•Page G
THE CHINA MAIE, ✨ SATURDAY, DECEMBER 8, 1956.
DRAWING. BY OLIPHANT
A
WHAT MAKES A FIGHTER PILOT CRACK UP?
THE strain of commander and taking my own
constant combat section, down to fight. flying began to tell
T
on me. The war
was four years old. And I had been with fighter squadrons for three
of those years, without break.
xix
the
It was as if the Huns roused a deep, personal antagonism in me anel a "probable" or "dam- aged" did not seem enough. For some reason the enemy alreraft bad euch to be destroyed.
More than once I found my- self at ground-level in single- handed combat with no quarter asked or given,
We all know the meaning of fear and felt it according to our
During the past months I had led Canadian wing 011 120 temperamentis and training. operations into hostile skies, never know a phlol who tell And my personal score hund side this category. Our simple increased from right kills duly was to control"
to 24.
Fatigue was affecting both my body and my brain. Passed the danger grade Now, after a sweep, I felt warhed on 1 got into the tabit of making straight for my aom where I would fall into a úlful, restless steep In the un 1 fotmd the bout y flok more tighteningg slips ever before. Thres lously, Waen the black smoke puff of this deadly stuff bort whirled around me, I used to make some type and flippant comment to chee the boys thrigh the danger arra Now the Hippant comments enaties harder. And the continenten of the stomach, the auxious glaners.
nod tempampasitar pressure gauges caine myrice easily.
found also that I who re acting differently to the mesenice of the Messerschmitts and the Focke-Wulfs,
When we saw large goggles, It was my job to manoeuvre the wing into the best tortical post- 1on and take the Canadians inta The fight.
MY FIGHT
WHEN WO
Sit
small enemy formation. 1 had pre- viously detached one
(8:0 pairs of Spitfires to bounce the Huns while we watched the fight and guarded our own plots, that during this last month I have got into the habit of handing the wing over a squadron
10
this tear anal prevent its natural transition to punie. And I was having to #ght back my fear horder than ove before.
Others in authority had noticed the signs. One day. when I had led the Canadians rat four missions, I was lying down before the evening rural,
B MacBrien, dhe wirbeld pommander, knocked out enter- vi He came straight 1 that point. "Well, that's it, Jonume. Your ear's over. Codefroy takis zeer Lie wing tomei pr«W", yard better get uff Jave,"
**ET
STAFF JOB
་1
n
FE Cuntatis laid on a tres.
ine farewell Air-Vice-Marshal "Dickie" Dickson.* Bur group
Trendous gur at night to that
commander, was present and aš a late hour wwely decided that the wing should be stood down on the following day
The usual perches were made and it was strongly hinted that the Canadians would offer me The leadership of another wing after a rest.
I was presented with a beauti- nt gold watch and felt like an nki man retiring after a lifetime with the thro
Aller
fortnight's 4
leave, with Paul in Norfolk, reported to Uxbridge m ʼn stuff ofler.
'I was having to fight back my fear harder than ever before'
Concluding OUT OF THE SUN by JOHNNIE JOHNSON
Group Captain J. E. Johnson, D.S.O. & Z bars, D.F.C. & bar
ה
the
I wish one or 51 three-pit He told nw that six dew team whose Job was to plan aml Canadien quadrons were en-ordinate the day-to-day to arrive in England from activities { the
Group Spaciou and the wings of 83 Group, which were preparing for the lynstora,
My Do was Pet Jameson, the brilliant New Zealand Bighter pilot whe has led LoveT Dieppe on the day of the big raki the year before, I liked hims and enjoyed working with him.
The work, anyway, was Inter- esting. And it the early days of my kur as a staff officer i was a wonderful feeling to wake up in the morning with the err- iain knowledge tha I would juid not, that day, be shooting out to the death, high up in the dangerous
of sky
Northern Europe.
It
A. Be weeks passed The strain anxi Krustness seeped away. After a time I began to feel the urge to get back Inte the battle. The invasion could not be long delayed and I was not going to be left behind.
And so I was delighted when. early in the Now Year, 1 re ceived a visit from a distin- Noe chairman of the Joint guished Canadian fighter plioL Chief of Staff.
tomed Paul Davoud.
Reliability...
...that's rugged for your roughest, toughest days.
"
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Dominion. They woult be formed into two wings one of Typhoons, one of Spitfires—and prepared for the invasion, Would i kad the Spitfire wing"
Would I not! I went at oner to see the air vice-marshal and he agreed that i should go to the Canadians in early March.
I spent the week-end with Melton Mowbray my kindly at before joining my new wing. Paula Joined me from Norwien. During mur few hours together I told her that I had left the security of a staff appointmein and was about to begin another lour of ops, She had married a fighter ptjou and hud always taken i for Granted that would want
the to no
thing through.
My ok father, who, of the age of paced the streets of Melton Mowbray as a War Re- serve police officer, was quietly proud that I was returning to the fray.
