Strafed by a US P-40 Piloted by a German in Italy

[CNY Militaria]

I was doing research on something tonight and came across this interesting article about a Soldier in Italy who was seriously wounded as a result of a P-40 piloted by a German. Interesting read...

 

Corning, NY Leader, July 14, 1944

 

CpL Clyde Holden Of Savona

Writes Mother Of Strafing By

German Pilot In American P-40

SAVONA—Corporal Clyde Holden of Savona, formerly

of Corning, hospitalized for injuries received in action in

Italy, was wounded when strafed by an American P-40 plane flown by a German pilot, according to letters received by his mother, Mrs. Mildred Holden. , Cpl. Holden, a graduate of Savona Central School, expects

to return soon to the United States for medical treat-

The letter follows. In part:

'Tonight I feel much improved. In fact, today I was out in the wheel chair for about an hour. I am really not in a very bad way. I have compound fractures

in one leg and the same in

the ankle of the other. One leg has a hole straight through it about one inch In diameter, which is the best kind of wound, as it can be kept so clean. I will walk again as ever but It tikes a long time for these things

to heal.

"This is one of the best hospitals I have ever been in.

 

It is a general hospital, and handles only combat cases. We get the best of care here.

"Rome fell today. Boy, how

I would liked to have been ther*.By the way, you probably are wondering how I got hit. Well, Mom, it was one of those Jerry ghost planes. It must have been

a ghost plane, because according to all radio reports, the German Air Force is nearly destroyed. "We had just taken Littoria and were already about half way around Cisterna when an 88

opened up on us. We had just

backed out of his range when I glanced up and saw an American P-40 going over our heads with the Allied insignia. It was an American plane piloted by Germans.

"I hollered 'strafe job* and

everyone jumped in the tank

while I tried to get my 50 caliber going. A plane coming 400 miles an hour doesn't give you much time and he opened up and caught me completely exposed as he passed. I looked up and saw flashes in front of his plane. It seemed to be several minutes before the bullets came in but actually it was only a fraction of a second. I could hear them hitting and bursting all around me and then came a sharp pain and I went down. "They gave me 11 blood transfusions, totaling seven quarts of blood, and I feel much

better for it. My doctor is from Buffalo, and is a real nice chap."

 

 

[38Driver]

Bet the house it was friendly fire. It happened often. Germans flying US marked airplanes in combat however, didn't

[gwb123]

I was thinking the same. The few US fighters that were captured in flying condition (or rebuilt) were mostly used for testing and training purposes.

 

Even if you had a German in an Allied marked P-40 on some clandestine mission, what are the chances he'd make it back to his own base without being shot down by his own forces?

 

Note that in the story, the soldier mentioned they had just backed away from enemy contact. That means his unit was close enough to the Germans that a pilot may have confused his them for the enemy.

 

There was a story from years back where an American pilot and a former GI got to talking and comparing experiences at a convention or militaria show. During the course of the conversation, the two of them figured out that the pilot had strafed the GI's unit in Italy in a similar friendly fire incident. The two broke out into a fist fight, yelling and cussing and had to be torn away from each other.

[CNY Militaria]

I had the same thoughts. Question though-- Did the Army award Purple Hearts for friendly fire incidents?

 

This Soldier received one for wounds in North Africa and one for this set of wounds in Italy. If it wasn't a "confirmed German", perhaps they decided it was a "German pilot" to ensure he received a medal for his sacrifice?

[CNY Militaria]

Top

[Dave]

They may never have considered it "friendly fire"...just that the guy was hit at the time and that was that. My hunch is that with the rate of casualties being taken, they fixed him up, gave him a Purple Heart, and then got him either back to the States or to the front line as soon as possible.

 

I watched an interview with one of the guys that I'm writing about who later flew during the landings in Southern France. He mentioned that he had to counsel one of his subordinate pilots because that pilot had issue with shooting up horses, marked medical wagons, and so on...even though they were ordered to do so as they were so close to the frontlines.

 

Dave

[CNY Militaria]

Interesting information Dave! It looks like this incident occurred in May of 1944 and resulted in hospitalization essentially until 1947, with at least 14 surgeries on his legs.

[TRR]

The purple heart can be awarded for friendly fire if the injury is received in active combat with the enemy. I would guess it was a heat of battle scenario. Interesting letter though.

[Brig]

I was thinking the same. The few US fighters that were captured in flying condition (or rebuilt) were mostly used for testing and training purposes.

 

Even if you had a German in an Allied marked P-40 on some clandestine mission, what are the chances he'd make it back to his own base without being shot down by his own forces?

 

Note that in the story, the soldier mentioned they had just backed away from enemy contact. That means his unit was close enough to the Germans that a pilot may have confused his them for the enemy.

 

There was a story from years back where an American pilot and a former GI got to talking and comparing experiences at a convention or militaria show. During the course of the conversation, the two of them figured out that the pilot had strafed the GI's unit in Italy in a similar friendly fire incident. The two broke out into a fist fight, yelling and cussing and had to be torn away from each other.

I agree, friendly fire

 

Incidentally, I understand where the veterans came from...there's a couple of helo pilots and a HMMWV driver I'd really love to bump into one day

[lugi45]

My grandfather nearly had one of his ears burned off in Normandy because of friendly fire from an American plane. His buddy was killed. Grandpa never got a purple heart though. I think it was swept under the rug.

 

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