Message-ID: <3A8BC364.A61FB67B@centurytel.net> From: Earl Reply-To: earldmiller::Bigfoot.com Newsgroups: bigweek.general Subject: Re: My Logbook - February 13 Date: Thu, 15 Feb 2001 05:54:12 -0600 I couldn't remember the altitude the B-25s flew on bombing missions over Italy, so I asked Jack Ogilvie and Hugh Dow. Jack mistook these operations with other ones, with B-25Hs with the 75mm cannon in the nose. He may not have escorted the bombing B-25s (he was in a different flight than I was and we were separated by flights and assigned to different parts of the theater). His description matches mine when I was escorting the B-25Hs attacking shore installations on Elba. I think I mentioned that operation previously. Here is what he said about the Leghorn operation. Yes I remember those flights very well,I think I was on all of them. They were not bomb runs,those were B-25's that were fitted with 75 mm cannons and they were trying to knock out some flak boats that were in the harbor at Leghorn. They had a gun emplacement on a point going in to the harbor that had two 105's and several 88's. They were the most crack shot's I ever saw. They had a gung ho full colonel that was in charge of the Squadron and he had us come to the briefing. His plan was to go in with three flights of four planes and to go in four at a time stacked one behind the other on the deck,we were to be circling above them. I tried to talk them out of it and he got mad as hell. When we started in and were maybe a mile out those 105s shot four rounds and knocked down four planes-the rest scattered and aborted the mission. The colonel had another meeting and ranted and raved and threatened court-martials for cowardice. He said he was going to do the same thing the next day and would lead the flight. He did and the first round was a direct hit on his plane. As far as I know they were never used again. earl "Scott Bailey (Oopsy)" wrote: > > how high were the 25's going in at ? > > "Earl" wrote in message > news:3A89A19B.D03BE768@centurytel.net... > > No, when escorting B-25s we flew above the B-25s. > > > > earl > > > > "Scott Bailey (Oopsy)" wrote: > > > > > > seems those buildings were getting more scarce. > > > > > > i take it this was below 500 feet, too? > > > > > > "Earl" wrote in message > > > news:3A89207E.6E77D033@centurytel.net... > > > > February 13 > > > > > > > > 1944: Escorted B-25s on a bombing mission to Italy and return. Flew > > > > 2:00 hours in a P-39N. > > > > > > > > earl