Oral History Interview with Robert Edgar, January 25, 2008

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Robert C. Edgar. Edgar was born 30 March 1924 in Santa Ana, California. Upon entering the Army Air Forces in February 1943 he was sent to a college training detachment in La Grande, Oregon. After thirty days of pilot training he was sent to Santa Ana Air Base classification center for testing. Qualifying for bombardier training, he was sent to Kingman, Arizona to gunnery school. He also trained in Albuquerque as a bombardier. He graduated 18 March 1944 and received his bombardier wings and commission as a second lieutenant. Edgar then went to Fresno, California where his crew was assembled. They were then sent to Walla Walla, Washington for transition into B-24s. Upon completing their crew training they flew a new B-24 to Townsville, Australia. Leaving the plane, they were transported to Wakde, where they joined the 307th Bomb Group, 424th Bomb Squadron. His first combat mission over Balikpapan, Borneo lasted seventeen hours. Japanese fighters were encountered as well as heavy flak resulting in the loss of some planes. Edgar recalls one combat mission when Japanese aircraft flew above the B -24 formation and dropped phosphorus bombs and bundles of steel rods in an attempt to knock them down. Edgar flew thirty-six combat missions before returning to the United States in November 1945