After WWII – Page 8 – World War 2 History Short Stories

The WWII Schweinfurt Raids into Germany: And a Post War Reconciliation

BILD1856 — The WWII German American Memorial in Schweinfurt, Germany. Inscription: “Dedicated by some who witnessed the tragedy of war, now united in friendship and the hope for lasting peace among all people.”

Wars are not forgotten. But with time, the people involved may look at a former enemy in a different way. This is one of those stories.

June 14, 1943 – April 19, 1944

Operation Pointblank

Operation Pointblank was a Combined Bomber Offensive (CBO) strategic bombing plan of the United States Army Air Force (USAAF) and the Royal Air Force (RAF) with the objective to destroy or cripple the German Air Force (Luftwaffe) fighter strength and aircraft production prior to the Allied invasion of Europe in 1944. CBO targets included German aircraft factories, fuel depots, ball bearing plants, and other related industry.

1943

Tuesday, August 17

First Mission to Schweinfurt

The two targets of Mission 84 deep into Germany were the Messerschmitt Bf109 fighter plane factory in Regensburg and the Schweinfurt ball bearing plants.

USAAF “Flying Fortress” B-17s from the 4^th Bombardment Wing (BW) in England flying to Regensburg took off around 8 AM that day. The 1st BW B-17s were scheduled to take off next. Due to heavy fog at their bases in England, the 1^st BW began take off more than three hours later with their target being Schweinfurt. The delay seriously affected the mission plan. One objective of the mission was to overwhelm German air defenses as a large number of B-17s attacked at two different targets in rapid succession. Because of the delay, German fighter planes had time between the waves of B-17s to land, refuel, and rearm before again attacking B-17 formations.

Losses that day numbered 60 B-17s of the 376 B-17s assigned to the mission, and another 95 aircraft were seriously damaged. Three USAAF P-47 “Thunderbolt” fighter planes and two RAF Spitfire fighter planes were also lost. Air crew Killed in Action (KIA), Missing in Action (MIA), Wounded in Action (WIA), and Prisoner of War (POW) numbered over 550.

1943

Thursday, October 14

Second Mission to Schweinfurt

B-17s assigned to Mission 115 numbered 291. Aggressive Luftwaffe fighter planes and a heavily defended city led to more losses for the Allies. It is estimated that 1,100 German fighters were involved in the defense of Schweinfurt as well as numerous anti-aircraft Luftwaffe Fliegerabuchrkanone (Flak) batteries in and around the city.

Sixty B-17s were lost. Air crew KIA, MIA, WIA, and POW numbered over 625. This mission became known as “Black Thursday.”

Due to the large attrition of men and aircraft and the continuing bad weather, long range and unescorted missions in daylight deep into Germany were temporarily suspended after these first two missions. Missions resumed again in February 1944.

1973

The Second Schweinfurt Memorial Association (SSMA) was founded by USAAF Lieutenant Colonel Budd Peaslee who had been the Mission 115 “Black Thursday” Commander.

1993

Two WWII German Flak boys from Schweinfurt, Germany, attended the SSMA Reunion in New Orleans, Louisiana. Dr. Helmut Katzenberger and Volmar Wilckens were two of an estimated 2,500 German students who had been ordered to man Flak batteries as German military losses affected its fighting strength. German civilians, young and old, men and women, were recruited to support Flak units. They were called Luftwaffenhelfers (Flak helpers).

1996

Georg Schafer was another of the Schweinfurt Flak boys. He wrote a letter to then SSMA President Wilbur “Bud” Klint.

June 20, 1996

Dear Mr. Klint:

From a good friend of mine, Dr. Helmut Katzenberger of Bad Kissingen, I received a copy of the Briefing Letter 95-4, December 1995 of the Second Schweinfurt Memorial Association, Inc. I was quite excited when I read it.

May I introduce myself to you:

For over 40 years I have been active in the Management and on the Board of Directors of the FAG Kugelfischer Georg Schafer in Schweinfurt, a Company, with which you might have been somewhat familiar some 50 years ago! I am now retired from office, 68 years of age and have lived in Schweinfurt most of my life, also during your “visits” in 1943/44. From January 1944 through January 1945 I have served, together with my classmates, at some of the 8.8 cm Flakbatteries around my hometown, at the age of 16 years!

