Joseph Heacock 1944
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| Joseph Wilson Heacock Jr. |
January 1, 2000
The news hit our family like a bombshell. Uncle Joe was dead! He was a First Lieutenant in the US Army Air Corps, 8th Air Force, and was flying out of England on reconnaissance missions over Europe. He left behind his wife Dorothy Louise and one-year-old son Gary.
There are two versions to the story of how his P-38 crashed, and I cannot know which one is true. Therefore, here are both of them and you can decide.
Version 1
According to Uncle Steven Heacock, when Joe was taking off in his Lockheed P-38 fighter, an engine died during a critical time at very low altitude and Joe was killed when his plane crashed into the English countryside. His airplane speed was too low for recovery (Vnc --velocity non-controllable). When one of the two large (1150 HP) Allison engines on the P-38 died, the torque of the remaining engine caused the plane to yaw and flip upside down. This was an engine that did not run particularly well in the cold European climates. It was well known by P-38 pilots that if either engine died at a particularly critical time during takeoff, recovery of plane control was very difficult. The plane carried a crew of one -- the pilot -- thus there was no co-pilot to assist during emergencies. The only thing that could have saved him was an instantaneous reflexive action to "chop" the power on the engine that was still running. A split second too late resulted in an uncontrolled plane and a crash. It was not an uncommon accident with this large, powerful, fighter aircraft.
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| Dorothy and Joe Heacock |
Version 1
According to Uncle Steven Heacock, when Joe was taking off in his Lockheed P-38 fighter, an engine died during a critical time at very low altitude and Joe was killed when his plane crashed into the English countryside. His airplane speed was too low for recovery (Vnc --velocity non-controllable). When one of the two large (1150 HP) Allison engines on the P-38 died, the torque of the remaining engine caused the plane to yaw and flip upside down. This was an engine that did not run particularly well in the cold European climates. It was well known by P-38 pilots that if either engine died at a particularly critical time during takeoff, recovery of plane control was very difficult. The plane carried a crew of one -- the pilot -- thus there was no co-pilot to assist during emergencies. The only thing that could have saved him was an instantaneous reflexive action to "chop" the power on the engine that was still running. A split second too late resulted in an uncontrolled plane and a crash. It was not an uncommon accident with this large, powerful, fighter aircraft.
The extra large engines, which made this twin-boom plane so effective for climbing and high altitude reconnaissance missions, also made takeoff and landing reasonably dangerous. Otherwise, it was a fairly easy plane to fly and performed well. It was probably the most successful fighter of WW II. When flying at higher altitudes, recovery, if an engine died was not as difficult. Joe was well aware of the possibility that this problem might happen and had trained extensively in preparation for it.
Version 2
When Dwayne Bair related this new information to me, he told it somewhat reluctantly. He said he feared that Joe's memory might not be best served by this new explanation. However, we agreed that Uncle Joe was likely a great risk-taker or he would not have taken on such dangerous wartime missions. The fact that he took a gamble that cost him his life does not diminish his image in our eyes. He is still our hero!
Uncle Joe had made 13 photo reconnaissance missions over Europe, where he had survived German air defenses and probably brought back critically valuable photographic evidence, such as troop deployments, airfields, war equipment manufacturing plants and such. This type of high-flying espionage was critical to American and English forces if we were to succeed in freeing Europe from the Nazis. The P-38 (nicknamed the Lightning) could fly at over 400 mph, climb to an altitude of 40,000 feet and carry four .50 caliber machine guns and one 20 mm cannon. It was also used extensively during WW II for dive bombing, level bombing, and ground strafing. But when used for reconnaissance, guns were often removed.
Version 2
On March 2002, I visited with my cousin Dwayne Bair at his home in Edinburg. He reported that he had some additional information about Uncle Joe's death. Dwayne had recently visited with a fellow named Marvin Jones whose nickname was "Killer." Marvin was present when Uncle Joe crashed his P-38 and died. According to Marvin, Uncle Joe was demonstrating the power of the P-38 by trying to fly a loop immediately upon takeoff. He completed the loop but slightly misjudged his height above the runway. The plane was about to level off when it hit the pavement and crashed.
Uncle Joe had been flying reconnaissance missions over the coast of France. In his unarmed P-38, he flew early morning missions over German Army units, taking photos along the way. It is not too difficult to imagine him dodging antiaircraft fire and any other kind of weapon the Germans could think of. He was certainly a brave and daring fellow to take such chances. But, it was his job. Maybe he was thinking that he was sort of invincible -- having survived those dangerous missions. Thus, Uncle Joe probably had every confidence that his P-38 could fly a loop immediately upon takeoff. But somewhere he misjudged something.
