Beyond the Call (42 page)

10
. According to Lepawsky (
History of Eastern Command
, ch. V, pp. 64–5), the sobriquet was originally bestowed on Eastern Command by people from Persian Gulf Command.

Chapter 8: Kasia

1
.   The D-ration candy bars produced in the early war years were notoriously unpleasant compared to commercial ones. They had been deliberately designed to taste ‘just a little better than a boiled potato' in order to prevent troops gorging on them. But by 1945 the original ‘Logan bars' had been replaced by the much more pleasant chocolate made by Hershey (Fisher and Fisher,
Food in the American Military
, p. 148). The Russian soldiers were immensely fond of these chocolate bars, and thousands of them were stolen from Poltava during the final weeks of Eastern Command.

2
.   Now Łambinowice, Poland.

3
.   In his recollections, Robert was unable to remember (if he ever knew) the name of this camp. There were more than 40 sub-camps attached to the Auschwitz complex, of which about a dozen were in the specific local area in which this encounter took place; it could have been almost any one of them.

4
.   Kaluta (vol. I, ch. IV, p. 16) remarks that this was a general pattern for American personnel on salvage missions; Red Army officers were happy to cooperate with Americans, and did so generously, until the NKVD put pressure on them to stop.

5
.   Wadley,
Even One Is Too Many
, pp. 121–3.

6
.   Captain Trimble's forebodings about Russian bad faith were shared by Colonel Wilmeth himself (quoted in Kaluta, vol. I, ch. III, pp. 39–40).

7
.   There are various theories about the origin of the term ‘short snorter'. It is probably some long-forgotten association with alcohol, a ‘snorter' being a measure of spirits.

8
.   In 1941 the United States Army Air Corps had been changed to the United States Army Air Forces, but the name of the branch on personnel records and in colloquial use continued to be ‘Air Corps'.

9
.   It is inferred that Robert added this slogan, as it appears to have been written with the same pen as his signature, and although the style differs from his regular handwriting, it matches a style known to have been used by him when trying to write clearly (as in the next-of-kin fields in his passport).

10
. Lieutenant Tillman was remembered by crew-member Sergeant Don MacLeod as an aloof character, who didn't mix much with his crew. This wasn't unusual between officers and enlisted men. The signatures that subsequently accumulated on the snorter were (as far as can be discerned) from either officers or civilians.

11
. It is still not known who kept the snorter. But it surfaced in El Paso, Texas, in 1969, when it was sold to a dealer in WWII memorabilia. He hung on to it for decades, and eventually sold it on eBay. It was bought by collector Mike Allard, who believed he recognized the name R.M. Trimble, and contacted his acquaintance Lee Trimble, who confirmed the identification.

Chapter 9: Night of the Cossacks

1
.   Fitchen, Mission interrogation of Lt Beam crew.

2
.   Matles's rank is given in different sources as both master sergeant and first sergeant. The latter is believed to be correct at this time.

3
.   Kaluta, vol I, ch. II, pp. 17–18.

4
.   Colonel Hampton used this incident, and another near-fatal flying error that occurred a few days later on the return journey, in another attempt to have Lieutenant Roklikov removed from flying duties. General Kovalev, the Soviet commander at Poltava, again rebuffed the request, insisting that Lieutenant Roklikov had shown ‘unique skill and initiative' in both incidents (Kaluta, vol. I, ch. II, pp. 16–17).

5
.   The woman's identity isn't given in Captain Trimble's report, so it isn't known whether she was from the Kratke family who accommodated Lieutenant Tillman and his crew.

Chapter 10: Russian Roulette

1
.   Many downed US aircraft were repaired by Soviet teams before Americans could get to them. The Soviets claimed that they were intending to fly these planes out to USAAF units in Italy. On 8 March, Colonel Hampton cabled Lieutenant General Ira C. Eaker, commander of the Twelfth and Fifteenth Air Forces in Italy, to inquire about the truth of this claim. By the middle of April, Eaker was able to report that, of several B-17s, B-24s, and P-51 Mustangs reported by the Soviets as repaired and returned, only two B-24s had actually arrived. The rest disappeared (Hill, Cable M23371 to USSTAF, 22 March 1945; Kaluta,
vol. I, ch. II, p. 29). Many of the American bombers ended up with the 890 Heavy Bomber Regiment, one of the Soviet test units. Its test pilots evaluated stolen B-17s and B-24s, using them as part of a research program to develop the USSR's own heavy bomber, the Tupolev Tu 4, which was mainly reverse-engineered from the Boeing B-29 (Ratkin, ‘Russia's US Bomber Force').

