From: Jim Hensley
To: RLSFCA@aol.com
Date: Tue, 19 Feb 2008
Marilynn,
This school year I have been leading a monthy goup of 16 men in a study of World War Two. With books, displays, videos, and lecture we have been looking at Doolittle Raiders, Flag Raisers on Iwo Jima, Dachau German Concentration Camp, etc. As you might imagine, I began the lessons the first month with a study of General Scott and the Flying Tigers. They are all now fans too. (Attached picture of the display I had at the first session.)
Thanks for sharing.
Jim Hensley
THANKS JIM ... and thanks to the whole group for becoming fans (y'all be sure to sign our Guest Book!!)
From: Pat
To: RLSFCA@aol.com
Sent: Tue, 6 Mar 2007 11:51 AM
Subject: Re: FEB 27 NEWSLETTER
Dear Marilynn,
All of this started when I purchased an old original copy (1943) of GOD IS MY CO-PILOT in an old bookstore in the Pocono mts. PA. about 20 years ago. Even though i read the book when I was in H.S. I read it once again. After finishing it, I decided to write to the General to autograph it. He did.Then I read The Day I Owned The Sky. I came to that famous page 100 where Robert is flying his P-51 Mustang over the Great Wall, saying to himself that one day he would follow his shadow of his wings and walk the wall. Thus inspired me to do a painting of that moment which I sent to him. Plus another one of a sharkmouth profile called Warbird. He framed both and had them in his office. This started a far and distant friendship. George Fisher saw the pieces and I sent him copies. In return George sent me a few more books of Scotty's to read. Then George had asked me if I could think of a birthday card that would be signed and sent to Scotty. So I came up with the first big concept that I could think of for such an outstanding hero. This started the birthday BANNERS that I had created. In reality, I could never make one large enough to measure up to the Greatness of Robert L. Scott Jr.
Pat Taranto
THANK YOU PAT - your AWESOME BANNERS were always front & center at Scotty's Birthday Golf event for folks to see and sign their birthday wishes to General Scott!!
From: j.o.wellborn
To: rlsfca@aol.com
Sent: Wed, 5 Jul 2006 2:02 PM
Thank you for keeping me on your list. I recently wrote this "Silver Star" report - It's the only mission I flew with him, even though he flew above several missions that I was in. You can use the article.
I served with the general in l942 & 3, as a lst Lt, then Capt. I often thought he should have gotten a Silver Star for the mission as well, but it never occurred to me that as a Lt. I could do that. With more experience, I would have written him a citation.
I went with Col Scott on the goose hunt the Christmas our turkeys arrived spoiled. He wrote about it in his book, 'God is my Co-pilot', and used, I think, two pictures with me holding the geese, I can't keep a copy. And some of the printings did not have the photos. Also, he quotes me in one paragraph when I got shot down and had to walk back. I finally got to a place where I could send a telegran and I signed it "Kunming by Kristmas". That's the only mission I flew with the Colonel. After all I was a lst Lt., a sometimes flight leader and he was Group Commander. My squadron commander was Ed Rector, and at the end of my tour, Bruce Holliway. I met General Chennault in Col Scott's office and he said to the General, "This is the young man I was telling you about". That made me feel good. But Col Scott was like that, a very good cheer leader. I got to go to some parties at the General's cottage and I think Col Scott was responsible. I got to know the Col pretty well.
Thanks again.
Jeff (Jeffery O. Wellborn).
Lt Col, USAF retired
It was early in the morning, in the summer of 1942. I heard my name called as I walked by the Squadron Commander’s office. Major Ed Rector, only a few weeks before had been a civilian, flying for the Chinese under Chennault, a reserve Air Corps Captain, in the American Voluntary Group (AVG). (Some of the AVG had been asked to stay and help with transition over to the Army Air Corps. Those who agreed were offered commissions). I had been one of the early arrivals, flying in the beginning with the AVG. Colonel Scott, our Group Commander had arrived a day before I had. It was a new experience for people like us who were in the military.
