In the early morning hours of July 10, 1943, Allied forces began landings on the coast of Sicily near the city of Gela. The effort to capture Sicily, known as Operation Husky, was one of the major campaigns in the Mediterranean theater of the Second World War.

In the skies above the landing zones, B-24 Liberator bombers flew missions in support of Operation Husky. Among the aircrews was a bombardier (bomb-aimer, essentially) named Joseph Acquisto of Olyphant, Pennsylvania.

From June through July 1943, Acquisto and his comrades repeatedly bombed targets across the island of Sicily in preparation for the invasion, which ultimately proved to be a major Allied success. Among the cities where Acquisto aimed his bombs: Casteltermini in the island’s mountainous middle.

By cruel twists of fate inspired by global conflict, Acquisto was bombing targets near the city where he was born on January 12, 1914.

Acquisto’s story was told in The Scrantonian newspaper in November 1943:

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An Olyphant youth who was born in the town of Casteltermina, Sicily, lived to see the day that he would drop bombs on its outskirts and then hold a happy reunion with one of its inhabitants, his uncle.

Leaving Casteltermina when he was only seven years old to accompany his parents to this country, PFC. Joseph Acquisto, 102 Lackawanna Ave., said he was surprised to remember much of the landscape.

Acquisto, who is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Acquisto, has been a member of the Army Air Force since 1937. Last June he went across and participated in 15 bombing missions over Sicily. He is a bombardier on a four-engined B-24 Liberator.

Now on furlough, Acquisto, who is a small chap, reflects on the vagaries of war. “I certainly never thought I would be flying over my birthplace in a bomber,” he said.

However, Casteltermina escaped bomb damage as most of the objectives were on the North coast. But once the Allies got a foothold in Sicily he made the most of a brief furlough by calling on his uncle, Joe Acquisto. “They were certainly glad to see the Americans take over,” he declared, adding: “Of course, I couldn’t tell them much for fear of giving away military secrets.”

Most of their conversation had to do with their mutual relatives, he disclosed, and little about the war. But there was no hiding the fact that the Sicilians were all-out for the American boys.

Acquisto had a flare for aeronautics even before joining the Army. He held a civilians pilot license and often used to rent a machine at local airports and go aloft. However, when he enlisted he was put to work on bombsights, never thinking at that time that he would be putting one into practice under actual wartime conditions. “We have the best bombsight in the world,” he declared. And he should know.

As a bombardier he was a member of a 10-man crew, two others of whom were of Italian descent. He also disclosed that four crew members were Yugoslavians who were trained in this country.

Only once did their big Liberator have a close call. Attacked by German planes, three engines were put out of commission, but their pilot, a Kansas youth, came in safely with the one remaining engine. No one was hurt.

Acquisto returned to this country last August and is now enjoying his first furlough home. He is married to the former Miss Catherine Montararo, of Olyphant.

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Acquisto survived the Second World War and later moved from Northeastern Pennsylvania to Syracuse, New York. He died there in 1992 at the age of 78.

(Featured Photographs: A B-24 bomber during World War II and PFC. Joseph Acquisto)

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