WWII bomber group presents documents Published Sept. 24, 2010 By Carl Bergquist Air University Public Affairs MAXWELL AIR FORCE BASE, Ala. -- Members of World War II's 504th Bomber Group visited Maxwell Air Force Base, Gunter Annex during their annual reunion tour last week. On their agenda was donating documents about the group's accomplishments during the war to the Air Force Historical Research Agency. The group, consisting of B-29 Superfortress pilots and family members, delivered several boxes of materials that included missing air crew reports, combat crew data, Air Force newspapers, audio cassettes, video tapes, a book about the 504th and many personal and official photographs. Upon its arrival at the Air University Academic Center, Lt. Gen. Allen Peck, Air University commander, told the group Air University has a "great appreciation" for the giants on whose shoulders today's Air Force members stand. "I want to welcome some of those giants here today, and it is important the nation remember the contributions made by the 504th," he said. "It is important we remember freedom is not free, and things could have turned out differently if not for the greatest generation." The general also thanked the group for donating the documents, saying they will be kept at Maxwell with pride. He went on to say he had recently read Gen. Curtis LeMay's biography, and in the text the general expressed his enormous respect for the B-29. "General LeMay said the B-29 was a great, but challenging, airplane that had about 10,000 parts, and on every mission some of them malfunctioned," General Peck said. "I'm sure some of you here today could add to those stories. I thank you for coming and thank you for your service in the past." Following an Air University mission brief, Col. Ben Hulsey, Air University director of staff, told the group "there was a lot going on" at Air University -- the intellectual and leadership center of the Air Force. "We recently transformed the structure of the university and named all the centers after airpower legends," he said. "Air University touches every officer and enlisted member in the Air Force at some point in their career. It is a thrill to have you here." Dr. Charles O'Connell, AFHRA director, said 504th members had done "remarkable things" during their lifetimes and he wanted to thank them. "I, too, thank you for your phenomenal service during World War II, but to get a little closer to home, I thank you for these documents which are getting to be about 70 years old," he said. "Documents are hard to preserve, and all too often I see this type of material on eBay. So I'm happy they are here, and I thank you for giving them to us." Dr. O'Connell said the documents will be examined, accessioned into AFHRA's collection and stored in acid-free boxes to protect them. He said within the next couple of years, they will be scanned and "made available to the whole world" on the Internet. "In the meantime, the material is always available to any member of the 504th who might want to visit AFHRA and view them," Dr. O'Connell said. "I'm overjoyed to get these documents, and the fact that they still exist after almost 70 years is unique in itself." Fiske Hanley, the 504th historian who is responsible for gathering the information from various members of the group, said he became involved in the project by having business cards made up and sending them to other 504th members. "I sent out the cards, and one of the guys called me one day and said he thought the group needed a historian," Mr. Hanley said. "I agreed with him completely but asked where we would find one. He said, 'No problem. I already have one, you.'" Mr. Hanley said former Air Education and Training Command Commander Gen. Don Cook arranged an AFHRA visit for him about five years ago, and at that time he was surprised to see how much information the agency already had on the 504th. He hoped the donated materials would add notably to the collection.