Bombs Away! A History of the 70th Bombardment
Squadron (M) in early World War II

This is also the story of the Ground Echelon of that Squadron which served with distinction, under adverse conditions, for twenty-five months on various remote islands of the South Pacific.

How did a single, land-based squadron of Army bombers operate in wartime across the vast Pacific, under U.S. Navy operational command and without the customary Group Headquarters and specialized field and depot support units?

This history traces the Squadron from its inception in January 1941 through the Declaration of War and the early part of World War II. The sequence will be chronological. The story will involve pre-war activity, operations in the U.S. subsequent to Pearl Harbor, activities in Fiji and combat operations from various remote islands in the South Pacific.

The story is being written in 1998 - over fifty years later. While some recollections may grow dim or distorted with the passage of time, there are certain vivid and unique events in the history of all human endeavor which remain indelibly inscribed in memory and, seemingly, compel recording.

A determined effort will be made to depict historical events as accurately as possible - to separate fact from fiction. In this effort, however, we are reminded of a quote from Winston Churchill that, "History will treat me kindly for I intend to write it." To paraphrase the Churchillian expression and transpose it to our story, it might be said that, "History will treat us kindly for we intend to write it."

The centerpiece of this history consists of a number of personal narratives and diary entries, detailing various events; vivid recollections and lasting impressions of Squadron survivors - those who were there at the time. As names and ranks are mentioned, they will be addressed as we knew them then.

In its earliest days, the 70th Bombardment Squadron consisted of one officer, Lt. Leroy L. Stefonowicz,² and nineteen enlisted men. The following are the recollections of our first Squadron Commander, relative to our beginnings:

Our Group Commander was a man named 'Swede' Larson, not our Harold V. (`Swede') Larson, but a Westside T. Larson.

The three squadrons of the 38^th Bomb Group were the 69th, 70th and 71st. Each squadron had one officer: Second Lieutenants Doerr, Bacon and Stefonowicz. Lieutenants Doerr and Bacon were subsequently killed while flying the B-26.

At the time of our beginning, the war in Europe was being won by the Germans. President Roosevelt and his advisors in Washington reasoned that we might be drawn into the war, and whether we were or not, it would be best to be ready. A big expansion of the military began.

The Army Air Corps was run from Washington by Major General 'Hap' Arnold at that time. There were no Air Divisions, no Wings, no numbered Air Forces, just the Chief of the Air Corps and a few groups of bombers, fighters, and some squadrons of reconnaissance type airplanes. If the Air Corps was to strengthen and expand, new units had to be formed, hence the genesis of the 38th Bomb Group and the 70th Bomb Squadron."1

Air-to-Air Gunnery - This was conducted over the Atlantic using a flexible .30 caliber machine gun, firing out of a B-18, against a sleeve target towed by another B-18. Bombardier Training - The ground "training aid" for the super-secret Norden bombsight rolled across a concrete floor inside a hangar. It was designated an A-2 Bomb Trainer. The device is perhaps best described as a miniature oil derrick, or steel scaffold about 12-14 feet high, mounted on wheels, battery-powered, with a platform on top which carried the student, the instructor and the Norden bombsight. Pilots (student bombardiers) "thumbed" the bombsight, and the motorized, movable scaffold was thereby directed, at a snail's pace, across the hangar floor toward the "target." Not like flying, but it worked! Practice Bombing - After graduating from the hangar training, pilots were given the opportunity of actually riding in the nose of the B-18s and dropping bombs. The real-life target was Plum Tree Island off the Virginia coast, near Langley Field. The bombs were the 100 lbs., sand-filled, sheet metal variety with a small spotting charge that enabled the airmen to see what they hit. The pilots were elated when they hit anywhere near the target. The objective, of course, was not to produce a bombardier, but to have the pilots become more aware of a bombardier's problems.

Small Arms - The pilots were given small arms training using the Colt .45 caliber pistol and were encouraged also to shoot skeet at a designated local skeet range.

Formation Flying - Occasionally, pilots participated in large formation flying using all squadrons equipped with B-18s at Langley Field. This could involve 15-18 ship formations over the field on special occasions.

