Veteran's Day: Andy's Story

BY

ANDY TARAPCHAK

We were sent to Savannah,Georgia to pick up a plane and fly the Southern route to England. In the spring of 1944, flooding hit Kansas and delivery of B-26s from that plant was delayed.

We were sent by train to Camp Kilmer, N.J. and in a few days we were on an English troop ship, The HMS Andes, and on our way to Liverpool. We went alone, as the troop ship could outrun the German subs.

After 3 1/2 days we landed at Liverpool but then were immediately sent to a personnel depot south of Liverpool. We spent a few days at the depot and then were sent to Northern Ireland to a combat training field. After about two weeks at the school, we were sent to Chipping Ongar to the 387th Bomb Group.

My crew consisted of Edward Ochen, Copilot; Joseph Tverdak, Navigator/bombardier; George Cardinale, Engineer; Frank Miccuilli, Raidioman; Jake Yungling, Tail gunner.

Here are the incidents I remember:

When we stepped out of the C-47 at the Air Base in Northern Ireland, we were met by an Air Corps Sergeant. He had a pickup truck and was assigned to take us to our quarters. He explained that the Air Base was huge and there was no means of transportation on the base. He stated that we would all need bicycles to get around. He had bikes either for sale or for rent. We all opted to rent the bikes. The Sergeant was right in that we needed bikes to get around on the base. After the two weeks' training, we were scheduled to depart by C-47 and join the 387th Bomb Group at Chipping Ongar.

The same Air Corps Sergeant was there to retrieve the rental bikes. He then explained that we would need a bike at the base in England because of the same reasons. The bikes were no longer for rent so he informed us he would give us a good deal on purchasing bikes as all of his were now used. We all agreed and we gave him the price he asked. There was one hitch - the bikes could not go on the same plane we were assigned. He said they would be shipped by cargo plane at a later date. You guessed it! We never did receive the bikes. The Sergeant must have sold and resold those bikes at least 20 times over and no one ever received them.

By the way, we did not need bikes to get around at any of the other bases, as transportation was always furnished by the 387th.

At Chipping Ongar we lived in Quonset huts. The food was typical English Food.

This was our first experience with English Pubs, as every day at 1800 hours a truck would leave the 559th area and head for the pub at Chipping Ongar. It was our first taste of warm beer.

Chipping Ongar was near Chelmsford, which in turn was 28 miles NE of London. This was the time the Germans first started using the V-1 bombs. These were the "putt-putt" pilotless bombs aimed at London. If the wind wasn't exactly right, the V-1s drifted over Chipping Ongar. When we were not flying, we would listen for the V-1s and if the engine cut off, it was time to duck for cover.

Most of the missions flown out of Chipping Ongar were in support of the ground troops, as this was shortly after D-Day.

We then moved to Stoney Cross which was near Southhampton, England, in preparation for night flying. Things broke loose in Normandy so we never did fly any night missions.

From Stoney Cross we then moved to a temporary air base on the coast of Normandy. It was a former American Fighter base or night-fighter base, with a pierced-steel plank runway. Flying off a runway of this type was a real risk for a fully loaded B-26. After the first takeoff, the copilot and I learned what had to be done to get any real airspeed. We both stood on the brakes and I pushed the throttles full forward until the plane shuddered. We then released the brakes ans started takeoff. At the far end of the runway we still didn't have enough flying speed so all we could do was lift up the wheels. We staggered off the runway and fortunately we were on the edge of the coastline on the English Channel. Once we crossed the cliff, we eased the plane's nose forward and had about 200 feet above the waterline to pick up airspeed and begin to fly.

After things broke loose on the ground, we then moved to Chateaudun. This was a former German bomber base. All the buildings were destroyed, but the runways were paved and only had to be repaired to be used again.

I remember bombs and ammunition were scattered all over the place when the Germans left. Some of the guys used German bazookas to hunt jackrabbits. Fortunately, their aim wasn't very good, as none of the German bombs ever let loose.

As things moved rapidly on the ground, we then moved to St. Quentin in NE France. It was late in the fall of 1944 and an early winter was starting to set in. We lived there in tents over the winter and from what I read, it was the coldest winter on record.

When we arrived at the base in St. Quentin, we learned we would be rationed to one bucket of coal per day per tent. The first thing we did, as there were four of us in one tent, was to requisition a weapons carrier and head out to barter with the natives. We pooled our rations and away we went. Cigarettes, soap and candy were worth their weight in gold, so in no time we had a weapons carrier loaded with coke (manufactured from compresses burning charcoal) and about six bottles of champagne. The coke, plus the rationed coal, lasted the whole winter.

Here are some things I remember about St. Quentin:

The Quartermaster apparently ran out of food. For about two weeks all we had for breakfast was "hunks" of cheddar cheese and cold lemonade. No powdered eggs, milk, bread or anything except cheese and lemonade. For supper, we had hamburger and spinach and that was it, for two weeks.

