Virgil A. Schwab
Service # 0-023021
Rank: Captain, U.S. Army Air Forces
Unit: 8th Bombardment Squadron, 3rd Bomber Group, Light
Entered Service From: Nebraska
Date of Death: 29 July 1942, killed when his A-24 Banshee Dive Bomber S/N 41-15819, while on a mission targeting a Japanese troop convey about 20 miles north of Gona, New Guinea, crashed into the sea. His A-24 was shot down by escorting Japanese fighter planes (Zero's).
Status: Missing in Action; officially declared dead on 01 December 1945.
Memorialized: Tablets of the Missing – United States Army and Army Air Forces at the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines.
Awards: Silver Star, Purple Heart
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His father was a farmer.
1920 United States Federal Census (20 January 1920): Hooper Township, Dodge County, Nebraska (sheet 15B, family 48) – Virgil A. Schwab (4 Nebraska).
1930 United States Federal Census (02 April 1930): Hooper Township, Dodge County, Nebraska (sheet 1A, family 8) – Virgil Schwab (14 Nebraska).
Virgil graduated from Hooper High School, Hooper, Nebraska – Class of 1931. He was the senior class president and a honor roll student. Virgil was Editor-in-chief of the "Voice of the Cardinal" published by the senior english class. He was one of the fastest typist in the advanced typing class and was one of three student who from Hooper who entered the district typing contest. Virgil was also on the school public speaking team competing in the category of extemporaneous speeches.
He also raised Buff Orpingtons (chickens) and competed in the county fair winning a number of ribbons.
VIRGIL SCHWAB NAMED TO MILITARY ACADEMY
Washington, Feb. 25. (AP) – The war department announced today Rep. Karl Stefan (R) Nebraska, had appointed Virgil Alvin Schwab of Hooper to the West Point Military Academy. Stefan designated Joseph Hugh Kenney of North Bend and William Glen Rohrer of Wakefield as alternates to Schwab. Source: The Grand Island Daily Independent (Grand Island, Nebraska), Tuesday, 25 February 1936, page 2.
He became a Cadet on 01 July 1936. He received his Commission as a Second Lieutenant of Infantry on 11 June 1940.
Virgil Schwab, son of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Schwab, has passed his solo flying and pilot's tests at the army flying school at Lincoln, being one of the two highest ranking students in the class. Source: The Hooper Sentinel (Hooper, Nebraska), Thursday, 05 September 1940, page 8.
Lt. Schwab transferred to the Air Corps on 21 March 1941 and graduated that same year from the Air Corps Basic Flying School at Maxwell Field in Alabama.
After getting his wings, Virgil A. Schwab (Service # 0-023021) was assigned to the 8th Bomber Squadron, 3rd Bomber Group, Light, U.S. Army Air Force and stationed at the Savannah Air Base, Savannah, Georgia.
U.S. Army Orders
Washington, March 22. – (AP) – Army orders today: ... The following second lieutenants are relieved from Maxwell Field and assigned as indicated: ... To Savannah – ... Virgil A. Schwab, Infantry; ... Source: The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, Virginia), Sunday, 23 March 1941, page 23.
DIVE BOMBER RIDE WITH LIEUT. SCHWAB
For the first time in the history of the U.S. Army, newspaper men have been taken on a 'stuka' raid in one of the air forces new Douglas A-24 dive bombers. In this story of how it feels to take this trip, Jack Redding of the Chicago Herald-American names his pilot as 2nd Lieut. Virgil Schwab, West Point graduate from Hooper.
In his lengthy and graphic description of the mock air battle, Redding makes the following specific references to young Schwab, son of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Schwab.
"It was dark as pitch when we arrived at Shreveport, La., at 5 a.m. A mechanic from Little Rock took me out to the ship in which I was to fly. Then Lt. Schwab arrived, shook hands briefly and said, 'your ride with me'. In a few seconds we were in the heavens circling to take formation.
"If the German Luftwaffe has any better dive bombers or pilots than these madmen I flew with this morning, then indeed they have an air force. Lt. Schwab's ship stood on its nose time and time again as we bombed (imaginary) enemy trucks and convoys.
"I blacked out one for all of ten seconds tried vainly to lift my feet off the floor in other dives. We hedge hopped over the forests at 200 miles an hour. I saw an old white mule go practically crazy as er came over, then we landed in column. The pilot piled out, asked: "Did the pull-outs bother you? I admitted that the first one had." Source: The Hooper Sentinel (Hooper, Nebraska), Thursday, 04 September 1941, page 1.
He was promoted to First Lieutenant on 10 October 1941.
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The center of attraction at the Tuxedo Autumn Ball tonight promises to be Madeline F. Butt, who has pledged her heart and hand to Lieut. Virgil A. Schwab. The engagement will be announced by her mother, Mrs. Frederic F. de Rham, this morning.
The exact date for the wedding hasn't been set because Madeline's future husband is with the 8th Bombardment Squadron at Savannah, Georgia. Source: Daily News (New York, New York), Saturday, 2 October 1941, page 277.
Virgil married Madeline Francis Butt of Tuxedo Park, New York on 27 December 1941 in Tuxedo Park, New York.
Lt Schwab of Hooper And New York Socialite Wed at Tuxedo Park
HOOPER – A wedding of much interest to the people of this vicinity took place at Tuxedo Park, New York, at noon December 27 at the Park chapel.
The principals were Lieut. Virgil A. Schwab, son of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Schwab, of Hooper and Miss Madeline Butt, daughter of Mrs. Frederic F. de Rham of Tuxedo Park.
The bridegroom, a graduate of the Hooper high school, was graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1940 and is stationed with the 8th Bombardment Squadron in the south.
The bride was graduated from Westover and attended the Villa Colina Ridente at Firenze, Italy. She has been studying at the Child Education Foundation in New York City. She made her debut at the Tuxedo Autumn Ball in 1938. She is a member of the Colony club and of the New York Junior league.
The couple announced their engagement last Fall. Source: Fremont Morning Guide (Fremont, Nebraska), Tuesday, 06 January 1942, page 2.
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After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor (07 December 1941), the 3rd Bombardment Group prepared for deployment to the Pacific Theater.
The 8th Bomb Squadron was ordered to deploy to Australia, equipped with the Douglas A-24 Banshee dive bombers. They moved to California and shortly thereafter boarded the U.S.A.T. ANCON on 31 January 1942. They arrived in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia on 25 February 1942 as the first U.S. troops to reach Australia. On 10 March, the 3rd Bombardment Group moved from its temporary camp in the Ascot Park racetrack outside Brisbane to Charters Towers Towers Airfield, Queensland, Australia. On 31 March, the air echelon flew to Jackson Airfield (7 Mile Drone), Port Moresby, New Guinea. On 01 April 1942 the squadron had its first combat mission. The 8th Squadron flew the first bombing mission of the war in New Guinea.
While operating from 7-Mile Drome near Port Moresby, 1st Lt. Virgil Schwab primarily flew a Douglas A-24 Banshee Dive Bomber – S/N 41-15819. Lt. Schwab was involved in combat missions from 01 April to 29 July 1942
HOOPER BOY MAKES NEWS IN PACIFIC WAR
A news dispatch in Monday night's Omaha World Herald sent by an American newspaper correspondent from the South Pacific tells something of the exploits of American flyers, with Lieut. Virgil Schwab, son of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Schwab of Hopper as the hero. Says Reporter Pat Robinson in this article:
"...I have seen American pilots and plane crews give unparalleled exhibitions of daring, gameness and coolness under fire" ...
"Virgil Schwab of Hooper, Neb., is the hero who went in a certain spot to pick up Squadron Leader Johnny Jackson, Australian pursuit ace, who was shot down two weeks ago. We had been wondering about the fate of Schwab and Jackson. By the merest chance we were to find out within an hour when we met Jackson at a secret tiny jungle camp.
" At this camp a group of Australians were congratulating a tall comrade. It was Jackson. They feed us while Jackson told of the adventures he and Schwab had. Schwab had eluded a Jap chaser by rushing low over a field he knew was surrounded by Australian ack-acks, where the Jap would not dare to follow. (and from a report from someone on the ground "Then minutes later we see an American Dive bomber racing overhead with a Zero on his tail, guns blazing.") Jackson had a slight wound in one finger, but Schwab was unhurt." Source: The Hooper Sentinel (Hooper, Nebraska), Thursday, 30 April 1942, page 1. And the Omaha World-Herald (Omaha, Nebraska), Monday, 27 April 1942, page 3.
1st Lt. Schwab was awarded the Silver Star for missions against Lae, New Guinea, 07-13 April 1942.
ARMY DECORATION FOR LT. V. A. SCHWAB
Melbourne, Australia – Lt. Gen. George Brett awarded 17 army silver stars to American airmen who have taken leading roles in the three months of aerial warfare northeast of Australia. Lt. Virgil A. Schwab was one of these 17 airmen to be decorated. Also, twelve pilots cited for carrying out four highly successful bombing raids on Japanese airdomes included Virgil A. Schwab.
The above good news was received by Mr. and Mrs. Harry Schwab, parents of the young man so honored by the United States army. lt. Schwab was recently in the Associated Press news dispatches for bravery in action on the Australian front when he rescued an air corps squadron leader from a jungle camp. Source: The Hooper Sentinel (Hooper, Nebraska), Thursday, 18 June 1942, page 1.
He was promoted to Captain on 05 July 1942.
Silver Star
Service: Army Air Forces
Rank: Captain
Battalion: 8th Bombardment Squadron
GENERAL ORDERS:
Headquarters, Allied Air Forces in the Southwest Pacific Area, General Orders No. 18 (1942)
CITATION: Captain (Air Corps) Virgil Alvin Schwab (ASN: 0-23021), United States Army Air Forces, was awarded the Silver Star for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in connection with military operations against the enemy while serving with the 8th Bombardment Squadron, 3d Bombardment Group, in 1942.
Captain Virgil A. Schwab and gunner, Sgt. Philip H. Childs, were killed when their A-24 Banshee Dive Bomber, S/N 41-15819, was shot down by escorting Japanese Zero's and crashed into the sea, while on a mission targeting a Japanese ship convoy about 20 miles north of Gona, New Guinea.
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29 July 1942 New Guinea
On 29 July 1942 in what has been called "Disaster in New Guinea" eight A-24's of the 3rd Bomb Group took off from 7-Mile Drone near Port Moresby on a combat mission to bomb Japanese transports 20 miles north of Gona. They were escorted by P-39 Air cobras from the 41st Fighter Squadron flying top cover, and 8th Fighter Group, 80th Fighter Squadron P-39s flying close escort.
The Requiem for "The Last Survivor" found on the Home of Heroes tells of the events that happened that day (https://homeofheroes.com/heroes-stories/world-war-ii/raymond-wilkins/).
