Wings of Tru Love author Kenneth C Drinnon joined the
United States Army Air Force in 1943 and served in the
European Theater as a B17 ball-turret gunner with the 8th
Air Force, 487th Heavy Bomb Group, and 838th Squadron.
He fl ew thirty-four aerial combat missions form October 22,
1944 to February 28, 1945 over Nazi, Germany and attained
the rank of Staff Sergeant before being discharged in 1945.
There were several notable bombing missions, including
the synthetic oil refi neries at Merseberg, Germany and
several against transportation facilities in support of the
Army ground forces during the Battle of the Bulge, but
the one most remembered by aviators of the 487th Bomb
Group was December 24, 1944 when General Frederick
W. Castle was killed while leading a two thousand plane
bomber mission for the Eight Air Force and piloting the
lead plane of the 487th Bomb Group. Both the 487th Bomb
Group and the Luftwaffe suffered many casualties during
an aerial gun battle.