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| Cigarette lighter and patches Joe gave to Dwayne Bair |
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| P-38 |
Our family was well aware of the dangers of war and even the dangers of preparing for war. As a seven-year-old kid, I remember seeing an Air Force trainer come tumbling out of the sky near our home in Edinburg. My big brother, Bruce and I went to the scene of one such crash site east of Shirley Rooks' home on McCall Road -- looking for, but hoping not to find, any human body parts. We found lots of plane parts and a large circle of scorched earth, but no evidence that a human had been in the crash. We were relieved! Another time, a couple of student pilots were seen hanging from parachutes as they fell out of the sky. The loud, booming noise of their plane striking earth somewhere nearby alerted us to the possibility that there might be survivors in the air. These pilots were training at Moore Air Base, north of Mission, which is now known for producing screw-worm flies for release in Mexico. (But that is another story.) The sound of trainer planes was a very frequent occurrence during those years, and evidently, the trainer planes were not built as much for safety as they were for a relatively inexpensive machine for training combat pilots. These accidents were a vivid reminder to us of the hazards facing Uncle Joe.
But what was Uncle Joe really like? Was he really a nice guy or was his memory puffed, so we remember the good stuff and ignore any blemishes in his personality -- as is the usual case with eulogies?
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| Joe in Trainer |
To find out, I visited Uncle Steven at his home in Austin. Steven is not one to mince his words, so maybe he would give me the straight "poop." Steven remembers Joe as a "very congenial, personable, honest, sincere and happy-go-lucky guy, liked by almost everyone." However, he remembered, "One time at school, Joe got cross with some kid and came home very upset. Evidently, this other boy had been pushing Joe around. I got out a pair of boxing gloves and taught Joe how to jab, jab, and then hook to the solar plexus. The next day Joe came home from school with a grin on his face."
"‘Steven, that was easy,' Joe said."
According to Steven, "Joe made good grades in school but was not an academic genius. In the '30s both Joe and I worked in our father's hardware store both before and after school. We swept the wooden floor with brooms. In high school, Joe and some of his buddies drove all the way to Monterrey to meet girls. They risked driving about 160 miles through Mexican chaparral over dirt and rock roads, fording rivers and streams, to find three interested Mexican girls, made a date and went dancing. When they left the porch after returning the girls to their home, several local guys met them and invited them not to come back to Monterrey. After that time, Joe developed a greater interest in American girls. He played one year in the Redshirt Edinburg Band, but was not particularly athletic."
"Joe played on the baseball team that my mother, Fanny Heacock organized in Edinburg when Joe was five or six (about 1925). She was the first birder in the Rio Grande Valley and had to take time off from giving birding programs to school kids to organize the team. Across the street from the Heacock Hardware Store was a ball field where they played. Mother organized two teams of about 18 boys -- nine on each side. Grandma dyed their shirts yellow and logically named them "The Canaries." Once organized, Edinburg fathers were happy to help with coaching (but likely wished to change their name to the Tigers or something.) There was no official Little League at the time, but Grandma's teams were a great success. They probably got their balls and bats from the Heacock Hardware Store.
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| Joe and Steven Heacock |
Although he was not a star athlete, "Joe was a crack shot with a 22 rifle. Once Joe, Lee Bair, and two or three other guys hopped in my ‘35 Ford for a jackrabbit hunt at night with spotlights. We might kill 12 - 18 rabbits in a night. Among those rabbits, there might be three or four young and tender rabbits that we would give to the black folks in east Edinburg. We would honk the horn and they would come to get them. One night Joe was riding on the fender and shot a running rabbit when we were traveling about ten miles per hour. He just snapped the shot and the rabbit rolled. I went to get the rabbit, examined it and yelled back to Joe: ‘Where did you hit him?'"
"‘I shot him in the head,' Joe said.
"Sure enough, that is exactly where the rabbit had been shot.
"Joe also developed his marksmanship by shooting hard and soft-shell turtles in the Rio Grande River. On a high bank, on a bend of the river, the turtles would float by with just their heads sticking out of the water. Joe could hit them in the back of their heads so they would pop out of the water.
"When Joe entered the Air Force, all flying cadets were required to take skeet shooting to improve their skills at deflection (moving target) shooting. While at Kelly Field in San Antonio, Joe set the skeet shooting record. Deflection shooting was an important skill for everyone in Joe's outfit because they were training to fight in fighter planes, where they would be shooting from a moving platform (their plane) at other moving aircraft. It was necessary to know how far ahead of the target to aim so that the bullets would reach the spot where the plane would be."
