In honor of Jesse and Bangin' Lulu

scadh

scadh
Jesse was a young, American man who served in the US Army Air Force (USAAF) in the second world war. As the tail-gunner in a Consolidated B-24 Liberator bomber, he flew missions over Germany from Flixton Air Base in central England. His plane was named Bangin' Lulu, and he served her and his country with great pride.

Jesse was an old-fashioned, hard-working man. After the war, he returned home to Kansas City, MO, and became an engineer. He worked for the same company his entire life and retired having accrued over a year's worth of unused vacation time. He and his wife, Betty, raised three children and built a comfortable, happy life to be proud of.

A serious man, Jesse was not prone to sensationalism or braggadocio. He seldom spoke of the war. Asked what it was like flying in a bomber, he'd reply, "Cold. It was damn cold." On one occasion, he opened up a bit more, saying, "The war was mostly over by the time I got there. We'd fly over low and slow, and all I could see was rubble and big holes in the ground. All I could think of was that each of those holes used to be a family's home. It filled me with such sorrow."

Jesse died in 1993 and was buried with full military honors. The silk map of Europe he carried with him on every mission became an heirloom of his family.

Having reached 5B credits in Elite, I'm ready to buy a Fleet Carrier. I've decided to christen her Bangin' Lulu, in honor of the men and women on both sides who sacrificed so much, and for the families who lost everything when they wanted nothing more than to live in peace.

I hope it would make my grandfather Jesse proud.
 

Vedmo

Vedmo
My grandpa was a submariner, he had two brothers in the army and one a marine. All returned. The oldest I never met. The remaining three were all together when I was maybe 8 or 9 years old, sitting at a kitchen table and talking in depth of their experiences in WWII. At some point an aunt decided I was too young for the conversation and tried to pull me away, but was quickly overuled.

I still remember bits of that conversation, but I would give anything to go back and hear it again, as I'm sure much was lost on my young mind.

scadh said:
"The war was mostly over by the time I got there.
Click to expand...
I've heard that one many times as well (be there truth to it or not), and I often heard "the real heroes were...." too.

Thanks for telling us about your grandfather, and making me think about mine.
 

scadh

scadh
Vedmo said:
I still remember bits of that conversation, but I would give anything to go back and hear it again, as I'm sure much was lost on my young mind.
Click to expand...

I have few regrets in life for things I've done. It's the things I didn't do but now wish I had I had that I regret today, and one of them is not spending more time with my grandparents as an adult. My other grandfather was in the Air Force, but I know next to nothing about his time in the service. I was 23 when my first grandfather (Jesse) died, and 30 when the other died. I wish now I had tried so much harder to get to know them and my grandmothers better. I spent tons of time with all of them as a kid, but like you said, a kid's mind is usually elsewhere and can't understand things the way they will later in life.
 

Caydran

Caydran
Not to take away from your grandfather's excellent service and story of the regret for not having spent more time with him, but it does remind me of my own accidental meeting of a "WWII Hero" who lived next door to me in 1972 in my home town, just before I joined the Army in the same year. I mowed his lawn and spent hours listening to him telling me stories of his time with "Pappy Boyington" of the Black Sheep Squadron.

I visited him again after leaving the service and attended his funeral.


Who was "Jack" Bolt?


Colorized photo of Lt. Col. John Jack Bolt at ease wearing a khaki flight uniform and yellow


Lt. Col. John F. “Jack” Bolt, a Marine fighter pilot was an American Double Ace, having shot down at least five enemy airplanes in both World War II and the Korean War. In the summer of 1941, he joined the Marine Corps Reserve to train as a pilot and to earn money for college. He earned his Wings of Gold and a commission in the Marine Corps in July 1942. After a short tour as an instructor, Bolt went to the South Pacific, and in 1943, was assigned to Marine Fighting Squadron (VMF) 214, nicknamed the “Black Sheep,” led by Major Gregory “Pappy” Boyington. Bolt, who flew 94 missions in an F4U Corsair fighter during the Solomon Islands campaign, was credited with six kills.

