Yeager’s Last World War II Mission – Missing the Biggest Battle of the Year

Jan 15, 1945 Yeager’s buddy was the scheduler and had scheduled Yeager and himself as spares that day –  Yeager’s 61st and last WWII mission. No one aborted so Yeager led his buddy on a tour of southern France where he had been shot down, Lake Annecy, Geneva and then to Switzerland. They each dropped their wing fuel tanks made of paper mache and playfully used them as target practice.  Then they wound their way back to base in Leiston.

The crew chief came running up, seeing that they had dropped their tanks and had fired their guns, excitedly asked, “How many did you get?”

What?

Yeager recalls with disappointment that he missed the biggest battle that day; fifty-seven German planes were destroyed by their squadron.

But he made it through the war and after long 16 months, was about to be headed home to his lover and soon to be his wife, Glennis.

c. VSY