Finish Forty and Home: The Untold World War II Story of B-24s in the Pacific

Phil Scearce

University of North Texas Press, 2011 - History - 373 pages

A Main Selection of the Military/History Book Club. During the early years of World War II in the Pacific theatre, against overwhelming odds, young American airmen flew the longest and most perilous bombing missions of the war. They faced determined Japanese fighters without fighter escort, relentless anti-aircraft fire with no deviations from target, and thousands of miles of over-water flying with no alternative landing sites.
Finish Forty and Home, by Phil Scearce, is the true story of the men and missions of the 11th Bombardment Group as it fought alone and unheralded in the South Central Pacific, while America had its eyes on the war in Europe. The book opens with Sgt. Herman Scearce, the author's father, lying about his age to join the Army Air Corps at 16. The narrative follows Scearce through training and into combat with his new crewmates, including pilot Lt. Joe Deasy, whose last-minute transfer from training duty thrusts the new crew into the squadron commander's role.
After bombing Nauru, the squadron moves on to bomb Wake Island, Tarawa, and finally Iwo Jima. These missions bring American forces closer and closer to the Japanese home islands and precede the critical American invasions of Tarawa and Iwo Jima. The 42nd Squadron's losses through 1943 were staggering: 50 out of 110 airmen killed.
Phil Scearce explores the context of the war and sets the stage for these daring missions, revealing the motivations of the men who flew them: to finish forty combat missions and make it home again. He based his story upon substantial research at the Air Force Historical Research Agency and the National Archives, interviews with surviving airmen, and interviews and correspondence with the survivors of men who were lost. His is the first book to document America's bomber offensive in the early days of the Pacific War.

Contents

• Introduction: 1
• 1 Sergeant at Seventeen: 11
• 2 Hawaii: 33
• 3 First Mission: 43
• 4 Nauru: 51
• 5 Air Raid: 65
• 6 Chance: 77
• 7 May 1943: 85
• 8 The Squadrons Objectives: 97
• 9 The Pacific Preferred: 115
• 10 Softening Tarawa: 125
• 11 Forever Consequences: 143
• 12 Losing Altitude Fast: 151
• 13 Back to Hawaii: 165
• 14 Last Flights: 189
• 15 Ask the Man Who Owns One: 201
• 16 The Meaning of Boxes: 221
• 17 Guam: 235
• 18 Back in Business: 253
• 19 Halfway to Forty: 271
• 20 January 1945: 291
• 21 Endings for Some: 301
• Epilogue: 319
• Endnotes: 331
• Bibliography: 355
• Index: 361

About the author

PHIL SCEARCE is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a 2009 graduate of the Middle Tennessee State University Writer's Loft Program. He is a member of the Tennessee Writer's Alliance. Phil resides in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. COLONEL JESSE E. STAY commanded the 42nd Squadron in the Pacific.

Bibliographic information

• Title: Finish Forty and Home: The Untold World War II Story of B-24s in the Pacific; Issue 5 of Mayborn literary nonfiction series; Number 5 in the Mayborn literary nonfiction series
• Author: Phil Scearce
• Edition: illustrated
• Publisher: University of North Texas Press, 2011
• ISBN: 1574413163, 9781574413168
• Length: 373 pages
• Subjects: History / Military / Aviation; History / Military / United States; History / Military / World War II