ROWE MISSION #8 - 3 October, 1944, Tuesday
ROWE MISSION #8 - 3 October, 1944, Tuesday
ROWE MISSION #8 - 3 October, 1944, Tuesday
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1<br />
WORLD WAR II<br />
448TH BOMB<br />
GROUP<br />
20TH COMBAT<br />
WING<br />
SECOND AIR<br />
DIVISION<br />
8TH AIR FORCE<br />
(European Theatre of Operations)<br />
448th Bomb Group Tower with “Checkerboard”, the formation assembly B-24.<br />
Base personnel turn out to watch landing operations after a mission return.<br />
Seething Village Church - Circa 1200<br />
by<br />
448th Bomb Group’s Post Headquarters Complex - Seething, England
2<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
FOREWORD<br />
BRIEF HISTORY - WORLD WAR II<br />
When the United States entered World War II, it was apparent that Germany, with its great military<br />
and industrial strength, posed the strongest threat of the Axis powers and should be dealt with first. Its defeat<br />
hinged on achieving four major objectives, for each of which effective use of Great Britain was a key factor. In<br />
the attainment of these objectives, the country became a vast supply depot, military base, air base and training<br />
and staging facility. During the war, more than seventeen (17) million tons of cargo and nearly two (2) million<br />
servicemen and women from the United States passed through British ports. Many military bases and training<br />
areas were established throughout the British Isles to receive the forces which later were to achieve such<br />
spectacular results on the beaches of Normandy. At the same time, airfields were enlarged and additional bases<br />
constructed for use by the U. S. Army Air Forces.<br />
The first objective in the war against Germany was to provide the United Kingdom with the resources<br />
needed to carry on until sufficient men, materials, and supplies could be assembled for the cross-channel<br />
invasion of Europe. To do so, the Atlantic sea lanes had to be made safe for the passage of Allied convoys<br />
between Great Britain and the United States. The battle for the Atlantic continued from 1939 to 1945, when the<br />
last German U-Boat surrendered. This costly, but generally successful struggle, gave the Allies control of the<br />
sea lanes between the United States and Great Britain, which was essential to the success of Allied operations<br />
in Europe.<br />
The second objective was to aid and sustain other nations actively engaged against the Axis,<br />
particularly the U.S.S.R., which at the time was receiving the brunt of the enemy’s land assualts. A “second<br />
front” was opened in North Africa in November 1942 to relieve the pressure against the U.S.S.R. Allied forces<br />
from bases in both Great Britain and the United States landed in North Africa and fought their way inland in<br />
the face of determined enemy resistance. Six months later, victory in North Africa was achieved when all<br />
enemy forces there surrendered. The operations in North Africa were followed by Allied landings in Sicily,<br />
Salerno and Anzio during 1943 and <strong>1944</strong>. Victories in Sicily and Italy were paralleled by Soviet successes in<br />
the East, with the winning of the battle of Stalingrad in February 1943 and the liberation of Sevastopol in May<br />
<strong>1944</strong>. One month later, Allied forces entered Rome, and the landings in Normandy commenced.<br />
The third objective during the war against Germany was to conduct an intensive strategic<br />
bombardment of Germany in order to destroy its military, industrial, and economic system. Achievement of<br />
this objective depended upon the use of air bases within the British Isles. As airfields were constructed and<br />
expanded, the air war against Germany intensified. The first American strategic bombing against a target in<br />
Europe took place in August 1942. By the end of the war, more than one-half million sorties against targets in<br />
Western Europe were flown by British-based American aircraft. Flying 35 missions is like playing “Russian<br />
Roulette”, but the 448th’s Replacement Crew #46 was one of the lucky crews and presents herein the small<br />
contribution one crew added to the overall victory.<br />
The final objective was to invade the European continent and defeat the enemy on its historic<br />
battlefields. U.S. and British Commonwealth forces landed on the beaches of Normandy on 6 June <strong>1944</strong> in<br />
what was to be the greatest amphibious operation in the history of warfare. Supported by U.S. and British<br />
aircraft, the Allied ground forces fought their way across France and crossed into Germany in September of<br />
<strong>1944</strong>.<br />
With the Allied victory in Europe on 8 May, 1945, the struggle against the enemy in the Pacific<br />
intensified. Confronted by overwhelming military superiority, its major cities devastated and weakened by the<br />
defeat of the Axis in Europe, Japan surrendered on 2 September 1945.<br />
Above brief history was taken from The American Battle Monuments<br />
Commmission booklet on the Cambridge American Cemetery & Memorial.
3<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
PAGE<br />
FOREWORD 2<br />
TABLE OF CONTENTS 3-4<br />
COVER 5<br />
INTRODUCTION 6<br />
PICTURE - CREW IN TOPEKA, KANSAS - JULY <strong>1944</strong> 7<br />
PICTURE - CREW IN SEETHING, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER <strong>1944</strong> 8<br />
PICTURE - OFFICERS IN LONDON - OCTOBER <strong>1944</strong> 9<br />
PICTURE - JOHN C. <strong>ROWE</strong> - LONDON - OCTOBER <strong>1944</strong> 10<br />
PICTURE - JOHN AND AGNES <strong>ROWE</strong> - OCTOBER 1994 11<br />
PICTURE - B-24J “ALL AMERICAN” IN FLIGHT 12<br />
PICTURE - JOHN C. <strong>ROWE</strong> - PREFLIGHT SAN ANTONIO TEXAS - 1943 13<br />
ARMY AIR FORCES TRAINING 14 - 25<br />
A STRUCTURAL TOUR OF THE B-24 26 - 34<br />
REPLACEMENT CREW #46’S <strong>MISSION</strong> RECORD 35 - 177<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #1 25 August, <strong>1944</strong> Rostock, Germany 37 - 39<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #2 26 August, <strong>1944</strong> Ludwigschafen, Germany 40 - 45<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #3 11 September, <strong>1944</strong> Magdeburg, Germany 46 - 49<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #4 12 September, <strong>1944</strong> Hemmingstadt, Germany 50 - 52<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> R 13 September, <strong>1944</strong> Recalled (Ulm, Germany) 53<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> S 14 September, <strong>1944</strong> Scrubbed (Berlin, Germany) 53<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #5 22 September, <strong>1944</strong> Kassel, Germany 53 - 56<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #6 27 September, <strong>1944</strong> Kassel, Germany 57 - 58<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #7 30 September, <strong>1944</strong> Hamm, Germany 59 - 61<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> <strong>#8</strong> 3 <strong>October</strong>, <strong>1944</strong> Gaggenau, Germany 62 - 64<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> AB 15 <strong>October</strong>, <strong>1944</strong> Cologne, Germany 65<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> AB 19 <strong>October</strong>, <strong>1944</strong> Mainz, Germany 65<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #9 25 <strong>October</strong>, <strong>1944</strong> Neumunster, Germany 65 - 68<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #10 6 November, <strong>1944</strong> Minden, Germany 69 - 73<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #11 10 November, <strong>1944</strong> Hanau, Germany 74 - 77<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #12 27 November, <strong>1944</strong> Offenburg, Germany 78 - 81<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #13 30 November, <strong>1944</strong> Neunkirchen, Germany 82 - 84<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #14 4 December, <strong>1944</strong> Koblenz, Germany 85 - 89<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #15 25 December, <strong>1944</strong> Waxweiler, Germany 90 - 93<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #16 2 January, 1945 Neuwed, Germany 94 - 97<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #17 3 January, 1945 Neunkirchen, Germany 98 - 101<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #18 6 January, 1945 Koblenz, Germany 102 - 105<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #19 7 January, 1945 Aehern, Germany 106 - 109<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> AB 10 January, 1945 Weweler 110<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #20 13 January, 1945 Worms, Germany 111 - 114<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #21 14 January, 1945 Hallendorf, Germany 115 - 118<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #22 31 January, 1945 Brunswick, Germany 119 - 122
4<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
FOREWORD<br />
BRIEF HISTORY - WORLD WAR II<br />
PAGE<br />
When the United States entered World War II, it was apparent that Germany, with its great military<br />
and industrial <strong>MISSION</strong> strength, #23 posed 3 February, the strongest 1945threat ofMagdeburg, the Axis powers Germany and should be dealt with first. 123Its - 126 defeat<br />
hinged<strong>MISSION</strong> on achieving #24 four15 major February, objectives, 1945 for each of Magdeburg, which effective Germany use of Great Britain was a key 127factor. - 130In<br />
the attainment <strong>MISSION</strong> of these #25 objectives, 16 February, the country 1945 became Osnabruck, a vast supply Germany depot, military base, air base131 and -training 134<br />
and staging <strong>MISSION</strong> facility. #26 During 19 the February, war, more 1945 than seventeen Siegen, (17) Germany million tons of cargo and nearly two 135 (2) -million 138<br />
servicemen <strong>MISSION</strong> and women #27 from 21 February, the United1945 States passed Nurnberg, through British Germany ports. Many military bases139 and -training 142<br />
areas were <strong>MISSION</strong> established throughout the British Isles to receive the forces which later were to achieve such<br />
spectacular “OO-LA-LA” results on the22 beaches February, of Normandy. 1945 At the Paris, same France time, airfields were enlarged and additional 143 bases<br />
constructed <strong>MISSION</strong> for use#28 by the28 U. February, S. Army Air 1945 Forces. Meschede, Germany 144 - 147<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> The first objective #29 1 March, in the war 1945 against Germany Augsburg, was to provide Germany the United Kingdom with the 148resources - 151<br />
needed to carry on until sufficient men, materials, and supplies could be assembled for the cross-channel<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #30 2 March, 1945 Magdeburg, Germany 152 - 154<br />
invasion of Europe. To do so, the Atlantic sea lanes had to be made safe for the passage of Allied convoys<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #31 3 March, 1945 Magdeburg, Germany 155 - 160<br />
between Great Britain and the United States. The battle for the Atlantic continued from 1939 to 1945, when the<br />
last German <strong>MISSION</strong> U-Boat #32 surrendered. 5 March, This 1945 costly, but generally Harburg, successful Germanystruggle, gave the Allies control 161 - 163 of the<br />
sea lanes <strong>MISSION</strong> between #33 the United 9 March, States1945 and Great Britain, Rheine, whichGermany was essential to the success of Allied 164 operations - 166<br />
in Europe. <strong>MISSION</strong> #34 10 March, 1945 Paderborn, Germany 167 - 169<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> The second #35objective 11 March, was 1945 to aid and sustain Kiel, Germany other nations actively engaged against 170the - 177 Axis,<br />
BRIEF particularly DESCRIPTION the U.S.S.R., OF which ALLat OTHER the time 448 was receiving the brunt of the enemy’s land assualts. A “second<br />
front” was opened in North Africa in November 1942 to relieve the pressure against the U.S.S.R. Allied forces<br />
from bases in both Great Britain and the United States landed in North Africa and fought their way inland in<br />
the face of determined enemy resistance. Six months later, victory in North Africa was achieved when all<br />
enemy forces there surrendered. The operations in North Africa were followed by Allied landings in Sicily,<br />
Salerno and Anzio during 1943 and <strong>1944</strong>. Victories in Sicily and Italy were paralleled by Soviet successes in<br />
the East, with the winning of the battle of Stalingrad in February 1943 and the liberation of Sevastopol in May<br />
<strong>1944</strong>. One month later, Allied forces entered Rome, and the landings in Normandy commenced.<br />
The third objective during the war against Germany was to conduct an intensive strategic<br />
bombardment of Germany in order to destroy its military, industrial, and economic system. Achievement of<br />
this objective depended upon the use of air bases within the British Isles. As airfields were constructed and<br />
expanded, the air war against Germany intensified. The first American strategic bombing against a target in<br />
Europe took place in August 1942. By the end of the war, more than one-half million sorties against targets in<br />
Western Europe were flown by British-based American aircraft. Flying 35 missions is like playing “Russian<br />
Roulette”, but the 448th’s Replacement Crew #46 was one of the lucky crews and presents herein the small<br />
contribution one crew added to the overall victory.<br />
The final objective was to invade the European continent and defeat the enemy on its historic<br />
battlefields. U.S. and British Commonwealth forces landed on the beaches of Normandy on 6 June <strong>1944</strong> in<br />
what was to be the greatest amphibious operation in the history of warfare. Supported by U.S. and British<br />
aircraft, the Allied ground forces fought their way across France and crossed into Germany in September of<br />
<strong>1944</strong>.<br />
With the Allied victory in Europe on 8 May, 1945, the struggle against the enemy in the Pacific<br />
intensified. Confronted by overwhelming military superiority, its major cities devastated and weakened by the<br />
defeat of the Axis in Europe, Japan surrendered on 2 September 1945.<br />
TH GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> EXCLUDING<br />
THE ABOVE 35 <strong>MISSION</strong>S OF JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 178 - 194<br />
COMBAT COLORS - COLORS OF THE 14 GROUPS OF THE 2ND AIR DIVISION 195 - 198<br />
448TH BOMB GROUPS 262 <strong>MISSION</strong>S FLOWN<br />
(Replacement crew #46’s missions are shown in bold font.) 199 - 204<br />
ROSTER OF ORIGINAL CREWS ORDERED TO COMBAT DUTY 205 - 218<br />
ROSTER OF REPLACEMENT CREWS ORDERED TO COMBAT DUTY 219 - 242<br />
(This is a partial list and contains 209 crews. I estimate that the total should be<br />
around 240. Most of the missing crews appear to be from the first 3 months<br />
of combat duty.)<br />
B-24 DEVELOPMENT AND CONVERSIONS 243 - 246<br />
REST & RELAXATION (FLAK LEAVE) 247<br />
NOSE ART ON OUR AIRCRAFT 248<br />
HISTORY OF THE 448TH BOMB GROUP 249 - 266<br />
EPILOGUE 267 - 289<br />
AMERICAN CEMETERY & MEMORIAL AT MADINGLEY - CAMBRIDGE 290 - 291<br />
FLAGPOLE PLATFORM—AMERICAN CEMETERY & MEMORIAL AT<br />
MADINGLEY—CAMBRIDGE 292<br />
AMERICAN CEMETERY AND MEMORIAL—A SANCTUARY OF PEACE AND<br />
REFLECTION 293<br />
EULOGY– BY JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong>– AMERICAN CEMETERY AND MEMORIAL,<br />
CAMBRIDGE, ENGLAND—1998 REUNION 294<br />
USAAF STATION #146—SEETHING AIRFIELD, SEETHING ENGLAND 295<br />
END—BACK COVER 296<br />
Above brief history was taken from The American Battle Monuments<br />
Commmission booklet on the Cambridge American Cemetery & Memorial.
5<br />
ONE AIRCREW’S WORLD WAR II COMBAT<br />
EXPERIENCE AS A REPLACEMENT CREW IN<br />
THE EUROPEAN THEATER OF OPERATIONS<br />
8th Air Force<br />
2nd Air Division<br />
20th Combat Wing<br />
448th Bombardment Group (H)<br />
713th / 714th Bombardment Squadrons<br />
Army Air Forces - Army Of The United States<br />
REPLACEMENT CREW #46
6<br />
John C. Rowe - Federal Service - World War II<br />
MANY WORLD WAR II VETERANS ARE CLOSING OUR THEIR ACCOUNTS<br />
IN THE GREAT BOOK OF LIFE. THE PURPOSE OF THIS BOOK IS TO<br />
DESCRIBE FOR THE MEMBERS OF THIS CREW AND THEIR FAMILIES OR<br />
ANY OTHERS INTERESTED IN HISTORY, THE FEDERAL SERVICE OF A<br />
REPLACEMENT AIRCREW SERVING IN THE EIGHTH AIR FORCE,<br />
EUROPEAN THEATRE OF OPERATIONS<br />
In the spring of 1942, the fortunes of the British Isles<br />
were very low. Britian was an island fortress and the landmass<br />
and skies of Europe were under the iron heel of Hitler. The<br />
Japanese were taking over the Far East, the Mediterranean was<br />
mostly closed to Allied shipping, and in the Atlantic losses from<br />
U-Boats were averaging 508,000 tons a month. In North Africa,<br />
Rommel was poised for a decisive battle with the British Eighth<br />
Army in the Western African desert. Supplies and reinforcements<br />
were being routed on the long shipping lanes around South Africa<br />
to the southern end of the Suez Canal. The Japanese attack on<br />
Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 brought the United States into<br />
the conflict, but in the Spring of 1942 when I first volunteered for<br />
service, the recruitment, let alone deployment of weapons and<br />
manpower had just begun. The lives, noble deeds, and simple<br />
virtues of those sterling young men and courageous airmen who<br />
did not attempt to evade service or campaign against federal<br />
service and paid the ultimate price, deserve more than just a<br />
passing memory. It is to them that these recollections are<br />
affectionately dedicated.<br />
John C. Rowe<br />
4532 Maybank Avenue<br />
Lakewood, CA 90712<br />
562-423-9255<br />
February 29, 1993<br />
First revision made August 1996<br />
Second revision made March, 1998<br />
Third revision made May, 1999<br />
Fourth revision made March, 2000<br />
Fifth revision made June, 2001<br />
Sixth revision made May, 2002<br />
Seventh revision made June, 2004
7<br />
BACK ROW LEFT TO RIGHT: Charlie W. Robertson - John Roche - Francis E. Scott - Robert L. Sammons - Joseph H. Zonyk - Martin L. Miller<br />
FRONT ROW LEFT TO RIGHT: Bruce J. Anderson - Oscar O. Rudnick - John C. Rowe - Richard H. Best<br />
TOPEKA, KANSAS - JULY, <strong>1944</strong><br />
John C. Rowe - Federal Service - World War II
8<br />
John C. Rowe - Federal Service - World War II<br />
BACK ROW LEFT TO RIGHT: JOHN ROCHE - MARTY MILLER - ROBERT SAMMONS - JOE ZONYK<br />
FRONT ROW LEFT TO RIGHT: OSCAR RUDNICK - JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> - RICHARD BEST - BRUCE ANDERSON
9<br />
John C. Rowe - Federal Service - World War II<br />
STANDING: Oscar O. Rudnick (Bombardier) - Bruce J. Anderson (Co-Pilot)<br />
SEATED: Richard H. Best (Navigator) - John C. Rowe (Pilot)
10<br />
John C. Rowe - Federal Service - World War II<br />
2nd LT. JOHN C. <strong>ROWE</strong><br />
London - <strong>October</strong>, <strong>1944</strong>
11<br />
John C. Rowe - Federal Service - World War II<br />
JOHN C. <strong>ROWE</strong> AND AGNES KEANE <strong>ROWE</strong><br />
Lakewood, California - <strong>October</strong>, 1994
12<br />
John C. Rowe - Federal Service - World War II<br />
RESTORED B-24J - “ALL AMERICAN”
13<br />
John C. Rowe - Federal Service - World War II<br />
CADET JOHN C. <strong>ROWE</strong> - PREFLIGHT<br />
San Antonio, Texas - March, 1943
14<br />
army air forces<br />
training<br />
Following Pearl Harbor, in February, 1942<br />
while employed at Bank Of America at Los<br />
Angeles, California I made application for<br />
enlistment in the United States Army Air Force for<br />
pilot training, but was informed that I had to have<br />
my parents consent. On my<br />
next scheduled vacation in<br />
July 1942, I went to Iowa<br />
and obtained the required<br />
signatures and was accepted.<br />
I took the U.S. Army oath<br />
July 31 1942 in the old<br />
Pacific Electric Building at<br />
Main and 6th Street in Los<br />
Angeles and was given a<br />
physical examination at the<br />
Lockheed facility on the<br />
airport off from San<br />
Fernando Road in Burbank.<br />
Many others and I were put<br />
on hold because the number<br />
of applications exceeded<br />
capacity for the current<br />
training facilities and<br />
available instructors. In<br />
February 1943 I received my<br />
call to report to the San<br />
A n t o n i o A i r F o r c e<br />
Classification Center in<br />
Texas along with a host of<br />
other flying hopefuls. I<br />
arrived on February 12, 1943<br />
and we were first billeted in the Gunter Hotel for<br />
several days. It was here that your future as a Pilot,<br />
Navigator or Bombardier was decided and you<br />
were appointed an Aviation Cadet. As American<br />
factories produced thousands of planes, the Army<br />
Air Force Central Flying Training Command used<br />
assembly line techniques to provide pilots,<br />
navigators, bombardiers, mechanics, radio<br />
operators, and gunners to fly them. Each<br />
crewmember was an important member and<br />
contributed to the crew’s success. Pilots were<br />
needed but it would be a failure if the navigator<br />
didn't get you to the target, if the bombardier did<br />
not hit the target, if mechanics didn't properly<br />
service the aircraft and the<br />
accuracy and skill of the<br />
gunner could mean the<br />
difference between success<br />
or "lost in action".<br />
O n o r a b o u t<br />
February 24, it was<br />
determined that this round<br />
peg did indeed fit into the<br />
round hole and I received<br />
my classification as a cadet<br />
pilot. After further testing<br />
by the latest apparatus and<br />
trained psychologists, we<br />
were marched across the<br />
street for Pre-flight<br />
training on or about March<br />
22. Here we brushed up on<br />
mathematics, military<br />
customs, some physics,<br />
history, geography, civil<br />
air regulations etc. and<br />
received conditioning<br />
exercises. "Hazing" was<br />
CADET JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> - PRIMARY AT<br />
the norm and upper<br />
COLEMAN, TEXAS - JUNE 1943<br />
classmen also had their<br />
rules and regulations’<br />
governing the mess hall, drill, and barracks life.<br />
Upper classmen could make life miserable, but it<br />
was part of our conditioning to accept authority.<br />
On or about May 24, 1943 Class 43K departed for<br />
pilot training. In 60 weeks Class 43K cadets<br />
would move through three flying schools<br />
(primary, basic and advance) to receive their<br />
wings and a 2nd Lt.'s Commission and then on to<br />
a transition training center and into the cockpit of
15<br />
Classification - Preflight - Primary - Basic - Advanced - B-24 Transition - Crew Assignment - Flight to Europe<br />
fighter or multi-engine bomber.<br />
I was assigned to the AAFGCTC 's (Army<br />
Air Force Gulf Coast Training Center)<br />
s t u d e n t pilot training school with a<br />
grass field at Coleman, Texas. Five<br />
s t u d e n t s were assigned to each<br />
civilian instructor. My instructor<br />
was Mr. Cendrick and his other<br />
students were one other cadet and<br />
t h r e e Army Officers who<br />
wished to be pilots. The primary trainer used was<br />
the Fairchild PT-19A (Cornell), open cockpit, and<br />
hand crank to start it and no radio. I soloed after 9<br />
hours of dual time. My total f l y i n g<br />
time was 65:05 hours (of w h i c h<br />
33:55 hours were solo or s t u d e n t<br />
first pilot time). Here I was taught the<br />
fundamentals of flight by my c i v i l i a n<br />
instructor and got the thrill of the<br />
solo, an ex-perience I will treasure<br />
longer and remember l o n g e r<br />
than any other experience. I learned<br />
to land, bank, take off, dive, and recover<br />
from spins, loop, and other simple maneuvers.<br />
Many hours of "ground school" were also<br />
required and our academic courses included (1)<br />
engines, (2) aircraft identification, (3) aircraft, (4)<br />
navigation, and (5) weather. We were tested both<br />
mentally and physically. We brushed up on rusty<br />
mathematics, again brushed up on Army discipline<br />
through military drill and customs and got a large<br />
dose of conditioning exercises designed to toughen<br />
bodies and sharpen minds. Military<br />
c u s t o m s included personal<br />
g r o o m i n g and dress codes as well<br />
as a tidy barracks. "White Glove"<br />
inspections c o u l d b e b o t h<br />
scheduled or unannounced. "Gigs"<br />
were given for improper dress,<br />
poorly made bed, dusty tables,<br />
u n t i d y closet etc. One<br />
tried to a v o i d " g i g s "<br />
because too many could restrict<br />
"off base" passes etc. Coleman, with a population<br />
of about 7500 then, is in the heart of Texas about<br />
100 miles south of Abilene. And the summer is hot.<br />
Being new in the Armed Forces, we got a lot of<br />
military drill, in the heat, wearing white gloves and<br />
a hat or cap. This is when I began to lose my hair,<br />
first along the line where the hat fits across the<br />
forehead and perspiration is the worst.<br />
Not everyone makes it, but on or about July<br />
29, 1943, after nine weeks of Primary flying school,<br />
I was assigned to the Army Air Force Basic Flying<br />
School, Perrin Field, located midway between<br />
Sherman and Denison, Texas. The Basic<br />
trainer was the B T - 1 3 A ( V u l t e e<br />
V i b r a t o r ) . Now we had a plane with<br />
a closed cockpit, an interphone, a<br />
radio and an electric starter. As with<br />
C o l e m a n , Texas, the chow was<br />
good. Here I accumulated 80:10 hours<br />
of flying time (of which 47:45<br />
h o u r s were solo or more<br />
correctly referred to as<br />
students first pilot time). The<br />
t o t a l included 6:50 hours<br />
of night flying and 14:05 hours of<br />
actual instrument time. In addition I had 10:35<br />
hours in the instrument trainer (link trainer). The<br />
total number of landings was 165. Training here, as<br />
in primary, included landings, takeoffs, spins,<br />
loops, dives etc. This plane was somewhat under<br />
powered and I for one was not too thrilled about<br />
doing the spin.<br />
Of course, the classroom and<br />
calisthenics (including an obstacle<br />
course) were a part of the Basic<br />
training also. Basic w a s a<br />
crossroads. Here one m a d e a<br />
decision between a d v a n c e d<br />
single engine or advanced<br />
twin engine flying s c h o o l .<br />
From here you went on to<br />
either the faster 160 HP AT-6<br />
trainer or to a t w i n<br />
engine trainer in p r e -<br />
paration for transition to a fighter<br />
plane or to a heavy bomber. Being conservative<br />
by nature, I wanted to rely on more than a single<br />
engine and elected to go to an advanced twin engine<br />
flying school. The AT-6 was powered by a 450 HP<br />
Wasp engine and had a top speed of 210 MPH. One<br />
variant, known as “Harvard” has a 550 HP engine
16<br />
Classification - Preflight - Primary - Basic - Advanced - B-24 Transition - Crew Assignment - Flight to Europe<br />
and was mostly used by Canadians.<br />
On or about <strong>October</strong> 1, 1943 I was assigned<br />
to the Army Air Force Advanced Flying School at<br />
Pampa, Texas. Pampa is located north and east of<br />
Amarillo in the Texas panhandle. Here we flew the<br />
twin-engine AT-17 (Cessna Bobcat). It was also<br />
knowns as C-78 and UC-78 (the AT-17<br />
was a Cessna aircraft and<br />
h a d m a n y designations.<br />
The AT-17 had two 225 HP<br />
Jacobs Radial engines that<br />
were prone to carburetor ice. It<br />
was a simple aircraft, easy to fly<br />
and built of wood, fabric and<br />
dope (glue). The citizens of Texas<br />
were friendly and gave us a<br />
w a r m welcome at<br />
e v e r y airfield we<br />
w e r e<br />
assigned. No more loops or spins, but we did get an<br />
introduction to flying formation and to cross<br />
country navigation. Here I accumulated 125:20<br />
hours of flying time (of which 52:10 hours were<br />
student first pilot time, 46:05 hours were student<br />
co-pilot time, and 27:05 hours were student dual<br />
pilot time). Of this total, 21:50 hours were night<br />
flying, and 1840 hours were actual instrument time.<br />
In addition,<br />
they gave me<br />
11:05 hours in<br />
the link trainer.<br />
My flight log<br />
shows that in<br />
Advanced, I<br />
m a d e 1 3 4<br />
l a n d i n g s .<br />
Ground school<br />
and physical<br />
training were as<br />
important a<br />
function in<br />
Advanced, as it<br />
was in Primary<br />
and Basic. We<br />
also became proficient in telegraph (Morse code). I<br />
wish I had the discipline to do calisthenics now as<br />
we were made to do it then.<br />
In anticipation of and prior to graduation, a<br />
tailor came out from Denver, Colorado and fitted<br />
each of us with a complete set of officer's winter<br />
and summer dress uniforms, including a short<br />
overcoat. The uniforms did arrive on time for<br />
graduation. We were cadets no longer. We had<br />
earned our wings. We were no longer pilot cadets<br />
but pilots with a commission as 2nd Lieutenant in<br />
the United States Army Air Force as of December<br />
5, 1943, 6 days before my 21st birthday. I had to<br />
make another decision here between the B-17 and<br />
the B-24. I elected to go for the B-24 because it had<br />
a tri-cycle landing gear and it flew faster and<br />
farther. I was given two weeks leave and instructed<br />
to report thereafter to Liberal, Kansas which was<br />
home for one of the B-24 transition flying schools.<br />
My parents were delighted that I could celebrate my<br />
21st birthday with them but not so happy about<br />
reporting to my next assignment before Christmas<br />
and not so delighted about flying off to war.<br />
The Pre-flight screening and each of the<br />
flying schools took eight to nine weeks each. I<br />
arrived on December 19, 1943 at Liberal, Kansas<br />
and the field was covered with about 3 feet of snow.<br />
All Instructor Pilots had Green Instrument Cards<br />
and we therefore flew in all kinds of weather as far<br />
as Colorado, Wyoming and Nevada. After twelve<br />
weeks, I completed the<br />
prescribed training in the<br />
specialized four-engine<br />
transition training school on<br />
March 31, <strong>1944</strong>. During that<br />
period I accumulated hours in<br />
the air as follows:<br />
Qualified Pilot-dual<br />
38:30 hours - First Pilot: 1:15<br />
hours Co-pilot: 66:35 hours.<br />
The above time totals 106:20<br />
hours and includes 26:50<br />
hours of actual instrument<br />
time and 23:25 hours of night<br />
FAIRCHILD PT-19 “CORNELL” PRIMARY TRAINER USED<br />
AT COLEMAN, TEXAS<br />
flying. I made a total of 179<br />
landings. Twenty-one hours<br />
were spent in the link trainer.<br />
A quick look at the map and you can see<br />
that Liberal, Kansas is really in the same
17<br />
Classification - Preflight - Primary - Basic - Advanced - B-24 Transition - Crew Assignment - Flight to Europe<br />
geographical area as the Texas panhandle. Nowhere<br />
have I flown in such changeable weather as in those<br />
John Rowe in PT-19 at Coleman, Texas<br />
two places. I remember days when we had<br />
sunshine, snow, rain, and dust storms all within a<br />
24-hour period. Of the 231 cadets who began their<br />
flying instruction at Coleman, Texas, James J.<br />
Scanlon and I were the only ones who went on to<br />
the same schools through B-24 Transition and now<br />
we were again both assigned to Hammer Field,<br />
Fresno California on March 31, <strong>1944</strong>. It wasn't to<br />
be however, because I was almost immediately<br />
reassigned to Boise, Idaho. We were not to meet<br />
again for 49 years.<br />
I arrived at Boise about the second or third<br />
week of April <strong>1944</strong>. Here other officers and<br />
enlisted men (co-pilots, navigators, bombardiers,<br />
flight engineers and crew chiefs, radio operators<br />
and gunners) fully trained in their respective fields<br />
were also assembled. We had an exceptionally fine<br />
crew. Ten, including the pilot, were assigned to<br />
each crew. Our crew was assigned to the 212th<br />
Combat Crew Training Squadron and members<br />
assigned to our crew are shown in the chart on page<br />
thirteen (13).<br />
Flying hours accumulated at Gowen Field were as<br />
follows:<br />
Qualified Pilot Dual - 64:00 hours<br />
First Pilot - - - - - - - - 58:15 hours<br />
The total of 122:15 hours included 16:35 hours of<br />
night flying and 18:20 hours of actual instrument<br />
time. I also had 24:00 hours in the link trainer. The<br />
flight log shows I made 40 landings while at<br />
Gowen Field.<br />
During the first phase of training we were<br />
made to accomplish emergency procedures<br />
such as feathering and unfeathering engines,<br />
lowering nose and main gears, lowering<br />
flaps, and operating the emergency hydraulic<br />
pump, rafts, fire emergencies, escape outlets<br />
etc). This phase also included three engine<br />
landings and simulated three engine takeoffs.<br />
Operational training included bombing<br />
targets, formation flying, extended<br />
navigation, gunnery missions with fighter<br />
attacks and in general simulating combat.<br />
Pilots were then flight tested on the<br />
following procedures both in the link trainer<br />
with simulated rough air and drift and under<br />
actual conditions in the B-24 airplane:<br />
1. Instrument take off - Check pilot aligned plane<br />
with runway. The student pilot set the<br />
directional gyro to the nearest 5 degrees<br />
indices of the runway heading and took off.<br />
P r o f i c i e n c y<br />
was based on<br />
holding within<br />
3 degrees of<br />
the initial<br />
heading and<br />
smoothness of<br />
a t t a i n i n g<br />
climbing air<br />
speed safely.<br />
2. Spiral Climb -<br />
Student pilot<br />
put airplane in<br />
a standard<br />
spiral climb to<br />
t h e r i g h t ,<br />
John Rowe in Basic training<br />
at Sherman, Texas<br />
climbed 1000 feet, then reversed direction<br />
and climbed 1000 feet more. Proficiency<br />
was based upon the constant rate of turn,<br />
proper rate of climb and smooth-ness.<br />
3. Level Flight - Student pilot was to fly compass<br />
heading for five minutes. Proficiency was<br />
based upon maintaining straight and level<br />
flight.<br />
4. 90 and 180-Degree Turns - Student pilot was to<br />
turn in each direction maintaining constant
18<br />
Classification - Preflight - Primary - Basic - Advanced - B-24 Transition - Crew Assignment - Flight to Europe<br />
BT-13 “VULTEE VIBRATOR”, THE BASIC TRAINER USED AT PERRIN FIELD, SHERMAN TEXAS<br />
altitude and smoothness of control.<br />
5. Steep Banks - Student pilot put airplane in a bank<br />
of 40 to 60 degrees, had to maintain it until<br />
a smooth turn was achieved, then return to<br />
straight and level flight. A smooth turn,<br />
constant altitude and safe air speed were<br />
required.<br />
6. Glides - Student pilot put airplane in a power<br />
glide without flaps, with appropriate air<br />
speed, safely above stalling speed, and made<br />
a 90-degree turn in each direction and had to<br />
maintain constant air speed and vertical<br />
speed.<br />
7. Position Plotting By "Intersection" - Student pilot<br />
would take bearings on two stations (three if<br />
possible) and plot position on chart.<br />
8. Radio Range Orientation - Position was unknown<br />
to student pilot and within 10 minutes of a<br />
radio range station. Student had to tune in<br />
the radio, bracket the beam, follow it to the<br />
station, and recognize the station and<br />
letdown using standard procedure for<br />
range and station.<br />
9. Radio Compass Low Approach - Using radio<br />
compass, student pilot would follow<br />
needle to station, turn to reciprocal of<br />
station to field course, lose 2/3 thirds of<br />
excess altitude out-bound, execute turn,<br />
lose remaining excess altitude, cross<br />
station and make a final descent to<br />
minimum altitude over field.<br />
10. Stalls - Student pilot placed airplane in a glide<br />
without flaps, engine completely throttled, and<br />
slowly reducing air speed to a complete stall and<br />
then had to regain normal gliding speed.<br />
Proficiency was based upon avoidance of<br />
tendency toward a second stall during recovery<br />
and ability to hold plane from turning or dropping
19<br />
a wing before stalling point.<br />
11. Recovery from Unusual Procedures<br />
12. Anti-icing and De-icing Equipment Check<br />
There were only two grades on the above<br />
tests. One was<br />
s a t i s f a c t o r y<br />
and the other<br />
unsatisfactory.<br />
I passed the<br />
above flight<br />
check test in<br />
the B-24 first<br />
on March 23,<br />
1 9 4 4 a t<br />
L i b e r a l ,<br />
Kansas by 1st.<br />
Lt. Maurice<br />
Forrey and a<br />
second time<br />
on the 15th<br />
May, <strong>1944</strong> at<br />
Boise, Idaho by 1st. Lt. Herman Torry and both<br />
were satis-factory. My qualifications for the<br />
instrument Pilot Certificate was certified on May<br />
19, <strong>1944</strong>.<br />
I d a h o<br />
weather was very<br />
warm, creating<br />
severe heat thermals,<br />
which made the<br />
practice bombing<br />
runs quite rough.<br />
Navigation was<br />
perfected on crosscountry<br />
flights in the<br />
area and gunners also<br />
got in their share of<br />
practice. We all got a<br />
chance to improve<br />
our aim at the<br />
Classification - Preflight - Primary - Basic - Advanced - B-24 Transition - Crew Assignment - Flight to Europe<br />
John taking aim at the skeet range,<br />
Perrin Field, Sherman, Texas<br />
shooting range with skeet as well as the .45 caliber<br />
pistol. Electrically controlled B-24 turrets were<br />
mounted on 8 to 10 foot towers and each was<br />
equipped with two shotgun barrels (in lieu of .50<br />
caliber machine guns) for shooting skeet. They<br />
provided good practice learning to lead your target.<br />
Some of the crews were transported to<br />
assigned battle zones via ship. Our crew was<br />
closed-out of Gowen Field on 29 June <strong>1944</strong> and<br />
we were assigned to the Eighth Air Force in<br />
England. We<br />
were also<br />
selected to<br />
fly a new B-<br />
24 to Europe.<br />
T o p e k a ,<br />
Kansas was a<br />
staging area<br />
for new<br />
planes just<br />
o f f t h e<br />
a s s e m b l y<br />
line and<br />
accepted by<br />
the Air Force<br />
and we were<br />
sent by a<br />
rattling old troop train to Topeka, which was<br />
sidetracked most of the time.<br />