2
.   Lepawsky,
History of Eastern Command
, ch. IV, pp. 35–40.

3
.   The same month, a P-51 was reported crash-landed at Kirovograd in the Ukraine, but when an investigator was sent from Poltava, there was nothing there (Kaluta, vol. I, ch. II, pp. 27–9).

4
.   Lepawsky,
History of Eastern Command
, ch. III, pp. 46–7. In February 1945, Colonel Hampton gave instructions to USSTAF HQ advising aircrews on how to identify themselves to Soviet troops, as well as how to avoid antagonizing them. The advice included carrying a passport and a card with the word ‘American' in Polish, Ukrainian, and Russian, and presenting a smart appearance with all US Army insignia displayed clearly on the uniform (Kaluta, vol. I, ch. II, p. 28). Some of these measures were easier said than done.

5
.   It didn't go well (Kaluta, vol. I, ch. II, pp. 16–17). Roklikov's take-off was even worse than his landing. Despite the delicate condition of the repaired C-47, he buzzed the town of Staszów several times and nearly collided with a church spire. Taking violent evasive action, he almost stalled the plane, and dived it to prevent the stall. The passengers and loose cargo were thrown around, and one of the American mechanics was injured. Roklikov himself had failed to secure his own safety belt and was thrown out of his seat, almost losing control of the aircraft completely. The Soviet authorities still insisted that he was a skilled pilot and refused to remove him from duty.

6
.   Ellis B. Woodward, pilot, 493rd Bomb Group, quoted in Bowman,
B-17 Combat Missions
, p. 29.

Chapter 11: Suffer the Lost Prisoners

1
.   Beadle, ‘Joint Statement'. Beadle's rank was actually technician fourth grade, or T/4; however, T/4s were informally accorded the title Sergeant, and wore a three-stripe rank insignia.

2
.   Vergolina,
Reflections of a Prisoner of War
, pp. 18–19.

3
.   Beadle, ‘Joint Statement'; Wilmeth, ‘Report on a Visit to Lublin', pp. 9, 12.

4
.   Formerly part of Germany, now Gorzów Wielkopolski, Poland.

5
.   Formerly part of Germany, now Chwarszczany, Poland.

6
.   World War 2 POW Archive, ‘POW Record for Richard J. Beadle'.

7
.   Whitlock,
Rock of Anzio
, pp. 242–5.

8
.   Quoted in Whitlock,
Rock of Anzio
, p. 244. Richard Beadle earned the Silver Star for his conduct at Anzio; citation 45th Infantry Division, General Order No. 168 (1944).

9
.   Wadley,
Even One Is Too Many
, pp. 119–20.

10
. Kisil was a technician fifth grade, or T/5. Just as T/4s were given the courtesy title Sergeant, T/5s were commonly addressed as Corporal.

11
. Deane,
Strange Alliance
, p. 195.

12
. Wadley,
Even One Is Too Many
, p. 123.

13
. Wilmeth, ‘Report on a Visit to Lublin', pp. 1–2.

14
. USMA,
Howitzer
Yearbook, p. 230.

15
. Wadley,
Even One Is Too Many
, pp. 128–9; Wilmeth, ‘Report on a Visit to Lublin', pp. 2–3.

16
. Wilmeth, ‘Report on a Visit to Lublin', p. 15.

17
. Wilmeth, ‘Memorandum to General Deane', pp. 6–7.

18
. Foregger (‘Soviet Rails to Odessa', p. 844) puts the total figure for Americans evacuated by ship from Odessa from March to June 1945 at 2,858. In addition, there were 4,310 British and nearly 30,000 other nationalities.

19
. Conversation summarized in Wilmeth, ‘Report on a Visit to Lublin', pp. 4–5.

20
. Deane wrote to him: ‘We have had a few messages from you but they have been badly garbled.' (Deane, Letter to Wilmeth, 10 March.)

