Oral History Interview with Eugene R. Cronin, February 1, 1972 Page: 19
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Cronin
19
crew, do they more or less ease you into the rough stuff,
or do they throw you in right away? In other words, I
would assume that perhaps this mission giving ground
support to these troops was perhaps not as difficult or
as dangerous as one of the missions going farther inland
and having to go through the flak.
Cronin: No, sir, no, I don't think so. I lived with some members
of the crew who went down their first mission in interior
Germany. No, there was a pretty extensive training
program. I think one of the hardest parts of flying
combat, or it was for us, was the type formations we
were forced to fly and camera bomb the various
installations along the East Coast. I remember once we
were to go up and bomb Paris Island--the Marine and
Navy base. We went over it--I don't know how many
airplanes, probably twelve, fifteen of us . . . and some
of what they called F-40's, I believe is what we called
them . . . the Marines had them, and they, of course,
with cameras instead of guns were to protect the airfield.
We were so loosely formed that they flew right through
our squadron, and that takes a bit of flying. Another
day we had three airplanes crash--fly into each other.
We tried to learn to fly close formation, so you're
pretty well used to looking out and seeing the man's
wing in your ear right next to you. No, once we got in
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Marcello, Ronald E. & Cronin, Eugene R. Oral History Interview with Eugene R. Cronin, February 1, 1972, book, February 1, 1972; Denton, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc1529237/m1/21/?q=%22~1%22~1: accessed July 16, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting UNT Oral History Program.