Screwball Express

Kenneth H. Cassens

Description

A detailed biography of a B-17G Flying Fortress assigned to the 379the Bomb Group at Kimbolton, England, during WWII.

Sujets

• Histoire
• Segunda Guerra Mundial
• History of the United States
• World War II
• Air Force
• History
• Seconde Guerre mondiale

Informations

• Publié par: Turner Publishing Company
• Date de parution: 15 juin 1992
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781681621432
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 4 Mo

Extrait

SCREWBALL EXPRESS
By Kenneth H. Cassens
Bombardier of its Original Flight Crew
Authentic Biography of a B-17G Flying Fortress
Assigned to 379th Bomb Group (H)
Kimbolton, England, World War II
Verified with Mission Reports maintained by
The National Archives
and other reliable sources
TURNER PUBLISHING COMPANY
TURNER PUBLISHING COMPANY
F RONT L INE O F M ILITARY H ISTORY B OOKS
Copyright 1992 Kenneth H. Cassens
All Rights Reserved
Publishing rights: Turner Publishing Company
This book or any part thereof may not be reproduced without the written consent of the author and the publisher.
Library of Congress
Catalog Card Number 92-085015
ISBN 978-1-56311-095-5
Limited Edition
Additional copies may be purchased directly from the publisher.
FOREWORD
This book is essentially the story of the author s crew and an airplane. Many excellent books have been written on this subject, but Ken Cassens has expanded his theme far beyond the conventional scope. Readers will find a wealth of material presented in such a way that the larger story of the Eighth Air Force is impressively revealed. Cassens has done a tremendous amount of research, digging through the mass of data that has become available in recent years. Details of what was happening at the Squadron, Group, Wing and Air Division levels are very complete.
During the period of time featured in this book, the Germans were peaking out in flak and fighter strength. The flak was always present, but Eighth Air Force fighter utilization had made a dramatic change - from close support for the bombers to a focus on downing enemy fighters. It was agonizing to watch the German fighter planes maneuver into position for an attack on a formation of bombers, initiate the attack, and then - after what seemed an eternity - see our fighters come roaring in and destroy the enemy after the attack on the bombers was already in progress. In the long run, this probably was the best utilization of the entire force.
Cassens has touched on one of the most complex questions of the war. What made air crews fly into this hornet s nest day after day and never turn back due to enemy action? It was a rare occasion when a crew member or a crew failed to go. The support echelon never failed us, either. Through this book one gets a dramatic picture of The Mighty Eighth Team in which mutual support and respect were powerful incentives to do your best.

M/Gen. Lewis E. lyle, LISAF, Ret .
Ken has brought together, from every available source and his personal diary, a barrage of facts about the Eighth Air Force and presented them in a deadly accurate and interesting way.
This book will help all of us who were at various combat levels learn more about the war we fought and won. Whether you are interested in the intimate details of a crew s experience or the broader picture of the air war, this book has a lot to offer. The facts will enlighten you and bring back many exciting events. The ageless story of man and his flying machine is still a great love affair.

M/Gen. Lewis E. Lyle, USAF, Ret.
During World War II, M/Gen. Lyle was a pilot, Squadron CO, Air Exec, and Commander of the 303rd Bomb Group; Commander of the 379th Bomb Group; and Commander of the 41st Combat Wing in England, during consecutive periods beginning in October, 1942 through June, 1945. Currently, he is President and Chairman of The Eighth Air Force Heritage Center s Board of Directors .
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The eight surviving members of the original flight crew of Screwball Express : Howard E. Towers Frank R. Craig James C. Moore Jerold L. Lindsey James R. Keller Thomas A. Kiblin Kenneth H. Cassens Ernest Koshuta
These authors, historians, publishers and researchers :
Cliff T. Bishop - East Anglia Books, Bishop s Stortford, England
Richard L. Boylan, Howard H. Wehmann and Rick Wayman - also Victoria Washington and Sharon Holley of the Research Room, and Kathy Jacobs, Archivist - The National Archives, Military Archives Div., National Records Center, Suitland, MD
George Cully, Captain, USAF - Timothy Johnson, Archivist - Master Sergeant A. Lawrence, USAF - Headquarters United States Air Force Historical Research Center, Maxwell AFB, AL
Roger A. Freeman - Author Historian, Colchester, Essex, England
Alwyn T. Lloyd - Boeing Aircraft Co., Seattle, WA
Mrs. Thomas P. (Georgette) Scott - Ocala, FL
H. A. J. Steedman, Group Captain, RAF, retired - Kimbolton, England
Halbert S. Stevens, Colonel, U.S. Army, retired - Ocala, FL
These members of the 379th Bomb Group World War II Association
Frank L. Betz, editor/historian, past president - Lancaster, PA
Carl D. Carden, lead navigator on June 20, 1944 - Cleveland, TX
Stanley C Kircher, secretary, - Phoenixville, PA
Lewis E. Lyle, M/Gen., USAF, retired - Hot Springs, AR
Reverend Canon Roy Meadows - Kimbolton, England
John A. Sanda, Lt. Col., USAF, retired, - San Antonio, TX
Robert J. Watkins, mission folder custodian - Mont Clare, PA
These members of the flight crew aboard Screwball Express on its last mission
Sam N. Reaves, ball turret gunner - Memphis, TN
John D. Roberts, radio operatior - Port Aransas, TX
Carlos A. Whitehead, togglier/nose gunner - St. Louis, MO
LETTER FROM THE AUTHOR
This book presents an authentic biography of a B-17G Flying Fortress assigned to the 379th Bomb Group at Kimbolton, England, during World War II. Ten young men were privileged to be members of that bomber s original flight crew. It was my good fortune to be one of them.
It has been an exciting experience for me to search through the haystack of memories that have survived for nearly half a century in the minds of my crew members and myself. I have interlaced emerging pieces of those genuine, wartime recollections into this factual account of unique and dramatic events experienced during our association with this remarkable aircraft and with each other. Ours was a partnership of reciprocal trust between a bomber and its crew.

