thedrifter
08-18-04, 12:39 PM
Issue Date: August 23, 2004
The Lore of the Corps
WWII unit faced setbacks on, off field
By Robert F. Dorr
Special to the Times
Some outfits have it tougher than others.
A Marine unit called the “Fork-Tailed Devils” was, veterans say, a hard-luck squadron in the final days of World War II, experiencing setbacks and changing commanders during its final battles with the Japanese in the South Pacific.
Aviators with Marine Bombing Squadron 433 flew the B-25 Mitchell, known in Corps lingo as a PBJ, which identified the plane as a patrol bomber (“PB”) manufactured by North American Aviation Inc. (“J”).
The squadron was stood up at Cherry Point, N.C., on Sept. 15, 1943. Commanded by Lt. Col. Gordon “Art” Adams, VMB-433 entered the war operating from atolls known collectively as Green Island in the Solomon chain of the Southwest Pacific.
According to the book “PBJ Mitchell Units of the Pacific War,” by Jerry Scutts, the squadron demonstrated a special skill for formation flying at night.
“Its crews [claimed] that they could get 12 Mitchells into the air and join up in echelon — a demanding feat that they had extensively practiced,” Scutts wrote.
The squadron moved to Emirau Island and began bombing missions against Japanese bastions in New Britain.
VMB-433 suffered both of its combat losses in September 1944. On Sept. 2, a PBJ piloted by 1st Lt. Charles Ingels took off on a night mission — and vanished. All six aboard died and were only accounted for after the war. On Sept. 11, 1st Lt. Eric E. Terry Jr. and another Marine among his six-man crew were lost after being hit by Japanese gunfire while flying in formation.
According to “Leatherneck Bombers,” by Alan C. Carey, a gunner on another plane had “nightmares for years” over the loss of Terry.
“They were 50 yards away when they got hit,” the gunner told Carey. “I was looking at Terry’s face. I saw the dashboard blow up. I saw blood all over him and the plane go down.”
A Navy seaplane rescued four survivors, but the men’s inability to extricate Terry’s body from the sinking PBJ hurt morale and bothered one Marine “so much that he was never the same again,” Carey wrote.
On Dec. 4, 1944, VMB-433 lost 1st Lt. Glen H. Ulrich in a swimming mishap at Emirau. On Feb. 27, 1945, the six-man crew, led by 1st Lt. Donald R. Harpley, was killed in a midair collision with a PBJ from another squadron.
Altogether, VMB-433 lost 15 Marines in the war zone. The squadron’s morale dipped again, veterans say, when Adams left in April 1945. Between April 22 and July 17, the squadron had four commanders. According to Scutts, Carey and interviews with veterans, two commanders who succeeded Adams — each for a few weeks only — were regarded as poor pilots and leaders. VMB-433’s fourth and final commander, Maj. Andy “Guy” Smith, was respected.
The squadron transferred to the Philippines after fighting ended and was disbanded in 1946 after having dealt severe punishment to Japanese bases in the Pacific and having taken its own blows in the process.
Robert F. Dorr, an Air Force veteran, lives in Oakton, Va. He is the author of numerous books on Air Force topics, including “Air Force One.”His e-mail address is robert.f.dorr@cox.net.
http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/story.php?f=1-MARINEPAPER-297000.php
Ellie
The Lore of the Corps
WWII unit faced setbacks on, off field
By Robert F. Dorr
Special to the Times
Some outfits have it tougher than others.
A Marine unit called the “Fork-Tailed Devils” was, veterans say, a hard-luck squadron in the final days of World War II, experiencing setbacks and changing commanders during its final battles with the Japanese in the South Pacific.
Aviators with Marine Bombing Squadron 433 flew the B-25 Mitchell, known in Corps lingo as a PBJ, which identified the plane as a patrol bomber (“PB”) manufactured by North American Aviation Inc. (“J”).
The squadron was stood up at Cherry Point, N.C., on Sept. 15, 1943. Commanded by Lt. Col. Gordon “Art” Adams, VMB-433 entered the war operating from atolls known collectively as Green Island in the Solomon chain of the Southwest Pacific.
According to the book “PBJ Mitchell Units of the Pacific War,” by Jerry Scutts, the squadron demonstrated a special skill for formation flying at night.
“Its crews [claimed] that they could get 12 Mitchells into the air and join up in echelon — a demanding feat that they had extensively practiced,” Scutts wrote.
The squadron moved to Emirau Island and began bombing missions against Japanese bastions in New Britain.
VMB-433 suffered both of its combat losses in September 1944. On Sept. 2, a PBJ piloted by 1st Lt. Charles Ingels took off on a night mission — and vanished. All six aboard died and were only accounted for after the war. On Sept. 11, 1st Lt. Eric E. Terry Jr. and another Marine among his six-man crew were lost after being hit by Japanese gunfire while flying in formation.
According to “Leatherneck Bombers,” by Alan C. Carey, a gunner on another plane had “nightmares for years” over the loss of Terry.
“They were 50 yards away when they got hit,” the gunner told Carey. “I was looking at Terry’s face. I saw the dashboard blow up. I saw blood all over him and the plane go down.”
A Navy seaplane rescued four survivors, but the men’s inability to extricate Terry’s body from the sinking PBJ hurt morale and bothered one Marine “so much that he was never the same again,” Carey wrote.
On Dec. 4, 1944, VMB-433 lost 1st Lt. Glen H. Ulrich in a swimming mishap at Emirau. On Feb. 27, 1945, the six-man crew, led by 1st Lt. Donald R. Harpley, was killed in a midair collision with a PBJ from another squadron.
Altogether, VMB-433 lost 15 Marines in the war zone. The squadron’s morale dipped again, veterans say, when Adams left in April 1945. Between April 22 and July 17, the squadron had four commanders. According to Scutts, Carey and interviews with veterans, two commanders who succeeded Adams — each for a few weeks only — were regarded as poor pilots and leaders. VMB-433’s fourth and final commander, Maj. Andy “Guy” Smith, was respected.
The squadron transferred to the Philippines after fighting ended and was disbanded in 1946 after having dealt severe punishment to Japanese bases in the Pacific and having taken its own blows in the process.
Robert F. Dorr, an Air Force veteran, lives in Oakton, Va. He is the author of numerous books on Air Force topics, including “Air Force One.”His e-mail address is robert.f.dorr@cox.net.
http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/story.php?f=1-MARINEPAPER-297000.php
Ellie