I do remember one plane accident that resulted in all those deaths, but I won't go into that (Note: Andy did tell me that story on one of my visits, and I will tell it later).

Here are two incidents I remember about flying missions out of St. Quentin:

The "Battle of the Bulge" started on 17 December 44. As I've said before, the winter of 1944/45 was the coldest ever in Europe in the entire century. The fog moved in on 17 December in the early hours of the morning. Everything in No. France was socked in. The Allied ground troops caught hell in the first few days of the "Bulge", and were screaming for help from the Air Corps. Nothing in the entire 9th Air Force could move because of the fog. We in the 387th were alerted for a mission to help the ground forces for six consecutive days, but we couldn't take off. The fog was so thick you couldn't even see to taxi out. Things got progressively worse, so for three or four days we just sat in the planes, waiting for the word to "Go!". The High Command didn't care where we were going to land on the return. Their main concern was for the planes to take off and help the ground troops. Still, we couldn't move for six days.

Finally, on 23 Dec the fog lifted and it was clear as a bell. Everything the 9th AF had went into the air. Unfortunately, the Luftwaffe did the same, so all hell broke loose. After the second day of clear weather, things settled down for the bomber groups as the Luftwaffe lost so many planes and used up so much fuel on the 23rd that they couldn't put much into the air after that.

The second incident I remember at St. Quentin occurred about a month later. The Group was flying two missions a day then. There was no problem in the AM mission, but the PM mission really had a problem.

The ground was very cold so in the afternoon the air warmed up and formed a layer of fog. Instead of typical fog, the layer formed over the area was 200 feet thick.

When the PM mission returned, they couldn't see the runway to land. The operating section of the 387th went out to the landing end of the runway. They fired flare pistols through the fog so the planes could line up with the runway before going into the fog bank. Some of the planes were a little high and set down too far down the runway. They couldn't stop, so they ran off the runway. For those of us who did make it in, we waited in our tents to hear the sound of a plane plowing into the field at the end of the runway.

From St. Quentin we moved to a base near Beck, Holland. This was a German temporary fighter base and I can tell you that base had a composite runway that was even worse than the one we had in Normandy.

Fortunately the war was coming to an end, so things weren't too bad. I left the Group at Beck and was just one mission short of the 65 required for a 30-day leave.

I flew on a C-47 to a heavy bomber field near Manchester, England. The war in Europe ended after a few days so I was at a B-24 base with little or no priority to get back to the states. All the "heavies" were going back to the States and then being sent to the Pacific. I spent almost 30 days waiting for a plane there in Manchester. Finally, a B-24 came in with nothing but its regular crew so I was able to get out on it as a passenger.

It took less than 24 hours to get back, with refueling stops in Iceland and Newfoundland. We landed at Bradley Field in Connecticut. The next day I went to Indiantown Gap, PA by train. They cut my orders there, which started with my 30 day leave. I was only about a hundred miles from home so my leave started almost from home.

The war in the Pacific ended while I was on Leave. My orders were to report to Greenville, NC for reassignment. All I wanted was to get out, as I had had enough of the Service. They were discharging personnel on a point system. I had more than enough points so I figured I would be out in no time.

Well, they sent me to Del Rio, Texas for processing to be discharged. The base in Del Rio closed before my processing was completed, so they sent everybody in the Air Force that was going out to Hondo Field in San Angelo, Texas.

Processing started all over again and the same thing happened at Hondo as at Del Rio. The base closed and I was discharged.

From there they shipped me to an air base in Amarillo, Texas. Fortunately, that was a permanent base and I was out of the Service in three days.

My home was in Johnstown, PA, so they sent me by train from Amarillo to Johnstown. Needless to say, I was glad to get out.

(Andy moved to the Washington, D.C. area shortly afterward, with his beautiful wife, Evelyn. They lived next door to my parents and since they had no children, they became my second parents. Andy bought some land in Great Falls, Virginia, and build his home in there practically by himself, getting help only to dig the hole for the basement. Andy was a graduate of Penn State University, and was an executive at Washington Gas Light Company in Washingotn, D.VC., He retired from there in 1985 after 40 years with the company. He was always active in the 387th Bomb Squadron Association.)

From the President

Also in his folder was a copy of a letter Andy received from President Harry Truman:

To you who answered the call of your country and served in its Armed Forces to bring about the total defeat of the enemy, I extend the heartfelt thanks of a grateful Nation. As one of the Nation's finest, you undertook the most severe task one can be called upon to perform. Because you demonstrated the fortitude, resourcefulness and calm judgement necessary to carry out that task, we now look to you for leadership and example in further exalting our country in peace.

Signed: Harry Truman