CHARLOTTE, N.C. — After decades of work on his book, a World War II radio operator and gunner has finally gotten it published.
What You Need To Know
- Less than 2% of all World War II veterans are still alive
- That’s according to the National D-Day Memorial Foundation
- One Charlotte veteran is making sure their voices are heard
At 7 a.m. January 20, 1943, Tech Sgt. Charles Richardson walked to 119 1/2 East 5th Street in Uptown Charlotte. The exact location doesn’t even exist anymore.
“I don’t recognize it at all because not a single building is here now that was there then,” Richardson said.
The sounds, landscape and architecture of the area are very different from the past. Construction can be heard nearby and high rises surround the area that was once one story high, but 119 1/2 East 5th Street is still an important place.
It's where Richardson was drafted into the army for WWII.
“I remember being surprised that a number of my classmates were here as well,” Richardson said.
As he stood at the location, he held the official draft document and showed the names of his friends he knew.
“Lafayette, Alexander, he was a friend of mine,” Richardson said.
As they all boarded a bus and headed to South Carolina for training, Richardson had no idea what he was getting into.
One year later, during the spring, Richardson was stationed in Europe. He completed several flight missions on the highly-touted Boeing B-17. By this time, he was a radio operator and gunner.
“One mission we got hit badly and our whole plane was on fire,” Richardson said. “We had lost three of our four engines. I thought we weren’t going to make it.”
Richardson and his crew were under attack by the Germans.
By some miracle, he said, they were able to make it to safety. One crew member was shot, but everyone survived.
That wasn’t the case for everyone, however. On June 6, also known as D-Day, Richardson experienced a hardship unlike others.
“One of the toughest moments was watching the boys land on D-Day and men getting killed and dying in the water and not being able to help them,” Richardson said.
Richardson didn’t want to forget about those men who made the ultimate sacrifice, so he started writing a book decades ago. But he never finished it because he was taking care of his ill wife.
It wasn’t until recently that his children and friend Emily Wilson brought his book to life.
“My role was typing and editing the contents of the book,” Wilson said. “This is the first draft of ‘35 Missions to Hell and Back.’”
That’s the title of the book. Richardson survived all 35 of his missions, but he knows others didn’t.
“I wanted to tell young people today what these young men did for them and their country so the world would never forget,” Richardson said.
“35 Missions to Hell and Back” is now available online.
