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The 6th Bomb Group
The Airplane - #27 "Lucky Strike"
According to Cpt Robert Rodenhouse (A/C):
While on Johnson Island, the B-29 plane was named. Rodenhouse and his crew had all been smoking cigarettes at the time, some of which were: Chester Fields, Old Gold, Camel's, and Lucky Strikes. After pondering for a moment, Rodenhouse replied, "Lucky Strikes ... Hey, every time you fly and drop a bomb, that's a strike mission, a lucky strike means you get back home. Let's name it the Lucky Strike." So, with that, the B-29 airplane was named. Since they were still on Johnson Island, the Navy painted the name, Lucky Strike, in big letters on the side of the plane.
["Oral History - Mr. Robert Rodenhouse", Veteran's History Project, p. 7]
The Air Crew - The Lucky Strike was assigned to Crew #3903.
Captain WILLIAM P. LEMME, A/C
First Lieutenant WILLIAM F. SULLIVAN, Navigator
First Lieutenant GEORGE T. KEMP, Bombardier
Master Sergeant GEORGE BAYHA, Flight EngineerTechnical Sergeant CHARLES E. FITCH, CFC Gunner
Staff Sergeant LOUIS W. VOLLMAN, Radar Operator
Staff Sergeant NICHOLAS P. MATRO, Radio Operator
Staff Sergeant SIDNEY G. YOUNGER, Right Blister Gunner
Staff Sergeant WILLIAM G. MORITZ, Left Blister Gunner
Staff Sergeant DAVID MAYO, Tail Gunner
Mission 47. Kobe Urban Area (June 5)
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(Above)INCENDIARY BOMBS SHOWER on the dock area of Kobe, Japan, on June 5, 1945.
Haywood Hansell, "The Strategic Air War Against Germany and Japan", p. 235.
This was a daylight incendiary attack against Kobe involving 29 planes from the 6th Bomb Group:
The next mission on 5 June was also a daylight incendiary. This time the target was the urban area of Kobe. The Sixth had twenty-nine planes hitting the target area against very active enemy defenses. A total of forty-eight air attacks were reported while flak was moderately heavy. Photo reconnaissance later showed 4.35 square miles burned out, bringing the total destruction of Kobe to 56 per cent or 8.75 sq. mi.
All of the Group's losses for June were suffered this day. Sgt Raymond L. Merritt, 39th Squadron, was killed instantly by a flak burst and S/Sgt Charles P. Magnuson, also of the 39th Squadron, died in the hospital at Iwo Jima from wounds. Both were members of Lt Catt's crew which had two other men wounded on the raid. They were S/Sgt John C. Ward and S/Sgt James L. Morgan. Also wounded on this mission was Lt Zeno A. Uhle, bombardier on another 39th Squadron ship.
[Pirate's Log, pp. 46-47]
According to the DFC Citation for Crew #3903:
For extraordinary achievement while participating in aerial flight 5 June 1945. In a daylight incendiary attack against important industrial and shipping facilities in the city of Kobe, Japan, these combat crew members of a B-29 aircraft flew a precise and successful mission from a base in the Marianas Islands, 1500 miles to the south. Flying their plane exactly as briefed, despite the hazards of the long trip over water, through heavy, intense and accurate anti-aircraft fire, and fighting off fourteen attacks on their formation by enemy fighter planes, each of these men performed his appointed duties with exceptional skill, coolness and courage and teamwork. An unusually high degree of bombing accuracy was attained, aiding in the destruction of more than four square miles of the city. By their devotion to duty and their determination to press home their attack on the target in the face of heavy odds, members of this crew who have completed more than twenty-one combat missions, distinguished themselves and reflected great credit on the Army Air Forces.
[Transcribed by David Wilson, son of Sgt Bernard E. Wilson (Gunner, "Anonymous IV")]
A separate DFC Citation was prepared for First Lieutenant RICHARD S. BAUMGARTNER, Pilot of Crew #3903 on this mission.
George C. Bayha was a flight engineer and a member of the 6th Bomb Group. He received the Distringuished Flying Cross. The citation for it is:
For extraordinary achievement while participating in aerial flight 5 June 1945. In a daylight incendiary attack against important industrial and shipping facilities in the city of Kobe, Japan, these combat crew members of a B-29 aircraft flew a precise and successful mission from a base in the Marianas Islands, 1500 miles to the south. Flying their plane exactly as briefed, despite the hazards of the long trip over water, through heavy, intense and accurate anti-aircraft fire, and fighting off fourteen attacks on their formation by enemy fighter planes, each of these men performed his appointed duties with exceptional skill, coolness and courage and teamwork. An unusually high degree of bombing accuracy was attained, aiding in the destruction of more than four square miles of the city. By their devotion to duty and their determination to press home their attack on the target in the face of heavy odds, members of this crew who have completed more than twenty-one combat missions, distinguished themselves and reflected great credit on the Army Air Forces. Rye High School Graduate, class of 1939
George C. Bayha Obituary