I walked into the Major’s office and saluted, and he looked at me strangely, and then seemed to remember that he was supposed to salute back. (The AVG wasn’t used to much military discipline). He kinda gave me a salute, then motioned to a chair. He had a mission he wanted me to lead the next day. I had been on only a few missions since arriving in China and had been the flight leader on only two. Most of the Air Corps pilots being sent over to replace the AVG were Lieutenants and I was probably the highest ranking (I had been out of flight school for a little over a year). Major Rector explained that Col Scott, our Group Commander had told him to go by date of rank in assigning duties until he got to know the pilots. I had been promoted to 1st Lieutenant before leaving Puerto Rico. He said, “I noticed from your record that you’ve had a lot of training in dive bombing in Puerto Rico.” I really had. Someone had stored so many 100 pound practice bombs on our base that we had a dive bombing practice before every mission. And we really got good at it. Our Group Commander, Lt. Col. Glen O. Barcus had noted that on my record.
Our target was a supply depot the Japanese had moved within the last few weeks, under cover of darkness. It was deeper into China than they had yet penetrated and a considerable supply of fuel for their tanks and other vehicles was thought to be in storage. I was to select three other pilots to fly with me, and get briefed at 1400 by Intelligence. Major Rector showed me on the map where the target was, about two plus hours from our base. He said, “This should be a fun mission with all that fuel and as far as we know, very little anti-aircraft. You’ll have to have wing tanks, to make sure you have enough fuel to get there and back so you will each be dropping a 500 pound belly bomb. You need to be pretty accurate, because you’ll have only four bombs. Then, of course, you can have a field day strafing whatever targets you see. There’ll be people running about, vehicles being moved, fire trucks and troops firing at the planes with whatever they have. You know the drill. Two of you will stay at altitude, I recommend about 12,000 ft, while the other two go in and drop your bombs. Then the first two climb up to altitude while the other two drop their bombs. Your second element should be briefed to expect to be dropping their bombs with a lot of smoke, if the first two get good hits. You can work out your strafing patterns after dropping your bombs. Just work out a system that keeps you from repeating your flight patterns and getting in each other’s way. The briefing I gave yesterday morning should give you some ideas.”
He then asked if I had any questions, shook my hand and I went out to get my pilots together. As I left his office, he said, “I’ll be here in the morning before you take off if you need anything. Have them load the bombs early in the morning. Col Scott gets angry if he comes down and we have bombs and wing tanks on the planes sitting on the line. He doesn’t want us to have to be dropping fuel and bombs before responding to an air raid.” I remembered the first time I’d seen Col Scott, he was giving somebody hell because wing tanks were on all the planes sitting on the line in mid day, with a mission scheduled for the next day. I heard Col Scott say: “I’m afraid to come down here, afraid you’ll hang a belly tank on me.”
Most of the replacement pilots had come from Panama and they all knew each other. Only three of us had come from the 36th Fighter Group in Puerto Rico, and we had each been assigned to a different squadron. I was really a stranger to everyone. Most of the pilots were in the ready room and I asked three of the recent pilots from Panama to come in and I briefed them on Major Rector’s orders, and asked them to be there at 1400 for the intelligence briefing. I asked the most senior Lt to lead the second element. and the most junior to be my wing man. I had no idea how well they had been trained in dive bombing, but realized they had considerably less experience than I had gotten in Puerto Rico. So I discussed technique with them, as I’d learned it.
We decided on an 0800 take off, and I went out to give orders to the ground crew to get the planes ready.
We woke up the next morning to a beautiful day. It was 1942. I think in June. Most of our flight was over friendly territory, since the target was a new forward base the Japanese had sneaked in, or thought they had. Intelligence had briefed us not to expect much activity, since the Japanese were working mostly at night, still thinking we didn’t know they’d moved that close.
We arrived over the target at 12,000 ft and there it was just as intelligence had described it. Several warehouse type buildings and some buildings that looked like barracks for troops, nothing that looked like oil or gas tanks, and not a vehicle in sight. I saw only two or three people moving about, and they looked like civilians. We had decided I would drop my bomb first , then my wing man would drop his, and we would climb up to altitude and the other two would go down and drop their bombs. I selected the largest warehouse for my target, and as I was pulling up it was obvious that I had hit the fuel supply, and one hell of a fire had started. People were all coming out and running about. I circled to watch my wing man drop his bomb, and realized for the first time that the place was alive with anti-aircraft fire. It looked like my wing man was getting some direct hits. They probably couldn’t miss, there was so much of it.
