Newspaper Page Text
♦ FRIDAY/SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 10/11, 2006
2C
NORRIS
From page lA
the stereotype warrior, but
my career was governed by
my intense desire to stay
alive to fulfill my obligation,
not to create images.
“Truth be told, however,
in answer to the query about
‘greatest accomplishments,’
I’d have to say that staying
alive was it.
“That was the result of
sheer luck however. The
one requiring the greatest
skill in accomplishment was
piloting the WRAMA com
mander around the world
twice, in a base assigned
aircraft, in support of com
mand requirements.
“Each area commander,”
he explained, “had his own
personal aircraft in those
days (unofficially of course)
and Robins was designated
as an airport of entry, with
our own customs agents -
which came in handy.
“I volunteered for service
as an aviation cadet after
the attack at Pearl Harbor. I
had learned the art of flying
with local ‘Barn Stormers’,
in my late teens and was
eager to give the Air Corps
my ‘expert’ advice.
“I made it through flight
school and combat training,
met and married my Georgia
Peach, La Verne, who quickly
put the stamp of Georgia on
me, then picked up my air
crew and a B-17 aircraft and
flew to England to join the
Bth Air Force.
“My original obligation
was 25 combat missions
to complete a tour, but it
was later upped to 35 mis
sions because Gen. (Jimmy)
Doolittle thought 25 was
being too easily accom
plished.
“Ironically, I returned
'Day
L W'l/etenattb ‘Day
A ll? m jffP^° rld War I officially ended on June 28. 1919. with the signing of the Treaty of
MW Versailles The actual fighting between the Allies and Germany, however, had ended
seven months earlier with the armistice, which went into effect on the eleventh hour
Jm Jm (L Ite eleventh day of the eleventh month in 1918. Armistice Day, as November 11
jgm became known, officially became a holiday in the United States in 1926, and a na-
I W tional holiday 12 years later On June 1,1954. the name was changed to Veterans
m Day to honor all U S. veterans
B ▼ In 1968, new legislation changed the national commemoration of Veterans Day to
W m the fourth Monday in October. It soon became apparent, however, that November 11
▼ ▼ was a date of historic significance to many Americans. Therefore, in 1978 Congress
returned the observance to its traditional date.
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- Larry O’Neal and f amiltj
FAIRFIELD FINANCIAL
Sal
from my first mission with
73 holes in the wings and
fuselage of the aircraft from
enemy fire, but no fatalities.
On one mission, 60 four
engine aircraft were lost
with 10 men aboard each
one; 600 men on one raid. In
the end, more than 28,000
men in the Bth Air Force lost
heir lives. Yet, the one thing
that bothered me the most
was the night time activ
ity, when the generators that
supplied power to the air
craft being readied for the
next mission, droned on and
on with their incessant beat,
preventing needed sleep and
reminding me that I had an
early 4 a.m. briefing for that
mission.
“After I returned from
Europe, I was assigned back
to Germany to participate
in the Berlin Airlift, trans
porting fuel and food to the
citizens there. When that
was completed, I opted for
the Strategic Air Command
in Georgia, in deference to
family location desires. From
there it was but a short hop
to Korea to engage in fur
ther transportation require
ments.
“After a tour in Korea I
was assigned, with my fam
ily, to the Air Sea Rescue
Wing in the Philippines, fly
ing amphibian aircraft on
rescue missions through
out the pacific area. After a
three-year obligation there
was fulfilled, we were sent to
the Air Materiel Command
Headquarters in Ohio for
a two-year stint, before
moving on to WRAMA
Headquarters at Robins
AFB, where I served as the
administrative assistant and
personal pilot for the com
manding general.
“At the time, Robins had
material support responsi
bilities for world wide opera
tions, plus down-range main-
TOMB OF THE UNKNOWNS
Official, national ceremonies for Veterans Day center around the
Tomb of the Unknowns.
To honor these men, symbolic of all Americans who gave their lives
in all wars, an Army honor guard,
the 3d U.S. Infantry (The Old
Guard), keeps day and night
vigil.
At 11 a.m. on November 11, a
combined color guard represent
ing all military services executes
"Present Arms" at the tomb. The
nation's tribute to its war dead
is symbolized by the laying of a
presidential wreath ana the play
ing of “Taps.”
