REMEMBERING AN INSTRUCTOR (new story on website)

Remembering an Instructor


I remember my bombing instructor at Big Springs. He was a burly fellow with a
booming voice and a gruff, in your face manner. He had flown a tour with the
Bloody 100th Bomb Group over Berlin and. lived to tell the tale, Now I had
inherited him. He always yelled, everything was at the top of his voice.

But the was at his loudest and demanding when I was on a bomb run. He would do
everything he could to break my concentration and distract me from the
bombsight. He would bellow out "fighters high 12 O'clock...fighter level three
O'clock.. right engine on fire" Of course we were over Texas so none of this
was true, But he yelled it out anyway.

I knew that if I broke from the bombsight for a second I would get gigged and
it didn't take too many gigs to get washed out. And there was no way in hell
that l would be distracted .On one flight he yelled" Mr. I order you to abort
this bomb run and shut down your sight". I never moved, He screamed it at me
again. I never moved. But I was scared to death. I was deliberately refusing to
obey an instructor's order. My life in the Army Air Corps hung in the balance.
Then it was bombs away. and a shack. When we landed he put me in a brace and
demanded, "why did you disobey my order to abort?"

I said, (shaking) "Sir you were not the bombardier. I was. I had my
crosshairs at dead stop and indexes approaching bombs away. And I wasn't going
to abort no matter what" He smiled and said, "you'll do OK mister". we got
along fine after that. Lucky he was not an ordinary instructor and I had
guessed right once again.

Arthur Kramer
344th BG 494th BS
England, France, Belgium, Holland, Germany
Visit my WW II B-26 website at:
http://www.coastcomp.com/artkramer