Corsair
by
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Bob and I pulled around sharply to our right and lined up for a rocket run.
“Shit, we were going to run the gauntlet again.”
About a mile from the target my Corsair took several thumping hits and began to vibrate.
“God damn, the bastards nailed me good!”
I had severe damage to my left wing and the engine cowling had been hit. The engine was spewing oil and the windscreen became a blur of hot oil.
My Corsair shuddered and as I pulled up and I began to lose power. I fired my rockets to clear my wings and prevent any catastrophic damage from exploding ordnance.
Bob must have seen my rockets arc high into the early afternoon sky and eventually fall back to the ground exploding harmlessly in the paddies. He scrambled his aircraft to a position directly behind my damaged war bird and I suddenly became aware of his voice crackling on the radio, “What’s up little buddy?”
“Bob I took a serious hit and I’m losing power!” “Hang tight Pete, I’m coming up on your left to survey the damage.”
I struggled to keep my ship flying in a straight line, trying not to endanger Bob who was sliding in close surveying the damage. I glanced at my engine gauges and I could see I was losing oil pressure and the cylinder heads were heating up.
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About the Book
This story is about the F4-U Corsair that was developed for the navy as a carrier plane by Chance Vought Aircraft in 1938. This plane was introduced into World War II in 1943 as a land based aircraft and was assigned to a Marine fighter squadron VMF-124. The aircraft was later accepted by the Navy as a carrier plane and VMF-124 retrained and took it aboard the Carrier USS Essex on Christmas day 1944. Ledesma the author weaves a warm story of love and war to provide the reader with an exciting action filled story. The characters Pete Martin and Bob Jones were created to tell the story. The remaining cast of characters and events are preserved in their rightful place in history.
About the Author
Raymond L. Ledesma was born in Sacramento, California in 1934. Ledesma published a historical fiction novel, Antonio’s Journey which chronicle’s an immigrant's adventures in pioneer America. He is currently a freelance writer of short stories and has published a history piece in the Western Saddle guide magazine. He is a member of the California writers Club founded in 1909 by Jack London and as a member, won an essay contest in 2006. Ledesma is a natural storyteller and enjoys entertaining his audience with stories from the past.His last work, 50 Years in a Kids Game, is a biograhy of a friend, Harry Dunlop, who spent a lifetime in the game of baseball. this is his third work Corsair. Ledesma is a writer that draws his readers into a story..