Honoring our heroes:Young and Old

20th Air Force Association ^ | 03/17/05 | JimVT

[JimVT]

My brother, one of a whole lot of WW2 heroes, turns 85 next month.

[JimVT]

Killing some time on St. Paddy's Day and remembering my youth, I got to thinking about my brother Lt. Col Hugh W. Daley, USAF (Ret) who left home in RI in the 40s to go to war.

He ended up as a nav-bomb. on B29s and spent a good deal of time in harm's way flying out of the CBI theater and Guam, Tinian and Saipan to Japan and back.

Being 15 years older than me, I used to think every time a large aircraft flew over the RI skies that it was probably my 'brudder'.

Surfing the net today, I found the 20th AF site (see above) and a lot of info on the B29 crews INCLUDING a picture of my brother and his crew members.

He's the guy standing at the left. The plane was the "Case Ace"

He lives in San Diego now so if any of you S.D. Freepers want to wish him a "happy birthday" on April 4, he'll be pleasantly surprised.

"Keep 'em flyin'

[Dubya]

Thanks for posting this. I pray that God will bless them always.

[Dubya]

My uncle fly a bomber in WW2. He was shot down. He lived and he got his entire crew out safe.
The plane was burning so bad by the time he got the crew out he could not even see. He said God led him to the Bomb Bay door so he could jump.
Hi uncle Paul if your around here.
I think he flew a B17, not sure though.

[Dubya]

389 BOMB GROUP.

[BushisTheMan]

Loved your post. Any day is a great day to thank our Vets. Tell your brother Happy Birthday April 4 from me.

[anniegetyourgun]

Happy Birthday, Col. Daley - from this AF brat. (My flyboy dad would also be 85 this year, though he went on to be with the LORD many years ago.) I salute you - on behalf of him too.

[Stonewall Jackson]

One of my neighbors lied about his age so he could join the Army Air Force in WW2, where he served as a waist gunner on a B-17. He and the nose gunner shared credit for one of the first Me-262 jets lost in combat, but one of the other German jets got them on the next mission and they had to spend the next three days sneaking through occupied Holland before reaching Allied lines. He passed away a few years ago (from injuries suffered as an armor officer in Korea), but I spent many an hour sitting there, listening to him and my grandfather talk about their service in WW2 and Korea. They truly are the "Greatest Generation".

[Dubya]

They sure are.

[The Spirit Of Allegiance]

I know of one FReeper who will be on Normandy Beach later this year. I wish I could kiss that ground. Few other events sum up battles of Good vs. Evil like WWII.

You probably know the little joke around FR that sprung up from a typo: if something is big, important, huge--it is HUGH. Tell your "Jimmy Dolittle" HERO bro we THANK him for his service:

He is a HUGH Hero!

God Bless Hugh and all our Military!