17TH RECONNAISSANCE SQUADRON GAVE ALL THEY HAD
In a 2014 Memorial Day article in these pages, I wrote about
S/Sgt. Howard Hodges, a cousin who made the supreme sacrifice for his country. His B-25 was shot down off the coast of New
Guinea 70 years prior – his body was never recovered.
Hodges’ parents, sisters, brother, and all but one of his
extended family have passed away. They
died knowing little more about his death than the preceding sentence.
While researching the 2014 article, I learned Hodges’
commanding officer was killed on the same mission. Major William Grant Tennille, Jr. commanded
the 17th Reconnaissance Squadron of the 5th Air
Force. He was a Greensboro native whose
family lived on Asheboro Street during Tennille’s early years.
Fast forward three years – having found the 2014 article online,
the Naval Institute Press asked me to write a review of ROCKY BOYER’S WAR, a book about the air war over New Guinea to be
published in 2017.
What a gem of family research that turned out to be -- First
Lieutenant Rocky Boyer was the Communications Officer, 17th
Reconnaissance Squadron, 5th Air Force!
Rocky Boyer -- now deceased -- kept an unauthorized diary
about his days on New Guinea. Allen
Boyer, who has written five books previously, penned ROCKY BOYER’S WAR, based
on his dad’s diary.
While my cousin’s name wasn’t mentioned in the Boyers’ book
or diary, many dots were connected. Of
10 B-25s ordered to attack a heavily armed convoy of Japanese warships on June
8, 1944, Captain Sumner Lind piloted The Straggler. From The Straggler’s crash report at another
site, I learned my cousin was Lind’s photographer/gunner.
Why send only 10 bombers against such a formidable
force? MacArthur’s orders paraphrased,
“Send all the aircraft you have!” The 17th
Reconnaissance Squadron only had 10 operables.
The convoy was of unknown size, since it had not been
sighted in two days. Earlier
intelligence reports indicated destroyers were towing barges loaded with troops,
supported by heavy cruisers and the Yamato and Musashi, the largest battleships
ever constructed.
Facing basically a suicide mission, Captain Bert Smiley, the
Squadron Operations Officer, briefed the crews and assigned himself to be first
over the target. Major Tennille, who had
just returned from a mission, negated the briefing orders of his best friend --
he would lead the mission.
The convoy was sighted after three hours in the air. While U.S. sources vary as to number and type
of ships in the convoy, Japanese records indicate six destroyers were involved
– other ships had been diverted or delayed.
To draw fire and divert attention from the other B-25s, Tennille
and his wingman dove towards the first Japanese destroyer. Both were shot down by intense anti-aircraft
fire before they had an opportunity to release their bombs.
Captain Lind and his wingman pressed the attack next – their
bombs were away, but The Straggler became the third B-25 to go down from
anti-aircraft fire.
The Battle of Waios was over in 90 seconds – one Japanese
destroyer was sunk, the others were damaged enough to abort their mission.
Three B-25s were lost.
Of the seven that returned to base, five were too damaged to fly
again.
The bodies of Major William Grant Tennille, Jr. and S/Sgt.
Howard Hodges were not recovered. I
don’t know when my Aunt Lillie Post Hodges, of Shreveport, LA was notified
about the loss of her son. According to
the Greensboro Daily News, the Tennilles, living in Winston-Salem at the time,
were notified of their loss on June 28, 1944 – 20 days after his death.
Operations Officer Bert Smiley retired as a colonel after 30
years of service. In a 1947 wedding in
Winston-Salem, he married Mary Tennille, the younger sister of his best friend
and former commanding officer. The
Smileys are interred in Arlington National Cemetery.
General George Churchill Kenney, Commander of Allied Air Forces
in the Southwest Pacific, wrote after the war that Tennille received a
Congressional Medal of Honor. While he
was recommended for this award, he received the nation’s second-highest honor
-- a distinguished service cross -- as did his wingman, Lieutenant Howard C.
Wood. A command change likely had more
to do with the lesser award than the valor and bravery involved.
For service beyond the call of duty during the 90-second
Battle of Waios – in addition to the two distinguished service crosses -- 60
distinguished flying crosses, 19 posthumous purple hearts and a flock of air
medals were awarded.
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| SURVIVING FAMILY MEMBERS BELIEVE THIS IS HOWARD HODGES, ALTHOUGH IT COULD BE HIS BROTHER, CHARLES BOTH SERVED IN THE ARMY AIR FORCES DURING WW II |
It’s a small wonder the Battle of Waios received minimal
press coverage – on another front, the Battle of Normandy was just two days
old.
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ROCKY BOYER’S WAR is available in ebook format, bookstores, and from
Amazon. It chronicles World War II
experiences of a B-25 squadron commanded by a Greensboro pilot who was
posthumously awarded the nation’s second-highest award for his service.
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