The ragged, rugged warriors

TRERAOOED,

BUGGED WARRIORS The heroic story of American pilots, In the early air war against Japan

MARTIN CAIDIN

........

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/11.!)

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In Zero! and Samurai! Martin Caidin told the Japanese side of the Pacific's greatest air battles.

Now The Ragged, Rugged Warriors reveals the epic story of the early air war against J apanfrom the fighting in China in 1937 to the Battle of Midway, turning point of the war in the Pacific, in 1942.

Here are combat stories of America's "can do" pilots, flying obsolete planes against the Japanese Zero--one of the great fighter planes of World War II. Here are the exploits of Tommy Walker and Colonel Bob Scott (God Is My Co-Pilot) in the days when America was being pushed back all over the Pacific and only a few dedicated men stood between the Japanese and total victory.

The Ragged, Rugged Warriors is a book about some of the bloodiest, roughest air combat in the history of World War II, and Martin Caidin has got the whole story!

Related Reading in Ballantine War Books When you have finished this book, you will want to read the following Ballantine War Books which give much valuable information on the story of air combat in World War II: SAMURAI!, Sabura Sakai, with Martin Caidin and Fred Saito

50¢

Flying the Zero in World War II with Japan's fighter ace-the greatest air battles of the Pacific from the Japanese side!

ZERO! Masatake Okumiya and Jiro Horikoshi, with Martin Caidin

75¢

The story of Japan's air war: 1941-45-the men, the planes, the combat drama, with 8 pages of photographs. "Outstanding!"-New York Herald Tribune MIDWAY, by Mitsuo Fuchida and Masatake Okumiya

75¢

The great air and sea battle that doomed Japantold with full authenticity and enormous narrative excitement. A U.S. Naval Institute publication, with 16 pages of combat photographs.

This is only a partial listing of more than 60 Ballantine War Book titles in print. For a complete list, write to Dept. CS, Ballantine Books, 101 Fifth Avenue, New York~ New York 10003

'If •.

THE RAGGED, RUGGED WARRIORS Martin Caidin

Drawings by Fred L. W oUI

BOOKS

•

NEW YORK

Copyright Š 1966 by Martin Caidin All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer who wishes to quote brief passages in connection with a review written for inclusion in a magazine, newspaper or broadcast.

Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 66-10063 This edition published by arrangement with E. P. Dutton & Co., Inc. First Printing:

March, 1967

Printed in Canada

BALLANTINE BOOKS, INC. 101 Fifth Avenue, New York, New York 10003

Grateful acknowledgment is made to the following for permission to reprint copyright material: Brigadier General Robert L. Scott, Jr., USAF (Ret.) for excerpts from his book, God Is My Co-Pilot, with a Foreword by General Claire L. Chennault (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1944). Copyright, 1943, by Robert L. Scott, Jr. This permission is granted in grateful tribute to the late General Claire L. Chennault, "who taught me all I knew about air war as it was then."

J. B. Lippincott Company for permission to reprint material from The Mission, by Martin Caidin and Edward Hymoff. Copyright, ©, 1964 by Martin Caidin and Edward Hymoff. Published

by J. B. Lippincott Company.

The Viking Press for excerpt from The Flying Tigers, by Russell Whelan.

Holt, Rinehart and Winston, Inc., for excerpt from Thunderbolt! by Robert S. Johnson with Martin Caidin. Reprinted by permission of Holt, Rinehart and Winston, Inc. Vern Haugland and Harper & Row for excerpts from Mr. Haugland's book, The AAF Against Japan.

E. P. Dutton & Co., Inc., for excerpts from The Lady and the Tiger, by Olga S. Greenlaw. Copyright 1943, by E. P. Dutton & Co., Inc. Reprinted by permission of the publishers.

E. P. Dutton & Co., Inc., for excerpts and maps from Zero! by Masatake Akumiya and JifO Horikoshi with Martin Caidin. Copyright, ©, 1956, by Martin Caidin. Reprinted by permission of the publishers.

E. P. Dutton & Co., Inc., for excerpts from Samurai! by Saburo Sakai with Martin Caidin and Fred Saito. Copyright, ©, 1958, by Martin Caidin. Reprinted by permission of the publishers.

TIllS BOOK IS FOR

Ed Keyes WHO FLEW ONE LOW AND SLOW

Preface War has been described as the single greatest cooperative effort of mankind. A war that extends around the entire globe and that endures over a period of some eight years represents a colossal effort that defies accurate recording.

This is especially true when there are involved in that war, and the spotty attempts at recording its details, several dozen languages, as many nations, and combat arenas that spread across and beneath the surface of the sea, on the land, and throughout the ever-shifting air mass that girdles the planet.

There is also the problem of personal viewpoints, of history distorted by anger, to say nothing of specific and deliberate propaganda, ignorance, and ego. Even the vantage of new perspective, provided by the passing of years and the calming of tempers, does not guarantee either accuracy or objectivity in recording past events. Being able to see with 20-20 hindsight is virtually impossible in recording the manifold aspects of anything so stupendous as war in four dimensions-the fourth being the time scale of events.

Yet looking backwards into history is definitely an aid.

Many of the incidents which once were seen only from a single viewpoint expand strangely into multidimensional pictures. What appeared to be black and white assumes shifting patterns of grayness. The passage of the years ix

THE

RAGGED, RUGGED

W ARmORS

enables us to bring into new focus the attitudes, the convictions and the opinions, and the first-person involvement of participants who previously had failed to contribute to the archives that hold the records of past military, official, and personal events.

