We thought every mission was going to be our last
As Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks bring the thrilling exploits of the Bloody 100th to TV in Masters of the Air, the US bomb group’s last surviving pilot, John ‘Lucky’ Luckadoo, 101, reflects on his incredible survival… and why we must never forget their s
RIDDLED with bullet holes and gaping gashes from anti-aircraft flak, John Luckadoo’s B-17 Flying Fortress bomber limped back over the English coastline, barely making it home after a hair-raising bombing run over Germany at the height of the Second World War.
When he joined the US 8th Air Force in 1942, he was one of 40 new pilots with the 100th bomb group. Only four survived to complete their tour of duty.
No wonder his nickname was “Lucky”. Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks have reunited to produce a blockbuster new series – Masters of the Air, dubbed Band of Brothers in the skies – about Luckadoo’s legendary bomb group, which suffered such extreme casualties that it became famed as The Bloody 100th. Having first worked together on the D-Day drama Saving Private Ryan, it will be the pair’s third major Second World War TV series, following 2001’s acclaimed Band of Brothers, about the war in Europe, and the 2010 mini-series The Pacific.
Now 101, Luckadoo is the last surviving pilot from the Bloody 100th – and he will be watching when Masters of the Air debuts on Apple+ on Friday.
But he doesn’t need a drama series to remind him how every mission over Europe was a perilous game of Russian roulette.
“Every time we flew, friends were shot down and never came back,” he recalls, the memories still vivid. “There would be 10 empty bunks in the barracks where they’d been alive that morning.We knew that every mission could be our last.
“We were afraid, constantly afraid, but we had no choice.We were fighting for freedom and democracy, and had to be ready to lay down our lives.
“Watching Masters of the Air will bring back poignant and painful memories. But honestly, they remain as fresh for me as yesterday – and I can never forget my fallen colleagues.”
In a murderous air war, where the average bomber crew was lucky to fly 12 combat missions before being shot down, Luckadoo was one of the rare few to survive 25 missions and earn his return to America, far from the front line.
AWARDED the Distinguished Flying Cross, Air Medal and French Legion d’Honneur, Luckadoo – despite his centenary – remains quick-minded, fit and agile, his deep voice strong and unwavering. His silver hair has receded and he wears spectacles to read, but he still drives around Dallas, Texas, where he lives.
For decades, Luckadoo was loath to speak about his wartime ordeals, but in recent years he has begun sharing his memories at schools and universities.
Researchers for Spielberg’s nine-part series, starring Austin Butler, Barry Keoghan and Raff Law, interviewed him about his experiences. He also contributed to a documentary about the making of Masters of the Air because he wants younger generations to appreciate the horrors of war. “It’s important that they know the sacrifices we made and the lives that were given so they could have the freedoms they enjoy today,” he says.
“We must never forget. Hopefully, Masters of the Air will bring our story alive for new generations.
“It was originally intended to cover the actions of the entire 8th Air Force during the Second World War, but Hanks and Spielberg found it too large a subject for a nine-part series, so they focused only on my bomb group, The Bloody 100th, which sustained excessive losses. The 8th Air Force was extremely instrumental in bringing about the victory in the war over Europe.”
The series portrays many of the real-life B-17 crews that ate, slept and flew alongside Major Luckadoo, who was Squadron Operations Officer for the 351st Squadron, and later the 350th.
The bomb group’s casualties were catastrophic. A raid on Schweinfurt-Regensburg on August 17, 1943, involved 21 planes – and only 12 returned.
In another raid on October 10, 1943, 13 B-17s were sent to bomb Munster. Just one limped home, piloted by Robert “Rosie” Rosenthal, returning on only two engines, with both waist gunners seriously wounded. It had no intercom, its oxygen system was shattered and a gaping hole pierced the starboard wing. Luckadoo is not featured in the series, however, as the filmmakers enjoyed taking greater dramatic liberties when writing about now-deceased airmen.
Born in Chattanooga, Tennessee, in 1922, Luckadoo had tried to sign up for the Royal Canadian Air Force when war broke out, but his parents withheld their consent.
INSTEAD, he went to university and, after Pearl Harbor, signed up to join the US Army Air Corps, training as a pilot. The 8th Air Force was headquartered in Daws Hill, Bucks, and Luckadoo posted to a base in Thorpe Abbotts, Norfolk.
“When we arrived in England, we first started flying daytime missions without a fighter escort, which the British thought was suicidal – and it was,” recalls Luckadoo.
“We were cut to ribbons by the Luftwaffe and hit by anti-aircraft fire.We returned from every mission with our planes torn apart by gunfire and flak. Flying in mass formation in daylight was suicidal. Of the 100 original
pilots who flew into Europe without fighter escorts, within 90 days only 14 remained.
“Amazingly, morale was high, because we had a job to do, and we did it. I was extremely lucky to be alive.
“On a mission to Bremen in Germany, 12 planes went out and only six came back.To be honest, we thought every mission would be our last. We never knew if we’d get home alone. On my 22nd mission, I lost an engine and flew home on three engines. We lost air speed and were a sitting duck for the Luftwaffe.We were lucky to be picked up by the formation flying behind us, otherwise I don’t think we’d have made it home. “The losses of planes and airmen were terrible, but we had no time to grieve, or have funeral or memorial services for lost colleagues. You just had 10 empty bunks where the crew had been, and we got back in the air.”
In addition to German attacks, Luckadoo’s crews were also gripped by subzero temperatures, as they flew at elevations up to 29,000 feet without heating. “We endured bitter cold of –50C or –60C, which seriously affected our ability to perform at high altitude. “My feet were frostbitten on one mission. We were exhausted all the time, constantly on call.” A warmer welcome met them on the ground, however. “The British were very welcoming and extremely hospitable. We mixed with the local women and they organised dances and dinners for us.”
After completing his 25th mission, Luckadoo was rotated back to America – the first surviving bomber pilot to return – where he became an instructor. He was poised to lead a B-29 bomb group heading to the Pacific, when the Japanese surrendered.
Luckadoo returned to university and became a successful shopping mall developer in Texas, married for 71 years to his wife, Barbara, who died in 2017.
“I’m the last pilot left standing from The Bloody 100th, though there are a handful of turret gunners and ground crew,” he says.
On Memorial Day last May, Luckadoo attended a commemorative service at the 8th Air Force museum in Savannah, Georgia.
Some 26,000 Stars and Stripes flags were planted – one for each airman of the 8th who died during the Second World War.
“I’m lucky to be alive, and very grateful for it,” he adds.