J.W.V. SUPPLEMENT

12—Friday, March 20, 1970

An Unusual Anniversary:
Origin of Israeli Pilots

class three unsuspicious outsiders,
By MOSHE H. ZIRIN
Few people were aware of it; two women and one Christian
only a handful knew the bizzare Arab).
circumstances behind the scenes
Unintentially,
of course, the
of this unusual event. Now, after commissioner's words were very
30 years, it has been almost com- prophetic when he said "I wish
pletely forgotten. So. "Now it can you success." Equally phophetic
be told . . .", and should be told but more specific, were the words
about the graduation of the first of the first commander in chief of
class of Jewish pilots in Palestine the Irgun, David Razi'el, who,
under the British mandate, or, for later that day, said in an under-
that matter, anywhere in the ground ceremony: "The time will
world.
come when you will bomb Cairo
Everything was as expected on and Da mascu s." Twenty-eight
graduation day. There were years later his words came true.
speeches with the appropriate Age takes a heavy toll among
phrase "For the first time in 2,- military pilots. The last one of the
000 years ..."; the gradua- group to fly in combat was killed
1 tion was attended by the two during the 1956 Sinai War, when
chief rabbis of Tel Aviv, who, his light plane has been attacked
graciously agreed to, and enjoyed, by two Egyptian MIGS; he was
a "spin" in the tiny two-seater been awarded the most distinguish-
trainer plane, piloted by a Jewish ed honors for bravery. The only
pilot; the new pilots were handed one of this group of pilots still con-
their licenses ceremoniously by nected with aviation is Yariv
the British high commissioner to Haran; after the War of Independ-
Palestine, the hated, anti-Jewish, ence he studied and graduated as
Sir Harold McMichael.
an aeronautical engineer from a
But the occasion was indeed un- southern California university, and
usual, and the high commission- is now with Beddek, Israel Avia-
er's face would have turned red, tion Industry. But the next gen-
to sav the least, had he known eration is already in action; the
that the young Jewish pilots were son of one of these ex-pilots is
a group from the underground serving now as a combat pilot
Irgun — the National Milit a r y with the Israeli Air Force.
Organization. For. while the high
commissioned was handing each! JWV once again made known its
one of the pilots their certificates determination that the statute of
and shaking hands with the con- limitations on Nazi War Crimes
gratulatory phrase "I wish you must be extended.

-Sol Yeti
Born—September 1921
Died—January 1945

SOL YETI-MORRIS COHEN AUXILIARY =530 . was instituted in June

1947 in honor of Staff Sergeant Maurice ("Morris") Cohen. Morris

Cohen served in the South Pacific theatre of operations and made the

supreme sacrifice during a sniper attack on Anguar in the Pelelieu

Islands.

success," his army of detectives,
secret service ,men and police
pursuing
force was feverishly
clues in a desperate attempt to I
round up the "enemies of the Brit-1
ish Empire," the Irgun "terror- '
ists." (The - terrorists'? were not
completely careless though; as a

We render services to the veterans, children and our country in the

memory of our honored dead.

coverup they included in

the i

Gem Sales

22635 Woodward
Ferndale, Mich.
Wholesale Premiums

Charles Shapiro
Post and Auxiliary

Post No. 510 was originally chartered on Nov. 24, 1946. Since that

date, the membership has carried out the programs to which the Jewish

War Veterans are dedicated.

On Feb. 28, 1968, at the N.E.C. in Israel, the Post was officially desig-

nated as the Sgt. Charles A. Shapiro Post 510:

Charles Shapiro was born Dec. 25, 1921. He attended school in Detroit,

Michigan. He was inducted into the Army February 14, 1942. He served as

flight sergeant in the European Theater of War. His plane, after a raid

over Hamburg, Germany, was reported missing on March 22, 1943. The

plane, a B 19, was last sighted over the North Sea. He was officially list-

-

ed as killed in action on March 22, 1944.

Citations: AIR MEDAL

PURPLE HEART

