Category Archives: man card

Hanging out with the gals

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Via the Oklahoma National Guard Museum: two members of the 45th Infantry “Thunderbird” Division show off their sweetheart-named select-fire M2 Carbines somewhere in Korea.

The Thunderbirds were one of just two National Guard divisions-– along with the California-based 40th Infantry– sent to fight in Korea. Activated in September 1950, by the end of the following year, they were deployed to Korea as a unit and spent 429 days in combat until the end of the conflict in 1953.

They saw hell at Yonchon-Chorwon, Old Baldy, Pork Chop Hill, Heartbreak Ridge, and Luke’s Castle, suffering 4,004 casualties, including 834 killed in action.

One part of Louisiana is always Chennault’s

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The University of Louisiana Monroe has released an updated Brand Guide, which focuses on realigning the ULM brand with the story of the P-40 Warhawk aircraft, and in particular, those flown by the AVG and its later 23rd Fighter Group in WWII.

Of note, the U.S. military has granted ULM special permission to use a variation of the circa 1941 “meatball” roundel in ULM colors in perpetuity.

As noted by the school:

The new edition of the ULM Brand Guide introduces several new visual assets inspired by the P-40 Warhawk, the plane flown by General Claire Lee Chennault’s Flying Tigers of the American Volunteer Group in the Second Sino-Japanese War in China prior to WWII. Chennault is a Northeast Louisiana native whose connection to the area was a contributing factor to ULM selecting “Warhawks” as its new mascot in 2006.

Suitably, the Tigers of the AVG, though they flew for Chiang Kai-shek’s KMT, which lost its mainland China privileges in 1949, are still celebrated there, where the Liuzhou Military Museum has on exhibition more than 1,000 artifacts, from flight suits and arm patches to letters and diaries, honoring those men.

Fitting that Chennault said later in life:

It is my fondest hope that the sign of the Flying Tiger will remain aloft just as long as it is needed and that it will always be remembered on both shores of the Pacific as the symbol of two great peoples working toward a common goal in war and peace.

Claire Chennault, “Flying Tiger” P-40B Warhawk, Artist: Darrell Lum. USAF DF-SC-84-04112

1202 Days and a Cup of Coffee

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80 years ago this week, Gen. Jonathan “Skinny” Mayhew Wainwright IV (USMA 1906) is seen enjoying a cup of Joe in House Speaker Sam Rayburn’s Office, 10 September 1945, after addressing the House and before picking up his MoH. If anyone ever deserved a good cup of coffee at the time, it was Wainwright.

National Archives Identifier, 350297855

Note Wainwright’s simplified salad bar and four-starred epaulets on his “Sun tans.”

A veteran of the Moro Rebellion with the old 1st Cavalry before they gave up their horses and the Great War– where he fought in the Meuse-Argonne with the 82nd Infantry Division back when they were “legs”– Wainwright was a one-star regular left holding the bag in the Philippines in April 1942 as a newly promoted lieutenant general (temporary) when “Dug Out” Doug was ordered to evac to Australia.

This meant a very hard 1202 days as the highest-ranking American POW in Japanese custody, and, while most of the PI had been liberated before the end of the war, Wainwright, who had been held in Manchuria/Manchukuo, was only freed by the Soviet Red Army on 20 August 1945, a week after the Japanese had signaled they would surrender.

He was soon plucked out of China by a USAAF C-47 and rushed to recently occupied Japan.

General of the Army Douglas MacArthur and Lt. Gen. Jonathan Wainwright greet each other at the New Grand Hotel, Yokohama, Japan on August 31, 1945, in their first meeting since they parted on Corregidor more than three years before. (US Army HD-SN-99-02411)

Wainwright was present at the Japanese surrender on Missouri in Tokyo Bay on 2 September, then accompanied the documents to Washington via air.

He was quickly given a MoH and a fourth star (which was not temporary).

Following a short post-war stint as commander of the Eastern Defense Command in New York and later the Fourth Army at Fort Sam Houston, he was moved to the retired list in August 1947 upon reaching the age 64 mandatory top out.

He passed of a stroke in 1953– on September 2nd no less– aged 70, and is buried in Arlington, Section 1, Grave 358-B.

‘Harlem Hellfighters’ get their Gold

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“Hellfighters of Harlem in the Meuse-Argonne, September 26-October 1, 1918.” The 369th Infantry fought valiantly in the Allied (Champagne) Offensive as part of the French 161st Division, U.S. Army painting by Col. H Charles McBarron Jr

Black New York National Guard Soldiers, known as “Hellfighters” for their fight against the Kaiser’s boys 100 years ago, were recognized with Congress’s highest honor during a recent ceremony at the U.S. Capitol.

