November 26, 1943 was a very dreary day. The famous Alamogordo mud was knee deep. A cold drenching rain kept steadily pouring down: trucks were rumbling to and fro hauling equipment and getting ready to move the troops to the railroad station. Roll calls were hurriedly taken to insure that every man was present. At last, the time came for the troops to load into the trucks. Everyone muttered to himself a final good-bye to “old Alamo” as the trucks got under way, passed through the main entrance on their way to the railroad station.

Upon reaching the station, the troops were unloaded and taken to the U.S.O. Due to the fact that a heavy wet snow was steadily falling the train time was as not as yet decided upon. The officers in charge held their meeting at the station and evidently fixed train time. Meanwhile the men were being served hot coffee and sandwiches and having a few final words with their parents, loved ones, and their wives. At last the order came for the men to be segregated into groups in order to speed up the loading of the Pullman cars. It was quite a pathetic sight as wives and parents of the soldiers kissed for the duration. Finally, the bellowing of “Attention and forward march” could be heard as the platoon leaders marched their sections onto the trains.

With the train finally rolling upon the tracks, everyone immediately stripped themselves of the combat equipment and made themselves comfortable, while waiting for a good hot meal, which, incidentally was soon served. Delicious steaks, pork chops, sausages, eggs, fruit juices and beverages comprised the menu which really went over big with the enlisted men.

Night settled quite fast and the porters bell could be heard throughout the train as the men wanted their bunks made up in order to hit the hay for a good night’s rest.

Poker games, dice games and all sorts of card games prevailed, with “shooting the breeze” coming in a close second. Frequent stops were made at various stations where the officers gave the enlisted men a few minutes of close order drill and setting up exercises.

Traveling through New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Georgia and up the East coast border, the 721st Limited finally hit its destination, the Port of Embarkation, Hampton Roads, Virginia. Everyone aboard gazing and looking at the trees, green grass and sniffing the fresh Eastern air. A thing of the past while stationed for 5 months at Alamogordo where the prairie dust managed to crawl everywhere you went.

The days at Hampton Roads, Virginia were very busy ones. The men were restricted to their barracks most of the time. Shortages on supplies were immediately replaced and after spending four busy days here, the troops were moved by ferry to Norfolk, Virginia, where they boarded the merchant marine ship “S. S. Bret Harte”.

An army band furnished the music by playing such familiar ditties as “K-K-Katy”, and finally burst into the “Army Air Force Song” as the ship steamed out into the Chesapeake Bay.

The Bret Harte sailed the night of December 4, 1943 for 2 days. Some of the men were quite worried due to the fact that we hadn’t as yet joined the convoy, but were soon relieved when they spied the old flat top over the horizon. The convoy, which was quite large, frequently had ships indulging in firing practice, which amused everyone quite a bit. Poker games, dice games, programs and boxing bouts dominated during the evenings.

The officers of the 721st and the 722nd Squadrons were granted permission to eat with the ship’s officers in their mess. The food, as everyone exclaimed was delicious.

An interesting sight was seen as the ship steamed through the Straits of Gibraltar where the mighty Prudential Rock advertisement was viewed by the early birds.

Christmas Eve finally came and the ship docked at Bizerta, North Africa to await further orders. It being Christmas Eve, a program was held immediately following, a combined Protestant and Catholic Church service was given. Many eyes filled with tears as everyone realized how far away from home they were: thinking of their loved ones. The same night, the ship raised anchor and set sail again. Christmas Day, the ship was off the coast of Sicily.

December 26, 1943, the convoy steamed into the Harbor of Naples, Italy. Everyone was on deck looking at the town of Naples. December 27, 1943, the troops were unloaded and sped away to the staging area. Here, everyone slept on cold marble floors, the remnants of a war torn building. Not much complaining was heard even though cold “C” rations dominated the menu for a few days. The enlisted en were permitted to visit Bagnoli, Italy, where they bargained with the Italians for various souvenirs. New Year’s Day was spent packing up and getting ready to convoy down to Manduria, our new home in Italy. Our twenty truck convoy sped to Foggia for its first stop and continued on through winding mountains down to Manduria where everyone was cordially greeted by the 721st Squadron’s Air Echelon.

Robert S, Ogozaler

2nd Lt A.C.

Squadron Historian