During 1954 to 1956 I had lived in Stratford, Ontario, Canada, where our Company was establishing a manufacturing plant for ball-bearings. During those years I have met several former US and Canadian Airforce men, who were over Schweinfurt during the war. We exchanged views about our feelings during those “visits” and quickly agreed, that it was a good thing that we missed each other at that time! It also strikingly made us realize how stupid wars are and that everything should be done to avoid for our children and grand-children the experiences our generation had to go through. My wife and I have four sons and four grand-children.

Also: During our last visit to Washington DC, in April of this year my wife and I re-visited Arlington-Cemetary [sic] and noticed how much the tree, your Association planted some 10 to 15 years ago, has grown. A couple of pictures may serve as “proof”. (encl.)

Further on that trip we stopped for a day at Savannah, GA, and tried to visit the Mighty Eighth Airforce Heritage Museum before our departure, name and location of which we found in a visitors’ guide booklet. Unfortunately the place was still under construction, and so was access-road. Only through Helmut Katzenberger’s notification I found out about your Association’s involvement in this exhibition. Maybe better luck some other time.

My wife and I are travelling to the US quite frequently once or twice a year, so on our next trip I shall give you a call, or maybe we can meet, if it is convenient to you. In the meantime perhaps you could send me some information about your Association, and also, if you or another member of your group should come to Germany, please give me a call and, if it is convenient, come and visit Schweinfurt – by Car this time! We’d love to meet with you and show you around our city.

Best personal regards,

Sincerely

Georg Schafer

Georg Schafer attended the SSMA Reunion in 1996 in Las Vegas, Nevada, and brought WWII artifacts with him that are now on exhibit at the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force in Pooler, Georgia.

It was at this reunion that the idea of a German American Memorial in Schweinfurt was first discussed.

1998

G.HubertNeidhardMemorialDesignerWalterHillgartnerGeorgSchaferGudrunGrieserJohnParkerBudKlintGeorgeGlass — Memorial dedication. Left to right: G. Hubert Neidhard (Memorial designer, Flak boy), Walter Hillgartner (Government of Lower Frankonia), Georg Schafer (Flak boy), Lord Mayor Mrs. Gudrun Grieser, Colonel John Parker (United States Army Chaplain), Wilber “Bud” Klint (SSMA), and George Glass (American Consul General, Munich).

On June 16, 1998, the German American Memorial was dedicated in Schweinfurt, Germany. Every year since then on October 14, “Black Thursday,” SSMA places flowers at the Memorial.

Georg Schafer’s family owned ball bearing plants in Schweinfurt during WWII. Interestingly, after the war ended, he and his company helped establish ball bearing plants in the United States and Canada.

Thank you to Sue Moyer, SSMA Education Director, for her invaluable assistance in the writing of this story. Those interested in further information about SSMA can view the Second Schweinfurt Memorial Association Facebook page or contact SSMA at ssma43@gmail.com.

S. R. O’Konski, Author

World War 2 History Short Stories

Website: ww2history.org

Midway Atoll: WWII and Present Day

Midway Atoll in the Pacific Ocean is comprised of Sand, Eastern, and Spit Islands. It is approximately 1,300 miles northwest of the island of Oahu, Hawaii. In the 1930s Pan American World Airways used Midway as a refueling base and passenger rest stop for their Flying Clipper seaplanes that flew from San Francisco, California, to Manila in the Philippines. The United States (US) Navy established a base there in 1941.

After learning the Japanese had attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, Midway prepared for a possible attack. About 9:30 in the evening on December 7 two Japanese ships, Sazanami and Ushio, began shelling the islands. During the barrage First Lieutenant George H. Cannon was seriously wounded in the Power Plant/Command Post when a shell came in through a window. He refused to leave the Command Post until communications were reestablished. Communications were restored, and he died soon after being evacuated from the building. First Lieutenant Cannon was the first Marine in WWII to be awarded the Medal of Honor.

