USAAF
5th AF
71st TRG
17th TRS
Via Ken Barber 1945
Pilot 2nd
Lt. Walter Kenneth Barber, O-773067
Co-Pilot F/O Donald E. More
Navigator 2nd Lt. Tasos P. Dermousi (WIA)
Engineer Sgt Lewis J. Huffaker
Radio Sgt Ned P. Stevens
Tail Gunner Cpl James J. Brown
Crashed February 11, 1945
Aircraft History
The "Little Joe" nose art was applied at Hunter Field,
Savanah, Georgia on the left side of the nose, and small letters beneath
it, "Hard to Hit". This B-25 first arrived in New Guinea in
January 1944, personally assigned to Captain Jowell Wise.
Walter "Ken" Barber adds:
"The original
pilot I believe was Capt. Jowell C. Wise who became a Major and
squadron commander by the time I arrived on Mindoro on January
6, 1945. In fact, I flew one mission with him in the #4 flight
position on
a medium altitude bombing strike in January 1945. Wise left for
the USA
shortly after that. All of my other missions were low level strafing
and skip bombing."
Mission History
Walter "Ken" Barber adds:
"I was the last one to fly "Little Joe" a
B-25 operating
off
of Hill Airstrip (a
dirt airstrip we called HAMMER TOWER). We crashed into a ditch in
that there were no brakes. The hydraulics were lost,
I believe probably shot out on a low level strafing and skip bombing
mission over Coron
City. The landing gear had been pumped
down by hand and I made a no flap landing. We did manage to get on
the ground. This occurred on February 11, 1945 on the Island of Mindoro."
B-25