These many factors have the tendency to alter the accepted picture of historical events. The fabric of familiar history seems to ripple and to become distorted. There is an intrusion into the familiar that brings with it the disturbing realization that all is not, perhaps, as we have always believed.

This is the case with the time period of 1937 through most of 1942, when there was fought through Asia and the far reaches of the Pacific Ocean the aerial war of the ragged, rugged warriors. It is a period still largely hidden beneath the shimmering confusions of time and a thousand different points of view, each with its own degree of validity.

Much of the story of this aerial war has never been committed to the archives, or has been lost in privately printed and forgotten squadron histories. The fierce combat actions of entire groups, of hundreds of military aircraft and thousands of men, have sometimes escaped the attention of historians. Much of what our combat men performed in the line of duty was committed to paper, and then the records were lost forever through their destruction by bombing, fire, or other causes; the participants also were lost or, as happened often, simply drifted away along other paths.

From this period of historical chaos (when staying alive took priority over the urge to write about the events of the moment) writers seeking facts have in their frustration drawn the best possible conclusions from meager information. These conclusions have often suffered, as might be expected, from gross distortions, because there was so little valid data from which to pen the "final account."

This book is an attempt to set much of this record straight.

Much has been written, of course, of the aerial combat of the period from 1937 through the first half of 1942, but these writings have been scattered, and have concentrated on specific areas-such as the combat record of the renowned Flying Tigers. There has never been an over-all picture of the time period in which we are interested.

Even the definitive works, such as the Air Force Historical Office's official, seven-volume history, The Army Air Forces

x

Preface in World War II, contain glaring omissions. Nowhere in that series-nor in the official archives of the Air Force, for that matter-is there more than the barest mention of the 22nd Bomb Group, which operated out of Australia and New Guinea early in 1942. But this is the group that carried out the bulk of all medium bomber operations in the Southwest Pacific through the summer of 1942, and in this role it exerted a tremendous effect on the conduct of the war in that time. The author, working in partnership with Edward Hymoff, in 1964 completed an exhaustive survey of most survivors of that group, in order to assemble-for the first time-the story of a major phase of the war period when the term "ragged, rugged warriors" had very special meaning.

This book does not attempt an exhaustive survey of the years which hold our attention. Rather it is the author's hope to present an across-the-board study, to bring into one central focus the many scattered pieces-some of them written, others previously unrecorded-into a single volume.

In preparing this book, I have found it impossible not to make certain personal decisions as to content. It would be repetitious to place strong emphasis upon those battles and campaigns which already are intimately known, and which have received the treatment of many historians. It is not the purpose of this volume simply to repeat what is readily available elsewhere, but rather to weave a mixture of the unknown, the little-known, and the fragmentary with the salient and identified episodes of the time we are examining, in order to create a new perspective of that combat period.

Out of this effort, it is hoped, there will emerge a fresh and different picture of the air war, about which so little has been presented in terms of over-all continuity and integration of 80 many different events and campaigns.

Our story is not one of the ultimate victory we know so well, but of that time when victory belonged to some distant and unknown future, and the present was filled with raw and naked survival against terrible odds.

Much of the material for this book has been obtained through personal interviews, and through personal recollections kindly made available to the author by participants in the events described. That material has been integrated throughout the book, of course, but it appears worth our while to review some of the notes taken and the letters received, if only as a sample of the diversity of the xi

TIm

RAGGED, RUGGED WARRIORS

experiences, words, and thoughts of these participants. They illustrate also the great variety of sources employed to weave the fabric of this story. For this book is not so much along the lines of the many "official histories," but rather a tapestry of material assembled from many, many different people and never-before-used notes and semi-official diaries.

From Carl W. Shrader of Amarillo, Texas: "Our squadron was based at Wheeler Field on December 7, 1941. I woke' that Sunday morning to the rattle of a machine gun and looked out to see a Japanese torpedo bomber fly low across the field. . . . I believe this was the pil;me that torpedoed the California. I moved to the door of the tent and looked up to see several dive bombers in stepped-up formation. The first just released a bomb at that moment. The bomb hit the refueling site. The remaining bombs hit hangars and barracks along the flight line. Our squadron moved out to the golf course at Schofield Barracks, utilizing the course as a landing field for a brief period. We were subsequently stationed at Moruleia on the Dillingham Ranch, Barbers Point, Bellows Field, and back ' at Wheeler ...."

Al Abramson of Chicago. Illinois, reported on a different part of the world: "The 11th and 22nd Bomb Squadrons (M), 341st Bomb Group, arrived in Karachi, India, in July, 1942. B-25 aircraft arrived shortly thereafter and were flown to China. Major James Leland [flight leader] was killed when his lead plane and some others hit a mountain while trying to cross the Hump ....

"The 7th Bomb Group was partly in the Philippines when things started to happen. Some of the bunch headed for Australia; some made it, a lot of them didn't. Some of the rest were sent to India ....

"Master Sergeant Norton G. Stubblefield [armorer-gunner] of the 341st Bomb Group ... received recognition from Chennault during 1942 . as the most effective top-turrent gunner. He also developed a 'wobble-gun' in the tail of the B-25. Some of the early B-25 models had tail gunners, and some didn't, because tail gunners so rarely lived through any action when they were equipped with only a 30-caliber gun.

Stubblefield's 'wobble-gun' was mounted on a jeep spring and carried a higher-than-average percentage of tracer arnmunixii

Preface

tion. Its principal effect was psychological-to keep the Zeros clear of the B-25's blind spot, if possible. It worked fairly well.

