Four Warhawks strung out and put their noses down through the clouds. The Kamaing bridge was going down. Lt. Adair was leader and he is a bridge buster. Down they go and it is bombs away. As the run was completed four Japs flashed into them.
Touch and go everything happens in a hurry. A Jap – sight him – lead – fire – Break away– look around – pull up – look around -line up your Jap -Dive – lead – fire- Break away – pull up – look around- join anywhere near you. Add this confusion to throttle settings – watch your airspeed – look around – emergency power – look around – evade that flock of tracers – look around – look around- look around.
They’re gone – No there is a lone one just below the clouds.
Get him. As they dive on them,the bait flees and ten more enemy fighters dash out of the clouds to get to the Warhawks. Fight as a team as long as you can. Stick together as long as possible. Fight. LT Adair dives into a cloud and comes out beside a Jap he had just fired on. They were wing to wing with the Jap in trouble. He was going down with one wing and it’s Auxiliary tank burning. The Jap appeared to be dead in the cockpit his head was slumped forward.
LT O’Connor, “little Okie” they call him had an explosive slam his canopy. Glass splintered and entered his shoulder. There was a patter like rain on his ship. He took a beating before he got away.
LT Roger’s, element leader, knocked down one of them and damaged another, but he took a beating, too. He knew he had been hit. When he landed he found he had a flat tire. His ship, like Lieutenant O’Connors was plenty freckled up with explosive shot. The tail wheel door was even shot off.
Lt Adair got another after he watched his first one go in. He was trying to get his boys together. Four together can make a better fight than four lone wolves. But the fight was all over- just like that.
LT Martinez, wing man to Lieutenant Adair, put some traces into a couple of the enemy. They were hit but they just wouldn’t go down. He broke off and re-joined the flight to go home.
Bombing results unobserved due to enemy interference.
Note: This account is believed to have been written by an unnamed member of the Burma Banshees, perhaps Brad Shuman, perhaps intelligence officer Reeder or Bill Harrell. It was located in the files of fellow Burma Banshee member Philip Adair.