This is the plane my dad and my uncle Herb flew in WWII. You can read below of Uncle Herb's exploits before
he was killed. He received the Distinguished Flying Cross, Air Medal and 4 Purple Hearts. He was featured in
the Saturday Evening Post which came out 7 days after his death
Click on the photo to go to Mark's page to
see more.
The Chino 2006 Air Show
Highlights
This link thanks to fighter pilot aces Tom Bradley & Tex Byrd ...
Pals of mine and Mel Nethery's
Here is a poem by Father D. E. O' Brian that we can thank Sailor (Don E Ballard) for sending me!
 --- Visit Again!
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This site is dedicated Uncle Herb Hempe, Dick Rouse (a pilot friend of Herbs that now lives here in Redding
CA),
Uncle Paul Hempe, (Career USAF) , my Grandfather Frederick Hempe (Hippe) & my dad
Carl Hempe, US Cavalry Cadet Corps (his release papers to the Army Air Corps
signed by Colonel
Patton) . The family name changed to Hempe from Hippe in Germany when my grandad Frederick immigrated to the
USA. (We legally still have the E also - I leave it off so it will be pronounced properly) The Hempe family
has a rich military history spanning a couple of century's from Germany to our present day in the USA.
I (Doc Hempe)was a Capt. in the USAF 1968 - 1970 (tooth jockey)& our son Kevin
fought in Desert Storm One as a special ops Marine with General Boomer
Also (click here) his book Hogweed Comics
Frederick Hempe (who lost 9 brothers in WW1 fighting for Germany) was a high ranking officer in the German
army during the first world war. He was an engineer. He was instrumental in developing the first submarines.
He was captured by the allies - spent time in a prisoner of war camp in upper state New York State, was sprung by
the German underground - picked up by a German U boat (submarine) returned to Germany. He liked what he saw of
the USA and after the war immigrated here with his family. (he played in the Philadelphia Philharmonic orchestra).
His great? Grandfather (somewhere back when) was a supposedly a general under Frederick the Great ... Some
family folk lore passed down the generations.
The pictures immediately following are of Herbert Hempe - He fought as a US Pilot in the China theater in WW II
under Major General Chennault with the Army Air Corps (so he didn't have to fight against our many cousins etc.
in Germany). He flew a B25 Mitchell, was on his 2nd tour of duty (I think) as a pilot when he was killed.
He was featured in the
Saturday Evening Post Nov. 20, 1943 & received 3 purple hearts, the Distinguished
Flying Cross & the Air Medal. He once brought the "Gladys D" back smoking, at tree top level on one engine
barely running and an hour late with every crew member wounded including himself. The whole base stood out
cheering them home! My dad says the plane had hundreds of bullet holes in it! After getting himself patched up
he immediately went back out with another plane & crew & sunk the ship that shot them up.
Herb was Killed
9 days before the Saturday Evening Post article hit the news stands. HEMPE (HIPPE)
FAMILY TREE By William G Gerkin - family historian! For all you little Hempsters scattered around the
world! Also see Photos of Herb futher below here in this page.
This Site is our memorial to ALL those that have died & fought in all our wars to keep us free so we can have
web pages etc. like this!!!!!!!!! They are the REAL HEROS! (Not Billionaire sports, News &Hollywood figures!)
- LET US NOT FORGET THOSE THAT DIED!
Dick Rouse who now lives right here in our home town & Uncle Herb delivered their B-25's & crews together
from their training base in the USA over the Hump when they joined Chennault. Dick showed me the military
paperwork. Dick was there when Herb & his crew were shot down. Dick - only 7 days later was also shot down,
crash landed & heroically pulled many wounded crew members from his burning plane suffering burns to his face
& hands. They were promptly captured by the Japanese & spent the rest of the war in a very unpleasant
Japanese prison camp.
I have letters that Herb sent home and a one from his friend and commander Colonel Maury Taber and another buddy
that sent letters back home after Herb was killed .. I plan on posting these this winter 2010.
Herb center & Lt. Hardin (photo operations) left, going over the maps before a bombing run. I think Dick
Rouse is on the right.
Herb's Medals - 2 Purple Hearts - the Distinguished Flying Cross & the Air Medal
My dad Carl Hempe on the day he received his wings in the Army Air Corps. He is in the plane indicated.
My dad won America's Finest Physique in 1939 .... It was the 1st national body building plus strength
(3 olympic lifts) contest and became known as the "Mr. America Contest". They had 3 height catagories
in 1939 .... Tall, Medium & Short.
Dad won the medium height
catagory.
He was also the base middle weight boxing champion in the Army Air Corps. And my Uncle Herb was better
than he was! It was from my dad I learned my shooting
(& youthful brawling - hee-hee) skills & why I have a shooting range at our ranch to this day. He won Hi
Civilian at Quanico VA in the 50's with a perfect score of 100 with 10x's on one of his 25yard targets.
While attending college in Tacoma Park in the 50's he worked at the capital for Senator Duff right across the
hall from Senator John F Kennedy who he got to know & like very well!
He was also very instrumental in getting World Boxing Champion George Foreman into boxing while dad was head of
the Job Corps in Pittsburgh, CA. He was also a huge part of the Contra Costa County Sheriff's Posse for 20 some
years!!! He has recently had several strokes & is very feeble at age 79. (update 11/24/05 he is now 85)
Carl Henry Saxon Hempe, Please click here for more on dad & see the special
recognition that the state of California honored him with!