"Most of our [the 341st's] losses in 1942 were due to the weather in India. One plane, for instance, disintegrated in a thunderhead. The co-pilot lived through the ordeal, but did not remember whether he bailed out or was blown out of the airplane. The right engine and the empennage had left the plane before he did .. . .

"In late 1942, because of losing the Leland flight, there were only six B-25's in the India-Burma theater, and usually only two of these were operational because of worn-out tires, getting shot up by ground fire, or similar reasons. At one point, one B-25 was flying five and six reconnaissance sorties per day over Burma (usually up and down the Irrawaddy River) with a total crew of two men-the pilot and a gunner. We were short of aircrews as well as planes.

"For a few days in September of 1942 we had over four hundred ground personnel, and one operational airplane with a crew of two who were 1,600 miles forward of the ground crews. Planes destined for us were continually diverted to North Africa and to Italy. So were our food and supplies for a while ..•."

And from Robert E. Heath of St. Ann, Missouri: "I was in the Navy, stationed on the Langley for several months before the war, until it was sunk about one month after the war started. We left Cavite about twenty-four hours before it was bombed, made our way south through the East Indies, sinking a submarine on the way, and reloading at Soerabaja, then to Darwin, Australia.

"Upon leaving Darwin we started north with a load of P-40s to the East Indies and to evacuate a group of people.

But about one hundred miles out we were disabled by high-altitude bombers, which caused leaks in the hull sufficient to short out the engines.

"We were rescued by destroyers, which fired two torpedoes into the Langley to sink her. We were then transferred to the oil tanker Pecos at Christmas Island, and started south to Australia. About twenty-four hours later dive bombers sank . the Pecos and we were again picked up--by the same destroyers as before. This time we were taken to Perth.

Australia..•." xiii

TIm RAGGED, RUGGED WARRIORS William Fent of Celina, Ohio, provided a lead to the use of aircraft which have "disappeared" into tlie blank spots of history: "I was with the 54th Materiel Squadron, later the 80th Depot Repair Group. I left the United States on the first convoy after Pearl Harbor and finally settled in Karachi, India. While there we assembled or processed all planes for the China-Burma-India theater during the first two years of the war. The P-40, P-66, P-43, and A-24 were among some of the early ones ...."

The final source to be quoted now we leave (by request) anonymous: "The 20th was noted as one of the foremost 'moonlight requisitioning' outfits in New Guinea after we had been there a few weeks. It wasn't long until the Fifth Air Force Provost Marshal visited us first when something large was missing.

Our greatest coup was borrowing a complete mess-hall building in one night (metal roof, 2x4's, 2x6's, screen wire) and getting it flown over the razorback hump to our advance echelon iIi Nadzab, New Guinea, the next morning. When the owners came back to load it on their LST's they couldn't find any mess hall or even the slightest evidence of where the hell the thing had gone.

"At one time we had fourteen extra jeeps until two drivers with identical serial numbers on their jeeps went through the same MP checkpoint at the same time. By the next morning we had more crew chiefs iliat had been reduced to the grade of private than any other squadron in New Guinea.

"We had a tech sergeant and a lieutenant assigned full duty to drive their jeep around the island to spot items wnrtby of 'borrowing.' When they found some good prospects they would come home for a detail of men and trucks. We didn't have a single man that ever got the Purple Heart for accomplishment of these 'vital missions.'

"We had a singular attitude to what we were doing. We were there to fight the Japs, we needed stuff to fight with, and a good part of the time we couldn't get what we needed. So we just went out and took it. To hell with the comequences___there was a war going on!"

They were ragged ... and they were rugged. This is their story. xiv

Contents PREFACE

xi

BookOne

1 2 3 4 5

Prologue of Battle Background to Disaster Mitsubishi Whirlwind Chaos Red Stars and Zeros

23 42 58 75 98

"Niitaka Yama Nobore" Air Fight Over Pearl

122 144

Defeat in the Philippines Last-Ditch Stand-The Fighters The Tigers The Ragged Tenth China Castoffs Jungle Rats Disaster in Java Interlude The Long Noses "Ducemus"-"We Lead" The Other Midway

161 197 209 231 244 265 287 305 310 323 344

EPILOGUE NOTES AND SOURCES INDEX

363 365 369

Book Two

6 7 Book Three

8 9 10 11

12 13 14 15 16 17 18

Index Abramson, AI, xii Admiralty Islands, 36 Advance Expeditionary Force (Japanese), 134 Air Force, China, 51-55, 58, 75, 76, 78, 104, 114-117 Air Force, Dutch, 289 Air Force, Russian, 102-115 Airacobra (P-400), 310-322 Akagi (Japanese carrier), 361 Akebono Maru (Japanese tanker), 347 Alison, John A., 250, 256 Allison, Jim, 78 American Volunteer Group (Flying Tigers), x, 35, 209231, 287 Anderson, Marshall J., 205 Anderson, Samuel E., 324, 326 Arizona, USS, 122 Armstrong, John, 214 y, Japanese, 73-74, 108, 109-110 Army Air Force, United States, x, 33, 46-47, 51-55, 58-74, 75-97, 104, 109, 123, 125, 128-216, 293, 296-300, 310, 317, 325, 345 AAF Against Japan, The (Haugland), 156 AAF in Australia, Army Air Forces Historical Studies, No.9, The, 292

