May 15, 2010  Armed Forces Day

Also on May 15, we are offering Model Airplane building class. The class is FREE & child's admission is included with the purchase of a model airplane. World War II model airplanes are on sale at the Museum Gift Store for $12. Classes will be held at 10 am, 1 pm & 3 pm. Spaces are limited, to save your spot in the class please contact Heather.

The Museum has added a discounted admission rate for all active duty military and their families. 

John Connor

John Connor, a native of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, enlisted in the Army Air Corps in 1939.  He completed basic training at Langley Field, Virginia and was assigned as a clerk to the GHQ Army Air Corps headquarters.  In the rapid expansion of the Army prior to World War II, he was promoted from private to Master Sergeant in four years, becoming the Base Sergeant Major.

In 1943 he was commissioned a 2^nd Lieutenant Bombardier at Kirkland Field, New Mexico.  He went through crew training in B-24 aircraft at various bases prior to arriving in England in 1943.  The crew was assigned to the 389^th Bomb Group, 8^th Air Force.  He eventually became the Group Bombardier.  On June 20, 1943 while

flying on his 21^st mission, the airplane was severely damaged by flak, preventing its

return to England.  The plane diverted to Sweden

and crash landed at a Swedish airfield located in Malmo.  The crew was interned for five months prior to being returned to the United States.

After various training schools and aircrew assignments, he was assigned as Chief of Current operations of the 2^nd Bomb Wing which was stationed here at Hunter AFB.  In 1957 he was transferred to the 5^th Air Division in Sidi

Slimane, Morocco as a staff operations officer.

Returning to Hunter in 1959, he was assigned as Chief of Combat Operations of the 308^th Bomb Wing, which at the time was commanded by Colonel Tibbets who's B-29, The Enola Gay, dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima.  In 1962 he was transferred to 8^th Air Force headquarters, Westover AFB, Massachusetts as Chief of Manpower and Organization for twenty six airbases under the control of the 8^th Air Force.

Colonel Connor retired in 1965 after twenty six years of active duty with over 4000 hours of flying time in various bomber aircraft.  John volunteers at the Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum in the Mission Experience telling visitors of his personal experiences during the war and reminding us all of the importance of the B-24 heavy bomber in helping to defeat Nazi Germany.

After one of the coldest winters anyone in this area can remember, spring has finally arrived.  Most days, the Museum has been filled with student groups and adult tours from all over the area.  Our volunteers have done a tremendous job of taking care of our guests and helping provide an experience they won't forget.  It is an extremely difficult job to coordinate, greet and guide multiple large groups through the Museum all at the same time, but they seem to pull it off without a hitch.  Hardly a day goes by that I don't have someone tell me how outstanding our volunteers are. 

The staff of the Museum has been creative in designing and promoting events that draw crowds and enhance the general appeal of the Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum. We just recently completed our last "Bunking In" of the current school year and close to 100 kids and their parents attended.  They spent the night at the Museum and were mesmerized by a presentation by one of our volunteers, Ken Scott, a P-51 fighter pilot during WWII.  On Saturday, March 27^th, the United States Army Strings Band, one of the most elite of all military bands, performed for over 500 people in the Museum Rotunda as part of the Savannah Music Festival.  We have more model airplane days scheduled.  Building models brings parents and kids together in an activity that is both educational and enjoyable.  There are many other events planned for the spring and summer and ideas for additional events are being discussed all the time. 

During World War II, Harry E. Motsinger flew as the radio operator on the Luis B. Coppola crew and completed thirty-five missions between January and April 1945 in the 379th Bomb Group, 525th Bomb Squadron.  After the war Harry raised his family in Fort Wayne, IN.  Living in the same neighborhood, another 8th Air Force veteran, Robert "Bob" Waldrop soon became a family friend.  Bob had flown as a waist gunner in the 306^th Bomb Group until his B-17 was shot down on 4 February 1944.  He was captured and spent the rest of the war as a POW in Stalag Luft IV, after having endured the Heydekrug Run when German guards using bayonets and dogs forced the POWs to run the three kilometers from the train station to the prison camp.

Robert Waldrop, David Motsinger, and C.Daniel Motsinger present both book and artifacts for the research center's collection.

Harry's son, C. Daniel "Dan" Motsinger, developed an interest in the Eighth Air Force and over the years donated numerous items to the Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum.  Recently he brought his son, David, and Bob Waldrop who also volunteers at the Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum, to donate two additional artifacts - an oxygen indicator in its original box and a second B-17 yoke cap so that the museum's B-17 cockpit would have one for the co-pilot as well as the pilot.  Dan also donated the book, Arizona's Hispanic Flyboys 1941-1945 by Rudolph C. Villarreal with an essay about his father's pilot, Luis B. Coppola.  Following their visit to the research center to donate the book and artifacts, they toured the exhibit galleries to observe the progress being made on the B-17 restoration.