Subject: If you are looking for a fight...
From: Ed Rasimus
Date: 7/7/03 8:20 AM Pacific Daylight Time
Message-id:

(ArtKramr) wrote:

There has been some talk of men who wanted combat but due to "timing" or
"luck"
they missed out. Well if you are in a unit that won't get into the fight,
just
try this. Go to your CO and say," Sir, I hear the 344th is moving out to the
ETO. I want to go with them. Here is my transfer request. Please sign it".
He
will immediately. After he signs it walk it through and you will go into
battle
with the 344th. Or of course you can just keep a low profille , keep your
mouth
shut, do nothing, then for the rest of your life you can always say " I
wanted
combat but timing and luck kept me out" and see if you can live with that.

Arthur Kramer
Visit my WW II B-26 website at:
http://www.coastcomp.com/artkramer

Sorry, Art, but you're talking about a time and process that has been
long gone. There's lots of procedure to get a transfer and it hasn't
been approved at the local commander level since WW II.

Even if one could simply get a hand-carried, personal choice
assignment approved by a local commander to switch to a deploying
unit, it would take considerable time and money to get the individual
operationally qualified to perform effectively with the organization.
Time that a unit doesn't have when they are enroute to battle.

I sympathize with your point of view that if someone really wants to
get into the battle they can take the initiative, but it doesn't
happen the way you describe and hasn't since 1964 when I entered
active duty.


Ed Rasimus
Fighter Pilot (ret)
***"When Thunder Rolled:
*** An F-105 Pilot Over N. Vietnam"
*** from Smithsonian Books
ISBN: 1588341038


Ed.,

Thanks for the update.
When the war ended my pilot(Paul Shorts) got out of Marauders and into C-47's
by just the procedure I decribed. I guess they just don't make wars the way
they used to. I think I liked the old way better..(sigh)


Arthur Kramer
Visit my WW II B-26 website at:
http://www.coastcomp.com/artkramer