A shiny new B-24J was the model our<br />
crew picked up at Topeka, Kansas (which we<br />
named the "Gremlin's Roost") and flew to Europe<br />
via the northern route; Topeka, Kansas to Bangor,<br />
Maine; to Labrador, Canada; to Bluie-West-Eight,<br />
Greenland; to Meeks Field, Reykajavik, Iceland;<br />
to Nutts Corner, Ireland. In addition to the aircraft,<br />
I checked out two pair of binoculars, ten-.45<br />
caliber pistols (one for each member of the crew)<br />
with holsters, two extra clips each, and 200 rounds<br />
of ammunition. We were given a final physical<br />
checkup, issued any clothing shortages, and a<br />
parachute. Idaho law prohibited the sale of liquor<br />
by the drink. A club, known as "The Gremlin's<br />
Roost", was popular where customers could keep<br />
their own bottle of whiskey on the premises,<br />
marking the level in the bottle each time it was<br />
used. This club gave us the idea for the name of<br />
the aircraft, although I believe the others would<br />
probably have preferred a sexy name with a busty<br />
blond painted on the nose. We never saw the “The<br />
Gremlin’s Roost” again after it was delivered to<br />
the Air Force in Ireland. “There was another B-24
20<br />
Classification - Preflight - Primary - Basic - Advanced - B-24 Transition - Crew Assignment - Flight to Europe<br />
named the<br />
“ G r e m l i n ’ s<br />
Roost” without<br />
“The” preceding<br />
it. The<br />
one that James<br />
Hoseason refers<br />
to in this<br />
book "The<br />
1000 Day<br />
Battle" flew its<br />
last mission,<br />
25 April, 1945<br />
for the 448th<br />
Bomb Group<br />
to Salzburg,<br />
returned safely<br />
and must be<br />
that aircraft.<br />
The one we<br />
flew to Europe<br />
and was delivered to the 93rd BG was shot down<br />
over Holland February 6th 1945 on a mission to<br />
Magdeburg. We tested the new B-24J at Topeka<br />
with four flights on the 7th<br />
and 8th of July, <strong>1944</strong> for 9:05<br />
hours of flight time. On 10<br />
July <strong>1944</strong> we closed out<br />
Topeka and were ordered to<br />
Presque Isle, Maine, but<br />
nearing arrival we were<br />
informed the airfield was<br />
"socked-in". We proceeded to<br />
our alternate, Bangor, Maine.<br />
Bangor reported a ceiling of<br />
about 75 feet, so an<br />
instrument approach was<br />
required. All our training paid<br />
John (second from the left) learning Morse Code at Perrin Field,<br />
Sherman, Texas<br />
off. We "broke through" the<br />
overcast and what a beautiful<br />
sight seeing the runway and<br />
the field lay out before you. It appeared to me<br />
however that the ceiling was nearer a couple<br />
hundred feet. Flight time totaled 8:40 hours and that<br />
included 1:00 of actual instrument time.<br />
Additional in-structions were waiting for us<br />
at Bangor to check out the<br />
landing gear struts. They<br />
were inspected on July 12<br />
and appeared in order. A<br />
flight check was made on<br />
13 July <strong>1944</strong>. A couple of<br />
airport employees who<br />
were also local fisherman<br />
wanted to see their favorite<br />
fishing hole (Moosehead<br />
Lake) from the air and they<br />
came along. The nose and<br />
main gears retracted and<br />
lowered satisfactorily and<br />
the struts gave no<br />
indication of problems<br />
upon landing. On 14 July<br />
<strong>1944</strong> we headed for Goose<br />
Bay, Labrador. Crossing<br />
the great St. Lawrence<br />
River and the vast expanse<br />
of Canada gave us a magnificent view of the<br />
uncharted wilderness, lakes and streams. We<br />
arrived in Goose Bay after a flight of 4:20 hours.<br />
N o<br />
t i m e w a s<br />
w a s t e d i n<br />
Goose Bay.<br />
The weather<br />
was ideal and<br />
we departed<br />
the next day,<br />
15 July <strong>1944</strong><br />
for Greenland.<br />
Ernest Gann,<br />
who flew in<br />
t h e A i r<br />
T r a n s p o r t<br />
John on the left side of the net waiting for the ball. Volley ball at Pampa,<br />
Texas.<br />
Command, in<br />
his book "Fate<br />
Is the Hunter"<br />
describes this route and is well worth reading. The<br />
enormous mass of Greenland stretches out before<br />
you with an ominous range running down the center<br />
and covered by an awesome ice cap. It is quite a<br />
sight. Bluie-West-Eight airfield lies at the end of
21<br />
Classification - Preflight - Primary - Basic - Advanced - B-24 Transition - Crew Assignment - Flight to Europe<br />
AT-17 CESSNA “BOBCAT”. THIS IS THE ADVANCED TWIN-ENGINE TRAINER USED AT THE ADVANCE<br />
FLYING SCHOOL, PAMPA, TEXAS. WE GOT AN INTRODUCTION TO FORMATION FLYING.<br />
one of three fiords. Entrances to each of the fiords<br />
are about two miles apart along the Greenland coast<br />
as you approach it from the west. To reach the<br />
landing strip you have to make your entrance into<br />
the middle fiord, which you are supposed to<br />
identify by crossing Semitak Island. Flying the<br />
Atlantic is not a cross-town excursion. Navigation<br />
is critical, must be precise and Richard was right on<br />
target to Bangor, Goose Bay and now to Bluie-<br />
West-Eight. I was not sure it was an island. It<br />
looked more like a large pile of jumbled rocks, but<br />
was the only island we could identify so we<br />
committed ourselves and went in. We were told that<br />
we could make positive identification after flying in<br />
about 30 miles by sighting a wrecked freighter.<br />
After sighting that wreck we relaxed and followed<br />
the contours of the fiord, which gradually widened<br />
out and we came into a tremendous bowl in the<br />
mountains. It was a large expanse of green water<br />
with several small icebergs and at the end lay a<br />
single steel matted landing strip. Only one runway<br />
and no matter the wind, you landed uphill and took<br />
off down hill. At the approach to the runway was a<br />
hill or large mound called "sugarloaf" and you had<br />
to land uphill over "sugarloaf" and take off<br />
downhill over "sugarloaf". Total flight time was<br />
4:15 hours.<br />
The weather in Greenland was clear and<br />
bright, but wind, rain clouds and low ceilings at our<br />
destination in Iceland kept us in Greenland for six<br />
days. We were given clearance to proceed to<br />
Iceland on 21 July <strong>1944</strong>. Bluie-West-Eight was on<br />
the West Coast of Greenland, so we had to fly over<br />
the massive ice-cap setting atop the mountain<br />
range. Our crew was the first to take off. We were<br />
asked to report our position after about 2 hours in<br />
the air. We were slightly more than half way to<br />
Iceland and were given clearance to proceed. All<br />
the others were called back to Greenland. Richard's<br />
magnetic course instructions were again "right on".<br />
As we landed, low clouds and ground fog were<br />
drifting in from the sea and was about to cover the<br />
airfield. Again this illustrates how critical<br />
navigation was in those times when crossing the<br />
Atlantic. Our airtime to Iceland was 4:20 hours.<br />
The skies cleared that night and we continued<br />
our journey on 22 July <strong>1944</strong> to Ireland. I’ve<br />
never been able to locate our destination (Nutts
22<br />
Classification - Preflight - Primary - Basic - Advanced - B-24 Transition - Crew Assignment - Flight to Europe<br />
Corner) on any map of Ireland. It<br />
was, however along the east shore of<br />
Lough Neagh, not far from Belfast.<br />
Total flight time on this trip was<br />
5:00 hours. It is indeed a small<br />
world. After checking in and being<br />
assigned a billet, I passed a stranger<br />
who shouted "hey Clemmie". There<br />
were so many "Johns" in my school,<br />
I was known by my middle name.<br />
He was not however a stranger, but<br />
an old friend, Leslie C. Jantz, from<br />
grade school days in Monroe, South<br />
Dakota whose family had moved to<br />
McPherson, Kansas in 1931. I was<br />
8 years old in 1931 but he<br />
recognized me at age 21 in <strong>1944</strong>.<br />
Crews were in essence ferrying<br />
airplanes to Europe as replacements<br />
for aircraft shot down or lost over<br />
enemy territory or damaged beyond<br />
repair and we never saw the<br />
" G r e m l i n ' s<br />
Roost" after<br />
leaving it in<br />
Ireland.<br />
F r o m<br />
G r e e n c a stle,<br />
Ireland we<br />
proceeded via<br />
ship across the<br />
Irish Sea and<br />
then by rail to<br />
S t o k e - o n -<br />
Trent, England.<br />
Here we were<br />
j o i n e d b y<br />
thousands of<br />
other American<br />
servicemen for<br />
a p a r a d e<br />
through the<br />
streets of the<br />
city to the<br />
John Rowe & Jim Scanlon at Liberal, Kansas B-24 Transition Training<br />
School. We were not to see each other again for 49 years.<br />
We received our B-24 at Topeka, Kansas and flew to Bangor, Maine. Above<br />
map shows our route from Bangor, Maine to Goose Bay Labrador to Bluie-<br />
West-Eight in Greenland to Meeks Field in Iceland and then to Nutts Corner<br />
in Ireland.<br />
enjoyment of the city's residents. The parade took<br />
us to the rail station, where everyone was bound<br />
for his or her separate duty stations. Our<br />
assignment was the USAAF Station #146,<br />
Seething Tower, code name "Brightgreen", in East<br />
Anglia just outside of Norwich, Norfolk, England.<br />
This was the home of the 448th Bombardment<br />
Group in the 20th Combat Wing, 2nd Air<br />
Division, 8th Air Force. The village of Seething<br />
was on the North end of the Airfield. Living<br />
accommodations, mess halls, hospital, clubs and<br />
other facilities were nestled in among farms, trees,<br />
barns, cow pastures and thatched homes. Like all<br />
other crews, we were impressed by the neat<br />
compact countryside. There was every shade of<br />
green one could imagine and the tranquility it<br />
conveyed belied the anxiety and apprehension in<br />
the days and months ahead. Seething was about 10<br />
miles south and east of Norwich and we were<br />
again impressed with the airfields about 5 miles<br />
apart in every direction. There was an airfield<br />
about every 36 square miles.<br />
The 448th BG departed from the tradition
23<br />
Classification - Preflight - Primary - Basic - Advanced - B-24 Transition - Crew Assignment - Flight to Europe<br />
With their squadron identification, which consisted<br />
of a geometric symbol centered in a black strip on<br />
their yellow tails. A triangle was used by the 712th<br />
squadron, a circle by the 713th squadron, a square<br />
by the 714th squadron, and a diamond by the 715th<br />
squadron. On an average there were about 3000<br />
James Scanlon & John Rowe meet again in June 1996. It had been 52 years<br />
since they went their separate ways after Liberal, Kansas.<br />
personnel attached to Seething airfield. With their<br />
squadron identification, which consisted of a geometric<br />
symbol centered in a black strip on their yellow<br />
tails. A triangle was used by the 712th squadron,<br />
a circle by the 713th squadron, a square by the<br />
714th squadron, and a diamond by the 715th<br />
squadron. On an average there were about 3,000<br />
personnel attached to Seething airfield. The<br />
maximum number of crews reached was 103<br />
(approximately 1000 men), the balance being<br />
support personnel. We flew 13 missions before<br />
being reassigned to the 713th squadron and flew 22<br />
more missions to complete our tour. We were<br />
scheduled for 33 missions (which had been increase<br />
in February, <strong>1944</strong> from 25 to 30 and again in April<br />
to 33). In late 1943 and early <strong>1944</strong>, inadequate<br />
fighter support made the flights hazardous, but they<br />
continued thereafter to be risky with the German<br />
introduction of the ME-262 jet fighter and<br />
especially the German improvement in high altitude<br />
accuracy, concentration, and centralization of antiaircraft<br />
guns They also had the improved and<br />
formidable Folke-Wulf 190A and the advance ME<br />
109. Another increase to 40 in the "tour"<br />
requirement was considered in August <strong>1944</strong> but<br />
was abandoned. It appears the increases from 25<br />
to 30, then to 33, and then to 35 in <strong>October</strong>, <strong>1944</strong><br />
were not necessarily because flying was becoming<br />
safer (?), but because crews were<br />
approaching the end of their tours.<br />
Even the crews still on base who<br />
had finished their tour and not<br />
placed in the Replacement Pool<br />
were made to complete the<br />
increased requirement. I recognize<br />
we were in a war, but it seems a<br />
pure violation of the verbal<br />
contract with the crews.<br />
Fourteen Bomb Groups<br />
and five Fighter Groups formed<br />
the 2nd Air Division of the 8th Air<br />
Force as follows:<br />
2ND COMBAT WING - 389th<br />
BG (Hethel), 445th BG<br />
(Tibenham), 453st B G (Old<br />
Buckenham).<br />
14TH COMBAT WING - 44th BG (Shipdham),<br />
392nd BG (Wendling), 491st BG<br />
(Metfield), 492nd BG (North<br />
Pickenham).<br />
20TH COMBAT WING - 93rd BG (Hardwick),<br />
446th BG (Bungay), 448th BG<br />
(Seething).<br />
95TH COMBAT WING - 489th BG<br />
(Halesworth-transferred to 20th<br />
CW-Aug-Dec <strong>1944</strong>), 491st BG<br />
(Metfield-transferred to 14th CW-<br />
Aug <strong>1944</strong>)<br />
96TH COMBAT WING - 458th BG (Horsham),<br />
466th BG (Attlebridge), 467th BG<br />
(Rackheath).<br />
65TH FIGHTER WING - 4th Fighter Group<br />
(Debden), 56th Fighter Group<br />
(Boxted & Haleswoth), 355th<br />
Group (Steeple Morden), 361st<br />
Fighter Group (Little Walden),<br />
479th Fighter Group (Wattisham).<br />
Second Division Headquarters was at
24<br />
Classification - Preflight - Primary - Basic - Advanced - B-24 Transition - Crew Assignment - Flight to Europe<br />
MESS CALL AT PAMPA, TEXAS. THEY FED US WELL AT ALL THE FLYING SCHOOLS. I WENT FROM 130 POUNDS<br />
TO 164 POUNDS INSPITE OF CALISTHENTICS AND OTHER PHYSICAL TRAINING BUT LOST IT QUICKLY AFTER<br />
THAT.<br />
Ketteringham Hall four miles southwest of Norwich.<br />
The 2nd Divisions first bombing mission was<br />
flown on 7 November, 1942; the last mission was<br />
flown on 25 April, 1945. A total of 95,948 sorties<br />
were flown in 439 operational missions by the Division’s<br />
B-24s, which dropped a total of 199,983 tons<br />
of bombs. Bomber crews accounted for 1,079 German<br />
aircraft destroyed in the air, and P-47s and P-<br />
51s of the fighter wing destroyed another 3,670 enemy<br />
aircraft in the air and on the ground. A total of<br />
1,458 bombers and 649 fighters were lost in<br />
operations against the enemy. Sixty three hundred<br />
forty seven (6,347) members of the 2nd Air<br />
Division lost their lives in the line of duty. The<br />
448th BG joined the 2nd AD in November 1943<br />
flew their first mission on December 22, 1943 and<br />
their last mission on April 25, 1945. The 448th BG<br />
flew 7343 sorties in 262 operational missions and<br />
dropped 15,286 tons of bombs. Crews of the 448th<br />
BG accounted for 47 enemy aircraft destroyed and<br />
the 448th BG lost a total of 146 B-24's with 350<br />
crewmen killed in action.<br />
United States Air Forces servicemen who<br />
gave their lives in World War II while stationed in<br />
England exceeded 30,000. For Americans who may<br />
wish to know, many of their names are enshrined in<br />
the North Gallery of St. Clement Church on the<br />
Strand, London.<br />
Except for the island fortress of Britain and<br />
a few neutral countries, Europe in 1943 was under<br />
the iron heel of Adolph Hitler's legions and his<br />
powerful Luftwaffe patrolled Europe’s skies. An<br />
outnumbered Royal Air Force had been fighting for<br />
4 years and was now being joined by United States<br />
B-24 Liberators, B-17 Flying Fortresses and fighter<br />
aircraft. Seldom (very seldom) a dignitary or<br />
reporter would fly one raid but there is a vast<br />
difference between going on one raid and going<br />
week after week for months on end - - - - - - like<br />
roulette, if you play the wheel long enough, a given<br />
number will come up as it did for the above 30,000<br />
U.S. Airmen.
25<br />
Classification - Preflight - Primary - Basic - Advanced - B-24 Transition - Crew Assignment - Flight to Europe
26<br />
A STRUCTURAL TOUR<br />
On the ground and in the air, the B-24's<br />
slender wing and tri-cycle landing gear were<br />
distinctive. The plane's malingers criticized its<br />
slab-sided fuselage (10 feet high & 7 feet wide).<br />
She was designed in wartime for war and she<br />
wasted no space on curves. The design greatly<br />
facilitated ordnance<br />
capacity. The twin<br />
bomb bays were nearly<br />
twice as long as the<br />
single bomb bay of the<br />
B-17. The tricycle<br />
landing gear made the<br />
B-24 a delight to take<br />
off and to land and<br />
getting the B-24 into<br />
take-off position with<br />
the tricycle landing<br />
gear where the pilot<br />
has a solid feel, full<br />
and complete control<br />
is easy. It isn't as easy<br />
or simple when an<br />
airplane stands on its<br />
m a in gear a n d<br />
directional control is<br />
from a steerable tail<br />
wheel. Then the pilot<br />
must nudge his rudders<br />
or brakes carefully. When<br />
the tail is lifted off the ground with the B-17 and<br />
the wing is cutting the air rather then presenting<br />
its slab to the air, lift then builds rapidly. The B-<br />
24 handled well with normal loads, but when<br />
exceeding gross weight capacity of 32 tons and<br />
flown at peak altitude, the pilot had to wrestle<br />
with it to maintain formation. Pilots soon found<br />
that this was "par for the course" on every<br />
mission. The 448th's Base Commanders enforced<br />
tight formations, wingtip to wingtip, boxes pulled<br />
OF THE B-24 �<br />
in tight. Enemy fighters could fly over, under and<br />
around, but never through the formation.<br />
The entry hatch was on the underside of the<br />
rear fuselage. Most crewmembers however,<br />
climbed into the cabin through the bomb bay. It was<br />
opened by an emergency handle on the right side of<br />
the nose. Another entrance<br />
was through the nose<br />
wheel compartment. In the<br />
very early B-24's, there<br />
was an eight step<br />
procedure for emergency<br />
lowering of the nose<br />
wheel, but it was replaced<br />
in later models with a<br />
system whereby you just<br />
"kicked it out".<br />
The wings housed<br />
18 self-sealing fuel tanks.<br />
Attention to engine<br />
placement was a major<br />
consideration in its design,<br />
so the nacelle was no more<br />
than 1 1/2 inches higher<br />
than the top of the wing<br />
surface. The engine had a<br />
small frontal cross-section<br />
This end meant business - nose turret, bombardier’s station & reducing drag significantly<br />
navigator’s astral dome.<br />
and was turbo supercharged<br />
for operation at high<br />
altitudes. All used hydromatic three-bladed, fullfeathering<br />
propellers with a distinctive yellow tip<br />
that helped pilots synchronize engines. The<br />
propeller assembly was 11 feet in diameter. Much<br />
of the credit for the speed and the range of the<br />
Liberator goes to the Pratt & Whitney Twin-Wasp<br />
radial engines which were dubbed "Old Faithful".<br />
They withstood 110 degree heat in Africa and the<br />
ice and snow of the English and Alaska winters.<br />
The four engines served other purposes than
27<br />
just turning the propellers. Number three drove<br />
the main hydraulic system and number one and<br />
two drove instrument and de-icer vacuum pumps.<br />
The main system operated the landing gear, wing<br />
ENGINEER’S STATION<br />
flaps, bomb bay doors, power brakes and the guncharging<br />
mechanism & rotation for the bottom,<br />
sometimes called ball or belly turret. There were<br />
three other hydraulic sub-systems which<br />
cushioned landing impact, stifled or muted nose<br />
wheel shimmy and controlled the gun elevation,<br />
gun-charging and rotation of the tail turret. A mile<br />
of cable was used for mechanical linkages in the<br />
control system. The top turret was driven electrically<br />
on a geared track at normal or high speed<br />
and with a 360-degree field of fire. This turret had<br />
interrupters to prevent damage to the twin tail.<br />
Gunners had to fire forward cautiously however,<br />
because there was no interrupter for the propeller<br />
arcs. The top turret was located just above the<br />
engineer and radio operators positions in the flight<br />
deck. The 50 caliber machine guns would fire<br />
STRUCTURAL TOUR OF THE B-24<br />
over 500 rounds per minute. Gunners were advised<br />
to fire in short bursts to conserve ammunition and<br />
to prevent overheating. Generally the upper turret<br />
gunner would be the first to sight enemy fighters<br />
approaching from the "natural blind " of the sun.<br />
The APU (auxiliary power unit) was in the<br />
nose wheel compartment. It was powered by a<br />
small gasoline engine (affectionately known as<br />
"putt putt") and was notorious for filling the flight<br />
deck with exhaust fumes. The APU backed up the<br />
24 volt direct current electrical system, making<br />
the B-24 fully self-contained. This two-kilowatt<br />
generator provided electrical power to start the<br />
main engines and for emergency power if the<br />
main generator failed.<br />
Oxygen was critical at higher altitudes. A<br />
review that follows later in this report of each<br />
mission flown will show the many hours on<br />
oxygen that were required by our crew and the<br />
especially critical 31st mission when we left<br />
formation right after leaving the target because of<br />
an oxygen leak. Oxygen was supplied by 18<br />
yellow high-pressure bottles. The flow was<br />
regulated by a dial at each station outlet.<br />
Two life rafts were stowed just back of the<br />
top turret. Spring-loaded covers were released by<br />
a handle on the flight deck and automatically<br />
released the rafts. Two other handles were also on<br />
the outside top of the fuselage. Rafts inflated<br />
automatically. The synopsis of mission #24 later<br />
in this report tells of a fatal mishap just after take<br />
off when the rafts were accidentally deployed on a<br />
B-24 that preceded us on take off.<br />
The flight deck was the nerve center where<br />
the pilot and co-pilot had access to all vital<br />
functions. In close proximity were the engineer,<br />
radio operator, navigator and bombardier and not to<br />
far away were 4 other enlisted men assisting us and<br />
manning the guns (on some missions we flew with<br />
only 9 men and on one occasion with only 8).<br />
John Roche, our engineer, was the trouble<br />
shooter and repairman. He was stationed on the<br />
flight deck just behind the bulkhead and the pilot,<br />
and he monitored the all-important four triple-port<br />
shutoff valves. On each valve, one port led to an<br />
engine, one to a set of fuel tanks and one was interconnected<br />
to the other three valves. As you can<br />
see, this cross-over connection permitted fuel from
28<br />
any set of valves to serve any engine in an<br />
emergency. Fuel gauges monitoring quantity were<br />
on the bulkhead in front of John. Joe, our radio<br />
operator, would shut down the radio during any<br />
fuel transfer because of the risk of fire. John also<br />
monitored the four generator switches, ammeters,<br />
voltmeter and the engines.<br />
Joe Zonyk, our radio operator, was also<br />
stationed on the flight deck behind the bulkhead<br />
and just behind Bruce, our co-pilot. Joe was<br />
responsible for all the electronic equipment and<br />
especially the pilot's and co-pilot's radio gear. He<br />
manually tuned the liaison transmitter and with<br />
additional removable units, he had a tuning range<br />
of 200 to 12500 kilocycles. He operated the CW<br />
(communication wireless) key and controlled the<br />
trailing antenna from his radio operator's table. He<br />
could improve reception by deploying that 150<br />
foot long antenna, but a lead weight at the end<br />
could easily pull it off if he didn't stop before the<br />
end was reached. Our heated wool flight suits had<br />
coiled wire in the linings and the control boxes<br />
were above<br />
his station.<br />
Suit temperatures<br />
were<br />
a d j u s t a b l e ,<br />
but could<br />
become too<br />
hot when<br />
wires got<br />
bunched up.<br />
Marty Miller<br />
got a hot seat<br />
as noted in the<br />
synopsis of<br />
mission #5<br />
that follows<br />
later in this<br />
report . Joe<br />
was wise<br />
enough to<br />
kept a log of<br />
our missions.<br />
This flight report<br />
uses that personal<br />
diary of his as the basis for the mission records.<br />
Bruce and I were located just forward of<br />
STRUCTURAL TOUR OF THE B-24<br />
the flight-deck bulkhead and seated without any<br />
excess room, in a world of controls, instruments,<br />
RADIO OPERATOR’S TABLE (Note the CW key)<br />
steel and glass. It is a cockpit with a definite<br />
military touch<br />
compared to<br />
c o m m e r c i a l<br />
flight decks.<br />
The cockpit<br />
pedestal was<br />
between us<br />
w i t h e a s y<br />
access to both<br />
of us and<br />
housed the<br />
throttle levers<br />
and engine<br />
controls. The<br />
aileron tab<br />
control was on<br />
the front edge<br />
of the pedestal,<br />
just above it<br />
was the rudder<br />
t r i m t a b<br />
control, on the<br />
FLIGHT DECK LOOKING TOWARD THE COCKPIT<br />
left side was<br />
the flap lever,<br />
and on the right the landing gear lever. The cockpit<br />
panel in front of us held over 150 dials and gauges
29<br />
including the altimeter, conventional air-speed<br />
indicator, rate of climb and descent, turn and<br />
bank indicator, directional gyro, artificial horizon,<br />
magnetic compass, radio compass, all pressure<br />
and temperature gauges, glide path indicator,<br />
tachometer, plus other dials and other control<br />
switches.<br />
Richard, our navigator, had two small side<br />
windows, left and right, that bulged out slightly<br />
and he could use them for ground checks on his<br />
map position. However, on our cross-Atlantic<br />
flight, all he would see was water so he had to aim<br />
his sextant through the astro-dome to "shoot the<br />
sun" for a line of position (if he could see the sun).<br />
He kept Bruce and I up to date on our position.<br />
While flak and fighters in combat were a real<br />
concern to him also, he also fought time and<br />
STRUCTURAL TOUR OF THE B-24<br />
COCKPIT OF THE LIBERATOR-B-24’s INSTRUMENTS & CONTROLS<br />
1. Repeater Compass 6. Directional Gyro 12. Tachometer 18. Radio Compass<br />
2. Defroster Ducts 7. Artificial Horizon 13. V S I 19. Supercharger Controls<br />
3. Bomb Doors Indicator 8. Manifold Pressure 14. Turn & Bank Indicator Throttle Controls, Mixture Controls,<br />
Bomb Release Indicator 9. Fuel Pressure Gage 15. Air Speed Indicator Propeller feathering buttons are behind<br />
4. Landing Gear Indicator 10. Various Temperature Gages 16. Pilot’s Wheel 20. Trimmers for Elevators, Rudders, Ailerons<br />
5. Altimeter 11. Oil Pressure Gages 17. Rudder Pedals 21. Alarm Button<br />
distance.<br />
The bombardier and navigator worked<br />
closely together. Oscar, our bombardier, was later<br />
to be taken from us and given the position of Lead<br />
Bombardier. He truly had a "birds-eye" view just<br />
forward of the nose wheel. All his training and<br />
experience went into aligning the Norden<br />
bombsight with Swiss-like precision. His precise<br />
adjustments, when on the bomb-run, not only pinpointed<br />
the target, but actually flew the plane.<br />
The "bomb bay" extended 17 feet from the<br />
flight deck to the bottom turret and the waist<br />
gunners position in the rear. It was standard routine<br />
to crack the bomb-bay doors about six inches to<br />
vent gasoline fumes that accumulated from small<br />
leaks in the gas tanks (or commonly called "fuel<br />
cells"). In the air, with the bomb-bay doors open,
30<br />
the 10 inch wide "catwalk" between the twin<br />
bomb bays was an ominous trip to the rear<br />
section. You were advised to think about every<br />
step, because it was a tedious journey with flight<br />
suit, parachute harness, and a portable oxygen<br />
bottle. With<br />
the doors<br />
open, about<br />
25% of the<br />
B - 2 4 ' s<br />
u n d e r s i d e<br />
w a s<br />
e x p o s e d .<br />
See mission<br />
#14 for John<br />
R o c h e ' s<br />
troubles in<br />
the Bomb<br />
bay during<br />
one of our<br />
e m e r g e n -<br />
cies.<br />
In addition<br />
to the<br />
four turrets<br />
(nose, top, belly, & tail) as mentioned before,<br />
there were two single mounted ring and pole<br />
sighted .50 caliber machine guns in the waist<br />
windows. Wind deflectors were provided but<br />
didn't help much when the high-altitude wind and<br />
-40 degree cold came in. Waist gunners had a<br />
magnificent view but arctic weather. Before the<br />
electrically heated suit, gunners had to wear<br />
several layers of clothing because just a small hole<br />
could result in severe frost-bite. All gunners were<br />
firing from a moving platform. Depending upon<br />
the wind direction, the B-24 would be moving<br />
from 200 to 300+ MPH. As the bullet left the gun,<br />
this speed and movement would fling or catapult<br />
the bullet. Therefore, the gunner needed to aim<br />
behind the fighter if he was coming from the rear,<br />
or if from the front, compensate for the opposite<br />
effect by leading the fighter a little more than<br />
usual. The tail turret caught all of the wind<br />
whistling through the B-24. Those in the rear had<br />
a rough ride in high altitude turbulence. The tail<br />
turret gunner could close the turret door but it was<br />
more important to have a quick exit and contact<br />
STRUCTURAL TOUR OF THE B-24<br />
with the waist gunners.<br />
From the nose to the tail, mechanics and<br />
ordnance men were truly members of the combat<br />
crew and not just "ground crews". They were<br />
innovative, hard nosed men patching up and<br />
loading the<br />
"birds" to keep<br />
t h e f l i g h t<br />
crews in the<br />
air. Without<br />
their dedication<br />
and<br />
"around the<br />
clock" hours in<br />
rain, snow,<br />
sleet, wind and<br />
fog, the flight<br />
crews would<br />
never have<br />
gotten off the<br />
ground.<br />
T h e<br />
LOOKING PAST THE BALL TURRET HOIST THROUGH THE WAIST Consolidated<br />
GUNNER’S POSITIONS TOWARD THE TAIL TURRET<br />
B-24 Liberator<br />
(the British<br />
gave it the name Liberator) did not receive as much<br />
press acclaim as did the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress,<br />
but it was a newer plane. It was designed to<br />
fly faster and with a larger bomb load. It was a<br />
rugged sturdy airplane. The crews considered it a<br />
good and faithful servant, and it has a solid place in<br />
history. It was a workhorse heavy duty bomber for<br />
its time, but with the qualities of a thoroughbred,<br />
inspite of the maligning by its detractors. Both the<br />
B-17 and the B-24 were great airplanes. It's just that<br />
if you flew a B-17 it was the best and if you flew a<br />
B-24 it was the best. The B-24 carried more bombs<br />
faster and farther. It was powered by four Pratt and<br />
Whitney R-1380-65 radial engines, carried ten .50<br />
caliber machine guns and a crew of ten. Specifications<br />
varied with the model; but the B-24J had<br />
a length of 67 feet 2 inches, a wingspan of 110 feet,<br />
overall height 18 feet, empty weight 36,500 pounds,<br />
gross weight 65,000 pounds, bomb load 8,000<br />
pounds, ceiling 28,000 feet, range 2,100 miles,<br />
cruising speed 215 MPH and a maximum speed<br />
290 MPH. The B-24D's ceiling was 35,000 feet,<br />
range 2,800 miles, maximum speed 300 MPH and a
31<br />
cruising speed of 200 MPH. With it’s full load of<br />
bombs of 8,000 lbs., a B-24's range was some 200<br />
miles greater than a B-17 with its full load of 4000<br />
lbs. With extra fuel tanks mounted in the forward<br />
NORDEN BOMBSIGHT<br />
bomb bay, the range was 600 miles further than a<br />
B-17 similarly equipped and the B-24 still carried<br />
a payload of 4000 lbs., whereas the B-17 had<br />
STRUCTURAL TOUR OF THE B-24<br />
none. Eighth Air Force statistics show that<br />
operational losses for the B-17 were 15.2%<br />
compared to B-24 losses of 13.3%, indicating the<br />
B-24 was a more durable aircraft giving aircrews<br />
a better chance of survival.<br />
The Norden Bombsight when used<br />
properly was very good. The bombsight<br />
contained two gyroscopes, one for the horizontal<br />
plane and one for the vertical plane as well as a<br />
collection of gears, mirrors, and knobs, so even<br />
in turbulent weather it retained its "lock" on the<br />
target. Through the sight, the bombardier could<br />
see the target area well ahead of the aircraft and<br />
this gave the illusion that the aircraft was not<br />
moving in relation to the target. The bomb-run<br />
begins at the IP (initial point) and is normally<br />
about 50 miles or so from the target and their is<br />
no turning back. At the start of the bomb-run, the<br />
pilot levels the aircraft; the bombardier engages<br />
the gyroscopes in the bombsight; and when the<br />
"bubble levels" the pilot sets and locks the autopilot.<br />
The bombsight was attached to the<br />
autopilot and made its own course corrections as<br />
the bombardier sighted the crosshairs on the<br />
target. He then locked the crosshairs in and<br />
THE TRUE HEROS. THEY KEPT US FLYING - CHANGING ENGINES & SERVICING THE BOMBER IN ARTIC WEATHER<br />
dialed in the speed, altitude and ballistic data of<br />
the weapons being dropped. The mirror moved at<br />
the speed synchronized to the aircraft which kept
32<br />
the cross-hairs on the target. At the exact point<br />
computed by the sight, the bombs would be<br />
released to put them on the target. It may sound<br />
simple, but it took 18 weeks to train the men to<br />
operate the bombsight. With accurate wind reports<br />
a bombardier could really smother the target.<br />
The B-24 was produced at five different<br />
factories; Consolidated at San Diego, California<br />
and Fort Worth, Texas, North American Aircraft<br />
at Dallas, Texas, Douglas Aircraft at Tulsa,<br />
Oklahoma, and Ford Motor Co. at Willow Run,<br />
Michigan. Liberators produced by all the companies<br />
totaled 19,256, in a number of versions, the<br />
most produced variant being the "J" model. In<br />
comparison there were 12,677 B-17's built. The<br />
B-24 proved itself in every theatre of the war in a<br />
wide variety of missions and deserves its<br />
reputation as one of the great aircraft of World<br />
War II. It was not only the most produced aircraft<br />
of World War II, but of all time. In the Pacific,<br />
Liberators gradually replaced the B-17, largely<br />
because of its extensive range. For most of the<br />
early years of the War, the B-24 and its Navy<br />
STRUCTURAL TOUR OF THE B-24<br />
B-24s IN PRODUCTION AT SAN DIEGO<br />
counterpart, the PB4Y-1 Liberator, were the only<br />
American heavy bombers covering the seas from<br />
Alaska to India. The later PB4Y-2 Privateer, a<br />
modified B-24 with a single, tall vertical tail, was<br />
generally considered the Navy's most deadly<br />
bomber. There were two other versions of the<br />
Liberator, the C-87 Liberator Express personnelcargo<br />
transport and the C-109 Flying Tanker.<br />
They helped make history "flying the hump" in<br />
the China-Burma-India theatre of operations.<br />
Liberators were everywhere the action was.
33<br />
STRUCTURAL TOUR OF THE B-24<br />
SPECIFICATIONS - B-24J LIBERATOR
34<br />
STRUCTURAL TOUR OF THE B-24<br />
The narrative in this chapter provided a description of the operation of the aircraft. This final picture will provide<br />
a good view of the aircraft and especially the DAVIS wing.
35<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II
36<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
REPLACEMENT CREW #46<br />
FLIGHT RECORD - 25 AUGUST, <strong>1944</strong> TO 11 MARCH, 1945<br />
A synopsis of each mission is described below by Joseph H. Zonyk as taken<br />
from his original diary. Additional comments by John Rowe in parentheses and in Italics follows<br />
Joe’s synopsis (from personal recollections and from micro-film records of the 448th<br />
BG at the Air Force Historical Research Center, Maxwell Field, Alabama). Pictures in this<br />
flight record of missions do not necessarily represent pictures taken on those particular<br />
missions.<br />
714th Squadron (Missions #1 through #13)<br />
713th Squadron (Missions #14 through #35)<br />
Second Air Division<br />
448th Bombardment Group<br />
20th Combat Wing<br />
8th Air Force<br />
REPLACEMENT CREW #46<br />
John C. Rowe Pilot Los Angeles, California<br />
Bruce J. Anderson Co-Pilot Terrill, Iowa<br />
Richard (Dick) H. Best Navigator Flint, Michigan<br />
Oscar O. Rudnick Bombardier Worcester, Massachusetts<br />
John Roche Flight Engineer Peabody,Massachusetts<br />
Joseph (Joe) H. Zonyk Radio Operator Vicksburg, Michigan<br />
Charles (Charlie) W. Robertson Waist Gunner Columbus, Ohio<br />
Martin (Marty) L. Miller Nose Turret Gunner Indianapolis, Indiana<br />
Robert (Bob or Red) L. Sammons Tail Turret Gunner Mallory, West Virginia<br />
Clifton (Cow-Cow) H. Evans Waist Gunner Amarillo, Texas<br />
Francis (Scotty) E. Scott Bottom Turret Gunner St. Louis, Missouri<br />
Cliff Evans replaced Scotty in August, <strong>1944</strong> after the second mission. Bottom turrets<br />
were removed and Cliff became a waist gunner. Cliff was an armorer and reserve gunner and<br />
an original member of the 448th Bomb Group when the Group first arrived in Seething in<br />
1943. He completed his 35th mission with us in January, 1945 and was reassigned to the<br />
States for pilot training.<br />
Bruce Anderson did not fly all his missions with our crew. He flew with other crews to<br />
observe procedures and recommend suggestions (such as changes in fuel-air mixture settings<br />
to conserve fuel etc.) and also flew several missions with his own crew.<br />
Oscar Rudnick also left our crew for a position as lead bombardier. I am not certain on<br />
what date he departed our crew, but I believe it was in January, 1945.<br />
There were two (2) formation sheets for each mission, one over the “assembly area”<br />
and another one over the “target”. These varied because of aborts for various reasons, so the<br />
formation sheets in this “flight record” are the formations over the target. The formation<br />
sheets identify the pilot, position & number of the plane and when known for our crew, the<br />
name of the aircraft.
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448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #1 – 25 August, <strong>1944</strong>, Friday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #142<br />
Take-off - at 07:40 hours Group planes attacking, 42 ships-4 aborted-No ships lost.<br />
Forming altitude, 11000 feet Group planes airborne, 46 ships.<br />
Bombing altitude, 21000 feet Tonnage dropped, 75.6<br />
Length, 7 hours - 10 minutes Escort, P-38's and P-51's, fair<br />
Oxygen, 4 hours Fuel load, 2700 gallons<br />
Bomb load, 12 500 lb. Temperature, -26 o<br />
General purpose bombs. Average fuel consumption, 283 GPH<br />
Rowe fuel consumption, 2100 gallons (average - 292 GPH)<br />
Bombed Rostock, Germany and the Heinkel III aircraft factory. A beautiful sunshiny day all the<br />
way in to the target. We arrived at our wing IP below the city and encountered a few bursts of flak but<br />
nothing serious. Target clearly visible. Bombs away, quite a sight to watch them all the way down.<br />
Huge explosions and fires in the target area and dock sites along the river. Uneventful trip coming back<br />
over the Baltic and North Sea to England and our base at Seething. JHZ.<br />
[On the bomb run the lead-pilot carefully levels the plane at a precise altitude and indicated airspeed.<br />
Then switches on Auto-pilot and tells the Bombardier "You've got the plane."The Bombardier<br />
then flies the plane with his bomb-sight keeping the<br />
cross-hairs on the target. The rest of the planes in the<br />
Squadron drop when the lead plane drops. Lead-pilot<br />
takes over again after bombs are released. Milk runs<br />
were rare and never guaranteed. This first mission was a<br />
"milk-run" for us and did not adequately prepare us for<br />
the missions to come. No planes were lost over the target<br />
from flak, but it was not a "milk-run" for the crew of<br />
H.M. Jonson of the 712th Squadron from our Group.<br />
Their plane received flak damage and had problems on<br />
the return trip. The plane finally landed with two engines<br />
functioning, at least partially, just as it reached the<br />
English coast and landed at Woodbridge (a 14000 ft.<br />
hard surface and grass emergency landing strip for<br />
landing without flaps or brakes). The crew of 9 survived.<br />
Official records show no 448th Group planes lost from<br />
any cause so I assume the plane was salvaged. Two other<br />
SEETHING’S WEATHER IS NORTH SEA WEATHER: LOW<br />
CEILINGS, RAIN, SLEET, BLOWING SNOW. WE HAD TO<br />
MAKE MANY INSTRUMENT LET-DOWNS.<br />
planes from other groups in our wing crashed just after<br />
reaching the English coast near Henstead and everyone<br />
in the two crews were killed. We noticed on this first<br />
mission the difficulty of identifying your home base. There was an airfield every 35 to 40 square miles<br />
and today hazy skies made it more difficult. On future missions it was to be overcast skies, fog, blowing<br />
snow, rain, sleet etc. The four aborts were L.A. Dunston (774J), W.H. Wilhelmi (099J), A.J. Lewis<br />
(972H), & S.W. Frijoer (517J). Reasons-defective oil pressure gauge, supercharger inoperative, #2<br />
propeller governor out, #4 engine failure. JCR.]
38<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II
39<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #1 - Operational Formation - 25 August, <strong>1944</strong><br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #142<br />
ROSTOCK, GERMANY<br />
B.F. Adams 516J (10)<br />
S. Williamson 799J (12)<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
C.E. Francis 819H (10)<br />
J.A. White 482J (12) ?????<br />
P.T. Ferrie 066J (3)<br />
B. Hanson 536J (6)<br />
R.H. Wright 788J (3)<br />
LEAD SQUADRON<br />
PFF (1)<br />
A.H. Panicci 134H (4)<br />
PFF (2)<br />
R.H. Moody 305H (9)<br />
M.S. Horton 326H (6) E. Sheffield 469J<br />
LOW LEFT SQUADRON<br />
W.H. Gibson 349J(1)<br />
F.C. Reynolds 357J (11)<br />
A.M. Coleman 006H (4)<br />
D.R. Graybeal 759J (2)<br />
H.G.Solden 000J (9)<br />
J.D. Sutton 289H (10)<br />
W.T. Hensey 547J (7)<br />
HIGH RIGHT SQUADRON<br />
S.F. Favine 677J (3)<br />
A.C. Fox 620J (1)<br />
C.P. Cepelak 481J (12) J. Mlynarczyk 359H (11)<br />
J. Allen 620J (4)<br />
L. Conner 521H (7)<br />
R.K. Schultz 445J (2)<br />
A.C. Wight 491J (6) R. Brendi 556J (5)<br />
H.M. Jonson 504J<br />
M. Sinkewitz 575H (8)<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 924H (5) - ROSIES RIVETS<br />
G.H.Foutche 138H (9)<br />
S. Szudarek 435J (8)<br />
HIGH HIGH RIGHT SQUADRON<br />
H.S. Spencer 348H (3)<br />
C.A. Eggert 460J (6)<br />
A.C. Nelson 391H (7)<br />
H.E. Stahl 322J (9)<br />
B.F. Baer 925H (8)<br />
R.T. White 772J (1)<br />
K.D. Miller 498J (2)<br />
W.N. Stonebraker 505J (7)<br />
R.W. Kraus 443J (4)<br />
E.G. Brock<br />
992H (9)
40<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> # 2 - 26 August, <strong>1944</strong>, Saturday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #143<br />
Take-off, 06:36 hours Group planes airborne, 34 ships.<br />
Forming altitude, 11500 feet Group planes attacking, 29 ships. 5<br />
Bombing altitude, 23000 feet Aborted-4 ships MIA.<br />
Length, 5 hours, 55 minutes Tonnage dropped, 70.4<br />
Oxygen, 4 hours Escort, P-51's, very good<br />
Bomb load, 12 500 General Fuel load, 2700 gallons<br />
purpose bombs Average fuel consumption, 299 GPH<br />
Temperature, -26 o<br />
Rowe fuel consumption, 1900<br />
Gallons (average 321 GPH)<br />
Bombed Ludwigschafen, Germany, the I.G. Farben Chemical Works where Zyclon-B gas was<br />
manufactured and then used in the extermination camps. It was the most important manufacturer of<br />
chemical products in Europe and the plant stretched for 3 miles on the east side of the Rhine north of<br />
the twin cities of Ludwigschafen and Mannheim. Terrific flak encountered over the target. We were<br />
the last Wing, last Group, and last Squadron over the target. The krauts really had us zeroed in when<br />
we reached our IP. From there all hell broke loose, our left wingman received a direct hit and went<br />
down in flames, believe it was Stonebraker's crew. Other ships including ours were taking a<br />
pounding. Lost my best buddy, Bill Vogel (RO on Stonebraker's crew) who went down on our right,<br />
ship on fire, saw six chutes open and then lost them as they went down through the clouds. Possible<br />
PW's. We had flak damage to No. 1 and No. 2 engines, nothing serious. Got back OK. Total losses -<br />
six ships out of approximately 700. We were briefed there would be close to 300 anti-aircraft guns<br />
around the target area capable of firing 15 to 20 rounds per minute plus 100 or so German fighter<br />
planes we could expect. JHZ.<br />
[Today we began a double or twin takeoff procedure. Two B-24's lined up, one on each side<br />
of the runway. Ten seconds after the first one started down the runway, the other proceeded to<br />
takeoff. Takeoff time was reduced considerably with resultant conserving of gas for the long flights.<br />
Jerry used their big guns today, 105MM I think, or at least an improved 88MM. The new German<br />
88MM could reach 32000 feet and with centralized control of firepower, flak was taking an<br />
increasing number of bombers. Lt. E. Postemski and crew were flying position Low10 just off our left<br />
wing. I believe it was their 15th mission. I was flying position Low6 in formation just a few yards off<br />
their right wing when they took a direct hit between #3 and #4 engine. The wing tip folded up like a<br />
match stick in a ball of red flame, the plane floundered down like a toy and that is probably the first<br />
of the two planes that Joe describes above. Lt. William N. Stonebraker's crew flew overseas with us<br />
and this was his second mission also. He was in position Low9 in the formation just a few yards to<br />
the right of us and received a direct hit that caused his plane to fall in two parts. Wilbur J. Vogel, the<br />
radio operator was a good friend of Joe Zonyk. Lt. Botkin was flying position Lead7 and went down<br />
over the target. Lt. F.E. Bastian flying position Lead3 was also hit and was reported as MIA,<br />
however he along with his co-pilot, navigator and waist gunner were returned to base on 27 August.<br />
Records do not say how they were returned, where from or give the fate of the other crew members.<br />
He must have been able to reach friendly territory and the others were either killed or wounded. Two<br />
others aboard 925H and 326H received moderately severe flak wounds and were hospitalized. We<br />
and Lt. Stonebraker were two of four replacement crews (Stonebraker, Vogel, Sheffield, Rowe)
41<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
arriving at Seething together. Richard Vogel went down on our Mission #3 that follows (his second).<br />
Now there are only two of us left. The feeling was "let's get the hell out of here". I was too busy to be<br />
afraid, but I can imagine just observing those planes burning and falling in pieces with the red and<br />
black ugly flak bursts all around us would be frightening. The German anti-aircraft had our altitude<br />
FLAK OVER LUDWIGSCHAFEN - YOU COULD WALK ON IT.<br />
"right-on". You could see the bursts of flak just a few feet off our nose and wings. Dark red churning<br />
masses and black smoke. Ugly looking stuff! Flak bursts were too close for comfort so we jettisoned<br />
our bombs and altered our fixed course and altitude on the bomb-run which had been calculated very<br />
accurately by German anti-aircraft radar. I put the plane on its right wing and moved out of there.<br />
After we outdistanced the flak, the formation had loosened up considerably and we found ourselves<br />
with only one other ship from our squadron. I know now what other pilots felt when they said "God<br />
was my co-pilot". It seemed we were in flak forever. Richard remembers "My earphones became<br />
unplugged and I saw that hell like a silent movie". We attached ourselves to another group and took<br />
the scheduled withdrawal route back to base. It was not a successful mission because of very accurate<br />
flak and a heavy smoke screen. It also was not an easy mission and the thought on everyone's mind<br />
was "and 33 more of these yet to go". Scotty was smarter than the rest of us. It was a rough mission<br />
and he "hung it up". Clifton "Cow Cow" Evans was his replacement. This was a costly mission. Four<br />
crews were missing in action. Although the other planes returned to Seething, several aircraft were<br />
severely damaged and numerous crewmembers required medical treatment. We had several flak<br />
holes, especially in two of the engines but they were not severely damaged, functioned satisfactorily<br />
and got us home. The 5 aborts were M.L. Alspaugh (505J), M. Krisel (138H), E.K. Schultz (246J),<br />
W.C. Bryson (547J), R.M. Moody (305H). Reasons-Fire on board, gas leak, oxygen leak, #2 engine<br />
failure, intercooler to carb. blown.JCR.]<br />
POST WAR RESEARCH ON SHOOT-DOWN OF STONEBRAKER CREW
42<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
The MISSING AIR CREW REPORT (<strong>#8</strong>468) includes a German report (unsigned) by Lt. and<br />
Chief of the Battery dated 26 August, <strong>1944</strong> reporting a shoot-down of one Liberator at 10:45 o'clock<br />
2 kilometers North of Trebur on the Street Tebur-Russelsheim near the place of a searchlight battery.<br />
Burning on the wing was seen. Aircraft 90% destroyed. Stabilizer OK. Fuselage and motors burned<br />
out. Eight crewmembers captured in the vicinity of Astheim, 2 kilometers West of crash. It lists all<br />
the crewmembers except Vogel and Stonebraker. Another German report by Major Stephan and Staff<br />
Officer of Airfield Command Weisbaden lists capture of Sgt. Vogel on 26 August, <strong>1944</strong> at 11:00<br />
o’clock by Fw (Feldwebel) Becht from Vehicle Station Mains in the forest between Russelsheim and<br />
A MAJOR CONCERN WAS A PIECE OF FLAK TEARING INTO YOUR BODY.<br />
Trebur. Prisoner turned over by Fw Becht for further transportation. Papers or other objects were not<br />
found on prisoner and he refused to make statements. Another German report 2 days later, 28 August,<br />
<strong>1944</strong> lists 9 crew members including Lt. Stonebraker with internment at Dulagluft, Wetzlar. One<br />
other German report lists all twelve captured with internment at the Dulagluft. The National Archives<br />
file contained the following statements from 4 of the crewmembers after their liberation:<br />
LT. JOHN R. RICHARDS - Co-Pilot "I would like especially to commend Lt. Francis J.<br />
Bergin for his calmness and courage under difficult conditions, and especially for his generosity and<br />
unselfishness while a prisoner of war. In many instances during our march from Stalagluft 3 to<br />
Stalagluft 7A he helped others that were sick and unable to do very much for themselves. William<br />
Stonebraker bailed out approximately 3 minutes after target. Injured leg in landing. He was in prison<br />
Stalagluft 3 and Stalagluft 7A. Francis J. Bergin bailed out approximately 2½ minutes after target.<br />
He was uninjured. In prison Stalagluft 3 & 7A. Robert W. Ross bailed out approximately 2½<br />
minutes after target. Clarence E. Williams bailed out approximately 2½ minutes after target. He<br />
received injuries and lacerations of face as a result of civilians in Mannheim beating him with an iron<br />
pipe. Wilbur J. Vogel bailed out approximately 2½ minutes after target. Lost consciousness on way<br />
down. He was slightly injured during landing. Orville D. Stuard bailed out approximately 2½ minutes<br />
after target. Tore ligaments in leg. Curtis L. Cagle bailed out approximately 2½ minutes after target.
43<br />
Injured leg on landing. John T. Powers bailed out approximately 2½ minutes after target. Received facial<br />
lacerations as a result of beatings by civilians in Mannheim. Jesse J. Myers bailed out approximately 2½<br />
minutes after target. Slight facial lacerations as a result of civilian beatings.<br />
LT. FRANCIS J. BERGIN: "All crewmembers bailed out at approximately the same time, about 10:45<br />
AM, 15 to 30 miles east of target. Sgt. Vogel bailed out and the next thing be remembers was that he had been<br />
beaten and was in the hands of SS troops. I saw him and all the crewmembers about a week later in a transient<br />
prison camp. He was last seen after liberation at Camp Lucky Strike, May 1945. To the best of my<br />
knowledge, all crew members were returned to Allied Control."<br />
LT. ROBERT W, ROSS: Most of his comments were illegible, except one that said "Enlisted men all<br />
bailed out just before officers."<br />
SGT. ORVILLE D. STUARD "All members of the crew bailed out with the use of their parachutes<br />
from their various abandon ship positions. Know definitely that Sgt. Vogel is at home and discharged since I<br />
corresponded with him recently. Vogel was returned to Allied Control May 3, 1945 near Lubeck, Germany.<br />
Vogel was liberated by the English Army and was returned to American Military Control in May of 1945,<br />
moved to Le Harve, France and on to the States."<br />
POST WAR RESEARCH ON SHOOT-DOWN OF EDMOND G. POSTEMSKY CREW<br />
As detailed above, I was looking directly at Ed's plane when he was hit between #3 & #4 engines. Fuel<br />
cells are located here and I was looking directly at a huge ball of fire as the wing buckled & separated. The<br />
plane (B24H 41-28924) crashed on the Friesen-heimer Island near Mannheim-Sandhofen, Germany. Nine (9)<br />
men KIA and lone survivor, Copilot Clifford B. Unwin became a POW. Our 2nd mission and their 15th<br />
mission. The MISSING AIR CREW REPORT (#9467) is mostly illegible. However, Lt. Unwin lived and<br />
was captured.<br />
POSTWAR RESEARCH ON SHOOT-DOWN OF FRANCIS J. BOTKIN CREW<br />
The plane (B24H 42-95134), was hit by flak 1 1/2 minutes before the target. Direct hits caused explosions<br />
in the front section and the Pilot and Copilot were blown clear,. The B-24 broke in half and the right<br />
wing was torn off. The A/C crashed 10 KM west of Ludwigshafen. In addition to the P and C/P, the bottom<br />
turret gunner and the right waist gunner survived. Six men KIA. Four (4) still buried in the Ardennes, 2nd Lt.<br />
Thomas White (B), Sgt. Armand Dansereau (LWG), T/Sgt. Charles Shipp (E), and S/Sgt. Lawrence M.<br />
Wilhelm (RO).<br />
POSTWAR RESEARCH ON SHOOT-DOWN OF FRANK E. BASTIAN CREW<br />
The plane (B-24J 42-50788) was hit by flak bursts severely damaging the aircraft flown by Lt. Frank<br />
Bastian. The stricken plane suddenly rolled over and plunged to earth. The bail-out order was given and two<br />
men, Lt. Enrico Maggenti and the right waist gunner, Sgt Dewey Colletti, bailed out. They were quickly captured<br />
by the Germans. Lt. Bastian struggled to regain control of the aircraft and did return it to level flight before<br />
any others jumped. Finally over France four more bailed out over Chartres, including Sgt William Wilbur<br />
and Sgt. Dewey Holst. Sgt. Holst’s brother, also on this crew remained with the crew a little longer and over<br />
Montreuil, France, Lt. Bastian set the plane on outopilot and ordered the rest of the crew to bail out. Miraculously,<br />
everyone one survived and all but the first two were returned to Seething.
44<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II
45<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #2 - Operational Formation - 26 August, <strong>1944</strong><br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #143<br />
LUDWIGSCHAFEN, GERMANY<br />
E. Potemski 924H (10)<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
G.H. Holt 469J (10)<br />
F.E. Bastian 788J (3)<br />
LEAD SQUADRON<br />
R. Bremer 536J (12) A.H. Panicci 326H (11)<br />
C.W. Meining 066J (3)<br />
W. Gilbert 099J (11)<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 575H (6) - THE RUTH E. K.<br />
S.T. Szudarek 819H (6)<br />
LOW LEFT SQUADRON<br />
J.F. Madden 055H (1)<br />
W.H. Wilhelmi 000J (4)<br />
K.D. Miller 270H (2)<br />
W. Stonebraker 443H (9)<br />
C.C. York 992H (5)<br />
PFF (1)<br />
C.H. Frensko 436J (4)<br />
J.C. Weaver 348H (7)<br />
G.O. Brown 516J (10)<br />
PFF (2)<br />
G.F. Hillman 481J (3)<br />
G. Alexander 556J (12) ???? (11)<br />
A.C. Wight 28J (6)<br />
B.F. Baer 925H (9)<br />
E.M. Sheffield 066J (5)<br />
H.M. Jonson 774H (8)<br />
Allen 699J (4)<br />
S.T. Botkin 134H (7)<br />
HIGH RIGHT SQUADRON<br />
W.C. Beall 620J (1)<br />
???? (2)<br />
R.C. Vogel 677J (5)<br />
A.M. Coleman 799J (7)<br />
J.Mlynarczyk 359H (9) ???? (8)
46<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #3 – 11 September, <strong>1944</strong>, Monday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #146<br />
Take-off, 08:19 hours Group planes airborne, 46 ships.<br />
Forming altitude 8500 feet Group planes attacking, 39 ships,<br />
Bombing altitude 19900 feet 5 aborted, 2 MIA<br />
Length, 6 hours - 14 minutes Tonnage dropped, 60.2<br />
Oxygen, 4 hours Escort, P-47's and P-51's<br />
Bomb load, 12 500 lb. Fuel load ????<br />
General purpose bombs Average Fuel Connsumption ????<br />
Temperature, -40 o<br />
Rowe fuel consumption ????<br />
Primary target was Magdeburg, Germany by PFF. Target was a synthetic oil refinery. Half<br />
an hour from the target we encountered flak. Observed one ship from another Group hit over target<br />
area, saw 4 chutes open up. We were fired at by rockets. Thirty planes attacked the refinery. We<br />
did not drop our bombs due to heavy cloud cover, so 8 of us proceeded to our secondary target at<br />
Diepholz which was a German aerodrome 120 miles northwest of Magdeburg near Dummer lake.<br />
One plane had mechanical trouble, left formation, and bombed Rotenburg about 40 miles east of<br />
Bremen. Results unobserved. First group of planes over Magdeburg were hit hard by fighters and<br />
flak. Combined operations we heard we lost 44 bombers and claimed 175 fighters shot down,<br />
probably exaggerated. Coming back we were<br />
fired at over the Zuider Zee (also called<br />
IJsselmeer or Yssel Lake). JHZ.<br />
[PFF is an abbreviation for PATH<br />
FINDER FORCE. See Mission #13 for the<br />
meaning of PFF. I agree with Joe that the<br />
above combined figures on bomber losses and<br />
fighters downed is probably grossly<br />
exaggerated, but have not been able to confirm<br />
it. The United States Air Force Historical<br />
Research Center's micro-film records of the<br />
448th BG at Maxwell Air Force Base had only<br />
Group statistics. Micro-film records for this<br />
mission also did not show the Group fuel<br />
statistics and did not identify the pilots or what<br />
plane they flew except for the following two<br />
taken from the casualty report. Plane #505J<br />
and #138H were downed before reaching the<br />
target and are MIA (LT. Richard Vogel and<br />
Flight Officer Albert Lewis). Richard Vogel left<br />
formation with one engine out. It isn't known<br />
what happened after that. Planes aborting<br />
A GRIM PICTURE OF THE 8TH’S WAR. “Little<br />
Warrior”, 493rd BG takes a direct hit over<br />
Quackenbruk. Picture taken as wing tanks exploded.<br />
were- 516J, 083H, 9489H, 358J, 925H. Reasons-mechanical trouble, #3 engine blew, pilot sick<br />
(left formation 25 miles from enemy coast),one turned back at Geissen, Germany (attributed to<br />
pilot error), one plane had broken piston rings. JCR]
47<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
POST WAR RESEARCH ON SHOOT-DOWN OF VOGEL CREW<br />
The MISSING AIR CREW REPORT (<strong>#8</strong>972) is mostly illegible. The plane crashed on 11<br />
September, <strong>1944</strong> about 3 kilometers north of Dalfsen, Holland. They left the formation with one<br />
engine out. Based upon what comments are legible in the MACR, it appears the aircraft collided with<br />
another plane (a P51 fighter) in the confusion over the target and was not able to make it all the way<br />
back. One known dead, Sgt. John Phillips, tail gunner, died in the crash. He was buried on 13<br />
September, <strong>1944</strong> in Dalfsen Community Cemetery, grave #19. Five known to be captured - Koth<br />
navigator, Neville bombardier, Sgt. Turner, Sgt. Stenberg, and Sgt. Gensinger. It appears however,<br />
that the rest of the crew was also captured. The P51 also crashed, killing the pilot.<br />
Flight Officer Albert Lewis went down over Koblenz from flak damage. Five of the crew<br />
perished in the crash.<br />
FORMING<br />
(Bringing the bomb group together over England before departing for the target.)
48<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II
49<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #3 - Operational Formation - 11 September, <strong>1944</strong><br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #146<br />
MAGDEBURG, GERMANY<br />
Williamson 288J(10)<br />
Alexander 516J(12)<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
Gilbert 348J (10)<br />
Jones 504J (12) 517J (11)<br />
Brown 224J (3)<br />
LOW LEFT SQUADRON<br />
Matthaes 799J<br />
Soldan 006H (6)<br />
Gibson 348J(1)<br />
Reynolds 599J(4)<br />
Spicer 772J (3)<br />
LEAD SQUADRON<br />
H2X (1)<br />
Brock 1489J (4)<br />
H2X (2)<br />
Lewis 505J (6) Stahl 460J (5)<br />
Adams 496J (2)<br />
Senkewitz9489H<br />
Haddock 536J (7)<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 357H (5) - QUEENIE<br />
Horton 326H (10)<br />
Eggert 270H (7)<br />
HIGH RIGHT SQUADRON<br />
Conner 435J (3)<br />
Meining 083H (8)<br />
Francis 925H (12) Sheffield 066J (11)<br />
Jordan 246J (12)<br />
Madden 759J (1)<br />
Frensko 341J(4)<br />
Graybeal 767J (2)<br />
Szuderak 358J (9)<br />
Doane 819H(6) Kraus 992H (5)<br />
083H ?????<br />
Holt 469J (7)<br />
HIGH HIGH RIGHT SQUADRON<br />
Furey 677J (3)<br />
Fox 455J (1)<br />
Hillman 247J (2)<br />
Genarlsky 305H (8)<br />
Schultz 298H (10) Sutton 391H<br />
Vogel 138H (11)<br />
Bremer 556J(8)<br />
Nelson 958H(6)<br />
Allen 699J (9)<br />
Madden 481J (7)<br />
Wight 491J (8)
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448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> # 4 - 12 September, <strong>1944</strong>, <strong>Tuesday</strong><br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> # 147<br />
Take-off, 07:30 hours Group planes airborne-35<br />
Forming altitude, 10000 feet Group planes attacking-35. No aborts. No losses<br />
Bombing altitude, 21000 feet Tonnage dropped, 70.2<br />
Length, 5 hours - 30 minutes Fuel load, ????<br />
Oxygen, 4 hours - 30 minutes Average fuel consumption ????<br />
Bomb load, 12 500 lb. Rowe fuel consumption ????<br />
General purpose bombs<br />
Temperature, -34 o<br />
Bombed Hemmingstadt in northern Germany. Target was a natural oil refinery. It was a long haul<br />
over the North Sea. We were over enemy territory approximately 1/2 hour. Good hits recorded by one<br />
Group. Our Group did a lot of spring plowing by PFF. No flak or fighters. P-38 pilot bailed out over the<br />
target. Our secondary target was to have been Helgoland, but we did not hit it. We saw Helgoland as we<br />
were heading for home. JHZ.<br />
[Seething airfield was closed down<br />
from 27 August to 8 September to<br />
repair breakup of taxi-ways, but<br />
September so far was very wet<br />
anyway. Seething is near the coast<br />
and its weather is like North Sea<br />
weather. Because of the weather,<br />
crews with limited experience were<br />
offered a chance to stand down<br />
today and avoid the long instrument<br />
climb-out, but we elected to go. After<br />
takeoff, using the radio compass, the<br />
pilot heads for the Group's assigned<br />
buncher beacon #7 (which was<br />
CROSSING THE ENGLISH COAST NEAR THE THAMES ESTUARY<br />
& HEADING FOR THE TARGET<br />
shared with Hardwick about 3 miles<br />
away) at a 300 foot per minute climb<br />
at 150 MPH. Upon reaching the<br />
buncher beacon, he makes a 180 o turn and flies a 5 minute leg still climbing. These legs are repeated<br />
back and forth until he flies through the cloud cover. Pilots and planes are all different and you can<br />
imagine this scrambling mass of 700 to 1200 bombers (with an airfield every 5 to 10 miles)<br />
simultaneously flying through overcast to formation assembly. Pilots would look for and form on a<br />
brightly painted aircraft of unique design peculiar only to the 448th Group. The Group leader circles the<br />
buncher beacon firing flares of a specified color and the Squadron leader also firing flares of another<br />
color so pilots could identify their Group and Squadron leaders and their own position in the formation.<br />
It takes skill enough in good weather, but difficulties increase when a mass of aircraft are assembling<br />
between dense merging cloud layers and visibility is poor with rain pelting the cockpit windshield, often<br />
turning to sleet and freezing. It is hazardous, and the more so when carrying a maximum load of gas and<br />
bombs. (See diagram for forming in bad weather shown on page 261, Epilogue section in this report.)<br />
Statistics on fuel consumption and names of the Pilots on this mission were not found in the micro-film<br />
records. JCR.]
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448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II
52<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #4 - Operational Formation - 12 September, <strong>1944</strong><br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #147<br />
HEMMINGSTADT, GERMANY<br />
Stahl 348H (12)<br />
Dugger 460J (10)<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
Horton 341H (10)<br />
Szuderak 326H (3)<br />
Gilbert 992H (12) Sheffield 066J (11)<br />
Johnson 972H(3)<br />
LOW LEFT SQUADRON<br />
Jones 099J (11)<br />
Brock 504J(6)<br />
Wilhelmi 497J (1)<br />
Felker 489J (4)<br />
LEAD SQUADRON<br />
PFF (1)<br />
H. Allen 358J (4)<br />
Billings 599J (2)<br />
Frensko 521H (6) Genarlsky 302H (5)<br />
Eggert 772J(2)<br />
Soldan 066H (9)<br />
Spicer 517J (5)<br />
Reynolds 9489H (7)<br />
Nelson 699J (10)<br />
Williamson 288J (9)<br />
Matthaes 799J (8)<br />
Madden 481J (12) Mlynarczyk 677J (11)<br />
Doane 458J(7)<br />
Camburn 224J (8)<br />
HIGH RIGHT SQUADRON<br />
Swartbel 620J (1)<br />
Wight 298H (3) Sutton 185H (2)<br />
Dowalo 246J (4)<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 367H (9)<br />
Mellot 491J (6) Smith 556J (5)<br />
Hansen 083H (7)<br />
Haddock 536J (8)
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448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> (not completed, no credit) - 13 September, <strong>1944</strong>, Wednesday<br />
[246J got hit by flak over the Rhine and aborted. 504J's supercharger was out and he<br />
aborted GROUPduring <strong>MISSION</strong> assembly. #148 767J(Group accidentally tookreleased credit for his bombs this mission, at the I.P. but before gave theno target. credit Again to the<br />
microfilm records did not identify the Pilots or what plane they flew nor did they provide fuel<br />
Crews)<br />
consumption figures. The number of air raids on East Anglia increased in September. V-1's were<br />
launched from Holland and from the Heinkel-III aircraft off the British Coast. British anti-aircraft<br />
gunnersLength, were getting 3 hours quite good and brought down 9Temperature, out of 11 on the -16 night of 21 September. JCR.]<br />
o<br />
Oxygen, 1 hour Escort, P-51's and P-47's<br />
Bomb load, 12 500 General purpose<br />
bombs which we brought back.<br />
Started for Ulm, Germany near the Swiss border to bomb an ordnance plant. Weather was<br />
bad. Recalled 50 miles northeast of Paris and started for home. Passed over Dunkerque (Dunkirk).<br />
Bomb damage was terrific, craters everywhere from Allied bombings. Some ships received flak south<br />
of Dunkirk. One B-24 went down into the North Sea. JHZ.<br />
[We were called off when impossible weather was encountered after passing Paris. Crews did<br />
not receive credit for this mission, although the Group took credit as Mission #148. If the Group can<br />
take credit then in reality we flew 36 missions. JCR.]<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> (scrubbed) - 14 September, <strong>1944</strong>, Thursday<br />
We were scheduled to hit Berlin, Germany with 1000 bombers. We got out to the ship and<br />
waited three hours for takeoff. Fog was like soup and we did not take off. The target was also closed<br />
in with impossible weather. This one I wasn't to eager to go on. JHZ.<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #5 - 22 September, <strong>1944</strong>, Friday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #151<br />
Take-off, 10:20 hours Tonnage dropped, 62.4<br />
Forming altitude, 12000 feet Group planes airborne, 35 ships<br />
Bombing altitude, 23000 feet Group planes attacking, 32 ships<br />
Length, 6 hours - 25 minutes 2 ships aborted-1 ship dropped early<br />
Oxygen, 3 hours - 30 minutes Escort, P-38's and P-51's<br />
Temperature, -26 o<br />
Fuel load ????<br />
Bomb load, 2 500 lb. incendiaries Average fuel consumption ????<br />
and 15 250 lb. demolition bombs Rowe fuel consumption ????<br />
Kassel, Germany was the target for the day. We hit Kassel with approximately 1000<br />
bombers, B-24's and B-17's. Targets were marshalling yards, locomotive repair shops, flak<br />
installations, as well as assembly shops for Tiger and Panther tanks. We got the hell shot out of us<br />
crossing the Rhine river and going over to Trier, Germany on the way home. Bob (Red) Sammons,<br />
waist gunner almost had it. Flak was heavy and concentrated. A piece came through the side of the<br />
ship and hit Sammons flak suit knocking him down and then going out the other side of the ship. Flak<br />
was beating on the ship like hail. A piece came through the nose section where Oscar Rudnick usually<br />
was. This time he was on the flight deck with me. Flak was concentrated and accurate over the target.<br />
Bomb results unobserved due to heavy cloud cover. Bombed by PFF (PathFinderForce). Coming<br />
home, Marty Miller's (nose gunner) electric suit caught on fire and gave him a hot rear end. Six flak<br />
holes in our ship. JHZ.
54<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
[256J got hit by flak over the Rhine and aborted. 504J’s supercharger was out and he aborted<br />
during assembly. 767J accidentally released his bombs at the I.P. before the target. Again the microfilm<br />
records did not identify the Pilots or what plane they flew nor did they provide fuel consumption<br />
figures. The number of air raids on East Anglia increased in September. V-1s were launched from<br />
Holland and from the Heinkel-III aircraft off the British Coast. British anti-aircraft gunners were getting<br />
quite good and brought down 9 out of 11 on the night of 12 September. JCR.]<br />
DISPATCH CARAVAN<br />
Captain Frank Grew sending the bombers off to their target and with others not flying that day<br />
watching the take-off.
55<br />
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56<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46”s Eighth Air Force Mission Record - World War II<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #5 - Operational Formation - 22 September, <strong>1944</strong><br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #151<br />
KASSEL, GERMANY<br />
Bastian 516J (12)<br />
Soldan 357H (10)<br />
Meining 551J (6)<br />
Spicer 517J (10)<br />
LOW LEFT SQUADRON<br />
Bryson 224H (3)<br />
Bowers 972H (12)<br />
Gibson 288J (1)<br />
JOHN C. <strong>ROWE</strong> 006H (10)<br />
Brown 799J (4)<br />
Land 536J (5)<br />
Sheffield 575H (10)<br />
LEAD SQUADRON<br />
Malone 5547 (Maj. Miller) H2X (1)<br />
Jonson 460J (3)<br />
Remitz 772J (11)<br />
Stahl 099J (6)<br />
Dogger 678J (4)<br />
Hensey 498J (2)<br />
Weitzel 958H (9)<br />
Jordon 246J(7)<br />
Mlynarczyk 391H(8)<br />
HIGH RIGHT SQUADRON<br />
Allen 699J (3)<br />
Thomas 489J (11)<br />
Frensko 435J(6)<br />
Johnson 055H (1)<br />
Holt 759J (4)<br />
Beal (Capt. Andresen) 620J (2)<br />
Felker 348H (9)<br />
Brock 992H (5)<br />
Wight 491J (7)<br />
Conner 820J (2)<br />
Brenner 677J (9)<br />
Azevedo 369J (8)<br />
Hilllman 767J (7)<br />
Moody 083H( 8)
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448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #6 - 27 September, <strong>1944</strong>, Wednesday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #154<br />
Take-off, 06:20 hours Group planes attacking, 32 ships<br />
Forming altitude, 11400 feet 4 aborts. No ships lost.<br />
Bombing altitude, 22500 feet Tonnage dropped, 61.8<br />
Length, 6 hours - 30 minutes Escort, P-47's, P-38's & P-51's<br />
Oxygen, 3 hours - 30 minutes Fuel load, ????<br />
Bomb load, 5 1000 lb. General purpose bombs Average fuel consumption ????<br />
Temperature, -28 o<br />
Group planes airborne, 36 ships.<br />
Rowe fuel consumption ????<br />
Kassel, Germany again. Bombed marshalling yards, assembly works for tiger and Panther<br />
tanks along with flak installations. Clouds were 10/10, bombed by PFF. Occasional break in clouds.<br />
Flak was moderate to heavy. The Krauts shot up 13 rockets at us. Enemy fighters in the vicinity. Due<br />
to excellent fighter protection they did not attack. One group, the 445th, was hit by fighters and lost<br />
29 bombers out of 34. JHZ.<br />
[The 445th<br />
with its black tail bands got hit hard.<br />
The German tactic on this trip was a<br />
simple one. Rather then pick a<br />
bomber here and there, the Focke-<br />
Wulfs came 10 to 12 abreast from the<br />
rear of the 445th formation to swamp<br />
the bombers. The 445th had taken a<br />
wrong turn and were away from the<br />
main column about 20 miles. The<br />
equipment on the FW's was<br />
formidable: two 13MM cannon and<br />
t w o 2 0 M M n o s e c a n n o n<br />
complimented by 30MM cannon in<br />
the wings. The FW's charged the B-<br />
24's first and then the Messerschmitt<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> NOW IS SURVIVAL! UPSIDE DOWN AND HALF A WING. HOW TO<br />
GET HOME? IMPOSSIBLE.<br />
109's came in afterwards. In three<br />
minutes 25 bombers went down with<br />
236 men. Of the total 117 were<br />
killed. Four planes returned to base with one dead. Five airmen were killed by civilians after<br />
parachuting safely. Those responsible were later tried by German authorities and executed. There<br />
were 13 wounded on the planes that were not shot down. Two planes crash landed at the emergency<br />
landing field at Manston, Kent, England, one plane crashed landed near Old Buckenham, one in<br />
Belgium and two in France. This was the largest single mission loss in the history of the 8th Air<br />
Force. The extent of the loss was evident in the mess hall of the 445th that night. We understood at<br />
the time that crews from other Groups were transferred to the 445th. Information now available<br />
reveals few crew transfers were made and that most in-coming new crews were sent to that Group.<br />
The 3rd Division lost 2 bombers on their sorties to other targets. The Germans lost 29 planes and 18
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448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
pilots. Aborts were-767J, 759J, 521H, 972H. Reasons-Oxygen leak, Pilot sick, #3 prop. Gov. out, oil<br />
leak #4 engine. Names of the Pilots and fuel statistics for this mission were not found in the microfilm<br />
records. JCR]. Microfilm frame containing the MAP & ROUTE TO THIS TARGET WAS<br />
BAD. NOT READABLE.<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #6 - Operational formation - 27 September, <strong>1944</strong><br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #154<br />
KASSEL, GERMANY<br />
Reynolds 224J (7)<br />
Hensey 357J (5)<br />
Sheffield 727J (7)<br />
Allen 000J (5)<br />
Francis-Petterson 767J<br />
Genarlsky 820J<br />
LOW LEFT SQUADRON<br />
Brown 561J (3)<br />
Haddock 799J (1)<br />
Gibson 288J (1)<br />
Camburn 006H (1)<br />
LEAD SQUADRON<br />
Wright 498J (2)<br />
Anguish-GrableH2X<br />
Frensko 326H (8)<br />
Meining 349J (4)<br />
Snavely-DillonH2X (2)<br />
Doane 341H (4)<br />
Szuderak 521H<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 516J (6) - LITTLE IODINE<br />
HIGH RIGHT<br />
Jonson 460J (3)<br />
Hande 497J (1)<br />
Wilhelmi 772J<br />
Piper 504J (5) Felker 678J (4)<br />
Stahl 270H (8)<br />
Brock 099J (10) Weaver 463J (9)<br />
Cepelak 456J (7)<br />
Sutton 185H (1)<br />
Holden 489J (6)<br />
HIGH HIGH RIGHT SQUADRON<br />
Mlynarczyk 359H (3)<br />
Jordon 246J (5)<br />
Foutche 298H (10)<br />
Madden 491J (8)<br />
Hillman 676J (2)<br />
Smith 677J (9)<br />
Allen 391H (4)<br />
Bremer 556J (6)
59<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #7 - 30 September, <strong>1944</strong>, Saturday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #156<br />
Take-off, 10:32 hours Group planes attacking, 27 ships<br />
Forming altitude, 12000 feet 1 ship aborted. No losses<br />
Bombing altitude, 23000 feet Tonnage dropped, 60.3<br />
Length, 5 hours - 30 minutes Escort, P-38's and P-51's. Excellent<br />
Oxygen, 2 hours Fuel load ????<br />
Bomb load, 12 500 General purpose bombs. Average fuel consumption ????<br />
Temperature, -25 o<br />
Group planes airborne, 28 ships.<br />
Rowe fuel consumption ????<br />
Target was Hamm, Germany. Bombed the largest marshalling yards in Germany. Third<br />
time Hamm was hit in a week. We flew as a "carpet ship" which was used to combat enemy radar<br />
for their flak batteries. We were the first Group over the target. Clouds were 6/10. We couldn't<br />
observe our bomb hits but other Groups<br />
plastered it well. Flak was moderate.<br />
Enemy fighters in the vicinity, ME-<br />
109's and FW -190's. We had<br />
wonderful fighter support. We saw P-<br />
51's mix it up with Me-109's and shoot<br />
one down. Coming out we saw where<br />
B-17's hit Munster. They really<br />
plastered the town and target. Fires<br />
looked like they were out of control.<br />
We were shot at coming over the Rhine<br />
by flak barges. Flak was accurate but<br />
we were not hit. JHZ.<br />
[Marshalling yards had to be<br />
hit often because they could be rebuilt<br />
and repaired in less then a week. To<br />
minimize flak damage, the U.S. adopted<br />
another British radio device, code<br />
named "carpet" wherein radio waves<br />
caused interference with enemy antiaircraft<br />
gun radar. September weather<br />
was so bad, on every mission except<br />
one, bombing was by H2X (PFF)<br />
LIBERATORS MAKE A DIRECT HIT ON AN OIL REFINERY<br />
AND NEARBY MARSHALLING YARDS. RAILROADS WERE<br />
A MAJOR TARGET. GERMANS NEEDED THEM TO<br />
SUPPLY RUNSTEDT’S RETREATING ARMY<br />
equipment so results were unobserved.<br />
The micro-film records quoted Charlie<br />
Robertson as follows: "Enemy fighters<br />
were up today and I saw dog fights in<br />
the distance. Our fighter escort of 38's,<br />
47's and 51's were so thick not a single enemy plane got near enough to attack our formation."<br />
Again no statistics in the micro-film on fuel consumption or who the pilots were that flew this day.<br />
Aborts-520J. Reason-broken oil line. JCR.]
