Faith in God was of great importance in the hearts and minds of many people, both militaryand civilian, who livedthrough WWII. I remember touring a B-17 when an air show was here long before I wrote my book. Here's what he wrote: There was quite a dscussion about this story on the armyairforces forum. Jarrell, who served in the Army Air Forces, provided the following explanatory note: A ball turret was a Plexiglas sphere set into the belly of a B-17 or B-24, and inhabited by two .50 caliber machine guns and one man, a short small man. Gunners protected, constantly twisting and turning -- checking for enemy fighter aircraft. He knew they were going to make it. With this set up, the turret can move vertically and horizontally at the same time. Randall Jarrell, "The Death of the Ball Turret Gunner" from, Time and the Thing-in-Itself in a Textbook. B-17 Ball Turret Gunner. It was critical that the ball turret gunner assume a particular position for belly landings, otherwise the sphere would hit the ground far before the landing gear and pose a threat to their safety. B17 Flying Fortress Waist Gunners #1010 Crew Print WW2 WWII 4x6* $0.99 Some members of the Connolly crew fulfilled their mission requirements in August 1944.]. They also received shooting practice on the ground and in tester aircraft. Sadly, a number of B-17s and crews were lost enroute. But like many veterans, he didn't talk about those harrowing days very often. Gunners on World War II bombers had. Transported from Scotland to England the Connolly crew was assigned to the 401st Bomb Group (BG), 613th Bomb Squadron, Deenethorpe. "Airmen badly wounded from flak would die without immediate medical attention at that altitude due to shock. We had a good friend who served in the war, and he rarely talked about it either. I woke to black flak and the nightmare fighters. Sign up for a new account in our community. Another factor was that not all stoppages could be corrected by charging (cocking) the guns. A good friend of mine was a flight engineer on B-17s. It served a double purpose, defense against bow attacks as well as fire suppression and offensive strafing in antisubmarine warfare. On the ends of the grips were the buttons to fire the guns. My father was a co-pilot for B-17s. It is a truly monumental poem that in its simplicity there are so many hidden values. Unit: 92nd Bomb Group, 407th Squadron of the 8th Air Force After gunnery school at Laredo Army Air Field, Texas, and ten days leave, Sergeant Perez reported to Salt Lake City Army Air Field, Utah, where flight crews were being formed. "So far gone was I that Murph had to instruct me on how to get out of the turret -- I was not capable of remembering. At their height, the schools were pumping out 3,500 graduates a week, producing approximately 300,000 by the end of the war. Stepping away from her academic career, Samantha previously worked as a Heritage Researcher and now writes content for multiple sites covering an array of historical topics. After dropping their bombs, the B-17s headed back to England. In many cases, when a stoppage occurred, it was necessary for the gunner to "reload" the gun, which required access to the firing chamber of the guns. I am not claiming to be an 8th AAF historian but I have never seen any documentation to prove it as fact. I SAW A GREAT MANY TRAIN STATIONS AND NOT ONE WAS FREE OF ANY DAMAGE. The Death of the Ball Turret Gunner is a poem that uses passive verbs, short structure, and comparisons to children to generate sympathy. It was a manned turret, as distinct from remote-controlled turrets also in use. They include "The Death of the Ball Turret Gunner," not his best but certainly. Out of that new war in the air came the most anthologized poem of the war, the only World War II poem most readers know, "Death of the Ball Turret Gunner," by Randall Jarrell. A ball turret was a Plexiglas sphere set into the belly of a B-17 or B-24 bomber. Expecting to be assigned to a B-24 crew but due to the needs of the service, Frank was assigned to the Lieutenant (Lt) John J. Connolly crew of a B-17 Flying Fortress. Frank returned to California and earned a Degree in Agriculture from California Polytechnic University. "I flew my first mission on a B-17 as a ball turret gunner with the 8th Air Force at the age of 21," he tells me while driving me to school one morning. While the pilots were given the best position on the aircraft, the gunners had to hold some precarious positions in order to effectively defend the aircraft. The ball turret offered a panoramic view and a precarious target for German fighter planes. On the floor of the ball, one foot rested on a pedal that controlled the gun sight, which hung suspended between his legs, and the other foots pedal ran his intercom the only communication he had with the rest of his crew back inside the fortress. He would put on a safety strap and close and lock the turret door. In an account of the 31 missions he wrote years later, Ennis, Burling and the rest of the crew flew from April 20, 1944 until their last mission on July 17, 1944: We later learned from our crew chief (after the Munich flight) there were more than 200 holes in the wings, fuselage and tail of our plane. I would like to know the Bomb Group, the Bomb Squadron. Additionally, the spheres were difficult to escape from, as they were raised and lowered by a mechanism that was easily damaged. I dont know what happened to the one on our right, he said. =). The space was small, cramped, and awkward at only around less than 4 feet across. In April 1944 the Connolly crew with other recently formed B-17 crews ferried new B-17s over the Atlantic Ocean northern route and landed in Prestwick, Scotland. If a B-17 did have to be belly-landed with a man trapped in the ball turret, I am pretty sure they would have also picked a field to land on rather than a concrete runway. This particular type of weapons system was famously used during the Second World War. The title"The Death of the Ball Turret Gunner"sets us up for a poem about war and death. Thirty-five hundred were shot down over Europe. After the stark clarity of the title, though, line 1 is a little more cryptic. Made of Plexiglas and about four feet in diameter, the ball turret was a sphere attached to the bottom of the airplane. Der Tod des Kugelturmschtzen") ist ein 1945 verffentlichtes fnfzeiliges Gedicht von Randall Jarrell.Das