Flightline Fabrications recently interviewed retired USAAF B-17 Bombardier Morris “Morrie” Yellen. Morrie was generous enough to sit down for our Living History Project™ and tell us about his life on a B-17 Flying Fortress as a 15th Air Force, 2nd Bomb Group, 20th Squadron Bombardier in Italy during WWII.
Morrie Flew 51 Missions, was escorted by the Tuskegee Airmen, had his entire squadron shot down by German Flak after his 2nd or 3rd mission, and that is just to start.
Morrie’s account of his WWII Service is truly a great story; you almost feel like you are there with him flying in a B-17 Flying Fortress over Germany. The photos you will see in this video were graciously provided by Morrie and taken during his WWII service.
Part Two of Three:
If you would like to leave your comments about this interview,
please click the “Comments” located at the bottom of this post.
The mission of the Flightline Fabrications Living Histroy Project™ is to preserve the heritage of our heros; to make certain their stories are recorded and shared and to honor the sacrifice and courage these heroes have shown throughout history.
Please join this important mission; be part of our journey by adding your story so that generations to come may better understand history - through your experiences, your eyes, and in your words.
August 15, 1945- With the receipt of Japan’s surrender declaration, America celebrates the end of World War II. At a little past noon local time (Japan), Emperor Hirohito announced Japan’s acceptance of the terms of the Potsdam Declaration to the Japanese people. The same message was conveyed to President Truman via the Swiss diplomatic mission in Washington DC.
Despondent over what was felt to be a humiliating defeat, many Japanese soldiers committed suicide, over 100 American prisoners of war held by the Japanese were executed and many British and Australian prisoners in Borneo were similarly illegally executed.
While the formal surrender would be signed on September 2, 1945 aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay, and President Truman would declare that day as the official VJ Day, August 15 marks the end of large scale hostilities between the last of the axis powers and the allied nations.
The war over, allied troops at home and abroad began to celebrate the end of a long and bloody war. The war had been more costly in terms of material and human lives than any other conflict before or since. While an exact number will never be known, estimates range between 39,963,700 - 72,771,500 dead on all sides, military and civilian. A horribly high price to pay for a mad man’s hateful ambition, failures of diplomacy, economic greed, paranoia and racism. Let us all pray it never happens again on such a horrific scale.
On June 18, 1940, in a speech made before the British House of Common, Prime Minister Winston Churchill stated “The Battle of France is over. I expect the Battle of Britain is about to begin...”. On this day, August 13, 1940 that suspicion became a reality as German Luftwaffe bombers and fighters begin a systematic attack of British Royal Air Force airbases and radar installations.
The proposed German invasion of the British home islands, code-named ”Operation Sealion” scheduled for mid-September 1940, required total air superiority to have any chance of success. This necessitated the destruction of the RAF as well as the radar early warning stations.
August 9, 2008 saw the visit of two original Band of Brothers “Easy Company“ 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne members to the Museum of Flight in another great lecture series sponsored by the museum. Technical Sergeant Donald Malarkey and First Lieutenant Lynn “Buck” Compton, were on hand to participate in a panel discussion/presentation followed by a question and answer session, wrapped up with a 2 ½ hour book and autograph signing. Both Malarkey and Compton signed autographs until the line was gone.Flightline Fabrications co-owner Bryan Heim was on location at the Museum of Flight to attend the lecture and enjoy these two rare men in person as well as stand at the end of the autograph line.
“It was an honor to even be in the same room as these two men. I was blessed to have the opportunity to listen to them talk about the book each has written, WWII, and life. It was a once in a lifetime chance to receive an autograph from each as well; another great event by the Museum of Flight, well worth my time!”
Both Malarkey and Compton served in World War II as members from ‘E’ Company of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne now immortalized in the HBO series “Band of Brothers”.Malarkey and Compton participated in the paratrooper invasion of Normandy on D-Day, June 6, 1944, jumping from C-47 Aircraft.
