Obituary for : Francis Joseph Perkins
Francis Joseph Perkins died on July 30, 2012. He was born on December 17,1923 in Chicago, Illinois.
The Early Years:
Francis, called by “Fran” by his brothers James, Robert, Edward, and Raymond, played and grew up in the Brainerd neighborhood located on the South Side of Chicago.
Francis graduated from Calumet High School in 1941. While at Calumet, he met an aspiring opera singer, Elaine Birmingham. This became a romance that lasted beyond World War II
Korea, and all of life’s challenges.
World War II
Ten days after Pearl Harbor and World War II broke out, Francis enlisted into the Army Air Corps.
Francis became a prolific gunner in gunnery school and was promoted to an air combat role as the ball turrett gunner on a B-24 Liberator bomber in the 11th Bomb Group, 42nd Bomber Squadron of the 7th Air Force. The 42nd Bomber Squadron was called the "Grey Geese," but were nicknamed the" Ruptured Ducks," after the unusual design of the B-24.
"Thumper"
After Francis was assigned with a bomber crew, they flew a newly commissioned aircraft, named Thumper after the Disney character from the movie "Bambi." They picked up the airplane near Detroit, Michigan and flew it to Sacramento, California to have Francis's ball turret installed.
While in Sacramento, California, the Disney artist who created "Thumper" came up to paint the cartoon character on the nose of the Bomber. The crew became very attached to the aircraft after that.
From Sacramento, they joyfully flew the huge aircraft under the San Francisco Bay Bridge, and headed for Oaho, Hawaii, where they would be stationed at Clark Airfield to defend the Hawaiin Island against a feared Japanese invasion.
At Oaho, Hawaii, Thumper and its crew flew over the Pacific ocean looking for Japanese submarines and the Japanese fleet. After five missions one day the crew was told another crew would fly Thumper that day. After only a few minutes in flight, Thumper was lost over the Pacific.
No one found any wreckage or survivors.
The Daisy Mae
Francis and his crew then were transferred to the "Daisy Mae." The Daisy Mae, would define the crew for eternity.
The Daisy Mae fought in the Skies and on the ground at Guadalcanal.
They flew missions over the Solomons and on the Ellice Islands. They were based on Funi Fudi in current day Tuvalo, where they were bombed and strafed by the Japanese frequently.
Wake Island
The most defining battle was their last battle on Saturday, July 24,1943. At 4:00AM 18 bombers took off on a four hour flight to bomb Wake Island. Their mission was to fight their way through enemy fighter planes and anti-aircraft batteries, drop their 4000 pound bombs, and fight their way back for another 4 hour flight back to Midway Island.
