Lt. Col Leroy Engdahl 1919 – 2010
More sad news last week at the passing of 448th veteran Leroy Engdahl on 8th Feb. He was 90 years old.
I interviewed Leroy on camera at a group reunion in Orlando, Florida in May 2007. He was frail but in good spirits and was able to regale us with his stories. At one point Leroy was visibly upset during the interview as he described seeing the Statue of Liberty on his return to the States by ship into New York harbour. I think this is one of the enduring images I took from those interviews and definitely something I want to put up on screen.
The amazing thing about Leroy’s story (apart from his military service) is his efforts post-war to help get the old airfield control tower at Seething up and running as a memorial and a museum. I suppose if it weren’t for him I might never have become interested in the subject or started this project because the museum was the starting point for me.
Read an obituary here (with a few typos unfortunately)
And a little more info on Leroy here from The Liberator Legend: the plane and the people By Turner Publishing, Philip A. St. John
This is one of my favourite photos of Leroy, talking to local children from Seething Primary School (I think), taken in 1984.
Courtesy of Patricia Everson.
S/Sgt Robert Saffir. 1923-2009. Gunner 713sqdn 448th
Hey Eliot, thanks for commenting and posting this. Maybe we could put together a brief bio for Robert Saffir? I’m trying to gather short bios and get people involved.
This past weekend I was fortunate enough to be in Austin, Texas when the Ghost Confederate Air Force was there with a fully restored and running B24. I toured the plane and was allowed to sit in the pilots seat, as my father did a lifetime ago. I tried to imagine the pure adrenaline and fear that must have coursed through my father’s body every time he took off on a mission, never knowing if it would be his last.
What courageous men these were!
Hi Anita, thanks for commenting. It was a real pleasure to meet Leroy and interview him at the 2007 reunion. Sorry for your loss. I am still working on a film and hope to get something out by next year. Would you like to be inlcuded in my project updates email? I can sign you up? Very jealous about the ride in the Liberator. One day, one day.