100_0366_compressed — **Photograph taken on Midway in 2005**

The Battle of Midway, June 4 – June 6, 1942, was the first major naval victory against the Japanese in WWII and is considered a turning point of the war in the Pacific. US Navy cryptanalysts at Station Hypo in Hawaii had broken Japanese communication codes and knew the Imperial Japanese Navy was planning to attack Midway on June 4 or 5, 1942.

During the Battle of Midway, TBD Devastator torpedo bombers and SBD Dauntless dive bombers flew off the carriers USS (United States Ship) Yorktown, the USS Enterprise, and the USS Hornet. Four Japanese carriers, the Akagi, Soryu, Hiryu, and Kaga, were sunk. Those carriers were four of the six that took part in the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. The US lost the USS Yorktown, the destroyer USS Hammann, and over 100 aircraft.

Today Midway is a National Wildlife Refuge. In 2000, the US Secretary of the Interior also designated Midway as the Battle of Midway National Memorial.

On a 2005 WWII in the Pacific cruise our first stop after leaving Pearl Harbor was Midway Island.

Power Plant/Command Post in 2005. — **WWII Power Plant/Command Post in 2005**

Midway Memorial on Sand Island 2005 — **Battle of Midway Memorial on Sand Island in 2005**

100_0360_compressed — **Albatross on Midway Sand Island 2005**

At a Doolittle Raiders Reunion luncheon in 2007 I met a WWII veteran who fought at Midway. He was wondering what Midway looks like today. This post is for him.

In 1949 the Chicago (Illinois) Municipal Airport was renamed the Chicago Midway International Airport in remembrance of the Battle of Midway.

S. R. O’Konski, Author

World War 2 History Short Stories

Website: ww2history.org

The Dickin Medal: A Different Kind of Hero

In 1917 Maria Dickin founded an animal charity People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA) in the United Kingdom. During WWII she introduced the Dickin Medal which honors the bravery and devotion to duty of animals in wartime. The medal is considered to be the animal equivalent of the British Victoria Cross. Recipients of the award have included pigeons, dogs, horses, and a cat. Below are the stories of three of the animal heroes.

Southill Street Air Raid Warden Mr. E. King found a stray dog in the Poplar area of East London in 1940. It was discovered that Rip had an instinctive ability to find people buried beneath the rubble of buildings bombed by the German Luftwaffe during the London Blitz (1940-1941). He is credited with saving the lives of over 100 people. Rip was London’s first “search and rescue” dog.

Rip’s Dickin Award Citation: “For locating many air-raid victims during the Blitz of 1940.”

Pigeon, William of Orange, served with the British Army Pigeon Service (APS) in WWII. When elements of the British 1^st Airborne Division and the 1st Polish Independent Parachute Brigade were surrounded by German forces near the town of Arnhem, Netherlands, during Operation Market Garden (September 17-25, 1944), the pigeon was released with a message to carry back to England. He flew over 250 miles through bad weather in 4 hours and 25 minutes to his home loft there. His flying speed was calculated at nearly 60 miles per hour or 1,740 yards per minute. The information in the message was used to develop a troop withdrawal plan (called Operation Berlin) which resulted in over 2,000 British and Polish soldiers escaping through German lines.

William of Orange Dickin Medal Citation: “For delivering a message from the Arnhem Airborne Operation in record time for any single pigeon, while serving with the APS in September 1944.”

Judy was an English Pointer born in Shanghai, China, in 1936 and became a British Royal Navy ship mascot on His Majesty’s Ship (HMS) Gnat and later on the gunboat HMS Grasshopper.

The HMS Grasshopper was sunk February 14, 1942, during the Malaya-Singapore Campaign (1941-1942). Judy, with surviving HMS Grasshopper crew members, was marooned for a time on an uninhabited island off of Sumatra. She was able to locate fresh water on the island for them to drink. They eventually made their way to Sumatra, and after trekking 200 miles through the jungle, they were captured by the Japanese and became prisoners of war (POW). The crew members smuggled Judy into the POW camp with them.

