[303rd-Talk] War wery planes

harold susskind hasusskind at hotmail.com
Thu Jan 29 14:48:44 MST 2009 

Jim :
You guessed correctly on WT.  We were a 303rd crew and flew our   first mission on Dec. 24, 1943:  After we completed 16 missions  they started the PFF contingent at Chelveston.  Each group in the 41st  had to supply two crews.  I understand the pilot of one of those crew talked his way out and us in.  Every time we came back to lead the 303rd we got treated as we were the Luftwaffe.  We drew all the soft missions like five in a row to Berlin, Merseburg, Stettin etc. Your dad's defense of Mel Schulstad after his water landing was a classic.  In our a/c the ball turret was replaced by the radar dome.  No one should get lost in a PFF aircraft if the set is working. It allowed us to bomb in the wintertime.  We bombed by radar.  We did that on Caen on D-Day. Up to then targets in France had to be bombed vsually.  Your dad was a great guy.  He got better as he got older.  Hal s.

> Date: Mon, 26 Jan 2009 16:09:00 -0800
> From: jmccoy_94025 at yahoo.com
> Subject: RE: [303rd-Talk] War wery planes
> To: 303rd-talk at 303rdBG.com
> 
> Hal and all,
> 
> The Witch's Tit perhaps??
> 
> And why Chelveston vs Molesworth?  Were you 303rd out of Chelveston or with 301st or 305th then moved to 303rd/Molesworth?
> 
> My dad Mel (444th--the guy who certified the birds airworthy) used to describe a "war weary" B-17 as one that was still (perhaps civilian equivalent of what today we'd call) "airworthy," but marginally so and certainly not capable of carrying tons of bombs for the full range of a mission with enough defensive systems working to keep you guys alive!
> 
> As in the Vicious Virgin becoming the red and white striped Scarlet Harlet when declared "war weary."  Then used as a formation assembly ship--that took off first and light/empty (of bombs and guns,) climbed and circled as "lead dog" until the whole BG was airborne in formation (behind her) then she headed back to Molesworth and you all went out and did your duty.  Dozens of red lights were installed all over formation birds and flashed the morse code letter for the BG intended to be lead (as in dash dot dash dot *C* for the 303rd.)
> 
> Mel Schulstad can tell you how the Scarlet Harlet got scrapped.....  
> 
> PFF was "pathfinder??"  Did you have radar in the ball turret to ground-map the target?  Do you know if you used any of the weird British (redundant) loran-like nav systems to guide you near targets?  As USAA was "precision" vs Brit area/carpet bombing did you have to positive eyeball (or radar??) ID targets before you bombed??
> 
> Best,
> 
> Jim McCoy 
> (Mel's son)  
> 
> 
> --- On Mon, 1/26/09, harold susskind <hasusskind at hotmail.com> wrote:
> 
> > From: harold susskind <hasusskind at hotmail.com>
> > Subject: RE: [303rd-Talk] War wery planes
> > To: 303rd-talk at 303rdbg.com
> > Date: Monday, January 26, 2009, 2:26 PM
> > You all:
> >  First of all.  I'm no cowboy so I don't know what
> > a bunkhouse is.  I flew 40 plus missions, 25 as lead: We
> > were the 303rds PFF crew and were based at Chelveston as was
> > the plane we flew.  Our bombs were loaded at the base we
> > were flying out of.  I don't remember if anyone wrote a
> > message to Hitler on our bomb.  Nor do I remember if the
> > plane we used had a name or not.  Before going to the PFF
> > base we flew in the Duchess on its 50th mission.  I
> > don't remember if it had 50 bombs on the side of the
> > aircraft.  We had one plane with the name on the side that
> > we hid every time we had Vips to the base.  Anyone remember
> > its name?  I think its initials were WT.  Love to all Hal
> > Susskind   
> > 
> > > Date: Mon, 26 Jan 2009 07:48:24 -0800
> > > From: asnh at earthlink.net
> > > To: 303rd-talk at 303rdBG.com
> > > Subject: Re: [303rd-Talk] War wery planes
> > > 
> > > I really can't tell you - it is a black and white
> > photo. I'll try and 
> > > find it and upload it for you to see,
> > > 
> > > Anita
> > > 
> > > bill runnels wrote:
> > > 
> > > >Anita:
> > > > 
> > > >What colors are used on the bunkhouse door?  The
> > colors could also indicate the type of bombs carried on each
> > mission.
> > > > 
> > > >Bill Runnels
> > > >Bombardier (B-17)
> > > >
> > > >--- On Sun, 1/25/09, Anita Nardine
> > <asnh at earthlink.net> wrote:
> > > >
> > > >From: Anita Nardine <asnh at earthlink.net>
> > > >Subject: Re: [303rd-Talk] War wery planes
> > > >To: "303rd Bomb Group Talk Forum"
> > <303rd-talk at 303rdBG.com>
> > > >Date: Sunday, January 25, 2009, 10:47 PM
> > > >
> > > >I have a photo of the bunkhouse door, which has
> > differently colored bombs listed
> > > >for each plane crew in the bunkhouse. I've
> > often wondered the same thing.
> > > >
> > > >Howard Nardine's daughter,
> > > >Anita Nardine
> > > >
> > > >Gary Moncur wrote:
> > > >
> > > >  
> > > >
> > > >>I have heard that the different colored bombs
> > on "Memphis Belle"
> > > >>    
> > > >>
> > > >indicated it's Lead Crew missions.  I
> > haven't look closely at Hell's
> > > >Angels missions to confirm if it is the same.
> > > >  
> > > >
> > > >>Gary
> > > >>
> > > >>*Gary L. Moncur*
> > > >>303rd Bomb Group (H) Historian
> > > >>www.303rdBG.com
> > > >>
> > > >>
> > > >>
> > > >>Redshogparts at aol.com wrote:
> > > >>
> > > >>    
> > > >>
> > > >>>Looking closely at the nose art on The
> > Hells Angels B-17 the number of
> > > >>>      
> > > >>>
> > > >25  missions depicted in bombs on the nose. Some
> > are in different colours. Do
> > > >these  depict different types of missions or bombs
> > carried?
> > > >  
> > > >
> > > >>> Would love to know?
> > > >>> 
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> > > >>>  
> > > >>>      
> > > >>>
> > >
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> > > >>    
> > > >>
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