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Marvin O'Neal

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Draftee Marvin O'Neal was asked what branch he would like and he chose the Air Corps. He was disqualified as a pilot, but he became a radio operator and aerial gunner on a B-17 crew. (4:13)

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B-17 radio operator and waist gunner Marvin O'Neal recalls his first mission, which involved a lot of flak and a lot of praying. He entered the war in Europe near the end and, on his last mission, he saw a German jet fighter streaking through the sky. Could they win the war with that thing? (5:56)

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After victory in Europe, Marvin O'Neal's crew transported grateful French POW's home to Paris. Then, they were scheduled to switch to B-29's and head to the Pacific. When the news came that the war there was over, they were jubilant. (4:16)

Marvin Russell

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If you enlist together, you can serve together. Like so many others, Marvin Russell and his buddies joined up, only to be split up almost immediately. He went to aircraft mechanic school and became a flight engineer on a B-17 crew. (4:56)

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It was the day to practice bomb but there were no practice bombs available. The crews were allowed to take a pleasure flight anywhere they wanted. Marvin Russell's crew headed up to Atlanta, but they never got there after a close encounter with a tree. (4:48)

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The southern route across the Atlantic required extra fuel tanks on the aircraft. Flight engineer Marvin Russell had to repair one of them after the first leg of the flight. Eventually, they got to England where they went out to a pub and were greeted by a German rocket. (3:51)

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It was on his 7th mission that B-17 flight engineer Marvin Russell watched his aircraft get riddled with bullets from a German ME-109. As the pilot tried desperate maneuvers to escape, he watched the fire along the wing grow larger and larger until there was no other choice. They had to bail out. (4:49)

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After bailing out over Germany, Marvin Russell couldn't find any of his crew where he landed. He found a Italian work crew and tried to get some civilian clothes from them, but he wound up in the hands of the Germans. He was taken eventually to a military base where he was subjected to a humiliating interview. (6:59)

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Marvin Russell was taken to the interrogation center in Frankfurt, where he was struck by a German major when he refused to provide anything except his name, rank and serial number. Then, they showed him a dossier with surprising contents. (7:54)

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After his interrogation, downed airman Marvin Russell was sent to Stalag 17B in Austria. Living conditions were minimal, with no heat and little food. No breakfast was the standard but on Christmas morning, he got a bowl of oatmeal with a little extra protein. (5:23)