The Congressional Gold Medal was presented to descendants of some of the 4,000 Soldiers who served in the 369th Infantry Regiment, nicknamed the Harlem Hellfighters, during World War I.

Red Devil Crusaders

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With the 100th anniversary of the Red Devils recently, these two great images from its bad old Crusader Days in Vietnam felt appropriate. While the F-8 was a gunfighter built for speed, when used as a low altitude strike aircraft, it took heavy losses.

Official caption “Poised for Action: An ordnance-laden F-8E Crusader jet of Marine All-Weather Fighter Squadron 232 [VMF (AW)-232] stands ready on the Marine Aircraft Group 11 [MAG-11] flight line (official USMC photo by T. J. Mercurio).” From the Jonathan Abel Collection (COLL/3611), Marine Corps Archives & Special Collections.

“On the Way: An F-8E Crusader jet of Marine All Weather Attack Squadron 232 [VMF (AW)-232] launches on a scramble mission in support of Marine ground forces south of Da Nang (official USMC photo by Staff Sergeant Bill Fisher).” From the Jonathan Abel Collection (COLL/3611), Marine Corps Archives & Special Collections.

The above airframe, Bu150316, WT Red 17, was damaged by ground fire over South Vietnam on 4 May 4  1967. The plane made it to the South China Sea, where the pilot (Major Edward F. Townley) ejected and was rescued by a helicopter.

As noted by the unit history:

The squadron, flying the newer F-8E Crusader, which it received in August 1966, began full combat operations in December. The F-8E was similar to the F-8D but with higher-performance radar, which, being mounted in the nose section, changed the appearance slightly.

By the end of the month, VMF(AW)-232 had flown 571 sorties while delivering 418 tons of ordnance to enemy targets; four aircraft had received hits, and the Red Devil pilots had become familiar with the I and H Corps area as well as portions of the area north of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).

During the first 4 months of 1967, 19 more F-8Es were hit. In most cases, the damage was caused by a single small arms round and was easily repaired. Most importantly, no pilots were injured, but in May and June, the Red Devils were not quite as fortunate.

On 4 May, Major Edward F. Townley’s jet was hit as it circled over a suspected enemy position. Soon, the fighter was heading seaward, trailing fire and smoke. Major Townley was ejected and recovered uninjured.

On the 19th, the first Red Devil was killed in action, and the squadron lost its second aircraft. While flying a direct air support mission, Captain Harold J. Hellbach reported receiving fire over the target area. As the pilot turned toward the sea, the jet suddenly pitched nose up and then entered a dive, exploding when it hit the ground about 6 miles from the target area.

On 21 June, Major Charles L. Cronkrite, who, after his transfer from 232 to the group staff, continued flying with the Red Devils, was killed. After experiencing mechanical difficulties, Major Cronkrite ejected, and “it was suspected that the pilot was unconscious when he hit the water.”

July was a better month in that no one was killed or injured, but one aircraft was lost on the 2nd when Major Bruce A. Martin ejected after his plane was hit.

Two other F-8s were destroyed on 15 July as a result of an enemy rocket attack on Da Nang.

August marked the last month of the unit’s combat tour, and on the 30th, when the last plane landed, the Red Devils had amassed totals of 5,785 sorties, 7,273 flight hours, and 6,271 tons of ordnance expended.

The Red Devils received their first two-seater F-4B/J Phantoms on 19 September 1967 and, as VMFA-232, deployed with them back to Vietnam in March 1969.

Securing from the watch, 1945

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First off, Happy Labor Day.

Here’s to some of the hardest-working yet most unsung folks in WWII.

Official wartime caption: “Coast Guard lookout in Pacific. As a Coast Guard combat cutter skirts an island somewhere in the South Pacific, lookouts keep an unceasing watch for signs of the enemy. Their warnings bring the call to ‘battle stations’ to preserve the safety of the vessel.”

National Archives Identifier 205584962. Local Identifier 26-G-01-10-44(2)

On 1 September 1945 Coast Guard counted 170,480 personnel in uniform, including 9,624 women in the SPARS.

In addition to the 1,677 commissioned Coast Guard vessels in active service at the end of the 1945 fiscal year, Coast Guard personnel on 1 August 1945 were manning 326 Navy craft and 254 Army vessels, with about 50,000 Coast Guard men serving on Navy and 6,000 on Army vessels.

