Manduria, Foggia Airfield Complex, Southern Italy, March 13, 1944: left landing gear failure on landing for "Miss Fury", the B-24H-5-CF Liberator s/n 41-29212 of the 721st Bombardment Squadron, 450th Bombardment Group (Heavy), 47TH Bomb Wing, 15th Air Force. Abstracts from the 450th BG’s S-2 Narrative Report, March 13, 1944: twenty-eight aircraft took off at 0900-0914 hours to bomb Regensburg Main Marshalling Yard, in Germany. Twenty-seven aircraft dropped 51.5 tons of 500 lb G.P. bombs on the primary target at 1327-1329 hours from 24,000-26,000 feet. One aircraft jettisoned 2 tons of bombs at (48.20N-13.10E), after these bombs failed to release over the target. Twenty-eight aircraft returned to base at 1650 hours. None lost. None missing. None at friendly fields. Likely the accident of the "Miss Fury" occurred at return from this mission. Victor Sierra

Landing gear failure

Captain Roscoe C. Brown, assisted by Crew Chief Wendall Smith, prepares for take-off in his North American P-51D Mustang, probably in Italy, late-1944.  Captain Brown was Commander of 100 Fighter (previously Pursuit) Squadron, 332nd Fighter Group, which was posted to Italy early in 1943, and served through the Italian campaign and the subsequent Allied incursion into Germany, an assignment that was made only after serious obstruction on the part of Air Force authorities.  Among his achievements is the shooting down of one of three Me 262 fighters destroyed by the 332nd Fighter Group while on bomber escort over Berlin on 24 March, 1945, an action for which the Group received a Distinguished Unit Citation.

Why the obstruction over the combat deployment ?  Well, the obvious reason - the 332nd was an African-American unit.  Its pilots were trained at the Tuskegee Institute, Macon County, Alabama, where pretty well all African-American pilots to serve in the wartime air force had been trained.  The US military remained racially segregated up to 1948, and the Tuskegee pilots had to face all manner of discriminatory action and discouragement before, and even after, combat deployment.  That did not stop them.

Dr. Roscoe Brown survived the war, and enjoyed a distinguished academic career thereafter.  I believe he is still with us.  Best regards, JR.

Red Tail.

USAAF’s Consolidated B-24 Liberators in action over on the Neuburg airdrome, Austria, March 21,1945: she’s the mission number 162 of the 485th Bomb Group, 55th Bomb Wing, 15th Air Force based at Venosa, Apulia, Southern Italy. The 485th BG, 828th, 829th, 830th and 831st Bomb Squadrons all equipped with Liberators, was activated at Fairmont, Nebraska Army Air Field, USA, in September 1943, and late dispatched to Mediterranean Theatre. Moved to North Africa the 485th began flying practice missions in Tunisia and by April 15, 1944 the crews began flying their planes to Venosa, where a landing field had been constructed from PSP (pierced steel planking). From Venosa the 485th flew 187 war missions - the first on 10 May 1944, Knin’s marshalling yards, Yugoslavia, the last on 25 April 1945, Linz’s marshalling yards, Austria – dropped 10,550 tons of bombs on enemy installations and was credited with destroying 61 enemy aircraft, probably destroying 41 more and damaging 37 others. Fifteen additional enemy aircraft were destroyed on the ground. The 485th officially lost 59 bombers in aerial combat and 62 others in accidents or salvaged as a result of combat. Approximately 3,500 men served in the 485th Bomb Group in Italy. This number includes air crew (2500+) and ground staff. The 485th lost at least 475 men KIA or died from combat-related injuries. Approximately 250 airmen became POWs. Thirteen airmen were captured, but managed to escape and return safely to Italy. At least 140 men from the group were shot down, but managed to evade capture and return safely. Victor Sierra