The Party
By early 1945, Bob had taken over command of the 351st Bomb Group and been promoted to full Colonel. It was early January when he flew down to Bath and brought Ruth up to Polebrook for one of the group's parties.
"I took over command of the group in early summer of 44 and was promoted to full Colonel about two months later... I guess it was in early January, '45 that I had been down to Bath and brought Ruth up to Polebrook for one of our parties."
The Phone Call
"On landing, I was told that there was an urgent phone call from her hospital which I returned immediately. The message was that her hospital had gotten orders to move to the continent ASAP, and she needed to get back as fast as possible."
The Problem
Single. Seat. Fighter.
"The fastest airplane I had was my P-47."
The Solution
Bob got in the seat. Ruth sat on his lap, facing right.
"So I got in the seat and Ruth sat on my lap facing right. I fired it up and got her to Bath in record time."
The P-47 was a powerful fighter—2,000+ horsepower, capable of over 400 mph. With Ruth sitting crosswise on his lap, Bob had to reach around her to handle the stick. It made for awkward flying, but it got the job done.
"I did have an awkward reach for the stick but I managed."
The Reflection
Years later, when his son Andy asked about the P-47, Bob confirmed he thought it was a D model with the bubble canopy, though he wasn't absolutely sure. What he was sure about: Ruth sat crosswise in his lap, requiring him to reach around her to fly.
"Andy, I think the P-47 was a D model, and I think it had the bubble canopy but I am not absolutely sure about this. When I took your mom to Bath, she sat crosswise in my lap, so that I had to reach around her to handle the stick."
And he also reflected that it was, in retrospect, "a stupid move." A B-17 would have gotten her there just about as fast—and been far safer and more comfortable.
"It was a stupid move on my part because a B-17 would have gotten her there just about as fast. It was just slower getting started and off the ground."
From the Flight Records
From the records
January 1945 — Individual Flight Record (Form 5), AAF Station 110 (Polebrook). The P-47D entries on the 3rd and 4th each show 2 landings — the pattern of a round trip with an intermediate stop.
Two landings on each entry — the profile of an aircraft that departed Polebrook, touched down somewhere else, and returned. The Jan 3 entry (2:00 hours) likely covers the initial run: Bob flies to Bath to collect Ruth, brings her to Polebrook for the party. The Jan 4 entry (45 minutes, 2 landings) fits the urgent return: a fast Polebrook–Bath–Polebrook round trip, which at P-47 cruise speeds of 300+ mph would be achievable in well under an hour each way. Both dates fall in "early January 1945," exactly as Bob recalled.
View all flight records →