Wounded Warrior by Richard Taylor

Like many other missions they had undertaken in the summer of 1944, this one had been particularly cold, tough and dangerous for pilot Harry Seip and the crew of B17G Silver Meteor. The First Lieutenant and his men had set out on that morning, 11 July 1944, from a peaceful Framlingham, to undertake another arduous mission to Munich. With their bomb load dropped the crew headed for home, all of them hoping for an uneventful return - but that quickly changed. Enemy fighters had been in action remorselessly, and the skies over the target were saturated with heavy flak. Their battle-scarred Fortress had been hit more than once, leaving the inner port engine shot out. Now it was smoking badly and they were struggling.

As the rest of the 390th Bomb Group headed back to base in close formation, Silver Meteor had steadily dropped behind the fast-disappearing bomber stream. Things were not looking good for Harry and his crew as the Luftwaffe fighters circled like sharks, closing in for an easy kill.

But the enemy pilots were not the only ones who had spotted the ailing Fortress. Two P-51s of the 357th Fighter Group had also seen the danger and, with their Merlin engines straining at full throttle, came tearing out of the blue sky into the action. The stunned Luftwaffe pilots were quick to sense they were up against two of the best Aces in the Eighth Air Force - ‘Bud’ Anderson and ‘Kit’ Carson - and these battle hardened pilots were just spoiling for a fight.

Within minutes the German pilots, realizing the game was up, had fled and at last the crew of Silver Meteor could breathe a sigh of relief. With these two P-51 Aces sticking close to guide them home, Harry and his men would survive to fight another day.

Harry Seip is now the last surviving member of the crew of Silver Meteor. This remarkable event has lived vividly in his memory since the War and he has always been thankful to Bud Anderson for saving his life and those of his men. Unfortunately these two outstanding pilots have never been able to meet but thanks to this new edition both can finally come together to add authenticity to this remarkable story by personally signing this poignant edition.

Signatures:

Limited Edition:

First Lieutenant HARRY SEIP

Colonel CLARENCE ‘BUD’ ANDERSON

The Fighter Aces, Artist's Proofs and Remarque Editions:
All the above plus,

Captain JIM BROOKS

Lieutenant Colonel CLYDE B. EAST

Colonel ART FIEDLER

Captain CLINTON DeWITT BURDICK

Colonel STEVE PISANOS

The Tribute Edition:
All the above plus,

Major ‘KIT’ CARSON (matted)

Brigadier General THOMAS L. HAYES (matted)

Lieutenant Colonel BOB CURTIS (matted)

Colonel HERSCHEL ‘HERKY’ GREEN (matted)

Brigadier General ROBIN OLDS (matted)

Colonel DON BLAKESLEE (signed on original drawing)