After learning to fly jet fighters after World War II, Bolt was assigned to fly with the Air Force during the Korean War. In a three-month period in 1953, flying F-86 Sabre jets, he shot down six Russian-built MIG-15s. He was the only Marine Corps ace of the Korean War, and one of only seven Americans to become an ace in both wars.

During 94 missions in support of Marine ground forces, he worked to improve fighterbomber tactics. His analysis of damage to Marine aircraft highlighted that pilots were flying through their own bomb fragmentation patterns. He initiated point blank bombing using special delayed action fuses, allowing an aircraft to pull clear before its bomb detonated, which reduced self-inflicted damage to Marine fighters. Bolt instituted the use of phosphorous bombs with proximity fuses that under the proper conditions provided greater coverage than napalm bombs.

In addition to three awards of the Distinguished Flying Cross, Bolt received the Navy Cross “for extraordinary heroism” for his actions on July 11, 1953, “when he led a flight low on fuel, in an attack on four enemy planes and personally downed two of them.” He was inducted into the Commemorative Air Force’s American Combat Airman Hall Of Fame in Midland, Texas in 2003.

Colonel Bolt retired from the Marines in 1962. Raised in Sanford, Florida, he resided in New Smyrna Beach over 34 years, where he enjoyed a second career as a lawyer. Asked for the key to his prowess in the air, he once said, “You simply want to shoot down airplanes more than anything else in the world.”

Flying an F4U Corsair fighter during the Solomon Islands campaign in late 1943 to early 1944, Colonel Bolt shot down six Japanese Zero fighters. Piloting an F-86 Sabre Jet while attached to the Air Force’s 39st Fighter Interceptor Squadron in the Korean War in 1953, he downed six Soviet-built MIG’s.

Colonel Bolt was the only Marine Corps Ace of the Korean War, and to this day he is the only Marine Corps Jet Ace. He is one of only seven Americans to become an Ace in both wars and the only naval aviator to hold that distinction.

In addition to three Distinguished Flying Crosses and two USAF Air Medals, Colonel Bolt was awarded the Navy Cross “for extraordinary heroism” for his actions on July 11, 1953, “when he led a flight low on fuel in an attack on four enemy planes and personally downed two of them.”
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I had the privilege of also meeting several of the crew of the Enola Gay later in my life, but John Bolt's story still resonates with me.

Oh, Seven.....
 
Last edited:

Florenus

Florenus
My grandfather's combat experience during WW2 was rather short. He got captured during his first action. He ended up spending most of the war in various german concentration camps, although I think it was not as a result of his capture by Wehrmacht, but I think he was caught and imprisoned again later. I'm not sure what was the reason (if nazis ever needed one), although I remember him telling something about smuggling things, so I guess he might have been caught doing something like that.
Some of those camp stories were fairly innocent (if you consider stories about starving innocent), like how they managed to teach one of the german dogs to bring them some of his food, like it was best to not be first in line to get tea from one big pot, because if you were last, you got a lot of used tea leaves from the bottom, which you could actually eat... other were stright up gruesome and horrifying and included lots of death he saw. I don't think my grandfather was ever able to fully recover from that experience.

If I were to name anything, " Nazis" would be my choice, but I don't think it would look good with censorship filter (edit: "gently caress"? that's not what I wrote). "I really don't like National Socialism" doesn't cut it.
 

Marklar_

Marklar_
My granddad grew up during the Depression, his dad died when he was little and his mom was disabled. He told me that as a boy he had to hunt birds with a rubber band and heavy staples, to eat. Later on he traded a bicycle for a .22, and said that the ammo was so expensive to him that he learned to hit a rabbit on the run on the first shot.

He joined the navy in '39 as soon as he was old enough, because he had heard that sailors ate steak every day. It was probably more like salt beef out of a can, but that was steak to him I guess.

He only sat down and talked to me about it once, but I overheard him talk about the war on a few other occasions, and I was there one time when he was interviewed by the local paper. He ended up on the heavy cruiser San Francisco, and probably thought he had it made until that one day in Pearl Harbor. His ship was apart from the main fleet being overhauled, and her weapons had been removed so she couldn't fight. He said some of his shipmates jumped overboard and swam to other ships to help fight, and mentioned seeing a shipmate get up out of a gunnery seat just before a large piece of shrapnel embedded in it. He never said what he did or what happened to him during the attack.