I remember Uncle Joe's handsome good looks in his USAF uniform. In his leather flight jacket, with his hat at a jaunty angle, he was very friendly to all the Sterling kids. He was a towheaded guy with brown eyes and a ready grin. In my seven-year-old eyes, he was a very brave fellow going off to save the world from evil. He was also a very charismatic individual. The last time he left Edinburg to fight in the second great war, he left behind his wife, Dorothy (Hager) and his year-old son, Gary. We can only imagine the trepidation Dorothy, Grandma Fanny, JW and everyone else felt as they watched him leave. I can remember no specific incidents of how any of the family members handled the news of his death. But I can remember a very melancholy and morose bunch who found it difficult to explain the details of the accident to one 7-year-old kid and his siblings.
Others have a much more vivid remembrance. According to my sister Dorothy Cavanaugh, Uncle Richard Heacock brought the news of Joe's accident to the Sterling farm. Dorothy was about 12 years old. When she comprehended the seriousness of the news, she started crying and ran through the orchard, crying all the way, while taking the message to Grandma Sterling's house. The news was especially devastating to Dorothy because Uncle Joe was a very important person in her life. Joe had been the first man to kiss her on the lips. He once flew over our house and waved the wings of his plane to all the Sterling kids out on the lawn. It was quite a thrill. Grandma Heacock gave all of Joe's shirts, a suit and shoes to my brother Bruce, and Dorothy washed and ironed them -- french cuffs and all.
Aunt Mary Hunter (Joe's sister) remembers the day she and her family received the bad news. A boy came riding to their home on a bicycle and handed her a telegraph envelope with a gold star on the outside. Only after she read the shocking news contained inside the envelope did she remember that a gold star meant someone had died. Mary said that maybe we tend to glorify Joe, but he really was a very sweet person. She also remembers visiting St. Paul's Cathedral in London several years later. In the Cathedral, lies a book containing the names of all the Americans from the Allied Force who died in WWII. Every day someone would turn to a new page in the book. On the day Mary visited, the book just happened to be turned to the page where she read: Lt. Joseph Wilson Heacock. It must have been a very moving experience.
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| Gary (Heacock) Toothaker |
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| Joe Heacock |
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| Joe, Steven, Mary, Esther, and Dorothy Heacock |
My brother John Sterling remembers: "Mom spoke of him occasionally. The two things I remember her saying of Uncle Joe were that an hour in the air was worth a lifetime on the ground...you don't see any quotation marks because I'm sure I've misquoted...and that Grandpa Heacock was terribly hurt and didn't want Joe's body sent back to the United States, partly because he wouldn't be able to stand to have any reminder of Joe's death."
Cousin Jack Heacock remembers "... a jaunty, happy-go-lucky bon vivant. When I was about 7 years old, dad and I were visiting grandma and grandpa and Uncle Joe was there. He had his cigarette and said, "Bet you can't blow a smoke ring! Give you a dime if you can." I took a puff and blew a perfect smoke ring...but he wasn't forthcoming with the dime. I blabbed to grandma, and she stood there and said, "Joe, give him the dime."
And he did!
"In my first month as pastor at the Austin First United Methodist Church, at the end of the service, a Chinese-American male stood to the side until all the well-wishers had gone. He stepped up, introduced himself (a doctor from Dallas) and said, ‘I was your Uncle Joe's replacement in England...I got his cot, foot-locker, and two of his P-38s.' I was so stunned that I failed to get his name for a later visit to learn all I could about Uncle Joe posthumously. Darn."
Fanny Ross remembers: "thinking Aunt Dorothy, Uncle Joe, and Gary were all the most beautiful looking people I'd ever seen with the exception of Aunt Gretchen. I also remember wanting my family to run and hide in the orchard every time a plane flew over after Uncle Joe's death. I just couldn't understand why they wouldn't do what I wanted. I feared for our lives. I wonder if Aunt Dorothy would tell us her story. She seems so easy to talk to."
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| Dorothy and Joe Heacock |
No one that I have talked to remembers any eulogy being written or any sort of funeral service. Fifty-five years have passed since that fateful day in England, and it seems to me that there should be some record of this event which was so traumatic to our family. The Army Air Corps held a service at his graveside. And, according to a letter written by Marvin Jones to Grandma and Grandpa JW Heacock:
"I got to attend the funeral, it was held at the American Cemetery at Cambridge, and it is a beautiful place. I had the Red Cross get me a nice spray of flowers, and during the ceremony, six P38’s flew low over the cemetery, They were Joe’s buddies from his squadron."
"I got to attend the funeral, it was held at the American Cemetery at Cambridge, and it is a beautiful place. I had the Red Cross get me a nice spray of flowers, and during the ceremony, six P38’s flew low over the cemetery, They were Joe’s buddies from his squadron."