The 351 Navy vessels that the Coast Guard manned during the war included:

  • 22 Transports (AP)
  • 9 Auxiliary Transports (APA)
  • 15 Cargo Ships (AK)
  • 5 Auxiliary Cargo Attack Ships (AKA)
  • 18 Gasoline Tankers (AGO)
  • 28 Landing Craft, Infantry (LCI)(L)
  • 76 Landing Ships, Tanks (LST)
  • 30 Destroyer Escorts (DE) (in five full Escort Divisions)
  • 75 Patrol Frigates (PF)
  • 40 Patrol Vessels (YP)
  • 8 Gunboats or Corvettes (PG)
  • 6 Submarine Chasers (SC)
  • 4 Submarine Chasers, Patrol (PC)
  • 1 Coastal Yacht (PYC)
  • 1 Ferryboat and Launch (YFB)
  • 1 Ambulance Boat (YHB)
  • 1 Gate Vessel (TNG)
  • 1 Range Tender (YF)
  • 1 Motor Torpedo Boat Tender (AGP)
  • 1 Submarine Chaser, Auxiliary (WPC)
  • 1 Auxiliary, Misc. (WAG)
  • 7 Miscellaneous, Unclassified (IX)

Another 2,998 Coast Guard Reserve vessels had been acquired through purchase, charter, or gift, principally to combat the submarine menace along the coasts during the War as the famed “Hooligan Navy.” Still, by September 1945, this number had been whittled down to 336.

The Coast Guard maintained 24 air stations and myriad outlier fields along the coasts of the CONUS United States during the war, under the operational control of the various sea frontiers, with over 300 “fighting” aircraft, mostly PBM-3/5 Mariners (27), Kingfishers (76), PBY-5A/6A Catalinas (114), and at least 10 PB4Y-1 Liberators/P4Y-2G Privateers with smaller numbers of Grumman Duck, Widgeon, and Goose amphibians. Besides ASW patrol, these served as task units in the conduct of air-sea rescue. Assistance was rendered in 686 plane crashes, and 786 lives were saved during the 1945 fiscal year alone, while 5,357 emergency medical cases were transported and 149 obstructions to navigation and derelicts were sighted for removal.

At the same time, at least three USCG Curtiss SB2C-3/4 Helldivers were based at San Diego to patrol the skies offshore for Japanese Fu-Go incendiary balloons. Meanwhile, four huge Consolidated PB2Y-5 Coronados in USCG service were flying on LORAN support missions out of Coast Guard Air Station San Francisco.

More than 92 percent of the 214,000 personnel who served in the Coast Guard during World War II (including 12,846 women) were volunteer Reservists in for the duration, with an additional 125,000 personnel serving in the stateside Temporary Reserve—many of those draft exempt due to war industry jobs and/or age and just looking to “do their part” to protect the beaches and ports. My great-grandfather, 4F due to his age, nonetheless volunteered for the overnight USCG Beach Patrol in Pascagoula, equipped only with a Coleman lantern and a Stevens 12-gauge.

During the war, the USCG sustained a total of 1,918 casualties (one while a Japanese POW), with 639 killed in action and 1,279 wounded.

On December 28, 1945, President Harry S. Truman issued Executive Order 9666, which directed the transfer of the Coast Guard from the Navy back to the Treasury Department, with only its 17,000~ regulars guaranteed a job in the coming days.

Their war was done.

Final WWII VC Holder Boards his PBY for Home

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Flying Officer John Alexander Cruickshank (126700), Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve, late of No. 210 Squadron, has passed at the age of 105.

Born in Aberdeen in 1920, he joined the Territorials in Scotland at age 19. Once the war started, he served in the Royal Artillery until his transfer to the RAFVR came through in the summer of 1941. Following flight training in Canada, he joined 210 Squadron, piloting PBY Catalinas out of windswept RAF Sullom Voe in Shetland on ASW duties in the North Atlantic.

It was while supporting Operation Mascot, one of the myriad attempts to sink the Tirpitz in her Norwegian lair, 17 July 1944, that Cruickshank’s PBY, JV928 Y, encountered German type VIIC submarine U-361 (Kptlt. Hans Seidel) west of the Lofoten Islands.

The first bombing run, through fierce AAA fire from the surfaced U-boat, riddled the PBY but failed as the bombs did not release. This required an even more dangerous second run, lacking the element of surprise.

Photograph taken from Consolidated Catalina Mark IVA, JV928 ‘Y’, of No. 210 Squadron RAF during an attack on German type VIIC submarine U-361 west of the Lofoten Islands. IWM C 4590

The swirling battle sent U-361 to the bottom of the Norwegian Sea, with Seidel and all 51 hands.

As for the PBY, JV928 Y suffered one crewman killed (Flying Officer J.C. Dickson, navigator/bombardier) and four more wounded, Cruickshank among them. Despite being hit by shrapnel in 72 places, including twice in the lungs and ten serious wounds in the legs, Cruickshank somehow refused morphia and remained in the cockpit beside the co-pilot until his damaged aircraft, full of dead and dying, made it some five hours back to the Shetlands and landed safely.

He earned Coastal Command’s third Victoria Cross, the others being posthumous.

Post-war, he left the service and went into banking. In 2020, he became the first VC holder to reach the age of 100, setting a new bar.

