 Proudly we hail. New York City, where the American stage begins, here is another program with a cast of outstanding players. Public service time has been made available by this station for your army and your Air Force to bring you this story. As proudly we hail the United States Air Force. Our story is entitled, The Kid with Five Lives. This is the story of teamwork in the Air Force, a hair-raising escape and rescue behind enemy lines. Our first act curtain will rise in just a moment, but first, attention college men. If you're not afraid of hard work, if you can take rigid training six days a week for 52 weeks, then you've got what it takes to be an aviation cadet. And if that's the case, your future is set. Aviation cadets graduate as Air Force lieutenants, earn more than $5,000 yearly. To qualify, you must have completed two years of college, be between the ages of 19 and 26 and a half, single and in good physical condition. Visit your local army and Air Force recruiting station for details. And now your army and your Air Force present the proudly we hail production, The Kid with Five Lives. In the United States Air Force, there are many occasions when personal performance counts very highly in the attainment of objectives. Personal performance that is based on individual initiative, individual judgment, individual daring. But while these occasions are marked with pride by all the services, the accent in the United States Air Force is always on teamwork. Organized teamwork that helps to assure the successful accomplishment of any combat or attack mission. And organized teamwork that helps to assure the safe return of every man who goes out on that mission. December 22nd, 1952. The place? A UN Air Base for United States F-84 Thunderjets. We're crossing the field now. That's the hospital over there. Isn't much of a building. Architecturally, it couldn't win a prize. But it's got everything that's needed inside. And that's where we're going. Inside. Lieutenant Quintus J. Fuller is in here. He just returned from his first flight into enemy territory. And he's being examined by the flight surgeon Captain Snyder. Your eyes look all right. Your pulse is normal. Have you got any pain? He cuts on my legs itch a little, Doc. Well, they'll be all healed up in a couple of days. How does your head feel? Okay, I guess. Doesn't feel light, does it? Light? You mean like I was a little dizzy? No, it doesn't feel like that, Doc. Good. I'll check your blood pressure. What for, Doc? Well, just to make sure of the thing or two. Hold out your arm. Okay, but you're sure making a fuss over nothing. I was just shaking up a little bit, that's all. After what you went through, that's the understatement of the year. Now, hold still and try to relax. I want to get an accurate reading. Hello, Doctor. Hello, Colonel. Lieutenant. Hello, Colonel. How was you, Doctor? It seems to be all right so far, Colonel. Your first mission, Fuller, and just about everything is not in the book, Captain, to you, didn't it? Yes, sir. I don't mind admitting now, sir. I was pretty scared out there for a while. Who wouldn't be? I was okay until I hit the ground, but after that, I wouldn't have taken any bets I had a future, sir. Maybe not. Captain Thompson gave me the report. He and the others had some doubts, too. A series of narrow escapes you had. How's the pressure, Captain Snyder? A little high, sir, but under the circumstances, nothing to worry about. No symptoms of shock. What does that mean? I can get my clothes on and get out of here? No, I'm afraid not. I'm going to give you a sleeping tablet and put you to bed until tomorrow morning. But I'm okay, Doc. I feel okay. I'm sure of that. But you've had some physical and mental strain. The best thing for you right now is to relax completely. Sleep it off. Okay. Don't let it get you down, Fuller. It's standard procedure. No reflection on you personally. Thank you, Colonel. You'll find that out when you've been around for a while. He's all yours, Captain Snyder. Oh, Colonel. Yes, Fuller? One thing I gotta say, sir, I'm a lucky guy. Don't think about it. I'll never forget it. What the other guys did for me. That's standard procedure, too, Fuller. I know, sir. But I wouldn't be here if the other guys hadn't stuck with me and pulled me out. I'm not kidding myself about that, sir. I just wouldn't be here. The other guys? Well, some of them are in their quarters now. That building just across the field from the hospital. Let's go over there and see what they're doing. Okay, Thompson, what would you call it? Beginner's luck? I'm not calling it anything, Sims. I'm only saying if the kid had to do it