100th Bomb Group: The Story of the REAL Masters of the Air
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 16 ก.ค. 2024
- During World War II, the 100th Bomb Group of the 8th Air Force suffered some of the heaviest losses of any unit, of any service branch, in any theater of the war. A few hours into their first mission, they had lost 3 B-17 Flying Fortresses and 30 men. After only four months, 77 percent of the original group became casualties of war. And as they continued to fly missions over some of the most heavily defended targets in Germany, the losses kept coming. And these losses would earn the unit it’s ominous nickname, the Bloody Hundredth. Now a mini-series titled, "Masters of the Air," this is their story.
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I've always been fascinated by the stories of the airmen of the 8th Air Force. And the more I research them, the more I'm awestruck by their courage. Let me know in the comments what surprises or impresses you most about the men of the 100th Bomb Group.
Next week it will mark the 10th anniversary of the passing of a B17G navigator I got to know briefly. I had a few really interesting conversations with Bob Landino back in 2011 when he was selling me his house and moving upstate closer to his son and daughter.
You always think of the heavy losses the crews took early in the bombing campaign, but his story was a reminder that the 100th was still losing airmen right up through the end of the war. He was the navigator aboard Sweet Nancy II on the day of the March 18, 1945 Berlin mission, it was their 31st mission, and the 351st was stacked up high. They figured they would finish their 35 missions within the week and go home.
Then about 11:15am, they were jumped by a flight of 2 Me-262s attacking from 3:00 high. In an instaqnt, they had 2 engines on fire and the tail blown clean off just behind the tail wheel. 6 of the crew made it out, and 4 were killed in action. Mr Landino spent about a month in a German POW camp before the US army liberated them. Landino continued service with the USAF, retiring as a colonel, and lived to the age of 94.
It turns out the German pilot credited with the kill was Theodor Weissenberger, Germany's number 10 scoring ace with 208 kills, and the head honcho of the jet fighter squadron assigned the futile task of taking on the bomber formations in those last moments of the war.
Thanks for taking time to make this video and honor these men. My grandfather, George McKee, was a B-17 pilot for the 390th which was one of the three bomb groups (along with the 100th and 95th) that made up the 13th combat wing; consequently, he flew in a number of the missions detailed in Masters of the Air. When the book came out in 2007 he told me it was the most accurate description he had read of what they experienced. He made a career of the Air Force serving 36 years and rising to the rank of Lieutenant General (he started as a private and air mechanic in 1940). In 1973 he became commander of the 8th Air Force. For those interested in the history of these brave individuals the 8th Air Force Museum just outside of Savannah, GA is fantastic. The 390th Bomb Group also has a museum in Tucson, AZ.
My great uncle was with the 8th AF, but not a crew member. He was in the chemical warfare field. My grandfather served as a waist gunner with the 15th AF.
What was your grandfather's name ?. I was in the Army from 1973 to 1976. There was always an Air Force base close. I might of heard the name. My father's first cousin was in the 100th and stayed in the Air Force for 32 years, retiring in 1975.
George McKee
You should be really proud of his time in service. My father was in the army fought in Africa and the on to Anzio. He was a first scout and captured at Salerno checking it all out. He escaped six (6) months later. He has two (2) bronze medals. I’m proud as you should be also. That series is so exciting.
@@annsantilli6165 Yes - your father and the rest of the Greatest Generation provide such a guiding light for all of us regarding sacrifice, dedication and selfless commitment to others.
My father's first cousin was in the 100th. His first mission was January 29th, 1945. He did 27 missions before the war ended. He stayed in the Air Force for 32 years before retiring in 1975.
That sounds very similar to our family history:
My father, John A Martin, enlisted in the Army Air Corps (1942), age 18, and served as a gunner and radio operator on B-17s and B-24s. He was assigned to the 8th Air Force in England and flew 35 combat missions over Europe. Including one shown as "SECRET" on his papers.