Army Air Forces in World War II (Air Forc~ Historical Office), x-xi, 158, 228 Army Number One Alert, 127 Asanov, General, 103 Ashley, Private, 355 Atkinson, Pete, 215 A-20 (Douglas), 41, 289 A-24 (Douglas), xiv, 289, 306 Augusta, USS, 60 Avenger (TBF), 346-362 Baggett, Lieutenant, 204 Baguio, 165 Bali, 296, 299 "Bamboo Fleet," 206 Bargh, Sergeant, 285 Barr, Julius, 76 Bataan, 166, 202-206, 207, 306 Bataan Field Flying Detach-ment, 205, 208 Baumler, Robert J., 250, 256, 257 Bayse, William E., 246 Beaufort (aircraft), 41, 42, 289 Beechcraft (aircraft), 95 B-18 (Douglas), 298 Bell (aircraft), 31()"322; P-39, 310, 311, 316; P-400 (Airacobra), 31()"322 Bellanca (aircraft), 93; Model 28; 90B; (Flash), 93 Bellows Field, 128, 129

369

THE RAGGED, RUGGED WARRIORS

Benson, Lieutenant, 204 Bishop, Samuel W., 156 Bismarck Archipelago, 292, 294 Bisman:k Sea, Battle of, 41-42 Bissell, Clayton L., 244 Blenheim (aircraft), 221, 266, 287, 289 Board, Gregory-Richmond, 265266, 268, 269-271, 273-280, 286 Boeing (aircraft), 66; B-17 (Flying Fortress), 162, 165, 168, 173, 306, 307, 308, 309, 331,333; B-17C (Flying Fortress), 162; B-17D (Flying Fortress), 162, 184, 185; B17E (Flying Fortress), 289, 293, 297, 298, 301, 302; B25 (Mitchell), xii, 244, 245, 247, 249, 264, 306, 307, 309, 331, 334; B-29, 100; P-12, 94; P-26, 164, 175; XP-925A, 94 Bolos (B-18), 298 Bonner, Sergeant, 240 Borneo, 289, 292, 296 Bostons (DB-7), 289 Bostrom, Frank P., 157, 307 BougainviIIe, 36 Boyington, Gregory (Pappy), 225 Bradford, WiIliam 208 Brandon, Harry N., 157 Brannon, Dale D., 315 Brereton, L. H., 173-174, 236 Brett, General, 339 Brewster (aircraft), 265; F2A (Buffalo), 288, 289, 346; Model 399 (Buffalo), 265266, 267, 269, 270-274, 279, 280, 282, 286, 289, 300, 346 Bright, Gil, 214, 250, 256 Broome, 301 Brown (pilot), 281, 282 Brown, Harry M., 152

B-17 (Boeing), 162, 165, 168, 173,306,307,308,309,331, 333 B-17C (Boeing), 162 B-17D (Boeing), 162, 184, 185 B-17E (Boeing), 289, 293, 297, 298, 301, 302 B-lO (Martin), 76, 94, 267, 289 BT-32 (Curtiss), 94 B-25 (Boeing), xii, 244, 245, 247, 249, 264, 306, 307, 309, 331, 334 B-29 (Boeing), 100 B-26 (Martin), 323-343, 345362 Buffalo, 289; F2A, 288, 289, 346; Model 399, 265-266, 267, 269, 270-274, 279, 280, 282, 286, 289, 300, 346 Burgard, George, 230 Burma, 231-232, 233, 234, 235, 285, 287 Burma Road, 252 Burns, Lieutenant, 208 Burnside (pilot), 337 Cabanatuan, 165 California, U8S, xii, 122 Carleton, Tex, 241 Carmichael, Richard H., 157 Cebu, 308 Celebes, 292, 299 Chaffin, Harold N., 157 Chapman (pilot), 271 Chengtu, 108, 115, 116 Chennault, Claire L., xii, 43, 46, 47, 52-53, 54, 55, 60, 211-214, 216, 221, 223, 226227, 228, 231,249, 261, 287, 288, 289 Chikuma (Japanese cruiser), 126, 135 China Air Task Force (CATF), 231, 244-264

370

Index Davis, John H., 307 Christiansen, Hans C., 156 Chungking, 79, 99, 100, 108, DB-7 (Douglas), 289 DC-3 (Douglas), 95 110, 113-115 Del Monte airfield, 307, 308, Church, lieutenant, 201 309 Chusan,69 De Maus, Sergeant, 284 Clark Field, 163, 165¡168, 173 Demons (CW-21), 95, 289, 300 Clinger, Dallas, 259-260 Department of War, United Clow, Sergeant, 284 States, 33, 112 Cole, Lieutenant, 204 Devastators (aircraft), 361 Coleman (pilot), 337 Dickinson, Derek D., 27-30 Collins, James F., Jr., 348, 350 Divine, Dwight, 337 Communists, 50, 100-101 Donaldson, lieutenant, 207 Condor, USS, 134, 137 Donalson, Jack, 166 Consolidated (aircraft), 289; Doolittle, James, 232 LB-30 (Liberators), 289, 298 Douglas (aircraft), 95; A-20 Cooper, Colonel, 240 (Havoc), 41, 289; A-24, xiii, Corregidor, 306 289, 306; B-18 (Bolos), 298; Crelle, Lieutenant, 207 DB-7 (Bostons), 289; DC-3, Crosson, Gerald J., 324, 325, 95; SBD (Dauntless), 289, 331, 332, 340-341 Cumberland, HMS, 60 361 Dufranes, J. L., 297 Currie, Lauchlin, 210 Dyess, Edward, 203, 207 Curtiss (aircraft), 59, 66, 68, 78, 89, 90-91, 95-97; BT-32, 94; CW-21 (Demons), 95, East Indies, 36 289, 300; Hawk II, 66, 85, Eguaa, Takashige, 147 95; Hawk III, 87, 88, 95; 18th Flying Squadron P-36 (Mohawk), 95, 154, (USAAF), 337 8th Fighter Group (USAAF) , 155, 289, 303-304; P-40, xiii, 37; P-40B (Tomahawk), 93, 316 152, 154, 156, 162, 163, 167, 80th Depot Repair Group 175, 212-219, 227, 244, 247, (USAAF), xiv 249, 250, 289, 298-299, 304; 88th Reconnaissance Squadron, P-40E (Kittyhawk), 162, 165, 7th Bomb Group (USAAF), 166, 168, 175, 178, 244, 247, 157 249, 251; P-40K (Warhawk), 11th Bomb Squadron 261, 264; Model 75M, 79, 95 (USAAF), xii Curtiss (seaplane tender), 122 11th Indian Division, 274 CW-21 (Curtiss), 95, 289, 300 11 th Medium Bombardment Squadron (CATF), 231, 244Dains, John' L., 154 264 Dauntless (SBD), 289, 293, Elliot, George, 140, 142 361 Ellis (pilot), 337 Davao, 308, 309 Elsmore, Major, 204 Davao Airfield, 208 EIstrom, George, 205

