It is always interesting to look back on the past year at all our challenges and accomplishments.  Museums always face challenges and the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force is no exception.  We are constantly looking for ways to make our Museum more dynamic. We challenge our staff to think of new ways to enhance the visitor experience in terms of what they see and learn here. At the same time we maintain a world class facility that is open to the public almost every day of the year.

 

As 2013 comes to a close, we are in the process of completing or planning four exhibits.  We will soon
finish an almost total upgrade of the POW exhibit.  This exhibit will show a replica POW barracks, a video monitor depicting life as a POW including how POWs dealt with their captors, and cases containing artifacts central to the experiences of several former POWs.  Another exhibit set to be completed soon will tell the story of daylight strategic bombing, focusing on several of the most famous missions of the 8th Air Force including Schweinfurt, Regensburg, and Berlin.

 

Of great importance is the ongoing restoration of the B-17 "City of Savannah".  We have made dramatic progress this year and are planning on announcing a date for the dedication soon.  An amazing group of volunteers has spent thousands of hours working on this project and the goal is to make this airplane the finest static display B-17 in the world.  The next goal is to complete this restoration with at least three fully functioning gun turrets.

 

We have just completed a preliminary design for the proposed post WWII exhibit "The Modern 8th Air Force".  With the help of faculty and students from the world renowned Savannah College of Art and Design, the exhibit will focus on telling the Air Force story from the end of WWII, through the Cold War and every conflict up to the present.  We will begin an aggressive fundraising campaign shortly for this project.

 

The wide variety of events held here at the Mighty Eighth is amazing.  On many evenings after the Museum closes, the Rotunda, Art Gallery or other rooms within the Museum come alive with everything from military reunions, weddings and receptions, civic gatherings, galas and concerts, to Museum-sponsored events.  This year we hosted a gala banquet of over 300 people of the 100th Bomb Group Association as part of their 2013 reunion.  The 100th is the group that will be featured in the HBO miniseries "Masters of the Air".  The film will be based on the book by Don Miller, which tells the story of the 8th Air Force in WWII.  Both HBO and Playtone Pictures were in attendance during the Reunion, but more on that later.  Also this year, the 8th Air Force Historical Society held its annual reunion in Savannah and had a B-17 commemorative ceremony in the Museum's Combat Gallery.

 

2014 will again be a year full of challenges and significant accomplishments.  Already mentioned is the Dedication of the B-17.  In addition, we will hold our "Legacy Ball: A Salute to Masters of the Air".  In May, our Atlanta volunteers are planning on producing a world class calendar fundraiser named "The Buckhead Bomber Girls" featuring the daughters and granddaughters of Eighth Air Force veterans in the Atlanta area.  We are also planning a lecture sometime in the first quarter at the Atlanta History Center that will feature a presentation on the Museum and a roundtable discussion with several WWII Eighth Air Force veterans.  We hope to have as many as 1000 attendees at this event.  Also planned is our 5th Annual Flying Fortress 5K. We just completed our most successful 5K and the event has become a favorite in the Savannah area. 

 

Last, we continue to make a positive impact in the Savannah Chatham County Community with our Character Counts! education program.  Using examples from the Eighth Air Force in WWII, we help instruct others in character education and sponsor the program in all Savannah Chatham County Public Schools. This program is the system's standard code of conduct and affects the lives of over 35,000 students. Our veterans think the program elevates the Museum to an even higher standard.

 

Thanks to all of you who offer us your support including the over 100 volunteers that make my job so rewarding. Without their efforts we could not exist.  I wish everyone a prosperous and happy holiday season and look forward to the challenges in 2014.

by Jaime Hanna

Continuing with stories of recipients of the Medal of Honor, this month's article is about 1st LT. Edward S. Michael.  Lt. Michael was born in Chicago, Illinois in 1918 and did not enjoy the cramped quarters of city life.  The first time he laid eyes on a plane flying in the clouds above, he knew he wanted to be a pilot one day.  He joined the Army in November 1940 in the hope he would become a pilot, but failed the Aviation Cadet Training exam by two points.  He was stationed at Wheeler Field in Hawaii as an airplane mechanic and was an eyewitness to Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941.  When a Japanese Zero strafed his base, Lt. Michael dove for cover and had several pieces of concrete embedded in his cheek as a testament to how close those bullets came to him.

 

After Pearl Harbor, Michael asked to be allowed to re-take the pilot's exam and this time he passed.  He trained in Douglas, Arizona and after finishing was assigned to the 305th Bombardment Group, 364th Squadron in Chelveston, England with the Eighth Air Force.  The 305th had just suffered devastating losses on the Schweinfurt mission and Lt. Michael's crew was one of many replacements.  Michael and his crew quickly gelled together and agreed to name their B-17 "Bertie Lee" in honor of a lady that Michael had met while in training (and who he would eventually marry.)  In November 1943 they set out to complete their 25 missions and they survived countless raids, including making it back from the March 6, 1944 mission to Berlin where 69 bombers and 11 fighters were shot out of the sky.  After completing their 17th mission, General Doolittle took over command of the Eighth Air Force and extended the number of missions a crew was to complete.  Based on this new system, Michael and his crew would have to complete 27 missions before they could head home.