60<br />
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #7 - Operational formation - 30 September, <strong>1944</strong><br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #156<br />
HAMM, GERMANY<br />
Bremer 556J (7)<br />
Wight 298H (5)<br />
Meining 516J (7)<br />
LOW LEFT FORMATION<br />
Mellott 359H (3)<br />
Franklin 677J (10)<br />
Hensey 224J (5)<br />
Fox 620J (1)<br />
Jordan 246J (8)<br />
LEAD FORMATION<br />
Brown 799J (3)<br />
Camburn 575H (10)<br />
Malone (Maj. Dillon) H2X (1)<br />
Haddock 349J (8)<br />
Adams 498J (2)<br />
Platt 676J (9)<br />
Thomas 482J (7)<br />
Gilbert 489J (5)<br />
Horton 341H (4)<br />
Panchura (McCleary) H2X (2)<br />
JOHN C. <strong>ROWE</strong> 547J (9)<br />
Frensko 099J (6)<br />
Conner 820J (4)<br />
HIGH RIGHT FORMATION<br />
Stahl 517J (3)<br />
White 247J (1)<br />
Holden 678J (8)<br />
Felker 270H (2)<br />
Westbrook 463J (9)<br />
Genarlsky 767J (6)<br />
Sheffield 326H (4)<br />
Bowers 521H (6)
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448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> <strong>#8</strong> - 3 <strong>October</strong>, <strong>1944</strong>, <strong>Tuesday</strong><br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #158<br />
Take-off, 07:37 hours Group planes airborne, 28 ships.<br />
Forming altitude, 10000 feet Group planes attacking, 27 ships<br />
Bombing altitude, 24600 feet 1 ship aborted. 1 ship MIA<br />
Length, 7 hours - 50 minutes Tonnage dropped, 70.6<br />
Oxygen, 5 hours Fuel load ????<br />
Bomb load, 12 500 lb. incendiaries Average fuel consumption ????<br />
Temperature, -30 o<br />
Rowe fuel consumption ????<br />
Target was at Gaggenau, Germany across the French border between Strausbourg, France<br />
and Karlsruhe, Germany. Primary target was the Daimler-Benz aircraft works. It was cold as hell,<br />
my heated suit went out over France, almost froze to death. Ice formed in my oxygen mask, had<br />
to keep breaking it loose to breath by pounding the hose on radio operators table. Target was<br />
visual. We could see Germany's famed Black Forest. Lead ship screwed up and we made a couple<br />
of unnecessary runs on the target. I watched the bombs fall all the way to the target. We really<br />
plastered something, town most likely. Huge fires started. Meager flak was accurate. Fighter<br />
escort picked us up over Nancy, France. Coming back we observed results of bombings and<br />
artillery fire in France. Terrific damage. We came over Dieppe and the white cliffs of Dover.<br />
JHZ. [Ship #006J failed to return with the other ships and was reported MIA. Micro-film records<br />
do not indicate who the Pilot was and does not have a casualty report for this mission. Micro-film<br />
records do not list any of the<br />
Pilots flying this mission,<br />
only the aircraft numbers.<br />
Aborts-958H. Reason-3#<br />
supercharger out. Ship<br />
359H took 958H's formation<br />
position. Although official<br />
records furnished to me on<br />
micro-film did not identify<br />
what Pilots flew this mission<br />
(only plane #'s), later<br />
reports show no ships lost<br />
on this mission so I assume<br />
DOOMED PLANE CIRCLED AND FELL. THERE WERE NO CHUTES AS AN FW190<br />
FOLLOWED CLOSELY TO SURVEY THEIR WORK. PHOTOGRAPHER SAW THE<br />
CREW AT BREAKFAST THAT MORNING.<br />
#006J is the plane that had<br />
wing and nose damage and<br />
crash landed near Aldeby,<br />
England. Two were injured and the flight-engineer was dead, killed over Germany, not in the<br />
crash.<br />
Over Amsterdam, another plane was hit in #1 engine, had fuel tank and oxygen supply<br />
problems, but held formation to the target. Then a 1000 lb. bomb got hung up and would not<br />
release. It was finally kicked out and then the bomb bay doors froze and would not close. The<br />
navigator’s watch also froze. They were able to hold formation until they reached home. I believe<br />
the plane was piloted by Lt. Solden. JCR]
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448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II
64<br />
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> <strong>#8</strong> - Operational formation - 3 <strong>October</strong>, <strong>1944</strong><br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #158<br />
GAGGENAU, GERMANY<br />
Microfilm records did not identify the pilots, only<br />
the planes. Neither do my records identify which<br />
plane I flew on this mission.<br />
809J (7)<br />
099J (5)<br />
759J (7)<br />
678J (10)<br />
820J (5)<br />
482J (10)<br />
LEAD FORMATION<br />
469J (3)<br />
516J (8)<br />
GH (1)<br />
L0W LEFT FORMATION<br />
460J (3)<br />
270H (8)<br />
247J (1)<br />
517J (9)<br />
504J (2)<br />
958H (5)<br />
767J (9)<br />
799J (4)<br />
H2X (2)<br />
575J (6)<br />
498J (4)<br />
006H (6)<br />
HIGH RIGHT FORMATION<br />
677J (3)<br />
661J (1)<br />
359H (7) 590J (8)<br />
246J (10)<br />
455J (9)<br />
457J (2)<br />
083H (4)<br />
349J (6)
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448th Bomb Group’s Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records—World War II<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> (we aborted) - 15 <strong>October</strong>, <strong>1944</strong>, Sunday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #163<br />
We took-off, then had problems with the ship. The landing gear would not retract and<br />
lock and the flaps would not go up after take-off. The day before on another mission by another<br />
crew, the hydraulic system was shot up over Cologne, Germany. We aborted and came back to<br />
base, One half hour flying time. JHZ<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> (we aborted) - 19 <strong>October</strong>, <strong>1944</strong>, Thursday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #165<br />
Forming altitude, 13,000 feet<br />
Length, 2 hours: 30 minutes<br />
Oxygen, 1 hour<br />
Bomb Load, 6 500 lb. General purpose bombs and 6 500 lb. M-17<br />
incendiaries<br />
Temperature, -20 o<br />
Target was Mainz, Germany, the submarine engine works and flying bomb assembly installation<br />
works. Due to faulty compass swing, we were over the wrong buncher beacon for<br />
forming and did not get into our formation and aborted. JHZ<br />
[Micro-film records say only that we could not find formation (true enough) but just a<br />
half truth or just half the story. As Joe explains above, a faulty radio compass put us over the<br />
wrong buncher beacon for forming. If a pilot was late or slow in arriving for formation assembly,<br />
he would sometimes attach himself to other Groups. On this day, other Wings were making a<br />
deeper penetration of enemy territory then we were and carried larger gas loads. Not only was I<br />
concerned about enough fuel, but if we sustained any damage to the aircraft over enemy territory,<br />
I did not want to be in a position of having to leave formation with a faulty radio-compass.<br />
The radio-compass is vital when making an instrument let-down and in England’s lousy weather<br />
it seems we were always coming in on instruments, so I elected to abort. Group & squadron commanders<br />
were upset. To them, crews were expendable. For me, safety of my crew came first.<br />
They briefly considered breaking up the crew, but relented & we flew a full tour as a crew. JCR]<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #9 - 25 <strong>October</strong>, <strong>1944</strong>, Wednesday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #167<br />
Take-off,, 10:00 hours Group planes airborne, 33 ships<br />
Forming altitude, 13,000 feet Group planes attacking, 31 ships<br />
Bombing altitude, 22,000 feet 2 ships aborted. No losses<br />
Length, 5 hours: 20 minutes Tonnage dropped, 86.6<br />
Oxygen, 3 hours Escort, P-51’s & P-47’s. Good<br />
Bomb Load, 6 500 General purpose Fuel load ???<br />
bombs and 6 500 lb. Incendiaries Average fuel consumption ???<br />
Temperature, -29 o<br />
Rowe fuel consumption ???<br />
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Target was Neumunster, Germany, about 40 miles from Kiel. Target was the FW-190 assembly<br />
works. Flak over Kiel was heavy. We could see it bursting in the distance. They must<br />
have thought we were going to Kiel. The flak was moderate to heavy over Neumunster but inaccurate.<br />
The target was obscured by 10/10 cloud cover. Results unobserved. Bombed by PFF. We<br />
flew deputy lead, 3rd<br />
Squadron, low left of<br />
high right. We passed<br />
over Hamburg coming<br />
out of enemy territory,<br />
which lasted only 27<br />
minutes. It was a long<br />
haul coming over the<br />
North Sea home. JHZ.<br />
[The primary<br />
target was the Mittlend<br />
Aqueduct on the Weser<br />
river. Because of trying<br />
cloud conditions,<br />
we (20th Wing) arrived<br />
behind the 96th Wing<br />
who bombed second,<br />
so we bombed the aircraft<br />
assembly works,<br />
ONE OF MANY SPECTACULAR CRASHES. THEY RAN OUT OF FUEL ON<br />
THEIR FIRST <strong>MISSION</strong>. THE PILOT WAITS FOR ATTENTION IN THE<br />
COCKPIT OF HIS WRECKED AIRCRAFT.<br />
the secondary target.<br />
The North Sea is storm<br />
driven most of the<br />
time, choppy and<br />
frothy. It was always a<br />
relief to reach England and know you would not have to ditch. 972J lost #2 engine & turned back<br />
at the IP. 958H said #4 engine was out but ground check found it OK. Again micro-film records<br />
had no statistics on fuel consumption or the names of the Pilots flying this mission, only the plane<br />
#’s. JCR.<br />
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #9—Operational Formation—25 <strong>October</strong>, <strong>1944</strong><br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #167<br />
NEUMUNSTER, GERMANY<br />
Micro-film records did not identify Pilots, only<br />
the planes. My records, however, did show that I<br />
flew Number 536J in the Low Left Squadron.<br />
LEAD SQUADRON<br />
LOW LEFT SQUADRON<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 536J (2) - JUNIOR<br />
68<br />
HIGH RIGHT SQUADRON
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448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #10 - 6 November, <strong>1944</strong> Monday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #173<br />
Take-off, 07:45 hours Group planes airborne, 33 ships.<br />
Forming altitude, 13500 feet Group planes attacking, 32 ships<br />
Bombing altitude, 19500 feet 1 ship aborted. 1 ship MIA<br />
Length, 5 hours - 15 minutes Fuel load, 2300 Gallons<br />
Oxygen, 3 hours Average fuel consumption, 292 GPH<br />
Bomb load, 3 2000 General purpose bombs Rowe fuel consumption, 1375 Gallons<br />
Temperature, -32 o<br />
Tonnage dropped, 80.0<br />
(Average 261 GPH)<br />
Target was Minden, Germany approximately 40 miles from Hannover. Target was an<br />
important canal, aqueduct and locks on the Weser river. We formed at 13500 feet and went over<br />
Ostend, Belgium then over Amsterdam and the Zuider Zee. No flak over the target but we did get<br />
some at the IP. One burst right under our ship; it scared the hell out of me down in the well of the<br />
bomb bay with the doors open at 19500 feet. We dropped bombs by PFF, unable to observe due to<br />
10/10 cloud cover. Flak was terrific and right on altitude right after we dropped our bombs. Later<br />
bomb results showed a direct hit by one of the 2000 lb.’s and an 85-foot breach in the canal. After<br />
we started home, bandits were reported in the area. The 93rd Bomb Group ahead of us was hit by<br />
two ME-262's, the new German jet propelled fighter. They were about a mile ahead of us. About<br />
fifteen P-51's were right on their tails, chasing the hell out of them. One ship behind us caught flak<br />
in an engine, broke formation and headed for Brussels. We came back over the Zuider Zee, observed<br />
two destroyers in the harbor at Enkuizen, Holland. JHZ.<br />
[Lt. Frank Genarlsky and crew in 820J from the 715th Squadron failed to return and was<br />
MIA. His plane got hit between the IP and the target. P. Protich and crew in plane #066J landed at<br />
the emergency landing strip at Woodbridge. No reason given. Aborts-302H (M.M. Senkewitz). No<br />
reason given. JCR]<br />
POST WAR RESEARCH ON SHOOT-DOWN OF THE GENARLSKY CREW<br />
Frank Genarlsky was flying on the left of our squadron while I was flying on the right side of the formation and<br />
did not observe his plane when hit. Lt. Sheffield was flying off Frank’s left wing and reported he took a flak hit in #2<br />
engine which burned for awhile, then went out. The engine was feathered. At North latitude and East longitude positions<br />
(5206N – 0735E), he peeled off and headed back for England. This was between Munster and Osnabruck and still some<br />
distance from our target for the day. This position appears to be before the IP and not between the IP and the target as<br />
first reported.<br />
The MISSING AIR CREW REPORT (#10348) reports the plane crashed near a Farmer’s<br />
Association in Alstatte on the road to Billerbeck, Germany; about 20 miles west of Munster. Frank<br />
did not travel far because this is only about 30 miles from his position when hit by flak. Len Cairns<br />
of Cheltenham, England who is researching various World War II missions involving dams, locks,<br />
canals etc. informed me that sources of his in Holland also reported Frank’s plane was hit, then lost<br />
altitude, but peeled off under control.<br />
There were no survivors and it was first presumed either the plane later exploded, went out<br />
of control or the fire was not truly out and got to the wing tanks. Lt. O’Neil and S/Sgt. Cole were
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identified as well as four unidentified and were buried in the Billerbeck Cemetery, Grave #1<br />
based upon the first German report. We assumed that the others were buried at Hohenholte and<br />
at Buldern. Our initial remarks on this mission regarding the circumstances of Lt. Frank<br />
Genarlsky’s “shoot down” were made based upon information obtained in the MACR which<br />
were observations made by other crews on that mission and by the very early reports of the<br />
German authorities. After these many years I was finally able to get reports on the<br />
investigations of the AMERICAN GRAVES REGISTRATION SERVICES personnel. The<br />
assumptions made that four (4) of the crew may have “bailed out” at the time the first two<br />
bombs were jettisoned was wrong. The assumption was made because the early German reports<br />
said that six bodies were found in or near the wreckage (Lt. Ralph F. O’Neil, bombardier and<br />
Sgt. Albert P. Cole, top turret gunner, were identified by the Germans and initially four<br />
unknown). I assumed that four of the five buried at Hohenholte were four of Genarlsky’s crew<br />
and had probably bailed out near there when the first two bombs were jettisoned as reported in<br />
the Luffwafe plot map. There were fourteen (14) burials in that area because of other damaged<br />
aircraft, which created the confusion.<br />
After the hostilites ceased, the American Graves Registration Services personnel<br />
investigated this incident. Based upon a report by the farmer on whose property Genarlsky’s<br />
aircraft crashed, the plane was attempting a landing when the right wing struck a telephone<br />
pole, crashed, and quickly caught on fire. The farmer testified that a bomb exploded shortly<br />
after the crash. We all carried three (3) 2000 lb. bombs that day because the target was a dam<br />
and locks on the Weser River. Evidently one of the bombs got “hung up” and could not be<br />
jettisoned. In captured official records of the German Army seven (not just four) bodies were<br />
found and buried in a common grave in Billerbeck. A special investigation of the site of the<br />
crash was made and was well marked by a deep depression caused by the crash and subsequent<br />
explosion. This resulted in three (3) other bodies being discovered and this accounts for all ten<br />
(10) crew members. Lt. O’Neil was identified by a bracelet found on his right wrist and his<br />
name on shirt and underclothing. An identification tag of Lt. Alton L. Kraft was also found. On<br />
November 7, <strong>1944</strong> the body of Sgt. Harold W. Rial (he was the only casualty of his plane which<br />
collided with another in mid-air and crashed in another area and all the others parachuted<br />
safely) was found in a field near Bockelsdorf and after the initial burial his body was removed<br />
to the two (2) common graves at Billerbeck with Genarlsky’s crew. The fragmentary condition<br />
of the remains of the other deceased and the absence of dental and other physical characteristics<br />
precluded all possibility of individual identification after the war ceased. The remains of the<br />
following ten were simply identified as X-7724 thru X-7726, X-7796 thru X-7799, X-7820 thru<br />
X-7822 and disinterred from the common graves at Billerbeck, removed to Belgium &<br />
reinterred in the Ardennes Plots (HH-7-168/171, II-6-126/128, II-7-169/171) and later to a<br />
group burial in Section D, Grave 204B of the Rock Island National Cemetery in Illinois.<br />
Customary military funeral services were held and full military honors rendered. Under the<br />
circumstances under which death occurred it was not possible to identify individual remains so<br />
that the remains could be interred at home cemeteries except for Lt. Ralph O’Neil who was<br />
identified and buried at the home cemetery in Braintree, Massuchusetts.<br />
Cole, Albert P., S/Sgt. ASN 12228133<br />
Ford, Walter A., 2nd Lt. ASN 0-717420<br />
Genarlsky, Frank R., 1st Lt. ASN 0-886510
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Kraft, Alton L., 1st Lt. ASN 0-702055<br />
McLaughlin, James W., T/Sgt. ASN 32440514<br />
McMahan, Lewis E., S/Sgt. ASN 18182755<br />
Novichenk, Paul, T/Sgt. ASN 15323363<br />
Pempek, Albert A., 2nd Lt. ASN 0-699905<br />
Rial, Harold W., Sgt. ASN 39467475<br />
Yates, Joseph A., S/Sgt. ASN 13184568<br />
Above map shows the crashsite in the lower lefthand corner just below Billerbeck near<br />
Alstatte. The 8 miles radius circle shown in the map passes through the village of Langen<br />
and the black dots indicate the bomb drop according to the Luffwafe map. The parachutes<br />
simulate where we first thought four airmen might have bailed out.<br />
The MACR shows Lt. Alton. L. Kraft, a 1st Lt., flying with Frank as a tail-gunner. Why<br />
was he flying as tail gunner? Was he an authorized crewman? Why was a fifth officer aboard as<br />
a gunner when the standard or normal four officers aboard included Lt. Water Ford, the regular<br />
Navigator for Lt. Genarlsky. Lt. Alton Kraft was normally Navigator for Lt. Leroy Conners<br />
Crew. Some officers expressed the desire to fly an unauthorized mission as a gunner just to<br />
have the chance to shoot down an enemy aircraft. Was that the case here (it cost him his<br />
life)????
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #10 - Operational formation - 6 November, <strong>1944</strong><br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #173<br />
MINDEN, GERMANY<br />
S.W. Felker 460J (7)<br />
C.A. Eggert 099J (5)<br />
LOW LEFT FORMATION<br />
R.R. Bechman 992H (3)<br />
A.D. Johnson 463J (10)<br />
E.M. Sheffield 759J (7)<br />
D.B. Graybeal 727J (1)<br />
R.W. Kraus 972H (8)<br />
J.E. Mlynarczyk (11)<br />
F.R. Genarlsky 820J (5)<br />
C. A. Holt 767J (3)<br />
P. Protich 066J (10)<br />
W.W. Gilbert 678J (2)<br />
W.W. Snavely 348H (9)<br />
C.W. Meining 551J (7)<br />
LEAD FORMATION<br />
A. T. Panchura - 787J (1)<br />
D.L. Thomas 326H (8)<br />
C.P. Quirk 482J (11)<br />
G.E. Franklin 604J (4)<br />
L.C. Barneycastle 799J (3)<br />
J.S. Thomas 083H (5)<br />
W.J. Isaacson 516J (10)<br />
J.A. Jordon 185H (6)<br />
HIGH RIGHT FORMATION<br />
C.W. Billings 599J (1)<br />
M.M. Senkewitz (11)<br />
S.R. Williamson 666J (2)<br />
J.P. Bowers 305H (9)<br />
L.H. Haddock 349J (8)<br />
J.D. Sutton 391H (4)<br />
B.F. Adams 676J (2)<br />
H.E. Matthaes 575H (9)<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 958H (6) - LITTLE JO<br />
G.F. Hillman 699J (4)<br />
J.R. Doralo 556J (6)
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #11 - 10 November, <strong>1944</strong>, Friday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #176<br />
Take-off, 08:30 hours Group planes airborne, 21 ships<br />
Forming altitude, 15000 feet Group planes attacking, 19 ships<br />
Bombing altitude, 22000 feet 1 ship aborted. No ships lost<br />
Length, 7 hours - 20 minutes Escort, P-51's. Fair<br />
Oxygen, 4 hours Fuel load, 2500 gallons<br />
Bomb load, 40 100-lb. Average fuel consumption, 277 GPH<br />
demolition bombs Rowe fuel consumption, 1800 gallons<br />
Temperature, -41 o<br />
Tonnage dropped, 63.0<br />
(average, 246 GPH )<br />
The target was Hanau, Germany, 20 miles east of Frankfurt. The Target was to be an airfield but<br />
due to 10/10 cloud cover we bombed the secondary target, the marshalling yards in the city. Unable to<br />
OLD MAN WINTER HAS ARRIVED - Keeping the snow off the runways was seemingly endless, tiring and<br />
brutally cold work.<br />
observe results. It was a long haul over France. Flak was heavy over Koblenz in the distance. We passed<br />
over our lines at the Moselle river. We could see some barges in the river. No flak over the target. Jerry<br />
shot up some rockets but they were very inaccurate. A lot of snow in France. Due to a malfunction in our<br />
bomb bay, two bombs did not release from their shackles so we had to bring them home. JHZ.<br />
[One of England's harshest winters set-in in November and continued through
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December and January with high winds, rain, fog, bitter cold, snow and mud. Crew strength was at its<br />
peak and housing was a problem. Double-decker beds were required. Coal was scarce. The bitching was<br />
endless. Ship 457J had bomb handle linkage break and did not drop. Bombs would not release<br />
electrically or not salvoe manually. Aborts-224J. Reason-blew #1 cylinder on #3 engine. JCR.]<br />
��<strong>1944</strong>-45 was a<br />
brutally, cold winter; the<br />
worst England had in<br />
many years.<br />
THE GLOSTER METEOR, WHICH ENTERED SERVICE IN BRITAIN’S NO. 616 SQUADRON IN JULY<br />
<strong>1944</strong>, IN SHOWN HERE IN STORAGE. THIS IS THE JET THAT OUR CREW HAD A PRACTICE <strong>MISSION</strong><br />
WITH SO THE GUNNERS COULD GET FAMILIAR WITH THE AMOUNT OF LEAD REQUIRED WHEN<br />
ATTACKED ON ACTUAL <strong>MISSION</strong>S BY THE GERMAN ME262.
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #11 - Operational formation - 10 November, <strong>1944</strong><br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #176<br />
HANAU, GERMANY (G.E. Franklin is shown as flying in both the lead<br />
formation and the high right formation. Is this a co-incidence or a mistake?)<br />
C.A. Platt 185H (7)<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
G.E. Franklin 504J (5)<br />
LEAD FORMATION<br />
J.C. Weaver 520J (3)<br />
GH-furnished by 93rd BG<br />
427H (1)<br />
R.E. Stahl 992H (8)<br />
E.J. Malone 505H (2)<br />
H.S. Spicer 972H (10) H.A. Piper 521H (9)<br />
E.L. Brock 348H (11)<br />
W.T. Hensey 224J (7)<br />
W.T. Hall 349J (5)<br />
J.A. Jordon 246J (4)<br />
HIGH RIGHT FORMATION<br />
C.P. Quirk 435J (3)<br />
P. Protich 457J (10)<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 556J (6) - MOTHER OF TEN<br />
J. Swayze 358J (1)<br />
G.E. Franklin 767J (8)<br />
E.J. Sidey 958H (11)<br />
F.E. Bastian (9)<br />
H.S. Allen 759J (2)<br />
R.H. Wright 516J (4)<br />
R.J. Camburn 551J (6)
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #12 - 27 November, <strong>1944</strong>, Monday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #181<br />
Take-off, 08:35 hours Group planes airborne, 35 ships<br />
Forming altitude, 10000 feet Group planes attacking, 34 ships<br />
Bombing altitude, 26000 feet 1 ship aborted. No ships lost<br />
Length, 7 hours - 10 minutes Escort, P-51's. Good<br />
Oxygen, 4 hours Fuel load ???<br />
Bomb load, 7 500 lb. General purpose Average fuel consumption ???<br />
bombs and 2 500 lb. M-17 incendiaries Rowe fuel consumption ???<br />
Temperature, -35 o<br />
Tonnage dropped, 79.0<br />
The target was Offenburg, Germany, about 15 miles east of Strausbourg, France. We<br />
bombed in support of General Patton's 3rd Army. We bombed marshalling yards across the Rhine<br />
river. Moderate flak over the target. We bombed visually. I watched the bombs go all the way<br />
down to the target. Bombs were concentrated. The area was a huge pall of brownish smoke. Due to<br />
the incendiaries we carried, a great many fires were started. It looked like a lot of colored lights<br />
when they exploded. A good job well<br />
done. Coming back over the Rhine we<br />
were unexpectedly shot at. Flak was<br />
bursting off our right wing and nose. Ugly<br />
looking stuff, black and spreads out like a<br />
mushroom when it explodes. When you<br />
see the red inside of the explosion you<br />
know it's awful damn close. Long haul over<br />
France. Approx- imately 1400 miles<br />
round trip. JHZ.<br />
[Aircraft 298H was behind and<br />
below, stalled his plane and recovered<br />
about 1500 feet below f o r m a t i o n .<br />
Pilot aborted at the IP a n d d i d n o t<br />
b o m b . T h r e e consecutive days of<br />
bombing marshalling PART OF THE HOUSING AREA ON THE SOUTH SIDE. THE MORE yards began on 25<br />
November. We missed PERMANENT LOOKING BUILDINGS WERE FOR ADMINISTRAT- m i s s i o n s t o<br />
ION AND SENIOR BASE OFFICERS. FLIGHT AND GROUND<br />
Bingen(25th) and CREWS WERE HOUSED IN THE METAL NISSEN HUTS.<br />
Neunkirchen(26th),<br />
and to Hamburg (21st), but did fly<br />
today to Offenburg. On the 21 November, S/Sgt. Michael Perkowski of Lt. Sidey's crew was killed<br />
(decapitated) over Hamburg. Joe P. Bower's crew was reported MIA on the 21 November<br />
Hamburg mission. S/Sgt. George L. Allen, flying a mission over Hamburg on November 23rd<br />
received severe penetrating wounds and died at the station hospital on 25 November. On November<br />
25 Bingen mission Lt. Hilman was forced to land in France and was returned to Seething the next<br />
day. Others wounded were Blalock, MacDonald, Munoz, and Givens. JCR.]
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LOCATION PLAN FOR USAAF STATION #146 - SEETHING, ENGLAND<br />
Seething is a very small village about 10 miles Southeast of Norwich in East Anglia. The station’s codename<br />
was “Brightgreen”. Notice that the airfield was located among woods and farmland. Also notice the<br />
marked “communal sites” where housing was located in and among the farmland. Berry’s farm was next<br />
to the bomb storage site; the Tubgate farm was on the end of runway 07; Frog’s Hall farm was just to the<br />
right of Hedenham woods and communal site No. 6.
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #12 - Operational formation - 27 November, <strong>1944</strong><br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #181<br />
OFFENBURG, GERMANY<br />
Microfilm records did not identify the pilots,<br />
only the planes. Neither did my records<br />
indicate which plane I flew on this day.<br />
809J (7)<br />
547J (10) 547J (10)<br />
GH 597H GH(1) 597H (1)<br />
727J (8) 727J (8)<br />
305H (7)<br />
358J (2) 358J (2)<br />
224J (9) 224J (9)<br />
224J (9)<br />
GH 199J (1)<br />
457J (3) H2X 567J (2)<br />
469J (5)<br />
247J (10)<br />
LOW LEFT FORMATION<br />
491J (5)<br />
023H (3)<br />
349J (4)<br />
LEAD FORMATION<br />
498J (6)<br />
435J (8)<br />
066J(9)<br />
288J (4)<br />
819H (6)<br />
HIGH RIGHT FORMATION<br />
489J (5)<br />
678J (3)<br />
809J (7) 520J (8)<br />
298H (7)<br />
GH 355J (1)<br />
453J (9)<br />
H2X 787J (2)<br />
972H (4)<br />
000J (6)<br />
HIGH HIGH RIGHT FORMATION<br />
359H (5)<br />
246J (3)<br />
GH 529J (1)<br />
185H (8)<br />
590J (10) 677J (9)<br />
H2X 544J (2)<br />
302H (4)<br />
391H (6)
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #13 - 30 November, <strong>1944</strong>, Thursday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #183<br />
Take-off, 08:30 hours Group planes airborne, 30 ships<br />
Forming altitude, 10000 feet Group planes attacking, 30 ships<br />
Bombing altitude, 22000 feet No aborts. No losses.<br />
Length, 6 hours - 50 minutes Escort, P-38's and P-47's. Saw 1 P-38<br />
Oxygen, 4 hours Fuel load, 2500 gallons<br />
Bomb load, 44 100 lb. General Purpose Average fuel consumption, 285 GPH<br />
bombs and 2 500 lb. M-17 incendiaries Rowe fuel consumption, 1750 gallons<br />
Temperature, -34 o<br />
Tonnage dropped, 72.0<br />
(average-256 GPH)<br />
The target was Neunkirchen, Germany. Marshalling yards and steel mill on the outskirts of<br />
the city. We bombed in support of General Patton's 3rd Army ten miles away. Neunkirchen is<br />
located ten miles east of Saarbrucken, Germany. When we were forming, we saw at least 1000 or<br />
better B-24's and B-17's ready to go out, at least it seemed that way. The sky was filled with planes.<br />
My heated suit went out again, the second time, wouldn't work and I damn near froze going to and<br />
from the target. We went over France and came back<br />
over Belgium. Cloud cover was 10/10 so we bombed by<br />
H2X. Results unobserved. After we hit the Wing IP,<br />
one B-24 from another Group exploded, cause<br />
unknown. Two chutes opened and one was<br />
observed to be on fire. Flak was meager and very<br />
inaccurate. Four ME-109's came out of the sun but did<br />
not attack. Coming over Great Yarmouth the<br />
Limey's shot at us, why we will never know. I guess<br />
just to scare the hell out of<br />
bomb or two. JHZ.<br />
us. Too bad we didn't save a<br />
[Each Bomb Group now had a couple of<br />
"Mickey Liberators" (H2X) which was a blind bombing<br />
and navigational aid. It was an airborne radar scanner<br />
and gave the operator a crude radar impression of<br />
the ground below on a cathode ray tube. The cover<br />
or code name was "Mickey Mouse", later shortened to<br />
"Mickey". It was more effective on coastal targets<br />
because of the good contrast between water and land.<br />
H2X was a U.S. development at MIT of the British H2S.<br />
H2X used a shorter microwave length for a<br />
sharper picture of the ground. Originally only one<br />
Group had H2X and provided the lead planes for<br />
BTO (bombing through overcast) and was called<br />
PathFinderForce (PFF). It<br />
Force had much better<br />
Air Force, but really did they<br />
This picture shows why H2X for BTO (bombing<br />
through overcast) was so important. The <strong>1944</strong>-45 winter<br />
was very severe. This view also gives a good perspective<br />
on the Davis Wing<br />
was said that the 15th Air<br />
success with it then the 8th<br />
do "twice as well or half as<br />
poorly". On this day one pilot short-cut his check-
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448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
list and found on takeoff that his controls were still locked. He applied brakes but his nose<br />
wheel broke off after leaving the end of the runway. JCR.]
84<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #13 - Operational formation - 30 November, <strong>1944</strong><br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #183<br />
NEUNKIRCHEN, GERMANY<br />
H.O. Holman 247J (7)<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
E.J. Kaidy 341H (5)<br />
W.C. Holden 463J (7)<br />
LOW LEFT FORMATION<br />
C.W. Billings 599J (1)<br />
H.M. Jonson 489J (5)<br />
W.W. Shue 992H (10)<br />
C.H. Holt 469J (3) J.A. Jordon 246J (2)<br />
E.W. Sheffield 288J (8)<br />
P. Protich 066J (10) C.C. Crandall 305H (9)<br />
LEAD FORMATION<br />
McLain-Westover 359J GH (1)<br />
R.W. Stahl 678J (3) A.C. Wight-Mills H2X 505 (2)<br />
E.G. Brock 517J (8)<br />
C.W. Meining 357N (11)<br />
R.W. Johnston 551J (4)<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 677J (7) - BLUES IN THE NIGHT<br />
K.A. Wheeler 491J (5)<br />
H.E. Matthaes 224J (2)<br />
R. Westbrook 520J (9)<br />
J.S. Thomas 083H (4)<br />
B. Hanson 809J (6)<br />
HIGH RIGHT FORMATION<br />
H.E. Meilke 435 (3)<br />
J.E. Corbett 590J (10)<br />
??? 597J (1)<br />
G.E. Franklin 391H (8)<br />
F.W. Tod 298H (11)<br />
J.W. Swayze 787J (2)<br />
H.R. Mulrain 767J (9)<br />
W.J. Isaacson 498J (4)<br />
L.C. Barneycastle 799J (6)
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #14 - 4 December, <strong>1944</strong>, Monday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #184<br />
Take-off, 09:00 hours Tonnage dropped, 57.8<br />
Forming altitude, 16000 feet Group planes airborne, 42 ships<br />
Bombing altitude, 22000 feet Group planes attacking, 35 ships<br />
Length, 7 hours - 30 minutes 5 ships aborted-No ships lost<br />
Oxygen, 4 hours - 30 minutes Fuel load, 2500 gallons<br />
Bomb load, 10 500 lb. General Purpose bombs Average fuel consumption, 291 GPH<br />
and 2 500 lb. M-17 incendiaries Rowe fuel consumption, 2100 gallons<br />
Temperature, -34 o<br />
(average-280 GPH)<br />
Koblenz, Germany. The primary target was to be Bebra, Germany marshaling yards about<br />
40 miles east of Kassel. If the target was obscured, which it was, we were to bomb Koblenz on<br />
the Rhine River. We got shot at going over the Rhine near Koblenz on our way to Bebra. After<br />
wandering all over central Germany, we headed back to Koblenz, our secondary target. We were<br />
flying lead in the bucket, 1st Squadron. On the bomb run, the lead ship along with every one else<br />
was throwing out chaff to mess up the German radar wave lengths they were emitting. The box<br />
(container) did not separate from the chaff in one of the boxes as it was released from a ship<br />
THE OUTSTANDING GERMAN JET - ME262<br />
THE MESSERSCHMITT 262 HAS BEEN CALLED “A FAILED POTENTIAL”. GERMANY FAILED TO CONCENTRATE ON ITS<br />
PRODUCTION AS A FIGHTER AIRCRAFT BECAUSE HITLER THOUGHT IT HAD POTENTIAL AS A BOMBER. SEE PAGE 69 AND<br />
86 FOR THE BRITISH TWIN JET FIGHTER. THE BRITISH DEVELOPING THEIR JET-PROPELLED AIRPLANE ABOUT THE SAME<br />
TIME AS THE GERMANS (SEE THE EPILOGUE LATER IN THIS REPORT FOR THE BRITISH EXPERIMENTAL SINGLE JET<br />
AIRPLANE THAT FIRST FLEW IN MAY 1941.)<br />
ahead of us, came flying back and hit our top plexiglass turret where the flight engineer (John<br />
Roche) was riding. It shattered into a million pieces. A loud bang echoed throughout the ship<br />
when we got hit. Everyone thought we received a direct hit by flak. Fortunately, John was<br />
wearing his steel flak helmet and did not sustain any head injuries. Plexiglass was scattered all
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448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
over the flight deck and into the bomb bay where I was crouching at the time. And fortunately<br />
the box did not hit a propeller or lodge in one of the engines. About this time the lead ship<br />
dropped a marker bomb which left a twin plume of smoke so that the trailing ships arriving<br />
would salvo on the marker bomb for a more concentrated bomb pattern. The prop wash from<br />
the lead ship blew smoke up through and into our open bomb bay doors. We again thought we<br />
were hit and on fire over the target. Our flight engineer, John, came flying out of his seat in the<br />
top turret and in doing so pulled his oxygen hose loose from its connection jack. He got out on<br />
the catwalk between the bomb racks with a hand held fire extinguisher. The bomb bay doors<br />
were open and he had no parachute attached to his harness. He almost passed out from lack of<br />
oxygen. I grabbed him by the harness and held on for dear life, yelling through my intercom for<br />
help. The bombardier (Oscar) came crawling back from the nose and plugged his oxygen back<br />
to the supply source. All the time the flak was bursting all around us. We dropped the bombs by<br />
THE GLOSTER METEOR F-1 IN FLIGHT - A BRITISH JET FIGHTER<br />
THE GLOSTER METEOR ENTERED SERVICE IN BRITAIN’S NO.616 SQUADRON IN JULY <strong>1944</strong>. SEE PAGE 75 FOR ANOTHER<br />
PICTURE OF THIS PLANE IN STORAGE. THIS TWIN JET WAS AN IMPROVED VERSION OF THE EXPERIMENTAL SINGLE JET<br />
GLOSTER E28/39 SHOWN ON PAGE 270 IN THE EPILOGUE. ANOTHER PICTURE OF THE ABOVE TWIN JET IS ALSO SHOWN<br />
ON PAGE 271 IN THE EPILOGUE.<br />
H2X through 10/10-cloud cover. Flak was moderate but very accurate. Coming out of<br />
Germany, we came back via Belgium. We could see Brussels, which looked like a very<br />
beautiful city. One ship had to land near Brussels due to flak damage and another due to a low<br />
fuel supply, not enough to get back across the channel and back to base. JHZ.<br />
[Chaff was thin strips of material similar to aluminum foil and was effective in hiding<br />
the bomber formation from the radar screen. However, German spotter planes could usually be<br />
seen reporting our altitude, which resulted in massive accurate flak barrages over the target<br />
and was an increasing dread of the bomber crews. As Allied and Russian successes reduced the<br />
area controlled by the Germans, there was a greater concentration of anti-aircraft fire. This<br />
concentrated centralized control of firepower with radar aiming (in lieu of the old optical<br />
method) was also an increasing concern of combat crews. When you can see the fire and hear<br />
the bursting flak over the roar of the engines, you know it is too damn close. Three ships were
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hit and landed in France. They were Lt. Malkus Horton, Lt. Albert Sanders and Lt. C.W.<br />
Meining. 809J did not attack, jettisoned bombs but stayed in formation. 349J accidentally<br />
released bombs at the IP. 678J left formation at French coast with #1 engine out. 391H (off our<br />
right wing left formation with #1,2,&3 generators out. 799J, 305H, & 520J aborted before<br />
assembly with prop governor stuck, manifold pressure gauge inoperative, & oil leak in #3<br />
engine. 819H flew with 93rd BG and 516J flew with 453rd BG. Bruce was not with us on this<br />
trip. He flew as first pilot with another crew to monitor their air-fuel mixture procedures and<br />
improve their Gallons Per Hour fuel consumption. JCR.]<br />
LT. MAINS AND CREW DOWNED BY FLAK<br />
LT. ROBERT L. MAINS AND CREW HIT AMIDSHIPS BY ANTI-AIRCRAFT FIRE. NOTE FIRE IN #3 ENGINE, HOLE IN THE WING<br />
AND WHAT APPEARS TO BE A WAIST GUNNER IN MID-AIR. SGT. CUPP WAS THE SOLE SURVIVOR, RECEIVED A SEVERE<br />
BEATING BY CIVILIANS WHO ALSO ATTEMPTED TO SHOOT HIM WITH HIS OWN PISTOL , BUT IT WAS NOT LOADED.<br />
THEY WERE DOWNED ON APRIL 4, 1945 ON A <strong>MISSION</strong> TO GERMAN AIRFIELD AT WESENDORF, GERMANY. WE HAD<br />
FINISHED OUR TOUR AND WERE NO LONGER THERE BUT HAD FLOWN IN 13 OTHER <strong>MISSION</strong>S WITH THIS CREW.<br />
(The first Jet aircraft, both Me262s and the Gloster Meteors did not have great range. Range was less<br />
important to the Me262 because we had to go to them. The Gloster Meteor did give American airmen a<br />
chance to try out new tactics against the increasing menace of the Me262. In January 1945 after the<br />
continent was invaded, four British Jets were stationed at Melsbroek, Holland. In April, British<br />
Squadron 616 stationed the Gloster Meteor at Nijmegen, Holland and Quackenbruk, Germany.<br />
Numerous attacks were carried out by Squadron 616 on enemy vehicles, armour, airfields, and other<br />
ground targets but no aerial combat between Meteors and Me262s was recorded. JCR.)
