Charles Ross Greening
Colonel Charles Ross Greening | |
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91st Strategic Reconnaissance Group | |
| Notable missions | World War II |
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| Spouse(s) | Dorothy Greening |
Colonel Charles Ross Greening (November 12, 1914 – March 29, 1957) was an accomplished pilot and artist. He was one of the 73 men out of the 80 Doolittle Raiders to survive the attack and return home to his family.
Early years; education
Charles Ross Greening was born on November 12, 1914, in Carroll, Iowa, to Charles W and Olive Jewell (née Ross) Greening.[1] He took his first plane ride in June 1921. After his father's bank failed, the family moved to Tacoma, Washington, in 1925.[2][3]
Greening received a bachelor's degree from
.On 9 June 1937, Greening graduated from the
: 3Shortly after arriving at his first duty station, Greening took leave to marry his college sweetheart, Dorothy "Dot" Watson (1912-2003).[2] They were married on 11 November 1937. They had two children together, both boys, Allen and Chuck.[3]: XII, 3–4
In 1938, he was assigned to
World War II
The
On 18 April 1942, then
After he returned to the United States in June, Greening trained in the Martin B-26 Marauder, made Group Commander within the 17th Bombardment Group, and promoted to Lt. Col. He was assigned to Telergma in North Africa, and flew 27 missions before being shot down over Naples on July 17, 1943, and taken prisoner.[2] After taking a direct hit to his right engine, Greening ordered his crew to bail out. On the descent, Greening suffered a bullet wound near his knee, a dislocated hip, and two sprained ankles, besides barely missing landing in the crater of Mount Vesuvius. While a captive of the Italians, Greening drew his captor's portraits, both to occupy his time, and to get better food and treatment for himself and his men. Greening ended up in the Chieti POW camp. After Italy capitulated on 8 September 1943, German troops took over the camp on 23 September, and plans were made to move the POWs to Germany. Greening escaped from the prisoner transport train on 3 October 1943, during an air raid on Bolzano.[3]: 49–50, 57, 60, 68–69, 79–86, 103–108
He evaded capture until 23 March 1944. Up to that time he received assistance from compassionate Italians in the area of
On 18 April 1944, Greening arrived at
After the German surrender, and the Russian occupation of the area, the POWs were flown out by
Post-war
Greening served as the Chief of the Army Air Forces Prisoner of War Exposition from June 1945 to September 1946, followed by service as Director of the Syndicate Division and then Chief of the Seminar Division with the Air Tactical School at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida, from December 1946 to August 1948.[5]
He then attended
After serving in numerous positions at the Headquarters U.S. Air Force in
He remained in a patient status at
Awards and decorations
His decorations include:[6]
USAF Command pilot badge
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Silver Star |
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Distinguished Flying Cross |
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Purple Heart |
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Air Medal with four bronze oak leaf clusters |
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Prisoner of War Medal[7] |
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American Defense Service Medal |
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campaign star
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Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with two bronze campaign stars
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European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with four bronze campaign stars
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World War II Victory Medal |
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National Defense Service Medal |
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Air Force Longevity Service Award with four bronze oak leaf clusters
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Order of Yung Hui, 5th Class ( Republic of China )
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War Memorial Medal (Republic of China) |
Silver Star citation
Citation:
For gallantry in action. On 28 January 1943, Lieutenant Colonel (then Major) Greening led the group without fighter escort. On an attack against the harbor and quays at Sfax, Tunisia. The bombers were attacked by five (5) FW 190's which made persistent attacks and succeeded in severely damaging the tail assembly of Lieutenant Colonel Greening's plane. Only by his outstanding display of courage and coolness in close aerial combat and through consummate skill and fearlessness in the maneuvering of his badly damaged airplane was he able to keep his formation intact and thus successfully complete the mission. By his display of gallantry, Lieutenant Colonel Greening has demonstrated exceptional qualities of leadership and courage and has upheld the highest traditions of the Army Air Forces.[6]
Legacy
Greening wrote and painted pictures from his life and experience during the war. After he died in 1957, his wife Dorothy gathered his notes and pictures and, with the help of his sister, Shirley Greening Morgan, and her daughter (his niece), Karen Morgan Driscoll, published his memoir, Not as Briefed: From the Doolittle Raid to a German Stalag.
References
- ^ "Iowa, Delayed Birth Records, 1850-1939". FamilySearch. Retrieved 30 July 2018.
- ^ a b c d Greening, Dorothy; Driscoll, Karen Morgan; Cultural Resources Program, Joint Base Lewis-McChord. "Greening, Colonel Charles Ross (1914-1957)". HistoryLink.org. Retrieved 30 July 2018.
- ^ ISBN 9780874222593.
- ^ "Halsey-Doolittle Raid, April 1942". Hyper War. Retrieved 30 July 2018.
- ^ a b c "Charles Ross Greening". Veteran Tributes. Retrieved September 6, 2021.
- ^ a b "Greening, Charles Ross, Col - Air Force - Together We Served".
- ^ Greening is eligible for the Prisoner of War Medal when it was created in 1986.
- Archbold, Mike (April 20, 2008). "WWII hero hailed from Tacoma". The News Tribune. Archived from the original on 2013-06-30. Retrieved 7 June 2013.
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