371

TIm

RAGGED, RUGGED WARRIORS

Englemann, John, 343 Enterprise, USS, 122, 138, 142, 346, 361 Ewbank, John, 332, 333, 340 Executive (Spartan), 94

14th Pursuit Squadron (USAAF), 186 Foye, Robert, 314 F2A (Brewster), 288, 289, 346 Fuchida, Mitsuo, 144, 146 Fujita, Iyozo, 150 Fukien Province, 51 Fuqua, Charles, 325

Far East Air Force, 162-168 Fent, William, xiv F4F (Grumman), 311, 317, 320-321, 346 Gaylor, Walt, 326-327 Fiat (aircraft), 25, 30, 54, 55, Gehrig, Raymond, 207 66; Romeo, 28, 29 Genda, Commander, 65/72 Fifth Air Force (USAAF), 41, George, Harold H., 165, 205, 339 206, 207, 208 Fifth Pursuit Group (USAAF), Gilbert, Hank, 218 81, 89 Gloster Gladiators (aircraft), 51st Division (Japanese), 41 66, 85, 95 54th Materiel Squadron Gogoj, Sergeant, 352-355, 359 (USAAF), xiv Gonzalez, Manuel, 139 Greenhalgh (pilot), 284 56th Fighter Group (USAAF), Greenlaw, Harvey, 51, 213, 40 Flash (28-90B), 93 223 Flying boats (Catalina), 172, Greehlaw, Olga S., 103, 213, 216, 218, 223, 226 266, 294, 347 Flying Fortress, 162; B-17, 162, Greer, Walter H., 331, 340 165, 168, 173, 306, 307, 308, Grumman (aircraft), 95, 311; F4F (Wildcat), 311, 317, 309, 331, 333; B-17C, 162; 320-321, 346; SF-2, 95; TBF B-17D, 162, 184, 185; B-17E, (Avenger), 346-362 289, 293, 297, 298, 301, 302 Flying Tigers; see American Guadalcanal, 41, 310-316 Volunteer Group (Flying Ti- Guam, 36, 161 gers) Hainan Island, 74 Focke-Wulf (aircraft), 40 Hall, Lieutenant, 205 Ford, Louis W., 328 Hamer, Max, 215 Foreign Legion of the Air, 3-3 Hangchow, 54, 63 Formosa, 164 44th Squadron, 18th Pursuit Hankow, 71, 74, 85, 98, 103, 106, 108, 246 Group (USAAF), 156 47th Squadron, 15th Pursuit Hankow airfield, 85 Hartfield (mechanic), 315 Group (USAAF), 151-152 43rd Bomb Group (USAAF) , Haugland, Vern, 156, 157, 168, 297 328 Havoc (A-20), 41, 289 488th Squadron (RAP), 284 Hawaiian Islands, 34, 35-36, 453rd Squadron (RAF), 265, 121-143, 144-158, 164 270, 274, 276, 282 372

Index Hawk II (Curtiss), 66, 85, 95 Hawk III (Curtiss), 87, 88, 95 Hawker "Hurribomber" (aircraft), 277 Hawker Hurricane (aircraft), 285, 289, 300 Haynes, Caleb V., 237, 240, 241, 242, 244, 245, 249, 251 lleath, Robert E., xiii Heckling Hare (aircraft), 340 Hedman, Duke, 220 Hegdahl, Arvid B., 297 Heinkel (aircraft), 25; He-112, 31 Helena, USS, 122 Hengyang, 250 Hengyang airfield, 97, 103 He-1l2 (Heinkel), 31 Hermes, USS, 237 Hesketh (pilot), 284 Hickam Air Field, 123, 128, 145 Hill, David (Tex) , 230, 250, 256, 257-258 Hispano-Suiza (engine), ' 27 Hoiler Air Base, 123 Holbrook, Roy, 46, 51 Homalin, 255, 256 Hong Kong, 161, 261-264 Honolulu, USS, 122 Hooper, J. B., 271 Hoover, Edward F., 42 Horikoshi, Jiro, 291 Hornet, USS, 232, 346, 361 ' Hudson bombers (Lockheed), 266, 287, 294 Hughes, Lieutenant, 207 Hutcheson, Lieutenant, 284 Hymoff, Edward, xi Iba Field, 162, 165-166, 167 Ibold, Lieutenant, 204 Idzumo (Japanese cruiser), 5960 !ida, Fusata, 149, 150