Transition Training - Pilots were in absolute awe of the early B-26 "straights" when they began arriving from the Martin plant outside Baltimore. Compared to the slow, underpowered, tail-dragging B-18, it was not unlike strapping oneself into a rocket ship. The B-26 had its problems, as all new production aircraft have, but transition from the B-18 to the B-26 moved ahead cautiously, geared to the aircraft production availability. There was a certain challenge involved and a distinct "macho" image associated with getting checked-out in the B-26.

Indoctrination Training - The general procedure in all of the squadrons of the 22nd Group in the pre-war era at Langley Field was for the Squadron Commander to assemble the officers of the squadron early each morning in a hangar, and for the CO, who was generally a Major (and next to the Almighty himself) to indoctrinate the "troops." This could and did take a variety of forms - everything from lectures on Army Regulations and the avoidance of political activity to quizzes on infinite details of the B-18. For example, "Lt. Boden, what is the bomb load of the B-18?" or "Lt. Larson, what are the operating frequencies of the radio compass?" The officers stood in a semi-circle, around the CO at "parade-rest" while this went on. It was a no-nonsense, serious business.

Relative to the growth of the Squadron, we learn from official records that on the 15th of May in 1941, seven flying officers bearing the rank of Lieutenant (Sharp, Eddy, Larson, Boden, Hawkins, Jones and Griffith) were assigned as a nucleus officer cadre for the 70' Squadron.

The second problem had to do with the relatively short wing span (65 feet) of the early aircraft, which gave rise to an exceptionally high "wing loading" which, in turn, necessitated high take-off speeds and high approach speeds for landing. On the subject of approach speeds, a retired wartime WASP ferry pilot is quoted as saying the B-26, "had the gliding capability of a piano."' (The WASPs were Women Air Force Service Pilots.)

A third source of problems related to the huge, four-bladed Curtiss electric propellers which had a nasty inclination of going into "flat pitch" on take-off for no reasons apparent to us at that time.

Flat pitch is a term applied to the individual blades of a controllable pitch propeller when the angle of the blades is rotated to a flat position. It is the opposite of a "feathered" position in which the blades are lined-up parallel to the airstream. In a flat position, the blades no longer "grab" air effectively and power is lost. The condition was sometimes called "runaway props" and "prop overspeed." Whatever the term used, the result was that the entire 4-blade assembly would overspeed at a crucial time because the individual blades were not in the proper angular pitch to produce thrust.

The fact that flat pitch or runaway props occurred just after lift-off, when maximum power was needed, produced serious and often fatal consequences. The cause was later found to be associated with excessive use of the aircraft batteries in starting engines and other ground operation. The propeller control mechanism on early aircraft was driven by battery power, and with drained batteries on the take-off roll, anything could and often did happen.

s Clarion Ledger, Jackson, Mississippi, 14 November 1941, 10.
6 Stefen, Leroy L. Letter, January 1996.
7 Goddard, Don B., "The Lady Was a WASP," (Andrea Shaw), Ruralite Magazine, September 1991, 10-11.

Most pilots greatly admired this aircraft for its speed and its power while, at the same time, they treated it with the deep respect it demanded. It has been said, regularly, that the B26 was "terribly unforgiving" for the least neglect, carelessness or incompetence. This is true; however, it could spoil your whole day, even when accorded its due respect. We looked at it as a challenge.

In July 1941, Major Flint Garrison took command of the 70th Squadron and three nonflying officers were added to the list of personnel. They were Lieutenants Wilburn, Baucom and Glover. On the 25th of the month over fifty draftees were assigned to the Squadron, part of the first group of Selective Service men to be assigned to a tactical Air Corp unit. Subsequently, in October 1941, microfilm records reflect that Lieutenants Morrison, Sherlock, Sethness, Treat, Martin, Miller, Smith, Evans, Durbin and Washington were assigned to the Squadron, followed shortly by Cadet Navigators Viens and Schaper. Following closely on the heels of the above officers, eighteen other Lieutenants were assigned. They were Lieutenants Otis, Saul, Haynes, O'Connor, Ray, Rudolph, Thorburn, Van Story, Hahlen, Perry, Reardon, Cushing, Quinn, Lindsay, Huggs, Neeld, Mitchell and Patterson.'

