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| Stearnie's BushCaddy R-80, First Flight, Driggs, Idaho. |
Clarence "Stearnie" Stearns, is no ordinary man. Now he
may not agree with that, but in my mind there's no denying it. He is a World War II B-17 Pilot who got
shot down over Schweinfurt, Germany on April 13, 1944 and served out the balance of the war as a POW at Stalag Luft I, in
Barth, Germany. Stearnie (as he likes to be called), decided in his mid-eighties that it was time to build an airplane.
Stearnie started building a BushCaddy R-80, powered by a 100HP Rotax and
with the help of his friend Jim Jackson, finished the airplane at the age of 89. The plane flew for the first time
in December of 2009 from an airstrip in Driggs, Idaho. Imagine that!! How many homebuilders can claim such a unique
path to airplane ownership? Not one that I know of...or have ever heard of. That's why Stearnie is no ordinary
man.
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| Stearnie and his Crew, Clarence is standing on the far right. |
Let's start at the beginning. Stearnie joined the Cadets in 1938,
went on active duty in 1940 and ended up assigned to the 8th Air Force, 384th Bombardment Group (Heavy) in Grafton Underwood,
England. Stearnie had a 9 man crew and piloted a B-17, named Rum Pot II. By the time 1944 rolled around the Allies
were conducting daylight precision bombing raids on strategic industrial sites in Germany, on a regular basis.
One of the most targeted sites was the Kugelfischer-Georg-Shafer ball bearing factory in Schweinfurt.
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| The Crew of Rum Pot II, Clarence is standing, second from left. |
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| Schweinfurt |
Stearnie and the crew flew over 25 missions. On April 13, 1944, they took off from Grafton
Underwood and hit the Ball Bearing Factory in Schweinfurt hard, along with numerous other B-17's.
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| The Ball Bearing Factory after the bombing. |
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| Wreckage of Rum Pot II |
After scoring direct hits on the target, the B-17 turned back
to England, but encountered enemy aircraft over Schweinfurt. Around 1:30 PM, Rum Pot II took a direct hit to the #3
engine, which was immediately feathered by the crew. However the gas tank and right wing broke into a mass of flames
and the plane went down.
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| Engine of Rum Pot II at the crash site. |
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| Enroute to the Stalag |
The Crew bailed out and all survived with the exception of the Co-Pilot, Lt.
Bedsole. Stearnie and the rest of the Crew were captured by the Germans. They were marched off, along
with other POW's, to Stalag Luft I, in Barth Germany.
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| Roll call at the Stalag |
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| German HQ at Stalag Luft I. |
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| Guard Tower |
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After the war, Stearnie remained on active duty for one year. He
had grown up in Minnesota but after leaving the service he worked for a period of time at Yellowstone. Eventually
this led to him settling down in Wilson, Wyoming in 1950.
In 1954 Stearnie opened Hungry Jack's General Store in Wilson
and along with his wife Dodie, raised four children. Daughter Jana, now owns the General Store along with
her husband.
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| Stearnie and Jim Jackson |
In 1986 Stearnie started flying again in Cessna 172's and
also has 40 hours in Gliders. When he was 85 Stearnie dreamt of an airplane and decided on a Bushcaddy. Over a
five year period and with the help of mentor, teacher and good friend Jim Jackson, Stearnie finished the airplane in late
2009 and flew it for the first time from the airfield at Driggs, Idaho.
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| Flying from floats in Saskatchewan |
Throughout his life Stearnie and wife Dodie have been avid
canoeists and outdoors people. This led them to construct a handbuilt log cabin in Northwest Saskatchewan, where they
have spent their summers for the last 30 years or so. From this pristine location Stearnie has been able to fly the
Bushcaddy on floats to all the neighboring lakes.
So, this is why I say that Clarence Stearns is no ordinary man.
From WW II, to B-17's, to German POW camps, to Wyoming and Northern Saskatchewan and building an airplane in between, Stearnie
is an inspiration and classic example of our greatest generation...what I would call a REAL role model.
Well done Stearnie!!
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All Metal, Wheels, Floats Or Skis, Robust
Bushplane
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