Anyway, sometimes when thoughts turn to the great life we enjoy in this prosperous and free country, Uncle Joe is the icon that comes to mind. He provides a concrete example of those who fought and died so we can now enjoy our freedom. When the war was over and Hitler was dead, my young mind wished to give the credit to Uncle Joe. Not that he defeated Hitler all by himself, but that maybe the victory might not have been possible without the valuable photos that Uncle Joe took over Europe.
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| Cambridge Cemetery |
First Lt. Joseph Wilson Heacock lies buried in Cambridge, England, but his memory is very much alive, especially with those of us who were fortunate enough to know him. No, he was not an Audie Murphy/John Wayne type of hero, who captured whole platoons of Nazis with only a pistol and a hand grenade. But it certainly must have taken a great deal of courage to fly his P-38 over enemy territory while dodging antiaircraft fire. Although his death took place in a rather inglorious accident instead of being shot down by the Luftwaffe in some gallant air battle over Germany, in my eyes, Uncle Joe was a brave hero! He still is! Even though 55 years have passed since Uncle Joe died, we still miss him!
Letters
Sister Peggy Miller recently (December 2018) sent a bundle of letters that Grandma Fanny Heacock had preserved. This bundle included letters from Joe to Fanny, Fanny to Joe, Richard Heacock, Emma Brandon, and others.
Letters
Sister Peggy Miller recently (December 2018) sent a bundle of letters that Grandma Fanny Heacock had preserved. This bundle included letters from Joe to Fanny, Fanny to Joe, Richard Heacock, Emma Brandon, and others.
Six of these letters from Fanny to Joe were returned unread because they arrived in England after Joe had died. Written on the front of the envelopes were the words "casualty mail deceased."
I have read these letters, hoping to find details of Joe's life that might add to this story -- and they do. But, because of these letters from England were screened by the security folks for any information that might be helpful to the enemy, they contain very little about where Joe was stationed or anything about his missions.
However, in one of his earlier letters from 1942 when he was stationed at Brooks Field in Texas, he mentioned that he would "start flying an O-52 "Owl" Observation Aircraft tomorrow and it's going to be quite a change from the A.T. 6s we've been flying. But, experience makes the pilot they say." He found the photography from an airplane much more difficult than he had imagined. Sometimes they forgot to take the lens off the camera or to open the door below the camera. They worked in pairs -- one flying and the other taking photos and taking notes of bridges, buildings, roads, etc. In 1943, Joe was stationed at the Army Air Base in Abilene, TX where there was a shortage of planes for them to fly. Then, he moved to Thomasville, Ga. for a 2-month, P39 course where he learned "gunnery, formation, high altitude, etc."
Joe took a train trip that proved to be boring. "I don't like train trips because you don't see much country. Conveniences aren't very good either and sure does cost plenty too. Pullman (when you can get them) are $4.13 and meals are $1.35 at least. The trains are so crowded its pitiful and more women with small babies going to and from home."
"The food isn't up to standard though but I eat like a horse anyway. Have gained a little and weight 146 lbs.
In July of 1943, he wrote: "Finally got to fly yesterday after nearly a week of preparing, taking test both written and cockpit. The cockpit checks are given by instructors to find out for sure we know where each instrument and gadget is with your eyes closed too. And don't think there are enough of them either, they are all over except just where you sit. Anyway, I flew the thing and it turned out to be just another airplane but somewhat faster than the rest I've flown. Cruising along at 250 mph is a little different and when the nose goes down it doesn't take 30 seconds to 300 or 350. Think after I get used to it I'll like it a lot. The controls work like magic and all you have to do is think about turning and you better watch out or it will get out of control. It's that touchy.
... "Our instructors ... just returned from the combat zones. A couple from Alaska, 3 from Panama, and one from New Guinea. ... my flight commander has 4 zeros to his credit and 17 months in that area."
..."glad to hear everyone is happy. Can't quite imagine Winfield milking already -- what a family. That Dorothy Lee is worth her weight in gold isn't she? Bet Fanny is having a time getting to stay with Granny and Grandpa for a few days -- and on top of that a new playsuit."
"The flying here is really getting interesting, now that we've started gunnery. Have been doing some live bombing the past 2 days and it's surprising how accurate it is. The bomb is just a practice one with about 8 pounds of explosives in the nose so we can tell where it goes. Start ground gunnery Tuesday, fire a 30 cal in each wing at first but before we leave we fire the four 30s and a 50 cal in the nose and the cannon at once. Some fun!"