Under Major Garrison at Jackson, I was designated as Adjutant of the 70'^h as an additional duty. In this capacity, my job was in the so-called Orderly Room. Here, I learned about the Morning Report, Sick Report, Squadron Fund, Bulletin Board and Pay Table from Sergeant Hathorn, who was then our First Sergeant. Major Garrison insisted on a neat and tidy bulletin board, but the most interesting function for me was the Pay Table. Before a pay day, my duty involved going to a downtown Jackson bank, armed with a caliber .45 pistol, and with some trepidation, bringing back sacks of money to pay the troops. I remember well at some pay tables being required by "higher authority" to read certain "Articles of War" which had to do with desertion. One of these articles stated, "shall suffer death or other such punishment as a Courts Martial may direct." It was an awesome thought and made a person gulp! The redeeming feature of the Adjutant's job was that it enabled me to associate names with faces among the Squadron's enlisted personnel.

For flying time, I flew co-pilot for Major Garrison in the old B-18 - that is, when the weather was good and he needed the "time."

In summary, during the Summer and Fall of 1941, a Squadron strength of approximately three hundred men was brought together from all walks of life. The total was divided roughly into forty officers and two hundred-sixty enlisted men.

As a generalization, the Squadron could be characterized as a group of citizen-soldiers, except that it had a group of approximately forty senior non-commissioned officers, of many years service, who formed the core of its maintenance, supply, transportation and other support or administrative functions. Draftees from the Selective Service System composed the vast majority of the enlisted ranks, including a large group from the State of Pennsylvania.

e Squadron records in microfilm at Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama.

Stationed in Jackson, Mississippi, we were stunned! Prior to the attack, very few of us had even heard of Pearl Harbor, or knew where it was. To say the least, a period of frenzied activity followed, marking December 1941 as probably the most memorable turning point in the history of the Squadron.

In the words of Colonel Stefen, "When the war began in December 1941, we were `knee deep in inexperience,' as the saying goes. But we were at war, and were scheduled to go to India to fight the Japanese."'

Hectic effort and confusion dominated practically all activity at the Jackson Army Air Base. A story told by Lyman Eddy, who was "Officer-of-the-Day" on December 7, will illustrate the confusion. Lyman, affectionately known as "Moose" because of his huge frame, had decided that the proper thing to do, under the circumstances, was to cluster all of the base aircraft together on the parking apron under the control tower, surround them with lighting, and double the guards. Why? Because, he reasoned, that the primary threat to the air base was sabotage of the aircraft by Japanese "infiltrators." His actions were reversed that same night by Lt. Col. Knapp, the Group Commander, who ordered that all aircraft be dispersed to the far corners of the base and that the lighting be removed in order not to present an attractive target for a Japanese air attack on the base - an air attack on Jackson, Mississippi!⁴

'New York Times, 8 December 1941, 1.
² Roosevelt, Franklin D. Message to Congress, 8 December 1941.

Christmas Dinner 1941

The 70^h Bombardment Squadron enjoyed a sumptuous Christmas dinner at the Jackson Air Base in December 1941. The dinner menu itself provides an unexpected historical reference document in that besides the menu, it lists all officer and enlisted personnel who were members of the Squadron at that time. The personnel listing and the menu are both attached to this history in the Appendix at page 153 and 154.

We have recently learned from Frank Nemeth that he and Michael Bobovsky cooked the turkeys for our big dinner. In Frank's own words, "Bobovsky and I cooked fifty-two turkeys for the Christmas Dinner. It was some job, but we were complimented by Major Garrison for a job well done." Frank continues his story, "When we arrived at Fiji, I asked to be taken out of the mess hall. I wanted to work on airplanes. I became a mechanic, and in 1943 was crew chief on the B-25s. We had a good bunch in the 70`^h Bomb Squadron. All of us got along well." 6

Before leaving the subject of the 1941 Christmas dinner and the listing of attendees, an important point must be made. The listing of personnel on page 153 is not in any sense a final listing of the 70' Bomb Squadron's personnel deployed to the South Pacific. Numerous shifts of personnel, both in and out of the Squadron, took place regularly and frequently. For example, our bombardiers and our ultimate group of navigators were yet to be assigned.