According to him, later while watching “12 O’clock High” on TV, he thought that it was very well done and he liked the show. He did say that instead of the large letter “A” in the show their planes carried a large letter “P” there. He served in the 487th Bombardment Group (837th Squadron). The records for many crew members were lost during a fire at Fort Benjamin Harrison.
His brother, age 20, was a Navy aviator flying in the Pacific area: his plane was shot down . The bad news was wired to the family, who were surprised three months later when he walked in the front door in his Navy uniform.
My father had left the service at the end of the war and worked as a TV/Radio engineer. He was called back to duty for the Korean conflict but didn’t have to deploy; and stayed with the new US Air Force. He retired in 1968 after 26 years of active duty and died in 1976. His brother also passed in 2005.
Both brothers are buried at Arlington National Cemetery.
Regards
Thank you for your families service.
Thank you for this video. My father, Albert Davis, flew 25 missions in the 100th BG from JUN to OCT , '43. He knew these men and flew the missions you have seen so far. He kept a diary and from what I can see , the series is supported by his diary entries, especially EP 3, Regensburg raid.He flew on the Piccadilly Lily of the 351st SQ. He completed his 25 missions on OCT4. His beloved Lily went down on the next mission on OCT8 to Bremen ( ep 4) . The guy who took his place at right waist gunner was KIA over the target after releasing the bombs. He grieved his buddies who died on that mission and reconnected with the ones who became POW. I met a couple of those men when I was a bot in the '60s.They rarely talked about their experiences , even when asked.
My grandfather was a waist gunner with the 15th AF out of Italy. His plane was shot down and he was a POW for 6 months. I wish I could have spoken with him about his experiences, but he passed away before I was born.
My father, John A Martin, was like that also (487th BG). He never in 20 plus years talked about missions. The only event from that time was:
The crew went to a local zoo on a leave day. They were surprised to see monkeys in the cages. Some of the crew had alcoholic beverages with them. They spent quite a bit of time in getting the monkeys drunk!
I have always been grateful to have had those years to share.
Regards
Thank You for sharing this story. My dad and mother both served in the Army Air corps. My dad told me how there were days they lost 10 planes and how that was 100 men. We must all keep the sacrifice of those brave men and weman in our minds. We are so blessed for what they did to save the world.
My great uncle was a member of the 8th Air Force in England. He was a chemical warfare troop, but I don’t know much more about his service. It so important to keep these stories alive for future generations. I work for another organization (Americans in Wartime Experience) that serves to record and preserve the oral histories of any American who served during wartime. That you for your families service.
I urge everyone to watch the National Geographic documentary :Heros of the Sky The Real Mighty 8th Air force. It is an outstanding documentary that lays out the mission starting from nothing in 1942 and ending with the destruction of Nazi Germany. See the actual hero's crushing the Nazi's, while tens of thousands gave their lives in the sky to defeat Fascism. Thank you to the brave men who gave all to keep us free.
Just added that to my watch list thank you
I recently finished reading Masters of the air & it was EXCELLENT. I always knew General Jimmy Stewart flew with the 8th but never realized how many combat missions he flew, and also became squadron commander. Clark Gable, Andy Rooney, Tom Landry, & George McGovern also flew with the 8th. Just more of the reason why they were and still are called The Greatest Generation. While we didn't have anyone in the family in the Air Corp in WWII we did have one in the Navy and one in the Marines. I feel fortunate to have heard their stories first hand. We also had family serve in WWI, Korea, Vietnam, and the Cold War. Thanks to all now serving, those who have, and those who will in the future. FLY NAVY!!!
Great book.
Excellent presentation..... Incredibly brave men.... Thank you.... Roger... Pembrokeshire UK
Six week life-span in those suicide w/o long range fighter escorts !!
Criminal !! 😠😣😖😤😡
they did have escorts on several missons that were closer to Thorpe Abbotts. Those were P47s and RAF Spitfires.
Was at the 100th airbase last week. It can still be visited in Norfolk, got a little and very good museum there.
Love it, thanks for making this!