THE THRILLS
I
LTHOUGH I knew what dangers lay ahed, it was good to return to the connude- ship and carefree life of the fighter squadrons, once more to take my place at the spearhead of a Spitiue wing and to know the thrills of leadership.
Apart from the fight
my pilots commanders, were mostly without fighting experience, But they were fine material and they were well and truly blooded during the hord fighting which led up to D Day-the day of days we had so long awaited.
equadron and
My wing was the first to land In Normandy after the bridge head
was established. And it was
during
the
ground troops could eventually deploy into open country. But we
were hot sỌ Suje thai
ibis object could! only be achieved by the wholesale
der. truction of Chen at the death of great number Its In- habitants
$
uf
50. of the bornbe were fuse To ex- plenke up
14
six hours after
the ttack, 50
that there would not
Jarge a umefug before the grount forces went In early next morning.
Flying low on the fringe the attack. I distinctly sw German tank thrown into air, like a child's try. turning over and over it fell to the ground.
100
second was steaming south, Both were over the centre of avolded the highway and each the other with a careful little swerve.
{
H
the and
before
Instead of turning to the north to set course for England after dropping its load, one of the Lancasters came down in a fairly steep dive towards the strongly defended enemy-held territory south of the city.
I watched this manoeuvre in some amazement, as the Lanens- ter would soon find itself a
solitary larget for the German flak. Perhaps the alternfi had had its controls shot away damaged and could only fly in this fashion.
or
But next the bomber levelled out and I saw it flying duc south only a few feet above the main Caen-Falaise road.
Amazed, I watched its antics. What the hell was the pilot up to?
I
had
a most curious sensation, coming down to land on terri- tory from which we had been accustomed to receive all types of shot and shell previous four years.
Early in July-after we been in Normandy for three weeks-It was decided
to use heavy bombers for a massive saturation attack against Cava, where enemy strongpoints con- timed, to hold up the Army's advance.
We provided
A LARK!
SOON discovered the object
Speechless, I watched the role of fighter-bomber being carried out, and most effectively, by the four-engined heavier,
"Enemy
abandoned
vehicles and
drivers
their
dived
for shelter as the
Lancaster pounded
along."
with the sx Spitfires of blue aireraft hit the ground at well section well above,
Draper gaining
reported
on
Us
A
it
and The
over 200 miles an hour.
distance For two 100's
short
tho trom
uneven остов behind, carcered We broke round towards them surface of a meadow. Then it a stout and, holding a steep turn for hit n dyke, tore into
wu complete ciretas,
began hedge, and pitched into the nir
The wings lo close in on their tails. But once again.
were torn apart, they evaded the issue by half- tall rolling and diving steeply to tuselage twisted as it fell to the deck.
the earth, where it disintegrated Our skirmish had drawn into a thousand pieces.
from the scene vi away
the original melce
ww and now DUT soon it was all over. The Hound ourselves alone over a
original glamour boy had layer of white cloud. I was climbed away to the north for perfect backcloth on which to
NO RECORD
UN
TOP PILOT
his homeward Journey and the spot chemy aircraft and 1 TUE. moncal
higher.
109 sprung
Cr of
that
Mosser-
second was pulling up from his cimbed my small section suil schmitt smacked into the strafing run.
ground I became the top allied A
What a long, the lighter pilot. cloud, climbed and levelled out way I had come in the three 2,000ft below. We were ideally years since a hat and exultant poised for
Offcer Johnson had attack, Pilot well hidden in the strong sun. landed at. Tangmere to report
"One 109 at en o'clock, Bill, his first victory Going down. All clear?"
I flow alongside the Lancaster as it settled down for the fight back to Lincolnshire and waved to the gay adverturers inside.
two We had
bomber scon
would never be recorded in any official log. Long after the war I discovered that the pilot of the first bomber was an brick-layer from Scotland call- ed "Jock" Shaw. At the time of captain of his own my story he was the mod Lancaster. and was to win the D.F.C. and
Later he bar.
served as adjutant,
missions that evening which
ex-
עתן
My personal score bad stood
surprise
In the early autumn we "All cicar, Greycap I'm rested for three weeks at fillers covering you.**
L'Eveque, west of Paris.
This was perfect leumwork.
While we were there I was
I could pay undivided attention struck by the behaviour of
to the Hun below and I hit his
another pilot in the wing whosD ugly yellow rose with a long, personal score was of particular stendy burst,
interest to all of us,
This was Squadron Leider Wally McLeod
BLACK SMOKE
nt 29 when we crossed tu France. Soon il mounted to 32 THICK black smoke
so I was level with "Sailer"
move.
