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Veteran Interview: One of the best ways you can learn about the history of WW2 is to speak with those who lived through it. Take some time to meet and talk with veterans of the war or those who served on the 'Home Front'. |
Bud Embree, SSGT
Ball Turret Gunner, 351st Bomb Group (H)
511 Bomb Squadron, "The Ball Boys"
Interview recorded by Neal M, 1st ID
"I started out June 20, 1942 at Jefferson Barracks, Missouri where I enlisted in the service. I was fortunate enough to get into the Army Air Forces. I went from there up to Buckley Field in Denver CO where there's an armament school, then to Salt Lake City for disbursement. I was one of the original cadre members of the 351st BG, 511th BS. We trained in Spokane for a short time then went to El Paso TX. El Paso was in January and it was very nice down there, not too hot or too cold. The only problem we had was with the armament fellas across at Biggs over there. They had some antiaircraft fellas that liked to shine their lights in the pilots eyes when they came in for landing. So we informed them that there 10 guns on these planes that could take them out if it kept on happening -- they were a good target. Well, they did it again, and somebody did fire a .50 cal at one of them. We heard plenty about that, but the Colonel said he didn't know which plane did it, and he wasn't going to find out."
"In February we went to Pueblo, CO, and that's where we got the planes that would go overseas with us. I was in the armament shop all the time till then. I started in El Paso when Clark Gable came into the outfit, and of course that caused a lot of stir among the people. I shot skeet with him a couple of times, I flew with him a couple of times out of Pueblo, and he was a really pleasant fellow. I was honored to be able to meet him. Before we went overseas we got our new planes. In order to know that they could make it overseas, they had a flight schedule they put them through. It so happened that I was able to go on one of these flights on a plane called 'Paddle Ball.' Now this plane didn't have the name at time -- none of them did, except the lead ship, which was named after our commander's wife, Linda Ball. We had a flight from Pueblo to St. Louis MO, to Maria MS and back to Pueblo non stop. We had bomb bay tanks with gas so we had plenty of fuel, and that particular plane had Tokyo tanks, but the wasn't any fuel in them. We started out on this mission, and the first thing we did was lose an engine over Atchinson, KS. Well, we landed at St. Louis at Lambert Field, which was a beginner's pilot training field for Navy Pilots. It had a short runway. It so happened I was sitting up in the bombardier's seat making dry runs on the Norden bombsight on bridges around the country (laughs) when the pilot said everybody stay right where you are because I got the ship trimmed and we're coming in on three engines on a short runway--its going to be tough. Well he set it down as close as he could a the end of the runway. If you've ever landed on that runway, that runway goes right into the administration building. I tell you what, I got a good picture of that building, I was sitting right up in the nose. We managed to stop just so the right wing would slide by the front of the building when we turned. We found out we were out of oil completely. The only oil they had was a little truck with little 5 gal. cans As you know it's 55 gal. of oil that goes in one of those [B-17] engines. So we had a chain gang to pick it up there and pour 5 gal. at a time. We finally got it loaded up and started and ran it up a little bit. They were testing it and it wasn't testing out pretty good. They were testing it out by a fence. We were all laying out in the grass. It was a nice sunny day. All of sudden we notice there was this girl whose dress was flying up a little bit when they revved the engine up. Well one guy yelled to 'Revv her up!' He did. Her dress went straight up over her head! Of course she disappeared."
"Well they said they won't let us bring another engine in here to change it out, so get it out of here. So back in the plane, here we go. Well the pilot, Don Norse, parked the tail wheel on the end of the runway, and they said that its the first time that engine checked out, right then. And we took off. Well we're taking off toward that administration building. Finally they dropped the flaps and hit the breaks and jumped it over that building. Then the next thing you know you look at the right wing about to take out a grain elevator, Well, we managed to get over the top of it. You could have heard a pin drop in that airplane, nobody was talking on the interphone. About 5 min. later the pilot asked us what we thought of that takeoff. We lost the same engine again before we got back to Pueblo."
"They changed that engine out again in Pueblo. I was still working in the armaments shop when the flight crews headed off to England, I was still ground crew. They had to out to Bangor ME, then Goose Bay , then across, Well, they had to change another engine in that ship at Bangor, and then another in Goose Bay, and they changed a fourth when they got to England. So they named that ship 'Foul Ball.'"
