ONE AMERICAN HERO

Preface

This is her interview of her other father Jack Early.

Eighty year old John (Jack) Early talked with me about some of his World War II experiences that gave
insights into some changes in attitudes and values of today’s society. Jack had been a P-47 pilot with
the 9th Air Force Division, 373rd Fighter Group, known as the "Butcher Boys." Although he is a highly
decorated American aviator, his wife, rather than he, informed me that his war hero status was not known until a shoe box containing his many medals was found in the attic of Mr. Early’s sister about fifteen years ago. I also learned that Mr. Early holds one of the highest war-time flying records— one hundred twenty three successfully completed missions. Yet Jack Early does not portray a hint of arrogance or boastfulness that one might expect of a war hero. This humble gentleman, whose eyes still maintain a youthful sparkle, quietly related a story about a war he says few today seem to remember or care about.

At age twenty three, Mr. Early was drafted into the U.S. Army infantry to serve a mandatory one year
military term. His draft date was in February 1941, a time of peace for America. With only one month left to serve, he was put on active duty because Hitler’s Japanese allies bombed Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941. Now on active duty, Mr. Early tested for and was accepted into the Army Air Corps.

After six months of Army Air Corps pilot training, he was asked to become a flight instructor. This
entailed another month of special training. For the eleven months that followed, Mr. Early taught
younger Air Force cadets, readying them for active flight duty. During this time, American pilot
replacements were needed in the war effort, so qualified volunteers were asked to accept combat
missions. Since Mr. Early volunteered, he was sent for a month of combat training in the P-47, a single
pilot fighter plane. He was then given his orders and convoyed by ship to England. The year was, now,
1944.

I asked Mr. Early what it was like arriving in England during a war. He replied, "There was a definite
change in atmosphere. There were no men around, only women. The men were away fighting the war, so
women met our troops and took us to our assigned quarters. Also, the sky around England was filled
with big balloons attached to heavy cables. This prevented enemy aircraft from flying into the area. If
they did try to fly in, the cables would force their planes down. The atmosphere was scary."

"What made you volunteer for combat duty ?" I questioned. "Patriotism," he answered. "It’s what is
missing from society today. In recent years, I’ve randomly asked people on December 7th, ‘Do you know
why today is a date that will live in infamy ?’ Nobody can give me an answer. ‘A date that will live in
infamy’ were [Franklin D.] Roosevelt’s words on December 7, 1941— the day the Japanese attacked Pearl
Harbor, forcing America into a war. I have never forgotten those words, nor the date. Patriotism was
protecting a country we loved against communism and it gave us the courage to volunteer for combat
duty." Mr. Early said that American patriotism was reinforced, after witnessing Hitler’s advance through
Europe. He added, "Hitler wiped out everything in his way." This included villages, towns, cities, and
people.

Mr. Early explained his first war assignment: "When I arrived in England, my assignment was to disrupt
German transportation. I was supposed to bomb predetermined targets like trains and bridges, but I was
assigned to the Mustang P-51, an aircraft I hadn’t been checked out in. Since time was of the essence, I
was given ten minutes fly time to familiarize myself with that plane. Then, I was briefed and sent out on
my first mission. I had to dive in close to ground targets, drop my bombs, then get quickly back up in the
air before I got shot at. It was learned that the liquid cooled engines of the P-51's could cut out on us
during close range (dive) bombing, so P-47's, with their safer air cooled engines, were brought in to
replace the P-51's."

Mr. Early flew about fifteen missions from England and most of the rest from France and Belgium. The
"airports" he took off from and landed at were "make-shift." Women of allied forces located the most
suitable open fields all over the European countryside for American flying missions. "Make-shift"
runways made of moveable metal stripping were then set down on top of the open fields. The metal
stripping was just wide enough to accommodate the P-47, so pilots had to gage take-offs and landings
with precision— without a flight control tower or ground crew to guide them.

I couldn’t imagine not being scared to get back in a fighter plane— alone— and go into enemy territory,
day after day, night after night, from make-shift runways that were in the middle of nowhere. So, I asked
Mr. Early what deep faith mustered such continuous courage. " We were all scared sometimes," he said,
"especially when an explosion of enemy fire burst right next to the cockpit window. Everyday you knew
you were gonna be shot at. But bravery had more to do with the natural cocky attitudes of young men
than with faith. We also knew that the lives of ground troops often depended on us doing our jobs. In
war, strangers become your brothers. After the war, many of us continued to stay in touch. We still hold
group reunions."

Mr. Early also talked about how kind the French people were to Americans during the war. Even in 1994, when he attended the 50th anniversary of the war’s end in France, the French people, who spoke no English, cheered "Welcome liberator!" I asked him why today’s American society has the perception
that the French hate us. He answered, " Oh, after the war and in recent years, politics probably had a lot
to do with that, but, at one of the 50th anniversary ceremonies honoring American service men, one
French dignitary said they like the Americans because we are a country that comes to the aid of others in
trouble, but when the trouble is over— we go home."

If WWII brought patriotic Americans such honor, I wondered why American patriotism seemed to be of
so little importance today. Jack Early explained that war was never a nice thing, but, without the
experience of war, a warm, dry bed to sleep in gets taken for granted, as well as the privileges of this
country. He feels that younger generations lack patriotism because they have, thankfully, not had to
experience war. "Sadly," he said, "they don’t even seem to know what it is they are living for. Otherwise,
they would not feel the need to get involved with drugs, alcohol, or be violent. War makes you realize
what you’re living for."

Mr. Early remembered when Veterans Day and Memorial Day used to find a grateful nation paying
tribute to those who fought for the freedoms we enjoy today. He thinks that Americans now view
Veterans and Memorial Days as merely holidays from work or school— or a day for shopping malls to
make profits. Suddenly, Jack Early looked squarely at me. I noticed that his youthful sparkling eyes
suddenly appeared sadly and wisely aged. He said nothing more, but I felt proud and very grateful to be
the daughter of a true American patriot and hero— who knew what he had lived for.

(Jack Early is now 84. I wrote this in a college writng course when I was 53. I entered college at 50 and
graduated at 55, summa cum laude, in 1999 with Jack Early proudly attending my graduation ceremony.
His words to me on my graduation day were: "Now I know why the good Lord kept me around so
long...just to be able to watch my daughter graduate from college-- and summa cum laude, no less!")