He found it hard to relax nad mode no secret of the fact that he was out to increase his score poured 21 victories.
of
from the Messerschmit!, Ometally he was recognised of the low-level flight. The
to fly and as the top-scoring fighter pilot rocd, which was one
of the Malan, the great South African but he continued enemy's main
darted for the protection of the of the Royal Canadian Alz supply rotnes, fighter pilot who had such cloud.
Force.
Although Screwball was packed here and there with brilliant success against heavy stationary tanies, armoured cars, odds during the first two years reflected on the wisdom of this greater number of enemy air
Wo tore after Alan and I Beurling had destroyed ས and vehicles. As it swept down of the war. His score had not,
victories I did not know the eraft, most of those the road. both front and rear until then, been equalled. turrets of the bomber were in
My chance to pass him came depth of this layer of cumulus were attained whilst he was action and the gunnero were on the last day of June, I was cloud and it could reach to the serving in the Royal Air Force, target-cover ring long bursts
flying Into
My fying with 441 Squadron when ground.
This was a very fine point of 7 during the attack. As the erremy vehicles.
the controller old me that Instruments had toppled in the distinction and simply meant waves of four-engined Lan-
another squadron of Spitfires dive and I was losing height that Wally was the top scorer casters made their run in from There was considerable was having a rough time with very rapidly. If the cloud was of the R.CAF, but Beurling
the enemy
Bighters some slx or very deep, then perhaps there held the record for Canadian seven miles away.
Could we wouldn't be sufficient height to pilots. lend a hand?
}
but
the
the sea, I portioned my Spit- amount of light flak, fires to the west of the town, pilot obviously scorned this We had been told that all the small stuff, since he accus targets were contained in an tomed to a nightly barrage of area approximately two miles hoovy flak over the Industrial in length and just short of a cities of Germany. For him this mile in depth. But well before affair was a bit of a lark and the smoke and debris from the like a schoolboy away from the first bombs which hung over vigilance of his prefect he was
STEEP TURN
Ceen in the calm evening sky making the most of his freedom. As Swe sped south we saw the
obscured the scene from out. view, it was quite apparent that a number of bombs had fallen well outside the target area.
CHILD'S TOY
As
I watched the terriblo A destruction "wrought on this French city, I could not help 'but wonder whether we were using a sledge-hammer to crack a nut.
of its base,
blind
recover when we plunged out Wally intended to title this untidy matter once and for all But I was committed to the simply by prasing Beuling's chase and wo dived into the total.
swirling white blanket,
For
Lancaster carried a background of towering while nesy blinded me, but my foMETIMES Wally would ac-
were
curtainly
second of time, which COMBAT FILMS seemed an oternity, the cloud held and imprisoned my buck- A dogfight, silhouetted against ing Spliore, The
glaring white. Next the
company us when we walked out a slow wide turn to retrace cumulus
cloud.
Spitfires, were
groundless, as the layer across the stubble in search of its flight cthwards to Caen. Messerschmitte and Fock was very
thin
and I
But dropped partridges.
several Umsa Majestically, it ploughed along Walin climbed, turned, and into a safer world, bounded by i found him 'n our darkened over the straight road with rear dived. mo it seemed as it wide horizons of green and gold cine-projection caravan analys- and front guns blazing away. the Hun had a height advan patchwork felds.
ing his combat dims and trying Thero toge. Enemy drivers and
crews more of them.
The 100, conspicuous by its to discover whether or not ho abandoned shote vehicles and
trolling banner of emoke, was could have despatched dived for the shelter of the
Louving six Spitares as top some 800 yards ahead and I previous opponents with fewer hedgerows $ the Lancaster cover I took the other six over cloved in for the kill. But the rounds of ammunition. pounded along.
My combat arcn.
two Messerschmitt was out of con
flo had the catinoTLS-
of hig section leaders soon picked out trol and struck the ground at a Spitfire stripped and checked. sultable targeta and, with their shallow angle.
He worked on hie aircraft until wingmen to guard their tails, I For a moment. I had thought it shone ke jewel in the sent them down to attack.
the enemy pilot was trying to sunlight, and his edle tople of My Own wingman, Bill pull off a crash landing, If so, conversation was air, fighting. Draper, and I were left alone he was 'far too fast, for the (Continued on Page 7, Col. 1).
But what was this? Another Lancaster had appeared on the We were all aware of the scene and was carrying out military necessity to break the similar tootics, The first enemy at Caen so that
our Lancaster was flying north. Thu
MANDRAKE THE MAGICIAN
́NARDA, IVE CALLED
WHERS WE GOING
TO THE
DESERT
THAT'S HIM
TO SAY GOOD-BYEZ|
FEW
CAN'
·YOU MORE
THAN
THAT
the
•WE MUST DELIVER THIS PACKAGE. SOME MEN MAY TRY STOP US,
- AND GET IT. THAT
MUST NOT
HAPPEN,
By Lee Falk and Phil Davis
UNDERSTAND
BOAR-R-D! There's More than Magicin
CADBURY'S
It is Perfection