"I got to England May 12, 1943, and 7 days later Don Norse and his crew came to the armaments shop and asked if I'd fly ball turret for them. Something had happened to their ball gunner, I don't know what. I said sure because I had flown with them and had some air to ground in the states, although I had never been to gunnery school. I'd also practiced in the ball turret during some of those training flights."
"My first mission with the crew was to Kiel Canal on May 19. We didn't have enough gas, so we had to abort; we aborted above the island Copenhagen's on. Two days later we went to Willhemhaven. That's were we really ran into the full effects of the war. We hit the IP, which was 1 min. before target. We had so much flak that day there that it was terrible. The no. 1 plane lost no. 2 engine and fell back, and 2 and 3 stayed with him, we were 3. An 88 went off under our right wing; I could have put my hands on my hips and dropped through that hole without touching anything. We weren't doing too good either. And that's when I thought I'd really had it, when some of that the flak hit the turret on the outside. The rest of the group and gone out ahead of us and we tried our best to protect each other. Then about 2 mins. later I did get it. I caught a 20 mm shell in the ball turret with me. I never saw the plane that got me. My guns were facing forward and he came through from the back. The back of the ball turret didn't have any armor, it came in through a Plexiglas port, and I'm still carrying some of that Plexiglas with me. My right leg was really badly hit. The other gunners told me it was a FW190 that had taken some hits. I was in the turret about 5 minutes after that. I could see planes everywhere, and I did my best to fire at them. That's why they gave me the DSC. After the bomb run, we went back out over the water."
"The navigator and bombardier came back after we got out over the water knocked on the turret to get me out. I had to point the guns down so they could open the hatch. They took me out of the turret and pulled me into the radio room. They laid me out on the floor, and of course my flak uniform was all chewed up. I still had on my electric suit, but it was destroyed, too. That's where they gave me first aid, as much as they could. They just spread all that back as best they could and spread some sulfa powder all over me. Then they threw some kind of blanket over me and that was it, that's all they could do. The cold was terrible, but I am sure that's what saved my life, because I would have bled to death otherwise. They said I had less than a pint of blood in me when I got back to England. They put me on IV's right away when I got back. The pilots landed as quick as they could at an emergency base -- it was another short one not built for bombers!-- to get me help, and that's why I got into a British hospital. To get that bomber out of there they had to drop out all of the guns and turrets."
"I was in the hospital from May to November. For the first six days I was in the British hospital in Driffield, and they were able to do some surgery that the American hospitals weren't set up to do yet. They said when you can salute and you can walk, you can get out of here, so I worked on that."
"I didn't fly combat after I recovered, and I was rotated to the states to the 2nd AF, where I flew as an air-to-ground and air-to-air gunnery instructor, working on gun cameras. Then they changed my base to the 3rd AF, so I served in three air forces."
Interviewer's note: Both Lieutenants Angell and Fincher, the navigator and bombardier who saved Bud's life were hit on the Foul Ball's next mission. Fincher survived with serious injuries, but Angell died in during the mission.. Peter Soderling, Embree's replacement in the ball turret, was also killed.
During this interview, Bud asked me if I knew what a "short starter" was. The answer: When you were going overseas, you'd better have a foreign bill in your pocket, and you'd have your crewmembers sign it, preferably flyers. If you didn't have it, and you had some wings on, it would cost you drinks for the entire crowd. So you'd be darned sure you got one.|
WW2 History: Following are two articles on WW2 history. Do you have an interest in a certain unit or event? Send an article in and see your work here! |
French Parachutists
2e et 3e Régiments de Chasseurs Parachutistes
(2nd & 3rd Regiments Parachute Light Infantry)
The parachute troops of France are a relatively unknown unit, especially when compared to the airborne units of the other Allied nations. For example, the Free French fielded more parachutists than Canada, and French parachutists fought in more campaigns than their Polish counterparts. And yet they rarely receive the attention afforded to the celebrated parachute units of the other Allied nations. The long record of service and the number of engagements made by French parachutists argues against this slight.
French para wing and shoulder title.
The parachute unit of the Free French Forces (FFL) was formed in England from volunteers who had escaped German occupation in the summer of 1940. Under the command of Captain Berge, this unit was known as the 1st Air Infantry Company (1re Compagnie d'Infanterie de l'Air). The first French paratroopers had been raised in 1937, and the name of Air Infantry was brought directly from those units.
