During World War II, there were many ways that a B-29er could be killed: a ruthless enemy, the savage weather, an unforgiving ocean that stretched for thousands of miles, or the faulty engines of their own airplanes. But they all volunteered for it, and they continued flying--and dying--until they brought the war to an early end and saved hundreds of thousands of American lives. They were The Heroes We Needed. The Heroes We Needed is an epic saga about the courageous American airmen who brought the Japanese Empire to its knees and ended World War II with the greatest bombers the world had ever seen, the Boeing B-29 Superfortress, and one man's fight 70 years later to save their stories from being forgotten. As Adolf Hitler's forces were sweeping across Europe, a radically new bomber plane that only existed in blueprints and a few handmade parts was suddenly ordered into mass production "off the drawing board" by the U.S. Army Air Corps. The first prototype had not even been built yet, let alone fully designed and tested. But with Nazi Germany and the Axis Powers threatening the world, the United States could not afford to wait any longer. The new super bomber would become known as the "three-billion-dollar gamble," the largest and most expensive weapons program of World War II, and it had to work. With nothing less than the free world at stake, many Americans would die to see that it did. Designed by visionary engineers, built by womanpower and flown by young men only a few years out of high school, the Boeing B-29 Superfortress became the "industrial miracle of the war" and achieved what the Army generals thought was impossible: the total surrender of Japan without a bloody land invasion. A new age of American air power was born. By the early 2000s, six decades after they helped save the world, over 1,000 World War II Veterans were now dying each day in the United States. As the Greatest Generation slowly faded away, Trevor McIntyre was horrified to see eBay flooded with their militaria from the war after they died. All of this history was being sold for easy cash, and their stories were in danger of being lost for good. That's when Trevor decided to act. After holding a piece of B-29 history in his hands for the first time whose story had sadly been lost, Trevor began a lifelong mission to save the forgotten stories of the B-29ers, the airmen who ended World War II, through the militaria they left behind. The incredible stories he discovered along the way inspired Trevor to follow his dreams of becoming a writer, but dreams are never easy. His dedication to saving their stories cost him his job, and at one point he only had $100 to his name, but it was all worth it. The Heroes We Needed is the result of his 20-year battle to save their stories from being forgotten. AUTHOR: With over 20 years of experience researching and collecting B-29 militaria, Trevor McIntyre is a leading authority on the Boeing B-29 Superfortress bombers and the airmen who flew them during World War II. Trevor's dedication to saving the history of the B-29ers has resulted in one of the largest collections of B-29 militaria in the world, which he aspires to feature in a museum of his own one day. A native of Orlando, Trevor currently resides in rural North Georgia where he continues his lifelong passion for writing, as well as collecting and preserving the history of the B-29ers. 85 b/w photos, 2 b/w maps
