Memphis Belle Captain dead.

[310]

Robert Morgan was 84 or 85 yrs old. The Memphis Belle's crew was the first to live through the 25 required missions.

 

[Vavso]

I heard ...

he died at an air show after tripping and breaking his neck .

 

[Timebuilder]

A google search with his name and "memphis belle" brings up that show. Sad.

It just proves that we never know when it is our turn to be called, and the importance of being ready to go.

 

[Flywrite]

I met Captain Morgan at the Asheville, NC airport about 20 years ago when I was a kid and there was a B-17 on display there. He was quite a Gentleman and more than happy to answer all my questions. I met him again at a booksigning a couple of years ago. Though much older he was still eager to answer all questions with a smile on his face.

Godspeed Sir

 

[A Squared]

Interestingly, the Memphis Belle was not the first bomber to complete 25 missions, that was "Hell's Angels" which completed 25 missions 6 days before the Memphis Belle did. Hell's Angels' Captain Irl Baldwin also completed 25 missions (in Hells Angels) before Captain Baldwin completed 25 missions. Hell's Angels went on to complete 48 missions, while the Memphis Belle went back to the US after 25 missions.

The statement: "The Memphis Belle's crew was the first to live through the 25 required missions." is not accurate either. There were at least 3 permenant replacements in 2 crewmember positions during the course of 25 missions. Also Capt. Morgan flew 5 of his 25 missions in another airframe, and conversely, the Memphis Belle flew 5 of it's 25 missions without Morgan. Presumably there were similar temporary replacements in the other crewmemeber positions also.
The crew which accompanied Memphis Belle on the US tour was not the original Memphis Belle crew, although each crewmemeber had individually completed 25 missions, just not in the Memphis Belle. Someplace, somewhere there may have been a crew which completed 25 missions completely intact from the begining of their tour, but it wasn't the Memphis Belle crew



http://www.303rdbga.com/h-ha-mb.html


What exactly was the Memphis Belle's claim to fame?

 

[310]

Where is the B17 Hell's Angel's?

 

[TonyC]

What exactly was the Memphis Belle's claim to fame?

Public Relations.

I'm sure they preferred the name "Belle" over "Hell," so the legend was spawned, and the tour of the US began. I wonder how things might have been diffferent had Capt Baldwin chosen to name his airplane "Lucky Lady" or some other more family-friendly moniker.

 

[Typhoon1244]

I wonder how things might have been diffferent had Capt Baldwin chosen to name his airplane "Lucky Lady" or some other more family-friendly moniker.

One of the 28th BG's B-24's (44-49474) was named "The Whistlin' Sh|thouse." Suppose it'd been first!

Guess the PR people wouldn't have gone for that...

 

[jetexas]

The Hells Angels plane had some really neat nose art.
There was some really cool nose art back then. Naked ladies, really well done Disney characters, etc. Even Adolf Galland had Mickey Mouse holding a revolver on his ME-109.
It'd be neat if the military could still do that. Good for morale you know. Kinda reminds me of Apocolypse Now.... "The Air Force drops bombs yet they can't even paint F___ on the side of their airplane".

 

[potrack]

Air Force nose art

Back in the early 90's, the first base I got to....we still had some decent nose art on our heavies.
"Iron Mistress" Chick with big ones and long legs in a metal bustier.

"Metal Maiden"....more of the same.

Still had panties, bras, and stuff hanging in the squadron bar.

All the military stuff I had imagined as a kid.

The "Tail-Hook" scandle put an end to all of that. The military got all uptight.

Sad to say even historical things like nose-art went by the wayside.

 

[transienttorque]

It was PR. The Memphis Belle was named for Morgan's fiance and the media used the romance angle.

I wonder who Hell's Angel was named after?

 

[Captain Morgan]

Probably someone's wife...