Flight and Fright
I have always been interested in the military and wondered what it would be like to be a pilot, especially a fighter pilot. In our first class discussion we talked about the Ball Turret and read the Poem The Death of the Ball Turret Gunner by Randall Jarrell.
“From my mother’s sleep I fell into the State,
And I hunched in its belly till my wet fur froze.
I woke to black flak and the nightmare of fighters.
When I died they washed me out of the turret with a hose”.
The poem makes a symbolic interpretation that being a gunner was like a baby in a mother’s womb because the gunner was attached to the bottom of a B-17 or B-24 bomber. Our discussion also focused on a documentary film of a survivor of a ball turret gunner and his memories of the missions that he was sent on as a gunner. The poem and the film had a significant impact on me because I was able to understand the reality of what it was like to be a gunner. After the discussion I was so intrigued by the turret gunner that I looked at pictures of B-17’s and B-24’s and witnessed how small a person had to be to be a ball turret gunner.
As I read an article titled Bombs Away over Iraq I began to realize how much the air war has changed since WWI and WWII. In the article the authors indicate that “In the last 10 days, the military has dropped nearly 100,000 pounds of explosives on the area, which has been a gateway for Sunni militants into Baghdad.” Since WWII it may sound like a small number as the authors report.
“For those who know something about the history of air power, which, since World War II, has been lodged at the heart of the American Way of War, that 100,000 figure, might have rung a small bell”.
Since WWII and the ball turret gunners I think that the air war has changed significantly with technology and the advancement of intelligence in how to fight a war not only from the ground but from the air.
The theme of the ball turret gunner signifies fright and terror of being enclosed in such a small space of the belly of the bombers much like a mother’s womb. In today’s air war with Iraq, missions of fright continue, supporting our ground troops and convoying through red zones to eliminate the threat of IED’s.
“According to the Air Force Radio News an audio Pod cast from January 28 indicated that EOD flights (Explosive ordinance disposal) have been risking lives to defeat terrorist and their small arms. The Air Force EOD has destroyed over 23,000 small arms in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Air Force EOD has suffered more causalities than any other career field in the air force.”
The theme of fright and terror of air war still continues as these fighters battle a war clearing the way and giving up their safety for the safety of their companions below.
Bombs Away Over IraqBy Tom Engelhardt, Tomdispatch.com. Posted February 4, 2008. Air Force Radio NewsJanuary 28, 2008
