Ranger crew and the Pathfinders

Capt. Phil Ranger and his 9 man crew were part of the original 120 men that were assigned to the air echelon of the 392nd squadron when it was first formed with the 30th Bomb Group at March Field in Riverside, CA. The squadron received orders to join the 7th AAF in the Central Pacific and deployed to their first base at Canton in the Phoenix Islands on Nov. 10th, 1943. They spent 2 months at that barren sandy speck in the Pacific, taking part in missions until relocating to a new base in the Gilberts at Abemama on Jan. 10th, 1944. The new airfield, known as O’Hare was more like a tropical paradise.

……………………….There is a good description of the 1944 move to Abemama in the AFHRA squadron history written by Lt. Frank White :

“The first of the New Year saw the 392nd on the move again. In bombing the Marshalls from Canton great distances were flown and all our missions were staged through Baker Island. Even then, on every mission, pilots and crew literally “sweated” out their gas supply to Baker. The distance flown on these strikes was apparently three thousand statute miles, the longest bombing missions flown in any theatre of the war. So it was with great relief that crew members heard that the squadron would now be based in the Gilberts; trips to the Marshalls now would be only a milk run. Upon arriving at Apamama every member of the ground echelon was greatly pleased by the delightful nature of this island. There indeed was a tropical paradise. Lush green vegetation, consisting of Coconuts, Pandanus, Breadfruit, Papayas, with a sprinkling of hardwood, trees; friendly smiling Gilbertese whose female members wore nothing but grass skirts; and the beautiful blue lagoon, constituting an island that was appropriately called “The Gem of the Pacific” by Robert Louis Stevenson who had visited more than fifty years before.”

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Capt. Ranger’s crew was apparently smitten enough by those grass skirted native girls to paint the likeness of a hula girl on each side of the nose, with a "Heads or Tails" view on a new B-24 that was assigned to them.They gave her the name “Tropical Trollop”. This aircraft would take various 392nd crews on a total of 80 missions, until the end of the squadron’s combat deployment in March, 1945. The Ranger crew eventually flew their allotted 30 missions by late May 1944, many of them flown with the Trollop.

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The crew members were:

Capt. Phillip F. Ranger - Pilot, Lt. Raymond A. Teefy - Co-Pilot, Lt. John F. Smith - Navigator, Lt. Claude B. Moss Jr.- Bombardier

S/Sgt. Suran E.Moradian- Asst/Eng, T/Sgt. Robert Lowrey- Engineer, T/Sgt. John A. Stiffler- Radio Op, S/Sgt. Joseph V. Canonico- waist gunner, S/Sgt. John A. Lavelle- tail gunner.

…………At the end of May, 1944, five of the original twelve 392nd Pathfinder crews completed thirty bombing missions over enemy territory, and departed for a well earned 30 day leave and reassignment.

Those who completed their missions at this time were:

Capt. Ranger and crew

Capt. Gloor and crew

Lt. Newman and crew

Lt. Myllenbeck and crew

Lt. Randall and crew

Raymond A Teefy Jr