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GUIDE

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Sara Southall, supervisor of employment and service, International Harvester Company, Chicago; P.B. Young Sr., publisher, Norfolk, Va., Journal and Guide; Samuel Zemurry, president, United Fruit Company New Orleans, La.; Malcolm Ross, assistant to the chairman; Rt. Rev. Monsignor Francis J. Haas, chairman; George Johnson, chief investigator; John Brophy,
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AN ADVANCED ALLIED BASE, NORTH AFRICA-

"I would like to meet the pilot who shot down that Jerry!" exclaimed General Dwight D. Eisenhower, commander-in-chief of the Allied Forces in North Africa, after greeting Lt. Col. Benjamin O. Davis Jr., commanding officer of the 99th Pursuit Squadron, when the Allied chief and his party of several other generals landed in their transport carrier at the 99th field, following the attack on Castelventrano, Sicily, early on the morning of July 2, when Lt. Charles B. Hall, of Brazil, Ind., became the first American Negro to shoot down an enemy plane.

Among those accompanying General Eisenhower were Lt. Gen. Carl Spaatz, Maj. Gen. James C. Doolittle, famed for the American air raid on Tokyo, and Air Marshal Coningham of the Royal Air Force.

After congratulating Lt. Col. Davis on the "very fine reports" received on the performance of his squadron, the general was introduced to Flight Leaders Hall, Custis, Jamison, and Capt. George S. Roberts of Fairmont, W. Va., operations officers.

After meeting the fliers, General Doolittle told Davis: "You have a very fine unit. I have been hearing good things about you."

Back at the field following the July 2 air action the full story was put together by the 12 fighter pilots of the 99th squadron who were part of 48 pursuit planes covering the B-25 Mitchell bombers which blasted the airfield in Sicily prior to the actual Allied invasion of the island. 

The 99th was in the number one spot, up front. Lt. Col. B. O. Davis Jr., commanding officer, was leading the formation of the squadron. Three other squadrons were also assigned to cover the bombers.

Observers point out that the position given the group "is indicative of the confidence, fine spirit, and cooperation manifest in joint operations of the 99th with other fighter groups." One of these squadrons had only recently arrived in the North African theatre and had gained less combat experience than the 99th.

Over Castelventrano a flock of Messerschmitt 109's and Focke Wulk 190's came up and dogfights ensued for 25 minutes, Pilot Lawson, a Newton, Va., native, and Dryden, Bronx, New York, got in telling bursts of machine gun fire. German planes were seen to smoke and dive, but were not seen to crash. The two Germans were listed as damaged and probably destroyed.

Lt. Hall went on the attack with his P-40 Warhawk fighter and with one long burst riddled a Focke Wulf

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