General Kenneth Bonner Wolfe's Private Plane

Something very important in my life happened last week. While going though all the pictures for our upcoming 100 year celebration of our small church in Tazewell, Tennessee I came upon the picture of the plane that brought my brother George Eddie Payne back to the States from Germany in 1951 after passing his test to enter West Point. The picture is of General Wolfe's private plane as explained on the back. He often told of the General who flew him back while on his way to Korea to enter West Point. Well here it is. Kenneth Bonner Wolfe launched the first B-29 Superfortress combat mission on June 5, 1944 called Operation Matterhorn, against Japanese railroad facilities at Bangkok, Thailand, about 1,000 miles away.

The first B-29 bomber commander was Brig. Gen. Kenneth B. Wolfe, who took the XX Bomber Command to India and China and initiated operations against Japan with Operation Matterhorn. The XX Bomber Command was formed at Marietta, Georgia, where the B-29s were being built. General Wolfe was designated to head that command in November 1943.

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