Heroes in the sky: WWII pilots look back

Five World War II veterans recently gathered to share their memories of the war. Front row, from left, are Ivan Potts and John Ross; back row, Bob Bomar, Ike Farrar and John Jarrell. (T-G Photo by Tamara Belinc) [Click to enlarge] [Order this photo]

These men are Bob Bomar, J. Ivan Potts, John Jarrell and Ike Farrar, all of Shelbyville, and John Ross, of Manchester.

All are over 80 years old, with Potts the oldest at 91. They are members of what has been called the "greatest generation," and they present a living history of the 20th century.

Because they each have so many tales, only a few could be shared during this time together.

J. Ivan Potts

Potts, a B-29 pilot, was hit once over Kobi, Japan.

He had a target that flew into the clouds, and he followed it there. When he broke out of the clouds, he faced what he called "Japanese George."

"They came at us head-on," he said. "They took out our number one engine, and the other shell hit the bomb bay."

It shot out the electrical system.

"We went into a power dive toward Iwo Jima," he said. "We were hit at 24,000 feet."

He crash-landed on the fighter strip near Mount Suribachi.

"The fighter strip is 2,000 feet," Potts said. "We usually landed on 8,000 feet. We ran out of runway and were still going 100 miles an hour. We had no brakes, no nothing."

The plane eventually stopped in one of the bomb craters.

"We didn't have a crew member injured," he said, "which I think is a miracle. When we landed, our tail gunner jumped and ran, and they had to catch him with the ambulance."

"You never knew when one of those things were going to blow," Farrar said.

"No, you didn't, and that's why he ran," Potts said.

Potts left the service as a captain who had received eight awards.

"I'm most proud of the Distinguished Flying Cross," he said. "They don't give those just for brushing your hair."

John Jarrell

Although he was trained as a pilot, Jarrell worked as a navigator during World War II.

"They told me I was too smart to be a pilot," he said. "I told the pilots where they were going and how to get there."

He planned 13 missions and was once asked why he didn't do a complete 15.

"I told them Hitler found out I was coming and decided to throw in the towel," he said, "but the war ended before I could."

Jarrell later served as a pilot during the Korean War.

When he completed his time in the military as a member of the Army Air Corps, which later became the Air Force, he was a first lieutenant and had received three air medals.

John Ross

During his time in the Air Corps as a photographer, Ross got a taste of all the airplanes, but his favorite was the P-38 Lightning.

Ross' story is harrowing. He survived 24 hours in the frozen North Sea.

"Our intelligence told us anyone who went into the water would only survive for 10 minutes," he said.

He was shot down and had trouble getting out of the aircraft.

"I tried to crawl out but the wind whipped me back in," he said. "I put her in a dive and then pulled her back up and got out then."

"He just had a 'Mae West' and a dinghy," Farrar said.

A "Mae West" is what Allied soldiers called their inflatable life jackets in honor of the actress' figure.

Ross wasn't able to stay in the dinghy the entire time.

"The waves kept throwing me out," he said. "I think that's why I was able to survive."

He saw several ships, but they were all running in a convoy and didn't break away to rescue him.

"I had a red sail and whenever I would come up on a wave, I would wave it around, hoping someone would see it," he said. "Someone finally saw it and came back over and picked me up."

The ship was a brand-new mine sweeper, which had just been put into service.

"I was treated very well that night," he said. "I had all the hot soup and coffee I wanted, and I slept in the captain's bed."

Although the P-38 was his favorite, Ross also liked the others, too.

"The Spitfire and the P-51 (Mustang) were tops, too," he said. "The P-38 was the most streamlined. It could outrun anything.'"

Ross was a captain when he left the service, although he had been offered a promotion to major.

"I turned it down to come home," he said. "I received 11 medals and two Distinguished Flying Crosses. I didn't think much about the awards. I just gave them to my grandson."

Bob Bomar

Bomar is the only actual fighter pilot of the five men, and the only one who was in the Navy during World War II. He was stationed on an aircraft carrier that was destroying German submarines.

He flew the planes which cleared the decks so the torpedo bombers could come in and drop them in the water.

"When the submarines went down, the Germans were in the water," he said. "We got them out of the water and into the brig."

Later they were brought to the United States, where many of them came to Tullahoma and Camp Forrest.

He was flying over Japan at the end of the war. The pilots would be awakened at 1 a.m. in order to get ready for their runs.

"They came in and told us the war was over, that they dropped something called the atom bomb," he said. "I said 'okay' and laid back down to go to sleep. They made me get up and go back out."

He flew two more days after the bomb was dropped.

"One of those days, the water was slick as glass," he said. "I told myself I had flown all over the Atlantic and the Pacific and now would be a terrible time to crack up, but I didn't have any trouble."

Several magazines wrote about Bomar for one of his feats.

A submarine left Japan and was heading for France to see Hitler. It was full of Japanese intelligence.

"It went all the way around the tip of South America," Bomar said.

Bomar was in South America along with others from his carrier.

"We were supposed to be there for a week," he said, "and they came in town with notices for all Navy personnel to return to the carrier."

He left immediately, but some others were left behind, as the men went to try to get the submarine.

"It was running on top of the water during the night and would come up during the day," he said. "It was sending messages back to Japan, and the U.S. was able to get a fix on them."

The first morning, the bombers didn't get the submarine, but their job was completed the second day.

"Our torpedo bomber got him on that second day," he said.

Bomar was offered the title of Lieutenant Commander (equal to a major in the air force), but he turned it down. He wouldn't have been able to get as much money when he got out if he had taken it, because he would have lost his longevity money.

"I turned it down and put the money I got into the airport," he said. "I got quite a few medals but didn't keep up with them all."

Ike Farrar

Farrar says he spent 20 years flying for Uncle Sam. When Pearl Harbor was bombed Dec. 7, 1941, he was already in a training program.

By Jan. 7 of the next year, he was at Maxwell Field. He says his commander had a bit of a sense of humor.

"He told us, 'Well, gentlemen, I hate to tell you, but they changed the name to Earl Harbor, because Japan bombed the 'P' out of it'," he said.

He calls himself the truck driver of pilots, carrying anything the other soldiers might need.

For about nine months, he flew from New York to San Francisco, which he says was a very cushy job to have.

"They told me then they had a job for me, and I was sent overseas," he said.

He flew all over the Pacific, and while in the military, he met his future wife. When the war was over, he was offered a job as an airline pilot in the Phillippines.

After they got married, he told his wife, "I forgot to tell you something. I got a job as a pilot ..."

She said, "I forgot to tell you something, too. We ain't going."

He came back home, where he operates a dairy farm in the Flat Creek community.

"I fly John Deere tractors now," he said.

They all came home, leading normal lives, raising families, going to work, but for a few years, these men were our heroes in the sky.

Now, even though they no longer fly, they still should be considered heroes, for the time and service they gave to their countries.