Beats Walkin'Operation: Mission 86 Königsberg
6 July, 1944
Crew: Pilot: F/L Jake Houston; Bomb aimer F/O Reggie Newhouse; Navigator Sgt. Abe Hanover; Flt. Eng. Sgt. Ormond Pearling; W/O Sgt. Brian Hostler; Mid-upper Sgt. Cecil Harding; Tail gunner Sgt. Thomas Leeland
Opposition outbound: We were hardly into Germany when a Me 110 attacked. He was spotted by the tail gunner who sent him down in flames. (Me-110 Destroyed — Tail gunner Sgt. Tom Leeland) The next attack came as we started the bomb run. I don't know how he spotted us in the soup we were flying through, but spot us he did, and put holes into the pilot's wind screen and gave Flight an awful headache. On his second pass he knocked out the bomb sight and seriously wounded Bomb aimer Newhouse. His third pass he set fire to the outboard tank and destroyed no. 4. With Reggie wounded, no bomb sight, and on three engines I kicked us around and aborted. Needless to say, we were all greatly disappointed; we had flown a long distance and were within sight of the flares over the target.
Flak: None near us
Bomb run: Didn't bomb.
Opposition homeward: We were attacked immediately after turning by 110 which put a lot of rounds into the wing root and destroyed the raft. Mid-upper hit him bad enough that he didn't come back for a second pass (FBOA — Sgt. Cecil Harding). We weren't attacked again until over the North Sea and close to home; a Me-110 made the mistake of trying to get past Leeland at the tail guns. He blew him away before he could get off a shot (Me-110 Destroyed — Tail gunner Thomas Leeland), Tom's second for the night!
Landing: Okay
Crew casualties: Bomb aimer F/O Reggie Newhouse — serious wound
Comments: A long way to go for nothing except a couple Kraut knocked out of the war.
(signed) F/L Jake Houston, Pilot, Beats Walkin'