Comments on: Charlie Mattson: The Last Man Alive

By: Mick

Mick — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 13:06:32 +0000

http://wwwcampfire.blogspot.com/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DhtcaRRngcw&feature=player_embedded

By: Lee Hauenstein

Lee Hauenstein — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 13:43:33 +0000

Thank you Charlie and Randall for a very nice interview!

My father was a pilot with the 487th, and I maintain a web site to commemorate all who served with the group. To learn more about the 487th please visit the site at http://www.487thbg.org/

I have added a link to this interview from our “Stories” page so that others may be able to find and read it.

Best regards – Lee Hauenstein

By: Tom Barnes

Tom Barnes — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 10:54:11 +0000

Well, okay, Uncle stories it is then.

My mother's brother, my Uncle Frank Viola, was a sergeant and radio/navigator on a B-24 on the Army Air Forces' anti-submarine run from Argentia, Newfoundland to Thule, Greenland and back. He said he rarely never got to see anything except once.

It seems that on the B-24 entire panels could be removed from the fuselage to allow jeeps and heavy equipment to be loaded into the side of the plane. At that point, the crew chief would hang a cargo strap sort of thing across the open space to allow some sort of railing to grab onto in the open air.

A new and very young kid from the Deep South reported into the squadron and got assigned to Frank's plane as a crewman. He had never seen snow before.

When the plane flew over Greenland at several thousand feet in the air there were glaciers and there was snow everywhere. The kid got so excited he ran over to the side of the plane that was missing a panel from of the fuselage. He fell out of the plane and of course was killed in the fall. They never found his body. There may have been nothing to find since he fell from a great height.

Frank used to tell that story a lot. It always left him sad.

By: D J BLAIR

D J BLAIR — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 08:32:40 +0000

My father was in the Army Air Corp. Drafted from the hills of southern Ill. he was made a radio instructor and stationed in Oklahoma and trained the Polish Free Fighters for flying in the P51 D. He never went overseas but every one he taught to use the radio was a combat pilot and one of my mothers brothers was taught by him. I know nothing else about my uncle JT Sotherlands service but he was an Army Air Corp fighter pilot and sence he came back home he must have been a good one. God Bless Every WW II Vet, even thise who stayed here and never went into combat, THAT WAS NOT A FAILURE ON THEIR PART.

By: Steve

Steve — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 19:33:30 +0000

Very good article and interview. I have a neighbor that was one of the few enlisted navigators on a B25 in WWII. He is as sharp as a tack and I have seen his discharge. He was very busy while in the AAF.

By: Dennis Rick

Dennis Rick — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 12:37:13 +0000

My Uncle was in the Army Aircorps also in WW11 and was a gunner on a B-24 I believe (he has pass away now). ( based out of England also)But he had 9 oak leaf clusters and was shot down twice. He also made the rank of SSGT, but for what reasons before his discharge in 1945 he was busted all the way down to buck pvt. I sent away for his records but they were caught up in the fire in 1973 (My dads also) so his records are not complete.
But I know he laugh about it a lot when him and my dad talk about the War…

He told me when he hits the states there were no cemonies (sp) for him and his bunch, that only happen in New York City, he came in through New Jersey and my Dad Calif, the rest of my uncles i have no info on except they were in the Army, My one uncle Steve was the only one in the AirCorp. And I believe they were all drafted. But spent most of there time state sided trainning, and didn’t really hit the action until late 43 early 44, except my Uncle Steve the Aircorp one he as sent out a lot earlier. And had a lot of OJT in England.