We hope you will bear with us here, we are a bunch of aged, non-profit volunteers, the Southern Oregon Warbirds (SOW). It is remarkable that we are even sufficiently high tech to have put together these stories and this web site.
Besides this web site we have published three books. The first consists of those 30 stories shown herein as Volume 1. These are the stories of those Warbirds who were in some way associated with the big bombers of World War II; the B-17, B-24 and B-29. That book is entitled Crews of the Big Bombers: Warbird History Part I. All of those stories are contained in this web site but they are arranged in a limited number of web pages, each containing half-a-dozen or so stories. Each story can be copied but the copy will include several other stories, and will require a fairly large number of printed pages. That book is described below, and is currently available for purchase.
Our second book consists of those 21 stories shown herein as Volume 2. These are the stories of those Warbirds who were in some way associated with the fighters, attack, transport and patrol aircraft, plus a few related specialties, all of World War II. This book is entitled Warbirds History Part II: Fighters, Attack and Support Aircraft of WWII. The lead story is that of Warbird Honorary Member Rex Barber, the man who shot down Fleet Admiral Yamamoto. Those stories are all contained herein and are arranged in separate pages, so they can be easily printed out separately. The SOW is a non-profit veterans group dedicated to preservation and promotion of the personal history of military aviation, but it is nevertheless requested that all copyrights be observed. This second book is also described below, and is currently available for purchase.
Our third book consists of those 12 stories shown herein as Volume 3. These are the stories of those Southern Oregon Warbirds involved in military aviation post WWII. In addtion it includes a brief summary of the Southern Oregon Warbirds organizarion itself plus a roll call of members who have already "touched the face of God". This book is entitled Warbirds History Part III: Post World War II. This third (and final) Warbirds book is also described below, and is currently available for purchase.
Both this web site and the books have been and are being developed, operated and published by a small Roseburg, Oregon, self-publisher, Dykema Publishing Co.(DykPubCo), for the SOW. The president of DykPubCo, Owen W. Dykema, SOW Chief Historian, has published a separate book describing his combat tour in Korea, flying the F4U-4 Corsair off the carrier Princeton, entitled Letters From the Bird Barge. That book is also described below, and is also available for purchase.
Personal histories of those young Oregonians who fought for our country in the brutal air wars. Be there with Bob Cotterell as he bails out of his flaming, out-of-control B-17. Be there with Ruth Bates in the dusty uproar of camp life as she followed her bomber pilot husband through combat training. Different times, a different world, different people ...
All 31 of the stories shown under Volume 1 of this web site are contained in this book, including stories from 14 pilots, 5 Navigators, 8 gunners, 2 maintenance people and 2 wives, all involved in some way with operation, maintenance and support of the three big bombers of WWII, the B-17, the B-24 and the B-29. All authors are residents of Douglas County, Oregon, and members of the Southern Oregon Warbirds. Since this book was written a half-dozen of the authors have passed on.
The book is a 5x8 paperback with 204 pages containing 43 original B&W pictures. The Southern Oregon Warbirds sell this book for $10.00 (US) plus shipping. For ordering directions please see below.
This is Volume 2 of three volumes, personal histories of young Oregonians who served our country in military aviation. The first is Crews of the Big Bombers while this book focuses on crews of World War II fighter, attack, transport and patrol aircraft. In this book, fly with Rex Barber as he shoots down the bomber carrying Admiral Yamamoto. Join Combat Photogra-pher Joe Longo as he records the air war in the Pacific. Different times, a different world, different people....
All 21 of the stories shown under Volume 2 of this web site are contained in this book, including stories from 14 pilots, 4 Gunners, 2 maintenance people and a combat photographer, all involved in some way with operation, maintenance and support of the fighter, attack, transport and patrol aircraft (and one glider) of WWII. All authors are residents of Douglas County, Oregon, and members of the Southern Oregon Warbirds. Since this book was written two of the authors have passed on.
The book is a 5x8 paperback with 195 pages including 74 original B&W pictures. The Southern Oregon Warbirds sell this book for $7.00 (US) plus shipping. For ordering directions please see below.
This is Volume 3 of three volumes, personal histories of young Oregonians who served our country in military aviation. The first is Crews of the Big Bombers and the second, Warbirds History Part II, focuses on crews of World War II fighter, attack, transport and patrol aircraft. This third and last book in the series covers the stories of those Warbirds who flew and fought for our country after the Big One. Fly with Jim Feldkamp, recent candidate for Congress from Roseburg, as he works the complex navigational and electronic early warning / jamming gear in the EA-6B (cover photo) in the first Gulf War. Fly with Mike Danielle in the cramped cockpit of the high-flying U-2 in surveillance over Northern Iraq in between Iraq wars. Different times, different worlds, different people....
There were not as many post WWII vets as from the Big One. This book contains just 12 stories, all shown under Volume 3 of this web site -- 8 pilots and 4 maintenance people, all involved in some way with operation, maintenance and support of Post WWII military aircraft. All authors are residents of Douglas County, Oregon, and members of the Southern Oregon Warbirds.
If one looks closely one may find that the largest story, perhaps in the entire three-book series, is that of Owen Dykema. This is because Captain Dykema USNR, senior Warbird, Chief Historian the whole time, writer (from interviews) of a third or more the stories, President and Chief Editor of Dykema Publishing Co. (publisher of all three books), WebMaster of this Web Site, ....
Since this book is intended as the last of the series, a brief history of the Southern Oregon Warbirds organization is included as well. A final section Departed Comrades, recognizes the 28 of our comrades who have departed since this organization was formed, representing more than ten percent of the membership. We managed to capture a number of their stories before they were gone. Herb Alf (a WWII POW) and Marion Mark ( awarded a DSC in Vietnam) were buried in the Arlington National Cemetery in Washignton, D.C.
The book is a 5x8 paperback with 116 pages including 28 original B&W pictures. The Southern Oregon Warbirds retail this book for $7.00 (US) plus shipping. For ordering directions please see below.
In the summer of 1952 the author flew 47 combat missions in the Korean War in the F4U-4 Corsair fighter-bomber off the carrier Princeton (the "Bird Barge"). As a brand new husband and father at the time he wrote his wife a letter almost ever day, and she saved them all. In 1992 they re-opened and re-read them. It was immmediately obvious that none of the scary stuff had found its way into the letters and so, using excerpts from the letters, he added what really happened. The result is a unique combination of quiet husband-wife romance interspersed with the roaring exctiement and adventure of carrier-combat flying.
And you can be there ... late at night in the cone of light at a writing desk in the Junior Officers Bunkroom, late at night in a lonely cockpit over the dark Pacific qualifying in night carrier landings, and in the adrenaline-charged atmosphere of yellow-orange fireballs and angry bursts of anti-aircraft fire in the midst of a dive bombing run.
The book is a 5x8 paperback with 214 pages containing 31 original B&W pictures. DykPubCo sells this book for $10.00 (US) plus shipping. The Dykema material shown in this web site, in Volume 3, does include some material from the book. For ordering directions please see below.
Please send a snail mail letter addressed to:
Please include in the letter:
Please include a check or money order for $12.00 per book -- $16.00 if outside the USA
($10.00 -- $14.00 for "Warbird History Part II")