Sunday, May 28, 2023

Waddy's Wagon

 

I'd seen this photo before but until recently did not know the entire crew was killed in action.  This is Waddy's Wagon, a B-29 Superfortress based in Saipan.  The crew is imitating the caricature painted on the plane.  They flew their first mission over Tokyo in November 1944.  On January 9, 1945 Waddy's Wagon was shot down while attempting to escort another damaged B-29 to safety after a raid on the Nakajima aircraft factory.

The man in the lead is Captain Walter R "Waddy" Young from Oklahoma, an All-American college football player who also played in the National Football League.  He volunteered for the Army Air Corps in 1941 and was 28 when he died.

The other crew members are:

Jack Vetters, pilot, Texas

John Ellis, bombardier, Missouri

Paul Garrison, navigator, Pennsylvania

George Avon, radio operator, New York

Bernard Black, flight engineer, New York

Kenneth Mansie, flight technician, Maine

Lawrence Lee, gunner, North Dakota

Wilbur Chapman, gunner, Texas

Corbett Carnegie, gunner, New York 

Joseph Gatto, gunner, New York

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