Masters Of The Air - America's Most Decorated Aircrew WWII B-17 Eager Beavers скачать в хорошем качестве

Masters Of The Air - America's Most Decorated Aircrew WWII B-17 Eager Beavers

#mastersoftheair#old666#eagerbeavers#mostdecoratedmissionwwii They were misfits. They were outcasts. They flew the B-17 no one wanted. And they flew into the history books of the U.S. Air Force bombing campaigns of WWII. Old 666 was a Boeing B-17E Flying Fortress heavy bomber, serial number 41-2666, assigned to the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) 19th and 43rd Bombardment Groups in 1942–1943. It is notable for being the aircraft piloted by Lt. Col. (then Captain) Jay Zeamer Jr. on the 16 June 1943 mission which earned him and 2nd Lt. Joseph Sarnoski each a Medal of Honor, and all other members of the aircrew the Distinguished Service Cross. It is a simple black-and-white photo, but if a picture is worth a thousand words, this photo may be worth quite a few more. After all, this picture is just a side note. In the story of the most decorated flight in military history. Captain Jay Zeamer Jr. was at his best behind the controls of a B-17 flying fortress. He was not, however, the best officer in the Army Air Force disciplinary actions made Zeamer something of an orphan. He had no assigned crew or aircraft at his unit. In Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, undeterred Zeamer gathered every like-minded misfit in the 43rd bomb group, men whose own discipline issues saw them removed from other flight crews in the unit. Men who gravitated to Jay Zeamer languishing at the end of a runway sat a B-17 E one that was damaged and about to be scrapped for parts. Some in the unit said it was shot to hell and cursed. Its tail number wasn't any help. 41 dash 2 6 6 6, Captain Zeamer had it towed to a remote section of the runway where he and his crew worked to return the cursed bomber to flight status. On June 16th, 1943, the call went out for a special photo reconnaissance mission. One target selected for the Allied Invasion was Bougainville Island and nearby Buka airfield. Zeamer knew that they would have to fly straight and level over enemy airspace during daylight hours to get quality usable imagery. If a successful invasion were to take place to prepare for this mission, Zeamer ordered the aircraft's 30 caliber machine guns removed and replaced with heavier, more powerful 50 caliber guns. Zeamer also had a forward gun mounted that he could fire from the cockpit and in key gun positions. The crew doubled the weapons, increasing the number of machine guns from 13 to 19. Zeamer kept his aircraft straight and level over Bougainville. The crew watched anxiously as 17 Japanese Zero fighters took off in an intercept course. The first wave flew out of the clouds five enemy aircraft on a head-on attack. Zeamer let loose a burst from his guns destroying an enemy fighter. Bombardier Joe Sarnoski fired from the nose compartment, furiously shooting down a second enemy before a barrage of 20 millimeter cannon fire pelted the lone bomber. Five of the crew were wounded. All of them stayed at their posts, all of them returning fire. The nose of the flying fortress took the brunt of the damage exactly where Joe Sarnoski was. A 20 millimeter shell exploded knocking him back. He was mortally wounded. Despite the grave injury, he painfully crawled back to his machine gun. The enemy fire had also critically wounded Jay Zeamer. More than 150 pieces of shrapnel littered his body and shattered his left leg. The Japanese Zeroes pursued the wounded bomber for more than 40 minutes. Finally, the enemy planes broke off their attack and the crew assessed their condition bloodied, but breathing except one Lieutenant Joe Sarnoski was dead. As a bombardier and being only three days from returning to the United States, he wasn't needed on a photo reconnaissance mission, he volunteered to join his crew mates anyway. Captain Jay Zeamer was in and out of consciousness, having lost a substantial amount of blood. When Zeamer returned to Port Moresby New Guinea, many of the soldiers there had to donate blood to keep him alive. His condition was so grave he had actually been recorded as killed in action. Upon inspection, the B-17 Flying Fortress, nicknamed Old 6 6 6, had 187 holes in it. Miraculously, the photos were undamaged and later used to help plan the amphibious assault on Bougainville in subsequent months. Both Jay Zeamer and Joe Sarnoski each received the Medal of Honor. Each member of the remaining seven crew members was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross. Old 6 6 6, the most decorated flight in military history. THANKS for watching, subscribing and sharing! Watch more military videos now streaming here: https://www.theusmilitarychannel.com/ https://www.thechallengeofflight.com/    / @theusmilitarychannel   (c) 2024 Keeney & Company/Marshall Publishing & Promotions, Inc. Distributed by Marshall Publishing & Promotions, Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED