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1st
Lt Carl H. Gabriel
Bombardier
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Gabriel,
Carl H., First Lieutenant, 62nd Bombardment Squadron, 39th Bombardment
Group, Air Corps, United States Army is awarded the Distinguished
Flying Cross for extraordinary achievement while participating
in aerial flight 5 June 1945 on a bombing mission against the
industrial area of Kobe, Japan. These individuals were combat
crew members of a B-29 aircraft which led a successful medium-altitude
daylight strike from a base in the Marianas against that extremely
important target. When they arrived at the assembly point, bad
weather interfered, making it necessary to proceed instead to
the reassembly point. The plane originally scheduled to lead the
formation did not arrive, and they assumed the lead, guiding the
formation from assembly to the target, despite heavy cloud cover
and intense enemy opposition all along the route. During the bombing
run, they were attacked from all quarters by both single-engined
and twin-engined enemy fighters, which dropped numerous phosphorus
bombs. The airplane was damaged by anti-aircraft fire during the
run, but with cool determination and outstanding skill these crewmen
maintained the airplane and the formation on the bombing run.
All projectiles landed squarely on the target, and smoke was observed
to rise to a height of 18,000 feet. The courage and fortitude
displayed by these veteran combat crewmen, together with their
outstanding professional skill in an important assignment reflect
great credit on themselves and the Army Air Forces.
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