PILOT CAREERPILOT CAREER BILL BARNSBILL BARNS
At the end of August 1944,
when the Allies landed in southern
France, the ‘Hell’s Belles’ moved to
the recaptured airfield of Le Luc.
By then operating Republic P-47
Thunderbolts, the 316th engaged
targets along the French Riviera.
When Allied forces began to
liberate Brussels in mid-1944, the
324th FG moved operations to
Ambérieux. From there, the 316th
FS supported the Seventh Army,
helping destroy targets in the region
of Macon and Bourg-en-Bresse.
Upon Hitler launching his
counter-offensive in Belgium –
known as the ‘Battle of the Bulge’
(between December 16, 1944 and
January 25, 1945) – he arrayed 24
divisions across a front stretching 75miles (120km) along the Ardennes
Mountains. To harass the German
offensive, the 324th FG moved to
Luneville, east of Nancy. Working
with other units and enduring
difficult weather conditions and the
complexity of multiple commands,
the 324th helped to transform the
German offensive into a debacle.End of the Reich
The final offensive against Germany
began on March 15, 1945 reducing
remnants of the supposedly
invincible Siegfried Line to rubble.
In his sortie report for March 19,
1945 Barns wrote: “Just before
reaching the target, 18 to 20 Bf
109s passed about a half mile west
and 2,000ft above us. Ten of them
initiated an attack on the lead
section of our formation starting
from about one mile away and
making a long diving pass from six
o’clock. I was able to pull out of my
turn-about and fire a good burst at
one Bf 109 from below and slightly
behind.” His fellow pilots confirmed
his ‘kill’.
During the very last days of the
Third Reich, the ‘Hell’s Belles’
destroyed a massive convoy of more
than 500 vehicles near Nuremberg.
After this, the 324th FG made
its final move, to Stuttgart-
Echterdingen on May 3, 1945,
following the occupation of much of
southern Germany. Five days later108 FLYPAST February 2018
in an aerial flight’ - on March 1,- His citation noted: “On
more than 170 missions during
the Italian and Sicilian campaigns,
his steadfast devotion to duty and
outstanding proficiency in combat
have reflected great credit upon
himself and the United States.”