The two pilots sitting above us started some chatter about it being too risky to go in. We’d already broken radio silence, so, I ordered, “Go in an drop your bombs, Drop on those buildings that look like barracks. We seem to have gotten the supply, fuel and ammo on fire already.” So they sat up their bomb runs as we watched from above. The anti-aircraft was already reaching up to their altitude. We thought we had a surprise for the Japanese, but they had one for us as well. The place was fortified with anti-aircraft weapons. By the time the two other pilots had dropped their bombs people were running all about, must have been a division of troops, a thousand or more. They were moving vehicles, even some small tanks away from the fire, trying to save what they could, creating perfect strafing targets. So, even before the second element of planes had gotten to altitude, my wing man and I were on our way down to strafe. We could do a lot of damage strafing, the P-40 had three 50 calibre guns in each wing and carried a lot of ammunition.
This time I got the flack. My first run had hit them by surprise but they were ready now. Tracer bullets were going past my aircraft and I knew I was taking hits. My wing man pulled up and called me and said, “Too dangerous down there, we’ll lose all our planes.” He climbed to altitude and joined the other two pilots.. I heard one of them say something about Wellborn’s war. The other two pilots never came down to strafe. I was a little angry. What the hell, we were fighting a war. The enemy shoots at you when you bomb them. I considered giving them a direct order to continue our mission but decided against it. They’d come close enough to disobeying orders by not following the leader and deciding on their own when to quit the battle. They did have one thing on their side. General Chennault was adamant about not taking unnecessary risk with our aircraft. We were so far down the priority list for parts and replacements. The war in Europe had the highest priority.
Instead of giving them an order, I decided to discuss it with the Squadron Commander when I got back. But I was going to fight the war the way I thought we should. I turned back for another strafing run, this time from the opposite direction. A smaller building was sitting apart from the other structures that hadn’t been touched and I decided to throw some 50 caliber ammo into it. We had tracers about every 5th bullet, mostly to help us judge whether we were hitting targets, but they were hot and would often start fires, You could get a truck or other vehicle burning almost every time from the tracers hitting gas tanks. Well, I’d found the ammo storage, and a huge fire going in a few minutes, with explosions every few seconds. I did a 180 degree turn and decided to make another run on the ammo storage. I heard one of the other pilots say, “Wellborn, we’re going home.” I didn’t answer him. I thought they could have at least stayed and given me top cover. Or what if I did get shot down, maybe they could have helped in some way, or at least called air rescue. But they simply left.
I was feeling all alone, but had a fire in my gut for battle. We were at war and I was attacking the enemy. It was a good feeling.
As I completed the turn suddenly I realized another P-40 was coming up on my wing. What a surprise! Then I saw that it was Colonel Scott, our Group Commander. His airplane was number 9. All the other planes had two numbers, and he had had 10 but he had to change it to nine, after causing confusion by calling in “one zero,etc”, since the principal Japanese fighter at the time was called a Zero. (Colonel Scott often flew above missions and observed, sometimes without our knowing he was there.)
As he pulled along side, he gave me a thumbs up and we both went in for a second run on the weapons storage and started a huge fire in another part of the building. We sat up a strafing pattern that was working. One making a run while the other was turning. It wasn’t like strafing a truck convoy on the Burma Road where you could keep criss-crossing for miles without the need to turn back. Here we had to turn back after each pass. The coordination pattern was hard to work. Colonel Scott was following my lead. He was practicing what he had been teaching. He was a young fighter pilot again. We were working together as a team. We went after the anti-aircraft positions next, criss-crossing our fire. Almost everything in the complex was burning by now. Troops were running everywhere. They’d already learned that trying to move vehicles, or getting away in trucks wasn’t working. They were trying to get away on foot. Nothing was left for them to get under, with everything burning. We were chasing them down in groups and then individually. The anti-aircraft had stopped firing. Troops were trying to get into the nearby woods. We were finishing our last run, in formation, Colonel Scott flying my wing. Two soldiers were ahead of us trying to make the woods. They’d been trained, they separated to form two targets. We could have easily each taken one out. Instead we pulled up. Our mission was over. We’d done our job. As we pulled up, I looked over my shoulder and saw the two soldiers make the woods. I somehow felt good about that. Neither Colonel Scott nor I ever mentioned that part of the mission. We both knew we had purposely let the two soldiers get away.