Gedicht handelt vom Tod eines Bordschtzen in einem kugelfrmigen Sperry-Browning-MG-Turm eines amerikanischen Bombers whrend des Zweiten Weltkriegs.. Jarrell, der selbst in der Army Air Force diente, fgte dem Gedicht folgende . Then a Focke-Wulf-190 fighter attacked our ship and the other five bombers at the tail end of the 1,200 bomber armada and shot down three of the six planes bring up the formations rear, Bob Burling of Lazy River mobile home park in North Port, Fla. recalled 65 years later. Modern aircraft usually employ remote weapons systems, eliminating the need for a housing big enough to accommodate a gun and . By the first sign of daylight, the flying fortresses were on their way. They flew the B-17 back to Deenethorpe. This left him positioned with his eyes roughly level with the pair of light-barrel Browning AN/M2 .50 caliber machine guns which extended through the entire turret, located to either side of the gunner. It was an enclosure that at any time could become an airman's coffin. B-24 Liberators were too low to the ground for the ball to fit, so they were fitted with a retractable turret that was stowed away for take off and landing. Small, tight, difficult to escape from and with minimal visibility, the ball turret was a sphere of danger. The pilot was First Lieutenant Lewis P. Johnson Jr., 21, flying the 25thand lastmission of his tour. Its movement was controlled by a self-contained, electrically-powered hydraulic system, and could rotate at high speeds important for tracking fast-moving enemy aircraft. The worst position by far was held by the ball turret gunners. Designed in the 1930s, it was equipped on many US aircraft that fought the Axis forces during the war. They say your life flashes in front of you when youre about to die. This copyrighted material may not be republished without permission. This post was published on the now-closed HuffPost Contributor platform. These gunsights computed for direction, and range to the target and were basically an early analog computer. By that time, thousands of airmen had perished over the skies of Europe. It was equipped with two Browning AN/M2 .50-caliber machine guns, a Sperry optical gunsight and two ammo cans with 250 rounds for each weapon. The gunner looked through a central window between the guns to aim. Obviously that's a B-17 not a B-24 so that might be different as . Six miles from earth, loosed from its dream of life, This odd station was built like an appendage on the bottom of B-17 Flying Fortress and B-24 Liberator planes, 2 of the main aircraft used to combat Axis forces during the war years. Tail Gunner: The pilot and co-pilot. John ww2vault Member 1,231 Location: North Carolina, USA #11 After doing some research this fact about the ball turret was pointed out. Frank sailed home to the United States (US) after completing his required combat missions. Ball Turret Gunner B17 Flying Fortress Print WW2 WWII #1009 5x7. In her spare time, Samantha enjoys reading, knitting, and hanging out with her dog, Chowder. He understood. But, when it came to American bomber planes, the risk was far greater for some than for others. All but a handful have been consigned to the wrecking yard. He now lives in Lazy River Mobile Home Park in North Port, Fla. Photo provided. He always had a passion for life and considered every day a blessing. Our servicemen, past and present, are amazing people!!! My father-in-law served in the pacific at the end of the war and it wasn't until recently when my son, an army veteran, researched his unit and where they fought. Later in the war the US Navy also used ball turrets on their PB4Y-1 Liberator and PB4Y-2 Privateer bombers with less-dangerous positions on the plane at the side or the front below the cockpit. The city was the site of a Nazi nuclear energy project. He was a staff sergeant and ball turret gunner who contorted himself to squeeze into the clear, plastic bubble on the underbelly of the massive aluminum bird. I have spoken to Bob in the past. Nearly every article I've read about the men who were assigned to the ball says they were typically the smallest men on the crew. "[1] Most commentators agree, calling the poem a condemnation of the dehumanizing powers of "the State", which are most graphically exhibited by the violence of war. Click Here to sign up to be notified when new stories are published. As with all roles in the B-17, the ball turret gunner needed to be fearless. The Ball Turret Gunner from B17 42-31377 Pot OGold crashed on 22 FEB 1944, tells in BALL TURRET about his job. Later I talked with the crewmen who survived that landing. You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Bob Burling holds up his leather flying jacket with the bombs on the back representing 31 combat missions he flew over Nazi-occupied Europe in a B-17 bomber during World War II. We were very shortly looking into the faces of a dozen or more unhappy British pilots." Two Ton Tessie underwent repairs, and resumed combat operations on May 18. Even decades later, he said he felt tongue-tied and emotionally thrown back to that mission. Also, one of my uncles was a ball turret gunner on B-17s. Among the earlier designs was the Martin 250SH bow turret of the PBM-3 twin-engined patrol flying boat which had many points of similarity in design and action. Its hard to explain like if you get killed, so what you just dont care.. Thanks for the post, and the personal info. So this undated photo shows what looks like a disintegrating turret, and the purported victim is still anonymous. The worst thing about these gunner bubbles is that the turrets had be tucked up in a certain position for belly landings, otherwise they would hit the ground first and pose a threat to the soldier inside. A ball turret was a spherical-shaped, altazimuth mount gun turret, fitted to some American-built aircraft during World War II. The underside was protected by another blister with a single machine gun. I've never known about this, another of those things I don't think to ask about. Another time, we glean a little more. Nothanks for the heads-up JS! Sun photo by Don Moore. More from us: The Mark 14 Torpedo Scandal of 1941-43, Poet Randall Jarrell, who served in the US Army Air Forces, outlined the terrifying and grim nature of being a ball turret gunner in his poem, The Death of the Ball Turret Gunner. 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