[algore]

” The near certainty the United States would be drawn into WW II prompted creation of an autonomous Army Air Force. “

I have studied this, and I visited a guy who was on Eisenhowers General Staff, we talked a lot back in the early 80s

It was nowhere near certain back then, Although with hindsight and following the money and money, and the sacrifice maybe.

I see some of the same today sadly

[NWFree]

The ball turrets were torn to shreds by flak too have seen the pics 🤪

[BlueLancer]

There was a fantastic Twilight Zone-style episode on "Amazing Stories" called "The Mission" which focused on a trapped ball gunner and the lengths he took to survive ...

[yetidog]

The Death of the Ball Turret Gunner
BY RANDALL JARRELL
From my mother’s sleep I fell into the State,
And I hunched in its belly till my wet fur froze.
Six miles from earth, loosed from its dream of life,
I woke to black flak and the nightmare fighters.
When I died they washed me out of the turret with a hose.

[Taxman]

Ping

[dainbramaged]

My Dad's best friend from high school was a tail gunner on a B-17, managed to make it home unscathed after many missions. He said he was thankful for being too tall to be the ball turret gunner and felt for the guy in that position.
He ran a cattle ranch in North Central Washington State for 50 some years after the war, was a true cowboy. He could roll a cigarette one handed.

[chuckles]

My father was a Ball Turret gunner in a B-24 called Male Call. He was 5’3” and volunteered for 30 missions in Europe. He passed several years ago on Memorial Day at 85. He won the DFC with 4 oak leaf clusters. Jimmy Stewart was his C.O.