Contents Preface Chapter 1: THE ROAD TO WORLD WAR I The Seeds of Discord The Balkans The Spark The End of Neutrality Chapter 2: AMERICA MOBILIZES FOR WORLD WAR I The American Military Leader The American Expeditionary Forces Preparing to Manage the War Preparing to Fight the War Preparing to Support the War Gaining Respect Chapter 3: THE IMPORTANCE OF MEDICAL SUPPORT Preparing for Medical Support Never Enough Medical Personnel John Sr. Goes to War Evacuation Hospitals Evacuation Hospital No. 12 Evacuation Hospital No. 1 Evacuation Hospital No. 37 Chapter 4: DECISIVE BATTLES The Battle of St. Mihiel Billy Mitchell and Airpower The Meuse-Argonne Offensive The Armistice to End the War Chapter 5: BETWEEN WORLD WARS The Treaty of Versailles War Reparations John Sr. Comes Home Buildup to World War II Heroes in Peacetime Airpower Chapter 6: AMERICA MOBILIZES FOR WORLD WAR II Mobilizing for Another World War War Production Challenges The Spark Willow Run The Cooney Family Chapter 7: TRAINING FOR COMBAT MISSIONS The Beast Crew Responsibilities The Crew Chapter 8: THE COMBAT TEAM The Importance of Teamwork City in Ruins Chapter 9: FLYING COMBAT MISSIONS Organizing for Combat Teamwork in Combat The Weather Factor The Targets A Proud Unit Chapter 10: LUCK IN WAR Both Sides of Luck Friday the 13th Hiding in Hungary Hiding in Yugoslavia Good Luck Amidst Bad Luck The Harsh Reality of War Medical Support Chapter 11: MISSIONS FROM HELL The Dark Days of War Cookman’s Third Mission The Legacy of the Tuskegee Airmen Chapter 12: GOING DOWN OVER ITALY Target of Friends A Frightening Experience The Cookman Family Chapter 13: BEHIND ENEMY LINES Prisoners of War The Rest of Cookman’s Crew Chapter 14: AFTER THE WAR Sergeant Kirk Gaylord Mosher Second Lieutenant Robert “Bob” Grant Cookman Second Lieutenant Thaddeus “Ted” Cylkowski Technical Sergeant Joseph Leslie Goss III Staff Sergeant Hong Sing “Calvin” Chin First Lieutenant Russell “Russ” John Flint Technical Sergeant Charles “Chuck” Joseph Muth Second Lieutenant David Gordon Johnson Second Lieutenant Ray Martin Goodson Staff Sergeant John Joseph Cooney Jr Technical Sergeant David Neil Orkin Technical Sergeant Meyer “Mike” Osofsky Epilogue Acknowledgements About the Author Notes Index Exhibits 0.1 Brochure Cover with Veteran John J. Cooney 0.2 Newsletter Article on Veteran John J. Cooney 1.1 Europe Before World War I 1.2 Alliances Before World War I 2.1 Sites for Managing, Supporting, and Training American Troops 2.2 American Divisions Sent to Europe, WWI 2.3 Chain of Command of American Expeditionary Forces, WWI 2.4 Initiatives to Prepare for WWI 2.5 War Industries Board 2.6 American Divisions Gaining Combat Experience 3.1 World War I Casualties 3.2 Official History of the Medical Department, WWI 3.3 Leading Causes of Deaths, WWI 3.4 American Divisions Sent to France in WWI 3.5 Private First Class John, J. Cooney, Sr. 3.6 Medical Department Evacuation and Hospitalization System, WWI 3.7 John Sr.’s Trip Over and Back and Evacuation Hospitals He Served With 4.1 Battle of St. Mihiel 4.2 Meuse-Argonne Offensive 4.3 President Wilson’s Fourteen Points 5.1 Europe After World War I 5.2 Lou Gehrig, Baseball Hero 5.3 James Braddock, Boxing Hero 6.1 National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics 6.2 Initiatives to Prepare for WWII 6.3 Industry Experts to Help Produce War Materiel 6.4 Office of Production Management 6.5 War Production Board 6.6 USA Leading Producer of Military Aircraft, WWII 6.7 B-24s Built and Accepted by the Military, WWII 6.8 Staff Sergeant John J. Cooney 6.9 Anna Cooney, Driver for the Newark Signal Corps 7.1 Photograph of Cookman’s Crew in the States 7.2 Cookman’s Crew Who Trained Together in the States 8.1 Snapshots of Combat Team Members 9.1 Chain of Command of Mediterranean Allied Air Force 9.2 Teamwork on Bombing Missions 9.3 Missions Flown by 451st Bomb Group 9.4 451st Bomb Group Missions by Country 9.5 Distinguished Unit Citations for 451st Bomb Group 10.1 Unlucky Crew of Extra Joker Shot Down Over Austria 10.2 Fate of Crews Shot Down on Friday the 13th 10.3 1944 Battle Casualties for the 451st Bomb Group 11.1 Profile of 451st Bomb Group 11.2 Cookman Crash Site in Relation to Castelluccio Airfield 11.3 Group Formation of B-24 Heavy Bombers 12.1 Positions of Cookman’s Crew 12.2 Last Flight of Cookman’s Plane 12.3 Fate of Cookman’s Crew Downed Over Italy on October 23, 1944 13.1 Dog Tags of Goodson and Orkin 13.2 Crew Lost at Sea on the Way Home 14.1 Veteran Presence in College Football After World War II 14.2 Mary Cooney in Parachute Dress |
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