Two days later at Kawaski, P-17 saw their first "Fireballs" and learned they were part of the "Kamikaze Squadrons." The crew learned about flak holes and the damage they could make. The crew decided to paint each patch with red paint.

Next mission was their first in formation rather than alone. Opposition was practically non-existent but a leaking engine cause the Flight Engineer to shut down number 3 north of Iwo Jima. A pattern was developing for P-17; the pattern was of failures.

Kushira mission on 27 April added more spice to their lives. Flak was meager but they were met with 25 fighter planes that use every possible method to knock them down. They were met with air-to-air phosphorous bombs as well as cannon and guns. Another engine lost from a 20 mm shell hitting the wing flap of Number 4. They four confirmed kills and several damaged on this one.

They would loose another on the Otia City mission, which was their fifth mission.

Crew 17 had a "milk run" on Nagoya, 14 May, but two days later on the same target, they would loose Number 4 again. Three times out the last four trips north on three engines. They hit Hammatsu on 19 May and Tokyo on 24 May no problems.

The second trip to Tokyo on 26 May was much different. Flak was accurate and all planes were hit with damage. In the case of P-17, it was a couple of Jap fighters that picked them as primary target. Diving in from both sides, they were able to hit the crew pretty good. A 20MM shell hit the navigator, 2nd Lt. Walter Rossig, Jr., killing him almost instantly. No. 1 and No. 3 engines were also lost. After what seemed like forever, the fighters broke off and returned to Japan. Capt. Barton was having trouble keeping the bomber in the air and decided they would strip the plane in hopes of keeping it flying. Starting at the tail and working forward, we tossed overboard every item that was not bolted down and some that were. They finally leveled off at 2000 feet and limped toward Iwo Jima. Iwo was "socked in" so it was on to Saipan.

The fuel was calculated to get to Saipan, Barton requested a direct landing. A direct landing was granted on Tinain granted. They managed to get off the runway and onto the apron before fuel expired. They remained on Tinian for six days for repairs.

5 June, at Kobe, they sustained minor damage to their plane during the bomb run. One of the damaged B-29's struggled to keep up. Barton maneuvered P-17 over the crippled plane and escorted it out of the flak and fighters back to Guam. A few new red spots appeared on their ship. The Distinguished Flying Cross was awarded for the service to the "Crippled Bird."

One abort and 2 milk runs later, Crew 17 was one of 26 planes in on the destruction of the port of Kogshima. Flak was very heavy and small arms quite intense and aaccurate with one more running battle with fighters over 100 miles.

Then some easy missions to Shizuoka and Tamashima and some more red paint to cover the patch holes. 26 June they would start for Nagoya, but the Number 1 engine swallowed a piston and so they aborted and returned to Guam.

P-17 was selected as "Dumbo" for the Nobeoka raid. Sixteen hours later we returned to base. No trouble or casualties. We circled over a submarine 20 miles off shore, Mission 18!

The Ogaki raid was unique in that there was a correspondent onboard broadcasting the bomb run back to Stateside. We arrived over the target at 0315. There were no fighters, no flak, nothing that any crew member barely stayed wake for. However you would have thought that we were over Tokyo in all the flak in the war with a million fighters on the attack. Oh Well! Anything for the home front! We had mission 22," said Al Kyler, tail gunner.