a drink. Col. Robenson, who has come down from Surabaya to meet with Hurley, joins us. Robenson had been Base Section Commander in Darwin prior to La Rue. He has been in Surabaya assisting with the blockade runner ships that are trying to reach the Philippines. His meeting with Hurley, therefore, is all part of the mission. I was not privy to what was discussed.

Before leaving the Palace Hotel, we are briefed by Eubank's Intelligence Officer. "It doesn't look good," is his first remark. "The Timor reinforcement convoy has been bombed, it has turned around and is now on its way back to Darwin. Of most concern to you people, however, is that we have spotted an enemy carrier force in the Timor Sea between here and Australia. Not sure of the size," he continues. "Probably two carriers plus supporting ships." Hurley wants to leave as soon as possible and try to get past them under cover of darkness. It is already too late for a daylight takeoff so this would mean not only a night flight but a night takeoff as well. Eubank interrupts to say that under the circumstances he cannot possibly allow a night takeoff from his field. He goes on to explain that the morning raid has left him with a large bomb crater in his runway that he has been unable to get repaired. If our plane hit this crater in the dark and crashed, it could make the runway unusable for his bombers. He feels the risk would be too great at night. We quickly decide that our only option is to stay all night at the Hotel Splendid, near the airfield, get up early, and be at the airfield before dawn so we can leave at first light. Accordingly we all turn in early so we will be ready for whatever tomorrow holds for us. No longer in the cool mountains, we know it will be difficult to sleep. This is a low coastal area, where it is hot and humid. I am given a "native wife" to help me sleep. The so-called native wife is a long, cloth stuffed cylinder that is taken to bed. Its purpose is to keep the mosquito netting from closing in around you and further restricting the flow of air. Somehow I manage to get a couple of hours of sleep.

This small resort hotel was in the mountains about 12 miles from Bandoeng, Java. It was taken over by General Wavell' s ABDA (American, British, Dutch, Australian) command. It was used to house members of his allied staff.

News 02-18-42 The Japanese carrier task force is steaming to launch position in the Timor Sea. The Timor reinforcement convoy reenters the port of Darwin. The cruiser Houston and destroyer Peary refuel and head back north into the Timor Sea.

Hotel Splendid Malang, Java

My alarm has me up at 4 a.m. I quickly dress and stagger out to the lobby. There I find that Eubank has sent one of his majors to drive Hurley and me to the field. The Major is slumped into a chair and grumpy at being made to get up this early. He refuses to help with any of the luggage; he is only there to drive us to the field. This doesn't bother me as I am capable of handling what luggage we have and have done so on several occasions. A good breakfast has been laid out for us but unfortunately I do not have the time or appetite to do it justice.

When we arrive at the airfield, we find Eubank already there, presumably to be sure that we don't fudge on the takeoff time. The pilot and co-pilot are walking the field, looking at the crater, and deciding how they will ease around it on the takeoff. The flight plan that has been filed is for us to fly due south until in sight of the coast of Australia and then northeast to Darwin. This will take us a lot longer than the direct route but the purpose is to give the carrier task force a wide berth. Hurley is pushing to leave right away now that we are all at the field. Eubank says we must wait until we can see the other end of the runway. The pilot finally convinces Eubank that he has gone over every foot of the runway, knows where the crater is, and that if we can see halfway down the field we will be able to see the other half when we get to the midpoint. Eubank gives in, and we get under way just before dawn. Puddles of water, from recent rains, are all over the field. As we thunder down the field, I see water splashing up all around us, including through the bomb bay doors. The American Colonel Warren J. Clear, who got out of Singapore before the fall, is sitting beside me and observes that with all this water we must look like the China Clipper taking off.

We are somehow in the air without crashing or slipping off the runway. On the long flight ahead of us, I am pressed into service as the left-side gunner. I am not a properly trained gunner but had an introduction to machine guns at the private military school I attended as a teenager. All of the gunners on the plane are equipped with throat mikes to be in contact with the pilot at all times. I request permission to fire a short burst to get the feel of the gun. All of us are tense for the entire flight. At any moment, we expect to be detected and jumped by enemy fighters. Luckily for us, we are undetected by the carrier task force and after a very long, tiring flight make it safely to Darwin late in the afternoon. La Rue is waiting for us to take us to the Hotel Darwin. My room is room #2, and after an early dinner, I retire early for what I hope will be a long, restful sleep.