Heart of Oak

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HM Trawler Kingston Amber (FY 211) seen battling her way through heavy seas on the Northern patrol, 1942.

Photo by LT R.G.G. Coote. LOC LC-USZ62-89354 via IWM

The 467-ton F/V Kingston Amber was completed in September 1937 and taken over by the Admiralty two weeks after the Germans marched into Poland in 1939. Her wartime armament included a single 4-inch QF gun, and two .50 cal Vickers. She rode shotgun on numerous convoys and survived the conflict. During World War II, the British Royal Navy requisitioned approximately 816 English and Welsh trawlers, along with about 200 steam drifters, using them for a wide array of ASW, coastal patrol, and mine-sweeping tasks.

Post-war, Kingston Amber was returned to her owner in February 1946, completing over a decade of commercial service before she was scrapped at Bruges in January 1959.

The Royal Naval Patrol Service numbered some 66,000 men during WWII, manning 6,000 assorted small vessels, including the above-mentioned trawlers. With some 200 RNPS trawlers lost during the conflict, at least 14,500 of these “Sparrows” gave their lives, and no less than 2,385 RNPS seamen remain unaccounted for in Poseidon’s embrace, having “no known grave but the sea.”

Operation Cochise

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3rd Marine Division AOR, Vietnam, 12 August 1967. “Army of the Republic of Vietnam Rangers dash from a Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 164 CH-46 Sea Knight [its ramp seen to the left] during Operation Cochise. The Ky Ha-based squadron transported the rangers to the operational area South of Da Nang.”

USMC photograph A 422604 by CPL Cowen. National Archives Identifier 26386815. Local Identifier 127-GVB-104-A422604

Note the hard-charging ARVN Ranger’s very handy M1 .30 Caliber Carbine in some of its final battlefield use, Nomex flight gloves, and the large battle dressing on the band of his M1 helmet, the latter complete with an ERDL camo cover. It seems he is using a 2-quart canteen carrier for spare mags, which isn’t a bad idea.

As noted of Operation Cochise by the history folder of the 1st Bn/4th Marines: 

The ARVN rangers made the first significant contact. On the morning of the 12th, three battalions of the 21st NVA Regiment attacked the rangers. Heavy fighting continued throughout the day and by 1700 the rangers reported heavy casualties. Dangerously low on ammunition, with darkness approaching, and with no sign of a letup on the part of the enemy, the rangers requested an emergency re-supply.

At 1730, a CH-46 from HMM-165, accompanied by two UH-1E gunships from VMO-6 arrived overhead with the badly needed ammunition. The gunships scouted the intended landing zone and reported that the CH-46 could not land in the contested zone. The pilot, Captain Jack H. McCracken, well aware of what would happen to the rangers without ammunition decided to try to deliver his cargo anyway. He ordered his crew chief, Corporal James E. Bauer, to stack the ammunition on the rear ramp. Captain Mc Cracken nosed over his helicopter and raced for the landing zone. McCracken then hovered 30 feet over the zone, and Corporal Bauer lowered the ramp and most of the ammunition dropped into the zone. While repeated enemy small arms hits shook the helicopter, Corporal Bauer kicked out the rest of the ammunition. As the last box dropped, enemy bullets severely damaged the helicopter, but McCracken’s re-supply permitted the rangers to continue the battle.

At 2300, the NVA units finally pulled back, leaving 197 bodies behind. The ranger losses also had been heavy, 81 killed and 153 wounded.

While the ARVN Rangers have not been around since 1975, the “Knightriders” of HMM-164 (now VMM-164) are still around as are the White Knights of the HMM-165 (now VMM-165).

As for Dr. Jack Hill McCracken, Ph.D, he earned both the Silver Star and the Distinguished Flying Cross in Vietnam and worked in both Marine and Army aviation for two decades following the conflict, “overseeing the development of a $29 billion lite helicopter project and simultaneously fighting vehemently against the proposed single-pilot helicopter program, which he successfully defeated in the interest of pilot safety and military effectiveness.” He passed at his Texas home in April 2023, aged 81.

Foot plot propagation

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Each summer, I like to run a veggie garden. Just a small manually tended plot with cucumbers, beans, peppers, squash, tomatoes, etc. I love it and often have more than enough for personal use, passing on bags of surplus to grateful friends and neighbors.

(It’s always interesting how much produce you can get from a plot as small as a 1/16 acre)

I can’t recommend it enough.

The only bad part is that (generally) non-GMO, non-irradiated veggies grown without enhancers and pesticides turn south pretty fast. Sometimes faster than you can use them.

One cool thing is that the old ways seem to be growing more popular.

For instance, I saw this old card catalog (oh, the memories) repurposed into a free community seed bank while exercising my predilection to haunt library used book sales.

Good to see.

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