San Diego Cadet Squadron 144

By Capt Dennis S. Ammann, San Diego Cadet Sq. 144 PAO

San Diego – Mr. Herman Peacher was invited to be the guest speaker for San Diego Cadet Squadron 144 on 26 September 2006. Mr. Peacher spoke about his experience as a B-24 Liberator tail gunner with the 458th Bombardment Group (Heavy), based out of Norwich, England. Herman, age 90, lives in Chula Vista with his wife Bea and keeps himself busy tending to his rose garden. He is a retired aircraft mechanic, previously employed at the Naval Rework Facility, NAS North Island for 28 ½ years.

San Diego was the home of Consolidated Aircraft Company, the birthplace of the B-24 Liberator in which 18,000 were built in greater numbers than the B-17 Flying Fortress. The President was Rubin H. Fleet, America’s first air mail pilot. Unfortunately, only one B-24 is flyable today, a beautifully restored B-24J named, “Witchcraft” owned by the Collins Foundation, Stow, Massachusetts which visited San Diego in April 2006 during Wings Over Gillespie Air Show. There is another B-24 flown by the Commemorative Air Force (CAF), named “Diamond Lil” but she was always configured as a VIP aircraft flying generals and heads-of-states around the world during WWII. Last Veterans Day a bronze statue of a B-24 was unveiled by BGen Robert Cardenas, USAF (Ret.) next to the San Diego Veterans War Museum in Balboa park honoring all who build, served, and flew in the B-24 Liberator. A fitting tribute to the men and women who were involved with this revolutionary aircraft.

Mr. Peacher started his speech at the beginning almost 90 years ago at Laclede, Missouri the boyhood home of Gen. John “Black Jack” Pershing, where he was born and raised. He related how he learned to be a crack hunter shooting crows with a single shot rifle. His early jobs were shucking corn at various farms in Iowa and Nebraska, working with the Civilian Conservation Corps, and finally landed an aircraft assembly job in August 1940 at Consolidated Aircraft Company, way out in California for one year. Later he returned to Missouri and enlisted in the Army Air Corps, attending basic training in Kansas, then on to Mississippi for B-24 aircraft maintenance school. Although he was colorblind, they let him finish gunnery school where he became a marksman. On to Boise, Idaho as a flight engineer (top turret) training, helping B-24 check pilots train pilots and then on to the 458th Bombardment Group (Heavy) at Norwich, England. His group’s insignia on the two vertical stabilizers were a white circle with black ‘K’ in the middle. Herman flew his first mission on 3 March 1944 straight to the hornet’s nest: Berlin, Germany; the first attempt to bomb the capital!



He described what it was like to fly at 23,000 feet in freezing minus forty degree temperatures, flak exploding all around the formation, close near misses between other aircraft, mid-air exploding bombers, parachutes popping open below, fighters making their strafing runs, etc. Since Herman was a crack shot, he was placed in the tail turret to replace a less experienced crewman. During one mission, he shot down a ME-109 Messerschmitt front line fighter, and in the process, overheating one of his .50 caliber machine guns barrels. When they landed he reported this to the armorer, who told him it was ok because he shot down a fighter! During another mission they had a fuel leak and had to make an emergency landing at Halifax, England. The bombs were dumped in the English Channel and when on final approach, all four engines quit. The pilot was able to restart one which got them over a hangar, where they hit hard and bounced in the air and broke the nose gear and right main gear. An observer on the ground said he never saw ten people evacuate an aircraft as fast as they did! Herman came out of the crash with a slight concussion, but was back on the flight scheduled the next day.

Mr. Peacher described in detail his last mission on 22 April 1944 over Hamm, Germany. Prior to his departure on his twelfth mission, he heard a voice tell him, “Herman you’re not coming back.” He looked around but no one was near him and he felt a warm ‘blanket’ wrap around him; perhaps the hand of God. They were to bomb the railroad marshalling yards when his B-24 named, “Flak Magnet” was hit in number two fuel cell and they started leaking fuel – fast. 100 octane fuel leaked all over the inside of the aircraft, so they started bailing out. Herman rolled himself into a ball and tried to roll out the camera hatch next to the tail gun but got hung up and was dangling head first out in the slip stream. Finally breaking free, ripping his flight suit, managed to pull his rip cord, but was in a semi-unconscious state because of the lack of oxygen at 22,000 feet and unable to see. He recalled passing through the trailing bomber formation hearing the engines as the lower group flew by him!

After the war, he found out Flak Magnet continued to press on while the flight engineer shifted the fuel tanks and determined they had enough fuel to make it to England. As they dropped back from the formation trailing smoke, the remaining crew was trying to release the bombs to lighten the load when German FW-190 Focke-Wulf fighter pilot Maj Heinz Barr finished off Flak Magnet along with his wingman, killing the pilot 1Lt George Spaven with everyone else bailing out. The doomed B-24 crashed on a farm where years later, a citizen from the town sent Herman a small piece of his aircraft. After the war, Maj Barr died in a plane crash while towing gliders in a tow plane.

When Herman was lower to the ground he regained consciousness and hit the ground breaking his right ankle. The ‘welcome wagon’ whacked him across the head and relieved him of anything of value, i.e., silk parachute, gloves, jacket, etc. They took him away to a holding area to wait for the other downed airmen and to be interrogated by the intelligence officers. He told his interviewer he wasn’t going to tell him anything and was let go! An Austrian doctor set his ankle, placed a splint on it, and a board on the bottom of his foot so he could walk on it. They were sent to Staglag Luft #4 Prisoner of War (POW) Camp up in Northeast Germany.

Herman described prison life behind barbed wire waiting for the war to end. When the Russians were getting near Staglag Luft #4, they packed all the crippled prisoners into railroad box cars and traveled eight days west to Staglag Luft #1. During the trip they survived on only ¼ cup of water a day. If some of the prisoners were extremely sick, they would give their rations to the sick POW. American cigarettes were bartered with the guards for water along the tracks.

During the final days of the war, Herman saw ME-262 Messerschmitt jet fighters flying above his camp and marveled at the propellerless jets. The Russian Army finally overwhelmed the Germany Army and freed the American POWs. There they waited for the authorities to transport them back to England and back home.

After a brief question and answer period, Herman was presented with a CAP Certificate of Appreciation by Maj Daryl Newton, Squadron 144 Commander and thanked along with the cadets for sharing his experiences with the squadron. Mr. Richard Peacher, son of Herman was also thanked for assisting his father and bringing him.

What a valuable experience it was for all who attended this guest speaker night, both cadets, guests, parents, and senior members. This experience was many time more interesting than reading a library book about what it was like to be an aircrewman in a B-24, become a member of the “Caterpillar Club” (bail out), and survive as a POW during World War II. Everyone was actively listening to this great American hero tell his small piece of WWII history. Some of the cadets actually walked through a B-24, B-17, and B-25 Mitchell during the last Wings Over Gillespie Air Show while providing flight line security. I’m sure they had a better grasp than the average young person when Herman was describing the cramped space inside his B-24.

Reading about veterans such as Herman does not do justice or cover the passion Mr. Peacher spoke about. Only by listening to people like him can one really appreciate WWII veterans. It was ironic that only ten days prior to his appearance, a somewhat forgotten day of remembrance, National Prisoner of War/Missing in Action (MIA) Recognition Day was observed on 15 September. Hopefully the cadets of Squadron 144 will think back and remember all the POW/MIA personnel from previous and current wars who gave so much to keep our great country free like SSgt Peacher.

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