It was at the Medan, Indonesia, Gloergoer POW camp that Judy met Royal Air Force Leading Aircraftsman Frank Williams in 1942. In the POW camp Judy would snarl and growl at Japanese guards who were beating POWs. Frank Williams knew this kind of behavior would probably result in Judy being killed. He convinced the camp commandant to register the dog as a POW hoping that would save her life. It worked. Judy became POW #81A.

In 1944, Medan camp POWs, including Judy, were put on the Steam Ship (SS) Van Waryck which was to transport them to Singapore. A torpedo from the British submarine HMS Truculent sank the ship on June 26. Judy, Frank Williams, and other POWs survived the sinking. While they were in the water, it is said Judy would swim over to drowning men, let them grab hold of her, and then swim with them to some debris or wreckage that would help them stay afloat. All were again captured by the Japanese and spent the rest of the war in a POW camp in Sumatra.

In 1945 WWII ended. Being hidden yet another time, Judy was smuggled back to Britain on the SS Atenor with Frank Williams and other released POWs. Frank Williams credited Judy with saving his life. He said she lifted his morale and gave him a reason to live in order to protect her.

Judy’s Dickin Medal Citation: “For magnificent courage and endurance in Japanese prison camps, which helped to maintain morale among her fellow prisoners and also for saving many lives through her intelligence and watchfulness.”

The award of the Dickin Medal continues today.

Sir William Proctor Smith of Cheshire, England, the original owner and breeder of William of Orange, bought the pigeon from the APS after WWII ended. Smith commented, some 10 years later, that William of Orange was “the grandfather of many outstanding racing pigeons.”

Judy was the only dog registered as a POW in WWII. She spent the rest of her life with Frank Williams after the war.

Thank you to W. O’Konski for his assistance in writing this story.

S. R. O’Konski, Author

World War 2 History Short Stories

Website: ww2history.org

Alfred “Buddy” Lubojacky: His Family Never Forgot

Alfred Lubojacky. *Photograph courtesy of Lubojacky Family.*

Sergeant Lubojacky’s body was found near the Czechoslovakian village of Merboltice on February 15, 1945. A partially opened parachute lay next to him. Where the Germans buried him remains a mystery.

Alfred S. Lubojacky, known to his family as Buddy, was born January 29, 1924, in Texas. He was one of eight children born to Joseph and Louise Lubojacky. Both his paternal and maternal grandparents had immigrated to the United States (US) from Czechoslovakia in the late 1800s. Alfred grew up working on the family farm and spoke both English and Czech.

In 1944 Alfred joined the US Army Air Corps and was trained as a B-17 “Flying Fortress” gunner. His brother, Roman, was already serving in the US Army in Europe. Before Alfred left the US for England in November of 1944, he travelled home to Texas for a visit with his family and his girlfriend, Katherine.

In England Alfred was assigned as a B-17 ball turret* gunner with the 8th Air Force, 306th Bomb Group, 369th Bomb Squadron, based at Thurleigh.

On February 14, 1945, the bombing target was the marshalling (railroad) yards at Dresden, Germany. After dropping the bombs, the B-17s were attacked by German Fockewulf (FW)-190 fighter planes. Machine gun and cannon fire from a FW-190 hit the right wing and fuselage of Sergeant (SGT) Lubojacky’s plane. SGT McDonough, the waist gunner, SGT Nahmias, the tail gunner, and SGT Lubojacky were wounded. The damaged B-17 was forced to drop out of flying formation.

Captain (CPT) Lewis, the pilot, knew the plane would not make it back to England. He decided to fly into Czechoslovakia and try to land behind the Russian ally front line there.

The situation in the B-17 worsened. Fires were burning in the fuselage and the Number 3 engine. CPT Lewis gave the order to bail out. While preparing to leave the plane, SGT McDonough saw SGT Lubojacky’s head above the ball turret escape hatch. He was conscious, but there was blood on his head. Lieutenant (LT) Whitelaw, the co-pilot, also saw SGT Lubojacky when he was climbing out of the ball turret. What happened to him after that is unknown.

CPT Lewis was the last to bail out. He set the plane to fly in a specific direction hoping it would come down in a unpopulated area. The B-17 crashed in a field near the Czechoslovakian village of Hridelec.

