HomeMy WebLinkAboutFred Rennels, Jr., Brazos Valley Heroesone in a series of tributes to members of "The Greatest
(itineration" who served our country during World War 11
Fred Rennels Jr of br,w ham a,oa,s ii r yl I menu ac
"am gg a lucky guy. But in 1942, after his three tent males were
the first pilots killed in his P -38 photo reconnaissance squadron,
most of his fellow pilots thought him too unlucky to room with.
"Fortunately, a is of the guys was also from Texas and said he
glad h ed Ild land with so is fellow T exan,
bemuse ve both made t home. e. I'm
Rennels was born in Ford County west of Wichita Falls and
came to A&M in 1938. In 1939, his family followed him to Brazos
County.
"When I came to A&M, they put me in the field artillery which
was horse - drawn. They taught me to chew tobacco and how to
clean up after horses. I didn't like chewing tobacco and horses
even less so I cackled to join the Army Air Corps. I passed all the
tests and physicals and reported for duty in June 1941, just after
I graduated. I was sent to primary flight school In Oklahoma and
than on to Goodfellow Fielrl in San Angelo. While a cadet in sain-
ing in San Angelo, I was attending a movie when they stopped
the movie to announce the bombing of Pead Harbor. knew then
I would be going the Pacific to fight the Japanese. I was right."
Rennels was sent to California to learn to the P -38 - the
fastest plane in the world at that time -and to earn to conduct
photographic reconnaissance missions. By June 1942 Rennels
was on . is way to Australia.
"We convoyed to Melbourne end than by rail to Townsville,
Australia, where the 19 Bomber Group was located. The first
night there, we were bombed by the Japanese. The 191' was
short on suppl and short on pilots, so a bunch of us went to
see afoot helping out. The next ni ght at 2 a.m. I Climbed into a B-
17 as the co lbt. t was the first B -171 had been in in my life."
When Rennels and his group finally received their P -38s, they
were sent to Port Mors by New Gulnen. Their mission was to
recon flights of the Sout� Pacific so the area would f>e mapped, w'
the information to be passed on to our soldiers and sailors.
The only map we had of the area to start with was a map we
a.;m out or a National Geographic magazine. Our first missions
were flown using that map. Our missions were long, mostly over
water and not much data on the area. If you lost your bearings,
you were probably lost for good. I found the Japanese pilots
to be mature and very capable. Most of us were fresh out of
college and fresh out of flight school. We had a tough fime of it
early in the wa"
"The P -38s were armed only with cancerous, so when we got
jumped by Japanese Zems that would set up over our targets,
we could only try to avoid them. The P -38 was a great plane,
very maneuverable and fast. Most of the time we could out -dive
aM than outrun the Zeros."
"We had no maps, no experience, no supplies and no help.
But we teamed to make do with what we had. We were mostly
boys right out of school, but the innovations we made to our
planes, our communications, our maps and our facilities were
utilized throughout the war."
In 1943, Rennels returned to the US to train other pilots to By
the P -38, which he did until the war ended. Rennels was to go
back in the war as a commander with a squadron on is way to
Europe, but his orders were delayed. That squadron's ship was
attacked by a German submarine, end all aboard perished.
When the war ended, Rennels remained in the Air Force until
he retired in 1968. He moved back to Bryan, where he has been
involved in the real estate business for many years.
Fred Rennels survived 75 combat missions, may under the
most adverse circumstances, returning each fime while many of
his fellow pilots did not. His data in orders to take command of
a squadron that perished at sea kept him from dying with them.
He had a great career, he has a wonderful famly and has had a
full and enjoyable lie. He is a very lucky fellow, Indeed.
Fred Rennels' name can be found on the Brazos Valley
Veterans Pak Memorial. If you would like to make a contribu-
tion a know of a Ward War II veteran whose story should be
published, please contact the Brazos Valley Veterans Memorial at
m
www verterans- emorial ora or Bill Young in at 260 -7030.