This man, my Dad, while married to Syble Grace Collins, my mother, survived 60 missions unharmed in a B-26 Marauder bomber during World War II to become the father of Claire Grace, Leroy Colbert, Jr., and William Collins. He was our hero. Surviving with him are the records and documents he kept along his journey to becoming a decorated war veteran who received many medals, awards and citations, among them the French Croix de Guerre avec Palme.
As a civilian after the war he owned a collection of airplanes and he never stopped flying until he lost hearing in one ear to Mumps when he was in his 50's. It was for him a personal tragedy. He was born to fly a bomber in World War II and to be a squadron kickass in one the war's most kickass squadrons. In fact, it was the emblem they wore on their jackets. And they weren't kidding, either. They were serious about this. No matter what it took, they intended to win the war.
Copyright Notice - Disk of the World - Text and images copyrighted March 21, 1993-2023, Claire Grace Watson, B.A., M.S.T., U.S. Copyright and under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998, All rights reserved.
He was a Catch-22 pilot who was orginally intended to fly 25 missions but because he never got killed he could also never come home, hence the 60 missions. He flew wingtip to hold the squadron in formation.
95th BOMBARDMENT SQUADRON, AAF
17th BOMBARDMENT GROUP, AAF
BOMBER GROUP IMAGES
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