| Title |
Robert E. Irion, Sandy, Utah: an interview by Benjamin Bahlmann, September 20, 2002: Saving the legacy tape no. 537, 538, and 539 |
| Alternative Title |
Robert E. Irion, Saving the legacy: an oral history of Utah's World War II veterans, ACCN 2070, American West Center, University of Utah |
| Creator |
Irion, Robert E., 1923-2007 |
| Contributor |
Bahlmann, Benjamin; University of Utah. American West Center |
| Publisher |
Digitized by J. Willard Marriott Library, University of Utah |
| Date |
2002-09-20 |
| Date Digital |
2015-09-16 |
| Access Rights |
I acknowledge and agree that all information I obtain as a result of accessing any oral history provided by the University of Utah's Marriott Library shall be used only for historical or scholarly or academic research purposes, and not for commercial purposes. I understand that any other use of the materials is not authorized by the University of Utah and may exceed the scope of permission granted to the University of Utah by the interviewer or interviewee. I may request permission for other uses, in writing to Special Collections at the Marriott Library, which the University of Utah may choose grant, in its sole discretion. I agree to defend, indemnify and hold the University of Utah and its Marriott Library harmless for and against any actions or claims that relate to my improper use of materials provided by the University of Utah. |
| Spatial Coverage |
Scotland; England; Germany; Czechoslovakia; Kansas, United States |
| Subject |
Irion, Robert E., 1923-2007--Interviews; World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American; Veterans--Utah--Biography; World War, 1939-1945--Aerial operations, American; World War, 1939-1945--Campaigns--Europe, Northern--Personal narratives, American |
| Keywords |
Army Air Corps |
| Description |
Transcript (142 pages) of an interview by Benjamin Bahlmann with Robert E. Irion on September 20, 2002. This is from tape numbers 537, 538, and 539 in the "Saving the Legacy Oral History Project |
| Collection Number and Name |
Accn2070, Saving the Legacy oral history project, 2001-2010 |
| Abstract |
Irion (b. 1923) recalls his youth in Kansas and tells how he enlisted in the Army Air Corps in October 1942. He discusses his flight training in Arkansas, Alabama, and Florida. He served in the 505th and 339th Fighter Groups. 142 pages. |
| Type |
Text |
| Genre |
oral histories (literary works) |
| Format |
application/pdf |
| Extent |
142 pages |
| Language |
eng |
| Rights |
 |
| Scanning Technician |
Mazi Rakhsha |
| Conversion Specifications |
Original scanned with Kirtas 2400 and saved as 400 ppi uncompressed TIFF. PDF generated by Adobe Acrobat Pro X for CONTENTdm display |
| ARK |
ark:/87278/s6bs0rd1 |
| Topic |
Personal narratives--American; Veterans; World War (1939-1945); Military operations, Aerial--American |
| Setname |
uum_slohp |
| ID |
1025794 |
| Reference URL |
https://collections.lib.utah.edu/ark:/87278/s6bs0rd1 |
| Title |
Page 95 |
| Format |
application/pdf |
| Setname |
uum_slohp |
| ID |
1025744 |
| OCR Text |
Show Rob rt E. Irion eptember 201 h 2002 wo of th m came down through about the third round, I want to say th r w r two of them that came down through. BEN: Did they make three passes? ROB: Well it wasn't the same ones. BEN: Okay. ROB: It was two more planes. But here, they made a couple passes and each time, he said: "Don't chase them. No, you can't get them." And about this time a third group of two came and they came just right directly - after they made their pass they were coming right directly under our flight. And I totally violated his orders. I just rolled over and split-essed and took the flight down after them and he was right. I couldn't catch mine. And I - the guy I went after, the leader of these two, just did that long, shallow dive. Just like the one I saw in October and just left me in the haze after a minute or so. And I'm cussing all the way back to the base thinking, "Oh, man: he told you you can't catch them, you dummy! Why did you go after them? You just pure and simple violated insfructions." And I thought, "Well, if I get called in for court martial all I can say is, 'I just had a gut feeling that I could get him and I was wrong, but I thought I could get the guy. And I went after him and I was wrong. '" I didn't have any excuse, I just thought, my gut just said, "I can't stand to sit here and watch this." My wingman - I mean my element leader was a guy named Steven Ananian. He went after the second one and the guy made a turn and Steve shot him down. 93 |
| Reference URL |
https://collections.lib.utah.edu/ark:/87278/s6bs0rd1/1025744 |
