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空军战士-第27章

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They formed up and straightened out for the target。 Farrington called out over the intercom; 〃This is it; boys。 We’re on our way to the war。〃  Ahead shells were bursting all over the sky; sending out shards of shrapnel。 The lead squadron of B…24's penetrated the flak。 〃Mary; Mother of God;〃 one crew member mumbled into the intercom。 〃Mary; Mother of God; get me out of this。〃 Farrington took them right into it。 Jarring detonations erupted around them。 The plane bumped and shuddered。 But it kept flying straight and level; until the bombs were released。 Farrington banked; got away from the flak; and headed home。 Sergeant Goodner reached into his jacket pocket for the Tootsie Roll he carried with him。 It was frozen solid。 When the plane landed; Goodner had his first mission behind him。  _____________________________  On November 18; McGovern was Surbeck’s co…pilot on another milk run。 The target was the German airfield near Vicenza; Austria。 The weather was fair and the bombing was visual。 Over 50 per cent of the bombs fell in the target area causing extensive damage to the installation。 Flak was light and generally inaccurate。 No German fighters were seen。 The group returned to Cerignola without casualties。  McGovern flew again the next day and it was no milk run。 The target was a refinery near Vienna。 Because of cloud cover; the lead plane used its Mickey and no results were seen; but dropping bombs by radar instead of visually meant few of them hit what they wanted to hit and the damage was minimal。 Flak was intense but inaccurate and all planes returned to base。  On November 20; on McGovern’s final mission as a co…pilot; the target was factories at Zlin; Czechoslovakia。 It was a secondary; or alternative; target; but the original objective had been obscured by clouds; so the lead pilot took the group to Zlin。 There the weather was clear and the bombing was done visually; with excellent results。 Best of all; there was no flak over Zlin。 All planes returned safely。  After debriefing; McGovern would meet with Rounds; Adams; and his crew。 They fired questions at him about what it was like; most of all the flak。 〃They were filled with questions every day;〃 McGovern recalled; 〃waiting for me when I came back。〃  Once the session was over; McGovern would steer his way into the officer’s club for a Coca…Cola or a beer。 There he would listen to the veteran pilots talk and ask his own questions。 It was shop talk。 From almost every one of the discussions he would absorb information。 The topics were the B…24's; the crews; the Germans。 What rpm at what altitude? Why was this gauge or that instruments malfunctioning? Is there any way to stay straight and level over the target and still avoid the flak? How long can an engine be on fire before it detonates the gas tank? What can you do when a bomb gets stuck in the bomb bay? How does the plane fly with only three engines operating? With two? When the hydraulic system has leaked or been shot out; how do you get the wheels down?  McGovern had flown four missions on four days。 These consecutive missions were about the absolute limit。 They left the pilot and his crew haggard; worn; jumpy; frazzled and spent。 But each one of the attacks counted toward the thirty…five missions that; when completed; would allow McGovern to return to the States。 When he had time to write to Eleanor; McGovern noted the number in his letter — number five after the mission to Zlin。  〃I worried; as any wife would;〃 Eleanor said three decades later。 〃I would feel a stab of fear whenever someone knocked at the door or the telephone rang。 The first thing I would do when I got a letter from George was to scan through it for a number — the number of missions completed。 That was the first thing I wanted to know。 Then I’d go back to read the letter。〃  ___________________________  On December 16; radio operator Sgt。 Mel TenHaken flew his first mission; against a refinery at Brux; Czechoslovakia。 Because the crew were new; the pilot; Lieutenant Cord; was a veteran ofthirty…one missions。 TenHaken’s regular pilot flew as co…pilot that day。 There was another newcomer; a photographer on his seventeenth mission。 Theirs would be one of the last two planes on the bomb run and his photos would be among the official records of the raid’s effect。  When the Group formed up and headed toward the target; TenHaken saw 〃a seemingly endless line of planes。 I had never seen this many in one place at one time。〃 He thought that 〃obviously Rosie the riveter back home had been very busy。〃 The bombers were at 25;000 feet; just below the 26;000…foot ceiling for the craft。  On his B…24; TenHaken was in charge of the haff; what he had called 〃Christmas tree tinsel〃 back home。 Its purpose was to confuse German radar; which otherwise would lock onto the group and know what altitude to set the fuses for the shells to explode。 The chaff was in packets; each one wrapped and tied with a plain brown band; each one crimped to open in the wind and allow the foil to drift down in individual pieces。 Most veterans thought the chaff didn’t do much if any good; but they tossed them out of the plane with great gusto anyway。  When his plane got to the initial point and turned; then straightened for the bomb run; TenHaken saw 〃numerous little puffs ahead forming a black cloud shaped like an elongated shoe box。〃 The leader of his squadron was flying through it。 Those behind were about to enter the German box。 It was time to pull the flak jackets on。 These were for the crew; whose members did not have the cast iron protection the pilot and co…pilot did。 The jackets consisted of irregularly shaped metal plates stitched between two sheets of canvas to form a vest。 To TenHaken; 〃their purpose seemed primitive; identical to that of suits of armor。〃 They weighed about twenty pounds each。 Most veterans decided early on not to wear them; but to put them between their seats and their butts; thus protecting the most important part。  Over the target; with flak bursting from the shells all around his plane; TenHaken started dropping the chaff packets through one of the waist windows。 After dropping one; he tried to count to ten as he had been told before letting the next one go; but in the midst of the flak he seldom got past two or three。 Then the plane to his right got hit。 〃A flak explosion at its number three engine had blown the right wing from the body。 The scene was incomprehensible — the wing tumbled over and down; and the fuselage was nosing into a dive。〃 There were no parachutes。 〃The bam…bam…bams and poof…poof…poofs were exploding everywhere; it was inconceivable to fly through this unscathed。〃  The bomber lurched。 Have we been hit? TenHaken wondered。 Through the intercom; he heard the bombardier say; 〃Bombs away。〃 (〃The most beautiful words in the English language;〃 according to one pilot)。 Then the bombardier continued; 〃Now let’s get the hell out of here。〃 After a pause; he came on the intercom again to say; 〃I wasn’t supposed to add that last part。〃  Lieutenant Cord banked the plane into a steep dive to the right。 TenHaken thought; thank you; God。 Cord came on the intercom to ask each crew member to report any damage。 None。 Whe
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