Imperial Japanese Navy, 66-67, 72, 99, 108-110, 170; Imperial Fleet, 344-362; Third Fleet, 184, 190 International Settlement, 59, 161 International Squadron, 76-93 Itaya, Shigeru, 146 Iwai, Commander, 64 Java, 286-308 Jernstedt, Ken, 230 Johnson, R. H., 358-359 Johnson, Lyndon B., 340 Johnson, Moe, 337 Johnson, Robert S., 40 Johnston (gunner), 342 Jones, Private, 314 Joplin, Major, 241 Jouett, John H., 51-54

Kaga (Japanese carrier), 64, 361 Kai.:shek, Chiang, 46, 48-50, 57, 72; Chinese Air Force and, 51-55, 58, 75, 76, 78; Communists and, 100; guerrillas of, 101; Russians and, 101-102, 106 Kai-shek, Chiang, Madame, 46 Kallina (navigator), 337 Kanoya Air Corps, 61 Kavieng, 36, 294 Keator, Randall B., 168, 207 Keats Airdrome, 296 Kenney, George, 339 Kimmel, Admiral, 138 Kimura, Chief Petty Officer, 116 King, Carl, 328 Kinninmont (pilot), 271, 273 Kisarazu Air Corps, 61 Kittyhawk (P-40E), 162, 165, 166, 168, 175, 178, 244,247, 249, 251

373

THE

RAGGED, RUGGED WARRIORS

Koepang, 298-299 Kondo, Admiral, 345 Kota Bahru, 162 Kowloon, 161 Kra Isthmus, 162 Krell, Walter A., 324, 330, 335, 337-338, 340, 341, 342, 344 Kuangte Air Field, 72 Kuching, 289 Kunming, 209, 246, 261 Kwangsi Province, 48 Kwangtung Province, 49 Kweilen, 245, 246, 250, 261

Madioen, 298 Magruder, John, 211 Majors, Lieutenant, 203 Malaya, 287, 289, 292, 296 Manchuria, 51, 52, 109-110 Manila, 165 Marauder (B-26), 323-343, 345-362 Marco Polo Bridge, 49, 55 Marine Corps, United States, 310, 317, 321, 322, 347 Martin (aircraft), 91; B-10, 76, 94, 267, 289; B-10B, B-26 (Marauder), 323-343, Lae, 333, 335, 340, 341, 342 345-362; Model 139, 76, 85, 94, 96 Lanchow, 108 Lanford (pilot), 337 Martin, Neil G., 218 Landon, Trnman H., 158 Maryland, USS, 122 Langley, USS, xiii, 299 Mayes, Herbert C., 348 Melo, F., 355-357, 359 Lawlor, Frank, 221 LB-30 (Consolidated), 289, 298 Menado Bay, 297 Me-109 (Messerschmitt), 31, Leland, Gordon, 246 Leland, James, xii 288 Lexington, USS, 123, 346 Messerschrnitt (aircraft), 31, Liberators (LB-30), 289, 298 96; Me-109, 31, 288 Little, Bob, 230 Midway, Battle of, 344-362 Livesey (pilot), 281 Midway Island, 344-362 Lockard, Joe, 126, 139-141, 142 Milligan, Boatswain's Mate, 143 Lockheed (aircraft), 266; HudMindanao, 306, 309 son bombers, 266, 287, 294 Mitchel, Don, 336 Lorengau, 294 Mitchell (B-25), xii, 244, 245, Lowery, Herman F., 307, 334 247, 249, 264, 306, 307, 309, Loyalists (Spain), 24-33 331, 334 Mitchell, Billy, 51 Lunde, Captain, 207 Luzon, 161, 162, 164, 197, 202 Mitsubishi (aircraft), 44, 45, 60, 62, 89, 90-91, 112, 116; Type McAneny, Pilot Officer, 284 96 (Claude) fighters, 271, MacArthur, Douglas, 173-175, 277; Type 96 (Nell), 165; 178, 199, 204, 207, 306 Type 97 (Kate), 108, 116; Type 99 (Va!), 108, 115, 145, McCloy, R. C., 134 McDonald, William, 46 146; Zero, 36, 39, 111-117, McGarry, Bill, 230 123, 164, 166-168, 171, 175, McKenny (pilot), 280 178, 271-273, 274, 275-286, 287, 297-300, 317, 318, 321, McMillan, George, 218 324, 357-361 Madang, 294 374

Index MKI (Spitfire), 96 Model 139 (Martin), 76, 85, 94,96 Model 399 (Brewster), 265-266, 267, 269, 270-274, 279, 280, 282, 286, 289, 300, 346 Model 2E (Northrup), 59, 76, ~4

Mohawk (P-36), 95, 154, 155, 289, 303-304 Montefiore (pilot), 281 Moore, Joseph H., 168, 198 Moore, Larry, 223 Moore, Malcol~ A., 156 Moore, W. W., 359 Mori, Juzo, 147, 150 Morningstar, Joe, 337 Mosca (aircraft), 28, 29 Mow, P. T., 211 Munoz, Luis, 25-27 Murata, Shigeharu, 146 Muri, James P., 348, 349, 351353, 357, 358, 359, 360 Mussolini, Bruno, 27-30, 106 Myitkyina, 255 Nagumo, Chuichi, 132-133, 144, 345 Nagai Tsuyoshi, 147 Nango, Lieutenant, 65, 71 Nanking, 42, 44-45, 62-65, 66, 70, 73, 74, 75, 99, 100 Nationalists, 24-32, 101, 102 Nauru Island, 161 Navy, United States, 172, 310; Battle of Midway and, 344362 Neale, Bob, 225, 226, 281 Necrason, Conrad F., 297 Netherlands East Indies, 292, 296, 298, 303 Nevada, USS, 122 New Britain, 36, 294, 295, 325 New CaledOnia, 311

