Col Robert Morgan, USAFR (Retired) will be at Hangar A, Booth
43
The commander of the
famous WWII B-17 bomber "Memphis Belle," as well as the B-29
"Dauntless Dotty," Col. Robert K. Morgan, USAFR (Retired) will be
present at Sun-N-Fun Hangar A, Booth 43, from April 12 through
April 19. At the booth, the Colonel will be helping with the
raising of funds for NUMA (National Underwater and Marine Agency)
for the purpose of searching for and retrieving Col. Morgan's B-29,
which crashed off the Kwajalein Atoll.
NUMA is world famous for locating and bringing up the
Confederate submarine "Hunley," now on display in Charleston, S.C.
The agency also located and filmed the ship "Carpathia," which
rescued survivors of Titanic.
"He's a damn good pilot. He always brought us home" These words
from a crew member of the B-17 "Memphis Belle" probably best sum up
Bob Morgan's military career. Commanded by Morgan, the B-17 Memphis
Belle was the first of the heavy bombers to achieve 25 missions
over Europe. The plane and her crew were immortalized in a 1943
combat documentary directed and filmed by William Wyler ; and again
in 1990 by a Warner Bros. Hollywood movie (produced by Wyler's
daughter, Catherine) - both were titled "Memphis Belle".
"There were no easy missions", says Morgan, who never lost a
crew member. "But, the secret to the B-17 was the capability of
flying in tight formations - so tight that the wings were often
almost touching. We were able to put out an amazing amount of
firepower. That, and the Norden Bomb Sight, which made us extremely
accurate at high altitudes. I also positively feel that was a bit
of divine intervention for our crew.
Morgan, born July 31, 1918 in Asheville, NC (he has lived his
entire life there) in the Western North Carolina Blue Ridge
Mountains, was a student of history and realized early on that
America would get into the war. After attending the University of
PA Wharton School of Finance, he joined the Army Air Corps in 1940.
His basic flight training took place in Camden, S.C.; Primary
Training at Bush Field, Augusta, GA; and Barksdale Field, LA; B-17
training at McDill Field, Tampa, FL; and Advanced B-17 Training in
Walla Walla, WA. On December 12, 1941 (five days after Pearl
Harbor), he pinned on his Pilot Wings and received his Second
Lieutenant bars.
In October 1942, Morgan flew the Memphis Belle to Bassingbourn,
England, home of the 91st Bomb Group, 324th Bombardment Squadron.
"Back then," Morgan recalls, "there was no book on high altitude
strategic bombing. The Generals didn't know anymore than we did.
They had to figure bombing strategy as we went along.. Initially,
the Memphis Belle flew missions into France and the Low Countries,
but in early 1943, Germany became the target.
In the first three months of the Belle's sorties from
Bassingbourn, 80% of their Bomb Group were shot down. Moral was
low, so the Generals set the completion of 25 missions as an
incentive for a man to go home. Morgan frequently speaks to school
kids and explains, "80% losses means you had breakfast with 10 men;
dinner with only 2 of those 10. On 17 May 43, the Memphis Belle
crew became the first to complete 25 missions; then return to the
United States on their 26th Mission..
In June 1943, the crew
departed England for the United States and began a 30-city Public
Relations/Warbond Tour. First stop - Washington Natl. Airport,
D.C., where Morgan was ordered to buzz the field. All the
dignitaries ducked when he made a low pass over the reviewing
stand. All through the tour the crew thanked the American public
for their war efforts. They told them what was really going on in
the war. The boys (Morgan was 23) were treated as heroes everywhere
they went. Wined and dined from June through August of '43. The red
carpet was rolled out in every city. They even took their mascot,
Stuka (a black Scottie dog), with them. The tour was an emotional,
but exhausting event for the crew, but an incredible moral boost
for them and the public. Then it was over. The Generals told the
crew they could have any job they wanted in the Air Corp. (except
theirs).
Morgan had seen the still secret B-29 during the tour in Wichita
and volunteered to train in this new bomber. He wanted to command
his own B-29 Squadron and he trained hard and earned it. In Oct
1944 he deployed to Saipan in his brand new B-29 named Dauntless
Dotty. They were assigned to the 20th AF, 73rd Bombardment Wing,
497th Group, 869th Squadron. On 24 Nov 44, Morgan made history with
another "first". With Gen. Rosie O'Donnell on board Dotty as
command pilot, Morgan led the first B-29 bombing raid on Tokyo
(this was the first time the U.S. had bombed Tokyo since the '42
Doolittle raid in B-25s). The mission was successful. After
completing another 24 B-29 missions, Morgan was sent home in April
1945. He continued to serve his country in the USAF Reserve and
retired in 1965 as a full Colonel.
At age 81, he still holds an active pilot's license and works
full-time in the real estate business and makes personal
appearances around the world. In April 1999 he was invited to fly
the Boeing B-52 at Barksdale AFB, Shreveport, LA and in October
1999, he was invited to fly the supersonic B-1B Bomber at Robins
AFB, Georgia. Robins subsequently named one of its B-1's "Memphis
Belle" and painted the new nose art on in February, 2000.
He and his wife, Linda (also a pilot), have five children
between them, and eight grandchildren. They own two Olde English
Sheepdogs and a mutt and are active in animal welfare.