Preserving The Oral HistorIES of Combat Veterans
2:02 | P-47 pilot Richard Fleischer discusses the criteria for awards for fighter pilots and discusses the relative merits of the P-47 versus the P-51. (Provided by LifeCairn, Inc.)
Keywords : Richard Fleischer Distinguished Flying Cross P-47 P-51 Japanese
They kept stretching the number of required missions, according to P-47 pilot Richard Fleischer, but the tension was relieved by R & R at a beach house in Sydney. He felt more homesick when he was there than when he was in combat. A picture of his wife on the dashboard helped with that. (Provided by LifeCairn, Inc.)
There were no jobs to be had because the employers knew you would be drafted, so Richard Fleischer joined the Army Air Corps and was elated when he qualified for flight training. After his second solo flight, he was top man and he wanted to keep it that way. (Provided by LifeCairn, Inc.)
There was an instructor in training camp, who used to swat student pilots on the head with a rolled up newspaper from his rear seat. One day he neglected to fasten his safety harness, which caused quite a surprise when he had the student roll the aircraft. Richard Fleischer tells that story and more of the facts of life for an Army Air Corps trainee. (Provided by LifeCairn, Inc.)
They all assumed they would be shipping out for Europe but when the ship turned South, Richard Fleischer and the rest of the newly trained P-47 pilots learned they were heading for the Pacific. They were fortified during the passage by the stash of liquor each pilot was allowed to take with them and then they waited in Brisbane for their planes to catch up with them. (Provided by LifeCairn, Inc.)
Each pilot had his own stash of liquor, stacked by his tent in Brisbane. The problem was how to get it from there to the air base in New Guinea. Richard Fleischer and two of his buddies had a solution. Later on, a visit from movie star John Wayne made a dent in their stash. (Provided by LifeCairn, Inc.)
He had studied how to identify German planes but Richard Fleischer's unit was sent to the Pacific instead, so they all had a crash course in Japanese planes. Early in the tour, he had a tense moment when he had to land with a stuck belly tank which failed to jettison. (Provided by LifeCairn, Inc.)
Richard Fleischer spotted a dozen Japanese dive bombers below him attacking PT Boats. Down he dove, followed by two more P-47's and the three of them scored eight confirmed kills. Good-natured ribbing followed when a reporter misquoted him. (Provided by LifeCairn, Inc.)
Where was the food going? The pilots had to request an infantry guard to protect their supplies at the base in New Guinea. Richard Fleischer remembers that incident and also recalls the enemy pilot who was smart enough to not open his chute right away. (Provided by LifeCairn, Inc.)
The fighter group had an ex-RAF pilot with great skills who had turned down any leadership role offered him. He just wanted to fly, says Richard Fleischer, who describes the tragic day when a pin-point fuel leak led to disaster. (Provided by LifeCairn, Inc.)
The call for help went out from a seaplane on a rescue mission. Japanese Zeroes were attacking and when P-47 pilot Richard Fleischer got there, they headed for the cover of a cloud bank. (Provided by LifeCairn, Inc.)
He was finally going home, but an unusual group of service members were taking priority on the available seats home. P-47 pilot Richard Fleischer could only wait and hope as the flights went out without him. (Provided by LifeCairn, Inc.)