"Seven aging U.S. Army A-24 dive bombers nosed neatly down in formation on the north side of New Guinea's Owen Stanley Range to break out of the heavy clouds. Ahead of them sparkled the blue-green waters of the Solomon Sea. From his position as flight leader, Captain Floyd W. "Buck" Rogers (in A-24 S/N 41-15797) scanned the clearing skies for any sign of the American P-39s that had been tasked with covering his seven strafer/bombers on today's mission. Somehow, in the clouds that covered the high mountains that split the Papuan peninsula, Major Tommy Lynch's fighter escort had become separated from the A-24 flight and ultimately failed to protect their charges. It was time to make a critical decision.
Captain Rogers was commander of the 8th Squadron of the 3d Bombardment Group, and had been well briefed on his target. A Japanese convoy had been sighted moving towards Buna to reinforce the enemy garrison that was already dealing death to the valiant but battle-weary Australian forces. To prevent these additional Japanese infantrymen from landing, Rogers had been ordered to take his eight A-24s, the last serviceable such aircraft in New Guinea, to intercept the convoy. One of the eight had been forced to turn back shortly after take-off with engine problems (piloted by Lt. Finlay McGillivary), leaving only seven dive bombers to rendezvous with their fighter escort from the 35th Squadron. It was not unusual. The few American aircraft still flying in the Southwest Pacific were all showing the strain of relentless days of combat against an overwhelming and well-supplied enemy air force. Battle-damage alone made it all too common for any flight to be quickly pared down, more as a result of equipment failure than as a result of enemy combat. Matters were even worse for the men who flew A-24s.
The A-24 Dauntless was the Army Air Force's version of the Navy's SBD (Slow But Deadly), a dive bomber with lethal capabilities but a very slow air speed and limited range. The Dauntless was lightly armed and carried a two-man crew: pilot and gunner, the latter defending his aircraft by manning a 30-caliber machine gun from a standing position behind the pilot. Originally developed as a counterpart to Germany's Stuka dive-bombers for service in Europe, ironically 54 of the initial 78 A-24s were sent to fight Japanese shipping in the Pacific instead. By the summer of 1942 the slow-moving, lightly armed, 2-man dive bombers were both obsolete and nearly extinct. The planes actually had been declared "unfit for combat" and their aircrews were to be retrained on the Douglas A-20 Havoc twin-engine bomber, but in view of the desperate war situation, this plan had had been abandoned for the time being.
Without protective fighter cover, Captain Roger's formation would be at the mercy of enemy Zero's. The squadron commander had every reason, and every right, to abort and return to Port Moresby for the sake of the thirteen men flying with him. When weighed against the cost for the men in the jungle below him if the enemy troop convoys proceed unmolested, it presented the veteran officer with a difficult decision. Such is the burden of command.
In the distance fifty miles from Buna, small blotches came into focus across the swells of the Solomon Sea. The enemy convoy, target for the mission, quickly morphed from a distant speck on the water into a distinguishable convoy of six troop transports and two escorting warships, roughly 1¼ miles from shore. Captain Rogers made his decision and wagged his wings to signal his following pilots to prepare for battle."
The weather was fine, with a light overcast. The A-24s dive-bombed in two waves.
"Diving at near water-level into the enemy guns, Captain Rogers felt his own airplane begin to shudder when his gunner, Sergeant Robert Nichols, opened up with the 30-caliber machine guns from his position behind the pilot. Two dozen Japanese Zero's tore through the 8th Squadron formation like sharks in a frenzy, chewing the old A-24s into shreds. (The convoy was protected by A6M2 Zeros from the Tainan Kōkūtai which intercepted the A-24s as they started their dives.) In a flash of fire Captain Rogers' lead dive bomber rolled over and plunged into the sea. He and Sergeant Nichols were the first casualties in what would become the darkest day in 8th Squadron history."
The A-24, piloted by 2nd Lt. John M. Hill was damaged and gunner, Sgt. Ralph Sam, badly wounded (his right arm was shot off during the air battle). Hill diverted to Gurney Airfield, Milne Bay to get emergency treatment for Sgt. Sam before returning to 7-Mile Drome Port Moresby. Ralph was rushed to the hospital where he died from his wounds three days later on 02 August 1942.
In the second wave all four planes were shot down. First Lieutenant Virgil Schwab in A-24 S/N 41-15819, dove on another vessel and felt his dive-bomber coming apart, as no longer capable of flight, it careened into the sea to forever claim his body and that of Sergeant Philip Childs, his gunner. Another one of the A-24s erupted and 1st Lieutenant Robert Cassels and gunner, Sergeant Loree LeBoeuf went down.
2nd Lt. Claude L. Dean and his gunner, Sgt. Alan W. LaRocque in A-24 S/N 41-15766, bailed out of their damaged plane near the north coast of New Guinea and landed safely. *After bailing out, they were found by local people and taken to the Australian Army spotters at Ambasi.
2nd Lt Joseph C. Parker and his gunner, Sgt. Franklyn R. Hoppe were also shot down. *Parker was able to crash land the plane in the vicinity of Ambasi. He was wounded in the leg and Frank Hoppe wounded in the hand. Friendly native people led them to the Australian spotters in the vicinity.
The Japanese ship, Kotoku Maru, was hit once at the No. 5 hatch by the second wave forcing its troops to unload and leave its cargo undelivered. The rest of the ships returned to Lae unharmed.
Of the seven aircraft that had crossed the Owen Stanley Range less than an hour earlier on a mission to turn back the enemy convoy, five were shot down. One was severely damaged but the pilot managed to divert to Gurney Airfield, Milne Bay. Only one was able to return to 7-Mile Drome (Lieutenant Raymond Harrell Wilkins and his gunner, Sergeant Al Clark). Of fourteen men who began that fateful mission, only three made it back. Thereafter the A-24s were condemned for combat.
After that mission disaster it was decided that the A-24 aircraft was unsuitable for dive-bombing land combat against the Japanese. The Japanese, possessing air superiority, easily dealt with the dive-bombers and the handful of inferior fighter escorts. After losing a total of eleven A-24s and their two-man crews, the 3d Bombardment Group called off further dive-bomber missions from Jackson Field. They were withdrawn from New Guinea after it was realized that they were not suited for their intended role without adequate fighter protection. The remaining A-24s were relegated to non-combat missions. Source: https://military-history.fandom.com/wiki/8th_Special_Operations_Squadron
*Note: The four crashed airmen (Claude L. Dean, Alan W. LaRocque, Joseph C. Parker , Frank R. Hoppe ) that survived, joined a group led by Australian Army Lieutenant Smith (including another downed American pilot) and Rev. James Benson and two woman (May Hayman and Mavis Parkinson) from the Anglican Mission Station and Hospital in Gona.
3rd Bombardment Group, Headquarters reported a radio message from the survivors on 30 July 1942:"... [A-24 piloted by Parker] crash landed on the north coast of New Guinea near Ambasi due to interception. Radio report received advised that four [Dean, La Rocque, Parker and Hoppe] were safe and that Japanese patrols were in the vicinity. The radio went off the air suddenly, and never came on the air again."
The group attempted to bypass Japanese forces to reach safety. They were betrayed by natives and on 08 August 1942 were ambushed by the Japanese. All were killed or executed. The two woman were captured and later executed. The sole survivor was Reverend James Benson who was taken prisoner and sent to Rabaul. He survived the war. The bodies of the four executed American airmen were recovered near Dobudura No 2, in March 1943.
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Captain Schwab and Sergeant Childs were declared Missing In Action.
VIRGIL A. SCHWAB REPORTED MISSING
Mr. and Mrs. Harry Schwab, Hooper, have received word that their son, Capt. Virgil Schwab, bomber pilot at Port Moresby, New Guinea, is reported missing.
Capt. Schwab is a graduate of West Point military academy and received an army decoration for his couragous flights at Port Moresby last spring, plus other recognitions of meritorious service.
Considerable anxiety had been felt here since early August because it was at that time his regular cablegrams suddenly stopped. Source: The Hooper Sentinel (Hooper, Nebraska), Thursday, 24 September 1942, page 1.
Captain Schwab and Sergeant Childs were not officially declared dead by the War Department until 01 December 1945 – almost three and a half years later.
VIRGIL SCHWAB DEATH CONFIRMED
After over three years of patient waiting and suspense since the word was received by them that their son, Captain Virgil A. Schwab, was reported as missing in action on July 29, 1942, word was received by Mr. and Mrs. Harry J. Schwab last Thursday from the War Department stating that it must now terminate their son's absence by a presumptive finding of death, and an official finding of death has been recorded by the department.
According to the information from the War Department, Capt. Schwab is presumed to have lost his life in a dive bombing mission on enemy shipping near Gona Bay, New Guinea, when the air planes engage in the mission were attacked by enemy planes. The information also stated there was no witness to what happened to the plane of which Capt. Schwab was pilot and nothing has been found concerning the fate of the plane or its missing crew members since that date.
Virgil Schwab was born December 11, 1915, on the Schwab home farm northeast of Hooper, and attended that district's rural school and then Hooper high school from which he graduated in 1931, being valedictorian of the class. He spent five years at home and 1936 received an appointment as cadet to the U. S. military college at West Point, N. Y., graduating in 1940 and being assigned to the air corps.
He was married Dec. 27, 1941, to Miss Madeleine Butt of Tuxedo Park, N. Y. and a month later he was assigned to active duty in the South Pacific war zone with headquarters at Port Moresby. During his six months of active duty as a bomber pilot, Virgil was promoted from first lieutenant to captain, was decorated with the silver star for bravery in action and received other recognitions of meritorious service.
Surviving him besides the parents and wife are two brothers, Donald, an army dischargee, and Harry, Jr., at home; and three sisters, Mrs. Howard Row of Hooper, and Misses Anita and Mildred Schwab of Arlington, Va., who are expected to be home soon. Also surviving him is his aged grandfather, Henry Schwab, and a large number of more distant relatives, members of this well-known and highly respected Hooper pioneer family. Source: The Hooper Sentinel (Hooper, Nebraska), Thursday, 13 December 1945, page 1.
Captain Virgil Alvin Schwab and Sergeant Philip Howell Childs are memorialized on the Tablets of the Missing – United States Army and Army Air Forces at the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines.
Virgil also has a cenotaph in Hooper Cemetery, Hooper, Dodge County, Nebraska.
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His widow, Madeleine Francis Butt Schwab, married Dr. Melvin Malcolm Grumbach in December 1951 in Manhattan, New York.
Dr. Madeleine Francis Butt Schwab Grumbach (12 February 1920 Tuxedo Park, New York - 17 January 1977 San Francisco, California).
Service # 0-023021
Rank: Captain, U.S. Army Air Forces
Unit: 8th Bombardment Squadron, 3rd Bomber Group, Light
Entered Service From: Nebraska
Date of Death: 29 July 1942, killed when his A-24 Banshee Dive Bomber S/N 41-15819, while on a mission targeting a Japanese troop convey about 20 miles north of Gona, New Guinea, crashed into the sea. His A-24 was shot down by escorting Japanese fighter planes (Zero's).
Status: Missing in Action; officially declared dead on 01 December 1945.
Memorialized: Tablets of the Missing – United States Army and Army Air Forces at the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines.
Awards: Silver Star, Purple Heart
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His father was a farmer.
1920 United States Federal Census (20 January 1920): Hooper Township, Dodge County, Nebraska (sheet 15B, family 48) – Virgil A. Schwab (4 Nebraska).
1930 United States Federal Census (02 April 1930): Hooper Township, Dodge County, Nebraska (sheet 1A, family 8) – Virgil Schwab (14 Nebraska).
Virgil graduated from Hooper High School, Hooper, Nebraska – Class of 1931. He was the senior class president and a honor roll student. Virgil was Editor-in-chief of the "Voice of the Cardinal" published by the senior english class. He was one of the fastest typist in the advanced typing class and was one of three student who from Hooper who entered the district typing contest. Virgil was also on the school public speaking team competing in the category of extemporaneous speeches.
He also raised Buff Orpingtons (chickens) and competed in the county fair winning a number of ribbons.
VIRGIL SCHWAB NAMED TO MILITARY ACADEMY
Washington, Feb. 25. (AP) – The war department announced today Rep. Karl Stefan (R) Nebraska, had appointed Virgil Alvin Schwab of Hooper to the West Point Military Academy. Stefan designated Joseph Hugh Kenney of North Bend and William Glen Rohrer of Wakefield as alternates to Schwab. Source: The Grand Island Daily Independent (Grand Island, Nebraska), Tuesday, 25 February 1936, page 2.
He became a Cadet on 01 July 1936. He received his Commission as a Second Lieutenant of Infantry on 11 June 1940.
Virgil Schwab, son of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Schwab, has passed his solo flying and pilot's tests at the army flying school at Lincoln, being one of the two highest ranking students in the class. Source: The Hooper Sentinel (Hooper, Nebraska), Thursday, 05 September 1940, page 8.
Lt. Schwab transferred to the Air Corps on 21 March 1941 and graduated that same year from the Air Corps Basic Flying School at Maxwell Field in Alabama.
After getting his wings, Virgil A. Schwab (Service # 0-023021) was assigned to the 8th Bomber Squadron, 3rd Bomber Group, Light, U.S. Army Air Force and stationed at the Savannah Air Base, Savannah, Georgia.
U.S. Army Orders
Washington, March 22. – (AP) – Army orders today: ... The following second lieutenants are relieved from Maxwell Field and assigned as indicated: ... To Savannah – ... Virgil A. Schwab, Infantry; ... Source: The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, Virginia), Sunday, 23 March 1941, page 23.
DIVE BOMBER RIDE WITH LIEUT. SCHWAB
For the first time in the history of the U.S. Army, newspaper men have been taken on a 'stuka' raid in one of the air forces new Douglas A-24 dive bombers. In this story of how it feels to take this trip, Jack Redding of the Chicago Herald-American names his pilot as 2nd Lieut. Virgil Schwab, West Point graduate from Hooper.
In his lengthy and graphic description of the mock air battle, Redding makes the following specific references to young Schwab, son of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Schwab.
"It was dark as pitch when we arrived at Shreveport, La., at 5 a.m. A mechanic from Little Rock took me out to the ship in which I was to fly. Then Lt. Schwab arrived, shook hands briefly and said, 'your ride with me'. In a few seconds we were in the heavens circling to take formation.
"If the German Luftwaffe has any better dive bombers or pilots than these madmen I flew with this morning, then indeed they have an air force. Lt. Schwab's ship stood on its nose time and time again as we bombed (imaginary) enemy trucks and convoys.
"I blacked out one for all of ten seconds tried vainly to lift my feet off the floor in other dives. We hedge hopped over the forests at 200 miles an hour. I saw an old white mule go practically crazy as er came over, then we landed in column. The pilot piled out, asked: "Did the pull-outs bother you? I admitted that the first one had." Source: The Hooper Sentinel (Hooper, Nebraska), Thursday, 04 September 1941, page 1.
He was promoted to First Lieutenant on 10 October 1941.
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The center of attraction at the Tuxedo Autumn Ball tonight promises to be Madeline F. Butt, who has pledged her heart and hand to Lieut. Virgil A. Schwab. The engagement will be announced by her mother, Mrs. Frederic F. de Rham, this morning.
The exact date for the wedding hasn't been set because Madeline's future husband is with the 8th Bombardment Squadron at Savannah, Georgia. Source: Daily News (New York, New York), Saturday, 2 October 1941, page 277.
Virgil married Madeline Francis Butt of Tuxedo Park, New York on 27 December 1941 in Tuxedo Park, New York.
Lt Schwab of Hooper And New York Socialite Wed at Tuxedo Park
HOOPER – A wedding of much interest to the people of this vicinity took place at Tuxedo Park, New York, at noon December 27 at the Park chapel.
The principals were Lieut. Virgil A. Schwab, son of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Schwab, of Hooper and Miss Madeline Butt, daughter of Mrs. Frederic F. de Rham of Tuxedo Park.
The bridegroom, a graduate of the Hooper high school, was graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1940 and is stationed with the 8th Bombardment Squadron in the south.
The bride was graduated from Westover and attended the Villa Colina Ridente at Firenze, Italy. She has been studying at the Child Education Foundation in New York City. She made her debut at the Tuxedo Autumn Ball in 1938. She is a member of the Colony club and of the New York Junior league.
The couple announced their engagement last Fall. Source: Fremont Morning Guide (Fremont, Nebraska), Tuesday, 06 January 1942, page 2.
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After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor (07 December 1941), the 3rd Bombardment Group prepared for deployment to the Pacific Theater.
The 8th Bomb Squadron was ordered to deploy to Australia, equipped with the Douglas A-24 Banshee dive bombers. They moved to California and shortly thereafter boarded the U.S.A.T. ANCON on 31 January 1942. They arrived in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia on 25 February 1942 as the first U.S. troops to reach Australia. On 10 March, the 3rd Bombardment Group moved from its temporary camp in the Ascot Park racetrack outside Brisbane to Charters Towers Towers Airfield, Queensland, Australia. On 31 March, the air echelon flew to Jackson Airfield (7 Mile Drone), Port Moresby, New Guinea. On 01 April 1942 the squadron had its first combat mission. The 8th Squadron flew the first bombing mission of the war in New Guinea.
While operating from 7-Mile Drome near Port Moresby, 1st Lt. Virgil Schwab primarily flew a Douglas A-24 Banshee Dive Bomber – S/N 41-15819. Lt. Schwab was involved in combat missions from 01 April to 29 July 1942
HOOPER BOY MAKES NEWS IN PACIFIC WAR
A news dispatch in Monday night's Omaha World Herald sent by an American newspaper correspondent from the South Pacific tells something of the exploits of American flyers, with Lieut. Virgil Schwab, son of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Schwab of Hopper as the hero. Says Reporter Pat Robinson in this article:
"...I have seen American pilots and plane crews give unparalleled exhibitions of daring, gameness and coolness under fire" ...
"Virgil Schwab of Hooper, Neb., is the hero who went in a certain spot to pick up Squadron Leader Johnny Jackson, Australian pursuit ace, who was shot down two weeks ago. We had been wondering about the fate of Schwab and Jackson. By the merest chance we were to find out within an hour when we met Jackson at a secret tiny jungle camp.
" At this camp a group of Australians were congratulating a tall comrade. It was Jackson. They feed us while Jackson told of the adventures he and Schwab had. Schwab had eluded a Jap chaser by rushing low over a field he knew was surrounded by Australian ack-acks, where the Jap would not dare to follow. (and from a report from someone on the ground "Then minutes later we see an American Dive bomber racing overhead with a Zero on his tail, guns blazing.") Jackson had a slight wound in one finger, but Schwab was unhurt." Source: The Hooper Sentinel (Hooper, Nebraska), Thursday, 30 April 1942, page 1. And the Omaha World-Herald (Omaha, Nebraska), Monday, 27 April 1942, page 3.
1st Lt. Schwab was awarded the Silver Star for missions against Lae, New Guinea, 07-13 April 1942.
ARMY DECORATION FOR LT. V. A. SCHWAB
Melbourne, Australia – Lt. Gen. George Brett awarded 17 army silver stars to American airmen who have taken leading roles in the three months of aerial warfare northeast of Australia. Lt. Virgil A. Schwab was one of these 17 airmen to be decorated. Also, twelve pilots cited for carrying out four highly successful bombing raids on Japanese airdomes included Virgil A. Schwab.
The above good news was received by Mr. and Mrs. Harry Schwab, parents of the young man so honored by the United States army. lt. Schwab was recently in the Associated Press news dispatches for bravery in action on the Australian front when he rescued an air corps squadron leader from a jungle camp. Source: The Hooper Sentinel (Hooper, Nebraska), Thursday, 18 June 1942, page 1.
He was promoted to Captain on 05 July 1942.
Silver Star
Service: Army Air Forces
Rank: Captain
Battalion: 8th Bombardment Squadron
GENERAL ORDERS:
Headquarters, Allied Air Forces in the Southwest Pacific Area, General Orders No. 18 (1942)
CITATION: Captain (Air Corps) Virgil Alvin Schwab (ASN: 0-23021), United States Army Air Forces, was awarded the Silver Star for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in connection with military operations against the enemy while serving with the 8th Bombardment Squadron, 3d Bombardment Group, in 1942.
Captain Virgil A. Schwab and gunner, Sgt. Philip H. Childs, were killed when their A-24 Banshee Dive Bomber, S/N 41-15819, was shot down by escorting Japanese Zero's and crashed into the sea, while on a mission targeting a Japanese ship convoy about 20 miles north of Gona, New Guinea.
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29 July 1942 New Guinea
On 29 July 1942 in what has been called "Disaster in New Guinea" eight A-24's of the 3rd Bomb Group took off from 7-Mile Drone near Port Moresby on a combat mission to bomb Japanese transports 20 miles north of Gona. They were escorted by P-39 Air cobras from the 41st Fighter Squadron flying top cover, and 8th Fighter Group, 80th Fighter Squadron P-39s flying close escort.
The Requiem for "The Last Survivor" found on the Home of Heroes tells of the events that happened that day (https://homeofheroes.com/heroes-stories/world-war-ii/raymond-wilkins/).
