Preserving The Oral HistorIES of Combat Veterans

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Robert L. Harris

WWII | B Company, 310th Infantry Regiment, 1st Battalion, 78th Infantry Division

Robert L. Harris describes in detail the events leading up to the capture of the Ludendorff Bridge at Remagen, the strategic importance of the bridge to Allied forces, and the subsequent destruction of the bridge by German troops in March of 1945. (7:47)
Robert Martin

Korea | 38th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division

Shortly after high school, Robert Martin enlisted in the Army. He became a cook and when the Korean war broke out, he joined the 2nd Infantry Division there. While he was deployed, the order from the White House came that the troops could not fire unless they were fired upon. This was very bad, in his estimation. (7:29)
Robert May

WWII | 851st Bomb Squadron, 490th Bomb Group

At only eighteen years old, Robert May had a job building and testing aircraft engines. This helped him land in the Army Air Corps when he was drafted. After long months of training, he still wasn't sure whether he would be on a flight crew or a ground crew. (6:02)
Robert May was assigned to a B-24 crew in the newly formed 490th Bomb Group. He had a close call in training caused by human error and on another occasion, he used his foot to solve a problem with the plane. (6:09)
They crossed the Atlantic in a brand new B-24 and landed in Marrakesh. At the air field there, Robert May saw some of the first B-29's. After flying to their base in England, and practicing formation flying for a month, his crew were excited that their first mission was to be on D-Day. (7:55)
You rise at 3 AM, get some breakfast, go to the briefing and then it's time to go drop some bombs on the Nazis. Robert May details the routine during his time with a bomber squadron based in England. The missions usually lasted ten hours, with a lot of that time spent just getting a thousand planes in formation. (6:20)
Once the plane got above 10,000 feet, it was time for oxygen masks and heated suits. Flight engineer Robert May remembers when he learned a valuable lesson regarding smoking once the oxygen came on. He was too busy to get scared, but the flak over Cologne made him think about it. (4:44)
They usually bombed from a very high altitude, but Robert May remembers one mission where they were so low, he could see people running on the ground. His crew started out in B-24's, but were transitioned to B-17's after six missions. They got to tryout some new technology when the ball turret was replaced by a radar dome. (7:43)
Flight engineer Robert May came home from Europe and it was wonderful. After reunions and leave at the beach, he was assigned as an instructor on aircraft engines. One day he got some new orders. In six weeks, he was going to the Pacific to join a B-29 crew. (4:37)
Robert Powell

WWII | Multiple Units

The day after he graduated high school, Bob Powell's father put him to work in the oil fields of Oklahoma. It was a terrible job. "I might as well join the military," he said to his mother. Well, his father overheard that and immediately drove him to the recruiter. (This interview made possible with the support of ELAINE MATTHEWS.) (5:17)