21
. The official exchange rate through Russian banks was 5 rubles or zlotys to 1 US dollar (Wadley,
Even One Is Too Many
, pp. 131–2). On the black market, rates of up to 200 rubles or zlotys to the dollar could be obtained, but at Soviet insistence, the Military Mission had barred US personnel from taking advantage of this exchange rate (Lepawsky,
History of Eastern Command
, ch. V, pp. 91–3).

22
. Wadley,
Even One Is Too Many
, pp. 144–5.

23
. Wadley,
Even One Is Too Many
, p. 146; Wilmeth, ‘Memorandum to General Deane', pp. 3–4.

24
. Beadle in his statement estimates 40, but the figure given by Wilmeth (‘Report on a Visit to Lublin', p. 6) is 54.

25
. Gould was from Croydon, Surrey, and served in the 5th Battalion of the Buffs (Rudy Vergolina address book; Beadle, ‘Joint Statement', Gould copy). He is not listed in contemporary British POW records compiled by the Red Cross; however, these records are not always complete or accurate.

26
. Beadle (‘Joint Statement') calls it the Russian border, but that is impossible; it must have been Ukraine (which was generally referred to by Americans as ‘Russia' at this time).

27
. Beadle, ‘Joint Statement'; the names are given in Wadley,
Even One Is Too Many
, p. 144.

Chapter 12: American Gentlemen

1
.   The cliff or bluff at Lwów-Sknilow was an eccentric and dangerous feature. It was used as a take-off point by glider pilots who used the airfield before the war. The cliff is now gone, erased by the construction of a modern airport.

2
.   Nicholson, Mission interrogation of Lt Barnett.

3
.   Hampton, Cable T-3103 to USSTAF, 17 March.

4
.   Esa Lowry is the name as given in Captain Trimble's report (‘Report on Flight to Rzeszow', p. 3); whether it is exact or a phonetic spelling of a more Slavonic name (e.g., Larysz) is not known.

5
.   When writing his report on the events in Lwów, Robert quoted his statement to Miss Lowry, still not noticing the accidental allusion. The fact that it was allowed to stand in the archived official report suggests that nobody else noticed the slip either. The probable reason is that he did in fact take some Americans home on this mission, despite the fact that it was not the mission's primary, let alone ‘only', interest.

6
.   Trimble (‘Report on Flight to Rzeszow', p. 3) seems to imply that two POWs were found at the hotel upon arrival, along with the Barnett crew, but this appears to be a false impression caused by chronological compression in that part of the report; the POWs arrived later.

7
.   Beadle's description (in his ‘Joint Statement') and Matles's (given in Trimble's ‘Report on Flight to Rzeszow') differ. Beadle describes the rehabilitation center and the commandant's office being in the same place; Matles's version, used here, seems more accurate.

8
.   This is the term used by Beadle (‘Joint Statement') and in many other contemporary sources referring to similar facilities. It was only after the war that the term ‘concentration camp' began to be exclusively associated with the extermination camps of the Holocaust. In this case it may have been apt; although it is impossible to be certain, the ‘rehabilitation center' was probably the former Nazi camp of Janowska in Lwów, which was reused by the NKVD for detention of political prisoners (Bartov, ‘White Spaces and Black Holes', p. 324).

9
.   Despite his rank, First Sergeant John Matles was a man of considerable authority in the military/diplomatic service. He went on to hold a number of highly responsible postings in US missions in various countries. According to a former Air Force colleague, Matles was offered a commission many times during his
career but turned it down, believing that it would undermine his effectiveness (‘Time sure flies!' in
Voice of the Valley
).

Chapter 13: Rising Tide

1
.   Rudy Vergolina (
Reflections
, p. 26) recalled that Captain Trimble ‘commanded some respect among the Russians'. Vergolina misunderstood the circumstances of the Americans' presence in Lwów and mistakenly believed that ‘the Captain' (as he called him, having apparently forgotten his name in the intervening 40 years), the Barnett crew, and the other POWs were all a single fourteen-man bomber crew. It was an understandable mistake for an infantryman to make in the circumstances.

2
.   Like Richard Beadle, Vergolina was actually a T/4 and accorded the courtesy title Sergeant.

3
.   Vergolina,
Reflections
, p. 27.

4
.   Rudy Vergolina's regiment landed on D + 1, but Rudy landed on D-Day itself, on temporary detachment with a unit in either the 1st or 29th Division (Joseph Vergolina, personal communication to Lee Trimble, 3 March 2014).