Biography of Colonel Ford J. Lauer
Colonel Ford J. Lauer enlisted in the Air Force in 1925 when
it was a part of the US Army. At that time known as
the Air Service, it was under control of the US Army Signal
Corps. The Air Service was re-designated as the Army Air Corps
in 1926. The Air Corps was small, possessing no more than a few
hundred airplanes and some observation balloons. Rated pilots numbered
less than one thousand, most of them being reservists. Military
aviation at that time was a risky occupation. Airplanes were not
reliable and were commonly referred to as "crates" by the pilots.
They were officially referred to as ships. Radio communication
was in its infancy, and there were no flying aids to speak of.
Cockpit instruments consisted of no more than engine gauges, an
inaccurate compass, and a crude altimeter that was accurate only
to within a hundred feet. Additionally the indicated altitude reading
was always at least thirty seconds old. All airplanes had open
cockpits, and the pilots were exposed to the weather. Thick leather
overcoats had to be worn by the pilots to protect them from extremely
cold temperatures and the constant blast of wind in their faces.
Weather forecasting was primitive and unreliable by today's standards.
Night flying was practiced, but was dreaded by the pilots. Crashes,
or "wrecks" as they were called then, were commonplace. Pilots
who survived their enlistments were lucky. To survive a flying
career was a miracle. Pay for military pilots was about one fourth
that of civilian pilots. As a result most pilots moved on to civilian
jobs after completing their initial military obligation. This left
a small core group of career pilots who throughout the 1920s and
1930s, transformed the Air Corps from an observation and support
arm into one with offensive capabilities. Lauer was a member of
this core group. Other members included Henry Arnold, Ira Eaker,
Carl Spatz, Frank Andrews, Curtis LeMay, Nathan Twinning, Caleb
Haynes, Robert Olds, Torgiles Wold, Robert Peaslee, D.H. Alkire,
and Ralph Koon. Some of these names later became well known, while
others remained obscure. All of these men together became the "Fathers" of
modern military aviation.
Though he possessed only a high
school education, Lauer was an extremely intelligent individual.
He was born August 18, 1905 at Wawaka, (Noble County),
Indiana. He was the son of a farmer. Being
mechanically inclined, Lauer built a motorized bicycle as a
boy. Also very athletic, Lauer was captain of his high
school basketball team. He graduated from Wawaka High School
in 1923 with very high marks. After driving a truck for
a year, Lauer decided he wanted to do something else with
his life. He had heard of the exploits of World War I pilots,
and had seen the "Barn Stormers" of
the day displaying their feats. With his father's consent, Lauer
enlisted in the Air Service. Early in his flying career, Lauer
established himself as a very talented pilot. Despite being burned
in a fiery crash during flying school, he resumed training.
After
completing flying school, Lauer was stationed at Mitchell Field
on Long Island, New York. Long Island was by all accounts "The Cradle of Aviation." The Grumman,
Republic, Vought, and Curtiss companies among others were located
on Long Island. The pilots stationed at Long Island therefore took
advantage of the opportunity to fly the latest airplane designs
that rolled out of the factories. Lauer quickly gained a reputation
as a natural stick and rudder man, and was referred to by several
persons who served with him as "one of the most superb pilots" they
ever knew. Throughout the late 1920's and into the 1930's,
aviation records were being set and broken weekly. New
airplane designs were being introduced at a rapid pace.
For the pilots of this era, flying was extremely exciting
but also hazardous. The only way to test new airplane designs
was to fly them. Many of the pilots were maimed or killed
in crashes.
Lauer became one of the original four engine
pilots of the Air Corps. He was a member of the famous
2nd Bomb
Group at Langley Field during the late 1930's. The 2nd was
selected to receive the first thirteen Boeing B-17 bombers
in 1937. With the B-17, the men of the 2nd developed
long range precision navigation. They also developed the
concept and methods of flying long distances in formation
to bomb specific targets, thus giving the military a new
offensive air arm. Many of the methods they developed are
still used in today's modern Air Force. In addition to the
difficulties of developing this new air arm, the men of the
2nd also had to fight a daily battle just to
ensure its continuation. The Navy's battleship admirals protested
strongly to the US Congress that the Air Corps was encroaching
in their area. At this time the US was an isolationist nation,
which saw no need for offensive weapons. The B-17 project
had been approved by congress as a coastal defense weapon.
The battleship admirals reasoned that the Navy was solely
responsible for coastal defense. As if attacks by the battleship
admirals weren't enough, the B-17 project was also attacked
by the Army's infantry generals. Being a part of the Army,
the Air Corps was subordinate to those generals, none of
whom were pilots. The generals insisted that the Air Corps
mission was to support the infantry. They refused to consider
the airplane's value as an independent weapon. In the end,
the B-17 project was saved by a handful of farsighted US
Congressmen who were uncomfortable with events happening
in Germany and Japan.
