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Last Updated on 01/10/99
The
Capa Photograph
This is a photograph taken by Robert Capa, the famous WWII combat photographer.This photograph was taken near the end of LRC's tour of duty in North Africaas evidenced by the ten victories indicated on the fuselage. This photo has appeared in many books, but is often incorrectly captioned. Most commonly these publications refer to LRC as a "cocky fighter pilot" in the Battleof Britain. Why this photograph became mislabeled is a mystery, but may be related to the fact that LRC often wore a flying helmet of British origin.
LRC
Enlists in the Army Air Corps
This is a photograph of the group of college students who enlisted as cadets in the Army Air Corps along with LRC in Syracuse, N.Y. LRC was in his junior year at Syracuse when he decided to enlist. He was convinced that war was going to occur soon, and that he wanted to be in the air and not on the ground. LRC had no flying experience prior to enlisting.
A photo of LRC as an aviation cadet in Class 41G, Spring 1941 at MaxwellAFB,Alabama. As an aside, when LRC and family were stationed at Maxwell AFBin the mid-fifties, we were quartered in the same facilities that had served as barracks for the cadets.
A wonderful photograph of my parents on their wedding day in Nofolk,Virginia.April 9, 1942. LRC married Jean Strong of Warwick, N.Y. They met in LRC's hometown of Cortland, N.Y. where she was teaching high school
Red
Scarf Guerrillas
"One-Man
Wave of Terror" (Book Excerpts)
This photo was taken in North Africa during LRC's
tour of duty withthe 33rd Fighter Group, also known as the "The Fighting
Nomads". However, because of the tactics they were forced adopt to deal
with superior Lufwaffe forces, parts of the unit became known as the "Red
Scarf Guerillas".The group gained notoriety also for being led for a time
by Phil Cochran, who served as the prototype hero for the "Terry and the
Pirates" comic strip. I am still researching this photo, but the caption
on the back states:Maneely, "the Boss", McBride, George Neal, "Little Dick"
Coulter, leading me to believe that this picture was taken after LRC assumed
command of the 60th Squadron of the 33rd Fighter Group. Cochran dubbed
LRC his "One-Man Wave of Terror" for his aggressive and relentless pursuit
and attack of enemy targets.
LRC
receives the Croix de Guerre
LRC was awarded the Croix de Guerre for action
on Dec. 22, 1942 southof Djeba Bou Dabouse, Tunisia in which he provided
close air support and downed a Junkers-88 which was bombing French positions.
The reproduced news wire photograph of the award ceremony is shown here
with the captionas follows:"For their feats in aiding French troopers fighting
in Tunisia, three American pilots of P-40 Warhawk airplanes are awared
the Croix deGuerre by General Mendinal, commander of French air forces
in North Africa, in a simple ceremony at an advanced base. The Americans
are: left to right Col. William W. Momyer,Seattle, Wash. who shot down
eight enemy planes; (unreadable for secondpilot); and.....Levi R. Chase,
Cortland N.Y."
A dispatch to the New York Times from the Tunisian
front which details air engagements on and around March 15, 1943. LRC is
briefly mentioned for the downing of the Machi 202.
This is a photograph of LRC that I had not seen
until very recently.It was sent to me by George E. Dively, Jr., who is
the historian for the33rd Fighter Group. He got the picture from Michael
Cohen. The original caption for the photo was "Tunis, Africa, 1943. Major
Chase, Capt. Gray, MajorBradley.....Feelin High". One must assume by my
father's rank and the location, that the boys had claimed victory at a
local watering hole and were soon to be headed stateside having completed
their combat tour. My thanks go to George for sending the picture.
This photo was taken on Aug. 8, 1943 at 8 Maple
Ave. Cortland, NY whenLRC was back home from North Africa after becoming
a ten victory ace (two kills were added later during his deployment to
Burma). The officer on the left is Thomas J. O'Hara, Jr., the officer on
the right is his brother, Richard K. O'Hara. The information I have on
these two officers is that they were B-17 pilots.
LRC with kids from the old neighborhood in Cortland,
N.Y. This photo was shot when LRC was home from North Africa. A big parade
was held and there was a Levi R. Chase, Jr. Day to celebrate LRC's accomplishments
during his tour in Tunisia with the 33rd Fighter Group.
Upon returning from his combat tour
in North Africa and following some well-deserved leave, LRC went on tour
to help sell war bonds at numerous rallies. He also visited a number of
war plants. Outstanding among these was a visit to the Curtiss factory
in Buffalo, N.Y. where the P-40 Warhawkswere manufactured. LRC was highly
complimentary of the P-40'scharacteristics in combat, despite the age of
the aircraft design and its inherent limitations.That the P-40 could stand
up to superior enemy fighteraircraft is evident from the number of ME109's
downed by LRC. The P-40 was a rugged fighter,and it could out turn almost
anything else in the air. This photograph accompanies a brief article
in which LRC provides comments to the press on the progress of the war
effort and cautions against complacency.
