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DisasterMan
because when the engine died you didn't know if the plane
(bomb) would drop like a rock, veer right or veer left or just
glide straight forward. So the dilemma was: which way to
run? The wags named them "Bob Hope" you bob down and
hope for the best.
Ellen remembers when a V2 dropped on the allotments
(victory gardens) behind her house. Her mother came to
wake her up saying a V2 had just dropped. She said, "So, it
dropped already," and turned over and went back to sleep.
So from her perspective, although they could infl ict more
damage, they were easier to take because you didn't have the
worry of wondering where they would land.
The British gave the Americans several buzz bombs
which had crashed without detonation of the warheads. Air
Corps engineers at Wright-Patterson Base prepared reverse
engineered drawings and a contract was given to Republic
Aviation to build 10,000 airframes. Ford built the pulse jet
engines. Production of the JB-2 "Loon" began in January
1945. It was planned to launch them against Japan from LSTs
(Landing Ship Tanks). The tests were proceeding ok. I had a
bit of luck in getting back to Washington. An experimental
B-25J with a 75 mm forward fi ring gun was going to Wright-
Patterson Air Corps base at Dayton and the pilot let me ride
in the bombardier's position up in the glass nose. Then I was
able to fl y from Dayton to Bolling Field on the daily shuttle.
The Adjutant General of the War Department issued an
order on August 5, 1942 and a supplementary memorandum
of December 5, 1942 which stated that all combat qualifi ed
offi cers under the age of 28 would be sent overseas. I was
working on important radar projects at that time. I have a copy
of a January 11, 1943 memorandum from Edward L. Bowles to
the Deputy Chief of Staff through the Commanding General,
Services of Supply recommending that three offi cers not be
ordered to overseas duty because of their critical positions. I
was one of the three exceptions listed in a memo of January
18, 1943. Professor Bowles, on leave from his position at
MIT in charge of communications courses, was the Expert