Aviation History - USA (2019-09)

25,000 feet. They had no choice but to turn back.

On July 11 Roddenberry was in Yankee Doodle

with a load of frag bombs for the revetments at

Kahili. The squadron’s B-17s made their way to

the target individually and the weather was good,

but the glare of about a dozen searchlights and

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results of their bombing.

Two days later Roddenberry was flying The

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+IX\IQV2WPV8Q\\[QVSan Antonio Rose.

Roddenberry followed Turner’s Chosef and his

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way. The searchlights were concentrated but the

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the area. If there were, they did not engage.

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t was about 0600 on August 2 when Myron

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learned to know so well and to dread, followed

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runway. Their hearts sank as they drove closer and

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For Roddenberry and his crew in old Yankee

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the throttles and stood on the brakes, but it wasn’t

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Frank Belosic to unlock the tail wheel, but when

Belosic grabbed the lever beside him it would not

disengage. There was no time left and they braced

for the crash as the aircraft left the runway.

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John Krueger, and navigator Lieutenant Talbert

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else got out, shaken but not seriously hurt, and

Yankee Doodle began to burn.

Roddenberry took it hard, leaving his tent only

to attend the funerals of Wollam and Krueger.

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wings when the squadron, short of navigators,

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Institute of Navigation.

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Roddenberry for not reacting quickly enough, or

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concluded he was not at fault.

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their luck had run out, they didn’t have any

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from the beginning. Then the high command did

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ferred to other squadrons. They went even further

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aboard a Dutch freighter, and three weeks later

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were taken to Angel Island, where Roddenberry

received a Distinguished Flying Cross. He did

not serve overseas again and was honorably dis-

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QV!

Australia-based aviation historian Steve Birdsall

recommends for further reading: ;\IZ<ZMS+ZMI\WZ,

by David Alexander, and ;W]\P8IKQNQK,QIZa, by

Mack Morriss.

TRAGIC END

Very little remained of

Yankee Doodle after

its deadly crash and

fire on August 2, 1943.

AH 43

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september 2019

THERE WAS NO

TIME LEFT AND

THEY BRACED

FOR THE

CRASH AS THE

AIRCRAFT LEFT

THE RUNWAY.