New Guinea, 36, 41, 292, 294, 295, 324-343 New Ireland, 36, 292 New Zealand Fighter Squadron, 284, 286 Newkirk, Jack, 216, 223, 230 Nichols Field, 197, 203, 308 Nieuport (aircraft), 31 19th Flying Squadron (USAAF), 337 Nishizawa, Hiroyoshi, 335 Nitta, Commander, 63 Nomura, Lieutenant, 65 Northrop (aircraft), 59, 70; Model 2E, 59, 76, 94; XA-13, 76, 94 Norton, Pat, 343 Oahu, 122, 124, 125 Oakden (pilot), 284 Obert, David L., 202-208 Ocean Island, 161 O'Donnell (pilot), 337 Oglala, USS, 122 Okamura, Commander, 65 Oklahoma, USS, 122 Okurniya, Masatake, 58, 63, 72-73, 111, 116, 117, 125, 129, 144, 291 Old, Don, 240 Old 1391 (aircraft), 360, 362 Older, Charles, 220, 230 Olson, Arvid, Jr., 216, 219 Ota, Tishio, 335

Paige, Charles, 203 Patani, 162 PBY Catalina (fiying boats), 172, 266, 294, 347 Pearl Harbor, 34, 35-36, 121143, 144-158, 164 Peck, James L. H., 33 Pecos (tanker), xiii Pennsylvania, USS, 122 Petack, John, 257 375

THE

RAGGED, RUGGED WARRIORS

Petrel, HMS, 161 P-40 (Curtiss), xiii, 37 P-40B (Curtiss), 93, 152, 154, 156, 162, 163, 167, 175, 212219, 227, 244, 247, 249, 250, 289, 298, 299, 304 P-40E (Curtiss), 162, 165, 166, 168, 175, 178,244,247,249, 251 P-40K (Curtiss), 261, 264 P-43 (aircraft), xiv P-400 (Bell), 310-322 Philippines, 35, 36, 38, 161197, 198-209, 292 Point (island), 69 P-143 Lancer (aircraft), 245 Port Darwin, 288, 294, 296, 298, 306, 309 Port Moresby, 328 P-66 (aircraft), xiv P-35 (Seversky), 163, 167, 168, 175, 185 P-39 (Bell), 310, 311, 316 P-36 (Curtiss), 95, 154, 155, 289, 303-304 P-12 (Boeing), 94, 175

Romeo (Fiat), 27, 28 Roosevelt, Franklin D., 210, 340 Royal, Leonard, 76 Royal Aircraft Establishment, 96 Royal Air Force (RAF), 209, 216, 218, 219.220, 265-285, 287 Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), 294, 296 Royce, Ralph, 307, 310

Sakai, Saburo, 39, 103-104, 105, Ill, 171, 334-337 Sakamoto, Akira, 123, 144, 145 Salamaua, 294, 340, 341 Sambawang airfield, 268 Samurai code (Bushido), 40 Sandell, Sandy, 214, 216 Sanders, Lewis M., 155 Sanger, Ken, 223 Saratoga, USS, 346 Sartz, Jakey, 239 Sasai, Junichi, 335 Sawyer, Charles, 256 SBD (Douglas), 289, 293, 361 SB-3 (aircraft), 104 Rabaul, 36, 293, 294, 325, 333 SB2U (Vought), 346, 361 Raleigh, USS, 122 Scaroni, General, 53, 85 Randolph, Captain, 207 Schiel, Frank, 214-215, 257 Rangoon, 223, 234-235, 287 Scott, Robert L., Jr., 237, 240, Rasmussen, Philip M., 155 244, 245, 251-264 Rata (aircraft), 25 Seagoe, Jeff, 275 Rawls, David G., 157 Seawitch, USS, 299 Rector, Ed, 256 Red Wings (Esquadrilla Alas Second Combined Air Flotilla (Japanese), 65, 72 Rojas), 28, 31 Seven Mile Drome, 324-343 Reed, Bill, 230, 282 17th Pursuit Squadron (USAReyes, Colonel de los, 28 AF), 163, 166, 184, 185 Richards, Robert H., 158 7th Bombardment Group, Tenth Richardson, John, 331, 332, 333 Air Force (USAAF), 232, Robinson, Pat, 299, 335 Rogers, Robert J., 152 234 Role oj Pursuit A viation, The 7th Bomb Group (USAAF) , (Chennault), 53 xii

376

Index 75M (Curtiss), 79, 95 Seversky P-35 (aircraft), 163, 167, 168, 175, 185 Sexton, Bob, 241 SF-2 (Grumman), 95 Shanghai, 58-60, 63, 69, 161 Shansi Province, 50, 74 Sharp, Brigadier General, 204, 206 Shensi Province, 50 Sheppard, William A., 198 Shields, R. S., 273 Shimazaki, Shigekazu, 146 Shindo, Saburo, 113, 147 Shoho (Japanese carrier), 346 Shrader, Carl W., xii Shuanglin airfield, 116 Silva, Louis T., 297 Singapore, 36, 162, 273 65th Material Squadron (USAAF),315 69th Squadron, 38th Bomb Group (USAAF), 348 67th Fighter Squadron (USAAF), 310-322 67th Squadron (RAF), 285 Soerabaja, 298-299 Solomon Islands, 36 Soryu (Japanese carrier), 361 Sovoia-Marchetti (aircraft), 85 Spartan (aircraft), 94; Executive, 94 Spiker, Bill, 325 Spitfire (aircraft), 96, 288-289; MKI,96 Sterling, Gordon H., Jr., 156 Stilwell, General, 241 Stone, Earl, 206 Strategic Bombing Survey, 171 Strauss, Lieutenant, 201 Stubblefield, Norton G., xii Suitsu (pilot), 336 Sumatra, 287, 289, 292, 296 Sutherland, Richard K., 173, 174

