Looking Back

As we approached Berlin, Lt. Delclisur reported that not enough power was being generated to operate the bombsight properly and that we would have to bomb by radar, even though there was not enough undercast to interfere with the more accurate visual bombing.  Immediately upon entering the bomb run we ran into intense flak.  One shell scored a direct hit but, fortunately, was a dud.  Instead of exploding on contact, it put our #3 engine out of commission and exited through the top of the wing, leaving a gaping hole.   If the shell had exploded, the wing would have buckled and our plane would have gone down. I’ve often wondered if some slave laborer had sabotaged that shell.  In the few minutes we were over Berlin, our plane was hit several other times, but none of our crew was wounded.  Luck was still with us. 

 Our luck ran out, however.  The disabled engine was leaking gasoline, which could result in our running out before getting back to England. Then, just after Lt. Delclisur released the flare that signaled the other planes to drop their bombs, our generators went completely out, leaving us with no power for gun turrets, radio, intercom, and other electrical equipment.

Not long after turning away from the target, we were again attacked by a group of FW-190s and a few ME-109s.   Since we were caught without fighter support, the Germans were free to give us their undivided attention.  One flew by so close to me going from front to rear that I thought I might recognize the pilot if we ever met again.  The loss of intercom and my limited view from my tail turret kept me ignorant of the engine problems and leaking gas; however, I knew we must have problems besides the loss of electrical power when I saw that we had dropped back to the rear of the formation.

The loss of power for turrets was a major concern to me.  After going through the simple procedure for converting to hand cranks and foot firing pedals, I practiced maneuvering the guns and turret.  As I already knew, the emergency system was a far cry from the hand control that activated the hydraulic system.  Using the hand cranks, I could not turn the turret and elevate or lower the pair of fifties nearly fast enough to track any German plane that came into my view.  The German that had attacked from the front and flown by so close to me had zoomed out of range long before I could do anything.  Had my turret been operating normally, I’d have had a good chance of downing him. Fortunately, none of the enemy made a direct attack on our plane from the tail except for one FW-190 that started my direction but swerved when I fired.  I triggered a burst occasionally, primarily in the hope that the Germans would think my turret was functioning properly and stay clear.  The front and top turret gunners were also operating their turrets manually and doing their best, along with the waist gunners, to fend off the Germans, most of whom were attacking from the front.