Great video and hard work behind it. Thank you for sharing!
Curtis LeMay said his bombers could not bomb within 4 miles of a target, so they switched to incendiaries. When asked why he did not bomb at night, he said they were not trained to navigate by night unlike the British. It was carnage.
My father was a B-17 pilot in the 100th. If I remember correctly, he had three different planes during his tour.
The thorpe Abbott's museum is well worth a look in Norfolk.
An Engineer was also a crew member on every bomber.
Excellent video!
Glad you liked it!
I'm 74 years young and I grew up enamored with the experiences of our Greatest Generation during WWII, especially that of the flyers and air crews. I've known about the legend of the 100th Bomb Group and their devastating losses since I was young. Whenever they were mentioned it was said that early into their introduction to combat that a German plane had been crippled by their gunners and while it was obvious that the plane was going down one or more of the 100th BG's gunners ensured that the German(s) was/were dead. This was seen by other Luftwaffe pilots who told others and from that point on the 100th BG was singled out for punishment by the Germans. I have yet to hear anything about this on any YT video concerning the 100th BG. Either the story was a myth lasting many decades or it is fact but kept quiet for this series. Does anyone know the truth?
My Dad flew with the 100th during this time period. He completed 25 missions on OCT4,'43. He kept a diary and never mentioned that story. However, he did say he had heard it but it was never confirmed. So maybe a myth? He writes in his diary about a '17 on a mission getting crippled and falling out of formation and being circled and fired on by Luftwaffe fighters. They put their landing gear down and the Germans stopped shooting. The crew then left the ship and parachuted down. He was an eye witness to that event.
Depending on who's version you read, but there was talk about the lack of discipline flying the "box". The bombers were allowed to spread out and the Luftwaffe fighters could get in between the bombers and single out the leaders and those who wandered a bit too far from the group. @@stevedavis9466
Sperry Ball Turret was NOT retractable on any model of the B17
Great content
Thank you.
Heroes front the Greatest Generation
Reading a book called "b17's over berlin personal stories from the 95th Bomb group...one b-17 crew member witnessed one b-17 cut In half...he said he seen the tail section keep flying forward as if the nothig even happened and that the tail Gunner was still shooting his guns at enemy fighters....
Proud son of Major Don Ventriss. At this time, the Group Bombadier for the entire 100th Bomb Group
The one hundredth was not “unlucky,” except for the fact that they were sent into impossible situations.
The 100th was not unlucky, it suffered from inept leadership. The original 35 crews were poorly trained and lacked any discipline. It was not luck that got the Royal Flush back to England, during the Munster battle. It was the pure skill of its pilot, Robert Rosenthal.
That the leadership thought so little of the lives of their men, that they'd send them on suicidal missions in broad daylight. It beggars belief as to why they thought like that?
"Ball-bearings were, however, vital to the war machines of all the belligerents. if the supply of them to Germany or if their manufacture could be reduced or cut off completely, it would be impossible for her to continue the struggle. As early as November, 1942, the Ministry of Economic Warfare had estimated that more than half the ball bearings made in Germany came from the V.R.F. factories and the Fischer factory at Schweinfurt. there was also a factory at Stuttgart and others at Leipzig, Berlin and Elberfeld. France too possessed a number of small establishments. Operation 'SELFRIDGE', an assault on Schweinfurt, was therefore planned, but month after month passed and it was not executed: the technical difficulties were too great. The Air Ministry, however was determined that it should be as soon as they had been overcome." page 25 Royal Air Force 1939-1945 Vol III
"To destroy the German aircraft industry, for example, precision bombing was needed, and in this the Americans specialized. The United States Eighth Air Force had been trained to bomb by daylight using the most accurate bombsights which could be devised, and with these they might reasonably be expected to hit buildings, such as the Messerschmitt assembly plant at Augsburg or the Vereinigte Kugallagerfabrik at Schweinfurt. Bomber Command, since it could operate in strength only at night, was not in a position to follow these tactics. The navigating device 'GEE'; was in operation and increasing in efficiency almost nightly, but 'H2S', 'OBOE' and the other scientific devices by which a greatly increased degree of accuracy would, it was hoped, be achieved, had only just been introduced." page 4 Royal Air Force 1939-1945 Vol III
