Air Force the Official Service Journal - Air Force Historical Studies ...

Rendezvous
Mother Beckham's Boy
Dear F.ditor'
"Tho B29 and You"-a yen' enhghtening
st orv. but II hv not mcut ion the
good!ooking felloll' in fhing togs 1I'!IO.se P">
ture appears aloug with a picture of the
B29? lIc is none other than \laj_ Vvaltcr
Carl Beckham 11'110 is rcspousiblc for blasting
I R [crrics out of the sky oyer Emope
while flying a Thunderbolt with the Sth Air
Force, en! had been
reported mlssIllg Il1
action since \ larch of
this vcar and is now
interilCd in a Ccnu.m
prison for American
airmen. Carl and I
h.rvc beeu friellels
since children and
haH' shared '1 secret
aIIIbit ion - becoming
millionaires. and
if things didn't go too
well ill that field, AI'iIlg
woulr! do. lIis parting words to me
'HTe: "Coodbvc, Claude, wish me luck and
perhaps I'll become a hero." The Icadini:;
tighter ace in the ETO at the time, he was
shot clown while strafing a Ccnu.m airfield.
lie is prob.iblv better rcmcm be red as the
£ellOlI' 1\"110radioed to his l\"Ing m.m to "take
the bovs horne. Ceorge. I can't make it.
l""e been hit," after his pl.mc was OIl fire.
For the benefit of his IIIa nv friends, "\ lot her
Beck ha III's bov" is cloing' all right for himself
in prison.
\\. /0 Clancle E. Jenkins, S'III Antonio, Tex.
Instructors' Grandchlldr.n
Dear Ld itor :
... "'hen I'OU sal'. on the back coyer of
yom October issuo, "Let us hear from I"OU,"
well ... just glance in the mirror and see
how far vour necks arc extended'
So I ,isk: ""hat about the armv of Air
Force Instructors, a len" import.mt part of
the top cream of I'oung .-\mericI who are
helpiug to win the war. but who will have
Ilothing in particular (so t hcv bemoan) to
tell their grandchildren? , .
Audrey ""alls \ loslcv. Tulsa. Okla.
You must h ai:e missed the article "Un c 0/
.l[r [Jon," b v Cllpt. N. IT'. Pinnrv, ] r.. an
.,I.-IF instructor, in our .1/1/\. ]1).14. issu c, It
rrports ulur! on r inst rurt or h as In t cll his
grandchildrcn .-Ed.
Parting Shots
Dcar J-:ditor:
In the \ larch 19'H issuc of .-\IR FORC!'
vou publishcd 'Ill .u t icl« on p'lgc (i-] cnt itk-d
"Part im; Shots" in wluch SiSS;!. Bcu B.
Colecehi is alleged to h'IYC cout inucd firius;
at J'IP Zeros after thc tail section of the
B 2+. on which he II'as the tail gunner. was
completeh' severed [rom the rest of the airplane.
That statement has aroused much
cur iositv in mv mind. and I turn to I'OU
for an cxplauation. .
r Ilan: clOllbts as to the pmsibilitl. of such
.ut ion, .md \\'('fe it not for the orelers COli.-
DECEMBER,1944
Vol. 27 No. 12
December 1944
AIR FORCE
THE OFFICIAL SERVICE JOURNAL OF THE U S. ARMY AIR FORCES
Back to the Philippines Mo;. Herbert 0 Johansen
1. The CIs Corne TllfOll£;It-'lr'llll:l Oll t lrc 'trip at LCI"te. 4
If. Our :\ir Task Forcc-c-l.o« it", orr.mizcd. how it functions. 7
All in the Night's Work 8
Our Black ""idoll's ovcrsc.e, arc cntting xouu: deadly capers after dark.
Human Picl.up 11
Snatch a man off the grollnd h\ pLn1c: Ilere's hoiv it's clone.
The Careless Die Early Capt. Greer Williams 16
Listen carefully to your PI.:O. 111' adl1C