Photo of original diary written by Kenneth H. Cassens at Kimbolton, England, March - July 1944 .
Quotations attributed to our crew s members are accurate to the point of expression, but are not implied as being verbatim. Accounts of the crew-related incidents are written as precisely as I can recall, and were compared with recollections of other members of our crew for credibility and completeness before being included.
Much of the information in this book resulted from the generous assistance of persons named under Acknowledgements; through the wealth of details found in books listed under Bibliography; and with the excellent cooperation of centers, companies, organizations and publications mentioned under Reference Sources. Accuracy of the multitude of facts contained in this book has been verified through four years of meticulous research.
I still have the diary I kept about our crew s combat missions. All of its entries have been diligently compared with the 379th Bomb Group s Mission Reports maintained by the Military Archives Division of The National Archives. Nevertheless, as in any compilation of historical facts, there may be an inadvertent error or omission in this material. I will appreciate your patience and forgiveness in such event.
Thank you for choosing this book.

Kenneth H. Cassens
DEDICATION
To My Wife, GERI
And Our Children, DEBRA and STEVE
and to the 10 Members of the
Original Flight Crew of Screwball Express

One Nation
IN REMEMBRANCE
JOSEPH MILWORM
Radio Operator - Gunner Brooklyn, New York
Always on Center Stage
Deceased, April 14, 1966
ROBERT G. MATHEWS
Left Waist Gunner Shively, Kentucky
The Harlan County Lover
Deceased, July 3, 1977

...Under God...
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Foreword
Acknowledgements
Letter from the Author
Letter from the Publisher
Dedication
In Remembrance
Table of Contents
Development of B-17 Flying Fortress
Chapter 1 Trio of Tributes
Chapter 2 Original Crew of Screwball Express.
Chapter 3 The First 83 Days of 1944
Chapter 4 Mission to Frankfurt
Chapter 5 Mission to Wizernes
Chapter 6 Mission to Chartres
Chapter 7 Mission to Dijon
Chapter 8 Mission to Brunswick
Chapter 9 Grounded for 10-London for
Chapter 10 Mission to Brussels
Chapter 11 Mission to Sorau
Chapter 12 Mission to Perleberg
Chapter 13 Mission to Kassel
Chapter 14 Mission to Sottevast
Chapter 15 Mission to Bonn
Chapter 16 Mission to Landsberg
Chapter 17 Mission to Avord
Chapter 18 Mission to Lyons
Chapter 19 Mission to Reims
Chapter 20 Mission to Berlin
Chapter 21 Mission to Merseburg
Chapter 22 Mission to Stettin
Chapter 23 Mission to Berlin
Chapter 24 Mission to Marquis
Chapter 25 Mission to Saarbrucken
Chapter 26 Mission to Berlin
Chapter 27 Mission to Speyerdorf
Chapter 28 Mission to Wustensacken
Chapter 29 Mission to Krzesinki
Chapter 30 At Home in The Barracks
Chapter 31 Mission to Caen
Chapter 32 Mission to Flers
Chapter 33 Mission to Orleans
Chapter 34 Mission to Vannes
Chapter 35 Mission to Pontaubault
Chapter 36 Mission to Creil
Chapter 37 Mission to Zudausques
Chapter 38 Mission to Hamburg
Chapter 39 The Last Mission of Screwball Express
Epilogue End of an Era - Crew Reunion - The Memorial
Charts
The 379th Bomb Group on D-Day
Summary of the 33 Missions - Original Crew
Targets and Bombing Techniques - Original Crew
Lead Crews of Original Crew s 33 Missions
Screwball Express-118 Missions with 51 Crews
The 13 MIA B-17s during Original Crew s Tour
8th Air Force Aerial Bombing Objectives
Photo Index
Bibliography
Reference Sources
General Index
About the Author
Development of the B-17 Flying Fortress
Following much debate early in 1928 between advocates of naval power and air power, Boeing Aircraft Co. initially designed a series of commercial planes with features that were later used in bombers. Although this concept was promoted by the Army Air Corps, Boeing h