Coffin corner boys : one bomber, ten men, and their harrowing escape from Nazi-occupied France / Carole Engle Avriett with Capt. George W. Starks, WWII B-17 Pilot, the Mighty Eighth ; foreword by Lt. Gen. E.G. "Buck" Shuler, Jr., former Commander Eighth Air Force.
Material type:
TextPublisher: Washington, DC : Regnery History, 2018Copyright date: ©2018Description: xxi, 266 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations, maps ; 24 cmContent type: - text
- unmediated
- volume
- 9781621576266
- 1621576264
- Starks, George W
- United States. Army Air Forces. Air Force, 8th
- World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal narratives, American
- World War, 1939-1945 -- Aerial operations, American
- World War, 1939-1945 -- Campaigns -- Western Front
- Escapes -- France -- History -- 20th century
- Bomber pilots -- United States -- Biography
| Item type | Home library | Collection | Call number | Materials specified | Status | Date due | Barcode | Item holds | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Adult Book
|
Main Library | NonFiction | 940.5449 A963 | Available | 33111009204732 |
Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:
As a young band of brothers flies over German-occupied France, they come under heavy fire. Their B-17 is shot down and the airmen--stumbling through fields and villages--scatter across Europe. Some struggled to flee for safety. Others were captured immediately and imprisoned. Now, for the first time, their incredible story of grit, survival, and reunion is told.
In 1944, George Starks was just a nineteen-year-old kid from Florida when he and his high school buddies enlisted in the US military. They wanted to join the action of WWII. George was assigned to the 92nd Bomb Group--in which the median age was 22--and on his crew's first bombing mission together received the most vulnerable spot of a B-17 mission configuration: low squadron, low group, flying #6 in the bomber box formation.
Airmen called George's position the "Coffin Corner" because here exposure was most likely to draw hostile fire. Sure enough, George's plane was shot down by a German Fw190, and he jumped at 25,000 feet for the "first and only time," as he tells the story. He landed near Vitry-le-Perthois to begin a 300-mile trek through the dangers of war-torn France towards the freedom of neutral Switzerland.
Through waist-deep snow, seering exhaustion, and close encounters with Nazis, George repeated to himself the mantra "just one more day." He battled to keep walking. His comrades were scattered all across Europe and experienced places as formidable as German POW camps and as hospitable as Spain, each crew member always wondering about the fate of the others.
After the war, George made two vows: he would never lose touch with his men again and one day would attempt to thank those who had risked their lives to save his. Despite passage of time and demands of career and family, he accomplished both. He reunited with his crew then twenty-five years later returned to France to locate as many of the brave souls who had helped him evade the enemy as he could.
Join George as he retraces his steps to freedom and discover the amazing stories of sacrifice and survival and how ten young American boys plus their French Helpers became heroes.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 253-261) and index.
Part I. Beginnings -- Reconnecting: the "search" trip -- Beginning at sixteen -- Only one jump...ever -- Part II. The crew and first days down -- A whistle signal -- Betrayed by the gendarmes -- "Are you Hebrew?" -- Cognac and eggs -- Meeting up with buddies -- Meeting in a shack -- A casket and a bicycle -- Part III. The helpers and the enemy -- Processing in Frankfurt am Main -- Living with the Videls -- "Get the hell out of here" -- Sitting around a French fireplace -- An engineer's home, a dress shop, and a root cellar -- A squeaky wheel -- Life in Stalag Luft III -- 11, Rue de Saussaies, Gestapo Headquarters, Paris -- Fresnes Prison, Paris -- Dulag Luft and the Forty-and-Eights -- Stalag Luft IV, deeper into Germany -- Angels watching over -- Troop train and a brave man -- The captain -- "Frisco" -- The theater and the stress of POW camp -- One more day -- Steaming clothes on a stove -- The chief of police and Giselle -- A train full of Germans -- Maurice Baverel, a spy for all seasons -- Dr. Charlin and the five-horsepower Peugeot -- Part IV. The final push out -- Worsening conditions -- The black death march -- A small miracle -- Swiss surprise -- Enough of Switzerland -- Rowboat ride at midnight -- Part V. Going home -- George Starks and the Green Hornet -- Irv Baum and Ted Badder -- Dick Morse -- Bill Wyatt with Don Edgerly and Bob Williams -- Andy Brenden with Wally Trinder -- Dale Beery and William Wallace -- Part VI. Finding old friends -- Reconnecting, 1969 -- On to Pontarlier -- The Boillots and Dr. Charlin -- Back with Mike, 1970 -- More visits with friends -- Reunion with the crew -- Epilogue: one more time to France.
As a young band of brothers flies over German-occupied France, they come under heavy fire. Their B-17 is shot down and the airmen--stumbling through fields and villages--scatter across Europe. Some struggled to flee for safety. Others were captured immediately and imprisoned. Now, for the first time, their incredible story of grit, survival, and reunion is told.