He was in it from start to finish, but refused promotion to officer and remained a C.P.O. for the duration. He worked as a machinist in the engine room, and he told me of one time when the ship took a hit from a torpedo and started taking on water. He had to close the bulkhead door of the section he was in to contain the flooding. He said he could hear his shipmates on the other side of the door pounding on it and screaming for him to open it, knowing they were going to drown. They were his buddies, and he was still so upset when he talked to me about it in the '80s that it was as if it had happened yesterday. He also mentioned coming up on deck after getting hit at Guadalcanal, and seeing the whole deck on fire from bow to stern. One thing that really stuck with me was him saying that he once saw a kamikaze plane so close that he could see the pilot, and he said that it was just a scared kid, and then it hit the water. Other stories too, too much to go into here: torpedo juice, justified hatred of sharks, etc.

As a kid I remember seeing his framed medals and campaign ribbons, it must have been about a dozen medals and enough campaign ribbons for an admiral. I don't know what most of the medals were for, the only ones I recognized at the time were the two purple hearts. He told me they gave him one for losing most of his hearing while working in the engine room, no idea what the other one was for.

For someone who had such a hard life he was a sweet, gentle man who loved animals and children. But if you got on his bad side, the right eyebrow went up and the old goat came out. Also, we all knew to never, ever touch his foot while he was sleeping or he'd wake up on his ship in battle.

His name was Paul L. McGee, pic below.

papapaul.jpg
 

Florenus

Florenus
I just wanted to add couple of things.
First, I just googled my grandfather's name. For some reason it never occured to me to do that and this thread made me think of him again.
To my complete surprise I've found radio interview with my grandfather, where he talked about his experiences in certain german concentration camp, where he was sent first. I never knew this interview existed. I'm not even sure when it was recorded, but it was published online long after his death. I was able to hear his voice first time in about 25 years. It's just... incredible.

While googling I was also able to find document in online US Holocaust Museum from certain German Penalty Court, where I found his name among thousands of others and reason why he was arrested and subsequently sent to concentration camp:
"Singing national anthem"

And I thought it was for smuggling.

He spent around 4,5 years in unimaginable conditions, somehow surviving, most of it in concentration camp in Gusen, Germany, which was liberated by US 11th Armored Division in 1945.

Therefore last thing I wanted to say is that I'm grateful and full of respect to anyone who did anything to bring this nightmare that was Germany to an end. Whether this person fought on the frontline, dropped bombs from a plane or just worked to support the war, those people might have just saved my grandfather's life. And I wouldn't be here without him.

O7 to all your grandfathers (with exception of those serving in SS. I'm sorry, I hope they rot in hell).
 
Last edited:

Astaran

Astaran
Marklar_ said:
My granddad grew up during the Depression, his dad died when he was little and his mom was disabled. He told me that as a boy he had to hunt birds with a rubber band and heavy staples, to eat. Later on he traded a bicycle for a .22, and said that the ammo was so expensive to him that he learned to hit a rabbit on the run on the first shot.

He joined the navy in '39 as soon as he was old enough, because he had heard that sailors ate steak every day. It was probably more like salt beef out of a can, but that was steak to him I guess.

He only sat down and talked to me about it once, but I overheard him talk about the war on a few other occasions, and I was there one time when he was interviewed by the local paper. He ended up on the heavy cruiser San Francisco, and probably thought he had it made until that one day in Pearl Harbor. His ship was apart from the main fleet being overhauled, and her weapons had been removed so she couldn't fight. He said some of his shipmates jumped overboard and swam to other ships to help fight, and mentioned seeing a shipmate get up out of a gunnery seat just before a large piece of shrapnel embedded in it. He never said what he did or what happened to him during the attack.