"Seven aging U.S. Army A-24 dive bombers nosed neatly down in formation on the north side of New Guinea's Owen Stanley Range to break out of the heavy clouds. Ahead of them sparkled the blue-green waters of the Solomon Sea. From his position as flight leader, Captain Floyd W. "Buck" Rogers (in A-24 S/N 41-15797) scanned the clearing skies for any sign of the American P-39s that had been tasked with covering his seven strafer/bombers on today's mission. Somehow, in the clouds that covered the high mountains that split the Papuan peninsula, Major Tommy Lynch's fighter escort had become separated from the A-24 flight and ultimately failed to protect their charges. It was time to make a critical decision.
Captain Rogers was commander of the 8th Squadron of the 3d Bombardment Group, and had been well briefed on his target. A Japanese convoy had been sighted moving towards Buna to reinforce the enemy garrison that was already dealing death to the valiant but battle-weary Australian forces. To prevent these additional Japanese infantrymen from landing, Rogers had been ordered to take his eight A-24s, the last serviceable such aircraft in New Guinea, to intercept the convoy. One of the eight had been forced to turn back shortly after take-off with engine problems (piloted by Lt. Finlay McGillivary), leaving only seven dive bombers to rendezvous with their fighter escort from the 35th Squadron. It was not unusual. The few American aircraft still flying in the Southwest Pacific were all showing the strain of relentless days of combat against an overwhelming and well-supplied enemy air force. Battle-damage alone made it all too common for any flight to be quickly pared down, more as a result of equipment failure than as a result of enemy combat. Matters were even worse for the men who flew A-24s.
The A-24 Dauntless was the Army Air Force's version of the Navy's SBD (Slow But Deadly), a dive bomber with lethal capabilities but a very slow air speed and limited range. The Dauntless was lightly armed and carried a two-man crew: pilot and gunner, the latter defending his aircraft by manning a 30-caliber machine gun from a standing position behind the pilot. Originally developed as a counterpart to Germany's Stuka dive-bombers for service in Europe, ironically 54 of the initial 78 A-24s were sent to fight Japanese shipping in the Pacific instead. By the summer of 1942 the slow-moving, lightly armed, 2-man dive bombers were both obsolete and nearly extinct. The planes actually had been declared "unfit for combat" and their aircrews were to be retrained on the Douglas A-20 Havoc twin-engine bomber, but in view of the desperate war situation, this plan had had been abandoned for the time being.
Without protective fighter cover, Captain Roger's formation would be at the mercy of enemy Zero's. The squadron commander had every reason, and every right, to abort and return to Port Moresby for the sake of the thirteen men flying with him. When weighed against the cost for the men in the jungle below him if the enemy troop convoys proceed unmolested, it presented the veteran officer with a difficult decision. Such is the burden of command.
In the distance fifty miles from Buna, small blotches came into focus across the swells of the Solomon Sea. The enemy convoy, target for the mission, quickly morphed from a distant speck on the water into a distinguishable convoy of six troop transports and two escorting warships, roughly 1¼ miles from shore. Captain Rogers made his decision and wagged his wings to signal his following pilots to prepare for battle."
The weather was fine, with a light overcast. The A-24s dive-bombed in two waves.
"Diving at near water-level into the enemy guns, Captain Rogers felt his own airplane begin to shudder when his gunner, Sergeant Robert Nichols, opened up with the 30-caliber machine guns from his position behind the pilot. Two dozen Japanese Zero's tore through the 8th Squadron formation like sharks in a frenzy, chewing the old A-24s into shreds. (The convoy was protected by A6M2 Zeros from the Tainan Kōkūtai which intercepted the A-24s as they started their dives.) In a flash of fire Captain Rogers' lead dive bomber rolled over and plunged into the sea. He and Sergeant Nichols were the first casualties in what would become the darkest day in 8th Squadron history."
The A-24, piloted by 2nd Lt. John M. Hill was damaged and gunner, Sgt. Ralph Sam, badly wounded (his right arm was shot off during the air battle). Hill diverted to Gurney Airfield, Milne Bay to get emergency treatment for Sgt. Sam before returning to 7-Mile Drome Port Moresby. Ralph was rushed to the hospital where he died from his wounds three days later on 02 August 1942.
In the second wave all four planes were shot down. First Lieutenant Virgil Schwab in A-24 S/N 41-15819, dove on another vessel and felt his dive-bomber coming apart, as no longer capable of flight, it careened into the sea to forever claim his body and that of Sergeant Philip Childs, his gunner. Another one of the A-24s erupted and 1st Lieutenant Robert Cassels and gunner, Sergeant Loree LeBoeuf went down.
2nd Lt. Claude L. Dean and his gunner, Sgt. Alan W. LaRocque in A-24 S/N 41-15766, bailed out of their damaged plane near the north coast of New Guinea and landed safely. *After bailing out, they were found by local people and taken to the Australian Army spotters at Ambasi.
2nd Lt Joseph C. Parker and his gunner, Sgt. Franklyn R. Hoppe were also shot down. *Parker was able to crash land the plane in the vicinity of Ambasi. He was wounded in the leg and Frank Hoppe wounded in the hand. Friendly native people led them to the Australian spotters in the vicinity.
The Japanese ship, Kotoku Maru, was hit once at the No. 5 hatch by the second wave forcing its troops to unload and leave its cargo undelivered. The rest of the ships returned to Lae unharmed.
Of the seven aircraft that had crossed the Owen Stanley Range less than an hour earlier on a mission to turn back the enemy convoy, five were shot down. One was severely damaged but the pilot managed to divert to Gurney Airfield, Milne Bay. Only one was able to return to 7-Mile Drome (Lieutenant Raymond Harrell Wilkins and his gunner, Sergeant Al Clark). Of fourteen men who began that fateful mission, only three made it back. Thereafter the A-24s were condemned for combat.
After that mission disaster it was decided that the A-24 aircraft was unsuitable for dive-bombing land combat against the Japanese. The Japanese, possessing air superiority, easily dealt with the dive-bombers and the handful of inferior fighter escorts. After losing a total of eleven A-24s and their two-man crews, the 3d Bombardment Group called off further dive-bomber missions from Jackson Field. They were withdrawn from New Guinea after it was realized that they were not suited for their intended role without adequate fighter protection. The remaining A-24s were relegated to non-combat missions. Source: https://military-history.fandom.com/wiki/8th_Special_Operations_Squadron
*Note: The four crashed airmen (Claude L. Dean, Alan W. LaRocque, Joseph C. Parker , Frank R. Hoppe ) that survived, joined a group led by Australian Army Lieutenant Smith (including another downed American pilot) and Rev. James Benson and two woman (May Hayman and Mavis Parkinson) from the Anglican Mission Station and Hospital in Gona.
3rd Bombardment Group, Headquarters reported a radio message from the survivors on 30 July 1942:"... [A-24 piloted by Parker] crash landed on the north coast of New Guinea near Ambasi due to interception. Radio report received advised that four [Dean, La Rocque, Parker and Hoppe] were safe and that Japanese patrols were in the vicinity. The radio went off the air suddenly, and never came on the air again."
The group attempted to bypass Japanese forces to reach safety. They were betrayed by natives and on 08 August 1942 were ambushed by the Japanese. All were killed or executed. The two woman were captured and later executed. The sole survivor was Reverend James Benson who was taken prisoner and sent to Rabaul. He survived the war. The bodies of the four executed American airmen were recovered near Dobudura No 2, in March 1943.
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Captain Schwab and Sergeant Childs were declared Missing In Action.
VIRGIL A. SCHWAB REPORTED MISSING
Mr. and Mrs. Harry Schwab, Hooper, have received word that their son, Capt. Virgil Schwab, bomber pilot at Port Moresby, New Guinea, is reported missing.
Capt. Schwab is a graduate of West Point military academy and received an army decoration for his couragous flights at Port Moresby last spring, plus other recognitions of meritorious service.
Considerable anxiety had been felt here since early August because it was at that time his regular cablegrams suddenly stopped. Source: The Hooper Sentinel (Hooper, Nebraska), Thursday, 24 September 1942, page 1.
Captain Schwab and Sergeant Childs were not officially declared dead by the War Department until 01 December 1945 – almost three and a half years later.
VIRGIL SCHWAB DEATH CONFIRMED
After over three years of patient waiting and suspense since the word was received by them that their son, Captain Virgil A. Schwab, was reported as missing in action on July 29, 1942, word was received by Mr. and Mrs. Harry J. Schwab last Thursday from the War Department stating that it must now terminate their son's absence by a presumptive finding of death, and an official finding of death has been recorded by the department.
According to the information from the War Department, Capt. Schwab is presumed to have lost his life in a dive bombing mission on enemy shipping near Gona Bay, New Guinea, when the air planes engage in the mission were attacked by enemy planes. The information also stated there was no witness to what happened to the plane of which Capt. Schwab was pilot and nothing has been found concerning the fate of the plane or its missing crew members since that date.
Virgil Schwab was born December 11, 1915, on the Schwab home farm northeast of Hooper, and attended that district's rural school and then Hooper high school from which he graduated in 1931, being valedictorian of the class. He spent five years at home and 1936 received an appointment as cadet to the U. S. military college at West Point, N. Y., graduating in 1940 and being assigned to the air corps.
He was married Dec. 27, 1941, to Miss Madeleine Butt of Tuxedo Park, N. Y. and a month later he was assigned to active duty in the South Pacific war zone with headquarters at Port Moresby. During his six months of active duty as a bomber pilot, Virgil was promoted from first lieutenant to captain, was decorated with the silver star for bravery in action and received other recognitions of meritorious service.
Surviving him besides the parents and wife are two brothers, Donald, an army dischargee, and Harry, Jr., at home; and three sisters, Mrs. Howard Row of Hooper, and Misses Anita and Mildred Schwab of Arlington, Va., who are expected to be home soon. Also surviving him is his aged grandfather, Henry Schwab, and a large number of more distant relatives, members of this well-known and highly respected Hooper pioneer family. Source: The Hooper Sentinel (Hooper, Nebraska), Thursday, 13 December 1945, page 1.
Captain Virgil Alvin Schwab and Sergeant Philip Howell Childs are memorialized on the Tablets of the Missing – United States Army and Army Air Forces at the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines.
Virgil also has a cenotaph in Hooper Cemetery, Hooper, Dodge County, Nebraska.
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His widow, Madeleine Francis Butt Schwab, married Dr. Melvin Malcolm Grumbach in December 1951 in Manhattan, New York.
Dr. Madeleine Francis Butt Schwab Grumbach (12 February 1920 Tuxedo Park, New York - 17 January 1977 San Francisco, California).
