50 Mission CrushThis is the story of the crew of one B-24 bomber, the Woods Chopper, from their first training to their final mission and their long voyage home. Going to war alone, taking their airplane across three continents and 7,000 miles of ocean, jungle, desert, and mountains, these men joined the 449th Bombardment Group. From flying alone, Donald Currier and his crew mates now joined some of the most famous air battles of World War II. Their targets, Ploesti, Regensburg, Steyr, Vienna, Bucharest, among others, were once household words. But their story includes times of boredom and life on and off base, that show the human side of the technological war those men fought and died in to win. |
Common terms and phrases
A-2 jacket Africa Air Corps air crews aircraft airfield airplane Alkire American Army Austria bailed Bari base began Big Week bomb bay bomb run Bombardier bombers briefing Bruning Bucharest bunks called Chopper club Co-Pilot combat crew chief dropped Eighth Air Force engines Fenton field Fifteenth Air Force finally fire five-hundred flak flak bursts flew flying formation friends German fighters Germans going Grottaglie guns guys happened headed hundred Italian Italy John knew landed looked Lubin mess hall miles mission Mostar Navigator never night nose art Nosker officers operations overseas picked pilot plane Ploesti raid rail yards Regensburg Romania ship shot side Silly squadron area Steyr tail tank Taranto target tent thing thousand feet told took Topeka town truck Tunis turned turret Udine Waist Gunner weather weeks Wiener-Neustadt wing Wood's Chopper Yugoslavia