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Original
illustration
by Joe Jones.
Created as a testament to the steadfast courage of navigator, Lloyd Mitchell
and the young air crew of Kipling's Error III, this truly took a "maximum
effort" to accurately capture this event in time that took place during one
specific air mission flown on July 28th, 1943 high over the West Coast in
Oschersleben, Germany.
Staggering amounts of research along with the eyewitness accounts from
surviving crew members and personal interviews with many Air Corps veterans were
necessary to make certain this work was accurate down to the rivet count in
visually recreating this desperate air battle the crew of of Kipling's Error III
fought and survived in July, 1943.
On the morning of the 28th they were reportedly ambushed through thick cloud
cover by as many as 200 German fighters and witnessed another group's lead
ship being hit in the bomb bay while carrying incendiary bombs that morning. It is
mentioned that the explosion was so terrific that it caused the downing of the
other two wingships as well. These accounts were documented in the diarys of
Lloyd Mitchell and waist gunner, Staff Sgt. Leo Laky in vivid detail.
Soon after completing this piece in late July, I had the great personal
privilege of a rare visit with navigator, Lloyd Mitchell. With a tear in his eye, it
was one of the most profound moments in my life when he slowly turned and said
to me, "That's exactly how I remember it, you just nailed it!!". I've never
known anything more rewarding. To top it off, As fate would have it,
coincidentally the next day was, July 28th, 2003, I kindly asked Lloyd to sign two artist
proofs for me, 60 years to the day of this infamous air battle.
In October 2003, as a personal guest of WWII 96th Bomber Group at the 8th Air
Force reunion held in Colorado Springs, I had the unexpected
privilege of being introduced to the commander of Kipling's Error III himself, Ruben
Neie. Months of sleepless nights were instantly rewarded as Ruben's response
to the illustration was overwhelming. There are few things in my life so
gratifying to me than to see this print in the hands of so many of these legendary
men that we owe so much to. Thank you gentlemen all!!
As the sacrifices and achievements of what is considered to be the "Greatest
Generation" are all too often overlooked and taken for granted, I feel no
greater obligation than honoring these great men and preserve this tremendously
important heritage. I hope you feel the same and enjoy this piece!
If you have any interest in aviation and flying yourself, we encourage you to
start first by contacting your local EAA chapter. You can find your local
chapters through the Web at: eaa.org.
Look for this illustration in the upcoming "Adobe Illustrator CS Bible"
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