Virgil A. Schwab
Service # 0-023021
Rank: Captain, U.S. Army Air Forces
Unit: 8th Bombardment Squadron, 3rd Bomber Group, Light
Entered Service From: Nebraska
Date of Death: 29 July 1942, killed when his A-24 Banshee Dive Bomber S/N 41-15819, while on a mission targeting a Japanese troop convey about 20 miles north of Gona, New Guinea, crashed into the sea. His A-24 was shot down by escorting Japanese fighter planes (Zero's).
Status: Missing in Action; officially declared dead on 01 December 1945.
Memorialized: Tablets of the Missing – United States Army and Army Air Forces at the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines.
Awards: Silver Star, Purple Heart
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His father was a farmer.
1920 United States Federal Census (20 January 1920): Hooper Township, Dodge County, Nebraska (sheet 15B, family 48) – Virgil A. Schwab (4 Nebraska).
1930 United States Federal Census (02 April 1930): Hooper Township, Dodge County, Nebraska (sheet 1A, family 8) – Virgil Schwab (14 Nebraska).
Virgil graduated from Hooper High School, Hooper, Nebraska – Class of 1931. He was the senior class president and a honor roll student. Virgil was Editor-in-chief of the "Voice of the Cardinal" published by the senior english class. He was one of the fastest typist in the advanced typing class and was one of three student who from Hooper who entered the district typing contest. Virgil was also on the school public speaking team competing in the category of extemporaneous speeches.
He also raised Buff Orpingtons (chickens) and competed in the county fair winning a number of ribbons.
VIRGIL SCHWAB NAMED TO MILITARY ACADEMY
Washington, Feb. 25. (AP) – The war department announced today Rep. Karl Stefan (R) Nebraska, had appointed Virgil Alvin Schwab of Hooper to the West Point Military Academy. Stefan designated Joseph Hugh Kenney of North Bend and William Glen Rohrer of Wakefield as alternates to Schwab. Source: The Grand Island Daily Independent (Grand Island, Nebraska), Tuesday, 25 February 1936, page 2.
He became a Cadet on 01 July 1936. He received his Commission as a Second Lieutenant of Infantry on 11 June 1940.
Virgil Schwab, son of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Schwab, has passed his solo flying and pilot's tests at the army flying school at Lincoln, being one of the two highest ranking students in the class. Source: The Hooper Sentinel (Hooper, Nebraska), Thursday, 05 September 1940, page 8.
Lt. Schwab transferred to the Air Corps on 21 March 1941 and graduated that same year from the Air Corps Basic Flying School at Maxwell Field in Alabama.
After getting his wings, Virgil A. Schwab (Service # 0-023021) was assigned to the 8th Bomber Squadron, 3rd Bomber Group, Light, U.S. Army Air Force and stationed at the Savannah Air Base, Savannah, Georgia.
U.S. Army Orders
Washington, March 22. – (AP) – Army orders today: ... The following second lieutenants are relieved from Maxwell Field and assigned as indicated: ... To Savannah – ... Virgil A. Schwab, Infantry; ... Source: The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, Virginia), Sunday, 23 March 1941, page 23.
DIVE BOMBER RIDE WITH LIEUT. SCHWAB
For the first time in the history of the U.S. Army, newspaper men have been taken on a 'stuka' raid in one of the air forces new Douglas A-24 dive bombers. In this story of how it feels to take this trip, Jack Redding of the Chicago Herald-American names his pilot as 2nd Lieut. Virgil Schwab, West Point graduate from Hooper.
In his lengthy and graphic description of the mock air battle, Redding makes the following specific references to young Schwab, son of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Schwab.
"It was dark as pitch when we arrived at Shreveport, La., at 5 a.m. A mechanic from Little Rock took me out to the ship in which I was to fly. Then Lt. Schwab arrived, shook hands briefly and said, 'your ride with me'. In a few seconds we were in the heavens circling to take formation.
"If the German Luftwaffe has any better dive bombers or pilots than these madmen I flew with this morning, then indeed they have an air force. Lt. Schwab's ship stood on its nose time and time again as we bombed (imaginary) enemy trucks and convoys.
"I blacked out one for all of ten seconds tried vainly to lift my feet off the floor in other dives. We hedge hopped over the forests at 200 miles an hour. I saw an old white mule go practically crazy as er came over, then we landed in column. The pilot piled out, asked: "Did the pull-outs bother you? I admitted that the first one had." Source: The Hooper Sentinel (Hooper, Nebraska), Thursday, 04 September 1941, page 1.
He was promoted to First Lieutenant on 10 October 1941.
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The center of attraction at the Tuxedo Autumn Ball tonight promises to be Madeline F. Butt, who has pledged her heart and hand to Lieut. Virgil A. Schwab. The engagement will be announced by her mother, Mrs. Frederic F. de Rham, this morning.
The exact date for the wedding hasn't been set because Madeline's future husband is with the 8th Bombardment Squadron at Savannah, Georgia. Source: Daily News (New York, New York), Saturday, 2 October 1941, page 277.
Virgil married Madeline Francis Butt of Tuxedo Park, New York on 27 December 1941 in Tuxedo Park, New York.
Lt Schwab of Hooper And New York Socialite Wed at Tuxedo Park
HOOPER – A wedding of much interest to the people of this vicinity took place at Tuxedo Park, New York, at noon December 27 at the Park chapel.
The principals were Lieut. Virgil A. Schwab, son of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Schwab, of Hooper and Miss Madeline Butt, daughter of Mrs. Frederic F. de Rham of Tuxedo Park.
The bridegroom, a graduate of the Hooper high school, was graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1940 and is stationed with the 8th Bombardment Squadron in the south.
The bride was graduated from Westover and attended the Villa Colina Ridente at Firenze, Italy. She has been studying at the Child Education Foundation in New York City. She made her debut at the Tuxedo Autumn Ball in 1938. She is a member of the Colony club and of the New York Junior league.
The couple announced their engagement last Fall. Source: Fremont Morning Guide (Fremont, Nebraska), Tuesday, 06 January 1942, page 2.
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After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor (07 December 1941), the 3rd Bombardment Group prepared for deployment to the Pacific Theater.
The 8th Bomb Squadron was ordered to deploy to Australia, equipped with the Douglas A-24 Banshee dive bombers. They moved to California and shortly thereafter boarded the U.S.A.T. ANCON on 31 January 1942. They arrived in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia on 25 February 1942 as the first U.S. troops to reach Australia. On 10 March, the 3rd Bombardment Group moved from its temporary camp in the Ascot Park racetrack outside Brisbane to Charters Towers Towers Airfield, Queensland, Australia. On 31 March, the air echelon flew to Jackson Airfield (7 Mile Drone), Port Moresby, New Guinea. On 01 April 1942 the squadron had its first combat mission. The 8th Squadron flew the first bombing mission of the war in New Guinea.
While operating from 7-Mile Drome near Port Moresby, 1st Lt. Virgil Schwab primarily flew a Douglas A-24 Banshee Dive Bomber – S/N 41-15819. Lt. Schwab was involved in combat missions from 01 April to 29 July 1942
HOOPER BOY MAKES NEWS IN PACIFIC WAR
A news dispatch in Monday night's Omaha World Herald sent by an American newspaper correspondent from the South Pacific tells something of the exploits of American flyers, with Lieut. Virgil Schwab, son of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Schwab of Hopper as the hero. Says Reporter Pat Robinson in this article:
"...I have seen American pilots and plane crews give unparalleled exhibitions of daring, gameness and coolness under fire" ...
"Virgil Schwab of Hooper, Neb., is the hero who went in a certain spot to pick up Squadron Leader Johnny Jackson, Australian pursuit ace, who was shot down two weeks ago. We had been wondering about the fate of Schwab and Jackson. By the merest chance we were to find out within an hour when we met Jackson at a secret tiny jungle camp.
" At this camp a group of Australians were congratulating a tall comrade. It was Jackson. They feed us while Jackson told of the adventures he and Schwab had. Schwab had eluded a Jap chaser by rushing low over a field he knew was surrounded by Australian ack-acks, where the Jap would not dare to follow. (and from a report from someone on the ground "Then minutes later we see an American Dive bomber racing overhead with a Zero on his tail, guns blazing.") Jackson had a slight wound in one finger, but Schwab was unhurt." Source: The Hooper Sentinel (Hooper, Nebraska), Thursday, 30 April 1942, page 1. And the Omaha World-Herald (Omaha, Nebraska), Monday, 27 April 1942, page 3.
1st Lt. Schwab was awarded the Silver Star for missions against Lae, New Guinea, 07-13 April 1942.
ARMY DECORATION FOR LT. V. A. SCHWAB
Melbourne, Australia – Lt. Gen. George Brett awarded 17 army silver stars to American airmen who have taken leading roles in the three months of aerial warfare northeast of Australia. Lt. Virgil A. Schwab was one of these 17 airmen to be decorated. Also, twelve pilots cited for carrying out four highly successful bombing raids on Japanese airdomes included Virgil A. Schwab.
The above good news was received by Mr. and Mrs. Harry Schwab, parents of the young man so honored by the United States army. lt. Schwab was recently in the Associated Press news dispatches for bravery in action on the Australian front when he rescued an air corps squadron leader from a jungle camp. Source: The Hooper Sentinel (Hooper, Nebraska), Thursday, 18 June 1942, page 1.
He was promoted to Captain on 05 July 1942.
Silver Star
Service: Army Air Forces
Rank: Captain
Battalion: 8th Bombardment Squadron
GENERAL ORDERS:
Headquarters, Allied Air Forces in the Southwest Pacific Area, General Orders No. 18 (1942)
CITATION: Captain (Air Corps) Virgil Alvin Schwab (ASN: 0-23021), United States Army Air Forces, was awarded the Silver Star for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in connection with military operations against the enemy while serving with the 8th Bombardment Squadron, 3d Bombardment Group, in 1942.
Captain Virgil A. Schwab and gunner, Sgt. Philip H. Childs, were killed when their A-24 Banshee Dive Bomber, S/N 41-15819, was shot down by escorting Japanese Zero's and crashed into the sea, while on a mission targeting a Japanese ship convoy about 20 miles north of Gona, New Guinea.
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29 July 1942 New Guinea
On 29 July 1942 in what has been called "Disaster in New Guinea" eight A-24's of the 3rd Bomb Group took off from 7-Mile Drone near Port Moresby on a combat mission to bomb Japanese transports 20 miles north of Gona. They were escorted by P-39 Air cobras from the 41st Fighter Squadron flying top cover, and 8th Fighter Group, 80th Fighter Squadron P-39s flying close escort.
The Requiem for "The Last Survivor" found on the Home of Heroes tells of the events that happened that day (https://homeofheroes.com/heroes-stories/world-war-ii/raymond-wilkins/).
