The Rodney Letters

The Rodney Letters is a historical account of the life of a B 24 nose gunner in World War II. Letters over 70 years old written by John Rodney Williams and family reveal a time historians have rarely touched, the air war in the Pacific. Drafted in 1943 Rodney leaves his pregnant wife and work at Williams Lumber Company to become an aerial nose gunner with the Long Rangers, the 307th Bombardment Group, 424th Squadron of the 13th Air Force. The letters tell of great love and sacrifice in service and at home. September and October of 1944 were especially difficult times for the Long Rangers in New Guinea. In the Yamato Mission of October 26, 1944, Rodney and Lt. Sutphin's crew help play a key role in turning the Japanese fleet away from the oil rich fields and bases near the Philippines.