Page 9 - Aerotech News and Review, October 2, 2020

High Desert Hangar Stories
The miracle —

and the mystery

— of Sgt. Harry

M. Hayes’ Flying

Fortress

by Bob Alvis took the most difficult of flying instru-
special to Aerotech News ments — the B-17 Flying Fortress —
from Java to Australia. One thousand
Thumbing through an old copy of three hundred miles, without charts or
Bulaero, the base paper for Lancast- maps; the plane faltering; overloaded
er’s War Eagle Field in World War II, with 18 men, women and children,
a small article titled “Are the days of (and) landed it without flaps — a mir-
miracles past?” caught my eye. acle all by itself, and delivered the refu-
After reading it a couple of times, gees unharmed. Ten minutes later, an
I set a course to find out some more astonished, stunned board of air corps
about the “miracle.” I suppose it’s not officers forthwith declared the giant
too surprising that not much was out plane useless and unfit for service of
there in the information world (mir- any kind and had it dismantled.
acles are mysterious by nature, after “His Flying Fortress (had) taken off
all), but the one thing that had me re- with four hundred feet less runway than Courtesy photograph
ally scratching my head was an article an empty plane of its type is supposed A B-17 Flying Fortress over the Philippines during World War II.
posted just this year from over San to need; but this shot, battered, patched
Bernardino way, referencing the same giant, carrying hundreds of pounds tial, but he flew it, kept it airborne and a prayer. The average competent pi- account on the bomber group’s web
incident written about in my old copy more weight than a new one could or when he found Australia and the field, lot used to large military craft would page, but it was lacking any more de-
of Bulaero. First, let’s take a look at the should, got off and was airborne with he brought that weighted, war-shattered think a long time before attempting that tail than this original World War II-era
original account of that famous flight. plenty of runway footage to spare. crate down without wing flaps to check flight in one of those giant fortresses. article shared.
Heroic performances, perhaps more “The engines had been rebuilt by his speed and keep it balanced, and he He would want a trained copilot, at Now for the real mystery: while re-
often than we think, rest on the sub- frantic Dutch mechanics while the landed it as softly as a feather. least a few hours of dual instruction, searching this story, I came across a
lime faith that with the help of God, airfield in Java was constantly being “The Prayer, ‘Hold thou me up and and most certainly along with full fuel website from a reporter for a paper over
all things are possible. Imbued with bombed by the Japanese. Pieces of I shall be safe’ is one that the air pilot tanks and a flawless oiling system, he in San Bernardino that was published
such faith, the soldiers of World War two other planes were used to patch may well make with its attendant re- would want flaps. just this summer and, to my amaze-
II, our American boys and Allies on a this Flying Fortress. Eighteen desperate alization. Prayer is the first and chief In times of desperation, something ment, he told the story pretty much
thousand foreign fields, were achiev- men, women and children were packed essential.” happens to man. It happened to Ser- as I have done here — but instead of
ing what would be impossible to them into its aluminum shell and then Hayes Only those who have piloted an geant Hayes. Faith is not a much- Sergeant Hayes being the hero, a local
without it. climbed aboard, sat down in the wreck aircraft can appreciate to the full the talked about subject when it comes man named Gerald Leo Cherymisin
The story of one hero, Sgt. Harry M. and gunned it, felt his way with the rich, tremendous miracle of this flight. to the exploits of men facing pressure was named as the pilot of this miracle
Hayes from San Antonio, Texas, was controls and got it wobbling into the Not a pilot or an officer — more a in combat situations, but the story of flight!
first inked by Whitney Bolton in his air. He turned its nose to the sea and mechanic, with a slight feel for pilot- Sergeant Hayes and his gigantic feat The story is a reality, as it does have
column in the Newark Evening News. prayed he would find Australia. His ing — Hayes took 18 doomed souls to cannot close without stating that if a legs in the Associated Press and other
“Hayes, with only the slightest instrument board lacked most of the safety in a plane “held together” with man ever needed some sign that there local newspaper archives. Even my
knowledge of flying any kind of plane, gauges that would be deemed essen- string, chewing gum, wire, canvas and is a divine power which helps those in copy of Bulaero can attest to it, but
need, this would have been the time.
Hayes needed it on that flight and with somewhere along the way it appears to
all things considered, that a precious have disappeared into a fog bank and
cargo of men, women and children emerged bearing some elements of leg-
safely made this astonishing flight end. Maybe some time in the future, a
seems to me to be reliable proof that, person will come forth with a bit more
on that flight, he received it. information about this story, and the
After reading this story, I noticed reason we now have two different pi-
that it was released by the Associated lots performing the miracle flight. Just
Press in World War II and I went dig- a couple shades off from being a Twi-
ging for more to the story and to see light Zone episode, but with miracles
if I could learn more about Sergeant and divine intervention, I’m not going
Harry M. Hayes, but the many wells to mess with the reasons surrounding
of information I went to have come up this one!
pretty dry. I did find this story and its Until next time, Bob Out …

Bulaero was the
base paper for
Lancaster’s War
Eagle Field in
World War II.

Courtesy photograph
A B-17 Flying Fortress over the Pacific Ocean during World War II. Courtesy photograph

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