From the Jan. 11, 2011, Washington Post
William "Bill" Bower died January 10, 2011.
Bill Bower remembered skimming along just barely above the water for 600 miles on his way to bomb Yokohoma, 25 miles south of Tokyo, and being struck by its beauty before opening his bomb bay doors and unleashing retaliation for Pearl Harbor. Facing heavy anti-aircraft fire, he dropped his bombs on the dockyard and oil refinery.
Fleeing to China, he faced strong headwinds and stormy weather. By 11 PM, one of his engnes had died well before reaching his rendezvous at Chuchow, China. he pulled his aircraft up to 10,000 feet and order the other four to bail out.
When they had done so, Col. Bower approached the escape hatch when the second engine died.
He bailed out with only a compass, his father's WW I-issue .45 caliber sidearm, tow packs of Lucky Stripes and matches after saying goodbye to his plane he called the Werewolf.
Once on the ground, he wrapped himself in his parachute and slept until daybreak and hiked for several hours until Chinese villagers found him and gave him food.
He later met up with other Raiders. For the deed, he received the Distinguished Flying Cross. he was born in 1917 in Ravenna, Ohio.
One of the Greatest. --GreGen
The USS North Carolina (BB-55) My all-time favorite warship. As an elementary school student in North Carolina, I donated nickels and dimes to save this ship back in the early sixties.
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