Each Bomb Group had a blackboard in Wing Control that was updated
throughout the mission.
Below is the one for the 497th Bomb Group.
B-29s A-51 through A- 55 are from the 871st Bomb Squadron,
A-24 through A-21 the 870th,
and A-5 through A-15 the 869th.
A-56 is the third one down and in the far right column is the notation
"Two engines out, turned back over mainland. "
It would not be until the entire Group returned to Saipan and
various reports were filled out that the complete situation would
be known.
Following the Black Board is the Parking Lot.
Each B-29's place in the formation and the Aircraft Commander are
listed.
In the first formation, Captain Geyer in A-51 is flight leader.
Lt McSpadden in A-56 is to his left and Captain Lampley in A-44 on
his right.
The Triangles represent aircraft that aborted and
the squares/rectangles those that were scratched.
The final report includes paragraphs for
Criticism of Mission Planning and Comments & Suggestions.
It is quite likely that Col Johnson made these comments.
As 497th BG Commander, I would think he would have
more latitude in making decisions in the air than those below him
in the chain of command.
