1917 - 2009

Herbert L. Ziperman was born in The Bronx, NY. he was the son of Sam and Ida Ziperman.  It was there that he met the love of his life Lillian Simon.  They were married 69 years. He served in WWII as a navigator on a B29 Bomber and participated in 15 pinpoint bombing missions over Japan and stayed in the USAF reserves retiring with the rank of Lt. Colonel. 

Herb was a member of the 315th Bomb Wing (very heavy). It was the fifth and final wing to be assigned to the 20th Air Force. They arrived in Guam in April and May of 1945 and unknown to them were only 4 short months away from the end of WWII.

The four bomb groups in the 315th were the 16, the 331, the 501 and the 502. Their main missions were to fly night time missions against the Japanese petroleum industry. The B29s of the 315th employed new radar equipment. You could see the radar on the underbelly of the planes. Herb's plane was # 42-63702, The Rude Nude.

The markings on the 315th were a large, black outlined diamond on the tail. Inside this diamond were a group designator (B) for the 16th BG, (L) for the 331st BG, (I) for the 501st BG and (H) for the 502nd BG. Since they were mostly doing night missions, some of the underbellies of the B29s were painted a flat black.

They flew their fits bombing mission on June 26, 1945. They completed their 15 bombing missions with almost no losses. Their last mission was flown on August 14, 1945 against the Nippon Oil Refinery. The B29s were still in flight and returning to Guam when they heard the war was over. The 41st BS received the Distinguished Unit Citation for their operations from July 6-13, 1945.

 

Herb and his wife of 69 years, Lillian

Herb's window on the plane with Lillian's name painted beneath.

 

Herb enjoyed golf and the Yankees. Herb Ziperman took his last flight on June 4, 2009 and will be sorely missed by his family. The photos were sent in by his son, Jon Ziperman.

Herb and Jon Ziperman

 

Thank you for sharing your Dad with us ~ Sallyann