https://barrycountyhistoryportal.org/files/original/9/373/Dibble_Text0199.pdf d516c3adf413c96961ba51648b1609e8 PDF Text Text EDDIE RICKENBACKER NORTH AFRICA AND THE “HAT IN THE RING PIN” In April 1943 Eddie Rickenbacker had visited the War Department and received another assignment as Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson's Special Consultant. Rickenbacker was to visit Russia to check into the Lend-Lease program then in effect. Lend-Lease was the program, inaugurated in March 1941, by which America became the arsenal of democracy, sending military supplies to all nations fighting the Axis. Rickenbacker's trip took him through North Africa, and as such he planned to visit as many Air Corp groups as possible to help boost morale. Knowing that his old squadron was stationed in the area, before leaving the United States, Rickenbacker had a jeweler in New York make up i insignia pins with the hat-in-the-ring motif and had persuaded p Hap Arnold, head of the Army Air Forces, to approve themit to be worn on their uniforms. On May 14, five command cars pulled into the base at Chateaudun du Rommel, Algeiiria. Jimmy Doolittle, then Commanding Officer of the spped out to introduce Rickenbacker to the Twelfth Air Force, step ’groui ling Rickenbacker threw a big party for the group. Later that eveni,, squa^ squadron in Constantine. There were then some 22 pilots in the 94th Squadron. ! The pilot::s having been trucked in were treated to a bit ig meal consisting of camel steaks with all the trimmings, Folic .owing the cognac and grape juice to wash it all down, Rickenbacker assembled all tl:he= pilots pi: on a small stage. ( General Doolittle called each pilots name name.. Eddie Rickenbaker presented the small "hat-in-the-ring" pin to General Doolittle wh<10 in turn pinned it on the tunic above the pilots wings. Lt. Jim Dibble wrote home to describe the event."We had a big squadron part} rty last night in a nearby town. Eddie Rickenbacker, who used to 1be with the squadron in the last war, threw a party for us. We were all presented with a pin of silver in the form of the squadron insignia, the hat-in-the-ring." � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource James P. Dibble: Combat! Description An account of the resource James spent his combat time based out of North Africa and helped clear the way for the eventual invasion of Italy in 1943. He was a member of the 94th Air Squadron, <a href="https://www.1stfg.org/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">1st Fighter Group</a>, and flew the famous twin-engined P-38. Learn more about the P-38 at: <ul><li><a href="http://www.aviation-history.com/lockheed/p38.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Aviation History online Museum</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwj_1pKiyOT5AhXUkIkEHWqSCb8QFnoECAMQAw&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.britannica.com%2Ftechnology%2FP-38&usg=AOvVaw25-9_sOlkuv_UPtZBhV1Ma" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Britannica.com</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwj_1pKiyOT5AhXUkIkEHWqSCb8QFnoECAQQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FLockheed_P-38_Lightning&usg=AOvVaw0_UoxVGVbZOtad9vsjWvhW" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Wikipedia</a><a href="http://www.aviation-history.com/lockheed/p38.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"></a></li> </ul> Don't miss the section titled Day of Armageddon recapping the events of August 30, 1943. This air battle over Italy ultimately earned James the Distinguished Flying Cross. He was lucky to survive - many pilots made the ultimate sacrifice. See photos, letters, mission reports and more about James' time spent in combat over Africa and Italy in 1942 and 1943. Jump to other sections of the collection: <ul><li><a href="https://www.barrycountyhistoryportal.org/collections/show/5">James P. Dibble: World War II P-38 Fighter Pilot</a><ul><li><a href="https://www.barrycountyhistoryportal.org/collections/show/6">His Early Life</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.barrycountyhistoryportal.org/collections/show/7">High School into the Army Air Corps</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.barrycountyhistoryportal.org/collections/show/8">Flight Training</a><ul><li><a href="https://www.barrycountyhistoryportal.org/collections/show/17">We Got Married!</a></li> </ul></li> <li><a href="https://www.barrycountyhistoryportal.org/collections/show/9">Combat!</a><ul><li><a href="https://www.barrycountyhistoryportal.org/collections/show/10">Mission Reports</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.barrycountyhistoryportal.org/collections/show/11">Letters Home</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.barrycountyhistoryportal.org/collections/show/16">Flying with Eisenhower</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.barrycountyhistoryportal.org/collections/show/12">The Day of Armageddon - August 30, 1943</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.barrycountyhistoryportal.org/collections/show/13">Killed in Action</a></li> </ul></li> <li><a href="https://www.barrycountyhistoryportal.org/collections/show/14">The Search for Answers</a><ul><li><a href="https://www.barrycountyhistoryportal.org/collections/show/15">The Monument in Padula, Italy</a></li> </ul></li> </ul></li> </ul> Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Typed document Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Account of Eddie Rickenbacker's visit to the 94th Air Squadron in Algeria, 1943 Subject The topic of the resource World War II. 1st Fighter Group. Medals and Citations Description An account of the resource Account of Eddie Rickenbacker's visit to the 94th Air Squadron in Algeria, 1943. Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Essay Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Jim Dibble Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource unknown Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-NC/1.0/ Rights Holder A person or organization owning or managing rights over the resource. Hastings Public Library Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Jim Dibble Date Accepted Date of acceptance of the resource. Examples of resources to which a Date Accepted may be relevant are a thesis (accepted by a university department) or an article (accepted by a journal). 1/18/2022