Pathfinder Pioneer: The Memoir of a Lead Bomber Pilot in World War II
Raymond E. Brim
Apr 2016 · Casemate Publishers
Ebook
312
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About this ebook
One young man's story of combat in the air, constant battles for survival, and the development of radar technology for use against the Luftwaffe.
This is the story of how an eighteen-year-old miner shoveling ore from deep in the ground in Utah suddenly found himself, only two years later, 30,000 feet in the air over Nazi Germany, piloting a Flying Fortress in the first wave of America's air counteroffensive in Europe.
Like thousands of other young Americans, Ray Brim was plucked out by the US Army to be a combat flyer, and was quickly pitted against the hardened veterans of the Luftwaffe. Brim turned out to have a natural knack for flying, however, and was assigned to the select squadron developing lead pathfinder techniques, while experimenting with radar. He was among the first to test the teeth of the Luftwaffe's defenses, and once those techniques had been honed, thousands of other bomber crews would follow into the maelstrom—from which 80,000 never returned.
This book gives us vivid insights into the genesis of the American air campaign, told with the humor, attention to detail, and humility that captures the heart and soul of our "Greatest Generation." Brim was one of the first Pathfinder pilots to fly both day and night missions, leading bomb groups of six-hundred-plus bombers to their targets. At the onset of his missions in the spring of 1943, B-17 crews were given a fifty-fifty chance of returning. All his raids were nerve-wracking forays into the unknown, struggles to survive the damage to his plane caused by flak and German fighter attacks and bring his ten-man crew home, often wounded—but still alive.
This is the story of how an eighteen-year-old miner shoveling ore from deep in the ground in Utah suddenly found himself, only two years later, 30,000 feet in the air over Nazi Germany, piloting a Flying Fortress in the first wave of America's air counteroffensive in Europe.
Like thousands of other young Americans, Ray Brim was plucked out by the US Army to be a combat flyer, and was quickly pitted against the hardened veterans of the Luftwaffe. Brim turned out to have a natural knack for flying, however, and was assigned to the select squadron developing lead pathfinder techniques, while experimenting with radar. He was among the first to test the teeth of the Luftwaffe's defenses, and once those techniques had been honed, thousands of other bomber crews would follow into the maelstrom—from which 80,000 never returned.
This book gives us vivid insights into the genesis of the American air campaign, told with the humor, attention to detail, and humility that captures the heart and soul of our "Greatest Generation." Brim was one of the first Pathfinder pilots to fly both day and night missions, leading bomb groups of six-hundred-plus bombers to their targets. At the onset of his missions in the spring of 1943, B-17 crews were given a fifty-fifty chance of returning. All his raids were nerve-wracking forays into the unknown, struggles to survive the damage to his plane caused by flak and German fighter attacks and bring his ten-man crew home, often wounded—but still alive.
One young man's story of combat in the air, constant battles for survival, and the development of radar technology for use against the Luftwaffe.
This is the story of how an eighteen-year-old miner shoveling ore from deep in the ground in Utah suddenly found himself, only two years later, 30,00...
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About the author
Raymond E. Brim was born in 1922 in the mining town of Dividend, Utah, the son of the bookkeeper and the town's only nurse. He studied political science at the University of Utah, but dropped out to enlist in the Army Air Corps. He was assigned to a B-17 bomber, 482nd Squadron, where he flew missions over Germany during 1943 and 1944. As a Pathfinder pilot, Ray pioneered radar technology leading both day and night raids as far as Berlin. Currently retired and living in Salt Lake City, Ray, now in his nineties, still enjoys recalling his days as a World War II pilot as well as his later career in the Air Force, from which he retired as a colonel.John Pruden is an Earphones Award-winning audiobook narrator. His exposure to many people, places, and experiences throughout his life provides a deep creative well from which he draws his narrative and vocal characterizations. His narration of The Killing of Crazy Horse by Thomas Powers was chosen by the Washington Post as a Best Audiobook of 2010.
Raymond E. Brim was born in 1922 in the mining town of Dividend, Utah, the son of the bookkeeper and the town's only nurse. He studied political science at the University of Utah, but dropped out to enlist in the Army Air Corps. He was assigned to a B-17 bomber, 482nd Squadron, where he flew miss...
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