One for the Navy guys...
Again, from Arkansas at War. Nathan Gordon was a lawyer who joined up after Pearl Harbor.
On the night of February 15, 1944 Lieutenant (JG) Gordon was piloting his PBY-5 (appropriately named ?Arkansas Traveler?) as part of the VP-34 ?Black Cat? squadron. The nickname was inspired by the flat black color the planes were painted for nighttime operations. The call came over the radio that a Mitchell B-25 bomber had been hit by enemy anti-aircraft fire and had crashed into the sea. Gordon swung his Catalina towards Kavieng Harbor at Papua, New Guinea.
Gordon made three landings in the harbor in full view of enemy positions on shore. The first rescue effort was for naught as no survivors were found at the crash site. The next two landings resulted in the extraction of nine Americans from the water. Gordon and his crew were under constant enemy fire as they rescued the nine downed aviators from the murky sea. The rescue was even more imperative as several of the bomber crewmen were injured. Having this many men on board pushed the weight limits on the aircraft and Gordon had to use all of his skills to lift the aircraft from the choppy water in the dark of night while under enemy fire.
Gordon headed towards home base at Samarai Island only to be notified of another group of flyers from a downed Army Air Corps plane floating in a rubber raft. The men were a mere 600 yards offshore from enemy positions and gun emplacements. Without hesitation Gordon turned back towards the fighting and located the survivors. He made a fourth water landing under enemy fire and picked up an additional six men from the raft. The pilot of this plane was Captain William Cavoli, a fellow Arkansan who was from Newport in Jackson County. With 15 rescued men on board, Gordon coaxed his badly overloaded Catalina into the air and headed for home.
After making so many take-offs while carrying so much extra weight Gordon?s PBY-5 was running low on fuel and he realized that he would not make it back to base. He set down at Wewak, New Guinea, and transferred the rescued men to a U.S. Navy ship. After refueling his plane, Gordon flew back to Samarai.
For the daring and decisive actions of Lt. Gordon and his crew, Gordon was awarded the Medal of Honor while every member of his crew received the Silver Star. Not only was the bravery of Gordon and his crew noted in the award citation, but also Gordon?s extraordinary skill at piloting his aircraft under such difficult conditions.
Gordon finished the war as an instructor at a base in Florida. He was discharged from the United States Navy in October of 1945 and returned to Arkansas to resume his law practice. In 1946 he followed in his father?s footsteps and ventured into politics, being elected to the post of Lieutenant Governor. He would hold this office from 1947 to 1967, making him longest serving Lt. Governor in Arkansas history. Gordon said he sought the job only because it was a part-time position that would allow him to continue practicing law.
Gordon ended his tenure as Lt. Governor in 1967, and continued to practice law in Morrilton until his retirement in 1992. Nathan Green Gordon died on September 8, 2008.
On the night of February 15, 1944 Lieutenant (JG) Gordon was piloting his PBY-5 (appropriately named ?Arkansas Traveler?) as part of the VP-34 ?Black Cat? squadron. The nickname was inspired by the flat black color the planes were painted for nighttime operations. The call came over the radio that a Mitchell B-25 bomber had been hit by enemy anti-aircraft fire and had crashed into the sea. Gordon swung his Catalina towards Kavieng Harbor at Papua, New Guinea.
Gordon made three landings in the harbor in full view of enemy positions on shore. The first rescue effort was for naught as no survivors were found at the crash site. The next two landings resulted in the extraction of nine Americans from the water. Gordon and his crew were under constant enemy fire as they rescued the nine downed aviators from the murky sea. The rescue was even more imperative as several of the bomber crewmen were injured. Having this many men on board pushed the weight limits on the aircraft and Gordon had to use all of his skills to lift the aircraft from the choppy water in the dark of night while under enemy fire.
Gordon headed towards home base at Samarai Island only to be notified of another group of flyers from a downed Army Air Corps plane floating in a rubber raft. The men were a mere 600 yards offshore from enemy positions and gun emplacements. Without hesitation Gordon turned back towards the fighting and located the survivors. He made a fourth water landing under enemy fire and picked up an additional six men from the raft. The pilot of this plane was Captain William Cavoli, a fellow Arkansan who was from Newport in Jackson County. With 15 rescued men on board, Gordon coaxed his badly overloaded Catalina into the air and headed for home.
After making so many take-offs while carrying so much extra weight Gordon?s PBY-5 was running low on fuel and he realized that he would not make it back to base. He set down at Wewak, New Guinea, and transferred the rescued men to a U.S. Navy ship. After refueling his plane, Gordon flew back to Samarai.
For the daring and decisive actions of Lt. Gordon and his crew, Gordon was awarded the Medal of Honor while every member of his crew received the Silver Star. Not only was the bravery of Gordon and his crew noted in the award citation, but also Gordon?s extraordinary skill at piloting his aircraft under such difficult conditions.
Gordon finished the war as an instructor at a base in Florida. He was discharged from the United States Navy in October of 1945 and returned to Arkansas to resume his law practice. In 1946 he followed in his father?s footsteps and ventured into politics, being elected to the post of Lieutenant Governor. He would hold this office from 1947 to 1967, making him longest serving Lt. Governor in Arkansas history. Gordon said he sought the job only because it was a part-time position that would allow him to continue practicing law.
Gordon ended his tenure as Lt. Governor in 1967, and continued to practice law in Morrilton until his retirement in 1992. Nathan Green Gordon died on September 8, 2008.
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great post, thanks for sharing.. 0 -
Wonder if he named the plane after the old folk song? The minor league baseball team in LR as you know is named after the old song.
He was from Morrillton which is only about 20 minutes east of where we built our house. The town has no mention of him anywhere that I can recall which is a shame for both his military and political history.0 -
He is buried in Morrillton but I see no mention of any commemorations. 0 -
Those things moved so slow they were easy target and to dodge a fighter would be impossible. The guys who flew them had a Big Brass pair. Many Pilots were saved by them. 0
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