Friday, May 30, 2008
Joe Comer, an American hero
From the RoundTable blog
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Allen Baker
Baker, of Pass Christian, Miss., is a pilot for United Airlines and a retired U.S. Naval officer and fighter pilot who flew FA-18s during the first Gulf War (Desert Storm).
Last Friday afternoon found me in England, preparing to fly back from London to Washington, D.C. After a week of international flying, I was eager to get home for Memorial Day weekend with my wife, Janet. In the midst of my ordinary preflight routine, something extraordinary happened.
During passenger boarding, an elderly gentleman approached me. He looked somewhat frail, but his bright eyes signaled great strength. He introduced himself as Joe Comer from Roanoke. He was wearing a baseball cap embroidered with "82nd Airborne Division" and "World War Two."
Joe explained that he and his grandson were returning from a vacation tour in Europe. Judging by the ball cap, I deduced it wasn't Joe's first trip there.
Joe asked if he could take a look at our cockpit. I brought him forward and introduced the other two pilots. Joe took in all the multicolored, multifunction flat screen displays. He commented that the Boeing 777 cockpit "sure looked different from the old Gooney Bird."
Then I noticed Joe was wearing a pair of silver U.S. Army parachutist wings -- just like the pair I earned in July 1978 -- except his had four small bronze stars. Four combat parachute jumps.
Joe saw me studying his jump wings. He asked if I knew what the stars meant. "Yes, sir, I do. Those are combat stars. Where did you get them?"
"Sicily, Italy, France and Holland."
"France?"
"Yes, D-Day."
I remembered my history: The 82nd's D-Day jump was in the middle of the night, behind enemy lines, long before the days of GPS and night- vision goggles. The C-47 Gooney Birds that dropped Joe and several thousand of his fellow paratroopers were navigating by time, distance and heading. Most of the planes found France; few of them found their designated drop zones. The night jump was perilous. Parachutes were little more than silk sheets back then. Lots of men landed poorly. Casualties were high even before the Germans started shooting.
"What regiment were you with, sir?"
"The 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment. Later on we were in the Battle of the Bulge."
I nodded respectfully. Then it dawned on me: I was talking to a real American war hero. This man was a living history book. He had fought in most of the major European land battles of World War II. He had parachuted into four of the battles, three of them at night. It was difficult to imagine, but 90-year-old Joe Comer of Roanoke had been 25 then. Cpl. Comer had fought hard for his brothers-in-arms and for his country. And he wears the Bronze Star Medal for his valor. What things had his still-bright gray-blue eyes seen?
On most passenger flights, one of the pilots makes a welcome aboard announcement a little while after takeoff. That day was my turn. I told the 250 other passengers a little bit about Joe and what he had done. Noting it was Memorial Day weekend, I thanked Joe for his service and for his courage. And on behalf of every one of us who weren't there when he got those four combat stars on his jump wings, I thanked him for our freedom. Welcome aboard, sir, indeed.
After I hung up the PA microphone, one of the flight attendants called up to the cockpit and said that the passengers had given Joe a big round of applause, and "half the plane was all teary-eyed." I was grateful she couldn't see me wiping mine.
I know that the freedom I love so dearly was not free. It was bought through the service of brave men like Joe, and through the sacrifice of his fallen comrades-in-arms. My flight that day was extraordinary because I was afforded the rare and excellent privilege to stand in the presence of an American warrior who helped purchase my freedom. I had the high honor to look Joe Comer in the eye and say thank you.
Let us salute those who have served so well, and remember those who have fallen in defense of America's freedoms and way of life. May we live lives worthy of their sacrifice, and let us never forget our debt of honor.
