Preserving The Oral HistorIES of Combat Veterans
6:56 | B-24 Gunner Arlie Aukerman saw one of the Messerschmitt jets that the Germans developed near the end of the war. He reckons that with enough of those and the V2 rocket, the outcome of the war would have been different.
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He was on track to become a pilot, navigator or bombardier, but first, Arlie Aukerman had to get through a mean, ignorant drill instructor and hazardous coal smoke to complete basic training.
In training, Arlie Aukerman was warned not to fire the 50 cal machine gun continuously to avoid overheating. But what happens when the barrel is already hot when it's your turn? At least the physical effects of flying made the Atlantic crossing easier for the Air Corps recruits than the Army recruits.
Looking back on his days as a B-24 gunner, Arlie Aukerman wonders, "Why wasn't I scared more?" Like most young flyers, he kept going by thinking it was the other guy who would get killed. One of the other guys in his squadron was Jimmy Stewart, who took the same risks as all the men.
In the nose turret, B-24 gunner Arlie Aukerman could see all the flak, but his friend and tail gunner Harry Hecht did not realize the danger they were in until he saw photos of the action. Sometimes, it was Aukerman's job to operate the toggle switch that released the bombs and, years later, he was haunted by thoughts of casualties from his action.
Despite thick flak over Germany, no one on Arlie Aukerman's B-24 crew was injured by it. Good fortune was also apparent when weather conditions forced them to spend a week in Paris.
Arlie Aukerman recalls the men on his B-24 crew, including pilot Irving Kraus, who at 22 years old was responsible for the plane and the mission, and Lloyd Blackburn, the gunner from Kentucky who wouldn't give up his whiskey.
Arlie Aukerman was on his way to New Mexico to train for Pacific action in the B-29 when Japan surrendered. They locked the doors on the train to keep the troops from bolting. After his discharge, he declined to join the reserves. He'd had enough of guys like his drill instructor back in basic training.
