We Came To Fight A War

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We Came to Fight a War: The Story of a B-17 Radio Gunner and His Pilot

as remembered by Alvin E. Kotler and told to Jack Flynn

On 15 April 1945, 1st Lt Bill Flynn completed his 25th bombing mission flying a B-17 with the 346th Bomb Sqdn, 99th Bomb Group. On 25 May 1945, he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for “extraordinary achievement" in combat. In July of that same year, at a General Court Martial, he was accused of “buzzing,” convicted of manslaughter and the destruction of government property. People were intimidated and encouraged to lie and 20-year-old Lt Flynn was stripped of his rank and benefits, dishonorably discharged, and sentenced to hard labor at a Federal Prison in New York. This book was written by Lt Flynn's radio gunner, Al Kotler, and Bill's brother, Jack Flynn. You will meet Bill, Al, and the rest of their crew, and fly with them on missions out of Foggia, Italy. Bill is no longer here to defend himself, so Al and Jack combined forces to present the full story of what really happened and to right a terrible wrong.

Contents

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
DEDICATION
PROLOGUE
AL’S STORY
- The Italian Alps
- The Early Years
- Pre-Flight
- Radio and Gunnery
- OTU (Operational Training Unit) Al Meets Bill and the Crew
- Off To Italy
THE WAR
- Back to the Alps
- Were We on Schindler’s List?
- The Importance of Ice Cream
- Reflections
- A Day at the Beach or What?
- The Tuskegee Guys
- The Missions that Weren’t
WALTER … OR WHO PEED ON MY TURRET?
- O’Neil’s .50 Caliber Oops
- Heads Up … or Out
- Moe
- The Milk Run
- Anoxia, or the Little Red Bead
- R & R: The Isle of Capri
- The Blue Grotto
- “Old Folks”
THE TRANSITION
- Just a Dog?
POST WAR
- Not Here. Not Now
- The Pursuit of Happiness
- Discharged
- Getting My Life Together Again
- Surprised, Shocked and Outraged
- Changes
- Thoughts About Bill
THE SMOKING GUN
EPILOGUE
AFTERWORD

Specifications

First edition (February 2009)
148 - 6 x 9 inch pages
Paperback ISBN 978-0-557-04781-9 - $18.95
- Perfect bound, full-color wrap-around cover
Hardcover ISBN 978-0-557-04925-7 - $34.95
- Blue linen cover with title stamped in gold on spine, full-color dust jacket
PDF file on CD disk - $10.00
- Complete copy of the book including the cover images in a single PDF file
- Not available as a download - will be sent by first class mail in U.S., airmail elsewhere
39,000 words
33 photos, illustrations, documents

Reviews and Testimonials

[May be submitted by email, regular mail, or using the site's Product Review feature below.]

Recently I read We Came To Fight A War. It was so descriptive you could almost see it happening and it was so well written that I could not put the book down because I wanted to see what would happen next to those brave men that were putting their lives on the line for us. I love war stories especially if they are fact. This story I am sure is true because I personally know Al Kotler. He is a neighbor and good friend of mine. It is hard to even try to imagine what our men are going through in these terrible wars when you try to picture what HELL this small group of men went through. You have a BEST SELLER in this book and I think it would also make a truly wonderful movie for TV.
Rita Sullivan, Canton, Massachusetts via mail [the emphasis in the message is Rita's]

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