all over again, he'd never make it. Listen to that. Had to do it all over again. A thing like that couldn't happen again. A million to one. I guess you're right, Hickey. Even once was too much. Too much and too often. I'll never forget it if I live to be 175. When he pulled his gun on those two commies that went after him, and it... it killed me. You know what? It just killed me. How about that time he thought he had a box seat? It wasn't so funny at the time, though, was it? Maybe it was, and we didn't know it. Who had time to laugh? Well, anyway, it cleared up one thing for me. I can sleep again. What do you mean, Hickey? Quiddus J. Fuller. I know what the Quiddus stands for. You're kidding. No, I mean it, Sims. I've got it all figured out. Quiddus, after what happened today, it's got to me. Five lives. Quiddus J. Fuller, the kid with five lives. Any arguments? Not from me, Hickey. How about you, Thompson? No, no arguments on that point. But all of five wouldn't have meant a thing to him if we didn't have rules. Yep. Amen. Well, the first chance we get, we straighten them out. Hickey, I point you a committee of one that tell him. Me? Tell him what? About the rules. No man at Stown gets left. I don't want him to start handing out cigars because we brought him back. I don't like cigars, anyway. The operation had begun just four hours earlier. That morning of December 22nd, 1952. Captains Thompson and Sims, Lieutenant Hickey and Fuller, representing a flight of four F-84 Thunderjets, reported to the operations room for briefing and orders. Colonel Hodgkiss was already there when they arrived. Morning, gentlemen. Good morning, sir. How do you feel, Fuller? Oh, fine, sir. Thank you. Nervous? No, sir. Your first run? Oh, I'm ready, sir. Good. Thompson? Yes, sir. You're the flight leader. Keep an eye on the boy. See that he doesn't make any mistakes. Yes, sir. Sims? Yes, sir. Your element number two leader. Mr. Blue, number three. You, Hickey, number four. Right, sir. And you, Fuller, number two. Yes, sir. Stay as close as you can to Thompson. Yes, sir. You run into trouble, he'll tell you what to do. All right, gentlemen, let's take a look at the map. This is going to be a napalm run. The enemy is building up concentrations at this point in the Hyju Peninsula, six degrees northwest of the 38th parallel. Scout reports indicate that he's bringing in supplies and troops to this point from the China mainland just across the Yellow Sea. He's bringing them in by boat. We think he's building up for an attack on our left flank. I see so. Now, your objective is the tall grass area over here, just 500 yards from the coast. That tall grass gives the enemy good concealment. It's pretty thick. And in some places, it grows taller than a good-sized man. And we've got to be careful not to overshoot it, don't we? That's right, Thompson. We want as much of that area burned out as possible. And the supplies with it. We want a clear feel there so we can follow up with bombing attacks if the enemy continues to use that area as a base. One thing, Colonel, have you any idea how much enemy resistance we can expect? Pretty good idea, Thompson. There are no planes there yet, no anti-aircraft that could be seen. That's seven hours ago. But there are machine gun emplacements. That's why we've got to hit them now before they get a chance to improve the situation. Any other questions? No more for me, sir. James? No, sir. Hickey? No, sir. Fuller? No, sir. All right. The code name for J-O-C will be Crossbow until 100 hours. After that, if you steal out there, it'll be Skarsdale. That clear? Right, sir. Code name for your flight is Mr. Blue. Thompson? Your Mr. Blue leader. Fuller? Your Mr. Blue two? Sims? Your Mr. Blue three? Hickey? Your Mr. Blue four? That clear? Yes, sir. All right. Keep going. Preparation, organization, and secrecy. Together they spell out successful flights and safe returns. No matter where the mission may be, no matter what happens during that mission, the men always have a line back to the base. That's the meaning of J-O-C. Joint operations center. The nerve center that has overall control of air activity and career. The headquarters maintained by the Air Force, but to which are assigned officers of the other services. In this way, strikes by land, by sea, or by air can be coordinated. An Air Force ground unit that is always on the alert. That is always monitoring air and ground emergency calls. That never sleeps. Why must the code name of J-O-C be changed after a certain specified time? To avoid deception by the enemy. To prevent the ambushing of flyers going out to answer a fake distress call. Yes, it's sometimes