USAAF
5th AF
19th BG
August 22, 1942
August 24, 1942
Pilot Captain
Frederick 'Fred' C. Eaton, Jr., 0395142
Co-Pilot Fl/ Sgt Marv Bell (RAAF)
Force Land August 20, 1942
Destroyed August 24, 1942 by Japanese air raid
Aircraft History
Fifteen USAAF LB-30 deployed to reinforce the B-17-equipped 19th BG. By late February, the position of Allied forces in Java had become untenable, and the surviving LB-30s were evacuated to Australia.
Pilot History
Pilot Frederick Eaton force landed B-17E 41-2446 previously, and survived a six week journey with his crew back to Australia. Eaton and Bell learned to fly the LB-30 from only the manual for urgent ferry flights to Milne Bay.
Mission History
This aircraft was being used to ferry materials and troops from Townsville with only a skeleton crew of two pilots, engineer, navigator, radio operator and tail gunner.
On August 18, 1942 they ferried a Bofors gun and its American crew. Just prior to landing, an electrical fire broke out at the base of the upper gun turret. The engineer used an extinguisher, flight jacket and two canteens of water to put it out. Meantime Eaton had poured on the power to reach the landing strip. We landed on a metal strip and did it make a hell of a noise when all of our 25 tons hit it. We unloaded, refueled and took off for Townsville at 1800 where landed at 2200.
Two days later, the repeated the same mission, taking off from Townsville at 11:50am. Cargo was two US Army passengers, another gun and 2000 pounds of 40mm ammo and a Bofors gun, plus the six flight crew. The LB-30 experienced hydraulic failure and force landed at No. 1 Strip (Gurney Airfield) at Milne Bay. Four days later, it was set on fire during an air raid by strafing from attacking Zeros, but it had already been stripped.
Fl/ Sgt Marve Bell recalls:
"We made an incident-free flight and were in the circuit area over Milne Bay at 1530, but experienced hydraulic failure. After an hour with the cloud and rain forcing us down to 600 feet we had the port wheel down and locked, the nose wheel down but not locked. Eaton and Bell took half-hour turns to assist the engineer. Flying conditions were filthy. We were on instruments most of the time. We spent another half-hour on the starboard wheel but it would not release. We decided to make a crash-landing so prepared the loading, most of which was well tied down before take off.
The Bofors gun ammo was our main worry. There were over 2000 pounds of it. Fred and I and the engineer decided to dump it. We got manual gear on the bomb bay doors to operate, then open. I stood on the catwalk, about eight inches wide, and two of the crew handed the ammo containers to me. Then I dropped them into the water. The engineer relieved me after 15 minutes. I went back to the flight deck and took over while Fred went back for final check. All the members of the Bofors crew with their bedding were moved to the floor of the mid compartment, the other four of our crew packed on the floor of the radio compartment. Fred returned to the flight deck and we ran through our crash landing drill. By now visibility over the bay was about half a mile, the ceiling 400 feet with rain. We were also fast running out of daylight. Time now was 1645. We had been in the area since 1530.
We made two low passes over the landing strip. Every army and air force bod from the area had lined the strip. We made a long low approach and touched down on one wheel on the muddy strip beside the steel runway. As we lost speed we went down on our nose, the starboard wing-tip and two props touched, at 90 mph we made a belly skid to the right, finishing up the way we had approached. Everybody climbed out without a scratch.
The boys of 75 and 76 Squadrons provided vehicles to tow or drag the aircraft away from the edge of the steel strip, after the Bofors gun was unloaded. It was now almost dark. I was invited to the camp of 76 sqd at Gili Gili Mission. We had expected to return to Townsville that night. We only had with us what we were wearing. Squadron Leaders Turnbull and Truscott soon had organized a cot with their pilots. A bottle of beer each followed a good meal.
08-21-42 Milne Bay: All sqd pilots up and about long before daylight. Still raining. We had an early breakfast and climbed onto vehicle. It is a three mile drive through the mud to the strip. Fred and I removed the bomb sight and the gun sights. The ground crew were working to jack up the starboard wing and nose. The aircraft was again on three wheels by mid morning."
References
19th BG Association CD-ROM, via Edward Rogers
LB-30
