• Article Photo. Navy veteran James Peterson of Vinton served on the destroyer USS Maddox.
    Navy veteran James Peterson of Vinton served on the destroyer USS Maddox.

     Handshakes, hugs, applause and "Thank yous" await Vinton veterans Burton Davis, James Peterson, Milton Smith, Jay Bolin and scores of other World War II veterans from Eastern Iowa when they arrive in Washington, D.C. tomorrow.

     The four are among 90 or more veterans who will leave at 7 a.m. for the Eastern Iowa Honor Flight. Other area veterans include Robert Allard, Urbana; Richard Claeys. Belle Plaine; Dale Speckner, Shellsburg; Warren Stephenson, Center Point; and Max Beck, Chelsea.

     The Honor Flight media team has sent information about the VInton veterans to Vinton Today.

     Burton Davis has been talking more than usual about the P-61. He flew the planes, and taught many U.S. pilots to fly them at night. The P-61 was the first military plane designed with night missions in mind. After qualifying to be a fighter pilot on the P-61, Davis was assigned as an instructor. He says he learned to fly (and teach others to fly) the planes "every way, even upside down."   See a story on the history of the P-61 HERE.       

    James Peterson was a Navy man, a F1C (Fireman First Class). He served on the DD731, a destroyer called the Maddox. The Maddox was commissioned in March of 1944, then hit by a kamikaze pilot on January 21, 1945, near Okinawa; seven crew members died and 35 were injured. After repairs the ship returned to duty and was part of one of the last U.S. torpedo attacks on Japanese ships. 

     Sgt. Milton Smith was an airplane mechanic for the Army Air Corps, and later flew as an engineer, serving at Carlsbad, New Mexico. 

     Major William Bolin -- known as Jay to family and friends -- was with the 97th infantry commander general's staff; he also served with the 97th after the war was over. He attended ROTC training at Davidson college in North Carolina, where the ROTC program still continues to prepare young officers.

    The four Vinton veterans and their colleagues will leave at 7 a.m. Tuesday from the Eastern Iowa Aiport. In Washington, D.C., they will visit the WWII Memorial and other military landmarks, and enjoy a bus tour of the city before ending the day at Arlington National Cemetery. A large group is expected to welcome them home to the Eastern Iowa Airport at around 10 p.m. Tuesday.