Photo By Ryan Campbell | A Rolls Royce Merlin engine sits exposed in a North American P-51D Mustang as it is...... read more read more
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Though it has been more than 70 years since last flying one, the sight of a North American P-51D Mustang is still as familiar as ever. The gleaming Rolls-Royce Merlin engine is on display, the 12 cylinder block polished and ready for flight.
All of the parts are still recognizable and all of the flight procedures easily recalled. The seven decades that have passed merely seem like days.
It was a Mustang named “Mary Lee” that got Gerald Graham through the aerial combat over Europe during World War II. Like many Americans, his journey to Europe began after the attacks on Pearl Harbor in 1941.
“The Air Forces opened up the cadet program, it was in 1942 such after Pearl Harbor,” said Graham. “I signed up that August.”
Not only was it the appeal of flying, but also the desire to not be on the opposite end of the spectrum. Taking to the skies seemed like a safer bet.
“Well I didn’t figure I wanted to be sitting in the trenches,” said Graham. “Once they offered this to get pilots in the program, which they needed, I thought that would be a good idea.”
Graham received his commission as one of the Army Air Forces’ newest pilots, and was in the First Pilot Replacement Group. Next up on My 24th, 1944, was the assignment to the 505th Fighter Squadron of the 339th Fighter Group, which was based in Fowlmere, England.
“We thought we were trying to make it better for the whole world you know,” said Graham. “Hopefully we could end the war quicker.”
Surprisingly, it was possible to fly too much as Graham found out. Many of the pilots were trying to get the required amount of missions so that they could rotate back the United States.
“We were real anxious to get everything done as soon as we could you know, hurry up get our tour done and get back,” said Graham. “The flight surgeon, Doc Scroggin, comes up to us and he says, ‘You guys are flying too much you’re going to have fatigue.’ He says take some time off and go to London.”
Soon, the impeccable timing of this order would be clear.
“And so on June 5th, 1944, Richard Olander and I went to London on a two-day pass,” said Graham with a laugh. “So we spent the 5th there and slept overnight.
“The next morning we got up and we were walking down the street to find a restaurant, there was kind of an American restaurant they had waffles and such, and we were heading for there. But in front of the one of the headquarters buildings there was a woman driver sitting there with one of these open cars that they had shuttled the generals and the big shots around in.
“She had a newspaper and the headline all across the entire length of the paper said, ‘INVASION.’ Well, Dick went over and he just grabbed that thing right out of her hand and he read it and said, ‘We better get the hell back to the base!’
“So we ran back to the hotel and grabbed our bags and got in a taxi and rode to the train station, got back in time to fly that night. We flew shuttle missions, we had people up there from dawn until dusk and we finally got there and made. Flew the mission in my dress uniform.”
January of 1945 over England would be the last time Graham would fly a P-51. His D-Day buddy, Capt. Olander, was killed in action on January 17, 1945 during his second tour.
“Anybody that had enough points could get their release,” said Graham. “I said I’m going to go and come back home, and I went to the University of Michigan.”
The war soon ended for everyone. Many did their part and are remembered as heroes, though Graham sees it in a different way.
“These people that I flew with, they were just outstanding individuals, it was the cream of the crop,” said Graham.”I was one of thousands and we just all worked together.”
| Date Taken: | 06.06.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 06.06.2018 14:12 |
| Story ID: | 279835 |
| Location: | NIAGARA FALLS, NY, US |
| Web Views: | 57 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, With Wings as Eagles: D-Day Reflections, by Ryan Campbell, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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