Both men have recently released new books telling about their lives, military service, and life afterwards.“Easy Company Soldier”, written by Malarkey and “Call of Duty”, written by Compton.
The Survivor: Donald Malarkey (played during the panel)
Check back soon for the video of this great event!
August 9, 1945 - At 11:02am, a bright flash of light and burst of heat heralded the second atomic bombs detonation used in warfare over Nagasaki, Japan.
Fat Man was the second and last nuclear weapon used in warfare and only the third nuclear detonation in history. The bomb differed from the warhead dropped on Hiroshima. “Little Boy” had been a gun-type Uranium-234 fission weapon while Fat Man was an implosion-type weapon with a plutonium core.
Nagasaki was chosen as a military target suitable for the atomic bomb because the city met the same criteria as Hiroshima and was a major center for Naval shipbuilding.
According to statistics given at the Nagasaki Peace Park, the immediate dead from the bomb totalled 73,884 with an additional 74,909 injured and several hundred thousand suffering or succumbing to rediation related disease in later years.
On August 12, as a result of the bombings of both Hiroshima and Nagasaki as well as continuing conventional military pressure including the declaration of war by the USSR, Emporer Hirohito decided that Japan would surrender to the Allies. The official surrender was received on August 14, 1945 ending World War II.
While many events occurred on August 6ths of various years which are without question very important to those whose lives were directly affected, one specific instance of this this date stands out beyond the rest in terms of global impact. The affects of this day are far-reaching, touching us in ways political, economical, social and ethical. That day was August 6, 1945, the place: Hiroshima, Japan.
On the morning of 6 August 1945, three B-29 Superfortress heavy bombers of the US Army Air Force’s 393rd Bombardment Squadron, 509th Composite Group rose into the sky from Tinian Island and headed toward the home islands of Japan. One plane, “The Great Artiste” carried intruments to measure the effects of the mission, another plane “Necessary Evil” was meant to observe and film the mission. The third aircraft, serial number 44-86292 carried the first atomic bomb ever used in warfare. Named after pilot Col. Paul W. Tibbets’ mother, the plane would forever be known as the “Enola Gay“.
Hiroshima had been chosen from a long list of possible targets for several reasons. The city was larger than 3km in diameter, it held important military communication and logistical targets and most importantly, it had been left untouched thus far by allied bombing. This last point provided a pristine target for purposes of evaluating the bombs effectiveness.
The crew of the Enola Gay consisted of twelve men. They were:
Technical Sergeant George R. “Rob” Caron - Tail Gunner
Technical Sergeant Wyatt E. Duzenberry - Flight Engineer
Sergeant Joe S. Stiborik - Radar
Sergeant Robert H. Shumard – Assistant Flight Engineer
Private First Class Richard M. Nelson - Radio Operator
Enola Gay approached Hiroshima at 32,000 feet finding the city basking under clear skies. The gravity bomb nickneamed “Little Boy” was released at 8:15am and fell for 57 seconds to it’s predetermined detonation altitude of 600 feet. A crosswind blew the bomb from its aiming point, the Aioi Bridge and it subsequently detonated 800 feet away, directly above the Shima Surgical Clinic.
The blast was devastating, creating a radius of total destruction of 1 mile with fires and further destruction for a radius of 4.4 miles from the point of detonation. An estimated 90% of Hiroshima’s buildings were damaged or completely destroyed. Approximately 70,000 people died in the initial bombing. By the end of 1945 estimates place the death toll at betwen 90,000 and 140,000 from burns and other related injuries. By 1950 the total had risen to close to 200,000 because of the additional deaths caused by cancer and other radiation effects.
Debate as to whether the decision to use atomic weapons was proper and justfied rages still today and I do not wish to enter into it at this time or in this venue. What I will say is that it is important to judge events in history by the standards of the native to the era in question, taking into account that these events did not happen in a vacuum and that miriad othereents influenced or caused the event being scrutinized.
