By: Herb Friedman
Editor's Note: Herb Friedman is commander of North Bellmore Post 1749 of the
American Legion, which takes in North Merrick members.
North Bellmore American Legion Post 1749 lost another brave comrade when
William Caputo of North Bellmore died on March 10 Bill was born July 8,1923.
He had six brothers and one sister. He never married.
Bill enlisted in the United States Army Airforce in 1943. He was trained
and assigned as an engineer-gunner on a North American "Mitchell" B-25 medium
bomber. Older readers will remember that it was the Mitchell bomber that
General James Doolittle flew from the deck of the American aircraft carrier
Hornet in a 16-aircraft raid against Tokyo just 132 days after the infamous
Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.
The B-25 had a crew of six men. Its maximum speed was 272 mph with a
range of 1,350 miles. It carried different bomb loads, but six 500-pound
bombs were standard.
Bill served in both the 334th and the 345th Bombardment groups, and saw
action in Australia, New Guinea, Okinawa, the Philippines, and a host of
small forgotten island where his aircraft bombed and strafed the entrenched
Japanese. His bomb groups served 28 months in combat, flew 10,609 sorties,
dropped 58,171 bombs and lost 588 personnel.
Bill was discharged from the Air Force in 1945 as a staff sergeant.
During his career, he had been awarded three prestigious Air Medals, the
Asiatic Pacific Campaign Medal the World War II Medal, the American Campaign
Medal and the Good Conduct Medal. The Philippine government awarded him the
Philippine Liberation Medal and the Philippine Defense Medal. His Bomb Group
was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation. Later, a grateful Governor Dewey
would present Bill with the New York State Conspicuous Service Cross.
Bill Caputo was another of those men who offered their body and soul for
this nation in a desperate time of war. He saw many of his friends killed in
action. Others never returned and their fate was unknown. By the end of the
war, the stress of constant battle was such that he was briefly treated for
combat fatigue. He later joined the American Legion, where he served on the
color Guard, was elected the third vice commander, and held several
positions, including the rental chairman. He will be sorely missed.