"Seven aging U.S. Army A-24 dive bombers nosed neatly down in formation on the north side of New Guinea's Owen Stanley Range to break out of the heavy clouds. Ahead of them sparkled the blue-green waters of the Solomon Sea. From his position as flight leader, Captain Floyd W. "Buck" Rogers (in A-24 S/N 41-15797) scanned the clearing skies for any sign of the American P-39s that had been tasked with covering his seven strafer/bombers on today's mission. Somehow, in the clouds that covered the high mountains that split the Papuan peninsula, Major Tommy Lynch's fighter escort had become separated from the A-24 flight and ultimately failed to protect their charges. It was time to make a critical decision.
Captain Rogers was commander of the 8th Squadron of the 3d Bombardment Group, and had been well briefed on his target. A Japanese convoy had been sighted moving towards Buna to reinforce the enemy garrison that was already dealing death to the valiant but battle-weary Australian forces. To prevent these additional Japanese infantrymen from landing, Rogers had been ordered to take his eight A-24s, the last serviceable such aircraft in New Guinea, to intercept the convoy. One of the eight had been forced to turn back shortly after take-off with engine problems (piloted by Lt. Finlay McGillivary), leaving only seven dive bombers to rendezvous with their fighter escort from the 35th Squadron. It was not unusual. The few American aircraft still flying in the Southwest Pacific were all showing the strain of relentless days of combat against an overwhelming and well-supplied enemy air force. Battle-damage alone made it all too common for any flight to be quickly pared down, more as a result of equipment failure than as a result of enemy combat. Matters were even worse for the men who flew A-24s.
The A-24 Dauntless was the Army Air Force's version of the Navy's SBD (Slow But Deadly), a dive bomber with lethal capabilities but a very slow air speed and limited range. The Dauntless was lightly armed and carried a two-man crew: pilot and gunner, the latter defending his aircraft by manning a 30-caliber machine gun from a standing position behind the pilot. Originally developed as a counterpart to Germany's Stuka dive-bombers for service in Europe, ironically 54 of the initial 78 A-24s were sent to fight Japanese shipping in the Pacific instead. By the summer of 1942 the slow-moving, lightly armed, 2-man dive bombers were both obsolete and nearly extinct. The planes actually had been declared "unfit for combat" and their aircrews were to be retrained on the Douglas A-20 Havoc twin-engine bomber, but in view of the desperate war situation, this plan had had been abandoned for the time being.
Without protective fighter cover, Captain Roger's formation would be at the mercy of enemy Zero's. The squadron commander had every reason, and every right, to abort and return to Port Moresby for the sake of the thirteen men flying with him. When weighed against the cost for the men in the jungle below him if the enemy troop convoys proceed unmolested, it presented the veteran officer with a difficult decision. Such is the burden of command.
In the distance fifty miles from Buna, small blotches came into focus across the swells of the Solomon Sea. The enemy convoy, target for the mission, quickly morphed from a distant speck on the water into a distinguishable convoy of six troop transports and two escorting warships, roughly 1¼ miles from shore. Captain Rogers made his decision and wagged his wings to signal his following pilots to prepare for battle."
The weather was fine, with a light overcast. The A-24s dive-bombed in two waves.
"Diving at near water-level into the enemy guns, Captain Rogers felt his own airplane begin to shudder when his gunner, Sergeant Robert Nichols, opened up with the 30-caliber machine guns from his position behind the pilot. Two dozen Japanese Zero's tore through the 8th Squadron formation like sharks in a frenzy, chewing the old A-24s into shreds. (The convoy was protected by A6M2 Zeros from the Tainan Kōkūtai which intercepted the A-24s as they started their dives.) In a flash of fire Captain Rogers' lead dive bomber rolled over and plunged into the sea. He and Sergeant Nichols were the first casualties in what would become the darkest day in 8th Squadron history."
The A-24, piloted by 2nd Lt. John M. Hill was damaged and gunner, Sgt. Ralph Sam, badly wounded (his right arm was shot off during the air battle). Hill diverted to Gurney Airfield, Milne Bay to get emergency treatment for Sgt. Sam before returning to 7-Mile Drome Port Moresby. Ralph was rushed to the hospital where he died from his wounds three days later on 02 August 1942.
In the second wave all four planes were shot down. First Lieutenant Virgil Schwab in A-24 S/N 41-15819, dove on another vessel and felt his dive-bomber coming apart, as no longer capable of flight, it careened into the sea to forever claim his body and that of Sergeant Philip Childs, his gunner. Another one of the A-24s erupted and 1st Lieutenant Robert Cassels and gunner, Sergeant Loree LeBoeuf went down.
2nd Lt. Claude L. Dean and his gunner, Sgt. Alan W. LaRocque in A-24 S/N 41-15766, bailed out of their damaged plane near the north coast of New Guinea and landed safely. *After bailing out, they were found by local people and taken to the Australian Army spotters at Ambasi.
2nd Lt Joseph C. Parker and his gunner, Sgt. Franklyn R. Hoppe were also shot down. *Parker was able to crash land the plane in the vicinity of Ambasi. He was wounded in the leg and Frank Hoppe wounded in the hand. Friendly native people led them to the Australian spotters in the vicinity.
The Japanese ship, Kotoku Maru, was hit once at the No. 5 hatch by the second wave forcing its troops to unload and leave its cargo undelivered. The rest of the ships returned to Lae unharmed.
Of the seven aircraft that had crossed the Owen Stanley Range less than an hour earlier on a mission to turn back the enemy convoy, five were shot down. One was severely damaged but the pilot managed to divert to Gurney Airfield, Milne Bay. Only one was able to return to 7-Mile Drome (Lieutenant Raymond Harrell Wilkins and his gunner, Sergeant Al Clark). Of fourteen men who began that fateful mission, only three made it back. Thereafter the A-24s were condemned for combat.
After that mission disaster it was decided that the A-24 aircraft was unsuitable for dive-bombing land combat against the Japanese. The Japanese, possessing air superiority, easily dealt with the dive-bombers and the handful of inferior fighter escorts. After losing a total of eleven A-24s and their two-man crews, the 3d Bombardment Group called off further dive-bomber missions from Jackson Field. They were withdrawn from New Guinea after it was realized that they were not suited for their intended role without adequate fighter protection. The remaining A-24s were relegated to non-combat missions. Source: https://military-history.fandom.com/wiki/8th_Special_Operations_Squadron
*Note: The four crashed airmen (Claude L. Dean, Alan W. LaRocque, Joseph C. Parker , Frank R. Hoppe ) that survived, joined a group led by Australian Army Lieutenant Smith (including another downed American pilot) and Rev. James Benson and two woman (May Hayman and Mavis Parkinson) from the Anglican Mission Station and Hospital in Gona.
3rd Bombardment Group, Headquarters reported a radio message from the survivors on 30 July 1942:"... [A-24 piloted by Parker] crash landed on the north coast of New Guinea near Ambasi due to interception. Radio report received advised that four [Dean, La Rocque, Parker and Hoppe] were safe and that Japanese patrols were in the vicinity. The radio went off the air suddenly, and never came on the air again."
The group attempted to bypass Japanese forces to reach safety. They were betrayed by natives and on 08 August 1942 were ambushed by the Japanese. All were killed or executed. The two woman were captured and later executed. The sole survivor was Reverend James Benson who was taken prisoner and sent to Rabaul. He survived the war. The bodies of the four executed American airmen were recovered near Dobudura No 2, in March 1943.
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Captain Schwab and Sergeant Childs were declared Missing In Action.
VIRGIL A. SCHWAB REPORTED MISSING
Mr. and Mrs. Harry Schwab, Hooper, have received word that their son, Capt. Virgil Schwab, bomber pilot at Port Moresby, New Guinea, is reported missing.
Capt. Schwab is a graduate of West Point military academy and received an army decoration for his couragous flights at Port Moresby last spring, plus other recognitions of meritorious service.
Considerable anxiety had been felt here since early August because it was at that time his regular cablegrams suddenly stopped. Source: The Hooper Sentinel (Hooper, Nebraska), Thursday, 24 September 1942, page 1.
Captain Schwab and Sergeant Childs were not officially declared dead by the War Department until 01 December 1945 – almost three and a half years later.
VIRGIL SCHWAB DEATH CONFIRMED
After over three years of patient waiting and suspense since the word was received by them that their son, Captain Virgil A. Schwab, was reported as missing in action on July 29, 1942, word was received by Mr. and Mrs. Harry J. Schwab last Thursday from the War Department stating that it must now terminate their son's absence by a presumptive finding of death, and an official finding of death has been recorded by the department.
According to the information from the War Department, Capt. Schwab is presumed to have lost his life in a dive bombing mission on enemy shipping near Gona Bay, New Guinea, when the air planes engage in the mission were attacked by enemy planes. The information also stated there was no witness to what happened to the plane of which Capt. Schwab was pilot and nothing has been found concerning the fate of the plane or its missing crew members since that date.
Virgil Schwab was born December 11, 1915, on the Schwab home farm northeast of Hooper, and attended that district's rural school and then Hooper high school from which he graduated in 1931, being valedictorian of the class. He spent five years at home and 1936 received an appointment as cadet to the U. S. military college at West Point, N. Y., graduating in 1940 and being assigned to the air corps.
He was married Dec. 27, 1941, to Miss Madeleine Butt of Tuxedo Park, N. Y. and a month later he was assigned to active duty in the South Pacific war zone with headquarters at Port Moresby. During his six months of active duty as a bomber pilot, Virgil was promoted from first lieutenant to captain, was decorated with the silver star for bravery in action and received other recognitions of meritorious service.
Surviving him besides the parents and wife are two brothers, Donald, an army dischargee, and Harry, Jr., at home; and three sisters, Mrs. Howard Row of Hooper, and Misses Anita and Mildred Schwab of Arlington, Va., who are expected to be home soon. Also surviving him is his aged grandfather, Henry Schwab, and a large number of more distant relatives, members of this well-known and highly respected Hooper pioneer family. Source: The Hooper Sentinel (Hooper, Nebraska), Thursday, 13 December 1945, page 1.
Captain Virgil Alvin Schwab and Sergeant Philip Howell Childs are memorialized on the Tablets of the Missing – United States Army and Army Air Forces at the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines.
Virgil also has a cenotaph in Hooper Cemetery, Hooper, Dodge County, Nebraska.
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His widow, Madeleine Francis Butt Schwab, married Dr. Melvin Malcolm Grumbach in December 1951 in Manhattan, New York.
Dr. Madeleine Francis Butt Schwab Grumbach (12 February 1920 Tuxedo Park, New York - 17 January 1977 San Francisco, California).