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tenance for the space pro
gram. At the end of the six
years, we were reassigned to
NATO South Headquarters
in Naples, Italy where I
served as Director of Flight
Operations.
“From there it was anoth
er assignment to England,
where it had all started dur
ing WWII. After that tour
was completed, we came
back to Robins to serve
my final two years before
retirement. My military
career covered the foreign
countries, England (twice),
Germany, the Philippines,
Korea, Taiwan and Italy.
“After retirement from
the military I took a job
as captain with the ClA’s,
civilian airline, Air America,
in Taiwan for three years
then went to Saudi Arabia
to work for four years. But,
that’s another story.
“Pretty mundane stuff. I
should be writing about the
real heroes, the ones who
can’t write about their own
experiences. And to that
end, I’d like to recount such
an episode.
“On D-Day, 1944,1 had the
opportunity to fly a couple of
low-level missions in support
of our troops attempting to
go ashore at Normandy. By
low level I mean at 12,000
feet, which is ‘low-level’ to a
high altitude bomber pilot.
Low enough to distinguish
between the activity among
the men below me, scram
bling out of their landing
craft and struggling to reach
solid ground, in the face of
withering cannon and small
arms fire, aimed point blank
at them.
“Although many of them
were still in their teens,
they were all “men”! Limp
and lifeless bodies were
everywhere, entangled with
steel barricades and draped
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WORLD
From page lA
That was in June of 1942
he joined the Navy.
Being in Norfolk, he
already knew his way
around.
In fact, his first stop as a
recruit/seaman apprentice
was the naval air base there.
Cummings’ class of recruits
was the last to go through
the base there at Norfolk for
initial training. His occupa
tional skills school was also
located near Norfolk. He
attended a weapons training
school - or gunnery school
- at Little Creek, Va. Once
training was completed he
was almost immediately
transferred to Philadelphia
where he boarded his first
ship, an oil tanker bound
for Scotland.
The mission, he said, was
to safeguard oil being dis
tributed to Allied forces.
As the armed guard of the
Navy he was subsequent
ly assigned to a merchant
ship.
This sea voyage gave him
several opportunities ’ see
places like Aruba, Curacao
and Scotland.
“One of the very things I
signed for,” he said with the
smile of a recruiter - prob
ably his. “See the world.”
These cruises were long,
he said, but action really
didn’t commence until
he was assigned aboard
Landing Ship Tank 177,
headed for the North African
Theater. This was the begin
ning of the end for the Axis
forces. From Casablanca
and ports beyond the LST
177 transported equip
ment, ordnance and troops
to the beaches of Palermo,
Sicily. Their heavy trans
port was the movement of
the Army’s 3rd Division to
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the eventual confrontation
in the European theater.
Cummings was part of
the landing at Anzio, an
infamous beachhead.
“When the LST 177 ran
the men into the beach they
walked out under heavy
fire, but they didn’t get
their feet wet, the craft was
that close. It was a tough
beach to take,” he said with
conviction in his voice, con
tinuing, ’’This is one of the
two battle stars earned by
her (the LST 177) during
the war.”
Cummings saw much
more action and rose in
rank quickly.
As a First Class Petty offi
cer, he was acting chief on
the LST 1139. This ship
took him even farther from
home and to the Pacific
Theater.
For him it was going to be
a front row seat to a major
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HOUSTON DAILY JOURNAL
BUFORD CUMMINGS
event. The Pacific tour even
tually took him to Saipan
and Tinian Island where he
and Admiral Halsey, USN
Commander of the Third
Fleet were called upon to
be ready to support the next
action of the war, had the
bombing of Nagasaki or
Hiroshima not worked.
Per a CinCpoa news
release that he maintains in
his possession and is dated
August 1945: “Powerful
Forces of the US Pacific
Fleet have been assembling
in the waters off the coast
of Japan for operations in
the forth coming occupation
of Japan. The Naval Forces
scheduled to enter Japanese
waters at the first stages
of the naval occupation to
Tokyo area of the enemy
home island are under the
control of Admiral William
Halsey ...”
See CUMMINGS, page 3C
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