As the United States prepared for and
entered World War II, the men of the 2nd Bomb
Group at Langley were siphoned off to form new bomb groups.
As soon as the new groups were established and the expertise
passed on, the process started again. In this way, Lauer
established the 34th Bomb
Group in May of 1941, the 303rd Bomb Group
in February of 1942, the 15th Bomb Wing in
June of 1942, and the 304th Bomb Group in
September of 1942. Organizing and training new groups
was accomplished at a frantic pace, and severely tested
the metal of the commanders. These were men who had been
accustomed to functioning in a peacetime environment
with well-trained pilots. The urgency of World War II
necessitated throwing young men with minimal flight training
into combat. To make matters worse, equipment, supplies,
and especially airplanes were in short supply. While
in command of the 304th Bomb Group, Lauer
became aware that the 2nd at Langley was scheduled
for deactivation. Lauer succeeded in having the 304th trade
designations with the 2nd in November of 1942.
The 2nd was
the oldest group in the Air Corps, dating back to World
War I, and Lauer desired to have its name and traditions
live on. The 2nd lives on to this day, flying
B-52's, and they owe their existence to Lauer's resourcefulness.
Beginning immediately after the Japanese bombing of Pearl
Harbor, the 34th Bomb Group, with Lauer as its commander, flew patrol and antisubmarine missions
off the coasts of the United States. As commander of
the 15th Bomb
Wing, Lauer participated in the bombing of Dutch Harbor,
Alaska in the summer of 1942. The Japanese had invaded
and occupied Alaskan soil primarily as a diversion
for their invasion of Midway Island.
After completing
the group's training, Lauer took the 2nd (former
304th) Bomb Group
overseas in March of 1943. Soon after arrival however, he
was transferred to Headquarters, North African Theater
of Operations. His exact duties are unknown. He served
in this capacity until being placed in command of the
99th Bomb Group, 15th Air
Force. The 99th flew B-17s out of Tortorella,
Italy. Prior to Lauer taking command, the 99th primarily
bombed bridges and railroads in northern Italy. Under Lauer,
the 99th was
tasked with taking the war into the heart of southern Germany
and the occupied countries to the south and east. The German
air forces fought fiercely to defend their home skies. With
every mission the bombers flew the gauntlet of enemy fighters
and flak. Enemy fighters concentrated their attacks on the
group leaders in an effort to shoot them down and break up
the formations. Lauer forced the 99th to tighten
and improve their flying formations, which resulted in higher
concentrations of bombs on target.
On February 25, 1944,
Lauer led the 99th into what became one of the bloodiest air
battles of the war. The target was Regansburg, Germany. The
group was attacked by an estimated eighty German fighters,
and there were no allied fighters to provide protection.
The fighters intercepted the group after it crossed the Alps,
and stayed with it to the target and all the way back to
the Alps. If not for Lauer's expertise and resourcefulness
in holding the formation together, the entire group would
have been scattered and annihilated. Lauer was awarded the
Silver Star for this mission. Lauer was also awarded the
Distinguished Flying Cross for leading a mission on April
23, 1944. The target that day was the Weiner Neustadt aircraft
factory in Austria. Despite his airplane being severely damaged,
he held the 99th together for
a successful bombing. In June of 1944 he commanded the
first shuttle bombing mission into Russia. Being able to
continue on and land in Russia made it possible to bomb targets
that were otherwise unreachable. Lauer was awarded the Legion
of Merit for this mission. After twenty-one months in the
European Theater, Lauer was transferred back to the US.
In
January of 1945, Lauer was placed in command of the Consolidated
B-32 "Dominator" bomber
development project. His duties involved flight evaluation
of the 140,000-pound bomber. The B-32 project served as backup
to the Boeing B-29 project, in case it failed. As it turned
out the B-29 was highly successful, and the B-32 project
was soon cancelled.
After World War II ended, Lauer was placed
in command of Johnson air base in Japan as part of the
occupation force. After returning to the United States in 1947,
Lauer commanded several airbases. He retired from the newly created
United States Air Force in 1949.
Lauer made many friends
during his career and earned the respect of his peers. Men
who served with and under him have stated that he was a compassionate
leader. He was known as a "Soldier's Colonel." They have
also stated that he was a perfectionist when it came to flying.
Several have attributed their surviving World War II to him.
Upon his retirement in 1949, Lauer had accumulated over 8000
hours of flying time in over 100 types of airplanes. Though
8000 hours today is common, it was an unheard of total for
the time period of Lauer's career. 600 of those flying hours
were in combat, in both the European and Pacific theaters.
Lauer passed away in 1964, and was buried at the Fort Sam
Houston National Cemetery, San Antonio, Texas.
Written by Ford J. Lauer III |