"The campaign opened badly, for in the early spring of 1943 and for some time to come the Fortresses of the United States Eighth Air Force, which had been placed under the direction of the British Chief of the Air Staff, acting as agent for the Combined Chiefs of Staff, had to operate without the comforting presence of long-range fighters as escort--for at that time thee were only in the preliminary stages of their development." page 1 Royal Air Force 1939-1945 Vol III
Complete Whirlwind Speech
The Second World War - Bomber Harris' Speech
th-cam.com/video/TuW1LYBYMBQ/w-d-xo.html
Thats pretty cool, I've lived in Nebraska my entire life and I had no idea that the 100th came out of Kerney. I've also never heard Kerney pronounced like this gentleman says it. But anyways thank you for the new knowledge and great video 😁
A large number of pilots trained in the west, many out of the airport at Lincoln. My dad's first cousin was almost killed by the train that passed by the front gate at the Lincoln airport. I have been there for some National Guard training and the train didn't slow down much as it passed that from MP station.
They might have flown at night and were more difficult to intercept, but Bomber Command lost over 55.000 airmen in WW2. The Avro Lancaster was it's mainstay with a max payload of 22,000 lb about five times that of a B17. The De Havilland Mosquito could carry the bomb load of a B17, and it had a two man crew and went like stink. The B17 could carry 8,000 lb but only on short missions.
Another book I read of bomber combat one b-17 crew member who was a gunner witnessed a b-17 crew member from another bomber jump from a burning b-17 without a parachute and that this gunner who seen this fired his gun at the guy who jumped to kill him so he didn't fall to his death..he said he missed hitting to guy
There seem to be so many epic stories that have come from the exploits of the 8th Air Force. I hadn't heard this one. Thanks for sharing.
The Great Generation
These men saved not only this country but the world
The Americans also carpet bombed German civilian cities.
No cut scene interviews like BOB. ;-(
Only one guy from that group is still alive. Maybe he doesn't want to do interviews and relive these memories? Maybe you should mind your buisness?
@JDski just look them up. There are channels dedicated to these vets.
youtube.com/@americanveteranscenter?si=gr7XqAZfexfUV8TN
@@Kilo_Charlie626 They've redeemed themselves with the accompanying documentary "The Bloody Hundredth"
Band of Brothers was produced in 2001. Masters of the Air in 2024, 23 years difference. There's basically no one left alive to interview.
The music is annoying.
How can you be "Master of the Air" when most of your planes are shot down by the real Master of the air, the German Air planes. ????
Goring "But in the beginning, we had not fully assessed the possibility of daylight bombers. Our fighters could not cope with them. When we were able to do so, there was a pause and then you sent them out with fighter escort. The Flying Fortress, for example, had more than we had anticipated. Our estimate was incorrect."
LOST PRISON INTERVIEW WITH HERMANN GOERING: THE NAZI REICHSMARSCHALL’S REVELATIONS page
shameful display of indiscipline and incompetence.
A Bail out alarm is sounded and the crew asked
whats that, do you mean bail out?
They bring shame to their entire family.
Not sure what med's you're on Bud.
But you need to half the dosage.
They were under the extreme stress of combat. Has nothing to do with being undisciplined or incompetent.
@@RevealingHistory - It actually does. Robert Rosenthal, the pilot whose crew survived Munster, blamed the entire thing on inept leadership and undisciplined crews. It was his skill and training that saved his men, not luck. Even “Masters of the Air” does not hide from the fact, that that mission’s outcome was preventable. The major leading the 100th that day, had no business being in a plane. While, John Luckadoo (the only living member of the original 35) hated the crew he flew with, because they were undisciplined and bullies. I would trust their word over the men who survived the Stalags, and were just covering their behinds after the war.