News 02-19-42 The destroyer Peary has used up fuel last night in a submarine chase and returns to Darwin in the early AM for additional fuel. The Japanese carrier task force reaches launch position 350 kilometers NW of Darwin in the early morning. At 9:58 a.m., 188 aircraft from the Japanese carrier task force attack Darwin. Primary targets are shipping and port facilities of Darwin Harbor. A secondary target is the town of Darwin. At 11:57 a.m., 54 land-based aircraft from Kendari in the Celebes and Ambon on Ambon Island attack Darwin. The primary target is the RAAF base at Darwin.

Room #2 Hotel Darwin The Esplanade, Darwin Australia

I dream of two long lanes of field guns drawn up facing each other. BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, they go as they keep up a steady fire at each other. Suddenly I awake with a start realizing that at least the sound is real and not just in my dream. I am standing by my bed in my pajamas when there is a tremendous explosion outside my window in front of the hotel. The window shatters in front of me and glass and debris are flying through the room. Without thinking I rush to the broken window and look outside. My room faces the Esplanade in front of the hotel. There, I see an anti-aircraft battery across the park area 150 yards away. It is keeping up a steady, firing of BOOM, BOOM, BOOM. I can now see that the explosion that shattered my window was a near miss on the battery. The hotel is near enough to the battery to be in danger of being destroyed by a near miss. I grab my clothes on the bed and my 45cal. side arm and hurriedly dress as I rush down to the lobby.

Later, when Hurley has a chance to talk to me, he tells me that, as was his custom, he had been up early and was in back of the hotel getting some fresh air before breakfast. A handful of other people were also there for the same purpose. Always the politician, Hurley saw the opportunity for a speech. Gathering the small group around him, he started on a positive note by telling them about how help would be coming from the south. He was just telling them about the fleets of aircraft, from American forces in the south of Australia that would be transferred to Darwin, when everyone heard the sound of many aircraft engines. Looking up they saw a long line of aircraft coming from the south. What beautiful timing, thought Hurley, just as I'd promising them reinforcements, they arrive as if on cue. This calls for a cheer, Hurley told the group. Hat in hand, waving above his head, Hurley was leading the cheer when the bombs start to fall. Hurley said that if it had not been so tragic it would have been a good joke on him.

The explosion that shattered my window also picked up a large boulder and put it in a trajectory that carried it over the hotel. As Hurley and the others hurried into the hotel, the boulder crashed through an overhang and hit Hurley in the shoulder, knocking him to the ground. He was picked up and helped into the lobby.

From what I observed of Col. La Rue that day, he must have been up early, expecting another busy day. He must have been worried about the latest intelligence reports of enemy activity, and besides this he had a visiting General in town to take care of. Perhaps he stopped by his office first to see if any late reports had come in, and then his driver would have taken him to the Hotel Darwin to pick up the General and his aide and take them to the RAAF field. He would have been in his car, on the Esplanade near the hotel when the anti-aircraft battery opened up and the bombs started to fall. His car would have just stopped in front of the hotel when the explosion that awakened me occurred just the other side of the Esplanade. Without even speaking to his driver, he no doubt rushed into the lobby.

* * *

Three people enter the lobby at almost the same moment. I descend the stairs from the second floor. Hurley, with a bloody and bruised shoulder, is being helped along a corridor coming from the back door. La Rue, enters the front door. La Rue and I take care of Hurley by stopping the bleeding and stuffing some material into his shirt to serve as a temporary bandage. We load Hurley into La Rue's car and drive about four blocks from the hotel toward the inner harbor until we find a house built on stilts which has easy access underneath it. From this vantage point, we can at least stay hidden when enemy fighters come strafing past us. We emerge when we can to look across into the harbor. Some of the fighters come so low that I clearly make out the pilots in the cockpits. As they fly past, I jump out and fire my pistol at them. I don't, of course, hit anything, but it helps to be doing something. The bombers are coming over steadily and we can see them clearly. Shipping is getting most of their attention, especially those in the inner harbor.