Service # 0-023021
Rank: Captain, U.S. Army Air Forces
Unit: 8th Bombardment Squadron, 3rd Bomber Group, Light
Entered Service From: Nebraska
Date of Death: 29 July 1942, killed when his A-24 Banshee Dive Bomber S/N 41-15819, while on a mission targeting a Japanese troop convey about 20 miles north of Gona, New Guinea, crashed into the sea. His A-24 was shot down by escorting Japanese fighter planes (Zero's).
Status: Missing in Action; officially declared dead on 01 December 1945.
Memorialized: Tablets of the Missing – United States Army and Army Air Forces at the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines.
Awards: Silver Star, Purple Heart
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His father was a farmer.
1920 United States Federal Census (20 January 1920): Hooper Township, Dodge County, Nebraska (sheet 15B, family 48) – Virgil A. Schwab (4 Nebraska).
1930 United States Federal Census (02 April 1930): Hooper Township, Dodge County, Nebraska (sheet 1A, family 8) – Virgil Schwab (14 Nebraska).
Virgil graduated from Hooper High School, Hooper, Nebraska – Class of 1931. He was the senior class president and a honor roll student. Virgil was Editor-in-chief of the "Voice of the Cardinal" published by the senior english class. He was one of the fastest typist in the advanced typing class and was one of three student who from Hooper who entered the district typing contest. Virgil was also on the school public speaking team competing in the category of extemporaneous speeches.
He also raised Buff Orpingtons (chickens) and competed in the county fair winning a number of ribbons.
VIRGIL SCHWAB NAMED TO MILITARY ACADEMY
Washington, Feb. 25. (AP) – The war department announced today Rep. Karl Stefan (R) Nebraska, had appointed Virgil Alvin Schwab of Hooper to the West Point Military Academy. Stefan designated Joseph Hugh Kenney of North Bend and William Glen Rohrer of Wakefield as alternates to Schwab. Source: The Grand Island Daily Independent (Grand Island, Nebraska), Tuesday, 25 February 1936, page 2.
He became a Cadet on 01 July 1936. He received his Commission as a Second Lieutenant of Infantry on 11 June 1940.
Virgil Schwab, son of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Schwab, has passed his solo flying and pilot's tests at the army flying school at Lincoln, being one of the two highest ranking students in the class. Source: The Hooper Sentinel (Hooper, Nebraska), Thursday, 05 September 1940, page 8.
Lt. Schwab transferred to the Air Corps on 21 March 1941 and graduated that same year from the Air Corps Basic Flying School at Maxwell Field in Alabama.
After getting his wings, Virgil A. Schwab (Service # 0-023021) was assigned to the 8th Bomber Squadron, 3rd Bomber Group, Light, U.S. Army Air Force and stationed at the Savannah Air Base, Savannah, Georgia.
U.S. Army Orders
Washington, March 22. – (AP) – Army orders today: ... The following second lieutenants are relieved from Maxwell Field and assigned as indicated: ... To Savannah – ... Virgil A. Schwab, Infantry; ... Source: The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, Virginia), Sunday, 23 March 1941, page 23.
DIVE BOMBER RIDE WITH LIEUT. SCHWAB
For the first time in the history of the U.S. Army, newspaper men have been taken on a 'stuka' raid in one of the air forces new Douglas A-24 dive bombers. In this story of how it feels to take this trip, Jack Redding of the Chicago Herald-American names his pilot as 2nd Lieut. Virgil Schwab, West Point graduate from Hooper.
In his lengthy and graphic description of the mock air battle, Redding makes the following specific references to young Schwab, son of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Schwab.
"It was dark as pitch when we arrived at Shreveport, La., at 5 a.m. A mechanic from Little Rock took me out to the ship in which I was to fly. Then Lt. Schwab arrived, shook hands briefly and said, 'your ride with me'. In a few seconds we were in the heavens circling to take formation.
"If the German Luftwaffe has any better dive bombers or pilots than these madmen I flew with this morning, then indeed they have an air force. Lt. Schwab's ship stood on its nose time and time again as we bombed (imaginary) enemy trucks and convoys.
"I blacked out one for all of ten seconds tried vainly to lift my feet off the floor in other dives. We hedge hopped over the forests at 200 miles an hour. I saw an old white mule go practically crazy as er came over, then we landed in column. The pilot piled out, asked: "Did the pull-outs bother you? I admitted that the first one had." Source: The Hooper Sentinel (Hooper, Nebraska), Thursday, 04 September 1941, page 1.
He was promoted to First Lieutenant on 10 October 1941.
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The center of attraction at the Tuxedo Autumn Ball tonight promises to be Madeline F. Butt, who has pledged her heart and hand to Lieut. Virgil A. Schwab. The engagement will be announced by her mother, Mrs. Frederic F. de Rham, this morning.
The exact date for the wedding hasn't been set because Madeline's future husband is with the 8th Bombardment Squadron at Savannah, Georgia. Source: Daily News (New York, New York), Saturday, 2 October 1941, page 277.
Virgil married Madeline Francis Butt of Tuxedo Park, New York on 27 December 1941 in Tuxedo Park, New York.
Lt Schwab of Hooper And New York Socialite Wed at Tuxedo Park
HOOPER – A wedding of much interest to the people of this vicinity took place at Tuxedo Park, New York, at noon December 27 at the Park chapel.
The principals were Lieut. Virgil A. Schwab, son of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Schwab, of Hooper and Miss Madeline Butt, daughter of Mrs. Frederic F. de Rham of Tuxedo Park.
The bridegroom, a graduate of the Hooper high school, was graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1940 and is stationed with the 8th Bombardment Squadron in the south.
The bride was graduated from Westover and attended the Villa Colina Ridente at Firenze, Italy. She has been studying at the Child Education Foundation in New York City. She made her debut at the Tuxedo Autumn Ball in 1938. She is a member of the Colony club and of the New York Junior league.
The couple announced their engagement last Fall. Source: Fremont Morning Guide (Fremont, Nebraska), Tuesday, 06 January 1942, page 2.
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After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor (07 December 1941), the 3rd Bombardment Group prepared for deployment to the Pacific Theater.
The 8th Bomb Squadron was ordered to deploy to Australia, equipped with the Douglas A-24 Banshee dive bombers. They moved to California and shortly thereafter boarded the U.S.A.T. ANCON on 31 January 1942. They arrived in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia on 25 February 1942 as the first U.S. troops to reach Australia. On 10 March, the 3rd Bombardment Group moved from its temporary camp in the Ascot Park racetrack outside Brisbane to Charters Towers Towers Airfield, Queensland, Australia. On 31 March, the air echelon flew to Jackson Airfield (7 Mile Drone), Port Moresby, New Guinea. On 01 April 1942 the squadron had its first combat mission. The 8th Squadron flew the first bombing mission of the war in New Guinea.
While operating from 7-Mile Drome near Port Moresby, 1st Lt. Virgil Schwab primarily flew a Douglas A-24 Banshee Dive Bomber – S/N 41-15819. Lt. Schwab was involved in combat missions from 01 April to 29 July 1942
HOOPER BOY MAKES NEWS IN PACIFIC WAR
A news dispatch in Monday night's Omaha World Herald sent by an American newspaper correspondent from the South Pacific tells something of the exploits of American flyers, with Lieut. Virgil Schwab, son of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Schwab of Hopper as the hero. Says Reporter Pat Robinson in this article:
"...I have seen American pilots and plane crews give unparalleled exhibitions of daring, gameness and coolness under fire" ...
"Virgil Schwab of Hooper, Neb., is the hero who went in a certain spot to pick up Squadron Leader Johnny Jackson, Australian pursuit ace, who was shot down two weeks ago. We had been wondering about the fate of Schwab and Jackson. By the merest chance we were to find out within an hour when we met Jackson at a secret tiny jungle camp.
" At this camp a group of Australians were congratulating a tall comrade. It was Jackson. They feed us while Jackson told of the adventures he and Schwab had. Schwab had eluded a Jap chaser by rushing low over a field he knew was surrounded by Australian ack-acks, where the Jap would not dare to follow. (and from a report from someone on the ground "Then minutes later we see an American Dive bomber racing overhead with a Zero on his tail, guns blazing.") Jackson had a slight wound in one finger, but Schwab was unhurt." Source: The Hooper Sentinel (Hooper, Nebraska), Thursday, 30 April 1942, page 1. And the Omaha World-Herald (Omaha, Nebraska), Monday, 27 April 1942, page 3.
1st Lt. Schwab was awarded the Silver Star for missions against Lae, New Guinea, 07-13 April 1942.
ARMY DECORATION FOR LT. V. A. SCHWAB
Melbourne, Australia – Lt. Gen. George Brett awarded 17 army silver stars to American airmen who have taken leading roles in the three months of aerial warfare northeast of Australia. Lt. Virgil A. Schwab was one of these 17 airmen to be decorated. Also, twelve pilots cited for carrying out four highly successful bombing raids on Japanese airdomes included Virgil A. Schwab.
The above good news was received by Mr. and Mrs. Harry Schwab, parents of the young man so honored by the United States army. lt. Schwab was recently in the Associated Press news dispatches for bravery in action on the Australian front when he rescued an air corps squadron leader from a jungle camp. Source: The Hooper Sentinel (Hooper, Nebraska), Thursday, 18 June 1942, page 1.
He was promoted to Captain on 05 July 1942.
Silver Star
Service: Army Air Forces
Rank: Captain
Battalion: 8th Bombardment Squadron
GENERAL ORDERS:
Headquarters, Allied Air Forces in the Southwest Pacific Area, General Orders No. 18 (1942)
CITATION: Captain (Air Corps) Virgil Alvin Schwab (ASN: 0-23021), United States Army Air Forces, was awarded the Silver Star for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in connection with military operations against the enemy while serving with the 8th Bombardment Squadron, 3d Bombardment Group, in 1942.
Captain Virgil A. Schwab and gunner, Sgt. Philip H. Childs, were killed when their A-24 Banshee Dive Bomber, S/N 41-15819, was shot down by escorting Japanese Zero's and crashed into the sea, while on a mission targeting a Japanese ship convoy about 20 miles north of Gona, New Guinea.
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29 July 1942 New Guinea
On 29 July 1942 in what has been called "Disaster in New Guinea" eight A-24's of the 3rd Bomb Group took off from 7-Mile Drone near Port Moresby on a combat mission to bomb Japanese transports 20 miles north of Gona. They were escorted by P-39 Air cobras from the 41st Fighter Squadron flying top cover, and 8th Fighter Group, 80th Fighter Squadron P-39s flying close escort.
The Requiem for "The Last Survivor" found on the Home of Heroes tells of the events that happened that day (https://homeofheroes.com/heroes-stories/world-war-ii/raymond-wilkins/).