He was in it from start to finish, but refused promotion to officer and remained a C.P.O. for the duration. He worked as a machinist in the engine room, and he told me of one time when the ship took a hit from a torpedo and started taking on water. He had to close the bulkhead door of the section he was in to contain the flooding. He said he could hear his shipmates on the other side of the door pounding on it and screaming for him to open it, knowing they were going to drown. They were his buddies, and he was still so upset when he talked to me about it in the '80s that it was as if it had happened yesterday. He also mentioned coming up on deck after getting hit at Guadalcanal, and seeing the whole deck on fire from bow to stern. One thing that really stuck with me was him saying that he once saw a kamikaze plane so close that he could see the pilot, and he said that it was just a scared kid, and then it hit the water. Other stories too, too much to go into here: torpedo juice, justified hatred of sharks, etc.

As a kid I remember seeing his framed medals and campaign ribbons, it must have been about a dozen medals and enough campaign ribbons for an admiral. I don't know what most of the medals were for, the only ones I recognized at the time were the two purple hearts. He told me they gave him one for losing most of his hearing while working in the engine room, no idea what the other one was for.

For someone who had such a hard life he was a sweet, gentle man who loved animals and children. But if you got on his bad side, the right eyebrow went up and the old goat came out. Also, we all knew to never, ever touch his foot while he was sleeping or he'd wake up on his ship in battle.

His name was Paul L. McGee, pic below.

View attachment 205618
Click to expand...

In case you'd like to know more about what your grandfather went through, there's a book called Neptune's Inferno by James Hornfisher about the naval actions around Guadalcanal and Savo Island. The San Francisco played a key role in several engagements. The books is very well written and researched. It's "easy" to read in the sense, that it is not some academic gibberish and pseudo-intellectual phrase-mongering. That being said, it is very "tough" to read on the emotional side of history. I have a Master's degree in military history and I've seen and read a few nasty things over the years. Yet, Neptune's Inferno is probably the book that impressed me the most when it comes to describing what hell those brave men went through. I don't know anything about you or what sort of person you are. So maybe reading the book opens up a way to get closer to your grandfather, but maybe it's also "too tough" to read and sometimes "ignorance can be a blessing", too.

--

My own grandfather also served in a navy as a stoker, yet for obvious reasons I am not going to name one of my Elite ships after one of the ships he served on. The first one was the German armored cruiser ("Panzerschiff") Lützow (until November 1939 Deutschland (Germany), but renamed to Lützow due to "PR concerns" in case the ship got sunk). He participated in the annexation of Memel in 1939 and a few years ago I found a certificate/deed in his inheritance that "honors" his participation. At some point he later transfered to the cruiser Köln (Cologne). Details get sketchy from here. Family lore claims he got torpedoed and drifted through "arctic waters", yet I haven't been able to validate those storys (yet). He allegedly also served onboard submarines, which I also haven't been able verify. I never had the chance to ask him directly, since he passed away one year after my birth and the "lore keepers" in my families aren't exactly trained historians than could/would double check stories and claims with documents and records.

Somewhat related, I briefly considered renaming my own FC in honor of my dad who passed away suddenly and unexpectedly on January 2nd, 2021 (not Covid related). I eventually decided against it, though. My dad never bothered with videogames, let alone Elite. He was a hard working man who took great pleasure from creating things with his own hands. He loved working with mom in the garden, to go fishing or to help other people when they needed him. He was always there when I needed him, such a steady rock and foundation in my life. Remembering/honoring him this way in Elite felt..."off". And in a way, out of place as well. Elite has become a place where I can go to, to escape from the grief for a brief period of time. Seeing his name on my FC every time I log in, would probably ruin the game for me. I miss him dearly, but I will remember him in the real world, where he lived and so I can escape into the digital world, where my alter ego lives.

--

This is a good thread. Thanks to the OP for starting it, the participants for keeping it clean and solemn and to the mods for keeping it open.
 

Vedmo

Vedmo
Marklar_ said:
My granddad grew up during the Depression, his dad died when he was little and his mom was disabled. He told me that as a boy he had to hunt birds with a rubber band and heavy staples, to eat. Later on he traded a bicycle for a .22, and said that the ammo was so expensive to him that he learned to hit a rabbit on the run on the first shot.

