CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19) RESOURCE CENTER Read More
Add To Favorites

Trip down memory lane for WWII veteran

Charlotte Sun - 2/9/2017

PUNTA GORDA — Countless missions were flown overseas during World War II.

Of those, more than 43,000 never returned, including nearly ?23,000 that were shot down during combat, according to the World War II Foundation.

Charlie “Chuck” Gabrus, however, was not one of them.

Gabrus, a staff sergeant in the United States Army Air Force, was a waist gunner in 31 successful missions in Germany, starting in May 1944.

The 93-year-old seasonal North Port resident flew more than 30 missions in a three-month span. His last mission was ?Sept. 11, 1944.

The Second World War ended less than a year later on Sept. 2, 1945, concluding a six-year global conflict.

Walking around Punta Gorda Airport on Wednesday during a traveling World ?War II Warbird display, Gabrus walked over to a B-24 bomber similar to the one in which he flew.

The plane, dubbed “Witchcraft,” has his name etched on the side. It was alongside hundreds of others that helped defeat Germany.

“We were young kids. We didn’t even know what a gun was before being drafted. We had no experience,” Gabrus said, glancing back at the bomber. “We lost a lot of good men that didn’t even get to experience life. It was rough.”

While American World War II causalities were high, Gabrus’ crew made it out unscathed. He says all 10 crew members returned uninjured.

“We were a group; a family,” said Gabrus, who was drafted from his hometown, Montgomery, New York, a town upstate close to Connecticut.

“We looked out for each other. We wanted to do our job: Bomb Germany and get back to our families,” he added.

Gabrus said one thing in particular pulled him through the jarring reality of wartime life: Scotch whiskey. He said he would drink a glass following a successful mission to unwind.

“Since 1944, I’ve been a Scotch man,” Gabrus said with a chuckle.

Firmly grasping onto the .50 caliber machine gun he once manned, Gabrus says it’s great the warbirds tour the nation, giving civilians a chance to see them up-close and personal.

“People have no idea what these planes went through,” said Gabrus, maneuvering his way through the cramped confines of the B-24, which despite a mammoth body, is restricted inside due to weaponry.

Eight of the 10 crewmembers Gabrus served with have since died. The whereabouts of one is unknown, he said.

This is not an uncommon theme, as less than 66,000 of Florida’s World War II veterans are still living.

Nationwide, about a million World ?War II veterans were still living four years ago, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. This year, though, the agency is predicting less than 500,000 are alive.

About 16.1 million Americans served during the war.

Still spry, Gabrus plays golf twice a week and averages in the low-90s. During a recent senior tournament in New York, he shot 89 to win his age group.

“We were very fortunate,” said Gabrus, who visited the warbirds many times and is at peace with the good and bad times. “After 31 flights, I’m used to it.”

Email: jscholles@sun-herald.com