Eight bailed out

by James M. Inks

On July 28, 1944, eight members of a B-24 Liberator bomber bailed out over German-occupied Yugoslavia after the plane sustained damage during a bombing mission. The American crew landed behind enemy lines in German-occupied Montenegro where they were rescued by Serbian Chetnik guerrillas, who hid the downed airmen from German troops and attempted to return the rescued fliers to their base in Italy.

James M. Inks, the navigator, kept a diary of the ten and a half months spent in the "protective custody" of the Chetnik guerrillas as they sought to escape from German troops.

Genres: War, Nonfiction

160 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1954

Reviews

[Alex C. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a good read, and I find it tragic that this story doesn't seem to be very well-known. This was an amazing account about what went on in the Balkans during world war II, as well as overcoming crazy odds of survival.

[Bev Walkling · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is not your typical book about downed airmen escaping from a P.O.W. camp and making their way back to England from Germany via Belgium, France, Spain or Switzerland. This book tells the story of eight American airmen who bailed out over Yugoslavia and landed in the middle of a very complicated situation in Yugoslavia. They were captured by the Chetniks who were allied with the Germans (but hated them) and were surrounded by Partisans out to kill the Chetniks & the Germans. Major James Inks kept a diary during his time in Yugoslavia and it makes for a fascinating account which currently has me enthralled.

Full review to follow.