Col Scott now took the lead, and I followed, flying his wing back to the base. I was exhilarated. My resolve to finish the assigned mission had paid off. To have the Colonel join the fight at that opportune time was an unbelievable stroke of luck. With bombs from all four pilots hitting their targets and guns from two fighter planes, we had completely destroyed a whole forward supply complex. We had struck a nasty blow to the Japanese Army.
When we arrived over the field at Kunming Col Scott broke off, I thought to go in and land, but instead he was picking up speed, so I followed. Maybe he was going to fly low over the field before landing. Instead, just off the end of the runway he did a slow roll. At the bottom of his roll, he must have been within 10 feet of the ground. I’d only once before rolled an airplane that close to the ground, but I followed. (I knew this was strictly against Chennault’s orders. All pilots knew it was not wise because a control cable could be hanging on by a thread after combat and this kind of maneuver could be disastrous if you lost a rudder or aileron. I thought, “General Chennault must be away”. Of course Colonel Scott knew that too. He was just feeling good about our mission, feeling young again.
We then came in for a landing. The Colonel usually taxied his plane on down to Group Headquarters, but today he turned in at our squadron and got out to check the planes to see how much damage we had from the anti-aircraft. Scott had seven bullet holes and I had 5. My wing man had taken a .28 caliber bullet in the leg, though it was only a flesh wound, and all the other planes had taken hits. Col Scott gave me a pat on the back and said, “It’ll be a while before they decide to sneak a supply depot that close to us again.” and left for his office. Major Rector wasn’t around, and the other three pilots wouldn’t look me in the eye when I came in. Three new pilots had just arrived that day, and they were wide eyed as they looked at the bullet holes and talked about the Lieut’s wound in the leg.
That night, my room-mate, Captain Smith, told me Colonel Scott had recommended me for the Silver Star. And he confirmed that yes, the General was in India at a high level Air Corps meeting. I never knew what anyone said to the other pilots. I decided not to mention it to Major Rector since Col Scott was there and heard it all. I was later told that Colonel Scott wrote the citation for my Silver Star himself. I often thought I should have recommended him for the medal, he did everything I did.
LTC Wellborn - WE ALL THANK YOU FOR FINDING THE FAN CLUB and bringing us
even closer to Scotty with your personal experiences in China!!!
Talking to a True American Hero - By Staff Sgt. Bob Pullen - 5th CCG PA
As I arrived at the Atlanta airport last Sunday I was returning from a two week TDY to Tinker AFB, Okla., and I was not looking forward to the two hour shuttle ride back to Robins.
I collected my luggage and made my way to the parking area where hopefully my ride would be waiting. When I made it to the limousine I saw a man I had seen hundreds of times in the newspapers and on television in middle Georgia. Standing next to the limo was retired Brig. Gen. Robert L. Scott Jr., a true American hero.
Even after traveling the 90 year-old Gen. Scott seemed to have the energy and zest for life of a man half his age.
As I took my seat beside him I nervously introduced myself and asked him where he had been. Before we were even out of the airport parking lot Gen. Scott started the first of his many stories he would tell during the trip. He was returning from a reunion of fighter aces in Texas.
For the next two hours Gen. Scott told stories of growing up in Macon--about leaving home at the young age of 14 to join the merchant marines where in his own words he "went around the world." He recalled names and dates and places as if they were only days ago instead of decades ago.
He talked mostly about the three things he loved the most, his wife, his service to his country and flying. In one story he told of how he finally won his wife's heart by flying each week around the water tower in the center of the town of Ft. Valley and opening the window of his plane and dropping a letter into the Town Square. On the envelope he asked whoever found it to please deliver it to the address he had written on the outside.
"I wasn't the most handsome or rich beau she had courting her, but I had the best form of transportation," Gen. Scott said.