My Dad passed away when he was 86.
Another WWII Pilot (the late) Captain Bob Gates USN flying in a Stearmen trainer 1940, Bob is (was)
a patient & a very good friend of ours & Rich & Michele Lincoln! Michele is our office manager.
Bob Gates in an aircraft carrier OS2U Kingfisher! This plane was catapulted off the battle ships & landed
on the ocean & was hoisted back up on deck again if they came back. (was fondly called the Kamikaze plane as it
was a slow observation plane sent out to find ships!)
I would like to thank Mel Nethery for these above original photos too ... I asked our friend Thorne Stallings
to identify them ... he had personally flown 248 different aircraft in his career! .. and a Harley Rider ... what
else can I say!? ... We have a page of his own you can reach from our airplane page 2. Also order his 2 novels
he has written there.
Doc, the aircraft flying are TBM's, Curtis Torpedo Bombers and the same
type George Bush was shot down in during the war. They were used
extensively in and around Missoula, MT in the 60's for Borate Bombers on
Fire Patrol.
The ones sitting out on the ramp are Grumman F4 Wildcats. They were the
main stay of the Navy carrier fleet during the first part of the war.
Followed thereafter by the vastly superior Grumman F6 Hellcat, and later
the Chance Vought Corsair F4U. During the very end of the war (last 4
months I believe) Grumman also produced the F8F Bearcat and it saw little
combat. By the time Korea rolled around the Navy was using a jet called
the Panther, and a prop plane called the Douglas Skyraider. The F8F's
Bearcats are seen a lot now at the Reno Air Races in modified form, along
with the P-51's. (grin) Bad ass airplanes...Yep dey is! Easy to fly,
if you know how to fly. (grin again) Raw power pulling around a
fantastic gun platform.
Hope this helps.
Thorne Stallings
Note: The second answer to your question: The SBD was the Douglas
Dive Bomber and achieved most of it's fame at Midway. The early Sub
hunters were PBY's, then P2V's through Korea. They had 2 jet engines and
two R2800 Radial engines. The current sub hunters (and hurricane hunters)
are P3's. A derivative of the Lockheed Electra. I have about 1500 hours
in those. Good airplane.
DR. BOB'S FIGHTER PLANE PAGE Click here to view Dr. Bob a dentist & humor writer for
the Ca Dental Journal.
Below is a rare photo (given to me by my good friend Mel Nethery) of a B 17 still flying with the rest
of the crew aboard, but were able to bail out I am told.
9/15/10 Update Great Email we Received today ... I have invited William to send me some photos of him and his
brother.
From ... William Francisco
Subject: thanks from a multiple war vet (vietnam two tours, some little wars you have never heard of and three
tours in iraq)
I really enjoyed what you all put together to celebrate your warrior family. Brought tears of pride to my eyes.
My brother flew two tours of F-4s in Vietnam earning the Air Force Cross, six or seven DFCs and a Purple Heart
when shot down. I earned the Silver Star, the Soldier's Medal, two Bronze Stars (one with V), two purple hearts,
two air medals, the combat infantryman's badge (CIB), air crew wings, jump wings, ranger and special forces
tabs. One day I hope to to put together something but I doubt it will be as good as yours. I am grateful
to have experienced it.
Thanks. Bill Francisco
Subject RE: family info on Herbert Hempe
Date: 10/31/2010 2:59 PM
From: Rebecca Hempe ... (This Becky Hempe my great niece? in England)... My wife also being
Rebecca Hempe
Hi,
My dad, Steve Hempe (who I think must be your cousin as his father was Paul, if I've got the lineage right),
told me about your website and our family tree a long time ago and I recently rediscovered it as I'm researching
our family's military history.
Basically I was hoping to find a little more information and hopefully some pictures relating to Herbert Hempe.
It's come about in a convoluted kind of way as I would actually like to use this in my classroom, if that's okay
with yourself. I teach secondary English here in Bexhill (where both my dad and Philip still live) and will be
teaching a novel to 14/15 year olds which deals with US involvement in WW2. I had an idea to start a scrapbook
of personal stories from any war, particularly to get pupils appreciating the history and personal sacrifices
which I feel many young people lack much of an awareness of. I figured what better way then to start it off
with a personal tale along the lines of Herbert flying his whole crew back injured and then heading back out
to shoot down the same enemy ship!
Anyway, I find your websites both fascinating and enjoyable, particularly in the sense that family stories fill
many gaps. Unfortunately I'm having trouble running these web pages and was wondering if you might be able to
kindly forward me electronic copies of any pictures etc. to this email address?
I appreciate that you must be very busy so any reply or assistance on this would be much appreciated!
Many thanks and kind regards.
Rebecca Hempe (England)
- Saturday Evening Post Nov. 20, 1943
- Carl Henry Saxon Hempe,
- Hogweed Comics, Our son Kevin's book & Marine Combat History
- Carl Hempe,
- Uncle Paul Hempe, (Career USAF)
- All About Becky and Dave Hempe (Capt USAF)
- All Veterans Please visit and join the Marines Memorial Club in S.F. CA
It is one block off Union Square and the best rates in the city .. Tell them Capt Carl D Hempe referred you ..
and Becky and I get a free night! :>)
- Please Visit our Ca CHP 1199 Web Site
- Return to Doc Hemp's Dental Site
- Go to BAD Chariots by Air Page 2!
- Return to B.A.D Chariots!
- Send Dave and Becky Email