possible for the enemy to learn the code name of J-O-C in advance of the mission. But it's hardly possible that the enemy will know the code name after the changeover. And it's hardly possible that the enemy will learn the code names for a flight. Whether they be blue, green, orange, or purple. These are vital details known only to the commanding officer, the men on the mission, and the men at J-O-C. Yes, these are some of the vital details that prevent mistakes, protect lives, save lives. Teamwork. Teamwork all the way. We're on the field. It's zero, six, seventeen hours. Seventeen minutes after six o'clock. The planes are ready. The tanks of napalm, jellied explosive gasoline are in place. The men are ready. Getting that last-minute checkup. Those last-minute instructions from Flight Leader Captain Thompson. Okay. Everything looks okay. Hey, wait a minute. Hey, Fuller. Tighten up the harness on your parachute. Tighten, but I... I didn't notice. I thought I was as snug as a butt. Thanks. We're going out for it. I want to come back for it. Now, look, fellas, we're going to hit to about 25,000 feet of altitude. When we get to the point of attack, we'll go down to about 50 feet, and we'll stay at 50 until we're through. I'll go in first. You guys follow. Right. We'll be right behind you, Captain. One to merit if you're not here. Now, the same rules apply as always. If anybody runs into trouble, he sings out. Get that, Fuller? I got it, sir. Keep it in mind. We don't want anybody trying to be a hero. Okay, fellas, on your way. Zero, six, 20 hours to take off. First, Mr. Blue Flight Leader Captain Thompson and Mr. Blue 2 Lieutenant Fuller. Then, Mr. Blue Element Leader Captain Sims and Mr. Blue 4 Lieutenant Hickey come to 25,000 feet in this radio silence. Radio silence as they head over the line into enemy territory as they go on that mission of December 22nd, 1952, the first mission of one Lieutenant Quintus J. Fuller. While listening to the proudly-behaved production The Kid with Five Lives, we'll return in just a moment for the second act. Here's an important announcement for all college men. If you can qualify as an aviation cadet, you can become a commissioned officer in the Air Force earning more than $5,000 a year. As an aviation cadet, you'll get the most thorough aviation training in the world, but it won't be easy. It takes a good man to make the grade. When you complete your training, you'll receive a commission as a second Lieutenant in the Air Force and have a career ahead of you that will take you far, both in military and commercial aviation. To qualify as an aviation cadet, you must be between the ages of 19 and 26 and a half, single, and have at least two years of college. See your local army and Air Force recruiting officer for details. You are listening to Proudly We Hail, and now we present the second act of The Kid with Five Lives. Four men and four thundered jets are heading toward an objective on the Hyju Peninsula northwest of the 38th parallel in enemy territory. They are no longer known as Thompson, Fuller, Sims, and Hickey. They are now a flight known as Mischief Blue. And to the men on the ground and to each other, they must identify themselves only as Blue Leader, Blue Two, Blue Three, and Blue Four. That's how it must be until they return to their base. Meanwhile, in the nerve center of the Air Force Combat Operations, JOC Korea, Joint Operations Center, a group of highly trained combat officers are monitoring all radio channels. Ready to go into instant action, should an emergency arise, or should additional help be needed in the air, on the ground, or on the sea. Nearby, a rescue helicopter is on the alert. The pilot and aid man prepared for instant takeoff to go to the aid of a downed airman. Flight Mischief Blue, with 25,000 feet, is approaching the objective. The tall grass area, 500 feet from the coast. Radio silence. Full of Blue Two, Sims Blue Three, and Hickey Blue Four are watching Thompson the Blue Leader. Then, the Blue Leader swoops down. The others follow. Down they go to an altitude of 50 feet. They can see the enemy. See the expressions of surprise on their faces. They level off and drop their tanks of napalm. But the enemy is answering with all the firepower it has available. Machine guns, rifles. But Mischief Blue Flight continues staying at 50 feet. Then, as the mission is almost accomplished, as the area is a mountain of flame. Blue Two to Blue Leader. Blue Two to Blue Leader. I'm in trouble. What's the matter, Fuller? I've been hit. I'm in trouble. Can you hold on? I don't know. The plane's gone crazy. OK, OK. Try to get altitude. Try and... Get clear