Without one exception, every single World War Two veteran I have personally spoken to regarding the atomic bombings of Japan has stated that the two bombs saved countless American and allied lives who would have been lost had the invasian of the Japanese home islands been necessary. It is up to us all to decide for ourselves if that ends justifies the means. One does have to wonder though, who among us would not be here today if our fathers or grandfathers had been lost in such a costly invasion?
I for one am grateful to those men and women who made the hard decisions in a hard time. They took the risks and bore the burden of history and critics. In this man’s opinion, their courageous actions deserve our respect and admiration.
Flightline Fabrications recently interviewed retired USAAF B-17 Bombardier Morris “Morrie” Yellen. Morrie was generous enough to sit down for our Living History Project™ and tell us about his life on a B-17 Flying Fortress as a 15th Air Force, 2nd Bomb Group, 20th Squadron Bombardier in Italy during WWII.
Morrie Flew 51 Missions, was escorted by the Tuskegee Airmen, had his entire squadron shot down by German Flak after his 2nd or 3rd mission, and that is just to start.
Morrie’s account of his WWII Service is truly a great story; you almost feel like you are there with him flying in a B-17 Flying Fortress over Germany. The photos you will see in this video were graciously provided by Morrie and taken during his WWII service.
Part One of Three:
If you would like to leave your comments about this interview,
please click the “Comments” located at the bottom of this post.
The mission of the Flightline Fabrications Living Histroy Project™ is to preserve the heritage of our heros; to make certain their stories are recorded and shared and to honor the sacrifice and courage these heroes have shown throughout history.
Please join this important mission; be part of our journey by adding your story so that generations to come may better understand history - through your experiences, your eyes, and in your words.
Flightline Fabrications recently interviewed retired USAAF B-17 Bombardier Morris “Morrie” Yellen. Morrie was generous enough to sit down for our Living History Project and tell us about his life on a B-17 Flying Fortress as a 15th Air Force, 2nd Bomb Group, 20th Squadron Bombardier in Italy during WWII.
Morrie Flew 51 Missions, was escorted by the Tuskegee Airmen, had his entire squadron shot down by German Flak after his 2nd or 3rd mission, and that is just to start.
Over the next 4 weeks Flightline Fabrications will be posting segments of Morrie’s interview for all generations to hear. Morrie’s is truly a great story; you almost feel like you are there with him.
August 2, 1943 - American motor torpedo boat PT-109, commanded by LTJG John F. Kennedy (Future President of the United States) is rammed by the Japanese destroyer Amagiri and sinks. Kennedy’s actions to save his surviving crew made him a war hero, which proved helpful in his political career.
August 2, 1964 - A North Vietnamese gunboat allegedly fires on US destroyers, USS Maddox and USS Turner Joy in what would come tobe known as The Gulf of Tonkin Incident. This incident prompted the first large scale military involvement by US armed forces in Vietnam and led to the passage by Congress of the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, which granted President Lyndon Johnson the authority to assist any Southest Asian country whose government was considered to be jeopardized by “communist aggression”. The resolution served as Johnson’s legal justification for escalating American involvement in the Vietnam War.
The mission of the Flightline Fabrications Living History Project™ is to preserve the heritage of our heroes: to make certain their stories are recorded and shared and to honor the sacrafice and courage these heroes have shown throughout history.
The Flightline Fabrications Living History Project™ recognizes the service memebers and civilians of all nations who have participated in the events that have shaped the world around us; from Privates to Generals, Presidents, Prisoners of War, Diplomats, to Dock Workers, Pilots, Ground Crew, Soldiers, Nurses, and all those who have “Been There, Done That!”.
Please join this important mission; be part of our journey by adding your story so that generations to come may better understand history - through your experiences, your eyes, and in your words.
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According to statistics given at the 
![[Back Row L-R] Major Ferebee, Captain Van Kirk, Colonel Tibbets, Captain Lewis [Front Row L-R] Staff Sgt. Caron, Sgt. Stiborik, Staff Sgt. Duzenbury, Pvt. 1st Class Nelson, Sgt. Shumard](http://www.flightlinefabrications.com/blog/Images/Enola%20Gay%20Crew.jpg)