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448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II
89<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #14 - Operational formation - 4 December, <strong>1944</strong><br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #184<br />
KOBLENZ, GERMANY<br />
J.M. Madden ???? (7)<br />
S.H. Hodgson 455J (3)<br />
J.A. Jordon 246J (5)<br />
LOW LEFT SQUADRON<br />
C.E. Francis 288J (3)<br />
E.J. Kaidy 341H (5)<br />
M. Holman 457J (10)<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
M.L. Johnson 620J (1)<br />
C.C. Crandall 469J (8)<br />
A.L. Sander 435J (12)<br />
LEAD SQUADRON<br />
GH 529J (1)<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 302H (8)-OUR HONEY<br />
H.R. Mulrain 298H (10) F.W. Tod 391H (9)<br />
E.M. Jones H2X 587J (2)<br />
P. Protich 066J (4)<br />
D.L. Durbin 247J (11)<br />
J.J. Caldwell 489J (5)<br />
J.R. Cook 556J (7)<br />
W.D. Smith 677J (11)<br />
E.J. Malone H2X 505J (2)<br />
G.E. Franklin 504J (4)<br />
HIGH RIGHT SQUADRON<br />
J.J. Shafter 463J (3)<br />
I.W. Ruge 099J (10)<br />
GH 597J (1)<br />
J.B. Brown 678J (8)<br />
H.S. Smith 491J (6)<br />
S.R. Williamson H2X 787J (2)<br />
I. Smarinsky 000J (9)<br />
HIGH HIGH RIGHT SQUADRON<br />
W.D. Hensey 498J (3)<br />
O.L. Daenzer 460J (4)<br />
G.E. Hande 599J (1)<br />
M.S. Horton 676J (2)<br />
R.J. Camburn 224J (5) C.W. Meining 083H<br />
F.C. Reynolds 809J (8)<br />
D.F. Land 357J (10) W. Hall 349J (9)<br />
A.S. Broadfoot 551J (11)<br />
E.C. Voight 517J (6)
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448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #15 - "Peace on earth and good will towards men."<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #190 Christmas Day, 25 December, <strong>1944</strong>, Monday<br />
Take-off, 08:26 hours Group planes attacking, 20 ships<br />
Forming altitude, 12000 feet 1 ship aborted. No ships lost<br />
Bombing altitude, 22000 feet Tonnage dropped, 55.5<br />
Length, 4 hours - 55 minutes Escort, P-51's. Fair<br />
Oxygen, 2 hours Fuel load, 2500 gallons<br />
Bomb load, 20 250-lb. General Purpose Average fuel consumption, 306 GPH<br />
Bombs and 2 500 lb. M-17 incendiaries Rowe fuel consumption, 1540 gallons<br />
Temperature, -34 o<br />
Group planes airborne, 32 ships<br />
(average 310 GPH)<br />
The target was Brudesheim, Germany or a target of opportunity, which happened to be a<br />
crossroads 9 miles NNE of Waxweiler, Germany, near a village, called Prum. We bombed in support of<br />
The deadly Messerschmitt Bf100G, radar equipped to detect enemy bombers at night. It has obliquely mounted<br />
cannon not visible in this photo, & could be fired directly from beneath a bomber. Another little enemy.
91<br />
General Hodges 1st Army to break up the German counter offensive (Battle of the Bulge) in Belgium.<br />
We hit individual targets. Ours was a marshalling yards in Waxweiler. The lead ship screwed up and<br />
took us over the wrong target and we did not drop. We hit a concentration of rolling stock at a crossroads<br />
instead. Results were concentrated and on target. Other Groups and Squadrons obliterated other targets.<br />
Bombing was done visually. We could see what appeared to be muzzle flashes from the artillery and<br />
tanks. Most crossroads and towns were zeroed in. Flak was meager and inaccurate. The Germans shot up<br />
about 15 rockets. We came<br />
back without mishap. This<br />
was the day that General<br />
Rundsteds counter offensive<br />
began to grind to a halt. No<br />
ships were lost. JHZ.<br />
[Microfilm records<br />
show the Low Left Squadron<br />
could not identify its target<br />
and 10 of the 11 aircraft<br />
brought their bombs back. As<br />
Joe points out above, we<br />
evidently were the only<br />
aircraft to drop. 819H flew<br />
with the 389th BG. 482J flew<br />
with the 96th CW. 556J flew<br />
with the 2nd CW. 247H<br />
a b o r t e d b e c a u s e # 4<br />
supercharger was out and<br />
pilot could not keep up with<br />
formation. 083H did not<br />
drop because BB doors froze<br />
up. Winter had Europe in an<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
LOCAL AND REFUGEE CHILDREN AT SEETHING AIRBASE CHRISTMAS<br />
PARTY.<br />
icy-grip and is the reason Rundsted began his offensive. When we arrived back at base landing was<br />
hazardous as a thin cold mist shrouded the countryside with frost and freezing fog. On many bases<br />
Control Towers could not even see the runways. For the next 6 days planes tookoff on icy runways and<br />
assembled in snowstorms. Ground crews worked through the night to clear snow off the runways. The<br />
troops in "The Bulge" needed all the help they could get and the bombers were the only forces available.<br />
The thing I remember about this Christmas day is that Christmas dinner was all gone but I cannot recall<br />
what substitute dinner they prepared for us. Seething airbase entertained a host of refuge English<br />
children away from their homes in the war zones on this Christmas day. They had turkey, pumpkin pie<br />
and all the other trimmings. Many had 2 and 3 helpings. This was one "warrior" that didn't mind doing<br />
without his turkey and in fact wish I could have been there with the children.<br />
The previous day (24 December) was a stand-down for our crew, except for Richard Best who<br />
was flying a catch-up mission. Since the 19th, fog had prevented any help for the Army in "The Bulge". It<br />
lifted and on the 24th the 448th put up its largest force ever (53 bombers) to Euskirchen (15 miles SE of<br />
Cologne). No flak and no fighters were encountered on the way to the target, but just 20 minutes after<br />
intense, accurate and heavy flak hit the Group. Lt. L.C. Barneycastle, flying off Richard's right wing, got<br />
flak bursts that started a fire in his right wing. Diving to put out the fire, the wing severed. Five chutes<br />
were seen. JCR.]
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93<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #15 - Operational formation - 25 December, <strong>1944</strong><br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #190<br />
WAXWEILER, GERMANY<br />
J.E. Mlynarczyk 298H (5)<br />
I. Smarinsky 455J (7)<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
R.L. Mains 516J (7)<br />
J.S. Thomas 083H (3)<br />
C.W. Meining 551J (5)<br />
D. Stubner 575H(10)<br />
LOW LEFT SQUADRON<br />
W. Bobak 302H (3)<br />
C.A. Platt 806J (1)<br />
W.C. Holden 767J (8)<br />
LEAD SQUADRON<br />
H2X 075J (1)<br />
B. Hanson 809J (8)<br />
A.D. Johnson 599J (2)<br />
G.E. Franklin 185H (4)<br />
S.J. Furey 666J (2)<br />
H.H. Schroeder 678J (9)<br />
M.A. Baratz 391H (6)<br />
H.L. Smith 491J (10) JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 677J (9) - BLUES IN THE NIGHT<br />
J.A. Jordon 246J (11)<br />
HIGH RIGHT SQUADRON<br />
E.M. Sheffield 288J (3)<br />
J.B. Brown 460J (5)<br />
H.G. Solden 498J (4)<br />
H.E. Doane H2X1745J (1)<br />
C.P. Quirk 1489J(8)<br />
J.J. Shafter 224J (6)<br />
J.J.Caldwell 620J (2)<br />
W. Robert 469J (10) D.S. Anderson 521H (9)<br />
P. Protich 305H (4)
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448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #16 - 2 January, 1945, <strong>Tuesday</strong><br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #194<br />
Take-off, 08:21 hours Group planes attacking, 28 ships<br />
Forming altitude, 12000 feet 1 abort. No ships lost<br />
Bombing altitude, 22000 feet Tonnage dropped, 75.5<br />
Length, 6 hours- 10 minutes Escort, P-51's. Very good<br />
Oxygen, 2 hours, 30 minutes Fuel load, 2500 gallons<br />
Bomb load, 6 1000 lb. General Purpose bombs Average fuel consumption, 301 GPH<br />
Temperature, -35 o<br />
Rowe fuel consumption, 1680 gallons<br />
Group planes airborne, 29 ships (average 272 GPH)<br />
The target was Neuwed, Germany marshalling yards in the Koblenz area. We went over<br />
Osnabruck, Germany, then straight south to the target. There was 10/10-cloud cover, all the way to<br />
the target. We dropped on the lead ships smoke bomb marker. Results unobserved. Great fighter<br />
support. Six groups of P-51's all around the bomber stream. No flak at the target or enroute. After<br />
bombs away, the<br />
Germans shot up about a<br />
dozen rockets, very<br />
inaccurate. No losses<br />
incurred. About 1000<br />
bombers out all over<br />
Germany today. We<br />
came home over<br />
Belgium and when we<br />
arrived over our base it<br />
was completely "socked<br />
in". We turned and<br />
headed back toward the<br />
North Sea for our<br />
normal let down<br />
procedure, peeling off<br />
and coming in for an<br />
instrument approach.<br />
AIRMAIL DELIVERY INTO THE HEART OF GERMANY<br />
500 POUNDERS ON THEIR WAY TO THE MARSHALLING YARDS, AN<br />
IMPORTANT AND FREQUENT TARGET. A SHOWER OF BOMBS FOLLOW THE<br />
SMOKE MARKER.<br />
We couldn't even see<br />
our wing tips, the fog<br />
was so thick. A few<br />
ships collided and blew<br />
up as we crisscrossed<br />
landing patterns. What a job John and Bruce did to bring us down safely. After all we had the best<br />
Pilot and Co-pilot in the E.T.O. It sure felt good when we could feel our landing gear on the runway.<br />
Sometimes coming back and getting on the ground was as rough as the missions. A job well-done<br />
today. JHZ.<br />
[Microfilm records show us with a mission time of 1 hour less than the official records given
95<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
to me when I departed<br />
Seething. Microfilm records<br />
show several with 1 hour less<br />
than many others on same<br />
m i ssion s o t h e f u e l<br />
consumption average of 301<br />
GPH is overstated. 083H<br />
aborted formation early with<br />
#3 engine out.<br />
Descending is like<br />
formation assembly in<br />
reverse. The Division<br />
separates into Wings, Wings<br />
into Groups. The Groups<br />
proceed to their bases and<br />
then according to their<br />
formation position separate<br />
for landing into Squadrons,<br />
Squadrons into flights (6 ships)<br />
and flights into elements (3<br />
ships). When one bomber<br />
would be turning off the<br />
HELPING HANDS REMOVE A WOUNDED WAIST GUNNER.<br />
Note Lt. Col. Judy (in field jacket) assisting the litter-bearers to get the<br />
gunner to the waiting ambulance.<br />
runway, another was rolling down the last half and another was touching down with the rest of<br />
the Group stretched out at appropriate intervals for a spaced landing. No battle losses today,<br />
but upon arrival back to base we learned that a 715th Squadron B-24 on a training flight<br />
slammed into a hill in Lancashire with 2nd Lt. Orvil Castro and 1st Lt. Jim Fields and a crew<br />
of three aboard. JCR.]<br />
THE LANCASTER<br />
AN OUTSTANDING<br />
BRITISH HEAVY<br />
BOMBER.
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97<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #16 - Operational formation - 2 January, 1945<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #194<br />
NEUWED, GERMANY<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 992H (5)-DEAD END KIDS<br />
A.B. Sanders 326H (7)<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
D.R. Durbin 972H (7)<br />
E.M. Sheffield (5)<br />
A.C. Wight 870J (3)<br />
R. Westbrook 1489J (10)<br />
LOW LEFT FORMATION<br />
P.J. Jones 302H (3)<br />
J.M. Ray 455J (10)<br />
R. Hambleton 806J (1)<br />
J.M. Madden 185H (8)<br />
W.C. Holden 677J (11)<br />
LEAD FORMATION<br />
GH (1)<br />
D.S. Anderson 521H (8)<br />
F.J. Hahner 358J (2)<br />
F.W. Tod 298H (9)<br />
J.J. Shafter 516J (7)<br />
E. Furnace 391H (4)<br />
R.J. Camburn 772J (5)<br />
GH (2)<br />
R.A. Soldlberg 482J (9)<br />
N.S. Harris 246J (6)<br />
P. Protich 517J GH (4)<br />
K.B. Stalland 341H (6)<br />
HIGH RIGHT FORMATION<br />
C.F. Land 224J (10)<br />
J. Caldwell H2X 525J (1)<br />
H.H. Schroeder 556J (3) J.S. Solden 599J (2)<br />
B. Hanson 809J (8)<br />
W.F. Voight 498J (9)<br />
A.S. Broadfoot 678J (4)
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448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #17 - 3 January, 1945, Wednesday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #195<br />
Take-off, 08:42 Group planes attacking, 28 ships<br />
Forming altitude, 12000 feet 1 ship aborted. No losses<br />
Bombing altitude, 22000 feet Tonnage dropped, 76.3<br />
Length, 6 hours - 15 minutes Escort, P-51's. Good<br />
Oxygen, 2 hours - 30 minutes Fuel load, 2500 gallons<br />
Bomb load, 12 500-lb. General Purpose Average fuel consumption, 272 GPH<br />
Bombs and a 100 lb. Marker Rowe fuel consumption, 1750 gallons<br />
Temperature, -33 o<br />
Group planes airborne, 29 ships.<br />
(average 268 GPH)<br />
TRYING TO KEEP WARM IN A NISSEN HUT - Notice the small stove. There was one in each hut. We were<br />
allowed one bucket of coal per week. We finally rigged up a contraption that burned used aircraft oil as it dripped<br />
onto some used bricks. Penalties for burning wood taken from nearby British woods was very severe.<br />
Neunkirchen, Germany. Our second trip to Neunkirchen. We went after the marshaling<br />
yards again. We flew across France and into the target near Saarbrucken, Germany. We bombed in<br />
support of General Hodges 1st Army. Bombing was by GH. The target was obscured by 10/10 cloud<br />
cover and we could not observe our results. We flew second squadron deputy lead. No flak or
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fighters. While we were forming over England, we saw contrails from a V-2 fired at England.<br />
Ships in our squadron dropped on our release of the 100 lb. smoke bomb that we carried along<br />
with the rest of the load. JHZ. (G.E. Franklin in 185H and J. Swayze in 666J did not return<br />
from mission with the formation but landed in France. J. F. Steffan in 498J aborted over the<br />
channel with #1 engine out.<br />
Instead of refineries, chemical plants, aerodromes, factories etc., we went after<br />
marshaling yards the last few missions in support of the ground army. German marhsaling<br />
yards were very busy in supplying the retreating German Army and Rundsted’s Ardennes<br />
ON THE TOWER SWEATING THE BOMBERS HOME ON YOUR DAY OFF<br />
offensive. GH was a blind bombing and navigational aid which made use of signals from<br />
ground stations for bombing through overcast. It measured the distance from two known points<br />
and was accurate up to 350 miles. With allied ground forces advancing through France and the<br />
low countries, mobile transmitters could be used as ground stations to transmit the signals. The<br />
name of the smoke bomb was Sky Marker. It was an acid giving a smoke-like appearance that<br />
looked like a long finger pointing down from the point of release all the way to the target. This<br />
evening two V-1 “buzz bombs” came over the field. You could hear the motor cut-off and it<br />
landed just south of the Seething airfield. JCR.)
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101<br />
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #17 - Operational formation - 3 January, 1945<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #195<br />
NEUNKIRCHEN, GERMANY<br />
W.W. Shue 482J (7)<br />
S.H. Hodgson ??? (7)<br />
H.S. Smith 246J (5)<br />
S.F. Furey 870J (3)<br />
M.A. Baratz 298H (10)<br />
LOW LEFT SQUADRON<br />
S.R. Williamson H2X 805J (1)<br />
LEAD SQUADRON<br />
GH (1)<br />
G.F. Hillman 556J (8)<br />
G.E. Franklin 185H (11)<br />
E.M. Sheffield 469J (3) JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 358J (2)<br />
J.R. Cook 992H (5)<br />
W.D. Holman ??? (10)<br />
R. Westbrook 460J (8)<br />
D.S. Anderson 521H (11)<br />
K.C. Stalland 326J (9)<br />
P.G. O’Neil 972H (4)<br />
GH (2)<br />
P.J. Jones 517J (9)<br />
F.J. Hahner 341H (6)<br />
F.R. Piliere 551J (5)<br />
W.C. Holden 677J (4)<br />
I. Smarinsky 391H (6)<br />
HIGH RIGHT SQUADRON<br />
C.W. Meining ??? (3)<br />
J. Swayze 666J (1)<br />
S.F. Land 224J (8)<br />
R.J. Camburn 599J (2)<br />
I.W. Ruge 772J (10) F.E. Bastian 809J (9)<br />
J.F. Steffan 498J (11)<br />
F.C. Reynolds 678J (4)
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #18 - 6 January, 1945, Saturday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #197<br />
Take-off, 08:10 Group planes attacking, 30 ships<br />
Forming altitude, 14000 feet 2 ships aborted. 1 ship lost.<br />
Bombing altitude, 20000 feet Tonnage dropped, 82.1<br />
Length, 6 hours - 10 minutes Escort, P-51's. Good<br />
Oxygen, 4 hours - 30 minutes Fuel load, 2500 gallons<br />
Bomb load, 22 250-lb. General Purpose Average fuel consumption, 296 GPH<br />
bombs & 2 500 lb. M-17 incendiaries Rowe fuel consumption, 1950 gallons<br />
Temperature, -34 o<br />
Group planes airborne, 32 ships.<br />
(average 316 GPH)<br />
Target was Koblenz, Germany. We went after marshalling yards again. It seemed<br />
everything went wrong. The interphone went dead over Belgium. I fixed it before we got to the<br />
target and on the bomb run. The right bomb bay door did not open but the left one did, so we<br />
dropped one half of our load. Cloud cover was 10/10 over the target. Results unobserved.<br />
AN ESCORT OF P-47S - ORIGINALLY AN ESCORT OF P-47S COULD STAY WITH THE BOMBERS FOR ONLY 150 MILES<br />
BEYOND THE ENGLISH COAST. THEN ALONG CAME THE P-51 WHICH COULD SEE THE BOMBERS ALL THE WAY TO BERLIN.<br />
WHEN HERMANN GOERING SAW P-51’S OVER BERLIN IN MARCH <strong>1944</strong> HE REPORTEDLY SAID “WE HAVE LOST THE WAR”<br />
Bombed by H2X. The interphone went dead again; set up emergency interphone and it worked<br />
till we got back to base. Beautiful P-51 escort, they were all over the sky. Contrails from the<br />
bombers were heavy at our altitude. No flak encountered but a few rockets were shot up in the<br />
target area. While we were at forming altitude over England, we saw several V-2 contrails as they<br />
were headed for England. We also saw one over the target area. Coming back to our base, it was<br />
practically "socked in". We made an instrument letdown as we could barely see the runway. We<br />
came in hot and fast. Touchdown at over 120 MPH and used up 3/4th of the runway, turning on
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448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
to the perimeter doing better than 40 MPH or at least it seemed that fast. I thought our right<br />
landing gear was going to snap off as we made the turn. We were all sweating it out before John<br />
our pilot and Bruce our co-pilot<br />
got things under control. JHZ.<br />
[We got back to base about<br />
14:30 hours and made an<br />
instrument landing in blowing<br />
snow. We used a new system<br />
recently installed called SCS-51<br />
(Signal Corps Set 51). It<br />
included a Runway Localizer<br />
Transmitter, a Glidepath<br />
Transmitter and three Marker<br />
Transmitters (one outer marker<br />
4.5 miles from point of landing,<br />
one middle marker 1 mile from<br />
point of landing, and one<br />
boundary marker 200 feet from<br />
COL. JUDY’S P-47 WAS USED AS A FORMATION CHASE<br />
AIRCRAFT.<br />
compass, the pilot sets the altimeter to<br />
the current barometric pressure, then<br />
he intercepts and aligns with the<br />
runway via the Runway Localizer beam<br />
(vertical needle on the cockpit<br />
instrument). Then when the Glidepath<br />
Transmitter beam was intersected<br />
(registered on the same instrument by a<br />
horizontal needle), the pilot began a<br />
uniform rate of descent on the approach<br />
by maintaining the two crossed needles<br />
in the center of the instrument. The pilot<br />
kept an eye on the altimeter and the<br />
crossed needles, and the marker beacon<br />
lights would flash as you crossed each<br />
beacon letting you now how far you<br />
were from the approach end of the<br />
runway.<br />
approach end of runway. After<br />
homing to base by radio<br />
448TH ON WAY TO OSNABRUCK<br />
Notice the fighter contrails above the formation. Are they friend or enemy?<br />
Lt. F. R. Piliere left formation over the channel with #1 engine out. Lost oil in hole in<br />
rocker arm box. Lt. R. Sampson lost oil in #1 engine and feathered it. Then had to feather #2<br />
due to oil loss. Started #2 again but severe vibration required refeathering. Jettisoned bombs<br />
over channel and bailed out over England. Lt. G. F. Hillman flying 590J landed in France with<br />
problems. Due to weather Lt. C.P. Quirk (589J), Lt. E.G. Byolk (270H), and Lt. F.C. Reynolds<br />
landed at Rackheath instead of Seething. JCR.]
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105<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #18 - Operational formation - 6 January, 1945<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #197<br />
KOBLENZ, GERMANY<br />
P.J. Jones 391H (7)<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
W.D. Smith 677J (5)<br />
D.S. Anderson 521H (7)<br />
LEAD FORMATION<br />
W.L. Voight 460J (3)<br />
W.W. Snavely H2X 525J (1)<br />
GH 066J (2)<br />
P.G. O’Neil 972J (5) C.P. Quirk 589J (4)<br />
R. Westbrook 767J (8)<br />
W.W. Shue 1489J (10) J.R. Cook 305H (9)<br />
LOW LEFT FORMATION<br />
E. Furnace 298H (3)<br />
F.W. Tod 302H (10)<br />
L.F. Furey H2X 544J (1)<br />
J. Ray 992H (8)<br />
K.D. Stalland (11)<br />
J.M. Madden 246J (2)<br />
W. Bobak 491J (9)<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 455J (11) - Wag’s Wagon<br />
G.F. Hillman 590J (4)<br />
G.F. Land 224J (7)<br />
E.G. Byolk 270H (6)<br />
R.J. Camburn 000J (5)<br />
M.R. Hallmann 247J (6)<br />
HIGH RIGHT FORMATION<br />
C.W. Meining 745J (3)<br />
E.J. Malone H2X 870J (1)<br />
F.C. Reynolds 678J (8)<br />
E.M. Wall 809J (2)<br />
J.S. Thomas 551J (10) V.E. Hoyer 516J (9)<br />
F.E. Bastian 941H (4)
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #19 - 7 January, 1945, Sunday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #198<br />
Take-off, 09:03 hours Group planes airborne, 31 ships.<br />
Forming altitude, 14000 feet Group planes attacking, 30 ships<br />
Bombing altitude, 22000 feet 1 abort. 1 ship lost<br />
Length, 6 hours, 20 minutes Tonnage dropped, 83.8<br />
Oxygen, 3 hours, 30 minutes Fuel load, 2500 gallons<br />
Bomb load, 20 250-lb. General Purpose Bombs Average fuel consumption, 286 GPH<br />
& 2 500 lb. M-17 incendiaries Rowe fuel consumption, 1865<br />
Temperature, -38 o<br />
gallons<br />
(average 294 GPH)<br />
Target was a road junction and highway bridge at Aehern, Germany, five miles from<br />
Strasbourg, France. We bombed in support of the ground forces to smash the German counter<br />
offensive. All the way to the target area the clouds were 10/10. Right over the target it was visual.<br />
We hit marshalling yards dead on. I could see the bombs all the way down. We really smothered<br />
the target. Bombs were bursting all over the place. Incendiaries looked like a bunch of Christmas<br />
tree lights blinking. Huge palls of smoke and fires engulfed the target. We did a very thorough<br />
THERE WERE SOME SPECTACULAR CRASHES - AND SOME WILL NOT FLY AGAIN.<br />
job, no need to go back there again. No flak over the target. Twenty minutes over enemy territory.<br />
Good mission. JHZ.<br />
[Lt. F.R. Piliere (349J) had heavy flak damage and landed in France. Lt. S. Hailey<br />
(819H) landed at Rackheath. Lt. P.J. Jones (491H) aborted at assembly with #4 engine failure.<br />
On the way out after the target, several planes were hit and the one flown by Lt. Paul O'Neil was
107<br />
downed by flak. JCR.]<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
POST WAR RESEARCH ON SHOOT DOWN OF PAUL J. O’NEIL CREW<br />
Our crew flew on 3 of the same missions with Lt. O’Neil and his crew, including this<br />
one on which his crew was reported as MIA (Missing In Action). There was no flak over the<br />
target. He was hit and downed by flak after leaving the target, but I have not been able to find<br />
any information about the loss of this crew. His disappearance is a complete mystery. The<br />
National Archives informs me they have no MACR on this loss. They did refer me to certain<br />
individual case files at Montuary Affairs and Casualty Support Division, HODA (DAPC-PED-<br />
F) 2461 Eisenhower Avenue, Hoffman Building 1, Alexandria, VA. 22331-0482 – telephone<br />
703-3225-5300, but they had no information. Even though they were flying over occupied<br />
territory, it appears that no trace or pieces of their plane were ever found. It seems impossible<br />
they would fly over several hundred miles of French territory and then ditch in 30 miles of<br />
NOT ALL DAMAGE WAS CAUSED BY THE ENEMY. MANY CRASHES OCCURRED IN ENGLAND.<br />
HERE A CREW COMES TO GRIEF IN A SEA OF MUD AT SEETHING.<br />
English Channel. Cloud cover was 10/10 with merging cloud layers and they would have had<br />
difficulty using dead reckoning. If their navigation instruments were also damaged by the flak,<br />
they may have thought they were heading north to England, but may have being going west<br />
over the Atlantic ocean. Their loss without any trace or evidence of a damaged plane or pieces<br />
of the plane is a complete mystery.
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109<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #19 - Operational formation - 7 January, 1945<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #198<br />
AEHERN, GERMANY<br />
M.E. Matthaes 551J (5)<br />
J.J. Shafter 516J (7)<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
R.M. Ray 298H (3)<br />
LEAD FORMATION<br />
GH (1)<br />
W.H. Wilhelmi H2X 544J (2)<br />
W.C. Holden 992H (5) JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 556J (4) - MOTHER OF TEN<br />
E.G. Brock 391H (10)<br />
LOW LEFT FORMATION<br />
H.E. Doane H2X 075J (1)<br />
H.G. Solden 0745J (3) J. Thompson 727J (2)<br />
D.C. Stubner 000J (11)<br />
B. Hansen 809J (9)<br />
F.R. Piliere 349J (12)<br />
H. Hausman 941J (10)<br />
W. Bobak 455J (8)<br />
S.L. Winters 247J (4)<br />
A.C. Hardies 224J (6)<br />
J.R. Cook 288J (7)<br />
F.W. Tod 302H (9)<br />
J.M. Madden ??? (8)<br />
J.C. Weaver 460J (5)<br />
HIGH RIGHT FORMATION<br />
W.W. Shue 1489J (2)<br />
A.C. Wight H2X 806J (1)<br />
H.M. Jonson 358J (8)<br />
E.A. Soldberg 620J (2)<br />
M.D. Holman 341H (10) J.W. Guynes 767J (9)<br />
P.J. O’Neil 972H (4)<br />
S. Hailey 819J (6)
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> - Aborted - 10 January, 1945, Wednesday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #199<br />
We assembled with the Group and headed for Weweler, Germany in the Ardennes, but<br />
the waist gunner’s oxygen mask froze. A detachment of about 150 men was required to remove<br />
the night's snowfall from the runways. Weather was frigid. We had to leave formation about 30<br />
miles off the English coast (52 23N - 02 25E) with temperatures of -50 degrees. No spare mask<br />
was carried aboard ship. I do not know if it was Charlie's or Cliff's. Total flying time was 04:10<br />
hours. No credit was given for this flight. Seven ships did not attack. Extreme cold caused<br />
bomb bay doors to freeze, ice formed over switches, turbos froze, etc. Headquarters staff calls<br />
the frozen mask a<br />
"personnel error".<br />
The personnel<br />
error rightfully<br />
b e l o n g s w i t h<br />
G r o u p h e a d -<br />
quarters for not<br />
h a v i n g t h e<br />
equipment room<br />
furnish spare<br />
masks in this kind<br />
of tricky weather. I<br />
am reminded of a<br />
statement by one<br />
airman who said<br />
“If we lastest long<br />
enough they gave<br />
us medals but if we<br />
died they said<br />
casualties were<br />
few.”<br />
Lt. George<br />
Franklin and Lt.<br />
George Hillman<br />
landed in Belgium<br />
When given a 72 hour pass, most airmen headed for London. This is Piccadilly<br />
Circus during the war years.<br />
with damaged<br />
a i r c r a f t . A t<br />
Seething, the<br />
airfield was not visible, being hid by a snowstorm about one mile high and 8 miles wide. The<br />
storm eased somewhat and nine planes landed with flares along the runway but the storm again<br />
intensified and the remaining B-24's landed at other airfields west of Norwich. The snow turned<br />
to rain and then the slush penetrated everyone's shoes. Our overshoes had been previously taken<br />
from us for the soldiers at the front. The weather grounded the 448th for two days.
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> # 20 - 13 January, 1945, Saturday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #200<br />
Take- off, 09:41 hours Group planes attacking, 30 ships<br />
Forming altitude, 10000 feet 2 ships aborted. 1 ship MIA.<br />
Bombing altitude, 20000 feet Tonnage dropped, 82.5<br />
Length, 6 hours - 50 minutes Escort, P-51's. Good<br />
Oxygen, 4 hours - 30 minutes Fuel load, 2500 gallons<br />
Bomb load, 5 1000 lb. General Purpose bombs Average fuel consumption, 286 GPH<br />
Temperature, -48 o<br />
Rowe fuel consumption, 1880 gallons<br />
Group planes airborne, 32 ships (average 279 GPH)<br />
Target was Worms, Germany. We bombed a bridge across the Rhine river about 1/2 mile<br />
below the city. We went across Belgium and then into Germany. Worms is about 40 miles from<br />
Ludwigschafen and Mannheim, just below Frankfurt and Mainz. Flak was heavy. We dropped<br />
our bombs and could see them walking up the river towards the bridge. We probably shook the<br />
hell out of it. (Later bomb assessment showed the bridge destroyed). Flak was heavy over<br />
Worms, it was bursting off our wing. Seven ships sustained heavy damage. One peeled off over<br />
us with No. 3 engine smoking and on fire. Believe all ships landed in France or Belgium. We<br />
did not receive any hits or damage, can't figure out why not as flak was bursting all around us.<br />
We picked up some flak coming back over the German-Allied battle lines. Rockets were shot up<br />
but they were very inaccurate. Flak was heavy over Ludwigschafen. The North Sea looked cold<br />
and choppy below, not a good day for ditching. We had to make an instrument letdown. Ceiling<br />
was 300 feet and visability down to 1500 feet. Three Groups of P-51's gave us close support. One<br />
TAKING OFF IN THE EARLY MORNING SUN AS A GROUND CREWMAN WAVES IN THE<br />
FOREGROUND. WILL THEY BE THE LUCKY ONES AND RETURN.
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ship landed with No.1 engine feathered and one landed with wounded on board. JHZ.<br />
[Rough mission!!! On the return trip the Lead Squadron strayed and went north of<br />
Saarbrucken over a known heavy flak area, instead of south. Ten aircraft received hits. Captain<br />
Edward .M. Wall (667J) and crew had to abandon ship and parachute. Lt. H.G. Solden's crew<br />
bailed out over Stowmarket, England<br />
and the aircraft crashed. Lt's. Mulrain,<br />
S c h r o e d e r , a n d Bunday and crews<br />
landed in France and B e l g i u m . L t ' s .<br />
Smarinsky, Thomas, Poeschke and crews<br />
landed at Hardwick, W o o d b r i d g e a n d<br />
Bungay. Lt. A.S. Broadfoot left formation<br />
before the target at Brussels with #1 engine<br />
out. Aircraft was abandoned on the<br />
continent. Lt. Hammer had supercharger surge<br />
and turned back at Ostend, Belgium, then<br />
landed at Rye, England.This was the<br />
448th's 200th mission so Lt. Col. Heber<br />
Thompson led the flight as Commander<br />
and Col. Charles Westover was Deputy<br />
Commander. Flak was heavy. We got back just<br />
before dark. Other groups getting back<br />
after dark (about 100 planes) had to land with<br />
the use of FIDO (fog i n t e n s e d i s p e r s a l<br />
equipment). A 200th mission party was held<br />
on Saturday, 20th January and Sunday,<br />
21st January in spite of the snow and fog.<br />
Dancing was held in the Officer's Club,<br />
Gymnasium, and Aero Club. Three orchestras<br />
PRAYER BEFORE A <strong>MISSION</strong> -Notice the stained<br />
glass memorial to those airmen that didn’t return.<br />
provided music. The celebration included<br />
stage dances, shows, food and free beer. A<br />
USO stage show was flown in and the theatre was open for two days running films. Girls were<br />
brought in from all the neighboring towns and Army camps. Guests were bussed in from all the<br />
neighboring towns. JCR.]<br />
POST WAR RESEARCH ON SHOOT DOWN OF CAPTAIN WALL’S CREW<br />
Flak over the target was intense and heavy. Seven planes suffered damage and one<br />
peeled off with #3 engine on fire. Believe all these planes made it to France, Belgium or<br />
England. However, the lead squadron strayed over a known heavy flak area near Saarbrucken.<br />
Ten planes were hit. One, Captain Wall left formation, was losing altitude but appeared to be<br />
under control. The MACR #11583 reveals that Raymond Binkley, bombardier was killed by the<br />
flak. He was attempting to dislodge a bomb that would not release over the target and was<br />
fatally hit. He was checked by the navigator and the nose gunner but was unconscious, no pulse<br />
and was not breathing. The pilot and copilot were forced from their position by fire and all<br />
airmen had to abandon ship. All parachuted and eight of the nine were captured immediately.<br />
Captain Wall, attempting to make his way to Allied lines, was captured on 17 January, 1945 in<br />
the forest of Rivenich. All were released after hostilities ceased.
