I am back from one very memorable experience. We were the fist two passengers that showed up at Boeing field which allowed my buddy and I to listen to the two WWII B17 members who were there to share their stories. The taller man is Eldon Lawson of the 305th Heavy Bombardment Squadron, US 8th Army Airforce stationed in England. He was a B-17 Pilot with 30 missions. The shorter man is Lt. Col. Kenneth Wheeler, 353rd Bomb Squadron, 301rst Bomber Group, 5th Wing, 15th USAAF- Italy. His B-17 was shot down over Croatia and he had to bail out. His chute got hung up in a tree, but eventually another member of the crew came along and helped him down. They were rescued by Tito Partisans. Ken was an "evadee" (as he called it) for 36 days before being returned to Italy. He was a Navigator and flew 35 missions in WWII. He retired as a Lt. Col. after 28 years of service. He had some great stories!
I took over 80 pictures that day but I'll share just a few right now. One of the most memorable parts of the trip for me was the sound of those 4 engines fully revved up just before we took off...It was ear-splitting LOUD! My buddy Tom used his phone to record it on video but I haven't had a chance to view that yet. It was a fantastic experience that I will never forget.
Hope you are all having a good Memorial Day weekend!
Cheers,
DD
ps- Pilot Lawson was kind enough to autograph a WWII Cloth Summer Flyer's Helmet for me!
