Retired professor recalls WWII bombing missions
For many soldiers, “after the war” never comes. Robert Grilley was lucky in his war, World War II. “It was like winning a lottery ticket with my life as the prize,” he says now.
A skilled figure painter who retired from the Department of Art in 1987, Grilley vividly recalls the way that navigating a bomber on combat missions over Germany nearly 60 years ago helped crystallize his work, his art and, in many respects, his entire life.
Grilley recounts his experiences in his forthcoming memoir “Return from Berlin: The Eye of a Navigator,” published by the University of Wisconsin Press.
Grilley’s interest in flying predated his wartime service. When Charles Lindbergh flew across the Atlantic in 1927, 6-year-old Grilley began to dream of someday flying himself. During his sophomore year at the UW, he was among 50 students chosen for the federally funded civilian pilot training program; since then he has logged 6,000 hours of flying in 61 years as a pilot.
However, during “his” war, 1st Lt. Grilley of the 8th Air Force served not as a pilot, but rather as a lead navigator. He flew on some 30 combat missions against German targets.
The following is an excerpt from his book dealing with one mission over Saint-Lo, France.
The lines beyond which we were to deliver our massive strike were to be designated by yellow smoke markers. However, a temporary wind shift falsified some of them, and a group dropped short, killing 111 of our men, including Lieutenant General Lesley McNair, and wounding several hundred more.
There was much bitterness among those who suffered this catastrophe. I learned about it only after the whole event could be told and put in perspective.
Our sector had no such problem, and we received an official commendation for our strike on the 25th. In fact, our total effort was, on balance, a tremendous success, and entire German divisions were devastated, so the offensive was carried out as planned with far fewer casualties than would have been possible without our strike. It was Patton’s famous breakthrough and blitz.
The crack German Panzer Lehr Division, formerly considered invincible, received its coup de grace, and its commander, General Fritz Bayerlein, reported, “By noon nothing was visible but dust and smoke. My front lines looked like the face of the moon and at least 70 percent of my troops were knocked out — dead, wounded, crazed or numbed.”
We got back from the killing fields early in the day, and of all people Jardine hailed me as we were coming out of the chow hall and invited me to the club for a drink or two. Well, what was this? In a sense I was flattered. He usually spent his long afternoons, evenings and nights when we were not posted with the most celebrated drunks at Deenethorpe, so I was just a little curious about the occasion or purpose of this honor. He had had three long shots of Irish at interrogation, while I had to be satisfied with one, but I could nurse a Scotch or two for social purposes, and soon we each had a cold wet one in hand.
“Well, Robert, what didja think of that?”
It seemed he’d asked the same question once before on our way back from Paris, but with a smile that time.
“I wouldn’t want to make it my life’s work,” said I.
“Naw, I mean really, what didja think of that?”
“What do you mean, what did I think of it?”
“Aw for Christsake, you know what I mean. That was a friggin’ slaughter pen.”
“Jesus, John, did you drag me in here just to discuss the immorality of war? I’m not a born killer, but I can’t think of any way to stop this thing with diplomacy. It’s gotten down to the point where may the best man win, and I hope it’s me.”
“It was a friggin’ slaughter,” he moaned.
“Well, I’m not an eye-for-an-eye disciple, but if we have to kill German soldiers to get this God-damned thing over, so be it. You think our mud-faced GIs have to do it all? D’ya think that Hitler is responsible for it; I mean, that he just tells them what to do, and they just go out and do it? There’s more to it than that. The German people were all for it when they were winning big.”