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114<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #20 - Operational formation - 13 January, 1945<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #200<br />
WORMS, GERMANY<br />
J.J. Shafter 516J (7)<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
H.G. Solden 745J (5)<br />
G.D. Wikander 992H (7)<br />
H.R. Mulrain 302H (3)<br />
W.D. Smith 677J (5)<br />
LEAD FORMATION<br />
GH 829J (1)<br />
J.M. Madden 556J (8)<br />
R.A. Smith H2X 544J (2)<br />
P.J. Jones 391H (10) W. Hammer 455J (9)<br />
I. Smarinsky 517J (11)<br />
LOW LEFT FORMATION<br />
J.S. Thomas 083H (3)<br />
D.L. Sterman 772J (10)<br />
D. Thomas H2X 525J (1)<br />
B. Hanson 809J (8)<br />
S.L. Winters 941H (11)<br />
E.M. Wall 661J (2)<br />
K.L. Flinders 498J (9)<br />
A.B. Sanders 482J (7)<br />
A.S. Broadfoot 551J (4)<br />
K.D. Stalland 288J (5)<br />
H. Schroeder 536J (6)<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 829J (4)<br />
J.A. Birkland 270H (6)<br />
HIGH RIGHT FORMATION<br />
J.C. Weaver 460J (3)<br />
S. Hailey 489J (10)<br />
H.E. Doane H2X 075J (1)<br />
D.S. Anderson 341H (8)<br />
R. Bunday 348H (11)<br />
H.M. Jonson 676J (2)<br />
R.A. Poeschke 819H (9)<br />
C.P. Quirk 589J (4)<br />
J.W. Guynes 247J (6)
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #21 - 14 January, 1945, Sunday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #201<br />
Take-off, 09:18 hours Group planes attacking, 21 ships<br />
Forming altitude, 10000 feet 2 ships aborted. No ships lost<br />
Bombing altitude, 24000 feet Tonnage dropped, 36.8<br />
Length, 6 hours - 25 minutes Escort, P-51's. Good<br />
Oxygen, 3 hours - 30 minutes Fuel load, 2700 gallons<br />
Bomb load, 12 500 lb. General Purpose Bombs Average fuel consumption, 298 GPH<br />
Temperature, -38 o<br />
Rowe fuel consumption, 2000 gallons<br />
Group planes airborne, 22 ships (average 311 GPH)<br />
We went to Hallendorf, Germany. The target was the Herman Goering Steel Mill, located<br />
10 miles southeast of Brunswick. We went out over the North Sea, across Denmark bypassing<br />
Hamburg and almost to Magdeburg before turning to our IP. It was visual all the way in. Flak was<br />
heavy over the target. We received two bursts off our nose and wing. We dropped our bombs right<br />
THE 200TH GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> JUST PRECEDED THIS <strong>MISSION</strong>. A PARTY WAS HELD AS DESCRIBED<br />
IN THAT NARRATIVE. ABOVE PICTURE SHOWS HOW ARMY VEHICLES COLLECTED GIRLS<br />
FROM NEIGHBORING VILLAGES FOR SUCH A PARTY OR FOR THE SATURDAY NIGHT DANCE.<br />
in the center of the steel works. Huge clouds of smoke came up and fires engulfed the works. Flak<br />
was very concentrated after we dropped our load. Going out we went over the German airfield at<br />
Dummer Lake. We could see P-51's strafing the field before the German planes could take off.<br />
They could have raised hell with us before we could have crossed to safety. It looked like the 3rd<br />
Division behind us got hit pretty hard. Passed over Hannover and Osnabruck coming out and over
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U.S. NURSES ARRIVING AT THE AMERICAN RED CROSS CLUB IN LONDON AND<br />
SERVICEMEN WERE READY TO GIVE THEM A WELCOME.<br />
the Zuider Zee. Base was alerted. It was thought the Jerries would follow us home and give us a<br />
strafe job as we were coming in to land. All guns on the field were manned. We made an<br />
instrument letdown and landed without any further problems. Rough, but a good days work. JHZ.<br />
[Lt. Ruge left formation before the target and landed at the emergency landing strip at<br />
Manston, England. I haven't been able to determine what troubles he had or what caused them. Lt.<br />
Sheffield aborted during assembly. #6 cylinder head on #2 engine was blown. Microfilm records<br />
say that our results were poor to fair and that we hit engineering shops, roads and tracks. With all<br />
the fire and smoke I believe we hit more than just roads and tracks. The formation sheet (page 65)<br />
shows W.C. Holden's crew as flying this mission. The crew attended the briefing, but Lt. Holden<br />
was off the base on other duties and did not fly. Our crew was short a crew member for this mission<br />
but after engines were started and we were ready for take-off, a jeep arrived and Sgt. Clair Rowe<br />
(no relation) of W. C. Holden's crew climbed aboard and joined us for this trip. See comments<br />
following our 3-11-45 mission for Sgt. Rowe's troubles on his 3-25-45 mission to bomb the oil<br />
refinery at Buchen, Germany.<br />
We finally broke-off tactical support for the Armies and got a strategic mission. Other<br />
Wings went after oil refineries and oil storage. The German fighter pilots in the past had quietly<br />
followed bombers home and then hit them while they were attempting to land. We did not fly on the<br />
16th of January to Dresden when Lt. Wesley Isaacson's plane was shot down and Lt. Ray Custor<br />
had so many flak holes in his fuel tanks he had to land in a public park in Lille, France. His crew<br />
was flown back to Seething the next day. The weather was so foul for 12 days following the mission<br />
to Dresden on the 16th, the 448th BG was shut down for 12 consecutive days. JCR.]
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #21 - Operational formation - 14 January, 1945<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #201<br />
HALLENDORF, GERMANY<br />
G.L. Brock 516J (7)<br />
R.J. Camburn 992H (5)<br />
J.F. Steffan 498J (3)<br />
D.L. Crandall 589J (10)<br />
LEAD FORMATION<br />
W.H. Wilhelmi H2X 806J (1)<br />
F.J. Hahner 341H (8)<br />
F.C. Reynolds 678J (11)<br />
M.A. Baratz 391H (7)<br />
S.F. Furey H2X 870J (2)<br />
I.W. Ruge 772J (9)<br />
E. Furnace 298H (5)<br />
W.R. Durbin 482J (4)<br />
R.L. Stewart 1489J (6)<br />
HIGH RIGHT FORMATION<br />
W.L. Voight 305H (3)<br />
J.M. Ray 463J (10)<br />
J.J. Caldwell 805J (1)<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 504J (8)<br />
J.M. Madden 270H (11<br />
D.R. Graybeal 767J (2)<br />
W.D. Smith 677J (9)<br />
M.S. Horton 727J (4)
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #22 - 31 January, 1945, Wednesday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #206<br />
Take-off, 08:00 hours Group planes airborne, 33 ships.<br />
Forming altitude, 10000 feet Group planes attacking, 0 ships<br />
Bombing altitude. We did not drop No aborts. No ships lost.<br />
A recall mission. No fighter support<br />
Length, 6 hours - 50 minutes Fuel load ???<br />
Oxygen, 3 hours Average fuel consumption ???<br />
Bomb load, 5 500-lb. General Purpose Bombs Rowe fuel consumption ???<br />
& 4 500 lb. M-17 incendiaries<br />
Temperature, -34 o<br />
BRIEFING FOR THE 200TH <strong>MISSION</strong> TO WORMS<br />
The black arrow in photo above points to John Rowe, whose crew flew that mission. The briefing is over and as<br />
you can see everyone is synchronizing their watches. That mission narrative starts on page 105.<br />
Big "B" or little "b". We had two plans. Plan 1 was a steel works in Berlin and Plan 2 was a
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marshalling yards in Brunswick, Germany. We used plan 2. We went over the North Sea and<br />
the Zuider Zee in Holland. Twenty-five minutes from our Wing IP, the Division sent out a<br />
recall message. We turned around and started home after being about 140 miles into Germany.<br />
The weather was poor over the continent and our fighter planes could not take off. German<br />
fighters hit a Group behind us on the way back. The Division was diverted to different fields in<br />
northern England. Some of the ships dropped their bombs into the North Sea. We carried ours<br />
back as did about 95% of the others. We landed at an R.A.F. base called "Skipton on Swale".<br />
We stayed overnight and came back home the next day. The VHF dynamotor burned out but<br />
caused a very minor problem. We flew with eight men and received credit for the mission. JHZ.<br />
[Weather scouts reported foul weather enroute and over the target. East Anglia airfields<br />
were "socked in" solid, so the entire Division was recalled at 10:44 (at 52 38N 08 05E) hours<br />
and diverted to Midlands airfields. We returned the next day but most of the Groups did not<br />
return to base until the 2nd of February. I recall this mission well because milk in England was<br />
not pasteurized, therefore was not available on our base, but I sure had my fill of milk for a<br />
couple of days. Microfilm records did not identify Pilots, only planes. Neither did they provide<br />
fuel statistics. I was able to obtain the names of the pilots from my own records for this mission.<br />
JCR.]<br />
BRITISH CHILDREN ENJOYING AN AMERICAN THANKSGIVING DAY PARTY.
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #22 - Operational formation - 31 January, 1945<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #206<br />
BRUNSWICK, GERMANY<br />
Microfilm records did not identify Pilots, only<br />
the planes. Pilots were identified from my own<br />
records of this mission.<br />
C.C. Crandall 305J (5)<br />
Hailey 767J (5)<br />
H. Schroeder 678J (7)<br />
M.E. Matthaes 727J (5)<br />
C.W. Meining 902J (3)<br />
S.L. Winters 270H (10)<br />
LOW LEFT SQUADRON<br />
P. Protich 489J (3)<br />
D.F. King 341H (10)<br />
W.H. Wilhelmi H2X (1)<br />
D.B. Graybeal 288J (8)<br />
Quirk 521H (10)<br />
E.A. Soldberg 589J (2)<br />
LEAD SQUADRON<br />
W.W. Snavely H2X 443J (1)<br />
D.L. Thomas 083H (8)<br />
E.A. Soldberg W.R. 589J Durbin (2) 482J (4)<br />
F.J. Hahner 326H (9)<br />
Hardies 556H (11)<br />
J.W. Guynes 099J (6)<br />
H.M. Jonson H2X 646J (2)<br />
K.L. Flinders 772J (9)<br />
J.S. Solden 620J (4)<br />
HIGH RIGHT SQUADRON<br />
E.J. Malone H2X 805J (1)<br />
H. Hausman 498J (6)<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 463J (3) - GUNG HO<br />
G.I. Brock 358J (2)<br />
E.J. Malone H2X 805J (1)<br />
J.M. Madden 877J (5)<br />
G.F. Hillman 992H (4)<br />
John Rowe 463J (3)<br />
G.I. Brock 358J (2)<br />
J.F. Clark 246J (7)<br />
H.W. Gully 391H (6)<br />
L.E. Lyon 491H (8)<br />
H.R. Mulrain 455J (10) G.D. Wikander 504J (9)<br />
J.E. Corbett 270H (11)
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #23 - 3 February, 1945, Saturday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #207<br />
Take-off, 08:13 hours Group planes attacking, 29 ships<br />
Forming altitude, 11500 feet 3 ships aborted. No losses.<br />
Bombing altitude, 23000 feet Tonnage dropped, 58.2<br />
Length, 6 hours Escort, P-51's Excellent<br />
Oxygen, 3 hours - 30 minutes Fuel load, 2700 gallons<br />
Bomb load, 8 500 lb. General Purpose bombs Average fuel consumption, 303 GPH<br />
Temperature, -38 o<br />
Rowe fuel consumption, 2025 gallons<br />
Group planes airborne, 31 ships (average 337 GPH)<br />
Choice of two targets today, Berlin or Magdeburg. Berlin was to be bombed to create<br />
confusion and panic in connection with the oncoming Russian offensive which was 40 miles from<br />
Berlin. The 1st and 3rd Divisions did go to Berlin. Our target was a synthetic oil refinery at<br />
Magdeburg. While we were forming over England, I never saw so many planes in my life. The<br />
whole Eighth Air Force must have been out. There was a stream of bombers at least a couple<br />
A GERMAN ANTI-AIRCRAFT CREW WITH THEIR DREADED 88MM CANNON. NOTICE THE<br />
THREE (3) VICTORY RINGS AROUND THE BARREL.
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hundred miles long, well over a thousand planes in the air. While some ships were on the bomb run<br />
at the target, other ships were still leaving the English coast. Magdeburg, our second trip,was 60<br />
miles west of Berlin. The target was obscured by 5/10 cloud cover. Flak was heavy but not very<br />
accurate as far as our formation was concerned. Results unobserved. We came out below Hamburg<br />
and by-passed Helgoland. Jerry shot some flak up at us as we crossed the coastline. We came back<br />
over the North Sea. About a hundred miles from England, we saw a B-17 ditch. Air Sea Rescue<br />
boys got them, we hope. P-51's and the returning bombers radioed their position to units in the area.<br />
Beautiful P-51 escort all the way in and out. JHZ.<br />
[Deputy lead in lead squadron aborted at 53 00N 02 00E because of #3 engine failure. Lt.<br />
Graybeal (305H) took his position. Lt. A.S. Broadfoot developed an oil leak in #4 engine and left<br />
formation at 11:00 hours. He attacked a target of opportunity (Quakenbruck). Lt. Smarinsky (270H)<br />
left formation in forming area (problem with #2 engine). JCR.]<br />
OIL REFINERY AT MAGDEBURG. NOTE THE BOMB CRATERS. IT LOOKS LIKE A MOONSCAPE.
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #23 - Operational formation - 3 February, 1945<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #207<br />
MAGDEBURG, GERMANY<br />
H.W. Gully 517J (5)<br />
W.W. Shue 1489J (7)<br />
H.M. Jonson 482J (5)<br />
LEAD FORMATION<br />
P. Protich 341H (3)<br />
R. Westbrook 9521H (10)<br />
LOW LEFT FORMATION<br />
P.J. Jones 677J (3)<br />
A.E. Hatch 556J (10)<br />
J.J. Caldwell 525H (1)<br />
H.M. Mulrain ??? (8)<br />
S.F. Furey H2X 443J (1)<br />
E.A. Soldberg 589H (8)<br />
V.H. Gage 504J (2)<br />
J.A. Birkland 455J (9)<br />
P.R. Piliere 498J (7)<br />
D.B. Graybeal 305H (2)<br />
K.P. Stalland 326H (9)<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 463J (4) - GUNG HO<br />
G.L. Brock F.E. 083H Bastian (10) 491J (3)<br />
I.W. Ruge 772J (5)<br />
J.M. Rain 777J (6)<br />
A.S. F.E. Broadfoot Bastian 491J ??? (3) (8)<br />
I.W. Ruge 772J (5)<br />
I.W. Ruge 772J (5)<br />
G.L. Brock P.R. Piliere 083H (10) 498J (7)<br />
J.C. Weaver 460J (4)<br />
C.H. Holt 288J (6)<br />
HIGH RIGHT FORMATION<br />
M.C. Onks H2X 1745 (1)<br />
R.J. Camburn 620J (2)<br />
HIGH RIGHT FORMATION<br />
J.F. Steffan 099J (4)<br />
M.C. Onks H2X 1745 (1)<br />
R.L. Mains 727J (9)<br />
A.S. Broadfoot ??? (8)<br />
C.C. Crandall 678J (6)
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #24 - 15 February, 1945, Thursday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #212<br />
Take-off, 08:14 hours Group planes attacking, 19 ships<br />
Forming altitude, 14000 feet 2 aborts. No ships MIA<br />
Bombing altitude, 23500 feet Tonnage dropped, 56.9<br />
Length, 6 hours - 10 minutes Escort, P-51's. Good<br />
Oxygen, 4 hours - 30 minutes Fuel load, 2700 gallons<br />
Bomb load, 9 500 lb. General Purpose bombs Ave. fuel consumption, 298 GPH<br />
Temperature, -35 o<br />
Rowe fuel consumption,<br />
Group planes airborne, 21 ships 1900 gallons(average 308 GPH)<br />
Magdeburg, Germany again. Target was a synthetic oil refinery. After we were airborne, the<br />
ship ahead of us blew up. The life raft was accidentally released from its hatch and got<br />
entangled in the twin stabilizers. The Pilot had poor control of the ship at that point. Everybody<br />
bailed out but the Pilot and Co-pilot who were lost in the ensuing explosion. We made landfall<br />
at Egmond, Holland, then across the Zuider Zee and into the target, which was obscured by<br />
ANOTHER OIL REFINERY GOES UP IN SMOKE. THIS ONE NEAR HAMBURG. WHITE ARROW POINTS TO THE<br />
BLACK BILLOWING OIL SMOKE.
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10/10 cloud cover. We bombed by H2X. Results unobserved. Flak was moderate and<br />
inaccurate. Trip was uneventful coming out. JHZ.<br />
[This was the 448th BG's sixth trip to Magdeburg (our 3rd). We hit the oil refinery<br />
again, although other Groups hit the marshaling yards at the request of the Russians. Just as<br />
the plane flown by 2nd Lt. Harlyn Schroeder got airborne, the life-raft was accidentally<br />
released and got lodged in the tail. The crew bailed out near Bungay. The pilot and co-pilot<br />
managed to keep the plane aloft and salvoed the bombs in the North Sea. They tried to land at<br />
Attelbridge and on the approach it dived into the ground killing both pilots (Co-pilot was Lt.<br />
Dewin D. Roorda). Lt. C. Maran (489J) left formation about 25 miles from English coast with<br />
an oil leak spraying into the Bomb Bay. Lt. S. Hailey (9521H) had #2 engine failure and left<br />
formation near English coast. JCR.]<br />
SEETHING AIRFIELD TODAY or what’s left of it. About 1/2 of the main runway 07-25 remains and is<br />
used by the Wavenley Valley Flying Group. Conversion and restoration of Seething Control Tower was<br />
completed in 1987 and now houses a museum and memorabilia of the 448th Bombardment Group collected<br />
by Mrs. Patricia Everson.
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #24 - Operational formation - 15 February, 1945<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #212<br />
MAGDEBURG, GERMANY<br />
H. Hausman 498H (7)<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 463J (7) - GUNG HO<br />
E.J. Malone H2X 745J (3)<br />
M.O. Holman 066J (5)<br />
C.K. Maran 489J (10)<br />
LEAD FORMATION<br />
J.J. Caldwell H2X 505J (1)<br />
J.C. Weaver 551J (8)<br />
LOW LEFT FORMATION<br />
S.L. Winters 099J (3)<br />
J.E. Corbett 391H (5)<br />
A.C. Hardies 699J (10)<br />
H.L. Smith 527J (1)<br />
J.M. Madden 491J (8)<br />
E.L. Furnace 358J (2)<br />
G.E. Franklin 504J (9)<br />
B. Hanson 902J (4)<br />
C.E. Martin 482J (2)<br />
R.L. Stewart 762H (9)<br />
J.E. Mlynarczyk 298H (6)<br />
F.J. Hahner 341H (4)
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<strong>MISSION</strong> #25 - 16 February, 1945, Friday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #213<br />
Take-off, 11:00 hours Group planes attacking, 30 ships<br />
Forming altitude, 16000 feet 1 abort. No losses.<br />
Bombing altitude, 22500 feet Tonnage dropped, 71.0<br />
Length, 5 hours - 50 minutes Escort, P-51's. Fair<br />
Oxygen, 2 hours - 30 minutes Fuel load, 2500 gallons<br />
Bomb load, 11 500 lb. General Purpose bombs Average fuel consumption, 299 GPH<br />
Temperature, -25 o<br />
Rowe fuel consumption, 1800 gallons<br />
Group planes airborne, 32 ships (average 308 GPH)<br />
The target was at Osnabruck, Germany. We went for the marshaling yards in the city. It<br />
was a bad day for flying. We took off in poor visibility and broke out of the overcast at 1500 feet<br />
DECEMBER 12, <strong>1944</strong> A LIBERATOR FUSELAGE SCREWS ITSELF FROM THE WINGS AND<br />
STREAMS BLAZING PIECES OVER THE TARGET.
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Again we made landfall at Egmond, Holland and out over the Zuider Zee. Going to the target<br />
there were no clouds and then they increased to 5/10. I could see the bombs impacting with<br />
good results. A grayish pall of smoke was coming up as we turned away. Flak was moderate but<br />
accurate. One burst right off our waist window. Too close for comfort. We came back over the<br />
Zuider Zee. The weather back at our base was lousy, ceiling down to 400 feet and visibility<br />
1500 yards. We letdown over the North Sea and came in using instruments and the glide path<br />
indicator. JHZ.<br />
[We did not get off the ground until late morning. On arrival that night we found a cold<br />
icy evening with no wind. Brakes had to be applied gently on the slippery runway but everyone<br />
landed safely. We also got news of the 1500 carrier-based raid on Tokyo, but the startling news<br />
was the three Italian prisoners of war captured on Seething Airfield who were returned to their<br />
British prisoner of war camp. Lt. G. McFarland had problems and landed at the emergency<br />
landing strip at Woodbridge. Lt. D. Durbin's (798H) bombs would not release and it was found<br />
later that the interlocking pins in the left front Bomb Bay had not been pulled. Lt. F. Bastian<br />
aborted about 30 miles west of Egmond, Holland when #2 turbo ran away. 12 bombs were<br />
jettisoned. JCR.]<br />
INSPITE OF HEAVY OBJECTIONS AND CRITICISMS FROM THE MILITARY, RELIGIOUS,<br />
AND BRITISH FAMILIES, THERE WERE 70,000 GI MARRIAGES. HERE TWO GI’S<br />
SOCIALIZE AND HAVE TEA WITH HER FOLKS.
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #25 - Operational formation - 16 February, 1945<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #213<br />
OSNABRUCK, GERMANY<br />
P.E. Homan 992H (7)<br />
F.R. Piliere 498J (5)<br />
F.W. Tod 677J (5)<br />
E. Furnace 298H (3)<br />
F.E. McCready 491J (10)<br />
LEAD FORMATION<br />
GH (1)<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 463J (8) - GUNG HO<br />
LOW LEFT FORMATION<br />
C.G. Glover 902J (3)<br />
H.E. Doane H2X 870J (1)<br />
I.W. Ruge 772J (8)<br />
J.G. Blank H2X 646J (2)<br />
A.E. Hatch 604J (9)<br />
J.S. Thomas 727J (2)<br />
S.L. Brock 699J (10) J.F. Steffan 099J (8)<br />
R.J. Camburn 536J (11)<br />
H. McFarland 958H (7)<br />
P. Protich 066J (5)<br />
S.F. Hillman 777J(4)<br />
A.S. Broadfoot 620J (4)<br />
J.F. Land 083H (6)<br />
J.E. Corbett 556J(6)<br />
HIGH RIGHT FORMATION<br />
F.J. Hahner 341H (3)<br />
C.P. Quirk 1489J (10)<br />
W.W. Snavely H2X 505J (1)<br />
C. Crandall 762H (8)<br />
D.B. Graybeal 247J (11)<br />
S. Hailey 185H (2)<br />
J.W. Guynes 482J (9)<br />
D.R. Durbin 798H (4)<br />
D.F. King 551J (6)
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<strong>MISSION</strong> #26 - 19 February, 1945, Monday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #214<br />
Take-off, 11:00 hours Group planes attacking, 31 ships<br />
Forming altitude, 11500 feet No aborts. No ships lost<br />
Bombing altitude, 20000 feet Tonnage dropped, 86.3<br />
Length, 6 hours - 5 minutes Escort, P-51's and P-47's. Good<br />
Oxygen, 4 hours Fuel load, 2500 gallons<br />
Bomb load, 12 500 lb. General Purpose Bombs Average fuel consumption, 296 GPH<br />
Temperature, -22 o<br />
Rowe fuel consumption, 1900 gallons<br />
Group planes airborne, 31 ships (average 308 GPH)<br />
Siegen, Germany, and our target there was the marshaling yards. Siegen is located north of<br />
Koblenz. Visibility was poor as we took off and headed out over the North Sea. We made landfall<br />
THE 448TH DEPARTS FOR THE ENGLISH COAST
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at the Frisian Islands. All the way up to the target it was 10/10-cloud cover. Here and there the<br />
Germans put up a few rockets but very little flak along the way. Over the target there was no<br />
flak or rockets. We dropped our bombs but could not observe the results. We came back over<br />
the battle lines in Belgium. There was a break in the clouds and we could see St. Vith where a<br />
lot of heavy fighting took place. The town was completely pockmarked by bomb craters and<br />
artillery fire. We came back over Ostend, Belgium, the southern part of the North Sea and Great<br />
Yarmouth, England. The weather was bad at the base and we made yet another instrument<br />
letdown. JHZ.<br />
[Bad weather and the resultant poor visibility gave us another late morning take-off,<br />
which meant an instrument letdown in the late afternoon of February's short days. During the<br />
month of February a number of speakers came to Seething Airfield. A RAF Squadron Leader<br />
talked about night bombing. It was very interesting and he had to lecture a second time. A<br />
member of the Dutch underground gave a lecture. We had a RAF bomber with crew land at<br />
Seething for our inspection. JCR.]<br />
A GROUP OF HAPPY FIGHTER PILOTS CROWDED ON A THUNDERBOLT
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #26 - Operational formation - 19 February, 1945<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #214<br />
SIEGEN, GERMANY<br />
F.J. Hahner 1489J (7)<br />
J.C. Weaver 460J (5)<br />
W.C. Redden 536J (7)<br />
H.G. Solden 083H (5)<br />
C.H. Glover 620J (3)<br />
J.J. Shafter 496J (10)<br />
LOW LEFT FORMATION<br />
K. Wheeler H2X 745J (1)<br />
LEAD FORMATION<br />
GH 529J (1)<br />
F.E. Bastian 809J (8)<br />
A.C. Hardies 853H (11)<br />
F.R. Piliere 699J (3) E.A. Soldberg 589J (2)<br />
M.O. Holman 066J (10)<br />
C.E. Martin 482J (8)<br />
C.K. Moran 305H (11)<br />
R.L. Stewart 762H (9)<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 463J (5) - GUNG HO<br />
W. Bobak 491J (7)<br />
H.E. Doane 505J (2)<br />
H.E. Matthaes 727J (9)<br />
R. Westbrook 551J (4)<br />
D.F. King 326H (6)<br />
K.L. Flinders 902J (4)<br />
HIGH RIGHT FORMATION<br />
G.F. Hillman 246J (3)<br />
H.W. Gully 677J (10)<br />
GH 486J (1)<br />
G.K. Wikander 556J (8)<br />
G.E. Corbett 298H (11)<br />
H. Hausman 498J<br />
S.R. Williamson 806J (2)<br />
W.C. Holden 504J (9)<br />
J.M. Ray 777J (4)<br />
P.J. Jones 958H (6)
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<strong>MISSION</strong> #27 - 21 February, 1945, Wednesday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #215<br />
Take-off, 07:35 hours Temperature, -27 o<br />
Forming altitude, 6000 feet Group planes airborne, 33 ships<br />
Bombing altitude, 22500 feet Group planes attacking, 33 ships<br />
Length, 8 hours - 15 minutes No aborts. No ships lost.<br />
Oxygen, 4 hours - 45 minutes Tonnage dropped, 75.5<br />
Bomb load, 5 500 lb. General Purpose bombs Escort, P-47's and P-51's. Fair<br />
and 5 500 lb. M-17 incendiaries<br />
Our target was at Nurnberg, Germany. The capitol of the Third Reich was transferred to<br />
Nurnberg because the<br />
Russians were so close to<br />
Berlin. Germany was<br />
receiving a terrific pounding<br />
from all quarters at this time.<br />
W e went after the<br />
marshaling yards on the<br />
outskirts of the City. We<br />
flew position #3 in the lead<br />
Squadron. It was a beautiful<br />
day going out. We made<br />
landfall at Ostend, Belgium,<br />
crossing the battle lines<br />
going to bombing altitude.<br />
Clouds were about 3/10 over<br />
Germany. We passed<br />
Weisbaden and received<br />
only a few bursts of flak, but<br />
quite accurate, One burst<br />
right under our tail. Too<br />
damn close for comfort. One<br />
ship got hit, hydraulic and<br />
oxygen system reported out.<br />
It peeled out of formation<br />
and headed home with a<br />
couple of P-51's flying<br />
THIS LIBERATOR CAUGHT A FLAK SHELL OVER FRANCE.<br />
escort. We could see Frankfurt off our right wing on the Main river which loses its waters to the<br />
Rhine nearby. About 1800 heavies went after Nurnberg this day. Our Group was leading the
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20th Combat Wing but we were the last Wing in after making two 10-degree turns. Must be<br />
the leading navigator fouled up on the first approach. 10/10-cloud cover obscured the target.<br />
Bombs away, results unobserved but we could see a brownish gray smoke coming up through<br />
the clouds. We must have clobbered something real good. We came back across Strasbourg<br />
and over France. Flak was meager to moderate and concentrated. JHZ.]<br />
[All ships attacked the target, but Lt. McFarland had problems with his aircraft after<br />
the target and had to land at the emergency landing strip at Manston, England. The nasty<br />
weather that wrecked Seething Airfields plumbing and gave everyone colds finally ended<br />
although we still had to take sulphadiazine tablets daily. It was a cold day but the sky was<br />
bright blue and the 448th BG flew for eight consecutive days. The contrails of the 1000<br />
bombers this day (of which we were one) spread across 50 miles of sky must have been quite a<br />
sight from the ground. JCR.]<br />
LIMPING HOME ON THREE ENGINES AND THE FOURTH ON FIRE.
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #27 - Operational formation - 21 February, 1945<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #215<br />
NURNBERG, GERMANY<br />
A.S. Hardies 699J (7)<br />
W.A. Hammes 463J (7)<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 491J (3)<br />
M.A. Baratz 777J (5)<br />
W.C. Holden 305H (10)<br />
LOW LEFT FORMATION<br />
F.E. Bastian 809J (3)<br />
J.J. Caldwell H2X 870J (1)<br />
LEAD FORMATION<br />
H.E. Doane H2X 646J (1)<br />
I. Smarinsky 298H (8)<br />
F. W. Tod 677J (11)<br />
F.C. Reynolds 727J (2)<br />
H.G. Solden 620J(5) K.L. Flinders 902J (4)<br />
A.S. Broadfoot 853H (8)<br />
H.E. Matthaes 099J (10) W.C. Redden 536J (9)<br />
G.F. Land 798H (11)<br />
J.W. Guynes 551J (7)<br />
W.L. Voight 505J (2)<br />
J.F. Clark 958H (9)<br />
H. Hausman 498J (6)<br />
W.W. Shue 489J (5)<br />
E. Furnace 246J (4)<br />
H.D. Guage 185H (6)<br />
HIGH RIGHT FORMATION<br />
J.G. Blank H2X 525J (1)<br />
C.P. Quirk 589J (3) D.B. Graybeal 326J (2)<br />
D.R. Durbin 247J (8)<br />
H. McFarland 460J (10) P. Protich 066J (9)<br />
C.E. Martin 953H (11)<br />
R.A. Paeschke 302H (4)<br />
??????? 358J (6)
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<strong>MISSION</strong> "OO-LA-LA" - 22 February, 1945, Thursday<br />
We (meaning Joe, Richard & John Roche) had a chance to fly to Paris on official business<br />
with Colonels Thompson and Miller. Going across France at 2500 feet we had a beautiful view of the<br />
battle area, destruction on an unbelievable scale. Burned out tanks, trucks, and all kinds of rolling<br />
stock. There were bomb and shell craters everywhere. A Spitfire came up and flew off our right wing<br />
to give us the once over and then flew off. We circled the Eiffel Tower and landed at Orly Airfield<br />
about 6 miles outside Paris. Taxing back to the control tower we went off the runway and got stuck in<br />
the mud with one gear. French laborers came up to the plane and seemed to be astonished at the size<br />
of the B-24 and kept pointing to our .50 caliber machine gun turrets and ammunition on board.<br />
Finally with help, we got out of our predicament and back on the taxi way. Paris finally, and what a<br />
city from what we saw of it during our brief stay. Cognac and champagne flowed like water,<br />
beautiful women strolling about, you would never know there was a war going on a few hundred<br />
miles away. We walked by Notre Dame Cathederal<br />
and saw the Louvre from a distance. We also walked<br />
the Rue de Palais, Paris's Fifth Avenue. We were<br />
only in Paris 4 hours, not long enough. The three of<br />
us, John Roche, Dick Best and I, spent about<br />
$300.00. Silk stockings (675 francs a pair, about $12),<br />
14 bottles of perfume ($50), silk handkerchiefs, case<br />
of champagne ($64), 6 bottles of cognac ($32),<br />
and several smaller items. We finally got back to<br />
our plane for a late evening departure. As a matter of<br />
fact it was almost dark when we left Paris. We flew<br />
back to England and had to identify ourselves coming<br />
over the coast by switching o n o u r I F F<br />
( I D E N T I F I C A T I O N FRIEND OR FOE)<br />
equipment. We had a w o n d e r f u l a n d<br />
unforgettable trip. No bombing for a change.<br />
JHZ. [Sounds like they should have taken a good<br />
pilot too, one that can taxi as well as fly, but what<br />
chance does a lowly 1st. Lt. have against two<br />
AIRMEN TEACHING BRITISH BOYS THE<br />
MYSTERIES OF BASEBALL<br />
Colonels. The Colonels knew a good crew when<br />
they saw one and took our n a v i g a t o r , r a d i o<br />
operator and engineer. In July, 1945 an aircraft going home crashed near Prestwick, Scotland with<br />
16 men aboard including Lt. Colonel Heber H. Thompson, Commanding officer of the 713th<br />
Squadron. In view of the time frame, last name, rank, and position, this must have been the Colonel<br />
Thompson who flew with Joe, John and Richard to Paris. Joe, John and Richard went this day to<br />
Paris for a good time when the largest raid ever (6000 aircraft) was made. To acquaint the German<br />
population with Allied air might, communication targets in all the small towns and villages were the<br />
targets. To lessen civilian casualties, bombing was less than 10000 feet. Many bombed at 5000 feet.<br />
The 448th BG bombed at 8500 feet. Known flak areas were skirted. German radio messages<br />
intercepted indicated the force of bombers was being plotted but they didn't foresee dispersal of the<br />
bombers over such a wide area. Four B-24's were lost. Two others were damaged in a mid-air<br />
collision. JCR.]
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448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #28 28 February, 1945, Wednesday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #222<br />
Take-off 10:34 hours Group planes attacking, 28 ships<br />
Forming altitude, 11,500 feet 2 aborts. No ships lost.<br />
Bombing altitude, 23,500 feet Tonnage dropped, 70.3<br />
Length, 6 hours 30 minutes Escort, P51’s. Very good.<br />
Oxygen, 3 hours 30 minutes Fuel load, 2500 gallons.<br />
Bomb load, 12 500 lb. Mark XII Navy bombs Average fuel consumption, 280 GPH<br />
Temperature, -30 o<br />
Rowe fuel consumption, 1900 gallons<br />
Group planes airborne, 30 ships (Average 293 GPH)<br />
The city was Meschede, Germany and the target was a sub-assembly plant for the Me262 jet<br />
propelled fighter. We made landfall at Ostend, Belgium and crossed the battle lines going into the target<br />
area, skirting Koblenz and then straight to Meschede. We bombed by GH through 10/10 cloud cover<br />
with unobserved results. No flak or fighters encountered. We came back near Koblenz, across the North<br />
Sea just above the channel and to base. A milk run this time. JHZ<br />
(Lt. F. E. McCready (491J) and Lt. C. E. Martin (992H) aborted after assembly but no reasons<br />
were given. England had jet planes also, but neither British nor German jets had any great range. We<br />
TUCKED IN TIGHT PER COMMANDER’S ORDERS AND HEADED FOR THE TARGET.
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used to have practice sessions for the gunners over England just to get used to the speed of the jets and<br />
lead them more than the standard fighters powered by internal combustion engines. From the air we<br />
could see the Germans towing jet planes to the start of the runways to conserve fuel. This gave them<br />
more time in the air. Their limited range would keep them from getting too far away from their base.<br />
Because the Russian front was nearer our targets and if our target was nearby, crews would be issued a<br />
US miniflag shoulder or sleeve patch for identification if downed. We did not fly the day before (27th)<br />
but strong winds were encountered on that day and four planes from our Group landed in France to refuel<br />
and one crashed on the continent. JCR<br />
FLAK AFTER THE TARGET—AT THE RALLY POINT
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147<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #28—Operational Mission—28 February, 1945<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> 3222<br />
MESCHEDE, GERMANY<br />
P. Protich 066J (3)<br />
C.K. Moran 305H (5)<br />
M.A. Baratz 298H (3)<br />
I. Smarinsky 463J (5)<br />
J.F. Clark 185H (7)<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
H. McFarland 341G (9)<br />
LOW LEFT FORMATION<br />
LEAD FORMATION<br />
GH(1)<br />
D.R. Durbin 247J (7)<br />
D.l. Thomas H2X 805J (1)<br />
P.F. Holman 246J (8)<br />
E.F. King 777J (2)<br />
G.F. Hillman 270H (9)<br />
T.B. Horton 301H (5)<br />
V.E. Hoyer 391H (7)<br />
GH(1)<br />
F.R. Filiere 496H (3))<br />
H.L. Smith H2XJ (2)<br />
R. Westbrook 521H (8)<br />
M.O. Holman 983H (4)<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 983H (4) - FLYING DRAGON<br />
???????? (6)<br />
HIGH RIGHT FORMATION<br />
D.L. Crandall 798H (10)<br />
G.H. (1)<br />
A.S. Broadfoot 727J (8)<br />
K. Wheeler 806J (2)<br />
G.F. Land 0830H (9)<br />
W.W. Shue 489J (6)<br />
J.S. Thomas 809J (4)<br />
R.L. Mains 620J (6)
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<strong>MISSION</strong> #29 - 1 March, 1945, Thursday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #223<br />
Take-off, 08:57 hours Group planes attacking, 28 ships<br />
Forming altitude, 13500 feet 1 abort. No ships lost<br />
Bombing altitude, 23500 feet Tonnage dropped, 64.5<br />
Length, 8 hours - 40 minutes Fuel load, 2700 gallons<br />
Oxygen, 3 hours - 45 minutes Average fuel consumption, 266 GPH<br />
Bomb load, 10 500 lb. General Purpose bombs Rowe fuel consumption, 2100 gallons<br />
Temperature, -24 o<br />
Group planes airborne, 29 ships<br />
(average 243 GPH)<br />
Our target this time was in Augsburg, Germany. We went after the marshaling yards in the city. We<br />
were to bomb the Munchen Back sub-assembly plant for jet propelled fighters if the target was<br />
visual. We made landfall at Ostend, Belgium, went across France crossing the battle lines below<br />
Strausbourg. We stayed close to the German Swiss border and had a good look at the Alps. From<br />
breaks in the clouds you could see the Alps were very beautiful with the high peaks poking through at<br />
different points. At the target, the clouds were 10/10 so we bombed by H2X, results unobserved.<br />
After bombs away a barrage of flak came up, concentrated but inaccurate. We circled Munich and<br />
came out the same way we went in. Switzerland was off to our left and then we came north across<br />
MOMENT OF BOMB RELEASE-TWO 714TH SQUADRON B-24S OVER TARGET AT AUGSBURG ON 1 MARCH, 1945
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France, then across Belgium to our base. JHZ.<br />
[Captain D.L. Thomas, flying Hi Right Lead(646J), aborted at the IP with a feathered engine.<br />
Lt. Protich took his position for the bomb-run. Lt.'s Onufer (391H), Hahner (9521H), and Quirk (551J)<br />
attacked but did not complete mission and landed on the continent. No reasons were given, but it was a<br />
long mission with strong winds and they probably landed to refuel.<br />
TAKE OFF - LINED UP NOSE TO TAIL FOR THE START OF ANOTHER <strong>MISSION</strong>. WILL THEY ALL<br />
COME BACK.<br />
Today's mission is a typical one. Let me give you a brief run-down. Wake-up time was 04:20.<br />
Dress and get to breakfast. Briefing at 05:20. The call sign is "Vinegrove". The recall word is<br />
"Carnation". Accompanying fighter groups call signs are "Martini", "Sweepstakes", "Rickshaw", and<br />
"Roselee". The crew is trucked to the flight line. All pilots and co-pilots do the pre-flight check as the<br />
sun seeks the horizon. Start-up time is 06:55 and 112 engines wake up the countryside. A Very light is<br />
shot over the field so takeoff is deferred one hour. A ground fog hung around longer then expected.<br />
The crew chiefs replace the fuel used in the start-up. Again takeoff is postponed. The coffee wagon<br />
comes around but nobody wants a full bladder at 20000 feet. The jeep finally arrives and says "start<br />
engines in 45 minutes - takeoff in one hour". All bombers are lined up nose to tail, engines going,<br />
awaiting their turn to takeoff. Oil pressure, hydraulic pressure, cylinder head temperature, fuel<br />
pressure, oil temperature, carburetor air-temperature all OK. Tachometer and manifold pressure both<br />
steady. Trim-tabs at zero. Voltage output and pitot heater OK. Turbo to takeoff position. Windows<br />
closed and locked. Controls unlocked. Gyro set. Flaps down. Cowl-flaps open. Props fine pitch,<br />
Mixture full rich. There are 50 dials and 150 switches in the cockpit. Brakes on. Throttles forward,<br />
brake off - the noise level increases and at 120 MPH you leave the runway. Under carriage up. Fog<br />
beads on the windows, you finally climb out of the cloud cover and the 28 aircraft do formation<br />
assembly as planned. Eight hours and thirty minutes later the formation of 28 planes (no losses) is<br />
back over buncher beacon #7. You breakup in turn and descend through the overcast. Rain pelts your<br />
aircraft and you can vaguely see your wing tips, then dead ahead is runway 07. The ground crew<br />
awaits your comments, then debriefing, food and bed from pure fatigue. JCR.]
