Heroic Actions

      More Letters From Paradise
           Heroic Action
My friend Ray said,"Here's that guy I told you about. His name is Art, and he was a pilot. I thought you two would get along."
Art is a short guy, not much over five feet tall, with a bald head fringed with white hair. And he did not wear any glasses, even though he is 89 years old.

I introduced myself, and we shook hands. He then pulled out his wallet, and showed me a photograph of a fighter plane. "You know what this plane is ?"
"Yes, that is a P-50. Did you fly one?"
"Yes." he replied.
"Where?"
"China." I knew that there were not many Americans there fighting the Japanese.
"Flying Tigers?"
"No, I was with the Army Air Corps.We flew in support of the Nationalist Chinese. Their pilots were not very good.They all came from wealthy families, and were more interested in liquor and women, instead of fighting the Japanese."

"What did you do in China?"
" We were taught to do pursuit attacks. Maintain flying at a high altitude and then attack them from the rear."

" I want to tell you about something I will never forget. I was in the middle of a dog fight with a bunch of Zero's. One guy got on my tail. I did everything you do to shake free, but he continued to stick to me. And I could see the tracer bullets from his guns, but he had not yet hit me.
As were flying way below 1,000 feet, I looked down and saw a railroad tunnel in the side of a mountain. It was a short tunnel, for I could see the open end. So here I was, a Zero on my tail blazing away with his machine guns, and if I pulled up to get away, he would surely get me. The only way seemed to try the tunnel, and fly through it. So made a sharp dive, and lining my plane up with the center of the tunnel, I flew on in. It was all over in a few seconds, and I came out the other side. My wing tips must have just missed the sides of the tunnel by inches. I climbed and looked around for the Zero, but he was gone. He probably thought that I  had crashed."

He offered me a cigar, but I told him I had quit them years ago. "Too bad, I have to go and dance." His partner was a pretty young  girl wearing a square dance skirt. I am still impressed.    

       Aloha
       Grant