The Writing 69th

The Writing 69th was a group of eight American journalists who trained to fly bomber missions over Germany with the U.S. Eighth Air Force during World War II.

[1] The Writing 69th was so christened by one of the 8th Air Force's public relations officers, perhaps Hal Leyshon or Joe Maher.

As fate would have it, the skies over Bremen were overcast, and the bombing run had to be diverted to a secondary target, the submarine pens at Wilhelmshaven.

[1] Of the eight journalists who comprised the Writing 69th, only six went on that fateful mission; Post, Cronkite, Rooney, Wade, Bigart, and Hill.

Others, including Scott and Manning (who both missed the Wilhelmshaven raid), did fly after this mission, but it was not nearly as widespread as it might have been had Post not been killed.