THE 401 ST BOMB GROUP H ASSOCIATION
THE 401 ST BOMB GROUP H ASSOCIATION
Brig. General H.\v. Bowman USAF (Rtd.) Our good neighbour, good friend, and highly professional historian, Vic Maslen, has done it again. After having produced fascinating histories of our four Tactical Squadrons, he has novi capped them vlith a roundup of the 401st Bombardment Group as a team. He has honored me with an invitation to add my bit. While stationed in the Philippines, at Clark Field, in 1937, I read of the bomber pilot’s dreamboat, the B-17, being produced, and promptly . requested assignment to Langley Field, where the 2nd Bombardment Group \vas being equipped vii th the “Flying FortressH• My request \’1as approved. There Vias lots of competition, I later learned, but there was still one vacancy. Unfortunately, the month-long trip back to the States on Army transport, was no way to beat the competition. I lost out by one day, a~i had to be satified with a ground job at the base, and watched with envy as the beautiful new planes tri~d their wings and set new records. I became acquainted, however, with future air leaders. Robert Williams and Bob Travis both later became commanders of our 1st Division in the Eighth Air Force in England. Curtis LeMay took his 305th Bombardment Group over, early in the war, developed air tactics, and rose steadily, over the years, to become Air Force Chief of Staff. And there was my good fri8nd, Chick Harding, who was the daddy of the 401st, ‘tlhen it was born in 1943, for a s]:o1’t time, before being sent to England to command the 100th Group, already in combatQ When I arrived as his repl~cement, at Geiger Field, I could feel the keen disappointment of the members, at the loss of their popular leader. But my loyal associates gave me their full support, in preparing the 401st to become the “Best Damned Outfit in the USAAF”. As personnel and aircraft arrived to fill our quotas, iVe were moved to four training fields in r.:ontana. Although this wide separation of Squa-drons made Group guidance difficult, it developed Squadron individual leadership to a high degree. The term “best” iVas not only a rallying cry of loyal members, dedicated to winning the war, but it turned out to ha.ve a statistcal reality. Our record of bombing accuracy \1aS tops in the 1st Bombardment Division, first among B-17 Groups, and second in the entire 8th Air Force. We pride ourselves also on one of the lowest loss rates in the 8th Air Force. That ~’/as not only just plain good luck, but in my opinion, the direct result of the following factors: 1. Close formation flying, offering improved mutual support. 2. Top-notch leadership among commanders and individual crews. 3. A high state of training.