The enemy planes leave and we stand in the middle of the street and look around. In front of me, it looks like the harbor is full of blazing ships. On my left, a huge column of smoke is rising from several oil storage tanks that have been set on fire. On my right, smoke is rising from the vicinity of the railroad yards. Behind me a huge column of smoke looks like it is coming from the RAAF field. I walk down to the water's edge. As I am standing there watching, the destroyer Peary and three other ships go under. Several other ships are burning and look like they could sink at any time. While I am still standing there, a ship that had been unloading explosives at the dock, blows up. This is the 6600 ton Neptuna, loaded with depth charges. The tremendous explosion seems to shake the town. A section of the dock is blown completely out of the water. Mud is brought up from the bottom and thrown into the air. Some of the explosives from the cargo must have been thrown into the air as they are exploding above the ship like a string of huge firecrackers. There are some men, survivors of ships, that are in the water swimming toward the shore. There are some patches of blazing oil that they must swim around. People are at the water's edge waiting to help them.

After a few minutes we decide that we should go back to the hotel, collect our things, and continue our journey south. We find that the hotel has not suffered a direct hit, but that all of the windows are shattered, and there is broken glass, rocks and debris everywhere. To me, it looks like the dining room has suffered the most damage. While Hurley and I are collecting our things, La Rue is calling the airfield to find out if our plane has been hit or not. La Rue reports that he was told that our plane has some damage to one of the engines, but otherwise is intact. Hurley thinks we should check out and go to the airfield in anticipation of the damage being fixable. I go to pay our bills and find that all of the hotel staff have left and have not yet returned. This makes yet another unpaid bill.

We load our luggage into La Rue's car and head for the airfield. Col. Warren J. Clear, who flew with us from Malang, is with us as he needs a ride south and Hurley has been good enough to let him join us. Hurley and Clear sit in the back seat. In the front are seated the driver, La Rue in the middle, and I am on the other side.

We are just out of the downtown area on our way to the airfield and a second raid is just starting. Without any warning, bombs are dropping and I begin to see bombers from the direction of the airfield. La Rue becomes very agitated. He wants out of the car so urgently that he and the driver scramble out while the car is still moving. I quickly slide over and guide us to a safe stop by the side of the road. We are near what appears to be an abandoned school. We go inside the school building which is now empty. Hurley is showing signs of tiring. I find a place under the stairs where he can lay down and he says it makes him feel better. Perhaps his shoulder is hurting him, but he does not admit it.

I go out into the school yard where some of the local residents are congregating. One man identifies himself as a university professor and is going around taking pulse rates. He says he is Interested in how different people react in wartime situations, and the pulse rate is a good indicator. A beautifully maintained formation of twenty-seven bombers are overhead. They are flying just above the anti-aircraft fire directed against them. I can plainly see the bursts exploding just below them. A young Australian man rides up on a bicycle and gives us a chuckle by exclaiming, "If those bloody Japs damage my bike there's going to be hell to pay." Unlike the first raid, I have not seen any fighters in this one. This second raid lasts about as long as the first.

Before continuing to the airfield, we take a few minutes to drive around the downtown area to look at the damage. Many of the buildings are badly damaged, some with only the walls standing. The American Headquarters is one of the few places that is still pretty much intact.

When we arrive at the airfield, we are shocked at the destruction we see. The Liberator bomber we left there yesterday afternoon is now four smoking engines laying on the ground with a twisted mass of framework strewn around behind them. The damage to the field and the other planes is so extensive that there is no thought of getting out by plane today. Hurley is able to get a better bandage for his shoulder, and the Officer's Mess comes up with some sandwiches for us.

Hurley is anxious to get under way as soon as possible and asks La Rue what the possibilities are. Someone at the field comes up with a map that shows that there is a so-called international highway from Darwin south to Alice Springs. La Rue says he really doesn't know anything about road conditions south of Adelaide River, which is about 50 miles. Hurler says that with a name like the International Highway and being shown on the map by a heavy line, there must be some kind of a road. He decides that we will try it.