"... Put in 4 straight hours in the 39. Tired? You know it. The first 2 hours were on a cross-country to Macon, Ga. about 170 miles from here. Had belly tanks on so we'd have enough gas. The last two hours were spent at 10,000 feet ... firing at areal targets. ... ran into a thunderstorm on the way home and it really got rough. Bumped my head on the sides and top of the small cockpit several times. Throws the plane around like a newspaper in a whirlwind. Some fun!"
" ... we had one "dogfight" or "rat race" after the other. Really tiring but lots of fun. We have a few new P39s that just came in. They are a new model P39Q, the "Q" means a new series like next years car model. It's different in that it has all 50 cal guns and the 37 mm cannon and is quite faster and carries more gas. For Dwayne's (Bair) benefit, the two 50 cals are mounted one under each wing."
"Sure relieved to hear that she (Dorothy Lee Sterling appendix operation) made it OK and well enough to move from the hospital." Note: Dorothy's appendix broke before it could be removed so she became very sick. Sister Peggy Miller visited Dorothy in the hospital and thought she saw lots of blood on her sheets. Turns out that Dorothy had spilled the juice of pickled beets -- not blood.
In a letter on Sept. 17, 1943, after moving to Esler Field in Alexandria, La, Joe wrote: "I packed all the rest of my junk into 2 barracks bags, footlocker, and bedroll and threw them on the troop train. We had quite a shock upon reaching Alexandria though, it seems there are seven Army camps and airfield around this vicinity and they all (the soldiers) come to Alex. Not because it's a good town because it's far from that, but because it's the only one near. So you can imagine about 100 or 150 thousand soldiers in one town. The field here is also in pretty sad shape, nothing to do and is 15 miles to town. No use going there though because it's the worst town I was ever in. Food is terribly high, and not worth a darn either, there are 3 or 4 shows though. The food out here is pretty fair but costs lots more than before -- 25 cents breakfast, 50 cents dinners, 50 cents suppers -- never been more than $1.00 per day. We have 2 new P40s in the Sqdn. so I'll get to check out in a different ship for a change. They say the P40 is a plenty nice plane to fly. I have my own ship assigned to me (name and all on the side). Had a nice trip (to Houston) and a good visit with Steve (Heacock) and family."
Oct, 28, 1943 he wrote: "They made me Technical Supply Officer and Sqdn. athletic officer. The deal is a full-time job for a ground officer so takes up quite a bit of time. Has to do with securing all parts, engines, tools, supplies, etc. etc. for the squadron."
"Gary has 8 teeth now, 4 up and 4 down and is scooting all over so fast that he necessitates constant watch."
In his letter of Jan. 7, 1943, Joe included an excellent article by Meyer Berger of the New York Times about Col. James Goodwin Hall, who flew 1,600-mile missions into German for Photo Reconnaissance. Col. Hall was 47 years old and was flying with young guys of Joe's age. He advised his young companions to avoid combat. "Your job is to get in there, shoot your film, and then get the hell out of there." Meyer Berger explained all the great intelligence that was being gathered in Germany to help guide the bombers to critical targets. Joe was now located in Oklahoma City attached to the 29th Photo Squadron.
"Deliver me from this arctic climate (in Oklahoma). Both planes I flew today were without any heaters whatsoever so I nearly froze to death -- 5 to 10 degrees below up to 10,000 feet so I ventured no higher."
April 6, 1944. "This will be my last letter from Okla. City as I'm leaving here with the air echelon in the morning for Hunter Field. You will get a card with my APO (Army Post Office) number 0-674836 and when that comes you can write because it will find me no matter when I am. I'm pretty sure we're going to ride a boat wherever we go instead of fly. Don't look forward to that much as I'm not much of a sailor I guess -- but will find out shortly."
From England in 1944, he reported in several letters about how busy he is and has little time to write letters, the letters he has received from his wife Dorothy and his siblings, riding a bicycle through the English countryside, wanting to visit London, military food, not to worry about his safety, must go to bed because it is late and such. However, reading these letters and knowing how traumatic it must have been for his parents and family to read -- was a very moving experience.
Winfield Sterling
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Note: Most of the technical and personal information cited in this story was obtained from a conversation with Joe's brother, Steven Heacock on Christmas Day (12/25/99), his sister, Mary Hunter on 12/28/99, his niece, Dorothy Cavanaugh on 12/28/99, John Sterling on 12/1/99 and from the Website about WWII aircraft: http://members.home.net/mefletcher/p38.html.
Also, check out an excellent documentary on the P 38 at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LkrlGdjj8L4
Also, check out an excellent documentary on the P 38 at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LkrlGdjj8L4
