[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 11]
[House]
[Page 15633]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1420
                 LIEUTENANT COLONEL ROBERT BARRACLOUGH

  (Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania asked and was given permission to 
address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to honor 
Lieutenant Colonel Robert Barraclough.
  Retired from the United States Air Force in 1968, Colonel 
Barraclough's record of service is impressive. During World War II, 
Barraclough was a bomber pilot flying missions over German-occupied 
territory. These dangerous bombing missions had high casualty rates.
  Between mechanical problems, lack of fuel, enemy fighters and enemy 
ground fire, nearly 26,000 airmen lost their lives in the ``Mighty 
8th'' Air Force during the war. However, after switching out of the B-
24 Liberators and into the B-17 Flying Fortresses, Barraclough flew 32 
missions in the 490th Bomb Group in the 8th Air Force and was made 
group commander.
  Perhaps one of his greatest accomplishments was that his leadership 
resulted in the lowest casualty rates of all the squadrons and groups 
in the 8th Air Force during the entire war. Keeping his group's pilots 
rotated and rested, flying in tight formations to concentrate 
firepower, German observation planes could not find an easy plan of 
assault on the formation.
  Today I honor Lieutenant Colonel Barraclough, and I thank him again 
for his dedicated service to our country.

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