At La Rue's motor pool, we are given what is known as a Command Car. It was designed for high ranking officers to ride around on a World War One type battlefield. It is a high clearance, 4x4 drive, all-terrain type vehicle, with a power winch on the front. It has two open seats with straps to hold occupants in. It has running boards, and on one side there is a 5 gallon can of extra fuel, and on the other side a spare tire. There is even a compartment in the rear for our luggage. All in all I liked the looks of it for roads of unknown condition. To top it off, it comes with a driver who can drive it back when we find better transportation and are finished with it. (remainder of story on CD)

Escape from Java by Milford Johnson Airplane Mechanic

There were several B-17 airplanes and combat crews plus several maintenance personnel that were left in Java to fly as many combat missions as they could before evacuation to Australia. I was one of the maintenance crew.

We fueled and serviced, removed and replaced, bomb bay tanks and bombs. We replaced one horizontal stabilizer that had been crushed while hiding the airplane in the woods, and removed a stabilizer from a wrecked plane. Planes and crews were in the process of learning and things were getting touchy. there were several shot up and bombed out B-17's on this airport, I don't remember the name, but it could have been near Madium.

In one of the hangers there was a table set up with a can of corn beef with hard tack on it. If you got hungry that is what you would eat. There was one meal that was set up in one hotel and I would estimate a couple hundred American personnel were in attendance and we called it a last supper. I personally knew about a dozen of the people and we were friends.

The bombers were doing some night raids and then keeping out of sight during the day. There were a squadron of World War I, open cockpit, two winged, two and three place, airplanes that landed and I think the English flew them from Malaya or Sumatra. I believe there were around fifteen or more of the planes. They left the next day to attack a Jap aircraft carrier, (hear say) and only one plane came back. I never saw any of the planes again. There also was a P-40 fighter that landed at the base. It was supposed to have come from the north. Any way I was asked to take a Dutch pilot and show him how to start the engine and answer any questions about the plane. He could talk some English, so we started the engine and I explained or answered his few questions. He was very pleased with the plane and said he would fly it in combat as long as he had fuel and ammunition and was alive. He took off and that was the last I saw of him. The Dutch had some old B-10B's 2 engine bombers and their fighters were Curtis Trainers.

A friend of mine, a radio operator on a combat crew, left for Australia and he had an Army Garand rifle he gave to me without a clip. He told me where he had hid the clip in the hanger so I could find it. I never could understand why he kept the rifle and the clip separate from each other, and I never was able to find the clip. While I was looking for it an officer came up to me and asked about the gun. I told him that I had a gun and no ammunition or clip. He said that he had a .45 and he could get ammunition for the rifle because we may have to go to the mountains and fight a guerrilla war along with the Dutch. I could have shot the rifle as a single shot with .30 caliber machine gun ammunition. I never saw the officer again. He must have boarded a plane that night.

The Dutch were applying scorched earth on anything that the Japs could use. They mined the airport runways and blew up the electric power plants so we had to use barrel hand pumps to fuel the bombers. The officers decided that it was time to get out, so we fueled up everything that would fly.

There was one B-17 that no one was working on and I found out that the hydraulic systems were not working and that about half a dozen spark plug adapters to the leads were missing. If we had them the engines would run and the plane could fly at low attitudes with no super chargers or brakes. In a bombed out hanger, on the other side of the air field, was a B-17 that was beyond repair and it had engines on it with spark plug leads. I told the others that I would get some tools and go over and get what we needed from the wrecked plane, but I needed something to stand on to reach the engines. We had a flat bed truck that was used to haul fifty five gallon fuel barrels The driver wouldn't take me over there and the hanger was about a mile away. I finally talked him into letting me drive the truck over there but no one wanted to go with me. I got my tools and a couple of flash lights and headed over to the hanger. I pulled the truck under an engine of the plane, so I could stand on the cab of the truck to get the parts that I needed. It took only a few minutes to retrieve the parts with a wrench, pliers, and a pair of side cutters. I jumped into that right handed Ford, and sped out of the hanger in a hurry.

We went to work on the B-17 that needed the leads. All the engines started up and ran okay. We serviced it with gas and oil, and removed all the extra weight (ammunition, guns, and tools). I can't remember how many people were going to fly on the plane, but the numbers that come to mind are eighteen to twenty two.

There was another B-17 that was leaving at the same time and it was loaded about the same. I can't remember the identification numbers of the planes, the officers, or the pilots names. there was a Captain McPhearson but I don't recall the plane that he flew when he left Java. I was in the same group when we got to Australia and flew two times with McPherson. One from Melburn to Long Reach to help set up a new base and again to Port Moresby New Guina.