The 1st Air Infantry Company was jump qualified at the Parachute Training School at Ringway Airfield near Manchester in late 1940 (the same facility used by the British parachute forces). Their ties to the British remained strong. The French para were relatively unique among Free French units as they remained equipped entirely with British weapons and uniforms throughout the war (all others being largely supplied with American or French equipment). They wore the camouflaged Denison smock, British battle dress and gear, and eventually the red beret (until late 1944 the unit wore a black beret).
The first large-scale deployment of the company was made in July 1941, when they were transferred to Egypt. A testament to their high quality and training, the 1st Air Infantry Company was integrated into the British SAS shortly after arriving for the North African campaign. As part of the SAS they took part in several operations in the Mediterranean.
In 1943 these troops returned to England and their strength was increased to the battalion level, requiring the new name of the 1st Air Infantry Battalion. The unit then completed the rigorous training made by the Independent Polish Parachute Brigade, earning them the right to wear the Polish eagle on their blouse. Joining the 1st Battalion in England in late 1943 was the 3rd Air Infantry Battalion, freshly raised from volunteers in Algeria. At this time the 1st Battalion was renamed as the 4th Battalion.
In January 1944 the two Free French parachute battalions were integrated again into the British SAS, changing their names from the 3rd and 4th Air Infantry Battalions to the 3rd and 4th SAS. They underwent further training in the SAS schools in preparation for action in Europe.
On the night of June 5th - 6th, as part of the Normandy invasion, the 4th (French) SAS dropped into Brittany on the extreme western flank and became some of the first Allied troops to land in occupied Europe. Unlike the American and British parachutists, the French were dropped much further behind the enemy lines. Their mission was not to provide a buffer for the beachhead but to create an island of resistance behind the enemy. There they were to tie down enemy troops, disrupt their communications, and keep reinforcements from reaching the front lines. The 4th (French) SAS began their drop with only small groups, who made contact with the organized resistance units in the area (who numbered some 30,000 men). By the next day the rest of the battalion had arrived along with numerous supplies.
The Germans launched several counter-attacks in an effort to eliminate these Allied pockets behind their front lines, but suffered reverses in heavy actions at St. Marcel on June 18th, and the Vioreau forest on June 27th. The German occupiers in Brittany effectively lost control of all but the coast and the major cities. Later, as the American troops moved in from the Normandy beachheads they advanced into towns already occupied by French troops, who would then move to secure the Americans' lines of communication.
At the end of the Normandy campaign the two French parachute battalions were renamed. The 4th (French) SAS became the 2e Regiment de Chasseurs Parachutistes (RCP), and the 3rd (French) SAS became the 3e RCP.* They remained a part of the SAS structure, and as such their role changed from air drop to fast penetration strike force. Along with the British SAS units in Europe the two French battalions were equipped with special jeeps which bristled with machineguns.
The 2e RCP was soon posted to Belgium to take part in the defense during the 'Battle of the Bulge'. Later the 2e and 3e RCP joined together in Holland under the command of the famous Chindit commander, Mike Calvert, who boasted extensive special operations experience in Burma. He led the French forces in a successful deep penetration raid into Holland in the waning days of the war, capturing a large number of prisoners and freeing a large amount of occupied territory.
With a long record of service in a number of difficult campaigns, the French parachute forces of World War Two proved themselves the equal of their Allied counterparts. For more information and photos of the French parachute forces please visit the excellent Souvenir SAS web site, which has both English and French pages.
* The 1re RCP fought in the Mediterranean theatre, including the invasion of Southern France in Operation Dragoon. While jump qualified, they never had an operational jump and served as elite infantry throughout the war. This regiment was equipped with American uniforms and weapons.
Sources:
Souvenir SAS
After the Battle, Number 105
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Living History: The NWHA encompasses more than just WW2. As part of a national drive, club members are organizing an effort to remember the Korean War through living history events. |
 "Then there was KOREA!" |
50th Anniversary of the Korean War 1950-1953 |
Well I'm proud to say that the NWHA is now a part of the 50th Anniversary of the Korean War Commemorative Community! This is being run by the Department of Defense between 2000 - 2003. This is a celebration of freedom and remembrance of those that fought and died in the "Forgotten War". We as a group are now entitled to use the 50th Anniversary seal on our web site and our paper work. This will help us with public relations (i.e. displays, parades, etc.) and hopefully bringing in new members.
Now I ask that all who want to participate in displays or help set up events to please contact me. For those who don't want to spend more money on another impression, all you need is a set of HBT's and a pair of buckle boots (or 45 combat boots) and you're set to go!
For more info contact Scott Watson at any event.
