Roman Ohnemus

Meet Roman

Before anything else — here's Roman himself, in his own words, with a taste of the stories that follow.

How This Started

Bernard's father, Belvin H. Robin, served as navigator alongside Roman Ohnemus in the Pacific, flying 47 combat missions. Belvin died before Bernard could ask him everything he wanted to know — but years later, a small blue notebook of Belvin's, kept by Bernard's stepbrother, turned out to hold the answer: a list of missions, and the names and addresses of the men Belvin had served with, including one "R.H. Ohnemus of Los Angeles, California."

In March 2007 — 62 years after the war ended — Bernard called Roman on the phone, then flew to California to interview him in person, meeting Roman's wife Carol along the way. What follows is everything that conversation, and the ones after it, turned up: Roman's own memories of the crew, of specific missions, and of the war itself, backed by the wartime photographs, citations, and reports that confirm them.

Featured Stories

Eight starting points into Roman's story. More will be added as additional recordings are transcribed.

Oral History · Audio

About the Crew

Roman identifies each man in a crew photo taken at Tacloban Airfield on October 28, 1944 — including navigator Belvin H. Robin — then recounts the mission that followed: a strafing scare on the runway, a typhoon, and dinner with a general.

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Oral History · Audio

A Photo of Belvin Robin

Bernard shows Roman a separate photograph of Belvin Robin standing beside a modified B-25H on Biak. Roman explains the aircraft's unusual nose and describes the path from bombardier training to navigator.

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Written Account & Video · 1944–45

One of My Most Memorable Missions

Roman's solo night mission over Clark Field, December 28, 1944 — his own written account and his narrated digital story together, backed up by the squadron's confidential mission report, a DFC citation, and a wartime press clipping.

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Oral History · Audio

Picture from the Rear Camera

Roman explains the automatic strike camera mounted on every B-25, and a near-miss when he almost strafed a friendly PT boat in distress — then tells the story of his second-mission pilot, Lt. Nolan, and the combat fatigue that eventually grounded him.

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Digital Story · Video

Roman's Own Story

Roman's own self-produced digital story: the "Apache Princess" crew explained in full, the fate of the "Lazy Daisy Mae," an unlikely Charles Lindbergh connection, and a tribute to his flight-school class of 44A.

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Digital Story · Video

Becoming a Pilot

Roman's own account of enlisting, marrying Carol in Las Vegas underage, and training as a pilot — including a mid-air malfunction on his very first solo flight and a crash-landing that nearly took out a Colonel's control tower.

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Digital Story · Video

Biak Tentmates

Life on Biak between missions — a scrounged-together tent, foxholes dug into coral, an unsettling trip through Japanese-held caves, and the fate of a fellow cadet who became Roman's tentmate by chance.

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Digital Story · Video

Planes Roman Flew

A career that stretched well past the B-25 — training planes, postwar transports, a reserve unit's close call over Korea, and the jets he flew once called back to active duty.

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