Everett Ernest Blakely

Everett Ernest Blakely (1 July 1919 – 21 September 2004) was a decorated officer of the United States Air Force. He flew B-17s with the "Bloody Hundredth" Bombardment Group of the Eighth Air Force in Europe during World War II and was awarded the Silver Star, the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Medal. Blakely and the crew of his plane, "Just A Snappin'," were credited with shooting down 9 enemy aircraft, the most enemy aircraft shot down during a single mission

The Apple TV+ mini-series Masters of the Air retells the story of the 100th Bomb Group, with actor David Shields playing the role of Blakely. The series is based on several books, including Masters of the Air by Donald L. Miller and Wing and a Prayer by Harry H. Crosby. The 100th Bomb Group became known as the "Bloody 100th" because of the many losses they suffered during the beginning of the allied bombing campaign in Europe. stationed at Thorpe Abbots Air Field in England.

United States Army Air Corps In August 1941, before graduating from the University of Washington, Blakely enlisted in the United States Army Air Corps.

His first assignment was at Hancock Field in Santa Maria, California, where he was stationed from 22 August 1941, to 1 November 1941. It was at Hancock Field that he learned to fly using the Stearman PT13 biplane.

Blakely began his next assignment on 4 November 1941, at Moffett Field near San Francisco, California.

The Attack on Pearl Harbor and the subsequent entry of the United States into World War II happened one month later, on 7 December 1941. Blakely continued his flight training on a Vultee BT-13 Valiant (Vibrator), concluding this assignment at Moffet Field on 17 January 1942.

Told he would fly fighters, cadet Blakely transferred to Luke Field, Arizona, where he received advanced fighter training on a North American T-6 Texan. No longer a cadet, he graduated earning his pilot wings, and he was later commissioned as a Second Lieutenant.

On 16 March 1942, Blakely was transferred to the 3rd Air Force stationed at Dale Mabry Field in Tallahassee, Florida where he continued his fighter flight training, flying the Bell P-39 Airacobra, Curtiss P-36 Hawk, and the Republic P-43 Lancer.

About 3 months later, he was assigned to the 79th Fighter Group at Morris Field in Charlotte, North Carolina where he continued to hone his flying skills, flying the Curtiss P-40 Warhawk.

As his skills continued to develop, Blakely was transferred to the 29th Bomber Group at Gowen Field in Boise, Idaho, on 20 August 1942, and later that month to the 330th Bomber Group at Briggs Field in El Paso, Texas where he was assigned to the 459th Bomber Squadron and began training with his first crew. His crew would change slightly at several points throughout the war.

More training continued with the 333rd Bombardment Group at the Army Air Base in Topeka, Kansas, followed up with the 96th Bomber Group in Rapid City, South Dakota.

Blakely finally connected with the 100th Bomb Group on 28 October 1942, officially assigned at Walla Walla Army Air Base in Washington. Blakely spent the rest of World War II working with the 100th Bomb Group. He was promoted to 1st Lieutenant on 11 November 1942. In his "Second Phase" of training at Walla Walla Army Air Base, formation flying and aerial gunnery were emphasized.

In December 1942, Blakely was briefly assigned to Wendover Air Force Base in Utah for operational training with the 100th Bomb Group.

In January 1943, Blakely continued training with the 100th Bomb Group at Sioux City Army Air Base in Sioux City, Iowa. While stationed there, Everett attended a local dance where he met Margaret Ann Spence. They married about two months later while he was stationed at Boise Airport in Boise, Idaho. They were married until Everett's passing on 21 September 2004.

Training was completed on 20 May 1943, after flying the B-17 once more in at Wendover Field, along with subsequent brief stints at Hamilton Field in California, and an airfield in Kearney, Nebraska.

On 25 May 1943, Everett and some of his crew flew their B-17 to Thorpe Abbot airfield in England. Their route took them first to Dow Field in Bangor, Maine, then north across the Gulf of St Lawrence to Labrador City, Canada and on to Prestwick, Scotland before arriving in England. His ground crew travelled to England via the Cunard White Starliner Queen Elizabeth. Captain Blakely, one of our best-liked and most able pilots, brought his Ship 393 back from Germany on two engines, crash-landing in or near Norwich. One of the waist gunners, Saunders, got a belly full of lead and lived for a while, but finally died. Later, Captain Blakely was made the new CO. Everyone will like that, I'm sure.

Missions The record of missions in which Blakely took part remains incomplete. As a member of the original crews stationed at Thorpe Abbotts, he frequently served as the lead pilot of his bomb group. Following the Bremen mission of 8 October 1943, his aircraft was destroyed. He was subsequently promoted to squadron commander of the 418th Squadron, after which he was promoted to Command Pilot. In the latter part of 1944, he assumed the position of Training Officer at the base.

On 25 June 1943, VIII Bomber Command Mission No. 67 began as Blakely's first operation with the 100th Bomb Group, which took place in the city of Bremen, Germany. During this mission, Blakely's aircraft sustained severe damage, though he managed to return it to base.

