Oct 8, 2025
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While Flying in a B-24 Over Fortress Europe
by Vachel Blair
Patricia M. O'Connell, then Blair, met Vachel in the Library Science Department of Cleveland's Western Reserve and ran libraries, toured the country attending library meetings and married the director of New York's famous 42nd Library, John Corry, photo circa 1947. photo: V. BlairVachel Blair's Other cineSOURCE Stories: “My Father’s Spanish Civil War”, “Clevelanders Fighting and Dying in Spain” and “Life and Death in the Air: A Bombing Run Goes Bad”
Letter to Vachel Blair's wife, written in a notebook while on actual combat flight, from Benghazi Libya to Italy somewhere, 1944.
Dearest Patty,
My lady, I am going to put your St. Christopher’s Medal to a test. I’m sitting on the flight deck thinking of you as we collect the formation together before going to a lively target. Yo ho! It’s a target I have sentimental interest in although at one time I had occasion to be only 20 miles from it [the target, referring to a place in Italy]. But that was some years ago.
Anyway, off we go. We’re circling the fields as planes take off and join the formation. Now to give you some idea of our situation here on the flight deck you must get a Life Magazine and look at a cross section of one of our planes. As I sit here I’d knock three people down if I turned halfway around. At the moment I am just behind the pilot’s armor plate, and I can look down into the bomb bay at our bomb load, which is resting mean and quietly there with a paper tag dangling from each nose [cone]; swinging in the breeze.
Now I am looking over the pilot’s shoulder, Lt. Seitz here and he is a damn good flyer. Ahead is the squadron commander’s ship. All over the sky you can see stairsteps of planes, a formation here and another there. Swell day, lots of golden sunshine and blue sky.
Your little flashlight is coming in handy, for the [flight] engineer just borrowed it. Don’t forget to send more batteries will you?
These lads on the crew are damn fine fellows. Lt. Caravalho, the bombardier, is sitting right there reading a Newsweek, Sgt. Rushmore is sitting in front of me at the radio operator’s table, Mac (Kenzie), the engineer, is standing between the pilot and the co-pilot.
We’re now on our way to the target, which will take some time, by the way, and we’re gradually gaining altitude. It’s getting colder too. Guess I’ll take a look in the back end now, and see how the boys are doing at the waist guns.
Cutaway of the B-24 'Flying Fortress' where the author, as a bomb bay photographer, would sit behind the pilot, next to the radio operator. illo: Life MagazineWell, back again after a trip to the tail. Boys are sitting around smoking, all set to go. Jake, a Jewish boy from around 105th st. and Superior in Cleveland, is there reclining, smoking a Camel. He takes a waist gun.
You know, Patty, it always strikes me as I look over one of those planes in flight, droning along and vibrating to the “quattro motore”, that these sky trucks are an invention of the devil. Here we are all loaded up with men, gas and bombs. I can readily understand how there may be times when the noble thoughts of democracy and freedom might be set aside sometimes just to get in a little worry about self-survival.
[The] formation is all around us here, and all over the sky, above and below, are the other swarms of planes. This will be quite an attack on the “Fortress of Europe” as they call it in the newspapers.
Damn! Brought along a chute that’s too small in the harness so I’ve just cut the back cushion out. Lucky we don’t intend to go down anyway. Confounded thing is “no bueno” fit. Often wondered what I would do with my specs if we bailed out. Any suggestions Patty? Maybe it—
(paragraph cut out, apparently by Vachel, as a marginal note from the censor, Captain Needham, says “Patty, I didn’t do this”)
—fighters while hanging in a parachute. Better to have 20/40 vision then!
It’s a beautiful sight outside. We’re riding high above a white cloud layer that looks like snow.
Flyboy from the 98th Bombardment Group with their mascot, a monkey—the army was a rather loose, democratic organization in Vachel's day. photo: Vachel BlairTail turret is out. “No Bueno.” We’re going up. “Gonna pull the pins,” says Caravalho, our bombardier, as he drops back into the bomb bay. Then we’ll be all set, Patty, to drop the load of lethal destruction upon the bastions of the Axis [and for Vachel to crawl out over the open bomb bay doors and film them].
For another one of Blair's stories from the war in the air over Europe go here.