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #29 - Operational formation - 1 March, 1945<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #223<br />
AUGSBURG, GERMANY<br />
A.C. Hardies 620J (7)<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
J.E. McCready 677J (7)<br />
J.J. Shafter 699J (5)<br />
LOW LEFT FORMATION<br />
S.L. Winters 798H (3)<br />
G.L. Brock 083H (10)<br />
H.P. Mulrain 556J (5)<br />
J.J. Caldwell H2X 806J (1)<br />
LEAD FORMATION<br />
W. Bobak 463J (3)<br />
W.R. Wilhelmi H2X 870J (1)<br />
G.E. Franklin 391H (8)<br />
K. Wheeler H2X 787J (2)<br />
J.F. Clark 246J (10) G.R. Onufer 185H (9)<br />
F.E. Bastian 809J (8)<br />
F.C. Reynolds 358J (2)<br />
R.G. Page 496H (9)<br />
E.F. King 762H (7)<br />
W.C. Redden 359H (4)<br />
D.R. Durbin 247J (5)<br />
J.A. Birkland 305H (6)<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 777J (4) - THE SPIRIT OF COOLEY HIGH<br />
J.E. Corbett ???? (6)<br />
HIGH RIGHT FORMATION<br />
J.C. Weaver 953H (3)<br />
P. Protich 066J (1)<br />
C.P. Quirk 551J (8)<br />
C.K. Moran 341H (2)<br />
C.L. Martin 489J (9)<br />
F.J. Hahner 9521H (4)
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<strong>MISSION</strong> #30 - 2 March, 1945, Friday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #224<br />
Take-off, 07:01 hours Group planes attacking, 22 ships<br />
Forming altitude, 13500 feet No aborts. No ships lost.<br />
Bombing altitude, 22500 feet Tonnage dropped, 54.6<br />
Length, 6 hours - 55 minutes Escort, P-51's. Good<br />
Oxygen, 4 hours Fuel load, 2700 gallons<br />
Bomb load, 10 500 lb. General Purpose bombs Average fuel consumption, 288 GPH<br />
Temperature, -34 o<br />
Rowe fuel consumption, 1870 gallons<br />
Group planes airborne, 22 ships (average 270 GPH)<br />
Magdeburg, Germany again. Our fourth trip there. Visually we were to bomb oil<br />
refineries, otherwise we were to bomb the secondary target by H2X, which we did. We made<br />
landfall at Egmond, Holland, then over the Zuider Zee, east to Hannover and into the target. We<br />
hit the marshaling yards in the city. Clouds were 10/10 going in but over the target they were<br />
5/10. We bombed by H2X. We could not see the target through the broken cloud cover. Flak was<br />
heavy and accurate. On the bomb run, flak was bursting all around us and the sky was black with<br />
flak bursts. It's hard to describe the sound of the explosions but once you hear it you will never<br />
forget. Things were happening so fast one really did not have time to be scared. Bombing results<br />
unobserved. A B-24 from another Group got hit over the target and caught fire, started down and<br />
four chutes were seen to open before the ship disappeared through the clouds. We came out the<br />
A SMOKE BOMB MARKS THE TARGET AND THE OTHERS BEHIND RELEASE ON THAT TARGET<br />
MARKER.
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same route that we went in. We arrived safely back to base without any problems. JHZ.<br />
[Today a new crew assigned to the 713th Squadron, 2nd Lt. Karl Augustine and his<br />
crew, flew their first mission. The heavy flak Joe mentioned above put two holes in their right<br />
wing. Although they lost a great deal of fuel, everyone from our Group got back to Seething<br />
safely. The Germans used the RAF returning night flyers as cover to come in and strafe English<br />
airfields. On the night of 2 March, ME 410's and JU 88's shot up our area of England but<br />
without any casualties. However the NCO duty officer in the control tower at Metfield was<br />
killed and 5 men sleeping in their Quonset huts were injured. JCR.]<br />
THE 448TH ENROUTE TO THEIR TARGET. ABOVE PICTURE OF EUROPE’S WEATHER IN<br />
<strong>1944</strong> SHOWS WHY GH AND H2X WERE SO NECESSARY FOR BTO (BOMBING THROUGH<br />
OVERCAST).
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #30 - Operational formation - 2 March, 1945<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #224<br />
MAGDEBURG, GERMANY<br />
The microfilm frame showing the<br />
route map was bad and not<br />
available for this mission.<br />
D.B. Graybeal 305H (7)<br />
448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
H.L. Stewart 762H (5)<br />
D.L. Crandall 798H (7)<br />
J.S. Thomas 809J (3)<br />
J.S. Steffan 359H (5)<br />
R.H. Page 496H (10)<br />
LEAD FORMATION<br />
H.F. Doane H2X 505J (1)<br />
A.S. Broadfoot 620J (8)<br />
G.F. Land 083H (11)<br />
LOW LEFT FORMATION<br />
J.C. Weaver 953H (3)<br />
K. Wheeler H2X 870J (1)<br />
M.A. Baratz 246J (8)<br />
J.F. Clark 391H (10) J.E. Corbett 270H (9)<br />
S. Hailey 489J (11)<br />
H.L. Smith H2X 525J (2)<br />
V.H. Hoyer 699J (9)<br />
P. Protich 341H (4)<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 777J (2) - THE SPIRIT OF COOLEY HIGH<br />
P.E. Raman 298H (4)<br />
K. Augustine 556J (6)
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<strong>MISSION</strong> #31 - 3 March, 1945, Saturday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #225<br />
Take-off, 06:30 hours Group planes attacking, 19 ships<br />
Forming altitude, 8000 feet 1 ship aborted. Two ships lost.<br />
Bombing altitude, 21500 feet Tonnage dropped, 62.0<br />
Length, 6 hours - 50 minutes Escort, P-51's. Very good<br />
Oxygen, 3 hours - 30 minutes Fuel load, 2700 gallons<br />
Bomb load, 10 500 lb. General Purpose bombs Average fuel consumption, 276 GPH<br />
Temperature, -36 o<br />
Rowe fuel consumption, 1900 gallons<br />
Group planes airborne, 29 ships (average 275 GPH)<br />
6 ships for screening force.<br />
Our target was the oil refinery at Magdeburg, Germany (again). We hit the jackpot today. We went<br />
over the North Sea, crossed into Germany at Cuxhaven and in to the target. Going in, cloud cover<br />
ranged from 5/10 to 10/10. From the Wing IP throughout the target it was visual. We could see the<br />
target long before we got to it. Shortly after we reached the Wing IP, bandits were reported in the<br />
area. The formation closed up. We were flying "high right" off the deputy lead, low left squadron.<br />
The lead in the bucket<br />
and the deputy l e a d<br />
collided. The b u c k e t<br />
lead’s tail was chewed off<br />
by the deputy lead. They<br />
both went down just<br />
missing us by a few feet.<br />
Five chutes were seen to<br />
open. No f u r t h e r<br />
s u r v i v o r s . Soon after<br />
an ME-262 came right<br />
over our f o r m a t i o n<br />
firing his cannon and<br />
machine guns. No one got a<br />
shot at him as h e w a s<br />
going so fast. Two P-51's<br />
closed in but with uno<br />
b s e r v e d results. Flak<br />
was very intense and<br />
accurate. Two more ME-<br />
NOTE THE B-24 PARKED AT ITS HARDSTAND AND THE CLOSE PROXIMITY<br />
OF THE CATTLE. AIRFIELDS WERE RIGHT IN AMONG THE FARMS.<br />
262's were sighted off<br />
in the distance but did not<br />
attack. They apparently were calling in our altitude and air speed to the flak batteries below so they<br />
could zero in on us a little better. The city was really beat up from previous bombings. At bombs<br />
away, I could see them all the way down. They exploded squarely into the oil refinery. Huge
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billows of black smoke came up, followed by violent explosions and flames. We really wiped it<br />
out. This was one of the last of the three oil refineries in Germany, now two left. One half-hour<br />
from the target we could still see the explosions and flames. Black oily smoke rose up to 20000 feet<br />
completely obliterating the target. A very good job well done. Shortly after we left the target we<br />
developed an oxygen leak that could not be stopped. The pressure dropped immediately. We were<br />
still an hour and a half from the enemy coast at 22000 feet. We had to letdown after putting on our<br />
walk around oxygen bottles. Our main supply of oxygen was gone. We came back across the<br />
TALK ABOUT CLOSE TO FARMLAND. A B-24 SWEEPS ACROSS A FENCE AND HEDGE TO LAND.<br />
Zuider Zee, the southern part of the North Sea and to our base. It was a rough mission but a very<br />
thorough job was done. We do not need to go back to Magdeburg again. JHZ.<br />
[The image of the two planes colliding clearly imprinted itself on my mind. When I close my<br />
eyes, I can see it clearly to this day. Just before the collision, an ME-262 (although I only saw one<br />
plane, it must be one other than the one Joe describes above because it came through just before<br />
the collision) came from in front, slightly above us, and just to my left firing his cannon and<br />
machine guns. It was just after that the two planes collided. We were flying "high right" off the<br />
deputy lead. Cannon and machine gun fire from the ME-262 caused either injury or death in the<br />
cockpit of the deputy lead (Lt. Jim Guynes' plane) because it immediately slowed up slid back and<br />
slightly lower, striking the bucket lead (Lt. Irving Smarinsky's plane) just behind the wing with the<br />
tail assembly of Lt. Jim Guynes' plane. Because of our forward speed and our left wing obstructing<br />
my vision thereafter, I could see nothing more. Joe and Richard tells me that Lt. Smarinksy's tail<br />
assembly was torn away and the impact broke Lt. Smarinsky's plane into two pieces and both<br />
planes dropped away. Centrifugal force would have prevented too many from bailing out. For<br />
three missions in a row we flew 777J but were scheduled to fly 463J today. Upon arrival at the<br />
hardstand, we found it occupied by Lt. Smarinsky's crew. We were then assigned plane #777 again.<br />
As Joe noted above, the loss of our oxygen supply forced us to descend to a lower altitude. The
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"walk around" or "bail-out" bottle was good only for 10 minutes or less. At higher altitudes, each<br />
man's position was pretty well fixed because he needed both oxygen from the main supply and<br />
electric current for the heated suit. A lone B-24 or B-17 over central Germany was a "setting<br />
duck" for enemy fighters. However, two P-51's appeared out of no-where and provided us escort<br />
for part of the way out. Lt. T. Horton (496H) landed at Metfield on his return. He was flying just<br />
behind Lt. Smarinsky and may have had some damage to his aircraft. Lt. Westbrook aborted<br />
shortly after assembly. JCR.]<br />
POST WAR RESEARCH ON THE SHOOT DOWN OF LT. GUYNES AND LT.<br />
SMARINSKY’S AIRCRAFT<br />
This was the 6th mission that our crew flew<br />
the same mission with Jim Guynes and the<br />
7th mission our crew flew with Lt. Irv<br />
Smarinsky. The MISSING AIR CREW<br />
REPORTS (#12885 & #12884) like so<br />
many others does not give a great deal of<br />
information. The collision was not abrupt.<br />
Guynes' plane (evidently not under control<br />
because of death and/or injury in the<br />
cockpit) slowly and gradually slid back and<br />
rather gently settled on top of Smarinsky's<br />
plane. It is a mystery why the pilot or copilot<br />
took no evasive action, however as<br />
determined after the war was over,<br />
Smarinsky's crew also suffered injuries<br />
because his plane was also directly in line<br />
of fire from the jet and that may have<br />
momentarily received everyone's attention.<br />
Don Schlecher, Jim's tail gunner was the<br />
only survivor from his crew. Lt. Arthur<br />
Hoffman and Sgt. Gerard Perry, flight<br />
THE MEN TRIED TO KEEP THEIR QUARTERS CLEAN BY<br />
LEAVING MUDDY BOOTS OUTSIDE.<br />
engineer for Irv were the only two<br />
survivors on Irv's plane. The following<br />
information was garnered by Steve<br />
Guynes, Jim's nephew, and by Catherine Guynes Alford, Jim's sister from correspondence with<br />
German citizens, with Lt. Sam Hailey (Sam did not fly that day but gathered Guynes' belongings<br />
the day of the mission) who talked to Don Schlecher after the war, with Bob Lane, brother of<br />
Horace Lane, co-pilot for Irv and with Lt. John Stanford, co-pilot for Lt. Ed Anderson who was<br />
flying off Irv's right wing on that fatal day.<br />
Don Schlecher's statement to Lt. Sam Hailey is as follows: “They were nearly to the target when<br />
he says one of those jet-propelled planes sped by and he shot at it. Just after the plane went by he<br />
discovered that his inter-phone was out and he turned around to see what was the matter. He<br />
saw that John Schilling (who was in the waist) had been hit and he stepped out of the tail<br />
assembly to help him. At that moment some force kept him pinned to the top of the plane (that
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force was probably when the collision occurred) and he was trying to push himself away when great<br />
rolls of smoke came all through the plane. He doesn't remember getting into his chute or anything<br />
after the explosion - or before it - but he regained consciousness as he was falling through the air.<br />
Parts of the plane were falling all around him and he saw the tail assembly floating around. He<br />
pulled the ripcord but passed out before it even opened. When he came to he was draped over a<br />
bicycle and several 12 and 13 year old Hitler youth were holding guns to his head. They had already<br />
rolled up his chute, taken his watch, ring and wallet and $150 that was in it. His identification<br />
bracelet was saved because it was hidden in his flight jacket. After he was by himself he ripped off<br />
his shirt and put it in there and then in the hospital he hid it under the mattress. His left ankle was<br />
broken and his heel was fractured They threw him into a jail and then the Gestapo came and<br />
questioned him. He couldn't stand up and they kicked him and broke three of his ribs and injured his<br />
wrists. He was taken from one prison to another and them marched through Frankfurt on the way to<br />
the hospital. Civilians spit on him and the others and also threw rocks. For 3 days they prepared<br />
trains to transport them, but P-47s each time blew the empty trains to bits. He said the Jerry's were<br />
really scared but on one of the trains, a few civilians wanted to hang them. They were hysterical and<br />
except for the prison guards, he wouldn't be here today. On one of the train rides, Don met Lt. Arthur<br />
Hoffman, Smarinsky’s bombardier who landed near Jim Guynes. Lt. Hoffman wanted to give Jim<br />
first aid but the Hitler youths wouldn't let him. Lt. Hoffman told Don that when he wanted to give<br />
Jim first aid, Jim told him that he lost both #3 and #4 engines and all controls. Lt. Hoffman said that<br />
when their ship exploded, he was blown out of the side. "<br />
Bob Lane, brother of Smarinsky’s co-pilot, talked with Sgt. Perry and Sgt. Perry told him at the<br />
instant of the collision, he left his station for the bomb bay to release the bombs but failed and was<br />
then thrown from the plane as it looped. As he drifted toward the ground, he saw Guynes’ plane<br />
explode in mid-air and saw their plane crash. Sgt. Perry met Don, Guynes' tail gunner and helped<br />
him to first aid. Sgt. Perry also said he met the German pilot who downed the planes but could not<br />
HOME AWAY FROM HOME AND MUD, MUD AND MORE MUD.
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remember his name.<br />
Lt. John Stanford, flying off Irv’s right wing, as co-pilot for Lt. Ed Anderson says: "Lt.<br />
Guynes’ plane was hit by cannon fire from a Me262, one of several which attacked the formation.<br />
He thought the shell exploded in the flight deck. He says Guynes’ plane slowed and fell back in the<br />
formation, slid to the right and then to the left, apparently as the crew struggled to control the craft.<br />
On the last lurch, the left wing of Guynes’ plane rolled onto its back out of control. Smarinsky’s<br />
plane rose up on its tail and into a loop. He saw five parachutes from the two planes. " From my<br />
(John Rowe) direction off from Jim's right wing, his plane did not appear to lurch, but gradually<br />
slid back and gently settled on top of Irv’s plane. The wing of Jim's plane caught behind the<br />
stabilizer of Irv’s plane and pulled up the nose. At that point I could not see anymore but my<br />
crewmembers tell me that Irv’s plane looped and Jim's plane rolled over and both fell. All I saw<br />
was one German jet fighter.<br />
Following is Lt. Ed Anderson's account of the collision: "All of our planes had their bomb<br />
bay doors open in readiness for the bomb run. Everything appeared to be normal. We had no radio<br />
warnings that enemy fighters were in the area. I happened to glance up and saw a German twin<br />
engine jet fighter pass over Guynes’ plane and our plane from front to back. I neither saw nor<br />
heard any firing from any of our gunners. I did not see any other German fighters or any other<br />
passes by the first fighter. I did not see any pieces come off or any fires start on Guynes’ plane.<br />
Guynes’ plane flew straight and level but its airspeed and altitude immediately decreased slightly.<br />
Then Guynes’ plane started to come back toward our plane. I decreased airspeed and altitude to<br />
stay behind and below Guynes’ plane. We kept trying to fly formation off Smarinsky’s plane.<br />
Guynes’ plane was still flying straight and level but was losing airspeed and altitude as it slid to<br />
the left. Guynes’ plane appeared to be over Smarinsky’s plane - not directly lined up but Guynes’<br />
plane was further to the rear than Smarinsky’s plane. Smarinsky’s plane took no evasive action.<br />
Guynes’ plane then lowered onto Smarinsky’s plane - not abruptly but over a few seconds time. I<br />
saw wrinkles’ forming in Smarinsky’s right rudder as a force was applied to the top of it by<br />
Guynes’ plane. I saw Smarinsky’s tail turret being crushed by Guynes’ plane. I did not see any<br />
pieces come off or any fires start on either plane. As soon as the collision occurred I dove down to<br />
the right out of formation. Before I lost eye contact I saw either Guynes’ or Smarinsky’s plane roll<br />
to its left. I could see into the open bomb bay. The bombs were starting to tumble around because<br />
the bomb bay was now on its side. A few seconds later I pulled back into formation. Both Guynes’<br />
and Smarinsky’s planes were gone. The formation was readjusted and the nine remaining planes<br />
flew on towards the target." It appears that Ed saw it as I (Rowe) saw it.<br />
A German nurse (Iringard Bodenstab) told Jim's sister that his plane "came down broken" near<br />
Salzwedel, near Magdeburg. His right arm was only hanging by the skin and had to be amputated.<br />
Also blood poisoning began in the left knee and one leg had to be amputated. This nurse was the<br />
only one that could talk with Jim in English. Jim had showed her a picture of his young daughter in<br />
front of their house. Jim had been brought to her station, but she said only the physician and first<br />
nurse were allowed in his room. He died March 29, 1945 at 12:15 and was buried at the Perver<br />
churchyard, row 5 number 4, in Salzwedel. Jim's sister then received a letter from a Max<br />
Korolyawsko, Jr who had found the case history of Jim in a hospital and felt it his Christian duty to<br />
give her a copy. He also said that Jim's body was recovered from Salzwedel and reinterred at<br />
Newville in Belgium. Jim's widow had remarried and did not wish his body returned,
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however Jim's sister arranged for the body to be returned and Jim was buried in Evergreen<br />
Cemetery, Ballinger, Texas with full military honors. Max Korolylawsko had been a German<br />
prisoner of war confined in the Southwestern U.S. and "learned to like our country."<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #31 - Operational formation - 3 March, 1945<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #225<br />
MAGDEBURG, GERMANY<br />
Microfilm map frame was very bad. I could<br />
not make a legible copy of the route map.<br />
H. Hausman 516J (7)<br />
A.C. Hardies 798H (7)<br />
F.C. Reynolds 772J (5)<br />
H. Westbrook 767J (3)<br />
C.C. Crandall 305H (10)<br />
LOW LEFT FORMATION<br />
D.L. Thomas H2X 805J (1)<br />
LEAD FORMATION<br />
H.E. Doane H2X 443J (1)<br />
D.B. Graybeal 762H (8)<br />
W.W. Shue 489H (11)<br />
F.E. McCready 298H (3) Jim W. Guynes 247J (2)<br />
J.J. Shafter 620J (5)<br />
J.F. Clark 677J (10)<br />
Irv Smarinsky 463J (8)<br />
T.B. Horton 496H (11)<br />
E.V. Anderson 246J (9)<br />
W.L. Voight H2X 525J (2)<br />
H. McFarland 341H (9)<br />
SCREENING FORCE<br />
W.C. Holden 504J (3)<br />
G.R. Onufer 270H (6)<br />
F.E. Bastian 7521H (4)<br />
G.N. Davis 083H (6)<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 777J (4) - THE SPIRIT OF COOLEY HIGH<br />
J.E. Corbett 556J (6)<br />
J.G. Blank 806J (1)<br />
R.C. Cook H2X 870J (4)<br />
R.L. Mains 359H (2)<br />
E.A. Soldberg 953H (5)
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<strong>MISSION</strong> #32 - 5 March, 1945, Monday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #227<br />
Take-off, 06:34 hours Group planes attacking, 20 ships<br />
Forming altitude, 10000 feet 2 ships aborts, no ships lost<br />
Bombing altitude, 25000 feet Tonnage dropped, 70.0<br />
Length, 5 hours - 45 minutes Escort, P-51's and P-47's<br />
Oxygen, 3 hours Fuel load, 2500 gallons<br />
Bomb load, 12 500 lb. RDX Average fuel consumption, 300 GPH<br />
Temperature, -30 o<br />
Rowe fuel consumption, 1625 gallons<br />
Group planes airborne, 24 ships (average 283 GPH)<br />
(2 ships for screening force.)<br />
The target was an oil refinery again at Harburg, Germany. Harburg is a suburb of Hamburg. We<br />
TYPICAL OF THE HUNDRED’S OF NISSEN BARRACKS WITH THE CENTRAL STOVE PIPE. A GOOD<br />
ILLUSTRATION OF THE CRAMPED QUARTERS FOR THE MEN.<br />
went over the North Sea, skirting Helgoland where the Germans shot up about a dozen bursts of<br />
flak way off in the distance. We picked up our fighter escort of P-51's and P-47's over Denmark<br />
where we made landfall and crossed into Germany. Our IP took us right over Hamburg and into
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Harburg. Cloud cover was 10/10. Flak was meager to moderate and inaccurate. We bombed by<br />
H2X, results unobserved. We passed near two German fighter belts, Steinharter and Dummer<br />
Lake. We crossed the Zuider Zee near Egmond, Holland, and the southern part of the North Sea<br />
and back to our base. Bandits were reported in the area as we approached our landing pattern.<br />
All guns were manned both in the landing ships and all surrounding bases. No enemy aircraft<br />
were sighted. JHZ.<br />
[Snow showers and rain squalls continued. Navigation was difficult in the heavy<br />
merging cloud layers. Headquarters demanded that bombing be continued in spite of the bad<br />
weather, so the day before (March 4) all ships flew to France individually and formed south of<br />
Nancy, France. We did not fly on March 4, but it was a disaster as the 446th BG bombed<br />
Zurich, Switzerland and the 93rd bombed Basel, Switzerland. Both mistook the Swiss cities for<br />
Freiburg, Germany. Of the nine ships of the 448th, two aborted and seven attached to another<br />
Group that bombed Stuttgart, Germany. We did fly today (March 5) but used the standard<br />
assembly procedures. Guns on the base were manned because the enemy was known in the past<br />
to have quietly followed bombers home and then hit them while attempting to land. Lt. F.<br />
McCready and Lt. D. Anderson aborted with engine and supercharger problems. JCR.]<br />
BRITAIN ON THE RECEIVING END OF AERIAL BOMBING. WORKMEN REMOVE DEBRIS OF<br />
DEMOLISHED HOUSES IN A NORFOLK TOWN.
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #32 - Operational formation - 5 March, 1945<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #227<br />
HARBURG, GERMANY<br />
Microfilm map frame<br />
was bad. I could not<br />
make a legible copy of<br />
the route map.<br />
C.K. Moran 341H (7)<br />
D.R. Durbin 762H (5)<br />
S.L. Winters 099J (7)<br />
H.E. Matthaes 516J (5)<br />
F.C. Reynolds 536J (3)<br />
LEAD FORMATION<br />
W.H. Wilhelmi H2X 443J (1)<br />
J.J. Shafter 620J (8)<br />
K.P. Wheeler H2X 525J (2)<br />
A.C. Hardies 798H (10) H. Hausman 699J (9)<br />
M.O. Holman 767J (11)<br />
LOW LEFT FORMATION<br />
W.W. Shue 1489J (3)<br />
F.W. Tod 677J (10)<br />
S.H. Hodgson H2X 527J (1)<br />
J.M. Ray 298H (8)<br />
F.E. McCready 083H (11)<br />
H.L. Stewart 066J (2)<br />
F.W. Clark 504J (9)<br />
G.D. Anderson 9521H (4)<br />
C.E. Martin 589J (6)<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 777J (4) - THE SPIRIT OF COOLEY HIGH<br />
SCREENING FORCE<br />
H.R. Mulrain 270H R.L. Page 359H<br />
A.E. Hatch 185H (6)
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<strong>MISSION</strong> #33 - 9 March, 1945, Friday, (1 day after Joe Zonyk’s birthday)<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #229<br />
Take-off, 06:49 hours Group planes airborne, 30 ships.<br />
Forming altitude, 13500 feet Group planes attacking, 30 ships<br />
Bombing altitude, 23500 feet No ships aborts, no ships lost<br />
Length, 5 hours Tonnage dropped, 52.0<br />
Oxygen, 2 hours - 30 minutes Escort, P-51's and P-47's. Fair<br />
Bomb load, 44 100-lb. demolition bombs Fuel load, 2500 gallons<br />
and 2 500-lb. incendiaries Average fuel consumption, 314 GPH<br />
Temperature, -30 o<br />
Rowe fuel consumption, 294 GPH<br />
Our target was the marshaling yards in Rheine, Germany. We made landfall at Egmond, Holland,<br />
then over the Zuider Zee and into Germany. We bombed by GH although the target was visible at times.<br />
We did a lot of spring plowing. Other Groups may have hit the target. Our group hit about 500 yards to<br />
the right of the MPI (mean point of impact or aiming point). Flak was meager to moderate and<br />
inaccurate. We came out the same way we went in. JHZ.<br />
[Bruce flew this mission as first pilot and I occupied the right seat as co-pilot. Plenty of P-51's<br />
around. Not an enemy fighter in sight. The sky was clear today and it was exciting to see the 50-mile long<br />
stream of bombers. It was always an exhilarating moment to see a mission depart. In the pre-dawn you<br />
A MASS FOR THE DEAD HELD IN THE BASE CHAPEL AT SEETHING AIRFIELD
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could see the blue exhaust flames climb into the night one after another. I particularly<br />
remember the noise-level. Massive power, spectacular sight and then they were all gone and<br />
you could feel the countryside silence. JCR.]
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #33 - Operational formation - 9 March, 1945<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #229<br />
RHEINE, GERMANY<br />
A.C. Hardies 798J (7)<br />
LOW LEFT FORMATION<br />
K.L. Flinders 516J (3)<br />
J.J. Shafter 099J (5)<br />
F.E. McCready 677J (5)<br />
P.J. Jones 270H (6)<br />
S.H. Hodgson H2X 527J (1)<br />
I.W. Ruge 772J (8)<br />
LEAD FORMATION<br />
B. Bobak 185H (3)<br />
GH 968J (1)<br />
M.A. Baratz 556J (8)<br />
W.C. Holden 992H (10) F.E. Clark 590J (9)<br />
H.L. Mulrain 302H (11)<br />
H.M. Jonson 767J (2)<br />
G.N. Davis 083H (10) S.E. Guiney 359H (9)<br />
W.C. Redden 699J (4)<br />
R.A. Paeschke 000J (7)<br />
R.N. Page 496J (6)<br />
C.E. Martin 482J (5)<br />
W. Wilhelmi H2X 443J (2)<br />
G.D. Wikander 777J (4)<br />
HIGH RIGHT FORMATION<br />
R.L. Stewart 326H (3)<br />
GH 593J (1)<br />
E.A. Soldberg 589J (8)<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 298H (6) - TROUBLE ‘N MIND<br />
W.L. Voight 646J (2)<br />
D.G. Anderson 489J (10) F.J. Hahner 983H (9)<br />
H.W. Gully 391H (11)<br />
V.F. King 246J (4)<br />
R. Westbrook 491J (6)
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<strong>MISSION</strong> #34 - 10 March, 1945, Saturday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #230<br />
Take-off 08:19 hours Group planes airborne, 30 ships<br />
Forming altitude, 10000 feet Group planes attacking, 29 ships<br />
Bombing altitude, 20500 feet 1 ship aborted, no ships lost<br />
Length, 7 hours Tonnage dropped, 35.0<br />
Oxygen, 3 hours Escort, P-51's. Good<br />
Bomb load, 44 100-lb. demolition bombs Fuel load, 2500 gallons (Ave. 272 GPH)<br />
and 2 500-lb. M-17 incendiaries Rowe fuel consumption, 1725 gallons<br />
Temperature, -19 o<br />
(Average 246 GPH)<br />
German 105mm anti-aircraft cannon. The large relative of<br />
the famous Flug Abwher Kanone 88mm. (Flak is an<br />
acronym for FLUG ABWHER KANONE)<br />
The target again today was<br />
marshaling yards, this time at Paderborn,<br />
Germany. The whole Air Force was out<br />
today trying to choke off the Ruhr Valley,<br />
hitting targets individually. Our target was<br />
east of Dortmund. We made landfall at<br />
Walrechen, Holland, flew over Brussels<br />
and across the battle lines. There was heavy<br />
fighting below. We came down below<br />
Koblenz and headed north skirting "Happy<br />
Valley", better known as the Ruhr Valley.<br />
Most of the German steel mills and other<br />
heavy industries were located there, a very<br />
heavily defended area. Clouds were 10/10<br />
going all the way in. We bombed by GH,<br />
results unobserved. No flak but a few<br />
rockets were fired at us. They were very<br />
inaccurate. JHZ.<br />
[Reville at 04:00. Breakfast at<br />
04:45. Briefing at 05:45. Took off at 08:19.<br />
Formation assembly at 08:50. Left the<br />
English coast at 09:45. England was clear<br />
but the continent was overcast. Home at<br />
16:00 hours. I do not recall the name of<br />
our new co-pilot. Bruce flew today in<br />
#556J with his own crew. He should have<br />
had his own crew from the start. We were<br />
fortunate in having had two "first pilots" for<br />
so many of our missions. JCR.]
