A lot of the interviews we have shared with our readers tend to focus on the American perspective in the Pacific or European Theaters. Gert Schmitz actually fought with the Germans during World War II. He talks about his war experiences, what it was like to live in Germany in the 1930s, postwar Germany and why he left the country. This interview comes from the Memoirs of WWII YouTube channel.
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IHRA’s Top 7 Posts of 2020
This week, we’re listing our most popular posts published this year as determined by the number of views. Did your favorite post make the list?
Thank you for your continued support by subscribing, reading and sharing our work, and buying our books. If there’s anything you’d like to see more of, let us know in the comments. We’ll be back next year with more great content. And now, without further ado, our most popular posts published in 2020.
1. Adrift at Sea: A Chance Encounter A downed aircrew from the 345th Bomb Group waits for rescue.
2. Alcohol Busters Highlighting one of the paintings by aviation artist Jack Fellows that appears in our book Rampage of the Roarin’ 20’s.
3. A Collection of Photos Here, we shared some of the photos that don’t make it in our books.
4. Ditch at Sea and Live in a Boeing B-17 Learn all about the procedures taken to prepare for and ditch a B-17.
5. Takeoff Snafu A 22nd Bomb Group mission started off on the wrong wing…
6. Roland Fisher’s Brush with Death This member of the 43rd Bomb Group had two close calls with Japanese aircraft. Here is one of the stories.
7. Loss of PLUTO II No one saw this 43rd Bomb Group B-17 get shot down, a mystery that wasn’t solved until 1946.
“So they don’t forget what we had to go through”
Veterans Day is November 11th and what better way to honor our veterans than to listen to their stories? In this powerful interview with World War II veteran Frank Devita, he talks about his experiences on D-Day and how his service impacted his life. Because his job was to operate the ramp on his boat, some of the scenes he describes are very intense and difficult to listen to. It took many years for Mr. Devita to feel comfortable talking about his war experiences and he credits reporter Tom Brokaw for helping him get there.
Mission to Rabaul
Over the years, we have dedicated quite a few blog posts to some of the strikes on Rabaul, and we have another one today. The Australian War Memorial posted an old film covering the big October 12, 1943 raid on Rabaul. Before getting into that particular mission, the film explains the logistics that the Allies had to work out weeks earlier. After tracing the Allied advance northward, it’s time for the first of several major attacks on the Japanese stronghold of Rabaul.
Ditch at Sea and Live in a Boeing B-17
We found a very detailed training video posted by Zeno’s Warbirds that covered the ditching procedures for B-17 crews. You’ll get to see just how much safety gear was loaded onto these planes and watch a crew run through the procedure of ditching a Flying Fortress.
75th Anniversary of VE Day
In this newsreel from British Movietone, Winston Churchill announces an end to the war in Europe. The celebrations that followed his announcement lasted for almost two days.
Bataan: A 70th Anniversary Commemoration | New Mexico PBS
Nearly eight years ago, New Mexico PBS uploaded a video where three World War II veterans spoke of their experiences relating to Bataan. One of these veterans, Pete Gonzalez, was a member of the 19th Bomb Group. In this video, he talks about some of what he experienced and witnessed during the Bataan Death March and as a POW.
Senator Udall reintroduced his bill in 2019, and it has not yet moved forward.
Interview with Mildred “Micky” Axton
This week, we wanted to share a great interview with you that was posted by Roger Bindl. At a young age, Micky Axton became entranced by flying. She went on to serve as a WASP in World War II and later became the first woman to fly a B-29.
IHRA’s Top 7 Posts of 2019
This week, we’re listing our most popular posts published this year as determined by the number of views. Did your favorite post make the list?
Thank you for your continued support by subscribing, reading and sharing our work, and buying our books. If there’s anything you’d like to see more of, let us know in the comments. We’ll be back next year with more great content. And now, without further ado, our most popular posts published in 2019.
1. The Disappearance of Capt. Kizzire’s Crew Captain William L. Kizzire’s B-25 is shot down over Boram. The crew survived and disappeared before a rescue could be made.
2. Medium Bombardment Attack and Aviation A film to introduce the Pacific Theater to men being transferred from Europe.
3. Flight map: Aerodromes and Landing Grounds February 1943 Take a look at the flight distances between Port Moresby and important locations in February 1943.
4. When Plans Go Awry: A Mission to Palau Captain John N. Barley’s B-24 is shot down after an encounter with several Japanese Zeros.
5. Shot Down at Kokas The story behind a fatal mission that took the lives of two men and produced one of the most dramatic photo series taken from a combat camera.
6. Surviving in a Japanese POW Camp Shot down by Japanese fighter pilot SFPO Shigetoshi Kudo, this B-17 crewmember was turned over to the Japanese after he escaped certain death by jumping out of his plane over New Britain.
7. Ken’s Men, Vol. II Announcement We were so excited to share the news of this new release with you!
Interview with Glenn Frazier
Captured by the Japanese and forced to walk in what would later be known as the Bataan Death March, Col. Glenn Frazier talks about his experiences as a POW in a powerful interview with Memoirs of WWII.