away, Blue Two. Blue Leader to Blue Three and Four. Blue Leader to Blue Three and Four. Blue Three to Blue Leader. Come in, Blue Leader. Blue Two is hit. I'm staying with him going upstairs. I'll call for the chopper when we get there. Keep those commies down there busy. Got it. Got it. Come on, Blue Four. Let's go after them. Sims and Hickey set up a cover of fire between a disabled plane and the ground. The enemy ran for cover. Meanwhile, Fuller, traveling at 500 miles an hour, with Thompson on his tail, almost on the wake of an island, got up to 3,000 feet. Then... Blue, capture if I get over the water. Hit the silk, Fuller. You're on fire. You're coming apart at the seams. But I wanna... Never mind the arguments. You haven't got time. Hit the silk. Fail out now, now. And Fuller did. He ejected the canopy and then his seat. The ejection seat carried him clear of the burning plane. Then... Blue Leader to Blue Three and Four. Blue Leader to Blue Three and Four. Blue Leader to Blue Three and Four. Blue Three to Blue Leader. Come in, Blue Leader. Stay with Fuller. Repeat. Stay with Fuller. I'm going upstairs to call the chopper. Going upstairs to call the chopper. The rescue helicopter. Going upstairs to 5,000 feet to establish radio contact with JOC, the Joint Operations Center. The reason for the altitude is that radio transmitters and receivers in jet aircraft operate in the very high frequency ranges, which depend on a line of sight transmission. Obstacles, such as hills, mountains, represent blocks. They must be overcome. Mr. Blue Leader to Crossbow. Mr. Blue Leader to Crossbow. Crossbow to Mr. Blue Leader. Come in, Mr. Blue Leader. Crossbow receiving. Come in. Blue Two down, but okay. Repeat. Blue Two down, but okay. Here's position. Repeat. Giving position. Rescue operations, Russell. Mr. Blue that left here at 0620 is in a rut. One man down, but okay. Coordinates. X-ray easy, 52-44. Repeat. X-ray easy, 52-44. Got it. What's the mission code? Repeat mission code. Mr. Blue, repeat. Mr. Blue. Right, we're on our way. And they were. Within a matter of minutes, the rescue helicopter was off the field and heading toward the point of need. In the meantime, Thompson, Hickey and Sims, flying as low as ground fire would permit were keeping their eyes on Fuller. What's the matter with that guy down there? Why doesn't he stay put? How would you feel if you were in his shoes, Blue Four? Like a stale cookie, but I'd leak down like one too. I wouldn't be humping around like a jackrabbit. Okay, I'll send for a walkie-talkie so you can tell him. We're out in the open. Hey, look. Yeah, those two commies with rifles. Well, I wouldn't you know it. Blue Three to Blue Leader. Blue Three to Blue Leader. What do we do about those two commies? They're gonna get that kit for sure. We can't go after them Blue Three. We're liable to get the kit too. He's in our line of fire. Well, we gotta do something from the way Fuller's heading toward those commies. I don't think he even knows they're there. Okay, let's see if we can't tip him off. Come on. Maybe I can make it back to the base. I'll make it if I have to run all the way. Holy smoke. What are those guys trying to do? Hedge hop? This is a fine time for them to... I'm going! You surrender! Michael, two commies. You surrender! And then it happened. Lieutenant Fuller threw himself to the ground drawing his pistol as he did. He pointed his pistol at the two surprised enemy riflemen and pulled the trigger. And he pulled again. But it didn't matter. The two enemy riflemen were already running away. Fuller. More surprise than he'd ever been in his life. Looked at his pistol. I must have lost it when I hit the ground. Those commies ran away from an empty gun. Wow, he... Blue Three. Those two commies running away from the kit. I don't figure that at all. Blue Four to Blue Leader. The kit's heading back into the grass. He keeps going. He's gonna meet a lot of commies. Where? About 50 yards to his right. Oh, yeah. Deploying. Come on. Let's stop and call. Leader to Blue Three and Four. There's another gang setting up to the east. The chopper. They're trying to shoot it down. The kit will be sunk if they do. Come on, Blue Three. We're going after those emplacements. You stick here, Blue Four, and cover the kit. Stand directly below, Sergeant. Stand ready for rescue. Are we gonna do it, Lieutenant? We touch down. We'll have to get ourselves shot full of holes. They're not touching down. We're dropping a sling. Right. There's not gonna have much time to scramble for it, so drop it right on them. Start pulling me in the minute he's in it. That was the plan of rescue. And it would have