At a book signing decades later he met a man in his sixties who told him that as a child in Ft. Valley he had served as one of the general's "special deliverers."
As I listened to him I couldn't help feel pride at serving in the Air Force. He loved his job and hisplace in history -- a history that is so richly documented on the walls and displays of the Museum of Aviation.
The names of people he knew or had met in his nine decades of life sounded like the glossary of a history book. Names like Franklin Roosevelt, Harry Truman, Hap Arnold, Clark Gable and Winston Churchill were scattered throughout his stories. He spoke of driving Dwight Eisenhower and his wife Mamie around in his Cadillac as if it were no big deal. All these people had experienced the same pleasure I was now experiencing -- spending time talking and listening to a true hero. There aren't many of those around anymore.
In a time when heroes are judged by the number of Academy Awards they've won or how many millions of dollars their latest sneaker contracts were for, it was refreshing to be talking to a real hero who did everything he did, not for money or fame, but for the true love of his country.
The stories he told were of famous people and far away places like the Great Wall of China where he walked the entire length of the wall with homemade oatmeal cookies in his back pack that he handed out on his journey.
He has shot down enemy planes, he has carried the Olympic torch, he has written 14 books and had a movie made about him, but he still took the time to talk to a staff sergeant as if he had known me all his life. And when he asked questions of me, he listened to what I had to say as if my stories were just as interesting to him as his stories were to me.
I wish everyone in this country, especially those who wear the uniform, could have the chance to do what I was lucky enough to do last Sunday. If listening to Gen. Scott didn't make a person proud of the people who have shaped this country's history, including him, and proud to be an American, then they don't deserve to live here.
As the limo pulled into the general's driveway, we all got out to help him with his luggage. He adamantly refused our help and snatched his luggage up with the enthusiasm of a teenager as he headed off for his front door.
When I got back into the car it seemed very quiet. I realized then that I had just experienced a chance to talk to living history. I can't remember ever being that in awe after talking to anyone.
That was the shortest two-hour drive I've ever had from Atlanta.
Thanks to fan club member Staff Sgt. Bob Pullen for giving us permission to use this article printed in the "Robins Rev-Up" (The Robins Air Force Base Newspaper). Staff Sgt. Pullen also hosts the weekly TV show "Robins Report". Thanks Again Bob!
What a great story! Keep on reading...
It wasn't about money....
I was 14 years old and had watched God Is My Co-pilot so many times that my mother was a bit worried. I penned a letter to Gen. Scott then decided against sending it (this was in the 60s). My mother found it, got his new address from the Macon,GA chamber of commerce and sent it with a check for $2.00 asking him to send an autographed picture back to me. He wrote me a beautiful personal letter in response, included some photo's and told me that he would place me on the contributor list for his new book God Is Still My Co-pilot and have the publisher send me a copy. He was true to his word. The hard bound book arrived with my name in it several weeks later. He never cashed the check. Truly a marvelous gentleman! Not many would have taken the time to answer and then follow up on his word. Wish we had more people like him.
John Maddaus
FANS ... READ SCOTTY'S LETTER TO JOHN BELOW!
THANK YOU JOHN for sharing your WONDERFUL SCOTTY LETTER! AND, we agree - General Scott has inspired many people ... read on!
A Success Story!
You lucky guys! I too grew up dreaming of planes and devouring everything I could read about WWII fighter pilots. My father served in the Army Air Corps and I thought the world of him. One of the first books I read was "God is My Copilot". I was not able to put the book down until I read it cover to cover. I built a P-40 model with the sharmouth on it. What a thrill it must be to actually know Gen. Scott. He truly is a hero that we can all look up to and be inspired by. I know he inspired me with his writing. I went on to be an aeronautical engineer and now work for NASA.
Thanks for the photos and book section of your web page. It was great to learn that Gen. Scott is still with us. I wish him the best and my heartful thanks for serving our country with such distinction.
Thomas A. Griffin
Test Operations Engineer
U.S. Army Vehicle Technology Center-Lewis Site
Another good reason why we have this website!
If you have a great story to tell about B/Gen. Robert L. Scott, we'd love to hear from you! E-mail your story and photos BY CLICKING "E-mail Me" BELOW!
