F/O Maynard David 421st BS/504th BG

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Today Maynard David is a slightly bulit, quiet and sweet spirited old man of 80-something. He seems to have a permanent smile on his face and shakes your hand withg a firmness that speaks of genuine friendliness as well as self confidence. Back in 1945 he was a slightly built, Warrant/Flight Officer on a B-29 in the 421st Bomb Squadron/504th Bomb Group on the island of Tinian in the Pacific. He speaks proudly of his service during the war, but shows some saddness as he describes some of the incendiary raids on the Japanese homeland and thinks of the numbers of people killed. His car displays a plate with the image of the Distinguished Flying Cross upon it as well as his unit designation. The following is a synopsis from the orders specifying the award for the members of his aircraft,"Flying Patches" , as they participated in a mission over Japan on 25 May, 1945.

The mission called for 500 aircraft to bomb the city of Tokyo with incendiary munitions. Bad weather and poor visibility was encounterd on the way to the target as well as a radar failure aboard the aircraft. Despite those problems the pilot continued on the mission and landfall was achieved. Fires burning from the lead aircrafts bombing runs pointed the direction to the target area. Shortly before reaching the I.P. the airplane was caught in the beams of several searchlights. The pilot was unable to take evasive action as the ship was committed into the bomb run, which would not be complete for another twelve minutes. Aluminum chaff countermeasures were dropped without any lessening in the searchlight tracking. (Maynard stated that he kept his eye to the bombsight and when he saw a section of the city that was not on fire he dropped his bombload) The aircraft was then able to take evasive action, but they were still under the beams of the lights, heavy flak, and also an attack by fighter aircraft.( Maynard stated that the thermal currents were also buffeting their ship; they were at 8500 ft altitude[/i]. Suddenly there was a shout through the intercom sytem that there was a plane directly above them and the pilot shoved the yoke forward and took them even lower.) The gunners aboard were unable to shoot at any of the attacking fighters due to the close proximetry of other American aircraft. Flak and fighter attacks were so heavy that upon return to base, the aircraft required two wings changes. (Maynard stated that during this mission, when the plane had to avoid a collision with another US craft, one of the crewman in the rear became so frantic with fear that he attempted to bail out of the ship. other crew were able to get him into a seat and strap him in. The pilot was able to calm him down by speaking to him over the intercom. The crewman did not fly any more missions after that one)

Maynard left the service after the war and became a business man in the midwest and eventually found his way to Florida where, fortunately for me, he settled down and became a friend. F/O Maynard David Standiing first on right.

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504th BG B29's over Japan

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Maynards decorations shadow box.

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An update to this story: 29 Mar. 2012 I accompanied Maynard to the Fun &Sun Air Show in Lakeland ,FL , the first time either of us had been there. He was anxious to see the B29 Fifi which was scheduled to be there for tours and rides. We made our way to the Warbirds area and as we walked towards it, we could see Fifi coming in for a landing. I could see that Maynard was becoming more excirted as we got closer. The area in front of the B29 had been roped off some distance from the aircraft as they were beginning a refueling and we were unable to get close for a while. As he day grew warmer, I could see that Maynard was getting weary , so we walked over to the A4 Skyhawk that was parked close by and got into the shade of its wing. There we met Dave Brown ,crew chief with the A4, who graciously gave Maynard a folding chair to sit in. When he found out that Maynard flew on a B29 the wheels began to turn. Dave took all of us through the barricade and over to Fifi and intorduced us to the crew. That was all it took. When Maynard told them his history they were almost giddy with curiosity and respect. They gave Maynard and his friend a ride in the aircraft in honor of his service. The show of kindness and respect was a wonderful thing to see; and for Maynard to be able to ride aborad the B29 was a lifetime experience. As one of the Fifi crew said," At least you're not getting shot at on this flight!"

Post Script: After the flight, Maynard was asked how many missions he had flown during the war. He answered 24. We all chimed in; This makes number 25! You can rotate home now!" Maynard David in middle

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Maynard relates his war experiences to crew of FIFI

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Pre-flight speaking to crew and riders

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Returning from flight, Maynard at his old position of Bombardier

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Hazel,a very special lady from Cape Canveral, who graciously let Maynard take her place in the cockpit seating so he could experience the flight from his old position.

[Bones]

That is a great story. Good for you and everyone else involved.