In this first of two photographs below of Lt. Ernest Anders Erickson of the 95th Bomb Group (Heavy) receiving the DFC (Distinguished Flying Cross) in an indoor ceremony one can easily see the contrast to the second photo in his physical appearance. Lt. Erickson's tired eyes speak volumes and the same can be mentioned with all the faces of all the men assembled, their tension and exhaustion is palpable.

Two months later in the second photograph, in a ceremony Lt. Erickson is presented with the DFC by Major General Karl Truesdell Jr. also at Horham Airfield in England. In this image his handsome face and steely eyes are resolute to his job at hand; piloting a B-17 on dangerous missions over occupied Nazi Europe and hopefully surviving to go home.

By the time of the this photograph, my father was 21 years old and had completed 31 of his full 35 missions. He would complete is 35th and final mission on August 26th, 1944 over Brest, France

Both photographs are stunning examples and displays in not such subtle ways what these young men endured and experienced. They lived through hell in the skies over Europe trying to prove daylight bombing was indeed effective. The ones that survived did their best to forget their days of combat flying.

My father would only be prompted to discuss his Air Corps days when presented with a question. I asked a lot I must admit. He got better the last 10-20 years and we had many fine talks of his incredible tales of combat flying out of England.

At the start in February of 1944 my father and crew took off from Langley Airfield in Virginia and headed to Roosevelt Airfield on Long Island, New York. Similar to Charles Lindbergh's route of 1927 to Europe, which excited my father having followed Lindbergh's aviator career since he was a child. Their B-17 was equipped with one of the first H2-X radar devices, incorporating the “Bomb Through Overcast” system, a ground mapping radar approach for use in aerial bombing, which at the time represented a revolutionary advance in target identification technology.

Soon they were off again to England, via Newfoundland. After a two-week layover, their orders came in and they flew to Greenland, and then to Iceland. They awaited final instructions before leaving on the final leg to England, where they would be stationed throughout the war. While in Reykjavik the crew were fortunate enough to see Marlene Dietrich perform, which my dad spoke of often. It was a thrill of his life up to that point.

Marlene Dietrich was on his mind when he and the crew named the B-17, which was to become the plane on which they flew the most missions, the 'Lili of the Lamplight' (44-6085).

They reached their final destination at Horham Airfield in England in late February, where they would be based throughout their combat duties. In March they completed their first mission and by the time he received the DFC in late June 1944, they had completed their 25th, a No-Ball (an attack on V-1 & V-2 rocket installations hidden in the forest along the French coast) mission over France. Every year around this time (February) I think of my dad as he headed for combat in Europe. Then I think of my grandmother Clara, as she told me of her often constant worries about her son while he was in England. His dozens of letters home tried to comfort her obvious concerns, however in some, they most likely stoked her fears when he described some of the more distressful missions he had completed.

In the end after 35 missions he was done with combat. Even though he put in a transfer to fly the B-29 Superfortress, something he never told his mother, he eventually did return home in 1945 all in one piece. That reunion I am sure was quite emotional. So to my grandmother Clara Amelia (Nelson) Erickson I post one of her favorite photographs of her son receiving the DFC at Horham by Major General Karl Truesdell Jr.

In the realm of time and memory, this image has commanded significance and I often stare at it on the wall of my painting studio. I contemplate what he may have been thinking. To me that is the key to this photograph. His eyes say it all.