LIEUTENANT GENERAL GENERAL ROBERT L. EICHELBERGER
COMMANDER 8TH US ARMY
IN AUSTRALIA DURING WW2 

visits since 5 March 2005

Lieutenant General Robert L. Eichelberger was the Commanding Officer of the 8th Army, US.  

General Sir Thomas Blamey with Lieutenant General Robert L. Eichelberger,
leader of the U.S. ground troops in New Guinea, standing in front of a
captured Japanese pillbox during the fight for Papua.

Photo: via Steve Schaffer

Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia, April 1943.  General Douglas MacArthur and Lt. General Eichelberger
inspect the 542nd Regimental Area.  Colonel Fowlkes and Lt. Colonel Simpson escort our distinguished visitors.

In approximately September 1944, General Eichelberger acquired his own private B-17 Flying Fortress, #41-24353, and called it "Miss Em' ", after his wife Emaline. "Miss Em' " was previously known as "Cap'n & the Kids" and had served with the 433rd Troop Carrier Group. All of the proud and deserved badges of war were removed from the nose of the B-17. Major Charles Downer was assigned to her as the new pilot. He signed for her at Townsville on 11 September 1944 and three days later flew her to Hollandia.  Downer would fly 63 combat missions and 97 flights in 141 days.  On 6 August l945, Downer’s last flight in 'Miss Em' was to Manila’s Nichols Field. It was eventually salvaged at Tacloban, Letye, Philippines.

A 1st Lt Ralph O. Deardorff was assigned as pilot of a B-17 Flying Fortress for HQ Sp. Trs., 8th Army from 18 September 44 to March 1945. Records indicate he was also a pilot to the 8th Army Commander - Lt Gen Robert L. Enchelberger. (Did the General have two B-17's or two pilots perhaps?)

REFERENCE BOOKS

"Our Jungle Road to Tokyo"
by General Robert Eichelberger

"Dear Miss Em' " (a collection of his letters he wrote to his wife in the war years)
by General Robert Eichelberger

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I'd like to thank Chris Melton, Steve Schaffer, Ernie Cox and John Daly for their assistance with this home page.

Heaps of WW2 books available at Amazon.com

"Australia @ War"

This page first produced 5 March 2005

This page last updated 05 March 2005