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High Flight

By John Gillespie Magee, Jr

 

 

Oh, I have slipped the surly bonds of earth

And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;

Sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth

Of sun-split clouds -- and done a hundred things

You have not dreamed of -- wheeled and soared and swung

High in the sunlit silence. Hov'ring there,

I've chased the shouting wind along, and flung

My eager craft through footless halls of air.

Up, up the long, delirious burning blue

I've topped the windswept heights with easy grace

Where never lark, or even eagle flew.

And, while with silent, lifting mind I've trod

The high untresspassed sanctity of space,

Put out my hand, and touched the face of God.

 

I dedicate this page to my father

 Major George F. Beers U.S.A.F Retired

June 10th. 1924 - November 10th. 1981

 

 

The following pictures are those showing my father and clips concerning him and his career

 as a veteran in the Army Air Corp (WWII) and the USAF (Korea)

The aircraft used on the page as the background is a British Mosquito, a night fighter,

which is one of the types of aircraft my father flew in WWII.

 

 

 

This is British Mosquito, the type of aircraft my father flew on the mission

that resulted in his winning the Air Medal.

During and after WWII

My father served in Germany and flew the P61 "Black Widow"

night fighter similar to the one pictured below.

Shortly after WWII my father was released from duty only to be recalled when The Korean War began.

He flew the B-29 similar to the one pictured here.

After the Korean War my father elected to remain in the United States Air Force

and continued  to fly the B-29 until the new  jet powered bomber the B-47, like the one below,

was put into service. He completed his career flying this aircraft. When my father retired in 1963

he held the highest rating, Command Pilot, in the USAF.