He joined the navy in '39 as soon as he was old enough, because he had heard that sailors ate steak every day. It was probably more like salt beef out of a can, but that was steak to him I guess.
Click to expand...

You might as well have been describing my grandpa! He was sent to live with a childless aunt and uncle who could afford to feed him until he was old enough to carry his weight on the farm. When sent from the house to hunt, he had to return with as many animals as left with shells. Two of his brothers had already joined the national guard prior to the war because you got a new pair of boots every year, and after his oldest brother (an officer already in the army) was given a heads up by the army recruiter that he was trying to enlist at 15, my grandpa finally traveled far enough from home to find a navy recruiter to sign him up when he was 16.

What a handsome young man, that is a great picture.

Florenus said:
First, I just googled my grandfather's name. For some reason it never occured to me to do that and this thread made me think of him again.
To my complete surprise I've found radio interview with my grandfather, where he talked about his experiences in certain german concentration camp, where he was sent first. I never knew this interview existed. I'm not even sure when it was recorded, but it was published online long after his death. I was able to hear his voice first time in about 25 years. It's just... incredible.
Click to expand...

I'll go with incredible too, who would have thought some forum browsing would lead to that! I can't imagine listening to that for the first time, glad you found it.

I have some old printed service records (number of ships sunk & tonnage) of the submarine my Grandpa served on as well as a couple of books about the submarine service that were his, and this thread got me looking through them. Within the books I found some stuff I've never seen before; his birth certificate, crew photos of the USS Sunfish, invites to decommissioning (he went, polaroids of the ceremony), and a 1945 newspaper clipping of him and his brothers with pictures and a brief write up of how they were each helping the war effort.

Astaran said:
Somewhat related, I briefly considered renaming my own FC in honor of my dad who passed away suddenly and unexpectedly on January 2nd, 2021 (not Covid related). I eventually decided against it, though. My dad never bothered with videogames, let alone Elite. He was a hard working man who took great pleasure from creating things with his own hands. He loved working with mom in the garden, to go fishing or to help other people when they needed him. He was always there when I needed him, such a steady rock and foundation in my life. Remembering/honoring him this way in Elite felt..."off". And in a way, out of place as well. Elite has become a place where I can go to, to escape from the grief for a brief period of time. Seeing his name on my FC every time I log in, would probably ruin the game for me. I miss him dearly, but I will remember him in the real world, where he lived and so I can escape into the digital world, where my alter ego lives.
Click to expand...

I usually stay out of these tribute topics because they just don't sit right with me, but I guess I've never thought about it enough to understand why. You just summed it up perfectly for me, it wouldn't seem genuine for me, but I am not trying to judge those who do it and respect their desire to do it. I doubt I'll ever name one of my video game ships the Sunfish, but this thread has been amazing, sincerely touching me on a personal and emotional level. Thanks to all who have shared their stories.
 

Vedmo

Vedmo
Astaran said:
there's a book called Neptune's Inferno by James Hornfisher about the naval actions around Guadalcanal and Savo Island. The San Francisco played a key role in several engagements. The books is very well written and researched. It's "easy" to read in the sense, that it is not some academic gibberish and pseudo-intellectual phrase-mongering. That being said, it is very "tough" to read on the emotional side of history.
Click to expand...

Shots Fired in Anger, Lieutenant Colonel John B. George, take your description of Neptune's Inferno as it applies perfectly to this book, but it is instead a rifleman's view of the ground engagements.
 

Marklar_

Marklar_
Astaran said:
In case you'd like to know more about what your grandfather went through, there's a book called Neptune's Inferno by James Hornfisher about the naval actions around Guadalcanal and Savo Island.
Click to expand...

Thanks for this. I'm very interested in what my grandad went through, especially those things that he didn't want to talk about. I had to think about it a bit first, but I want to know so I've just downloaded that book to my Kindle. I know it won't be a fun read, though.

To all those reading this thread who don't have such stories about your grandparents, talk to them and get to know them if they're still around. They've seen a lot of history, and would probably amaze you with their stories if given a chance. As a boy I didn't know that there was anything special about my grandad, only later did I understand how valuable and precious the time I spent listening to him was.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom