Lieutenant W. H. Bledsoe

Creator

Preview

Identifier

20037085

Description

Lieutenant W. H. Bledsoe, B-17 pilot, served with the 8th Air Force in England for ten months. Lieutenant Bledsoe is from Los Angeles, California and is in Fort Worth, Texas to visit his aunt and uncle Mr. and Mrs. Brady Hyde. Lieutenant Bledsoe is standing against a wall dressed in his military uniform. "Thrice Decorated Veteran Of 30 Missions is Visitor Lt. W.H. Bledsoe, B-17 pilot who served with the 8th Air Force in England for 10 months, is in Fort Worth visiting with his aunt and uncle, Mr. And Mrs. Brady Hyde, 3525 May. Outstanding in the 30 operational flights on which he participated is his 14th mission for which he was awarded the Silver Star for 'gallantry and intrepidity in action. 'It was a raid over Germany in the latter part of 1943. Flak knocked out his No. 2 engine and he was forced to drop out of formation. In trying to make his way home, he was chased to the ground by enemy fighters where one shot out his NO. 1 engine and another crashed into his left wing. He managed to break away, however, and hedgehopped back over France about 20 feet off the ground. Crossing the Channel, just in sight of England, his No. 3 and No. 4 engines burned out and he crash-landed the ship on the beach. Every member of the crew walked away from the plane -- unhurt. His first taste of combat also proved rough going. When he got his ship, 'Panama Hattie,' back to his base, it was drilled like a sieve with 20-mm bullet holes. 'Good only for salvage,' he comments. His other decorations include the DFC and the Air Medal with three oak leaf clusters. Lieutenant Bledsoe, who wife and and parents, Mr. and Mrs. Earl Bledsoe, live in Los Angeles, is now assigned as an instructor in advanced instrument flying at the Galveston Army Flying School. He entered service in April, 1941, and received training at King City, Cal., Taft, Cal., and Marfa Army Air Base, where he was commissioned in April, 1943. He formerly was a student at Southwestern University in California. He is also visiting another aunt and uncle, Mr. and Mrs. Major Brisco, 3601 St. Louis."J

Archival Date

1944-07-29

Collection Name

Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection

Collection Number

AR406-6-619

Original Format

Negatives, Black & White

File Format

JPG

Rights

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License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License

Subjects

Military insignia; Military decorations; Military uniforms; Medals; Hats; Neckties