WWII heroes from 73rd Bomb Wing tour McConnell

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Abigail Klein
  • 22nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
MCCONNELL AIR FORCE BASE, Kan. --  Sharing an average age of 85 to 90 years old, with memories of bombing raids from Saipan still fresh in their minds, more than 90 remaining members of the 73rd Bomb Wing Association toured McConnell during their 35th annual nationwide tour.

The 73rd BW Association is an unincorporated, non-profit organization of individuals that either served with the 73rd BW during World War II, or are the widow or a family member of such veterans, who revisit and to promote the accomplishments, activities and history of the 73rd BW during WWII, to help preserve and protect its memorabilia.

This marked the group's first visit to McConnell in more than nine years.

In addition to a tour of the KC-135 Stratotanker, the group toured a B-29 Superfortress, a four-engine propeller-driven heavy bomber that was flown against Japan by Airmen in the 73rd BW from 1944 to 1945 out of Isley Field, Saipan, Marianas Island Group.

The sight of the B-29 caused Millard "Lefty" Palmer, 73rd BW Association chairman and retired Air Force colonel, to recall a significant memory he had onboard the aircraft during World War II while working as a central fire control gunner.

"On our second [flying mission from Saipan], the bombs didn't drop out of the bomb bay," he said. "The bombardier and I had to toggle the 500 pound highly explosive bombs out by hand, it took more than 30 minutes but we managed to get them out."

This enabled the crew to return to Saipan without further incident.

Members of the 22nd Air Refueling Wing listened to the stories of the WWII veterans, comparing the 73rd BW experiences with the experiences of today's Airmen.

"It was very interesting because they flew under very different circumstances," said Capt. Russell Fortin, 22nd Operations Group Staff navigator. "These men were actually shot at and not expected to complete their mission."

The tour also provided members of the 73rd BW association and McConnell Airmen a glimpse at how much the Air Force has evolved since World War II.

Mr. Palmer also commented on the importance of maintaining associations like the 73rd BW, which entails approximately 200,000 pages of Air Force history.

"It's important to have reunions like this because this is when we get together as a group to share our memories, secrets and tell each other what we've done with our life--it's invaluable time."