LRC is shown in the photo on the left with with Capt. John Allison and Col. Phil Cochran.
Capt. Allison was a noted P-40 ace (ten victories in the China-Burma-India theatre),
and LRC flew with Phil Cochran in North Africa as mentioned above. My best guess is
that this photograph was taken when all three men toured the Curtiss-Wright aircraft factory in Buffalo, N.Y. after LRC had returned from North Africa. The photo on the right accompanies a propoganda piece which mentions the visit and also praises the P-40 as a fighter.
All three officers shown here are founding inductees of the USAF Special Operations Hall of Fame for their service in the CBI theatre.
LRC having dinner and drinks with his good friend,
Captain Jim Gray, who flew with him in North Africa. I don't know the date
or details of this picture, but my best guess is that it was taken between
the North African combat tour and the deployment with the 2nd Air Commandos.
Sincethe discovery of the photo from Tunis (see above) I'm not entirely
certain this photo might not have been shot in a restaraunt there.
This photo was taken sometime during Spring, 1945
at the 2nd Air Commando Group base at Cox's Bazaar in India. I believe
this picture was taken sometime after LRC assumed command of the 1st Provisional
Fighter Group. Prior to this he had been the Operations Officer for the
2nd Air CommandoGroup.
This photo shows a P-51D of the 1st Fighter Squadron
of the Second AirComman dos. I'm fairly certain that LRC is not the pilot
of this plane.Note that the 1st Sqdn. had black propeller spinners and
the 2nd Sqdn.hadwhite spinners. Col. Robert Eason, in correspondence with
me, has indicatedthat LRC individualized his spinner by having it painted
eit her red and blue or red, white and blue.
LRC planned and led one of the longest (if not
the longest) raids of WWII by fighter aircraft. Flying P-51 Mustangs
from their base at Cox'sBazaar in India, the two squadronsof the 2nd Air
Commando struck at DonMuang Airfield north of Bangkok for the first time
on March 15, 1945. The raid covered over 1,500 miles (2413 km) round trip.
The mission called for precise navigation and fuel management, but accomplished
the task of deep penetration to strike at what were supposed to be secure
rear staging areas for the remnantsof the Japanese Air Force in the China-Burma-India
theatre.The detailsof the raid and the Counter-Air campaign of the 2nd
Air Commandos appear in the Spring 1994 issue of Air Enthusiast Magazine
by Edward Young. The fighter squadrons of the 2nd Air Commandos recieved
a DistinguishedUnit Citation for the raids on Don Muang Field and LRC was
awarded theSilverStar for his role in planning and leading the mission.
One of the most dramatic events of LRC's tour
of duty in Burma was his rescue from deep behind enemy lines after he
was shot down by ground fire following a long-range penetration raid on
Mwrabi(see table above). He managed to crash land his Mustang and escape
serious injury. Meanwhile, unknown to him, several of his fellow
pilots flew to land at the nearest base and comandeer a couple L-5 scout planes.
They returned to the crash site, landed, and picked him up, saving him
from being captured by nearby japanese patrols. The link above will take
you to a first hand recounting of the incident which appeared in a confidential
intelligence summary. The story also eventually made its way into the newspapers.
Click here to view a newspaper account of the rescue. The
source paper of the article is unknown (it was rescued from a scrapbook. As a last note, the pilots who rescued my
father,Bobby Spann and Robert Eason, are still living today. Mr. Eason spoke at
LRC's funeral services in 1994, and it was a thrill for me to meet him. I hope both
these men will always be remembered for the courage and initiative they showed in carrying out the rescue.
Following the conclusion of WWII, LRC and family
returned to his hometown of Cortland, N.Y. The family moved into a big
house on Church Street, which was always full, since th ree boys, a cousin
or two, Grandpa and several coeds from Cortland State University were rooming
there. During this period LRC held several jobs but then decided
to commute to attend law school in Albany, N.Y. One of the most notable
events of the period was his role in rescuing several college girls from
a burning house across the street.Civilian life did not last long and came
to a rapid conclusion when the Korean Conflict broke out. As it turns out,
the Air Force needed some men with a litt le combat experience.
LRC was proud father to six sons. He's shown here
in 1946 with the threeoldest boys Geoffrey, Levi III, and Seth (l. to r.).
Three more sons (Thomas,Philip, and Stephen) were born later on,
during and following the Korean Conflict.
Flight logs from North African campaign. Each of these pages was scanned directly from duplicates in LRC's personal Form 5 file.
Aerial victories are also recorded. Hit the back button on your browser to return here.
New
York Times Article detailing March 15th engagements
LRC
at home between combat tours
LRC
with Phil Cochran and John Allison 
Praising the P-40
P-51D
of the 2nd Air Commandos
Rescue
of LRC from behind Japanese Lines (HTML page w/photo)
Civlian Life
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by Thomas E. Chase © 1998 |
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tec1212@brookings.net