So, there we were in Jackson, Mississippi, partially manned and partially equipped one full year after activation, with a war going on and weighted down with innumerable problems.

Practice Bombing

Before moving on we must say that in writing a history we learn something new almost every day. Until now, most Squadron members had been under the distinct impression that no one had ever dropped a bomb or fired a shot out of the B-26 prior to our being deployed overseas. It now seems that one person did some bombing out of a B-26, and that it was in the early days at Jackson, Mississippi. That person was Pfc. Callie N. Hall, an enlisted bombardier. He has provided the following information:

s Stefen, Leroy L. Letter, January 1996.
'Eddy, Lyman H. Communication, 18 February 1996.
s United States Air Force. USAF Historical Division. Air University. Combat Squadrons of the Air Force; World War H. Edited by Maurer Maurer. [Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama] (Washington: U.S. Govt. Print. Off., 1969), 259.
⁶ Nemeth, Frank. Letter, January 1996.

Personnel changes continued. Just prior to movement to San Francisco, Lieutenants McMurdy, Lindsay, Quinn, Neeld, Perry, Cushing, Mitchell, Hahlen and Patterson were transferred out of the Squadron. Also, Lt. Col. Upthegrove relieved Lt. Col. Knapp as Commanding Officer of the 38^th Bomb Group. More important to the Squadron, on January 24`^h, Major Garrison was relieved of his command of the 70¹' Bomb Squadron and Lt. Stefonowicz became the Squadron's Commanding Officer once again. This was a welcome change and well-deserved. "Stef" was a natural leader. He was greatly respected, thoughtful in his decisions and always mindful of the Squadron's welfare.

After a four-day troop-train journey, the Squadron camped-out in San Francisco's "Cow Palace", and the officers ensconced themselves, initially, in the Fairmont Hotel on the top of Nob Hill.

Ground Echelon Shipment

On January 29, the Ground Echelon composed of three officers, Captain Shockley (the new Adjutant), Lieutenant Palmieri (our new doctor), and Lieutenant Schmedes, plus two hundred and four of the Squadron's enlisted men boarded the U.S. Army Transport Tasker H. Bliss, but did not sail until January 31 for a destination, still rumored, but not officially known.

The 70th Squadron, however, was not alone on the troop ship. One thousand twenty-one officers and men of the 38th Headquarters units and ground echelons also boarded the Tasker H. Bliss.

At this point, clarity requires that a distinction be made between the Air Echelon and Ground Echelon. The Air Echelon consisted essentially of those who manned the various aircrew positions in the aircraft plus essential ground personnel, such as crew chiefs and specialists necessary to perform minimum essential daily "organizational" maintenance on the aircraft. The Ground Echelon consisted of all other personnel assigned the squadron, such as supply, maintenance, administration, medical, ordnance and other support functions. The convoy carrying the group to Australia was the earliest to make the non-stop run across the Pacific. Leaving San Francisco 31 January 1942 when the enemy was advancing rapidly south and eastward, the ship was pitifully unprotected by present-day standards. The original destination, by now established as Rangoon (railhead to the Burma Road), was under attack while the 70^th was at sea, and the destination was altered to Brisbane, Australia.   The report cited below contains a well-stated, descriptive summary of the journey in which William J. Talley (Bill) of the 70th writes amusingly about life aboard the freighter:

' Talley, William J. Letter, 19 January 1996.

With the Ground Echelon at sea, and in order to maintain the chronological sequence, our story now turns to the adventures and mis-adventures of the Air Echelon.