The last week of July 1943 became known as Blitz Week. A period of USAAF aerial bombardment during the 1943 Combined Bomber Offensive of World War II where air raids were conducted on six of seven days as part of Operation Gomorrah.

On 24 July 1943, the 100th Bomb Group, including Blakely, was directed by the 8th Bomber Command to bomb submarine pens in Trondheim, Norway. For this mission, Harry Crosby joined the Blakely crew as Navigator. This was a 1,900-mile mission and the longest to date for Blakely, requiring over 12 hours in the air under unique conditions, such as low altitude flying to conserve oxygen. Given the intensity of the operation and its success, Blakely received the Distinguished Flying Cross for his actions on this mission. Brig. Gen. Curtis Lemay awarding Captain Everett Blakely the Silver Star for his valor on the Bremen Mission.VIII Bomber Command Mission No. 81, conducted on 12 August 1943, involved the 100th Bomb Group targeting Wesseling and its synthetic oil production facility. Due to fog obscuring the primary, secondary, and tertiary targets, the Bonn railroad yard was selected as a target of opportunity. Everett Blakely flew Just A Snappin with Harry Crosby serving as lead navigator.

VIII Bomber Command Mission No. 88 – On 31 August 1943, during the return from Algeria, the 100th Bomb Group, led by Captain Blakely, flew to Thorpe Abbotts and conducted an attack on an airfield at Bordeaux-Mérignac en route. No aircraft from the 100th Bomb Group were lost during this mission.

VIII Bomber Command Mission No. 97 – On 16 September 1943, Captain Everett Blakely flew as lead pilot of the 100th Bomb Group in Just A Snappin, undertaking a mission to bomb a U-boat base in France.

VIII Bomber Command Mission No. 100 – On 23 September 1943, Major Flesher, serving as Group Air Executive, accompanied Captain Blakely on a mission to Vannes, targeting the port facilities. No aircraft from the 100th Bomb Group were lost during this operation.

Blakely's 18th mission was VIII Bomber Command Mission 111, which took place in Bremen, Germany on 8 October 1943. This was the first mission in which strips of aluminum were dropped to jam German radar (what became known as "Chaff" or "Window"). On this day, the crew of Just A Snappin was credited with shooting down nine Nazi fighters, which is the highest record for a single plane on a single mission during this war. The bomber lost two engines, causing it to lose altitude and nearly requiring her to land in the North Sea. Staff Sergeant Lester Saunders, a gunner, was killed in action on this mission. 22 planes from the 100th Bomb Group flew this mission. Just A Snappin was heavily damaged, and crash landed at an unused RAF base in England. Five crew members were injured and received purple hearts. The salvage crew counted over 800 holes in the B-17 from flak, machine gun bullets and 20 mm cannon shells. Everett Blakely received the Silver Star medal for his service during this mission. left|frameless

VIII Bomber Command Mission 111 crew members:

Major John Kidd – Command Pilot 1st Lt. Everett Blakely – Pilot 2nd Lt. Charles Via – Formation Officer (SWA on this mission) 1st Lt. Harry Crosby – Navigator 2nd Lt. James Douglas – Bombardier T/Sgt. Edmund Forkner -Radio Operator S/Sgt. William McClelland – Ball Turret Gunner (Wounded in Action on this mission) S/Sgt Edward Yevich – Waist Gunner (Wounded in Action on this mission) S/Sgt Lyle Nord – Waist Gunner S/Sgt. Lester Saunders – Tail Gunner (Killed in Action on this mission)

Blakely was promoted to Major and became the 418th Bomber Squadron Commander from October 1943 to April 1944. Later in 1944, Major Blakely returned to the United States and became a Group Training Officer.

In 1948, Blakely completed his undergraduate education at the University of Washington in Latin American Studies B.A., using the newly established G.I. Bill. After graduation in 1948, Blakely attended the Army Language School in Monterey, California where he became fluent in Spanish language. Upon graduation he was assigned in Cali, Colombia, where he served as an attache to the Colombian Air Force from 1949 to 1952 and was awarded by the Colombian Air Force with Pilot Wings of their service.

Blakely's next assignment was as Group Commander of Training at Norton Air Force Base near San Bernardino, California, where from 1953 to 1954, he served as Acting Base Commander. Blakely was later stationed at Warner Robins Air Force Base near Macon, Georgia from 1954 to 1957 in the capacity of Director of the Plans and Programs Division.

After this stateside assignment, Blakely was transferred overseas to Clark Air Force Base in the Philippines where he served as the Director of the Communication Engineering Division from 1957 to 1960.

Just A Snappin On 9 June 2025 at Royal Air Force Mindenhall, England, the legacy of Everett Blakely's World War II B-17 was honored when his plane's nose art was placed on a KC-135 Statotanker.

Awards and citations +framelessSilver Star, Distinguished Flying Cross, Air Medal with 4 Oak Leaf Clusters, Air Force Commendation

American Defense Service Medal, American Campaign Medal, European African Middle Eastern Campaign, World War II Victory Medal, National Defense Medal