All the crew managed to bail out. Eight of the nine crew members became prisoners of war. SGT Lubojacky was killed.

SGT Lubojacky’s body was found on February 15, 1945, by the local police near the Czechoslovakian village of Merboltice (called Mertendorf by the Germans). A document has been found indicating that he may have been buried in the Czechoslovakian village of Vernerice cemetery.

In the early hours of February 14, 1945, and around the same time the B-17 crashed in Czechoslovakia, Alfred’s mother in Texas had a dream. In the dream he was crying, and she asked him what was wrong. He said, “I’ll never get to see Katherine again.”

A Western Union telegram dated March 3, 1945, informed the Lubojacky family that Alfred was missing in action.

Telegram 03-Mar-45 (2) — Telegram to Lubojacky family reporting Alfred S. Lubojacky is missing in action. *Photograph of telegram courtesy of the Lubojacky Family.*

Alfred’s family has never given up hope that they will someday locate his grave. And then they will bring him home.

Czech Republic historian, Milos Podzimek, wrote, “Alfred died on 14 February 1945 for our freedom in the country of his ancestors, but he will live forever in our hearts.” Milos and his son have done extensive and detailed research on Alfred’s plane. Their information has been invaluable in putting together the story of the fate of the B-17 and its crew.

Story as told to me by Walter Lubojacky, Alfred’s brother. The photographs and story are posted with his permission.

After no further information was found indicating that he was alive, SGT Alfred S. Lubojacky was officially declared killed in action a year later on February 15, 1946.

Katherine married after WWII. In later years she sometimes attended Lubojacky family reunions. Katherine died in 2008.

All of Alfred’s B-17 crew members and his brother, Roman, returned to the US after WWII ended.

B-17 crew members:

CPT Boylston Lewis, Jr., Pilot
LT Robert Whitelaw, Co-Pilot
LT Lester Harrison, Navigator
LT Joseph Sicard, Bombardier
Technical SGT James Standlee, Jr., Flight Engineer
SGT Hardin McChesney, Jr., Radio Operator
SGT Frank McDonough, Waist Gunner
SGT Leon Nahmias, Tail Gunner
SGT Alfred Lubojacky, Ball Turret Gunner

In 1993, Czechoslovakia formally separated into the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

* Ball turret — a rotating, manned, gun turret mounted on the underside of a US B-17 “Flying Fortress.”

S. R. O’Konski, Author

World War 2 History Short Stories

Website: ww2history.org

Odd Man (Bear) Out: Corporal Wojtek, Polish II Corps WWII

Wojtek with Polish Soldier — Wojtek with a Polish Soldier. *Photograph pinterest.com.*

In September 1939 Germany and the Soviet Union invaded and divided Poland. Approximately two million Polish citizens were deported by the Soviets to labor camps or imprisoned. After Germany attacked the Soviet Union on June 22, 1941, with the subsequent Sikorski-Mayski Agreement of July 30, 1941, and the Polish-Soviet Military Agreement of August 14, 1941, the Soviets released thousands of Poles to fight with the Allies. Under the command of General Wladyslaw Anders, the Poles left the Soviet Union and made their way to the Middle East. Once there, the Poles formed the Polish II Corps and fought under British command.

A brown bear first became part of Polish WWII history in 1942. When the Poles reached Persia (Iran), they met a young boy who sold them a orphaned bear cub. The bear became a mascot for the Polish II Corps. The Polish soldiers named him Wojtek (Voytek in English). As the bear grew he became more than a mascot and fit very well into army life. He learned how to smoke, enjoy a beer, wrestle and relax with his fellow soldiers, eat army food, go on guard duty, salute, nod his head when addressed, and liked riding in trucks. Wojtek and his fellow soldiers developed a camaraderie that would last a lifetime.

Wojtek moved with the soldiers from Persia, to Palestine, to Iraq, and then to Egypt. When the Poles were preparing to sail from Egypt to Italy, a problem arose. The ship would only transport soldiers and supplies. It is said by some that General Anders officially “enlisted” Wojtek into the Polish Army at that time. Corporal Wojtek was listed as a soldier and left for Italy.

