Mel Jenner had one of those World War II jobs that no one really tries out for. Waist gunner in a B-17 bomber was what you’d get if you didn’t draw the straw to be pilot or navigator.

Parkinson was among the many B-24 crews with bombing missions that day. “I flew nose gunner, waist gunner, ball turret gunner,” Parkinson said. “I flew tail gunner.” The mission of ...

Staff Sgt. James Boring served in World War II. He was born and raised in southeast Kansas but moved to Wichita and attended East High School before being drafted: <a ...

His vision wasn't up to par to become a pilot, so the Air Force made him a waist gunner instead. But don't waist gunners also need great vision? Lick laughed. "I have never understood that ...

Six of them survived. John Elliot's mother, Jenevieve Tarbert, never found out about the circumstances of the death of her husband — waist gunner John Allen Tarbert. SCHENECTADY — The remains ...