 

It was their second to last mission that would earn Lt. Michael the nation's highest award.  On April 11, 1944 the Bertie Lee set out on its 26th mission. The target was a ball bearing factory in  Stettin, a city roughly 75 miles past Berlin.  The crew for that day, including a replacement navigator and two replacement gunners all on their first mission, would be in the trailing element of the bomber stream carrying forty-two 100 pound incendiary bombs to destroy anything not obliterated by the bombs from the B-17s and B-24s ahead of them.  Black puffs of smoke from anti-aircraft guns began to fill the sky about 4 hours after take-off and the Bertie Lee suffered a hole ripped in her right wing.  As they reached their Initial Point (IP), over 100 German fighters swarmed the formation and Michael and his crew found themselves under violent attack.  Two engines were badly damaged by the 20mm shells and the top turret and radio room were demolished from the hail of bullets.  The enemy fighters continued their attack knocking out one of the cockpit windows injuring the co-pilot and sending shrapnel into Lt. Michael's thigh.  Hydraulic lines were severed and fluid sprayed across the remaining cockpit windshield making it impossible for the pilots to see.  As smoke filled the cabin, the plane dropped into a dive and they lost about 3,000 feet before they were able to pull it level again.  Taking full advantage of the Bertie Lee falling out of formation, the fighters continued to shoot at the wounded plane and managed to ignite several incendiaries in the bomb bay.  Upon learning this, Lt. Michael immediately tried to drop the bombs using an emergency release lever but they would not drop.  He gave the bailout order and throughout the plane, men began snapping on their parachutes and diving out.

 

Lt. Michael continued to fight for control of his plane when he heard the radio operator yell out, "Don't leave me!" after he discovered his parachute shredded in the radio room.  The men found an extra parachute and the radio operator quickly attached it and bailed out.  As Michael steered the plane into some clouds for cover, one of the gunners staggered into the cockpit holding his left eye in his right hand as his left arm was destroyed by enemy bullets - which left him without a free hand to pull the cord on his parachute.  Lt. Michael snapped on the gunner's parachute, walked him to the door, and pulled the rip cord as he pushed him out.  Both the pilot and the co-pilot knew an explosion was imminent and prepared to bail out themselves.  Before jumping they heard the guns in the nose firing and upon inspection found the bombardier still trying to fight off the German attackers, unaware that the bailout order had been given.  When Lt. Michael told him to jump, the bombardier discovered his parachute riddled with holes.  He refused to take Lt. Michael's parachute so Michael told him to get to the bomb bay and try to find a way to get rid of the burning incendiaries.  Returning to the cockpit, Michael informed the copilot that the bombardier did not have a parachute and would not take one of theirs, so their only option was an emergency landing.  In their first stroke of luck since being attacked, the bombardier managed to open the bomb bay doors and dislodge the burning cargo. 

 

After releasing the incendiaries, the bombardier made his way to the cockpit where he found significant blood on the floor from Lt. Michael's wounded leg and began to apply pressure to get the bleeding to stop.  The co-pilot took over the controls and they began to assess the damage.  All of the cockpit windows had now been shot out, the instrument panel was destroyed, two engines were out, the control cables were damaged leaving the bomb bay doors hanging open. The ball turret guns pointed at the ground creating a tremendous drag on the plane.There was damage to the rudder and elevators, and she had a hole in her right wing.  The co-pilot flew the plane while Lt. Michael drifted in and out of consciousness but he began to get nervous when the coast of England appeared on the horizon as he did not have a functioning air speed indicator or altimeter.  They roused Michael to get his opinion on landing and he rallied himself to consciousness to take over.  He tried to order the co-pilot and the bombardier to bail out using the two good parachutes but both refused.  As an astounded RAF base watched, Lt. Michael landed the plane in what they said was "the most perfect crash landing they had ever witnessed." 

 

After almost two months in the hospital and several blood transfusions, Lt. Michael was sent to back the United States and nominated for the Medal of Honor.  Despite the tremendous praise and accolades he received, he was still racked with guilt over the 7 crew members who had bailed out on his orders.  Even though he learned that at least 6 had survived and were taken as prisoners of war, he could not take any enjoyment in life knowing that they were probably cold and hungry.  The 7th man, the gunner who lost his eye, was still unaccounted for.  It wouldn't be until January 10, 1945, the very day that he was to be presented the Medal of Honor, that Lt. Michael received amazing news.  The missing gunner had been picked up by the Germans and taken to a hospital for treatment.  The Germans were not sure how well he would fare in a POW camp, so he was repatriated back to the United States.  It was with extra special joy that Lt. Edward Michael accepted his Medal of Honor from President Roosevelt, which turned out to be the final such ceremony Roosevelt would preside over before his death.  Lt. Michael continued in the Air Force until he retired as a Lieutenant Colonel.  He passed away on May 10, 1994 and is buried in Utah.  

