On 75th Anniversary Of V-E Day, West Plains WWII Veteran Recalls B-17 Missions

KSMU | By Jennifer Moore
Published May 8, 2020 at 3:56 PM CDT
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The B-17 "Flying Fortress" helped the Allies win the war in Europe with its ongoing bombing missions over Nazi occupied Germany.
Image by Seamus Darragh
The B-17 "Flying Fortress" helped the Allies win the war in Europe with its ongoing bombing missions over Nazi occupied Germany.
Credit Image by Seamus Darragh / Pixabay

Friday, May 8, 2020 marks the 75th anniversary of  VE Day – the day marking the formal end of WWII in Europe with the Allies’ acceptance of Nazi Germany's unconditional surrender. 

One man living in West Plains, Missouri remembers that day :  Joe Spears was a young, homesick B-17 waist gunner in the Army Air Corps.

His bombing missions—and the missions of hundreds of other B-17s – crippled the German defenses, railroads and oil production.   Those missions were a large part of what led to the Nazi surrender on this day 75 years ago.  

Spears spoke to KSMU's Jennifer Moore by phone on Friday. 

You can hear their interview below.

Click the "Play" icon to hear the interview with WWII veteran Joe Spears of West Plains, Missouri.

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Jennifer Moore
As the Journalist-in-Residence at Missouri State University, Jennifer teaches undergraduate and graduate students, oversees a semester-long, team reporting project, and contributes weekly stories to KSMU Radio in the area of public affairs journalism.
See stories by Jennifer Moore