worked. For the sling is a webbed cradle type affair in which a man can sit. It's lowered from the helicopter by an electric winch on a cable which passes over a pulley welded to the upper door frame of the copter. It's a sure way of getting a man into a helicopter in cases of great emergency. And it would have worked this time, as it has many other times, if Fuller hadn't been in such a hurry to get off the ground, if he hadn't also been thinking about the safety of the helicopter. Ten people, Lieutenant. He's got the sling. He's in it. Okay, pull him in. We're going up. I sure do. The kid's out of the sling. He's hanging on by his hand. Brother dangling at 500 feet if that ground fire doesn't get him. Now the crown will. How about letting a chopper pilot know? He knows. Maybe he doesn't. How about giving him a buzz? He knows. I can tell you. I saw the aid man reach out and grab the kid. I'm only hoping he can hold on to her. Back it, Lieutenant. Now reach up and grab my arms. Okay. Hey, grab my arms. Quick, the jacket's tearing. Lieutenant, now grab hold of your arms. I don't have to do for a while. I hope. You're going to do more than hope, Lieutenant. You're going to hold on. How about pulling me into the chopper? I'm trying, but you're a load. You've got too much weight for me. I don't know if I... Missed your blue leader to copter pilot. Missed your blue leader to copter pilot. Come in, blue leader. Come in. My boy's been hanging on for over 10 minutes. I don't think he's going to be able to take it much longer. Any suggestions? How about touching down? A camp. That ground fire will tear us apart. How about trying that rice field over there? It looks clear from here. What rice field where? About a thousand yards to your left. The rice field was clear of enemy troops. Lieutenant Russell touched the helicopter down to the ground and Fuller climbed aboard. The kid with five lives, Quintus J. Fuller, was on his way back to his base. A little worn, but none the worse for his experience. He'd seen living proof of what the United States Air Force will do to rescue one of its men. He'd seen teamwork alive with action. Blue Flight that morning of December 22, 1952. Thompson, Fuller, Sims and Hickey. To the men on the rescue helicopter, Russell and Blaney. And to all the men at that United States ThunderJet base in Korea. A salute from proudly we hail. Missions accomplished. How's it going, Fuller? Fine, just fine, Doc. Are you ready to leave the hospital? Am I ready? I was ready yesterday, two minutes after I got here. All right. Colonel Hotchkiss will be waiting for you in operations. Another mission? Well, that seems to be the idea. Oh, thanks. That's more like it. How much time have I got? Half an hour. Oh, plenty. I'll dress and go get some breakfast. Hey, Doc, do you hear about those two commies that came after me yesterday with rifles? Yes, I heard about it for them. And me with an empty gun. Lost a clip. They ran away, didn't they? Yeah. That's the thing I still can't figure out. They were Chinese Reds. Those commies are supposed to be tough. Well, maybe a lot of the Reds are not as red hot as their commissars would like to think. Maybe they get too much propaganda and not enough chop suey. I'm a doctor. I know you've got to put the right stuff into a man's stomach if you want to keep him happy and on your side. You can't forget his stomach and put the wrong stuff in his head and expect to win. That's as old as history, Fuller. Anything else you'd like to know? Yeah. What's for breakfast? Our nation's future lies in the skies. Get in on this exciting future as an Air Force aviation cadet. Be a leader in this coming movement. If you can qualify, you'll be trained in the latest aviation techniques, learning with pay. It won't be easy, of course. It takes hard work, intelligence, and initiative. But if you make the grade, you'll receive the silver wings of an Air Force Lieutenant within a year, wings that are your keys to leadership in an air age. To qualify for this opportunity, you must be between the ages of 19 and 26 and a half, single and have at least two years of college. If you can measure up, see your local Army and Air Force Recruiting Officer today. It's an air future. Win your place in it now as an aviation cadet. This has been another program on Proudly We Hail, presented transcribed in cooperation with this station. Proudly We Hail is produced by the Recruiting Publicity Center for the United States Army and United States Air Force Recruiting Service. This is Kenneth Banghart speaking and inviting you to tune in this same station next week for another interesting story on Proudly We Hail.