Portrait of George R. Bickell. Lt George R Bickell had his plane shot out from under him December 7th as the Japanese attacked Oahu, landed in the ocean, swam ashore, and took off again in another plane to resume the fight, according to his wife, Mrs. Peggy Bickell, who arrived in the United States Christmas Day from Hawaii. The two, married last June, were eating breakfast when the first wave of Japanese planes came over Oahu, she said. She and others were machine-gunned by Japanese planes as they sought safety. "If you think you can go through an air raid without being scared, you're crazy," Mrs. Bickell said.