October 26, 1952

In the early hours of October 26, 1952, ten airmen of the 54th All Weather Squadron, Andersen AFB, Guam, Marianas Islands, boarded WB-29 44-69770 "Typhoon Goon II." Their assignment was a 14-hour over-water "chase" to obtain information about Typhoon Wilma, a category 5 hurricane. Their names were:

Maj Sterling L. Harrell
Capt Donald M. Baird
Capt Frank J. Pollack
1Lt William D. Burchell
1Lt Clifton R. Knickmeyer
MSgt Edward H. Fontaine
SSgt Alton B. Brewton
A1C William Colgan
A1C Anthony J. Fasullo
A3C Rodney E. Verrill


I was seven years old. My only memory of that time was waking up the following morning to find our house filled with people and chaos. Someone, I don't remember who, told me that my father's plane was missing. There was a candle on a table in the corner with people standing around watching the flame. I was told there is an old Philippine legend that says if someone is missing, a candle spark will fly in the direction of where they will be found. I saw a spark fly from the candle, watched it go to the left, and wondered frantically and silently why no one was following that spark.

The Air Force spent the next three months searching for any sign of the plane or crew. I spent the rest of my life waiting for my father to come home. After 20 or 30 years, the wait became a search for other family members, a search that was largely thwarted by the government which would not give me a list of the crew members, citing "policy." I put an ad in the Air Force newspaper requesting any information from anyone who remembered the disappearance of the aircraft. I was amazed at the result! From all over the United States, I received letters, often just a sentence or two, from men who had been stationed on Guam and either participated in the search, or just remembered the incident. Several men sent a list of the missing crew members. I had my names.

However, my efforts to locate other family members failed. Remember, this all had to be done by letter or ads in papers. Where to begin, where to write. I knew nothing but names. Then, I discovered the computer world and things started happening. On September 17, 2005, I put my father's name into a search engine and landed here: http://www.awra.us/gallery-may05.html

There was my father's name on a memorial site. I immediately sent an email to the author expressing my delight and appreciation at finding his site. Later that same day, he telephoned and gave me a great deal of information. For one thing, there is an entire website devoted to the 54th AWS http://www.awra.us/

One of the names he gave me was Wes Brewton, the brother of Alton B. Brewton, "Bubba," who was flight engineer on Typhoon Goon II. After 53 years, I was about to become acquainted with my first (and so far, only) family member and was astonished to learn that he lived in my own state of Washington! We are separated by a few hundred miles and a range of mountains. So far we have corresponded only by mail and phone. We hope, come spring and the snow melt, to finally be able to meet in person. I look very much forward to that time.

In 1952 Wes was already a grown man and an Air Force recruit himself. He and his brother corresponded frequently about their jobs in the service. When his brother was lost, Wes began a long search for information about the plane, Typhoon Wilma, and any other information he could find. He trusted me enough to send all that material to me because up till then, I knew very little. Included in the box are photographs of the actual airplane, copies of books written by other people knowledgeable about the plane and the 54th AWS, B-29 operating instructions, the aircraft accident report, "Flying the Weather," by Otha Spencer and "The Fireballs" (unpublished as far as I can determine) by Robert A. Mann. Also included was the draft of a book Wes was writing to honor his brother.

Wes has kindly given me permission to write his book in this blog. I give it to you now, the way he wrote it and without apology or explanation. It is a story about love and sacrifice, rejection and approval. It is Bubba's story, Wes's story, and the story of another time and place. Wes is concerned that the other crew members' stories would not be heard. We would like to correct that, but for now, I think their stories are really part of Wes' story. We all came from different beginnings, but we also merged our lives together on that one fateful day, October 26, 1952. I feel honored, and by extension, I feel my father honored, to be associated with a man who has spent much of his life trying to learn the truth and trying to gain recognition and appreciation for the sacrifice made by all those men in an effort to protect lives by determining the path and destructive capabilities of Typhoon Wilma.

Wes asked only two things; that we continue to make every effort to locate any family members of that lost crew - time is growing short, and to make a plea that the name "Wilma" never again be used to identify violent storms. Let the name be put aside and buried, just as those 10 brave men, whose bones now rest beneath the sea.

Photo taken by Ray Brashear - Operations Officer in the 54th WRS 1951-52

Information provided by Bob Mann, author of "The B29 Superfortress"





I found this photo, and a great website, at this address:
http://mywebpages.comcast.net/b29sinthekoreanwar/b29koreanwar.htm

Coming up, in installments, Wes's story:

Into The Wind
The Brewton Brother's True Story, by Wes Brewton