His name was Dick Plowden. He was one of the "Greatest Generation." He flew P-47 aircraft in combat in the European theater during WWII. He was my friend. He's gone now.
Here is a wartime picture of Dick as an Army Air Corps 2d Lieutenant next to his plane with his crew chief.
Dick once laughingly told me that he wanted to be a pilot really bad, but he knew his eyesight was borderline. He sneaked into the eye test building before his test and memorized the chart, then passed with flying colors!
On a mission on the border between France and Germany, ack-ack fire disabled his engine. He bailed out (no ejection seat in those days), barely missing the tail of his plane on the way. He landed safely, and a group of civilians came running up to him. He drew his pistol, thinking they were Germans. Turned out they were French, and they proceeded to strip him of his flight jacket, his boots and other clothing - they were desperate to keep warm! Dick was returned to friendly lines and continued to fly for the rest of the war.
Here is a picture I took of Dick in 2014, displaying a model of his plane painted with his unit's colors:
In 2015, Dick wanted to go on an Honor Flight to DC to view the war memorials there - including the WWII memorial which he had never seen. The flight was free for him, but he needed a more physically able guardian to go with him, and he asked me. I was honored to do that, hang the expense. No way I could refuse.
On the Southwest Airlines flight to DC, I arranged a little surprise for him - here he is in his element, surrounded and kissed by some delightful airline attendants! A well-deserved expression of thanks for his service.
I toured all the monuments with Dick. Here is a picture of the two of us on the banks of the Potomac:
Honor Flight is totally supported by donations and volunteers, and gives our WWII vets perhaps their only chance to see the monuments that honor them at zero charge to them. Here is some information on that organization - note that Dick is in the middle of the back row of these vets, wearing a blue cap:
The rest of this story is that Dick stayed in the reserves following the war, and achieved the rank of Air Force Lt. Colonel. He was an avid shooter, collector and reloader - our common interests.
Dick died this week at the age of 96. His lovely wife preceded him in death, passing several years ago. It's my fond hope that they are reunited now.
A couple of years ago, Dick willed one of his guns to me - a war trophy Walther PPK - by its serial number, it was made in 1940. Here is a picture of it I took a few years ago before he told me of that provision in his will. I will be honored to keep it in his memory.
I will miss him. I hope you will join me in saluting his faithful service to our country and his exemplary life.
John
Here is a wartime picture of Dick as an Army Air Corps 2d Lieutenant next to his plane with his crew chief.
Dick once laughingly told me that he wanted to be a pilot really bad, but he knew his eyesight was borderline. He sneaked into the eye test building before his test and memorized the chart, then passed with flying colors!
On a mission on the border between France and Germany, ack-ack fire disabled his engine. He bailed out (no ejection seat in those days), barely missing the tail of his plane on the way. He landed safely, and a group of civilians came running up to him. He drew his pistol, thinking they were Germans. Turned out they were French, and they proceeded to strip him of his flight jacket, his boots and other clothing - they were desperate to keep warm! Dick was returned to friendly lines and continued to fly for the rest of the war.
Here is a picture I took of Dick in 2014, displaying a model of his plane painted with his unit's colors:
In 2015, Dick wanted to go on an Honor Flight to DC to view the war memorials there - including the WWII memorial which he had never seen. The flight was free for him, but he needed a more physically able guardian to go with him, and he asked me. I was honored to do that, hang the expense. No way I could refuse.
On the Southwest Airlines flight to DC, I arranged a little surprise for him - here he is in his element, surrounded and kissed by some delightful airline attendants! A well-deserved expression of thanks for his service.
I toured all the monuments with Dick. Here is a picture of the two of us on the banks of the Potomac:
Honor Flight is totally supported by donations and volunteers, and gives our WWII vets perhaps their only chance to see the monuments that honor them at zero charge to them. Here is some information on that organization - note that Dick is in the middle of the back row of these vets, wearing a blue cap:
The rest of this story is that Dick stayed in the reserves following the war, and achieved the rank of Air Force Lt. Colonel. He was an avid shooter, collector and reloader - our common interests.
Dick died this week at the age of 96. His lovely wife preceded him in death, passing several years ago. It's my fond hope that they are reunited now.
A couple of years ago, Dick willed one of his guns to me - a war trophy Walther PPK - by its serial number, it was made in 1940. Here is a picture of it I took a few years ago before he told me of that provision in his will. I will be honored to keep it in his memory.
I will miss him. I hope you will join me in saluting his faithful service to our country and his exemplary life.
John
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