Joseph P. Kennedy Jr., the older brother of John F. Kennedy, volunteered for a top-secret mission called Operation Aphrodite during World War II. On August 12, 1944, Joe and his co-pilot, Bud, flew a B-24 Liberator, which had been converted into a flying bomb, to destroy Vengeance weapons aimed at London. However, they were unaware that the British had already destroyed the Vengeance weapons five weeks earlier.
As they approached their target, Joe and Bud's plane was taken over by remote control, and they prepared to parachute out. But due to a mechanical error, the explosives on board detonated prematurely, killing both Joe and Bud. This event changed the course of American history, as Joe was expected to become the next president of the United States. His death paved the way for his younger brother, John F. Kennedy, to rise to prominence and eventually become the 35th President of the United States.
Here are the key facts extracted from the text:
1. On August 12th, 1944, American pilot Joe was preparing for a top-secret mission called Operation Aphrodite.
2. Joe was flying a modified B24 Liberator plane that had been hollowed out and filled with 10 tons of explosives.
3. The mission was to destroy Vengeance weapons that the Nazis had buried deep inside hills in northern France.
4. Joe and his co-pilot, Bud, would have to jump out of the plane and parachute to safety after arming the explosives.
5. The plane would then be remotely controlled by another pilot and crashed into the hills to destroy the Vengeance weapons.
6. Joe and Bud successfully took off on their mission, but their plane exploded due to a mechanical failure, killing them both.
7. The mission was unnecessary, as the British Royal Air Force had already destroyed the Vengeance weapons five weeks earlier.
8. Joe's full name was Joseph P. Kennedy Jr., and he was a member of the famous Kennedy family.
9. Joseph was being groomed to be the next President of the United States, but his death in the mission changed the course of American history.
10. His younger brother, John F. Kennedy, would go on to become the 35th President of the United States in 1960.