My recollection of leaving Java was about one thirty in the morning on March 3, 1942. There was a lot of moon light with some patches of clouds. We taxied out to the runway and I stayed out of the airplane while the engines were run up for mag and RPM tests. I then pulled the wheel chocks and discarded them. The plane was moving and I ran to the rear access door while two of my friends helped me get inside.

About two or three hours before take off, the Dutch blew up with explosives, the bombed out hanger that I had been in for the spark plug leads. Any way, we circled to get altitude and the Dutch blew up the run ways. As we were circling and climbing, the plane hit an air pocket and we dropped five hundred feet. We climbed up and dropped down at least two more times. There was some injuries but none of them were life threatening. We flew to Broom Australia and landed okay. It was day light and everyone was tired, hungry, and dirty. There was a cooking place set up and we ate breakfast. The people in charge had taken over some vacant houses in town and they assigned several of us to what they called "Japs house". They told us the Japanese had left and moved out before the war. They also gave us a mosquito net and a blanket. We went to the house for some rest and sleep.

The next morning we went back to the airport and checked the plane out. There were about ten people there. They'd found that on the right side of the plane at the junction of the radio compartment and the rear section was a row of rivets with the heads snapped off. We figured that the B-17 almost broke in two, when we had rough air turbulence, as we were taking off at Java.

We heard airplanes and guns firing. There were Jap Zeros making firing runs on Broom Port Harbor where there were several Dutch Flying Boats that had evacuated from Java and were being loaded to fly further south. Several women and children were wounded and killed as airplanes were burning and sinking into the harbor. All together a total of twenty two planes were destroyed.

When we heard and then saw the planes we all ran for the holes and trenches that had already been dug before we arrived. When the Japs were done with the harbor they hit the airport and shot up and set fire to all the planes plus one LB or B-24 that was shot down over the harbor. The harbor patrol went out looking for survivors and they didn't find any.

Around forty eight hours later one American sergeant from a plane made it to shore, and same people living along the coast brought him into Broom. He was sun burnt and had large blisters on his face and lips. Broom Australia has one of the three highest tides in the world. He said that when he was about to reach shore the tide would switch and drag him back out to sea.

After the Japs left, the ranking officer called a meeting of all personnel and said there was a possible chance of an invasion, and we would have to get out the best way we could. We had no guns, no transportation, and could not reach anyone by radio. The ranking officer asked for volunteers to go to the coast to watch for an invasion force. If the enemy was spotted they were to fire shots to warn us.

John W. Kunket, Robert H. Stewart, and I were to stand by the church and ring the bell for five minutes, then run to China town to catch some trucks that were on stand-by to take us to the interior to cross the desert after the raid. The town people all left, but a few old timers stayed. One man that stayed was the owner of a grocery store. He had a slit trench, and a rifle, he said he would kill as many Japs as he could before they killed him. He gave us some caned food and meats. We ate real good there. The police department issued a .45 cal. six shooter to each of the 3 of us at the church. We never had to use them, and they were returned before we left Australia.

A GI operating the telephone switch board was getting fatigued after a couple of days, and I was looking for someone to relieve him for a few hours so he could get some rest. I volunteered because I had some experience with a switch board growing up in rural Kansas.

Around the third day the powers that be in Perth Australia sent a plane to Broom to observe what was happening there. I don't recall any more planes coming in from Java while I was in Broom. There was one more exciting event while we were in Broom. A B-24 or a LB-30, I couldn't tell them apart, came in one evening and loaded up a bunch of GI's to go to Perth. I would guess about twenty-five personnel were on board when the pilot took off down the runway. One of two things could have happened, the left landing wheel tire blew out, or the nose wheel collapsed causing the plane to crash on take off with the nose in the sand, and the tail end up. Everything was pitch black, and someone yelled fire. The right outboard engine caught fire, the pilot set off the extinguisher, and turned off all the electrical switches. In the darkness everyone was rushing to get out of the plane. I was in a bomb bay luggage rack. The walk way between the radio compartment was crowded with fifteen to eighteen men sitting at the front of the plane where they had been placed for take off. The only way out was through the back, and when we reached the door it seemed like a ten foot drop to the ground. We all got out, and the plane did not burn. I think we finally made it to Perth the next day.