Editor’s Note: When you are in turbulence while flying commercially, think of Vach. His main job on the B-24 ‘Super Fortress’ was to walk back from his seat behind the pilot, with no harness but oxygen and a parachute, as the B-24 bucked from the anti-aircraft fire, and use a top-viewing Rollie camera, which he had to hold upside down, to film the bombs as they dropped.
Posted on Mar 08, 2023 - 02:58 PM
by Vachel Blair
Patricia M. O'Connell, then Blair, met Vachel in the Library Science Department of Cleveland's Western Reserve and ran libraries, toured the country attending library meetings and married the director of New York's famous 42nd Library, John Corry, photo circa 1947. photo: V. BlairLetter to Vachel Blair's wife, written in a notebook while on actual combat flight, from Benghazi Libya to Italy somewhere, 1944.
Dearest Patty,
My lady, I am going to put your St. Christopher’s Medal to a test. I’m sitting on the flight deck thinking of you as we collect the formation together before going to a lively target. Yo ho! It’s a target I have sentimental interest in although at one time I had occasion to be only 20 miles from it [the target, referring to a place in Italy]. But that was some years ago.
Anyway, off we go. We’re circling the fields as planes take off and join the formation. Now to give you some idea of our situation here on the flight deck you must get a Life Magazine and look at a cross section of one of our planes. As I sit here I’d knock three people down if I turned halfway around. At the moment I am just behind the pilot’s armor plate, and I can look down into the bomb bay at our bomb load, which is resting mean and quietly there with a paper tag dangling from each nose [cone]; swinging in the breeze.
Now I am looking over the pilot’s shoulder, Lt. Seitz here and he is a damn good flyer. Ahead is the squadron commander’s ship. All over the sky you can see stairsteps of planes, a formation here and another there. Swell day, lots of golden sunshine and blue sky.
Your little flashlight is coming in handy, for the [flight] engineer just borrowed it. Don’t forget to send more batteries will you?
These lads on the crew are damn fine fellows. Lt. Caravalho, the bombardier, is sitting right there reading a Newsweek, Sgt. Rushmore is sitting in front of me at the radio operator’s table, Mac (Kenzie), the engineer, is standing between the pilot and the co-pilot.
We’re now on our way to the target, which will take some time, by the way, and we’re gradually gaining altitude. It’s getting colder too. Guess I’ll take a look in the back end now, and see how the boys are doing at the waist guns.
Cutaway of the B-24 'Flying Fortress' where the author, as a bomb bay photographer, would sit behind the pilot, next to the radio operator. illo: Life MagazineYou know, Patty, it always strikes me as I look over one of those planes in flight, droning along and vibrating to the “quattro motore”, that these sky trucks are an invention of the devil. Here we are all loaded up with men, gas and bombs. I can readily understand how there may be times when the noble thoughts of democracy and freedom might be set aside sometimes just to get in a little worry about self-survival.
[The] formation is all around us here, and all over the sky, above and below, are the other swarms of planes. This will be quite an attack on the “Fortress of Europe” as they call it in the newspapers.
Damn! Brought along a chute that’s too small in the harness so I’ve just cut the back cushion out. Lucky we don’t intend to go down anyway. Confounded thing is “no bueno” fit. Often wondered what I would do with my specs if we bailed out. Any suggestions Patty? Maybe it—
(paragraph cut out, apparently by Vachel, as a marginal note from the censor, Captain Needham, says “Patty, I didn’t do this”)
—fighters while hanging in a parachute. Better to have 20/40 vision then!
It’s a beautiful sight outside. We’re riding high above a white cloud layer that looks like snow.
Flyboy from the 98th Bombardment Group with their mascot, a monkey—the army was a rather loose, democratic organization in Vachel's day. photo: Vachel BlairFor another one of Blair's stories from the war in the air over Europe go here.
Editor’s Note: When you are in turbulence while flying commercially, think of Vach. His main job on the B-24 ‘Super Fortress’ was to walk back from his seat behind the pilot, with no harness but oxygen and a parachute, as the B-24 bucked from the anti-aircraft fire, and use a top-viewing Rollie camera, which he had to hold upside down, to film the bombs as they dropped.
Posted on Mar 08, 2023 - 02:58 PM
