63rd, 64th, 65th & 403rd Bomb Squadrons | 43rd Bomb Group | 5th AAF CBI | theater-made patches | "Ken's Men"

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63rd, 64th, 65th & 403rd Bomb Squadrons | 43rd Bomb Group | 5th AAF | theater-made patches

 

Constituted as 43d Bombardment Group (Heavy) on 20 Nov 1940. Activated on 15 Jan 1941. Trained with B-17, B-18, A-29, and LB-30 aircraft. Flew some antisubmarine patrols along the New England coast, Dec 1g41-Feb 1942.

 

Moved to the Southwest Pacific, via Capetown, Feb-Mar 1942. Became part of Fifth AF. Equipped first with B-17s, but converted to B-24’s, May-Sep 1943.

 

Operated from Australia, New Guinea, and Owi Island, Aug 1942-Nov 1944, making numerous attacks on Japanese shipping in the Netherlands East Indies and the Bismarck Archipelago. Experimented with skip bombing and used this method for some shipping strikes, including attacks on Japanese vessels during the Battle of the Bismarck Sea, 2-4 Mar 1943; received a DUC for participation in this latter action in which repeated air attacks destroyed a large enemy convoy carrying reinforcements to New Guinea. Other operations during this period included support for ground forces on New Guinea; attacks on airfields and installations in New Guinea, the Bismarck Archipelago, Celebes, Halmahera, Yap, Palau, and the southern Philippines; and longrange raids against oil refineries on Ceram and Borneo.

 

Capt Jay Zeamer Jr, pilot, and 2d Lt Joseph R Sarnoski, bombardier, each won the Medal of Honor for action during a photographic mapping mission over the Solomon Islands on 16 Jun 1943: when the mission was nearly completed, their aircraft was assaulted by about 20 interceptors; although painfully wounded, Lt. Sarnoski remained at the nose guns and fired at the enemy until he died at his post; sustaining severe injuries, Capt. Zeamer maneuvered the plane until the enemy had broken combat, then directed the flight to a base more than 500 miles away.

 

After moving to the Philippines in Nov 1944, the group attacked shipping along the Asiatic coast; struck industries, airfields, and installations in China and Formosa; and supported ground forces on Luzon. Moved to Ie Shima in Jul 1945 and conducted missions against airfields and railways in Japan and against shipping in the Inland Sea and the Sea of Japan. Returned to the Philippines in Dec 1945. Inactivated on 29 Apr 1946.

 

SQUADRONS. 63d: 1941-1946. 64th: 1941-1946. 65th: 1941-1946. 403rd: 1942-1946.

 

STATIONS. Langley Field, Va, 15 Jan 1941; Bangor, Maine, 28 Aug 1941-17 Feb 1942; Sydney, Australia, 28 Mar 1942; Torrens Creek, Australia, c. I Aug 1942; Port Moresby, New Guinea, 14 Sep 1942; Dobodura, New Guinea, 10 Dec 1943; Nadzab, New Guinea, 4 Mar 1944; Owi, Schouten Islands, 2 Jul 1944; Tacloban, Leyte, c. 15 Nov 1944; Clark Field, Luzon, 16 Mar 1945; Ie Shima, 26 Jul 1945.

 

CAMPAIGNS. Antisubmarine, American Theater; Air Offensive, Japan; China Defensive; Papua; New Guinea; Bismarck Archipelago; Western Pacific; Leyte; Luzon; Southern Philippines; Ryukyus; China Offensive.

 

43rd Bombardment Group | "Ken's Men"

 

"Blues in the Night", of the 64th Squadron, hit a wallaby during a night take-off from 7 Mile airfield killing Ken McCullar. There were reports that there may have been an engine fire prior to the impact with the wallaby. After this accident the 43rd Bomb Group called itself "Ken's Men" in honor of Ken McCullar.

 

Theater-made. Silkscreened on aircraft fabric.

 

 

 

Letterhead showing correct orientation of the design.

 

 

 

63rd Bombardment Squadron

 

Silkscreened on leather.

 

 

 

Theater-made. Australian embroidery on wool.

 

 

 

Creation of the 63rd Seahawk name and logo occurred during the transition from B-17 Flying Fortress to the B-24, which took place with "The Scott Project", a group of low altitude, radar-equipped Liberators dedicated to attacking shipping. Capt. Herbert Derr was the Squadron Commanding Officer who decided that a new identity was required, hence the creation of the "Seahawks" nickname. He and artist Thomas Rote created the design for the new squadron insignia.

 

Theater-made. Australian embroidery.

 

 

 

Theater-made. Australian embroidery on wool.

 

 

 

 

64th Bombardment Squadron

 

Theater-made. Australian embroidery on wool.

 

 

 

 

65th Bombardment Squadron

 

Theater-made. Australian embroidery on wool.

 

 

 

 

Theater-made. Australian embroidery on wool.

 

 

 

 

403rd Bombardment Squadron | "Mareeba Butchers"

 

Theater-made. Australian embroidery on wool.

 

 

 

The 403rd Bomb Squadron of the 43rd Bomb Group was known as the "Mareeba Butchers". It has been suggested that they got their name from the following incident.

 

Vic, of Camp Hill was a young bank worker in Mareeba during WW2. He wrote to the Good Mail column of the Sunday Mail (Australia) to indicate that during a visit by General Douglas MacArthur to inspect the 43rd Bomb Group at the Mareeba airfield, he was shown the food preparation area in the kitchen. He apparently ran his finger over the cutting blade of a meat slicer and found that it had a fine layer of animal fat on it. MacArthur commented "You'd better get this cleaned up properly, soldier".

 

The following evening, Tokyo Rose stated during her broadcast "And how are the Mareeba butchers tonite? Have you got the meat slicer cleaned yet?" The "Mareeba Butchers" nickname came from a Tokyo Rose radio broadcast in which she claimed that the airmen flying out of Mareeba were guilty of intentionally killing innocent women and children. [Source: Good Mail column, Sunday Mail. 16 March 2003.]

 

Tokyo Rose nicknamed the 403rd the Mareeba Butchers, the only nickname ever bestowed on a military service group by the Japanese broadcaster.

 

 

Sources:

Air Force Order of Battle. 2011 [evolution of 63rd BS insignia.]
Maurer. Air Force Combat Units of World War II.

 

63rd bs 43rd bg 5th aaf

64th bs 43rd bg 5th aaf

65th bs 43rd bg 5th aaf

403rd bs 43rd bg 5th aaf