The Air Echelon of the 38th Bomb Group had been ordered to San Francisco on or about January 19, 1942, as indicated earlier. The Ground Echelon had shipped out on 31 January, but the Air Echelon was held up in San Francisco for about six weeks while somebody, somewhere, was trying to figure out what to do with us. The Air Echelon had no inkling of what was going on, what was in store for them, or when it might happen. We were told to make a daily check of a bulletin board and roster mounted in the Fairmont Hotel for any information pertaining to us, and initial by our name. That's it, except that the pilots were required to get their flying time, which was accomplished by flying BT-13 aircraft at Moffett Field, several miles south. As time passed, some officers moved from the expensive Fairmont to other hotels or apartments in downtown San Francisco.

With the war on, San Franciscans were extremely cordial and hospitable to all men in uniform. On many occasions during the stay, one found that one couldn't pay for a meal in a restaurant or a drink in a lounge because somebody had already picked up the tab - generally anonymously. Very often people would shake hands, clap us on the back, offer words of encouragement, and tell us to go get those "- - Japs," or something similar. The theme of the day, it seems for everyone, was "Remember Pearl Harbor." We were anxious, even eager, to go - but where, when and how?

A decision was finally made by headquarters that the Air Echelon, instead of moving by sea, was to report to Patterson Field near Dayton, Ohio to receive new production B-26s, specifically the B-26B MA, and undergo further training. It is important to note that training in this case consisted primarily of learning to take off and land a "hot" airplane. It did not include combat applications of the B-26, such as dropping bombs, firing the guns or combat tactics. In fact, there were no available aerial gunnery or bombing ranges in the area. Even with the limited training, we had fatal aircraft accidents. On the evening of 20 March, Lt. Hawkins, Lt. Van Story, Lt. Rux and Sgt. Morgan were killed in the crash of a B-26 during a night flight. Then the next day, a second calamity occurred. On a ferry mission from Patterson Field to Jackson, Mississippi, Lt. Jones and Sgt. Gemein were killed and Lt. Huggs injured in the crash of an aircraft on which they were passengers.

The training, such as it was, continued, and in April 1942, the command of the 38th Bomb Group changed again from Lt. Col. Upthegrove to Lt. Col. Lewis, and seven more navigators were taken into the squadron at Patterson. They were Lieutenants Burns, Drewyour, Honett, Lewis, Snodgrass, Sullivan, and Winemiller.

Navigator Assignments

The assignment of additional navigators to the squadron was both piecemeal and hectic. Everything was urgent! Other navigators, including Lieutenants Soles, Ryder, Koch, Hufstedler and Lunquist joined the squadron. We know that three of these latter navigators were from the Pan American School in Coral Gables. W. Roger Soles, one of the Pan Am graduates, reported the following sequence of events relative to their assignment:

I don't believe we were in Jackson more than an hour before we were on a Delta DC-3 - transferring to Braniff - to American - and into TWA to San Francisco. Each airline flew only its permissible route. Nevertheless, everything worked like clockwork until we arrived in San Francisco. There was no one to meet the flight and we couldn't find you. After calling around, someone sent a telegram to the Office of the Chief of the Air Corps, asking where is the 38^th Bomb Group? The reply was immediate: `The 38th Group is at Langley Field, Virginia.' We knew better, so we kept hunting and found you fighting the war at the Fairmont Hotel."

The new production B-26B MAs we received at Patterson Field were the short wing (65foot) version, equipped with two Pratt & Whitney R-2800-41, twin row, radial engines developing 2,000 horsepower each. The propellers were huge, four-bladed, electrically controlled types made by Curtiss. Our B-26Bs were from a production run that retained the large propeller spinners and the small carburetor air intake vents on the engine cowlings. They also incorporated an improved 24-volt electrical system, and were configured to carry armor plating and considerably more armament. Our armament consisted of a powered top turret with twin .50 cal. machine guns; a flexible twin .50 cal. mount in the tail; single flexible .50 cal. mounts at each "waist" position and a single .30 cal. mounted on the centerline of the nose compartment. Our maximum bombload was considered to be eight 500 lbs. bombs or a total of 4,000 lbs. The aircraft was also configured at the factory to carry a 2,000 lb. torpedo, slung externally, below the fuselage, with bomb-bay doors closed - all arranged for release by the pilot. More on the subject of torpedoes later. A total of thirteen aircraft were authorized and assigned to the Squadron as unit equipment.