In Italy the Poles fought with other Allied countries in the famous Battle of Monte Cassino. In the fourth battle to capture the Benedictine monastery, the Poles reached the top of the mountain and raised the Polish flag on May 18, 1944.

Among the Polish units at Monte Cassino was the 22nd Transport Company. It was their responsibility to transport and distribute munitions, food, and fuel to the heavy artillery regiments. During the battle, one of the soldiers carrying munition boxes was Corporal Wojtek. Wojtek carrying a shell became the emblem of the company.

After WWII ended, the Polish II Corps sailed from Italy to Scotland and was demobilized. WWII had ended, but Poland was not an independent, free country again. Many Poles felt they were left homeless and chose not to return to Poland after the war.

But what would become of Corporal Wojtek?

It was decided to send Wojtek to the Edinburgh Zoo in Scotland. He had a new home, but like the Poles he was not free. There are stories of Poles who visited Wojtek at the zoo, threw him cigarettes which he ate, and proclaimed he still understood Polish. A touching story is told of a man who brought a violin to the zoo and played a Polish mazurka for Wojtek. It is said Wojtek “danced” with the music. Wojtek had the look of a bear but, indeed, had the heart of a Pole.

Wojtek was a popular resident at the Edinburgh Zoo but never again had his freedom or the camaraderie of his Polish friends. Wojtek died at the zoo on December 2, 1963. He was about 21 years old.

In a newspaper Letters to the Editor section after Wojtek died, a Londoner, Michael George Olizar wrote, “He left his bones, like many other Polish veterans, on British soil.”

Wojtek, the soldier bear, is still remembered and celebrated today. His story has been told in books, a BBC documentary, and there are statues and plaques dedicated in his memory around the world.

S. R. O’Konski, Author

World War 2 History Short Stories

Website: ww2history.org

In Memory Of … Flavio Terenzoni

Flavio Terenzoni with Maria Cecchini. *Photograph S. R. O’Konski Collection.*

On August 17, 1944, Italian partisans killed 16 German soldiers who had been in the area of San Terenzo, Italy, requisitioning food from the local populace. The Germans ordered civilian reprisals which were carried out by the 16th SS Panzergrenadier Division between August 17 and August 19, 1944. One hundred and fifty-nine Italian civilian men, women, and children from the San Terenzo Monti, Bardine, and Valla area were killed.*

In 2012 I went on a tour, “World War II in the Mediterranean: The Italian and French Campaigns,” which was sponsored by the National WWII Museum in New Orleans, Louisiana. One of the locales we visited was the San Terenzo area of Tuscany.

At the Historical Museum Massacre of San Terenzo and Bardine, we saw pictures on the wall of many of the victims. I was drawn to the picture of a baby named Flavio Terenzoni. His happy, laughing face, before tragedy struck, touched my heart. Flavio died on August 19, 1944, as did Maria Cecchini, the young woman in the picture with him. Flavio would have been two years old on August 28, 1944.

While we were at the museum, Italians from the local area joined us and shared the stories of what happened. They worried that the world would forget about the tragedy that occurred there.

For this story, I chose Flavio Terenzoni to represent all the lives and innocence lost as seen in the “pictures on the wall.”

To the people of San Terenzo, your story has not been forgotten.

Another WWII story from this part of Italy:

The United States (US) 442nd Regimental Combat Team, composed mostly of second generation Japanese Americans, fought along the Gothic Line in the area of Colle Musatello, a ridge near San Terenzo. One of the officers in that unit was Lieutenant Daniel Inouye. He was seriously wounded in the battle for the ridge and lost his right arm. For his extraordinary heroism on April 21, 1945, he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross (DSC).

In 1963 Daniel Inouye became a US Senator from Hawaii.

Senator Inouye’s award of the DSC was later upgraded to the Medal of Honor.

*SS Major Walter Reder of the 16th SS Panzergrenadier Division was tried for war crimes in an Italian military court in Bologna, Italy, and sentenced to life in prison in 1951. He was released in 1985.

The number of Germans and Italian civilians killed may vary depending on different accounts of the incident.

S. R. O’Konski, Author

World War 2 History Short Stories

Website: ww2history.org