B-24 bomber "C. E. 'Shack'" with crew on the ground. 425th Bomb Squadron, 308th Bombardment Group. Names painted on the nose of "C. E. 'Shack'" include those of 2nd Lt. Gordon C. Weems (copilot), 2nd Lt. Charles R. Thompson (navigator), and an unknown "Chick," who was possibly bombardier. (Info courtesy of deployment name list.) The crew apparently trained together at...

S/Sgt. Boleslaw A. Skurnowicz and a Chinese soldier at Kunming, China, during WWII. (Thanks to S. Skurnowicz for image and info!)

Radio operation T/Sgt. Boleslaw A. Skurnowicz as member of crew of B-24 during training stateside. Boleslaw A. "Benny" Skurnowicz was born in Shenandoah, Pennsylvania in 1921. He was one of six children of Polish immigrant parents. Polish was spoken in the home and Benny learned to speak English in elementary school. His father, a coal miner, died from Miner’s Asthma...

Sgt. David Axelrod, 23rd Fighter Control Squadron, standing in front of the headquarters tents and building at Luliang Airbase, Yunnan, China, where he was stationed from January to August, 1945. David Axelrod was born in New York City on April 21, 1921. David was a graduate of City College of New York, and then served in the United States Army...

A P-51 fighter at a base in China during WWII. Tail number #271 37124. Although David Axelrod spent at least part of his time at Luliang, the karst formations in the background do not resemble the mountains of Luliang, and this is more likely a base in Guangxi, such as Liuzhou, etc. From the collection of David Axelrod.

M/Sgt. Hagerty at Luliang Air Base, Yunnan, China, during 1945. From the collection of David Axelrod.

The Unit's Special Services Officer with Chinese kids in SW China during WWII. From the collection of David Axelrod.

GIs in a market in Luliang, China, during WWII. Soldier in the middle is "Nelson." From the collection of David Axelrod.