WW2 Buddy goes West

[68RR]

Just learned that one of my WW2 friends has flown West. Bill Beck was a pilot in dads sister Sq., the 89th. He participated in the Battle of the Bismark sea and brought back some outstanding pics of him strafing a transport ship.. also attached is a pic of Bill over the Japanese airstrip at Lae, New Guinea. His plane was named "Lawnmower" and believe me thats how he flew it!
Bill was a Texan, and will be buried at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio.

God Speed Bill






Bill and his gunners McCain and Black

[appelingogt]

God Speed. Prolly could have sat and listened to him for HOURS...truely an awesome generation. Is the second one him strafing a jap cruiser?

[68RR]

God Speed. Prolly could have sat and listened to him for HOURS...truely an awesome generation. Is the second one him strafing a jap cruiser?

Attending the reunions was a real learning experience..

the second pic is a small freighter or as the Japanese called them a Maru.. He experienced a failure of his electric bomb release, so he had his gunner try to toggle them with a manual lever.. that didn't work, so he strafed the shit out of it before another plane hit and sunk it. If you look closely at the pic, you can see the Japanese crew hunkering down behind the smoke stack

Bill

[Chili]

RIP..

My Grandfather was in the CBI Theater with the Army Air Corp in WWII.. Last name was McCain too, but not the one pictured.