18th Annual 1940’s Hangar Dance

Saturday September 13, 2008

Corporate Air Hangar, Allegheny County Airport, West Mifflin, PA

Featuring

“The Beaver Bop Cats”

Glenn Miller style band

40’s Attire Encouraged

 Catered Meal

Dinner at 6:30

Beer (Must be 21 or Over)

Soda Pop & Snacks Provided

We will Honor 3 WWII Veterans

Tickets: $30.00 person

(Non Refundable)

Doors Open 6:00 PM

Last year's Hangar Dance

The Keystone Wing of the Commemorative Air Force

had our 17th Annual Hangar Dance Sept. 15, 2007

Our 2007 Honorees were:

S/Sgt. E. Dale McCoy

January 19, 1943 an eighteen year old E. Dale McCoy enlisted in the Army Air Corps. He took his basic training at Miami Beach FL and then went on to Gunnery school in Ft. Myers FL. At the end of training a notice appeared on the bulletin board stating that 100 gunners were needed immediately over seas in ETO      (European Theater of Operations). Dale immediately volunteered. He was transferred to Presque Isle, ME where he was assigned to a crew and a new B-17E bomber. They proceeded to Goose Bay, Labrador then Iceland and finally landing in Prestwick Scotland. Eventually Dale was assigned to the 92nd B.G., 325 B.S. at Alconbury England where he flew five missions. His group was then moved to Podington England where Dale served the rest of his tour until November of 1945.     

Dale became separated from his original crew after getting frostbite on his face around his oxygen mask. His crew went up several days later with a replacement gunner, but never came back.

After that Dale was a replacement gunner, flying on different bombers that needed a replacement. He flew as a replacement until the end of his tour.

Dale says that he flew on some “pretty hairy” missions. He flew over Schweinfurt Germany bombing ball bearing factory’s, was part of the first raid on Berlin and flew as “Toggileer” in the nose of the airplane. He flew over Stettin Poland where one of his best friends was shot down. Dale also participated in several long flight missions over Poland, Norway and the Ruhr Valley bombing steel mills. Dale was credited with 23 missions.

Dale was discharged in November of 1945 at Camp Atterbury, Indiana at the rank of Staff Sergeant. In his civilian career Dale was worked for a utility company.

T/Sgt. Charles P. Homitsky

Charles Homitsky enlisted into the Army Air Force on June 10, 1942. He was eighteen years old. He took basic training at Fort Indian Town Gap PA. He was trained as a radio operator/gunner and assigned to the 463 B.G., 775 squadron, where he flew on B-17’s based at Celone Airbase, Foggia, Italy.

Charles flew an amazing fifty one missions during WWII. Many of the mission targets were Ploesti, Rumania (which had about 10 miles of oil fields, refineries and cracking plants) Weiner Nuestadt in Linz Austria, where the Herman Goering Tank Works was located, Blechamer Germany where there were synthetic oil refineries, and Regensburg Germany where there were fighter assembly plants.   

One of the strongest defended targets in Europe by fighters and ACK ACK (Anti Aircraft guns) was Ploesti, Rumania. While bombing over the Ploesti target the hydraulic was shot out on their B-17. This meant they had no hydraulic to lower the

landing gear and no flaps or brakes to slow the plane when landing. They crippled their way back home with the escort of two P-38 fighters. Upon arriving at their base, Charles’ plane   was forced to land on a dirt field in case the landing gear did    not hold up. They came to rest on top of a stack of bombs in a British ammo dump. The fire trucks and ambulances came to their rescue but no one was seriously injured, Thank God.

For his service Charles received no less than ten Air Medals including a Presidential Citation. Charles was discharged on October 30, 1945 but was recalled to service in 1950 to serve in the Korean War as a Radar Navigator operator flying on the C-82 Flying Boxcar. Charles was discharged from the Air Force reserves on November 11, 1952 as a Tech Sergeant.

 In his civilian career Charles was a school teacher at Forbes Road East Technical School and Community College.

Capt. John Opeka

February 2, 1942 at age 24 John Opeka enlisted in the Army Air Force.  He was trained at the Pilots Replacement Center, Kelley Field TX. John was assigned to the Mediterranean Theater of Operations flying on B-25 Mitchell’s. John flew as navigator. John says of the Missions he flew on that some were milk runs and some were extremely dangerous. One mission that started as a milk run quickly turned dangerous when they were jumped by German FW 190’s. Upon landing back at their base it became evident just how dangerous the mission had become.

“January 1944 when we landed on the pierced steel runway at Ghisonaccia-Gare the first sight we saw was shot up B-25C just off the end of the runway. It was a mess. The formation had been attacked by FW 190”s and this aircraft had been hard hit. The nose gear was extended and locked but not the main gear. The pilot, Lt. Arnoult did a great job in landing mostly on the B-25”s tail skid so the landing damage was light. There were hundreds of 20mm and machine gun bullet holes in the fuselage and wings. It had crash landed ground looping to the right and stopping just off of the runway. The damage was not only to the aircraft but to its crew. Wounded were the top turret gunner, co-pilot, radio gunner and photographer. Later that afternoon the aircraft was dragged to the “bone yard” and cannibalized for whatever good parts were left.”

John flew 51 missions in his 46 months of service and was discharged at the rank of Captain. John received the Distinguished Flying Cross, Airman’s Medal with 6 clusters, and three campaign medals. 

John was inducted into the Soldiers and Sailors hall of Valor in 1995. In his civilian career John worked in the automobile service industry.

Sgt. Peter C. Kuhn

In 1942 at age 21 Peter Kuhn was drafted into military service. Peter did his basic training at Sea Girt, New Jersey and joined the Signal Corps.

Peter served 28 months in the Islands of New Guinea as a “high speed” radio operator. They were servicing the Air Force’s First, Fifth, Thirteenth, and finally after arriving in Manila, the Twentieth division. Peter served on nine different islands, including Lae, Micne Bay, Fwcghaven, Hollanou, Biak, Nadzab, Morotai, Leyte, and Manila.

At the end of the war Peter was hospitalized due to a severe case of jungle rot. Peter writes “Jungle rot was caused from getting in and out of fox holes without any cover on your

body. On many of the islands conditions were such that we did not get any air raid warnings. When the bombs started dropping, no matter what you were doing, you ran for the fox holes, clothed or not.”

On Morotai Peter states that they were “very lucky” as the Japs bombed their radio shack just one week after they had moved to a new one. Peter was discharged after 34 months of service, in August of 1945 at the rank of Sergeant.

In his civilian career Peter worked as a steel worker for 32 years and as Vice President of a fraternal organization for twelve years.

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Commemorative Air Force, Inc.