Just what was the true timeline as to the events of May/June 1943?
Much can be gained by studying Morgan’s Individual Flight Record for June and the Memphis Belle’s Maintenance Record for May/June. It is known that May 17 saw the Memphis Belle’s 24th mission, which was Morgan’s 25th. Two days later, on May 19, Lt Anderson flew the Memphis Belle its 25th mission. Morgan claims he flew her also that day, and indeed his flight record does show a 2 hour 50 minute flight that day, with two landings, but it could not have been aboard the Memphis Belle, for after Anderson’s mission - the sole flight of the day - the aircraft was ‘snagged’ with oil pressure problems on engines #3 and #4 - also the radio compass was not working. According to the Maintenance Record, the Memphis Belle was not flown again until the day after the King and Queen’s visit, on the 27th, when Bob Morgan took it up for a 4 hour 15 minute flight. The aircraft was not flown again for the rest of the month, so the trip to Bovingdon for the 26th Mission ceremony could not have happened then.
It took a chance remark by co-author Harry Friedman to Catherine Wyler, William Wyler’s daughter to provide the spark that led to the discovery of a two-page document that solved many of the mysteries.
Written on June 8 1943, it is a secret ‘Field Report’ detailing William Wyler’s activities from May 15 - June 4 1943 - a key period in the history of the Memphis Belle. Both Morgan and Perkins suggest that Wyler was aboard the Memphis Belle on May 19 - Bob Morgan: ‘I flew the Memphis Belle myself of May 19. No, it was not a combat mission but a photography mission carrying William Wyler’. Wyler’s Field Report shows otherwise - he was aboard ‘Our Gang’ with Captain Gaitley on the Kiel mission.
Morgan/Powers also states that before leaving Bassingbourn, Bob Morgan took the Memphis Belle up for more filming with William Wyler - yet again, the Field Report shows otherwise. Entries for both May 18 and May 20 distinctly shows that Wyler photographed Morgan, crew and aircraft on ‘ground activities’ only.
Then we come to the May 25 entry. ‘Arranged with Colonel for King and Queen who were visiting the field to inspect ‘Memphis Belle’ and crew’. This is the ONLY reference that mentions the royal visit in the correct date sequence that ties in with official royal records. It also contradicts Wyler’s own post-war claim that he had personally arranged for the King and Queen to visit Bassingbourn ‘specifically’ to review the Memphis Belle and her crew. According to the Field Report, it is clear that their Majesties were already going to be on base - Wyler just grabbed the opportunity to get Royalty into the documentary short! It is also clear from the closing paragraphs that at this point in time - June 8 1942 Wyler was still thinking in terms of a documentary short - a newsreel in other words - as an ‘...instructive film of value to the Army Air Forces’.
Captain Cliburn took the Memphis Belle up for a two hour flight on June 2. We know that Captain Cliburn had already reached his personal 25, so this must have been either some kind of test flight, or perhaps a proficiency flight to allow Captain Cliburn to remain current on type. Morgan took the Memphis Belle up also for two hours on June 8 during which he made four landings - this also suggests a proficiency flight, or possibly some filming work in conjunction with Wyler’s movie. It also could be that he wanted to make sure all was working correctly for the long trans-Atlantic crossing. On June 9 there is a single one hour flight recorded in both logs - this most have been the flight over to Bovingdon also including some film work, which is cross-correlated by the picture captions. Then nothing happens until June 12, so the vague ‘details’ of the Official Log for June 8/9th appear to be in error, for the aircraft and crew did not set out for Prestwick until this date - explained by the 2 hour 30 minute flight time. June 13 sees an eight hour flight, three of which Morgan flew on instruments. This is the first part of the trans-Atlantic crossing, taking them as far as Greenland. They nightstopped and re-fuelled here, then making a two-stage, 13 hour flight - Morgan’s record shows two landings - on June 14. In a radio interview given on June 23, Margaret Polk revealed that Bob Morgan called her from Bangor, Maine in the evening of Monday June 14 - this must have been the intermediate stop for more fuel before landing at Wendover Field, Chicopee, Massachusetts, as recorded by Morgan. Here again they night-stopped. Incidentally, Morgan’s Flight Record for June 1943 was certified by a Captain Edwin R Glass, the Operations Officer of the 395th Bomb Group, suggesting that this was the unit to which they had been re-assigned for the duration of the Bond Tour.
At this point another of the ‘mysteries’ appears. Both Morgan/Powers and Perkins say in their respective books that after the nightstop they flew next day to Washington DC, arriving at the National Airport. This is not surprising, for Morgan cooperated with Perkins. It is very well documented that they arrived there on June 16. So if they overnighted at Wendover Field on the 14th, where was a two hour thirty minute flight to on the 15th as recorded in both Morgan’s Flight Record and the Memphis Belle’s Maintenance Log? Chicopee is only a little over 300 miles from Washington DC - about a ninety minute cruise in a B-17.
This was followed by a two hour flight on the 16th, which one assumes terminated at Washington DC. This was not a straight two-hour flight from A to B. In the Morgan/Powers book there is a description of the crew ‘flightseeing’ around Washington and then being ‘ordered’ to beat up the airport before landing. Given Morgan’s known propensity for ‘beat-ups’ this suggests something akin to what would happen at an air display today - but at a MUCH lower altitude!
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