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about

My father Earl Crane pictured middle with my mother Marie Schoendienst flanked by Marie's brother and sister Louis and Ruth. Earl was a radio operator on a B 24 Bomber in WWII. He was on his 15th mission taking part in "Big Week" a week of concentrated attacks on the German aircraft industries on 24th Feb 44 mission to the target Gotha, Germany piloted by James O McMullin Jr. They were Shot down by enemy fighters and crashed in Stadtlengsfeld, Germany. Dad spent 14 months in a German Prison Camp. Pilot James went down with the plane saving his 9 other crew members. You can learn more about the mission, the plane nick named -"Virgin for Short, But Not For Long" and the crew below.

www.americanairmuseum.com/archive/aircraft/42-40733

lyrics

We Fly The Flag
By Robert Louis Crane 5-29-17-Memorial Day

Well my nephew was asking , why grandpa flew the flag from the porch

So I told him about the battle of the “Big Week", back in February of 44

There was the pilot Mc Mullen, your Grandpa, and eight other crew

They were fighting the Nazis, B-24s were the planes that they flew

"Operation Argument," was launched on that fateful day

Heaven knows they were hell-bent, to stop Hitler and his war machine

Chorus

Flags are flying on the homes for those who didn’t make it back

For every fatherless child, there were two mothers dressed in black

We owe our lives today to the sacrifice they made

We fly the flag, for the brave souls we lost we must never forget


Hundreds of planes they flew out
The roar of the engines filled the sky

Every man knew without a doubt,
That some of them, this night were going to die

The shrapnel ripped right through the plane,
Fire and smoke were all around

He counted 9 parachutes,
but Pilot McMullen, well he never made it out

Bridge

So many lives were saved by the sacrifice you made

So many lives were saved, were saved

Chorus

Flags are flying on the homes, for those who didn’t make it back

For every fatherless child, there were two mothers dressed in black

We owe our lives today to the sacrifice that they made

We fly The Flag, for the brave souls we lost, we must never forget
We fly The Flag, for the brave souls we lost, we must never forget

Play Taps on Guitar Lead with Same rhythm Back ground and end

credits

from Robert Louis Crane Acoustic Songs, released April 16, 2017
Song writing, vocals and guitar by Robert Louis Crane

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Robert Louis Crane San Rafael, California

Robert Louis Crane & Mary E Jennings- The Green Bird Studio in San Rafael, Ca

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