Our Navy Air group was to pick up a Squadron of PB4Y2s (Privateers)
about
July/August of 1945.  These were to be equipped for electronic
countermeasures (ecm) in use against the Japanese to locate the
positions, frequencies, operational capabilities of their radio,
radar, and gunfire control radars prior to invasions.  We would be
tasked to neutralize these threats with electronic countermeasures
such as 'jamming', ' aluminum foil strips to blind the enemy, etc. 
(The United States dropped the
bomb and our group was dispersed to individual assignments.  Mine was
as a staff member to  the Commander of Carrier Air Group 81
(CAG-81)that was just returning from the Pacific.)

My Question:
Can you provide me with contacts (names, addresses) for histories of
these Navy Privateer (PB4Y2) squadrons who may have flown intelligence
gathering missions after 1945 ?

---

Request for Question Clarification by justaskscott-ga on 28 Jul 2002 17:51 PDT

Hello csquared-ga,

I’ve found a lot of information about the PB4Y-2s, including some
references to their ECM operations.  I want to be sure of what you
want before I post an answer:

Are you interested in information only after 1945 (that is, only after
World War II)?  Or do you want information for the end of World War II
as well?

Are you interested in everything in the history of PB4Y-2 intelligence
missions after 1945 -- in other words, in every hot or cold war
situation since then?  (If you are primarily interested in, say, the
Korean War, it would narrow things down a bit.)

Are you interested in ECM specifically, or any other kind of
intelligence operations?  (I don’t know yet if the PB4Y-2 was used for
other kinds of intelligence operations.  In any event, it would narrow
things down if you were interested just in ECM.)

Would you be satisfied with several web pages that contain information
on PB4Y-2s and intelligence operations, along with any contact
information for the persons who created those web pages?  (As I said,
there’s a lot of information -- I would try to select several of the
most comprehensive web pages or web sites.)

In short, anything you can do to specify what you would like might be
helpful.

- justaskscott-ga

---

Clarification of Question by csquared-ga on 29 Jul 2002 08:20 PDT

Scott,
Good questions.  1) I am interested in any PB4Y2 ECM operations in
WWII or Korea, only.  2) I would be interested in the identities of
Squadrons flying these missions.  3) I would be interested in the
contact persons (or organizations) who would have this information.

Hope this helps.  I have pursued a lot of websites with minimal
results.

Thank you,

Carl Nielson

---

Request for Question Clarification by justaskscott-ga on 31 Jul 2002 21:49 PDT

I just wanted to note that I haven't forgotten about this question.  I
was sick for a couple of days (I'm better now), so that threw off my
schedule a bit.  Still, I should have an answer for you soon.

---

Clarification of Question by csquared-ga on 01 Aug 2002 07:12 PDT

Thank you Scott.

Glad you are feeling better.

Carl Nielson

Hello csquared-ga (I think that I'm supposed to use your screen name
when answering the question),

The best source of information on the Internet about PB4Y-2 squadrons
appears to be the "VPNavy" site, available at both
http://www.vpnavy.com/ and http://www.vpnavy.org/ .  (I will use the
"com" address, because that's what appeared in my Google searches.) 
The site is devoted to all U.S. Navy Patrol Squadrons.  The main page
for the PB4Y-2 is located at
http://www.vpnavy.com/aircraft_pb4y_2.html .

There are various ways to use VPNavy.  You can click on the link to
the "PB4Y-2 Privateer History Page"
(http://www.vpnavy.com/aircraft_pb4y_2_history.html ), links to other
web sites, "Site Search" at the top of the page, or the "Guestbook".

By using the Site Search ( http://www.vpnavy.com/SEARCH.HTM ), I have
found two references to ECM missions by PB4Y-2 squadrons -- planned
patrols in WWII and actual patrols in the Korean War:

"VP Site Directory of Shipmate's: M" (information for "McCONNELL,
LTJG", about half-way down the page)
VPNavy
http://www.vpnavy.org/shipmates_m.html

"VP-772 Squadron History" (seventh paragraph under "FIRST AT ATSUGI",
about half-way down the page)
http://www.vpnavy.org/vp772_history.html 

I haven't searched the Guestbook (
http://www.vpnavy.com/guestbook_summary.html ); unfortunately, the
Guestbook is divided into several dozen pages, which must be viewed
individually.  If you have the time, you might find more information
there.

However, in light of your question and clarification, I think that you
are more interested in getting contact information than in conducting
an exhaustive and possibly fruitless search.  So you might try to
contact the operator of the VPNavy site, Nevins A. Frankel (see
http://www.vpnavy.com/vpnavy_faq.html ).  (Note: Just as I have
avoided using your real name in the introduction, I think that I am
supposed to avoid posting e-mail or postal addresses.  Thus, I am
posting links to pages with the addresses.)

Perhaps the best contact on the history of Privateer squadrons would
be Alan C. Carey, who operates a web site on "U.S. Navy Pacific Based
PB4Y Squadrons in World War II (
http://alanc.carey.freeservers.com/index.html ).  Mr. Carey has
written a book about the Privateer squadrons in the Pacific called
"Above an Angry Sea" (see
http://www.alanc.carey.freeservers.com/catalog.html ), and is
currently looking for information for a planned operational history of
the Privateer (see http://www.alanc.carey.freeservers.com/contact.html
).  You can contact him at the address listed on this last link.

Another potential contact is Jim Augustus at "Navy Lib - PB4Y Flight
Line" (http://www.navylib.com/index.html ), a web site devoted to both
the PB4Y-1 Liberator and PB4Y-2 Privateer.  (Scroll to the bottom of
the page to obtain Mr. Augustus's e-mail address.)

One other possibility is Ronald R. Sathre, who was Executive Director
of the International PB4Y Association as of November 1998.  The web
site has not been updated since then, and indeed has recently ceased
to exist.  However, you can view the old website through the Internet
Archive Wayback Machine
(http://web.archive.org/web/20020124141109/http://www.pb4y.com/ ), and
try to contact Mr. Sathre at the address listed there.

I hope that this information is helpful.

-justaskscott-ga


Search terms used (in various combinations):

PB4Y-2 or PB4Y2
Privateer or Privateers
ECM, "electronic countermeasures", or "electronic counter measures"
"World War II" or WWII
"Korean War" or Korea