A diary entry from Lt. Conrad A. Ray (Connie) at this time is most interesting: "May 16. General Wolfe and some Colonels arrived here to make the arrangements for our moving out. He gave us a big pep talk. We are to take B-26Bs over. It seems that the 26s had their baptism of fire in Coral Sea and made good."'

Red Letter Day

May 20, 1942 was a red letter day. We were detached from the 38th Bomb Group and, at that point, the 70th became an individual Squadron, destined to go to war as a separate unit. When fully considered, and when viewed in retrospect, the implications of deploying a single.

² Soles, W. Roger. Letter, 3 November 1995.
³ Ray, Conrad A. Diary 1942-1943. Lt. Ray's diary is cited extensively throughout this history by including the reference to the diary in the narrative rather than the repeated use of footnotes.

William H. Moore   Leonard M. Feldman

Russell E. Cooke   Edward H. Fredrick, Jr.

Charles A. Coon   William T. Freeman, Jr.

Elmer A. Deblitz   Jack T. Gillis

Merlin C. Douglass   Milton J. Golden

John P. Ellis   Abraham Wilensky

In other assignments at about the same time, Captain Callaham and Lieutenants J. D. Ryder and McNeese were transferred to the Squadron, along with Lt. Dulac, our Armament Officer.

Status Report

It might be of historical interest to provide readers with a report summarizing the state of preparedness of the 70^f Squadron in May 1942:

• We were a separate Squadron unit, without a Group Headquarters. Again, in the words of Colonel Stefen, "The leaders in Washington decided that the U.S. Army should make a contribution and decided to send two individual Squadrons of the 38^th Group to the Pacific to help stop the Japanese advances through the islands. The plan was for the 69 `<sup>h</sup> to go to New Caledonia and the 70`^h Squadron to go to Fiji.^"4

• The bombardiers had only recently been assigned at Patterson Field, and had no experience or training in our assigned aircraft.

• The navigators, also recently assigned, were well-trained in navigation, but had no experience in long overwater flights or in our new-production B-26 aircraft.

• A decision had already been made that the B-26 could and should be flown from California to Hawaii, instead of being disassembled in California, deck-loaded and shipped to Hawaii, as in the case of the 22nd Bomb Group.

• The pilots and co-pilots were young reserve officers, mostly recent graduates of flying school, without combat training in the B-26 or experience in long over water flights. Their average age was twenty-two.

• The Squadron had no tactical training or crew training involving employment of the B-26 in combat situations.

• With only one individual exception, discussed earlier, it can be said that no one in the 70th Squadron had ever fired a shot or dropped a bomb out of the B-26 prior to our being deployed to the South Pacific. Patterson Field had no bombing or gunnery ranges and, in fact, had no runways. The entire take-off and landing area was sod - and in rainy periods, mud.

' Stefen, Leroy L. Letter, January 1996.

As we approached Des Moines, Iowa, the props weren't holding rpm, power was fluctuating, so we landed. Supposedly they were fixed by the next day, so we flew on toward McClellan Field, Sacramento.

On the next leg our most harrowing problems occurred in the mountains east of Ogden, Utah. While flying at about 10,000 feet, the props started fluctuating, we started losing power and altitude. As we got down to between 8,000 and 7,000 ft., still not getting ready to bail out, we went through a pass and there in front of us was an airfield. Bill made a descending turn and landed on the very end of a runway. The field wasn't even on our map. We learned in Base Ops that it was Hill Field, Ogden, Utah. Supposedly they fixed the electrical system and prop controls that night and the next day we went on to Sacramento. Same problem on that flight, props ran away as we descended to land.

A couple of days later they told us we had only one 12-volt battery for power and they fixed it so we'd have 24 volts from now on. Our flight to test the fix before flying to Hawaii was a 45 minute flight to Hamilton Field."

'Treat, Mark G. Letter, 2 July 1997.

May 31. Planes in hangar last few days having extra tanks installed. Guns and armor plate removed to lighten. Our ship out today to leave tomorrow."