"Seven aging U.S. Army A-24 dive bombers nosed neatly down in formation on the north side of New Guinea's Owen Stanley Range to break out of the heavy clouds. Ahead of them sparkled the blue-green waters of the Solomon Sea. From his position as flight leader, Captain Floyd W. "Buck" Rogers (in A-24 S/N 41-15797) scanned the clearing skies for any sign of the American P-39s that had been tasked with covering his seven strafer/bombers on today's mission. Somehow, in the clouds that covered the high mountains that split the Papuan peninsula, Major Tommy Lynch's fighter escort had become separated from the A-24 flight and ultimately failed to protect their charges. It was time to make a critical decision.
Captain Rogers was commander of the 8th Squadron of the 3d Bombardment Group, and had been well briefed on his target. A Japanese convoy had been sighted moving towards Buna to reinforce the enemy garrison that was already dealing death to the valiant but battle-weary Australian forces. To prevent these additional Japanese infantrymen from landing, Rogers had been ordered to take his eight A-24s, the last serviceable such aircraft in New Guinea, to intercept the convoy. One of the eight had been forced to turn back shortly after take-off with engine problems (piloted by Lt. Finlay McGillivary), leaving only seven dive bombers to rendezvous with their fighter escort from the 35th Squadron. It was not unusual. The few American aircraft still flying in the Southwest Pacific were all showing the strain of relentless days of combat against an overwhelming and well-supplied enemy air force. Battle-damage alone made it all too common for any flight to be quickly pared down, more as a result of equipment failure than as a result of enemy combat. Matters were even worse for the men who flew A-24s.
The A-24 Dauntless was the Army Air Force's version of the Navy's SBD (Slow But Deadly), a dive bomber with lethal capabilities but a very slow air speed and limited range. The Dauntless was lightly armed and carried a two-man crew: pilot and gunner, the latter defending his aircraft by manning a 30-caliber machine gun from a standing position behind the pilot. Originally developed as a counterpart to Germany's Stuka dive-bombers for service in Europe, ironically 54 of the initial 78 A-24s were sent to fight Japanese shipping in the Pacific instead. By the summer of 1942 the slow-moving, lightly armed, 2-man dive bombers were both obsolete and nearly extinct. The planes actually had been declared "unfit for combat" and their aircrews were to be retrained on the Douglas A-20 Havoc twin-engine bomber, but in view of the desperate war situation, this plan had had been abandoned for the time being.
Without protective fighter cover, Captain Roger's formation would be at the mercy of enemy Zero's. The squadron commander had every reason, and every right, to abort and return to Port Moresby for the sake of the thirteen men flying with him. When weighed against the cost for the men in the jungle below him if the enemy troop convoys proceed unmolested, it presented the veteran officer with a difficult decision. Such is the burden of command.
In the distance fifty miles from Buna, small blotches came into focus across the swells of the Solomon Sea. The enemy convoy, target for the mission, quickly morphed from a distant speck on the water into a distinguishable convoy of six troop transports and two escorting warships, roughly 1¼ miles from shore. Captain Rogers made his decision and wagged his wings to signal his following pilots to prepare for battle."
The weather was fine, with a light overcast. The A-24s dive-bombed in two waves.
"Diving at near water-level into the enemy guns, Captain Rogers felt his own airplane begin to shudder when his gunner, Sergeant Robert Nichols, opened up with the 30-caliber machine guns from his position behind the pilot. Two dozen Japanese Zero's tore through the 8th Squadron formation like sharks in a frenzy, chewing the old A-24s into shreds. (The convoy was protected by A6M2 Zeros from the Tainan Kōkūtai which intercepted the A-24s as they started their dives.) In a flash of fire Captain Rogers' lead dive bomber rolled over and plunged into the sea. He and Sergeant Nichols were the first casualties in what would become the darkest day in 8th Squadron history."
The A-24, piloted by 2nd Lt. John M. Hill was damaged and gunner, Sgt. Ralph Sam, badly wounded (his right arm was shot off during the air battle). Hill diverted to Gurney Airfield, Milne Bay to get emergency treatment for Sgt. Sam before returning to 7-Mile Drome Port Moresby. Ralph was rushed to the hospital where he died from his wounds three days later on 02 August 1942.
In the second wave all four planes were shot down. First Lieutenant Virgil Schwab in A-24 S/N 41-15819, dove on another vessel and felt his dive-bomber coming apart, as no longer capable of flight, it careened into the sea to forever claim his body and that of Sergeant Philip Childs, his gunner. Another one of the A-24s erupted and 1st Lieutenant Robert Cassels and gunner, Sergeant Loree LeBoeuf went down.
2nd Lt. Claude L. Dean and his gunner, Sgt. Alan W. LaRocque in A-24 S/N 41-15766, bailed out of their damaged plane near the north coast of New Guinea and landed safely. *After bailing out, they were found by local people and taken to the Australian Army spotters at Ambasi.
2nd Lt Joseph C. Parker and his gunner, Sgt. Franklyn R. Hoppe were also shot down. *Parker was able to crash land the plane in the vicinity of Ambasi. He was wounded in the leg and Frank Hoppe wounded in the hand. Friendly native people led them to the Australian spotters in the vicinity.
The Japanese ship, Kotoku Maru, was hit once at the No. 5 hatch by the second wave forcing its troops to unload and leave its cargo undelivered. The rest of the ships returned to Lae unharmed.
Of the seven aircraft that had crossed the Owen Stanley Range less than an hour earlier on a mission to turn back the enemy convoy, five were shot down. One was severely damaged but the pilot managed to divert to Gurney Airfield, Milne Bay. Only one was able to return to 7-Mile Drome (Lieutenant Raymond Harrell Wilkins and his gunner, Sergeant Al Clark). Of fourteen men who began that fateful mission, only three made it back. Thereafter the A-24s were condemned for combat.
After that mission disaster it was decided that the A-24 aircraft was unsuitable for dive-bombing land combat against the Japanese. The Japanese, possessing air superiority, easily dealt with the dive-bombers and the handful of inferior fighter escorts. After losing a total of eleven A-24s and their two-man crews, the 3d Bombardment Group called off further dive-bomber missions from Jackson Field. They were withdrawn from New Guinea after it was realized that they were not suited for their intended role without adequate fighter protection. The remaining A-24s were relegated to non-combat missions. Source: https://military-history.fandom.com/wiki/8th_Special_Operations_Squadron
*Note: The four crashed airmen (Claude L. Dean, Alan W. LaRocque, Joseph C. Parker , Frank R. Hoppe ) that survived, joined a group led by Australian Army Lieutenant Smith (including another downed American pilot) and Rev. James Benson and two woman (May Hayman and Mavis Parkinson) from the Anglican Mission Station and Hospital in Gona.
3rd Bombardment Group, Headquarters reported a radio message from the survivors on 30 July 1942:"... [A-24 piloted by Parker] crash landed on the north coast of New Guinea near Ambasi due to interception. Radio report received advised that four [Dean, La Rocque, Parker and Hoppe] were safe and that Japanese patrols were in the vicinity. The radio went off the air suddenly, and never came on the air again."
The group attempted to bypass Japanese forces to reach safety. They were betrayed by natives and on 08 August 1942 were ambushed by the Japanese. All were killed or executed. The two woman were captured and later executed. The sole survivor was Reverend James Benson who was taken prisoner and sent to Rabaul. He survived the war. The bodies of the four executed American airmen were recovered near Dobudura No 2, in March 1943.
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Captain Schwab and Sergeant Childs were declared Missing In Action.
VIRGIL A. SCHWAB REPORTED MISSING
Mr. and Mrs. Harry Schwab, Hooper, have received word that their son, Capt. Virgil Schwab, bomber pilot at Port Moresby, New Guinea, is reported missing.
Capt. Schwab is a graduate of West Point military academy and received an army decoration for his couragous flights at Port Moresby last spring, plus other recognitions of meritorious service.
Considerable anxiety had been felt here since early August because it was at that time his regular cablegrams suddenly stopped. Source: The Hooper Sentinel (Hooper, Nebraska), Thursday, 24 September 1942, page 1.
Captain Schwab and Sergeant Childs were not officially declared dead by the War Department until 01 December 1945 – almost three and a half years later.
VIRGIL SCHWAB DEATH CONFIRMED
After over three years of patient waiting and suspense since the word was received by them that their son, Captain Virgil A. Schwab, was reported as missing in action on July 29, 1942, word was received by Mr. and Mrs. Harry J. Schwab last Thursday from the War Department stating that it must now terminate their son's absence by a presumptive finding of death, and an official finding of death has been recorded by the department.
According to the information from the War Department, Capt. Schwab is presumed to have lost his life in a dive bombing mission on enemy shipping near Gona Bay, New Guinea, when the air planes engage in the mission were attacked by enemy planes. The information also stated there was no witness to what happened to the plane of which Capt. Schwab was pilot and nothing has been found concerning the fate of the plane or its missing crew members since that date.
Virgil Schwab was born December 11, 1915, on the Schwab home farm northeast of Hooper, and attended that district's rural school and then Hooper high school from which he graduated in 1931, being valedictorian of the class. He spent five years at home and 1936 received an appointment as cadet to the U. S. military college at West Point, N. Y., graduating in 1940 and being assigned to the air corps.
He was married Dec. 27, 1941, to Miss Madeleine Butt of Tuxedo Park, N. Y. and a month later he was assigned to active duty in the South Pacific war zone with headquarters at Port Moresby. During his six months of active duty as a bomber pilot, Virgil was promoted from first lieutenant to captain, was decorated with the silver star for bravery in action and received other recognitions of meritorious service.
Surviving him besides the parents and wife are two brothers, Donald, an army dischargee, and Harry, Jr., at home; and three sisters, Mrs. Howard Row of Hooper, and Misses Anita and Mildred Schwab of Arlington, Va., who are expected to be home soon. Also surviving him is his aged grandfather, Henry Schwab, and a large number of more distant relatives, members of this well-known and highly respected Hooper pioneer family. Source: The Hooper Sentinel (Hooper, Nebraska), Thursday, 13 December 1945, page 1.
Captain Virgil Alvin Schwab and Sergeant Philip Howell Childs are memorialized on the Tablets of the Missing – United States Army and Army Air Forces at the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines.
Virgil also has a cenotaph in Hooper Cemetery, Hooper, Dodge County, Nebraska.
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His widow, Madeleine Francis Butt Schwab, married Dr. Melvin Malcolm Grumbach in December 1951 in Manhattan, New York.
Dr. Madeleine Francis Butt Schwab Grumbach (12 February 1920 Tuxedo Park, New York - 17 January 1977 San Francisco, California).