Szechwan Province, 71, 99, 115 Taipingsu airfield, 115, 116 Takahashi, Kakuichi, 123, 145 Tanaka, Lieutenant, 64 Tataru (gunboat), 162 Taylor, Kenneth A., 152-155 TBF (Grumman), 346-362 Tennessee, USS, 122 Tenth Air Force (USAAF) , 231-244 Thacker, John M., 156, 157 3rt! Bomb Group (USAAF) , 334, 335 3rd Covering Fighter Squadron (Japanese), 149 3rd Pursuit Squadron (USAAF), 162, 165, 167 13th Squadron, 3rd Bomb Group (USAAF), 334 30th Bombardment Squadron (USAAF), 166 38th Bomb Group (USAAF) , 345, 348 38th Reconnaissance Squadron (USAAF), 158 35th Fighter Squadron (USAAF),316 34th Pursuit Squadron (USAAF), 163, 166, 185 33rd Flying Squadron (USAAF), 337 341st Bomb Group (USAAF) , xii ''Three Men on a Flying Trapeze" (aerobatic act), 53 Thunderbolt (aircraft), 40 Tien Ho airfield, 247 Timor, 292, 297 Tomahawk (P-40B), 93, 152, 154, 156, 162, 163, 167, 175, 212-219, 227, 244, 247, 249, 250, 289, 298, 299, 304 Tone (cruiser), 135 Torpedo Squadron 8, 361

377

THE

RAGGED, RUGGED WARRIORS

Vought (aircraft), 346; SB2U (Vindicator), 346, 361 V12C (Vultee), 94 V12D (Vultee), 94 Vultee (aircraft), 91; VllGB, 76, 92, 94; VI2C, 94; VI2D, 94

Tuguegarao, 165 20th Bomb Squadron (USAAF), xiv 20th Pursuit Squadron (USAAF), 163, 165, 167 28th Bombardment Squadron (USAAF), 166 28-90B (Bellanca), 93 21st Pursuit Squadron (USAAF), 163, 167 21st Squadron (RAP), 270271, 274, 280 22nd Bombardment Group (USAAF), 323-344, 345362 22nd Bomb Group (USAAF), xi 27th Bombardment Group (Dutch), 292 23rd Air Flotilla (Japanese), 170 23rd Fighter Group (China), 247, 257 Tyler, Kermit A., 141 Type 99 Val (Mitsubishi), 108, 115, 145, 146 Type 97 Kate (Mitsubishi), 104, 116 Type 96 Claude (Mitsubishi), 271, 277 Type 96 Nell (Mitsubishi), 271, 277

Wagner, Boyd (Buzz), 20(}"201, 316 Wake (gunboat), 162 Wake Island, 36, 161 Walker, Herbert M. C. (Tommy), 79-93 Warhawk (P-40K), 261, 264 Wasp, USS, 346 Watanabe, Y., 144 Watson, Lieutenant, 348 Webster, John J., 152 Weigel, George, 78, 79 Welch, George S., 152-154 Wendt, Dutch, 84-85 West Virginia, USS, 122 Wheeler Field, 128, 129 White, A. M., 207, 275, 281 Whiteman, George A., 156 Wilcox, Lieutenant, 204 Wildcat (F4F), 311, 317, 320321, 346 Williams, Luke, 46, 280 Wirraways (aircraft), 294, 295 Woolery, Lieutenant, 204, 205 Woosung, 69

Umebayashi, Lieutenant, 63 Utah, USS, 122

XA-13 (Northrup), 76, 94 XP-925A (Boeing), 94

Vanderfield (pilot), 282 VllGB (Vultee), 76, 92, 94 Vestal (repair ship), 122 Vigors (pilot), 282 Viidebeeste (aircraft), 266, 287, 289 , Villamor, Jesus, 199, 200, 206 Vindicator (SB2U), 346, 361

Yamamoto, Isoroku, 132, 345346 Yamanouchi, Ensign, 63 Yamashita, Koshiro, 115 Yamoto (Japanese battleship), 346 Yokoyama, Tomatsu, 112 Yorktown, USS, 346, 361 Yunnan Province, 49

378

Index Zeamer, Jay, 328 Zero (Mitsubishi), 36, 39, 111117, 123, 164, 166-168, 171, 175, 178, 271-273, 274, 275-

"

286, 287, 297-300, 317, 318.

321, 324, 357-361 Zuiho (Japanese carrier), 345

FILIPINAS HERITAGE LIBRARY The Roderick Hall Collection

in Memory of Angelina Rico de McMicking, Consuela McMicking Hal/, Alfred McMicking and Helen McMicking arrested in Manila and executed in January, 1945 by the Japanese Imperial Army

379

The ragged, rugged warriors /

o 767 C23 1996 RHC

11111111111111111111111111111111111 ::::1..-"7"7::::1..-=

ground, sky fighting soldiers of fortune in the shark-faced planes of the Flying Tigers-this is the epic story of the early air war in the Pacific.

THE RAGGED, RUGGED WARRIORS "Ail across-the-hoard study of the aerial war fou g ht through Asia and the far reaches of the Pacific.... Dramatic, vivid, extensively researched." -Air Progress

WITH 16 PAGES OF PHOTOGRAPHS