Major Robert Rosenthal led the 100th Bomb Group and the Third Air Division on the 3 February 1945 mission to Berlin.  German flak and a direct hit from a ground fired rocket just before bombs away severely damaged his B-17 and killed their navigator.  Rosenthal left their formation and turned east for relative safety behind Soviet lines.  Approximately 20 miles east of Berlin, Rosenthal gave the order to bail out while he struggled to keep the crippled B-17 airborne.  Rosenthal, the last to bail out, barely escaped the aircraft when it spun out of control as he left the flight deck.  Four of the crew landed behind German lines, one of whom was lynched by German civilians and the remainder captured.  Rosenthal broke his arm upon landing but had luckily just made it to Soviet-held territory.  He soon encountered three soldiers who approached him aggressively.  Noticing the red star on their hats, he retrieved an American flag from his escape kit and began yelling "Roosevelt, Churchill, Stalin, Lucky Strike, Coca Cola, bombing Berlin."  The Soviet soldiers then recognized him as an American, hugged him and transported him to a Soviet field hospital for medical treatment. 

 

Rosenthal and several others of the crew who had also landed behind Soviet lines were billeted with Polish families as they were slowly transported east by Soviet authorities.  In one Polish village they were housed with the town mayor who quickly ran out of food providing for the American guests.  At the mayor's request, Rosenthal intervened with the local Soviet area commander for more food for the family.  As Rosenthal met with the Soviet general, their translator bowed to the general during each translation and his rear end hit Rosenthal and pushed him back.  By the third encounter with the translator's rear end, Rosenthal had enough and booted him onto the general's desk.  The general broke into laughter and said "Ah, Americanski!" and authorized the needed food.  The Soviets eventually flew Rosenthal's small group to Moscow.  They arrived there on 19 February 1945 and met Ambassador Averell Harriman.  Rosenthal cabled his family, who had been notified that he had been killed, and phoned the 100th asking them to save a squadron for him.  While in Moscow, one of their crew had to be restrained from attacking the Japanese ambassador when they encountered him at the opera.  After five days in Moscow they went by train to Eastern Command Headquarters at Poltava to begin their journey back to Thorpe Abbotts.

 

The 100th Bomb Group's case at this museum has been enhanced through the generous support of both the 100th Bomb Group Foundation, Inc. and the 100th Bomb Group Memorial Museum at Thorpe Abbotts.  One of the newly added artifacts is Rosenthal's British DFC with citation personally delivered by representatives from the museum at Thorpe Abbotts.

 

• The rest of Major Rosenthal's crew included: 1st Lt. Louis Chappell (KIA); 1st Lt. Eugene Lockhart (murdered by German civilians); 1st. Lt. Arthur Jacobson (POW); T/Sgt Dugger West (POW); S/Sgt Warren Winters (POW); Capt. John Ernst (RTD, leg amputated); 1st Lt. Robert Stropp (RTD); 1st Lt. Stewart Gillison (RTD); T/Sgt. Charles Weber (RTD); S/Sgt. George Windisch (RTD).

 

100th Bomb Group exhibit gratefully displays uniforms and decorations shared with the museum by the 100th Bomb Group Foundation, Inc. and the 100th Bomb Group Memorial Museum at Thorpe Abbotts.

 

Bill McAbee is our newest volunteer at the Mighty Eighth.  Bill served as an Assistant United States Attorney for twenty seven years and as an Assistant District Attorney for Chatham County for five years.  He also served as a Senior Legal Instructor for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, Brunswick GA.  He currently works with the NCPACE Program which is the Navy College Program for Afloat College Education teaching Criminal Justice classes on board various Navy vessels throughout the world.  He has taught on the USS Gettysburg (CG 64), USS John L. Hall (FFG 32), USS Taylor (FFG 50), USS Boone (FFG 28) and most recently USS Vinson (CVN 74).  Bill became a museum tour guide this month.  

Years from now, imagine the feelings a young family will experience when they see and touch a memorial to one of their own - perhaps a grandfather or great-uncle, recognized for their unselfish heroism, sacrifice, and valor. Their legacy lives on, thanks to your thoughtful gift today to the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Memorial Bench Project. 

Paul Grassey, Volunteer and WWII Veteran sits on a memorial bench that his family purchased for him. 

175 Bourne Avenue
(I-95 at Exit 102)
Pooler, GA 31322