Weekend Warriors

Izzy napisał(a): Okazało się, że jednak tak nie jest i skończyło się to prawie największą katastrofą morską w historii (wiózł 16082 żołnierzy wtedy).

Anakonda napisał(a):
Pytanie - Które rosyjskie oddziały były wyposażone w większą ilość wytłumionej broni strzeleckie i maszynowej, jakie modyfikacje zastosowali konstruktorzy do wyciszenia wystrzału z tej broni.

Wokash napisał(a): Python robisz replikę do wybijania dziur w murze , a pytania nie zadasz

Wikipedia napisał(a):Po przeszkoleniu został wysłany do bazy Wheeler Field na wyspie Oahu na Hawajach. Tam przeszkolił się na myśliwcach P-36 i P-40. Szczególnie ten pierwszy tym przypadł mu do gustu. Był świadkiem ataku japońskich samolotów Aichi D3A na Pearl Harbor. W filmie Pearl Harbor znajduje się scena, gdzie kilku pilotów wsiada do maszyn, by podjąć walkę. Taka sytuacja miała miejsce w rzeczywistości, a jednym z jej uczestników był właśnie Francis Gabreski.

Among the pilots there in Hawaii, Gabreski "got a big kick out of" George Welch of the 18th FG, "a real Hell-raiser." They also enjoyed the officers-only beach at Haleiwa, with the timeless attractions of Hawaiian beaches - surfing and girls (mostly daughters of Army officers and their friends). Here, Gabby met Kay Cochrane, niece of an Army colonel. They began dating in late 1941, and had their first falling out on the night of December 6, 1941. That night young Lt. Gabreski went to bed quite concerned about his future.

As he awoke on the morning of the 7th, shaving and worrying about his girlfriend, he heard some explosions, which were fairly common at a military base. Then he saw a gray monoplane with red circles and fixed landing gear flying overhead. He realized the Japanese were attacking. He heard louder and closer explosions and saw smoke from the burning airplanes. The air crews hustled over to the airstrip and pulled out some undamaged planes. Captain Tyler, the squadron CO, ordered them fueled and armed. About 10 planes were readied, and Gabreski was one of the pilots selected to fly. As they flew over Pearl Harbor, they could see that everything was a horrible, burning mess. Jittery AA crews fired away at anything in the the sky, including the P-36s and P-40s. Gabby and his group searched the area for about 45 minutes, but the Japs were long gone. Having gotten into the air earlier, George Welch of the 18th FG had downed four.

In the aftermath of Pearl Harbor, Gabreski realized that everything about his life had changed. But after discussions with Kay and her family, the young couple decided to get engaged. Not long afterward, in March of 1942, all the military dependents on the islands, including Kay, were evacuated to the mainland. The pilots of the 45th FS helped clean up Wheeler Field, dispersed planes into revetments, etc. They then moved to an airstrip near Kaena Point, at first flying constant daytime patrols, which quickly wore out both men and machines. They received new planes, P-40E's and Bell P-39 Airacobra, both of which had their drawbacks. The Model E Warhawk was even heavier and more sluggish than its predecessors, and the Airacobras had an unfortunate tendency to tumble. Throughout the summer of 1942, the 45th FS pilots led a fairly dull life: gunnery practice and flying patrols.

With the Pacific shaping up as primarily a Navy theatre and his strong feelings about the German invasion of Poland, Gabby wanted to get into the European Theatre. Capitalizing on his ability to speak Polish, he got the idea to transfer to one of the RAF's Polish squadrons. Perhaps surprisingly, the War Department okayed the idea and in September, 1942, he flew in Pan Am's famous China Clipper to San Francisco, from there on a DC-3 to Chicago, and then by train to Washington. The Pentagon "bigwigs" were more interested in hearing about the attack on Pearl Harbor than in his upcoming plans. As a junior officer, he felt that he didn't have much insight on base preparedness, etc., but he told them of his experiences. After a brief visit with Kay and his family in Oil City, he returned to Washington, was promoted to Captain, and shipped out to England.

Xasistis napisał(a):Poza tym Moses, pytałeś o liczbę a nie nazwy zestrzelonych maszyn