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448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #34 - Operational formation - 10 March, 1945<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #230<br />
PADERBORN, GERMANY<br />
H. Hausman 7521H (7)<br />
E.A. Soldberg 589J (5)<br />
G.F. Land 853H (7)<br />
R.J. Camburn 727J (5)<br />
LOW LEFT FORMATION<br />
E.W. Sheffield 953H (3)<br />
F.J. Hahner 341H (10)<br />
F.R. Piliere 083H (3)<br />
GH 516J (1)<br />
LEAD FORMATION<br />
GH 573J (1)<br />
I.W. Ruge772J (8)<br />
S.E. Guiney 498J (10) F.E. Bastan 099J (9)<br />
M.O. Holman 326H (8)<br />
R. Westbrook 767J (11)<br />
R.D. Sampson (11)<br />
R.L. Stewart 489J (2)<br />
S. Hailey 551H (9)<br />
C.E. Martin 482J (4)<br />
J.F. Clark 590J (5)<br />
S.H. Hodgson H2X 646J (2)<br />
D.F. King 762H (6)<br />
V.E. Voyer 516J (4)<br />
R.L. Mains 536J (6)<br />
HIGH RIGHT FORMATION<br />
J.M. Ray 298H (3)<br />
GH 355J (1)<br />
J.A. Birkland 777J (7) H.W. Gully 491J (8)<br />
J.R. Cook 358J (2)<br />
H.D. Wikander 677J (10) M.R. McCluhen 391H (9)<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 246J (4)-FRISCO’S<br />
FRISKY<br />
B.J. Anderson 556J (6)
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448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> #35 - 11 March, 1945, Sunday<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #231<br />
Take-off, 09:19 hours Group planes attacking, 32 ships<br />
Forming altitude, 8000 feet 1 ship aborted No ships lost<br />
Bombing altitude, 23000 feet Escort, P-51's. Very good<br />
Length, 6 hours - 15 minutes Fuel load, 2500 gallons<br />
Oxygen, 2 hours - 30 minutes Average fuel consumption, 278 GPH<br />
Bomb load, 52 100-lb. M-17 incendiaries Rowe fuel consumption, 1700 gallons<br />
Temperature, -29 o<br />
Group planes airborne, 33 ships.<br />
(average 268 GPH)<br />
Kiel, Germany and what a place to go for our last mission. Since the Russians occupied most<br />
of the Baltic Coast, the German Navy, what was left of it, moved into their final base at Kiel. Our<br />
target was the dockyard, submarine sheds and assembly works. We went in over the North Sea,<br />
made landfall at the Isle of Sylt off Denmark. 10/10-cloud cover socked in the target. Flak was very<br />
heavy, thrown up by shore batteries and naval guns. We dropped our load of M-17 firebombs, which<br />
consisted of a m i x t u r e o f<br />
gasoline and a rubber substance.<br />
R e s u l t s unobserved but<br />
there were a lot of black oily smoke<br />
coming up through the clouds. We<br />
got two bursts of flak right under<br />
our right wing. It was entirely too<br />
close considering this was our last<br />
mission. We came back over the<br />
North Sea to our base at dear old<br />
Seething. We flew deputy lead, low<br />
left Squadron. Weather was<br />
lousy and we had to make an<br />
i n s t r u m e n t letdown by the<br />
best damn Pilot and Co-pilot in<br />
the ETO. JHZ.<br />
[ A r r i v a l back was at 15:35<br />
with two planes m i s s i n g . N o<br />
losses over the<br />
says, flak was<br />
thought they might<br />
So highly prized were cycles that “borrowing became rife”. MPs are<br />
checking numbers before returning to rightful owners. Bikes were a<br />
hot item because there were not enough to go around. Many airmen<br />
target. As Joe<br />
heavy and we first<br />
h a v e b e e n<br />
would check with crews approaching the end of their assigned<br />
number of missions and start bartering.<br />
d a m a g e d o r downed in the<br />
heavy cloud cover but all aircraft<br />
arrived back safely. F.W. Tod (677J) aborted after assembly with an engine failure. At the<br />
hardstand before take-off, while Bruce and I were doing the pre-flight check, Richard seated on his
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WEDDING AT ST. MARGARET AND ST. REMIGIUS CHURCH IN SEETHING, ENGLAND<br />
“Marriagemania” was as hot an item as “cyclemania”. An estimated 70,000 women married American<br />
servicemen during the war.<br />
parachute, raised his hand and said, "Well this is it, one way or the other". While fatalism is not<br />
the answer, in moments like these we are all fatalistic. Your time has come or it hasn't. It turned<br />
out well. Seeing planes go down one wonders if he ever did anything worthwhile in his life, and<br />
after our second mission, we didn't see how we could survive 35 missions without disaster. If<br />
you never prayed before, you knew now that prayer was the only defense available. I am sure<br />
that everyone in the crew, each in his own way, prayed for the crew's safety. I know that John<br />
and Joe said many a "hail Mary" and an "Our Father" on all of our missions. We did have<br />
numerous close calls, but no injuries, nor did we so much as lose an engine. We didn't mind the<br />
long haul back over the North Sea this time. Our luck was exceedingly good. The champagne<br />
Joe, Dick and John bought in Paris on their "OO-LA-LA" mission in February had been<br />
reserved for this occasion.<br />
On March 13th (2 days after our last mission) my flight log shows a 2:50 hour credit as<br />
command pilot checking out a newly arrived crew. The microfilm records reveal that on the<br />
same day Lt. Broadfoot (who was housed in the same barracks with Richard and Bruce and like<br />
us had completed his tour of duty) was checking out Lt. Paul Westrick and his freshman crew.<br />
Check out exercises included fighter passes for real-life experiences for both the gunners and<br />
the fighter pilots. The fighter pilot came too close, his propeller severed the B-24's left rudder<br />
and horizontal stabilizer. Both planes crashed about 4 miles NNE of Seething Airfield. Newly<br />
arrived crews also practice formation flying. It must have been the same P-47 that was giving
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448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
gunnery practice to the crew being checked out by me. When you review the formation sheets,<br />
you will recognize the following names of Pilots, who with their crews, flew several of the same<br />
missions with our crew but not having completed their 35 mission tour, they continued to fly,<br />
were downed by flak or fighters after we finished our tour and were reported MIA.<br />
SHIP DATE TARGET<br />
Lt. Hugh McFarland, Jr. 341J 3-24-45 Wesel, Gr.- (low level supply drop to<br />
British airborne troops)<br />
Lt. Knute F. Stalland 646J 3-25-45 Buchen, Gr. (oil refinery)<br />
Lt. Frederick W. Tod 517J 3-25-45 Buchen, Gr. (oil refinery)<br />
Lt. Paul J. Jones 185H 3-25-45 Buchen, Gr. (oil refinery)<br />
Lt. Joseph F. Steffan 099J 3-25-45 Buchen, Gr. (oil refinery)<br />
Lt. James J. Shafter 620J 4-4-45 Wesendorf, Gr. (air force base)<br />
Capt. John M. Ray 298H 4-4-45 Wesendorf, Gr. (air force base)<br />
Lt. Robert L. Mains 838M 4-4-45 Wesendorf, Gr. (air force base)<br />
Lt. McFarland, Jr. was flying the last position in the High Right Squadron on the Wesel,<br />
Germany mission. On the Buchen,<br />
G e r m a n y m i s s i o n ( E a s t<br />
Germany), Lt.'s Stalland, Tod, &<br />
Jones, were in the 713th<br />
Squadron (flying in low left<br />
Squadron) that got detached from<br />
the Group because of heavy<br />
clouds and very bad weather. ME<br />
262 Jets attacked them. Lt. Tod<br />
almost made it to Sweden. He<br />
ditched one mile from Falsterbo,<br />
Sweden. A cable from Sweden on<br />
the 26th of March reported that<br />
Lt. Tod's body was not found, Lt.<br />
Warren Peterson, Co-Pilot died<br />
enroute to the hospital, but that<br />
all others were uninjured and<br />
interned. Lt. W.C. Holden's crew<br />
was in the low left squadron also<br />
and took two cannon shells<br />
through the waist (also picture on<br />
next page). Sgt. Clair Rowe (who<br />
flew with us on 1-14-45 to<br />
Hallendorf, Germany) was blown<br />
out of his tail turret position and<br />
A CANNON BLAST FROM AN ME262 BLEW THIS HOLE IN<br />
THE WAIST OF SGT. CLAIR <strong>ROWE</strong>’S AIRCRAFT.<br />
landed just behind the waist<br />
position. That was fortunate<br />
because he could not wear his<br />
parachute while in the turret. The
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right waist gunner received a broken arm and<br />
severe frostbite to the hand and arm and was<br />
hospitalized for over a year. Clair Rowe<br />
received injuries to the left eye, left knee and<br />
foot, but inspite of the injuries, he manned the<br />
right waist gun against the attacting ME 262's.<br />
The plane lost 1000 feet of altitude, but was<br />
able to regain formation and returned to<br />
Seething air base. Today, fifty years later, Clair<br />
and his wife Florine reminisce with us at our<br />
annual group reunions. On the April 4th<br />
mission to Wesendorf, Germany, Capt. Ray,<br />
Lt.'s Mains & Shafter were downed at the<br />
Group IP before reaching the target.. On the<br />
March 24th mission Lt. W.L. Voight's ship was<br />
severely damaged & he headed for the<br />
emergency landing strip at Manston, England<br />
but had to abandon ship in the air over<br />
Manston. The crew was safe. JCR.]<br />
OUR LUCK WAS EXCEEDINGLY<br />
GOOD! It is grossly dishonest to give a pilot<br />
credit for moving a multi-engined aircraft<br />
from one place to another. Each man in the<br />
crew has his special duties and must perform<br />
them well to complete a flight. It is a rare<br />
pilot however who is not heavily conscious of<br />
THE DAMAGED TAIL TURRET SGT. CLAIR<br />
<strong>ROWE</strong> WAS RIDING IN AFTER BEING HIT BY<br />
A ME262 JET.<br />
his duty as captain and feels that whatever misfortune occurs on any flight is<br />
fundamentally his fault. An airplane loaded with gas, bombs, and ammunition when<br />
you're being shot at in the air and from the ground, is a lethal instrument. Again I say<br />
"OUR LUCK WAS INCREDIBLY GOOD !" Does a man every control his fate? Are<br />
favorites played? The worship of pagan Gods once answered those questions but is no<br />
longer fashionable. Today's religions ignore fate. The answer will be revealed when it can<br />
no longer serve those most interested. I personally retain the childhood visions of life after<br />
death wherein those judged good are rewarded and those judged bad are punished or as<br />
Ernest Gann says "those judged good play harps and those judged evil stoke fires". Yes<br />
"OUR LUCK WAS INCREDIBLY GOOD!" JCR.<br />
MISSING AIR CREW REPORT #13546 ON THE SHOOT DOWN OF LT.<br />
McFARLAND'S CREW<br />
Lt. McFarland, Jr. and crew were aboard Piccadilly Lilly (the plane’s 106th mission), had their<br />
controls lines shot out, and crashed into a low-hill. They were flying the last position in the<br />
High Right Squadron on the Wesel, Gemany mission flying supplies at an altitude of only
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448th Bomb Group Replacement Crew #46’s Eighth Air Force Mission Records - World War II<br />
50 feet to the British Armies. Other problems that same mission caused Captain Hammer &<br />
crew to bail out over Manston, England (hydraulic lines pierced, tires were blown, wheels<br />
would not retract, manual control cables out) so at 2500 feet they bailed out. Col. Thompson's<br />
plane was badly damaged & they also bailed out at Manston. Captain Wilhelmi, with Col.<br />
Westover riding as Commander, had to land at Manston with 2 injured men aboard requiring<br />
immediate hospitalization. One of the injured was Captain Wilhelmi, by small arms fire. Lt.<br />
Voight had controls shot out, fuel cells pierced, tires flattened, throttle shot loose and only the<br />
copilot’s wheel was functioning so they bailed out at the English coast. The radio operator<br />
snagged his parachute so Lt. Risinger (Voight’s copilot) gave him his parachute. Lt. Risinger<br />
repacked it as best he could, jumped at 6,000 feet, with part of the chute flapping about him, but<br />
when he released the rest it opened<br />
satisfactorily and he suffered a bruised<br />
forehead. Captain Monefeld (on detached<br />
service to the 448th) was killed when his B-24<br />
crashed-landed at Seething. Lt. Piliere landed<br />
in Belgium with two wounded men aboard.<br />
SGT. CLAIR <strong>ROWE</strong> - SEETHING, ENGLAND -<br />
<strong>1944</strong>.<br />
MISSING AIR CREW REPORTS #13547,<br />
#13548, #13549 & #14139 ON THE SHOOT<br />
DOWN OF LT STEFFAN, LT STALLAND,<br />
LT JONES & LT TOD.<br />
Lt's. Steffan, Stalland, Jones & Tod<br />
were in the 713th Squadron (low left Squadron)<br />
on the Buchen, Germany mission (East<br />
Germany), which got detached from the Group<br />
because of heavy clouds and very bad weather.<br />
ME 262 Jets attacked them. The MACR on Lt.<br />
Steffan's crew is very meager and mostly<br />
illegible. Lt. Gerald Gottlieb survived and said<br />
in 1946 that the plane exploded almost<br />
immediately upon being hit. Others may have<br />
survived also (doubtful) but it cannot be<br />
determined from the MACR. The MACR on<br />
Lt. Stalland's crew is also in bad shape and<br />
mostly unreadable. It appears there were three survivors, Lt. Whitson, Lt. McHugh and Sgt.<br />
Glass. The plane began to burn when hit and went into a tight spin. It exploded, wing came off<br />
and later crashed into a shoe factory at Scheverdingen, Germany. Lt. Whitson was from<br />
another crew and this was his first mission with Lt. Stalland. German authorities showed him<br />
several dog tags and said several bodies were still in the plane. Two bodies were found nearby<br />
with unopened parachutes, evidently blown unconscious from the plane when it exploded. Sgt.<br />
Glass said he saw a waist gunner on fire in the plane. Those who survived did not bail out, but<br />
were blown out. Three survived; 9 men KIA. Still buried in the Ardennes are; T/Sgt. Frank
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Grogan (E); Sgt. John Kropp (WG); and Sgt. Dale Overy (Top Turret). Jones' crew was the first<br />
shot down on this mission and was the lead plane in this squadron. The MACR has only one<br />
readable page. It first lists all 9 airmen as KIA and then later noted along side each RTD, which<br />
means returned to duty. This is almost unbelievable but lets hope its true. Lt. Tod almost made<br />
it to Sweden. He ditched one mile from Falsterbo, Sweden after a subsequent attack by a Ju88.<br />
A cable from Sweden on the 26th of March reported that Lt. Tod's body was not found, Lt.<br />
Warren Peterson, Co-Pilot died enroute to the hospital, but that all others were uninjured and<br />
interned. It was determined later that Lt. Tod’s body was washed ashore 51 days later. Lt.<br />
W.C. Holden's crew was also in the low left squadron and took two cannon shells through the<br />
waist. Sgt. Clair Rowe (no relation but flew with us on 1-14-45 to Hallendorf, Germany) was<br />
blown out of his tail turret position and landed just behind the waist position. That was<br />
fortunate because he could not wear his parachute while in the turret. The right waist gunner<br />
received a broken arm and severe frostbite to<br />
the hand and arm and was hospitalized for over<br />
a year. Clair Rowe received injuries to the left<br />
eye, left knee and foot, but in spite of the<br />
injuries, he manned the right waist gun against<br />
the attacking ME 262's. The plane lost 1000<br />
feet of altitude, but was able to regain formation<br />
and returned to Seething air base. Today, fifty<br />
years later, Clair and his wife Florine reminisce<br />
with us at our annual group reunions.<br />
MISSING AIR CREW REPORTS (#13731 &<br />
#13732) ON THE SHOOT DOWN OF<br />
CAPTAIN RAY & LT. SHAFTER’S CREWS.<br />
MACR WAS NOT AVAILABLE ON LT.<br />
MAINS’ CREW.<br />
Captain Ray, Lt. Mains & Lt. Shafter<br />
were on the April 4th mission to bomb an<br />
airfield at Wesendorf, Germany. They were<br />
downed at the Group IP before reaching the<br />
target. These aircraft were hit by Me262s<br />
climbing from below. Shells burst in the<br />
cockpit of Captain Ray’s plane breaking oxygen<br />
lines and radio communications. Number 3 & 4<br />
SGT. CLAIR <strong>ROWE</strong>, LONDON, ENGLAND -<br />
1945<br />
engines were also hit. Flames enveloped the cockpit and were fed by the broken oxygen lines.<br />
All bailed out and 6 were captured and later RTD (returned to duty). Lt. Adams, Lt. Hershiser<br />
and Sgt. Fager were missing although they bailed out. One crewmember said he saw Sgt.<br />
Fager's dog tags with the Germans. It is presumed they were captured by civilians and killed.<br />
Lt. Shafter's MACR is also very poor. Enough of it can be read to know that his plane also was<br />
in flames, eventually exploded and crashed near Ludwigslust, Germany. Four (Lt. Shafter, Sgt.<br />
Graham, Sgt. Petrovich and Sgt. Kaiser) were captured and made prisoners of war. Four dead
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were said by the Germans to be found in the plane. Sgt. Beall, Sgt. Kearney, and Lt. Pettit<br />
were missing and not accounted for but were seen by Sgt. Petrovich in friendly hands in<br />
Hannover. Lt. Pettit was seen in the hospital with burns on his hands and face. There were<br />
eleven members in this crew. Seven survived; four KIA. 1st Lt. Calvin Ellis (B) and Sgt. Taylor<br />
Tarkington (TG) are still buried in the Ardennes. Although we do not have an MACR on<br />
Lt. Mains' crew, we do know that he took a direct hit that severed his plane in two pieces. We<br />
also know there was only one survivor, engineer/gunner, Sgt. Charles Cupp, Jr. who recently<br />
passed away. (See photo of Lt. Mains’ plane on page 81 of this flight record, which was taken<br />
immediately after being hit.) Sgt. Cupp landed in the middle of Ludwigslust, Germany, a city<br />
of about 15,000. After a roughing up by some youths, he was rescued by soldiers and became<br />
a POW.
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<strong>ROWE</strong> <strong>MISSION</strong> #35 - Operational formation - 11 March, 1945<br />
GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong> #231<br />
KIEL, GERMANY<br />
E.V. Anderson 302H (5)<br />
A.E. Hatch 358J (7)<br />
N.R. McCluhen 391H (7)<br />
LEAD FORMATION<br />
J.J. Caldwell H2X 505J (1)<br />
LOW LEFT FORMATION<br />
H.R. Mulrain 29H (3)<br />
W.A. Hammes 246J (10)<br />
M.O. Holman 953H (5)<br />
S. Hailey 589J (3)<br />
J.R. Cook H2X 805J (1)<br />
D.R. Durbin 482J (8)<br />
H. Hausman 498H (11)<br />
J.G. Blank H2X 443J (2)<br />
C.C. Crandall 762H (10) C.E. Moran 341H (9)<br />
F.E. Clarke 185H (8)<br />
R.A. Paeschke 551J (4)<br />
JOHN <strong>ROWE</strong> 777J (2)-THE SPIRIT OF COOLEY HIGH<br />
J.F. Clark 992H (9)<br />
G.R. Onufer 556J (4)<br />
R.J. Camburn 521H (5)<br />
G.F. Land 853H (7)<br />
J.A. Birkland 491J (6)<br />
HIGH RIGHT FORMATION<br />
R.L. Mains 536J (3)<br />
H.L. Smith H2X 745J (1)<br />
F.E. Bastian 099J (8)<br />
F.J. Hahner 326H (6)<br />
F.C. Reynolds 000J (2)<br />
T.B. Horton 727J (10) J.J. Shafter 699J (9)<br />
G.N. Davis 083H (11)<br />
K.L.Flinders 516J (4)<br />
F.R. Piliere 496J (6)
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A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ALL THE 448TH’S GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong>S FROM THE TIME OF ARRI-<br />
VAL IN DECEMBER, 1943 TO THE LAST <strong>MISSION</strong> IN APRIL, 1945 LISTING LT. <strong>ROWE</strong>’S 35 MIS-<br />
SIONS WITHOUT DETAIL. HIS <strong>MISSION</strong>S ARE DETAILED EARLIER IN THIS FLIGHT RECORD.<br />
Crews were alerted for a mission on December 14, 1943, and got within sight of the Dutch coast but then received a recall message<br />
after four hours of flight. On December 26, 1943, again, took part in a mission to Bremen, Germany but again a recall message was<br />
received after they had entered enemy territory. The same occurred on December 20 after a four and one-half hours in the air when<br />
they were participating in a divisionary force.<br />
<strong>MISSION</strong> # DECEMBER—1943<br />
1.) The group was anxiously awaiting their first chance to enter combat and their baptism of fire arrived on December 22, 1943<br />
on a mission to Osnabruck. Merging cloud layers created assembly problems. Of 26 planes dispatched, 12 returned early. Eleven<br />
attached themselves to the 445 th BG. Adding to the misery of pesky cloud layers, temperature readings were 40 to 60 degrees below<br />
zero and oxygen masks froze. One plane did not drop its bombs because of mechanical failure. Frostbite was a common occurrence<br />
on this first mission. Instead of three tidy group formations in this 20th combat wing, two loosely formed groups continued to the<br />
target. Weather improved as they neared enemy territory but it also gave flak batteries and the fighters good visibility. Flak damaged<br />
Lt. Manning’s ship and fighters quickly shot down the stricken plane. Two gunners escaped from Lt. Hughey’s plane to become<br />
POW’s but the rest perished. Some bombs were unloaded on the top of groups flying below. Of the three groups in this 20th combat<br />
wing, the 448th lost two planes, the 93rd lost five and the 446th lost two aircraft.<br />
2.) On Christmas eve, 27 B-24s took off to hit a V-1 launching site at LaBroys, France. At the initial point, Lt. Blum’s plane<br />
was struck from behind by Lt. League’s plane. The collision started a fire in Lt. Blum’s plane, sheared off one propeller and bent<br />
another, but he nursed his plane beck to Seething.<br />
3.) December 30, 1943, the group headed for the I. G. Farben Industrial Works at Ludwigshafen, Germany. Of the 25 aircraft<br />
dispatched, 21 made the assembly. The 448th tried in vain to catch up with the lead formations and after bombs away continued to<br />
lag behind, Under attack by Me 109s, Lt. Foster and his top turret gunner were fatally wounded. The copilot pulled the plane away<br />
from the formation as fire engulfed the bomb bay and the plane exploded in mid-air. The explosion threw two men clear of the<br />
plane. One was the navigator who spent three days barefooted evading capture and was returned to England by the French underground.<br />
Lt. Gelling’s plane crash-landed in Germany and all survived as POWs except one. Lt. Kitteredge had two engines shot out<br />
plus other damage and seven bailed out. The pilot and two others elected to stay with the airplane but it crashed in Belgium claiming<br />
the lives of all three. Two if the damaged ships landed at bases in southern England.<br />
4.) December 31, New Years eve, the target was La Rochelle, France. The crews settled in for a long flight to southern France.<br />
The target was two large German cruisers. Lt. Chase’s plane lagged behind with a smoking engine. Two Me-109s attacked and the<br />
crew bailed out before the plane crashed near Cognac, France, but two waist gunners were killed. The pilot and three others were<br />
captured, but the engineer and radio operator evaded and returned to Seething. Heavy accurate flak bracketed the formation and Lt.<br />
Jordon’s plane disintegrated from a direct hit severing the tail and the left wing. Flying debris damaged Lt. Martin’s plane but they<br />
struggled with the plane and successfully returned to southern England but with no hydraulics, no flaps and no brakes and several<br />
flak holes. Salvage crews condemned the plane. Damage to Lt. Durley’s plane forced him to a lower altitude. Lt. Voight acted as<br />
escort and both landed at other bases in southern England. Weather hampered crews attempting to land. Another damaged plane had<br />
to land in southern England. Lt. Chapman had to land and refuel. Lt. Hammer had a crewmember wounded by shrapnel, and shortage<br />
of fuel caused them to land short of the runway in Seething. Only two planes made it back to Seething. Many of the planes, after<br />
refueling returned to Seething on New Year’s day.<br />
JANUARY—<strong>1944</strong><br />
5.) January 4, <strong>1944</strong> commenced combat operations for the New Year, after a few day delay because of weather. The 448 th with<br />
thirteen aircraft lead the 20 th wing. The target was the submarine pens at Kiel, Germany. Again, merging cloud layers hampered formation<br />
assembly. The 20th CW followed a group of B-17s and bombed on their smoke marker as clouds concealed the target for<br />
visual bombing. The group suffered no losses. Major Thompson, the command pilot, suffered frostbite. Lt. Lambertson had some<br />
flak damage.<br />
6.) January 5, was a return trip to Kiel, Germany with fourteen aircraft. One plane aborted because of faulty oxygen mask,<br />
overshot the runway and the aircraft had to be salvaged. Two others aborted for mechanical problems. Another returned before<br />
reaching enemy territory. Visibility was good. After bombs away Me-109s and Fw-190s attacked and Lt. Curtis’ plane exploded<br />
after being hit by flak. Three survived but the rest perished. A German JU-88 hit the aircraft of Lt. Yuengert. The plane got as far as<br />
the North Sea before it crashed, and the crew perished in the icy waters. Four planes were lost over the target. A Fw-190 downed Lt.<br />
Guyton’s aircraft and only two survived. Lt. Ferguson’s and Major Squyres’ plane succumbed to the 30 minute attack with no survivors.<br />
On return to Seething, only six planes came back..<br />
7.) Fourteen aircraft, because of bad weather, returned after reaching the Dutch coast. However, the remaining twenty-four<br />
aircraft launched on January 11 th were destined for Brunswick, Germany. Deteriorating weather in England forced another recall<br />
message. Planes did bomb targets of opportunity at Meppen and Zundberg, Germany. ME-109s hit several stragglers. Lt. Urban’s<br />
damaged aircraft crashed in Holland and there were no survivors. Lt. Schuman’s plane was hit and four survived but five others<br />
died. The plane flown by Lt. Skaggs and Captain Edwards was hit by a 20 mm shell in the wing which ruptured the hydraulic system<br />
but they nursed their aircraft back to Seething.<br />
8.) A V-1 weapon sight at Labroye, France was bombed on January 14 with 20 aircraft. All planes returned to Seething and<br />
landed safely.
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A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ALL THE 448TH’S GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong>S FROM THE TIME OF ARRI-<br />
VAL IN DECEMBER, 1943 TO THE LAST <strong>MISSION</strong> IN APRIL, 1945 LISTING LT. <strong>ROWE</strong>’S 35 MIS-<br />
SIONS WITHOUT DETAIL. HIS <strong>MISSION</strong>S ARE DETAILED EARLIER IN THIS FLIGHT RECORD.<br />
9) A mission to Gotha on January 15th was scrubbed before any aircraft were airborne. Similar missions to<br />
January 17 th and January 18 th and to Raye-sur-Authie on January 19 th similarly scrubbed. Finally on January 21 st the weather cleared<br />
and the 9 th mission was launched to Raye-sur-Authie. Of the 27 aircraft, one returned early. Five minutes before target, a smoke<br />
bomb ignited in the bomb bay of Lt. Durley’s ship. Thinking the plane was on fire, four crew members bailed out over France.<br />
Cloud cover prevented most of the planes from dropping their bombs, but 5 planes sighted the target through breaks in the cloud and<br />
visually dropped their bombs. No losses.<br />
10.) The January 24 th mission to Frankfurt was recalled and the 27 Liberators returned to Seething. Two further attempts to go to<br />
Frankfurt on January 26 th and 28 th were again scrubbed due to bad weather. However the 10 th mission with 27 aircraft headed for<br />
Frankfurt on January 29 th to hit the marshalling yards. Five ships returned early for various reasons. One plane could not keep up<br />
with the formation and wisely returned to Seething. There was 10/10 undercast and they dropped their load on the smoke marker of a<br />
PFF aircraft. There were no losses, but an ugly wall of flak resulted in several flak holes and rattled nerves.<br />
11.) On January 30 th the target was an industrial complex at Brunswick, Germany. Twenty-four ships took part and 5 returned<br />
early. Bombs were dropped again with the aid of PFF aircraft. No losses. A return trip to Frankfurt on January 30 th was scrubbed.<br />
FEBRUARY—<strong>1944</strong><br />
12.) On February 3 rd , 28 aircraft headed for Emden, Germany and again merging cloud layers forced abandonment of the mission.<br />
Snow fell during the night but on February 4 th 29 ships were launched. Nine aborted for various reasons. This 12 th mission they<br />
were again headed for Frankfurt. Because of an overcast cloud deck, Russelheim was a target of opportunity. One plane was hit by<br />
flak in number 3 engine and right wing. At the target, the left bomb bay door failed to open and the incendiaries fell on the closed<br />
door. The bombardier threw 13 out of the right door. Then handed the rest to one of the waist gunners who handed them to the other<br />
waist gunner who tossed them out of the camera hatch..<br />
13.) On February 4 th , 15 aircraft hit an airfield near Tours, France. On the bomb run a FW-109 put a cannon shell through the<br />
left wing of one plane. Lt. Engdahl saw the hole. They made it back to Seething and used full flaps and extra speed landing.<br />
14.) Twenty six headed for Siracourt, France to hit a buzz bomb launching at St. Pol, France, but heavy clouds hid the target and<br />
all planes returned without dropping their bombs.<br />
15.) On February 10, in spite of snow flurries and inadequate visibility, the Groups target was Gijen Air Base in Holland. During<br />
assembly aircraft had difficulty locating each other. After an hour or so Lt. Ayrest, in Boomerang, spotted the group and in initiating<br />
a turn another aircraft forced him to make a violent move to avoid collision. Getting back to level flight, the move had exceeded<br />
the structural limits of the plane and the tail broke off and the aircraft stalled. The plane entered a spin. Seven crew members<br />
lost their lives. Because of severe icing conditions, Hell’s Angels, flown by Lt. Markwicz, shuddered into a stall. The right wing<br />
broke off, a couple of bombs detonated and the plane fell to earth and the wreckage was scattered over a wide area. Lt. Richard<br />
Mardi and Sgt. James White miraculously escaped from the stricken plane. Nineteen aircraft reached the target but only seven were<br />
able to release their bombs. Eight of the returning aircraft had to land at other bases.<br />
16.) February 11 the 448 th lead the 20 th CBW to a V-1 launch facility target at St. Pol France. Problems with the PFF ship caused<br />
the lead to pass to the 93 rd BG. One plane could not drop but the others did and returned to base.<br />
17.) On February 13, the Group revisited St. Pol, France. Flak damaged two planes. Lt. Carroll piloting Sad Sack landed at the<br />
emergency runway at Woodbridge and Wabash Cannonball landed at another base.<br />
18.) On the 18 th , the target was the Messerschmitt plant at Gotha, Germany. Thirty six aircraft were prepared to the effort but<br />
three returned with mechanical problems. In spite of the overcast (or undercast when flying above), all aircraft bombed safely and<br />
returned to Seething except two who had to land at other bases and returned next day when the weather improved.<br />
19.) Clearing weather on 21 February, the 448 th went to Brunswick and hit the Hespe airfield. The target was obscured by<br />
clouds and a second pass was made. German fighters challenged them, two were shot down, Carry<br />
Me Back by flak and The Proud Wonderlost by fighters, and several damaged. Lt. Helvey died because his parachute failed to open,<br />
Sgt. Nickerson’s body was found in the crash. Sgt Yarnell was killed by fighter shells and Sgt York was killed when he fell from the<br />
aircraft without his chute. All other members of both crews survived as POWs. Lt. Broxton received the brunt of the fighters attack.<br />
A flak burst disabled #3 engine. They dropped out of formation, but dropped their bombs over the target. With fighters diving at<br />
them, they “split essed” to cloud cover at 10,000 feet. The cloud cover was brief and fighter cannon shells knocked out #4 engine.<br />
With flight instruments gone, the pilots had to rely on needle ball and airspeed. Sinking fast, they jettisoned everything, guns, ammo,<br />
parachutes, etc. They roared on with only two engines on one side and reached the Dutch Coast when the fighters gave up for lack of<br />
gasoline. They had difficulty getting over the sea wall with German 88mm guns shooting at them. In order to get over the British<br />
coast, regulations required that they be over 500 feet. They coaxed the plane to that altitude made runway 25 at Seething with 400<br />
holes, right rudder cables severed, only half the rudder area available and an unexploded cannon shell in the fuel tanks. How lucky<br />
can the unlucky get? This aircraft never had a name, but a correspondent dubbed it A Bag of Bolts. It never flew again.<br />
20.) Planners again targeted Gotha, Germany, but faulty navigation took them over the Dutch border town of Enschede, not Germany,<br />
which became a target of opportunity.<br />
21.) A return trip was planned for the Messerschmitt factory at Gotha, Germany on February 24 th . Fighters hit the planes before<br />
the IP. The lead bombardier developed a leak in his oxygen mask and passed out. He accidentally released his bombs before the target<br />
and the balance of the planes did the same. One of the bombs hit a fighter and the bombardier received credit for one downed
180<br />
A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ALL THE 448TH’S GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong>S FROM THE TIME OF ARRI-<br />
VAL IN DECEMBER, 1943 TO THE LAST <strong>MISSION</strong> IN APRIL, 1945 LISTING LT. <strong>ROWE</strong>’S 35 MIS-<br />
SIONS WITHOUT DETAIL. HIS <strong>MISSION</strong>S ARE DETAILED EARLIER IN THIS FLIGHT RECORD.<br />
enemy fighter. Over Brussels flak hit Lt. Warnock’s plane in the nose. The plane crashed near Brussels and half the crew perished.<br />
22.) The next day, the 25 th of February, a maximum effort by the 8 th Air Force was launched against an aircraft plant at Furth,<br />
Germany. Lt. Edman’s, Lady From Bristol, developed problems and lagged behind. The copilot had the flu which saved his life. Lt.<br />
Meents was his replacement. The plane was never seen or heard from again. Sgt Ghormley’s body did wash ashore later in France.<br />
Sgt Delay’s mother received a letter from the Dutch underground saying they parachuted safely and would be home soon. Maybe<br />
this letter was a hoax or they were betrayed by someone in the underground and were executed. An unidentified aircraft was seen in<br />
the area. KG-200, a German outfit flying captured aircraft may have been involved. Because of gas shortage, one plane landed at<br />
Biggin Hill, England. Another crash-landed because of battle damage. There were no injuries.<br />
23.) A V-1 site at Escalles-sur-Buchy in France was the last mission for February on the 28th. No flak or fighters. Crew losses<br />
totaled nineteen killed or missing in action during these 23 missions.<br />
MARCH—<strong>1944</strong><br />
24.) The first mission for March was on the 2 nd to Frankfort, Germany. Clouds obscured the target. No bombs were dropped<br />
because the lead PFF ship could not release so they all returned to Seething with their bombs except one who jettisoned his load because<br />
of flak damage.<br />
25.) Berlin was the target on March 3 rd but very bad weather conditions forced a recall. Prop wash from planes ahead buffeted<br />
Carol-N-Chick causing it to spin but the pilots recovered at about 10,000 feet. They dropped their bombs over Helgoland and then<br />
headed for home.<br />
26.) Berlin was again the target on March 5 th , but because of heavy snow in blizzard conditions forced a recall before take-off.<br />
27.) Twenty-five ships were launched against an airfield at Mout de Marsan, the primary target but clouds hid the target and a<br />
secondary airfield at Bergerac was selected. The 448 th cut short the bomb run as the 446 th moved in on the same target. Only 14<br />
dropped, the rest did not for fear of hitting the town. Heavy flak struck the plane of Lt. Martin damaging #3 engine and one shell left<br />
a big hole in the flight deck before exploding above the aircraft. They slowly fell out of formation and a swarm of fighters attacked.<br />
Much of the tail assembly was damaged before they found safety in some cloud cover. They reversed direction and lost the fighters<br />
but were heading south and not toward England. One crew member bailed out but the others remained and crash-landed in a wheat<br />
field. The tall wheat hid the plane for three days before it was discovered. They separated into small groups and hid out for a month.<br />
The resistance hid them out but Lt. Campbell, copilot, was captured within a few miles of the Spanish border. The rest of the group<br />
found another airfield, dropped their bombs but failed to hit it. On the way home, fighters again attacked the formation. Lt. Ross’s<br />
stricken plane with engines smoking, then rolled on its back. Four crew members bailed out but the pilots suddenly righted the ship<br />
as they dove into the undercast with fighters in pursuit. Cannon shells hit them in several places under<br />
the 30 minute ordeal. Sgt Cobb downed four fighters. A shell damaged his leg and he used electric cords as a tourniquet to stem<br />
the blood flow. They got to Seething with hydraulics destroyed, cables frayed, holes throughout the plane and the wings and flaps<br />
heavily damaged. Recommended for the Silver Star, but finally received the Distinguished Flying Cross instead. The French Government<br />
gave him the Croix de Guerre avec Etoille de Bronze.<br />
28.) March 8 th , the group returned to the German Capital, Berlin. Twenty-three Liberators were scheduled but only nineteen<br />
made the trip to the Erkner ball bearing plant near Berlin. On the bomb run a flak burst disabled Lt. Bingardner’s ship. Captain<br />
Grunow was aboard as deputy command pilot. They could not keep up with the formation and were raked by cannon fire from enemy<br />
fighters. They abandoned ship near Hannover and all parachuted safely. Several other aircraft suffered severe flak damage to<br />
engines and punctured fuel tanks. Lt. Binks (some say it was Lt. Daley) piloting Twin Tails had to get to a lower altitude and did<br />
evade fighters. Fuel tanks leaked and they had to call for Air-Sea-Rescue just short of Great Yarmouth. The rough seas broke up the<br />
aircraft and the pilot drowned. The navigator was rescued from a wing tip but died before reaching shore. Sgt Nugent and Sgt Hood<br />
were rescued but a search made over two days could not find the others. The rest of the planes got to Seething OK, but others say<br />
four planes were lost but did not identify the other two.<br />
29.) The next day, March 9th, the target was a deep-penetration mission to Nurnberg, Germany. Because of severe cloud conditions,<br />
the formations made several attempts to locate the target until they were low on fuel, all jettisoned their bombs. Lt. Musselman,<br />
in Baby Shoes, took several direct hits and eventually bailed out over Belgium. Six were captured and four evaded.<br />
30.) On March 10 th , bad weather forced a recall on a mission to Essen. However, March 13 th , this 30 th mission was to a V-1 site<br />
at St. Pol France. Twenty-six aircraft were launched, but only seventeen made the assembly because of poor weather. Two aborted<br />
but six others attached themselves to other groups. Again the formation had difficulty identifying the small target and returned with<br />
full bomb loads.<br />
31.) This mission was to an aircraft assembly plant on the shores of Lake Constance. Twenty-three made the trip to southern<br />
Germany, but eight aborted. They had to drop on PFF smoke markers. Flak was inaccurate, but one plane received some damage and<br />
had to land at another England base.<br />
32.) On March 18 th , the group lead the 20 th combat wing on a return visit to the same assembly plant. On this trip heavy and accurate<br />
flak greeted the formation. Lt. Carroll’s plane with 100 holes in it and with Captain Edwards on board as command pilot, was<br />
forced to take refuge in Switzerland. Sgt Milner was rushed to a hospital but died. Lt. Smith, the navigator died on July 20, <strong>1944</strong><br />
from wounds received on this mission. Of the 28 planes who reached the target, this was the only loss but several others with leaking<br />
fuel tanks made the long trip back home.
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A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ALL THE 448TH’S GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong>S FROM THE TIME OF ARRI-<br />
VAL IN DECEMBER, 1943 TO THE LAST <strong>MISSION</strong> IN APRIL, 1945 LISTING LT. <strong>ROWE</strong>’S 35 MIS-<br />
SIONS WITHOUT DETAIL. HIS <strong>MISSION</strong>S ARE DETAILED EARLIER IN THIS FLIGHT RECORD.<br />
33.) The target today was Frankfurt, Germany. Atrocious weather created assembly problems and 13 aircraft returned to Seething<br />
airbase. Twelve ships, with Lt. Voight piloting and Major Campbell as command pilot found the merging cloud layers a setback<br />
and could not catch up with the rest of the combat wing. They decided to return and crossing the French border, received severe and<br />
accurate flak erupted. Major Campbell was in the right seat and the copilot was in the top turret. The heavy and accurate flak caused<br />
an explosion severing the tail section and the wings split in the middle. Major Campbell survived the explosion but died a few days<br />
later. Captain Phillips, the group bombardier died from the wounds received by landing in a tree. Lt. Voight survived the parachute<br />
drop and was a POW. The Comanche, flown by Lt. Wahee, an Indian, was next hit and all fuel lines were severed. Everyone bailed<br />
out and the plane exploded over France. Seven were captured and two evaded and were eventually returned to England. A third, Lt.<br />
Goldenberg also evaded but was captured after being betrayed by a girl on board a train to Paris.<br />
34.) The group headed once again for another raid on the big “B”, Berlin, on March 23 rd . Twenty-three ships made the trip with<br />
one abort and no losses. It was a tortuous journey. Although no bad weather hampered the trip, extreme cold at high altitudes put<br />
several crew members in the hospital for frostbitten extremities.<br />
35.) The next day, 24 th March, twenty-two aircraft were dispatched to Munster, Germany, but one aborted. Good escort kept the<br />
fighters at bay but flak was heavy over the target and Maid of Orleans fell behind. A fire started in the bomb bay and the crew was<br />
forced to bail out. Lt. Pinkus, the pilot, died when his parachute malfunctioned.<br />
36.) Twenty-three aircraft hit the airfield at Nancy, France on March 23 rd . Crossing the coast near Dieppe heavy flak damaged 3<br />
B-24s including the lead plane which returned early. Exploding shells injured two men on another ship, but the mission continued.<br />
The target was not clearly visible and the low left squadron was the only that released their bombs. The others attempted to hit a secondary<br />
target, an airfield at St. Dizier, France but only two were able to release bombs because of smoke covering the target from the<br />
group preceding the 448 th.<br />
37.) On March 25 th a mission to Munster was scrubbed but this 37 th mission on the 26th hit a V-1 site at Moyiennville, France.<br />
The lead squadrons equipment malfunctioned and released early but the second squadron dropped as programmed. Ferocious flak<br />
damaged all twenty-five aircraft. Eight returned with feathered engines and two other landed at other bases.<br />
38.) The next day the group hit another V-1 site at Watten, France. Five ships in the second squadron did not release their<br />
bombs, again because of a malfunction in the equipment of lead ship of that squadron.<br />
39.) Twenty-four ships were dispatched, with one abort, for the airfield at Lille, France. They reached the target but no bombs<br />
were dropped<br />
APRIL—<strong>1944</strong>.<br />
40.) The target today was Ludwigshafen, Germany. The first mission this month was disastrous for the 488 th which was leading<br />
the 20 th combat wing (448 th , 446 th and the 93 rd ) and the 2 nd CBW and the 14 th CBW. The base commander, Colonel Thompson, was<br />
in the lead PFF ship. He received a recall message if it seemed appropriate to him but he elected to go. Colonel Heber Thompson,<br />
squadron commander of the 713 th was the deputy commander. Because of extremely unfavorable weather and merging cloud layers,<br />
the 446 th returned to base. The weather conditions were atrocious. The leader of the 2 nd combat wing made the grave decision to<br />
leave the division, which is strictly forbidden in the regulations. He was convinced that the division was heading in the wrong direction.<br />
It seems as though the division was flying all over southern Germany attempting to locate the target. Eventually the 93 rd<br />
bombed Strasbourg, Germany which they thought was the target. The 488th turned away and hit a target of opportunity, Pforzheim,<br />
Germany. The fourteenth CBW bombed Grafenhausn, Germany and just across the border in Schaffhausen, Switzerland. In addition<br />
to the time taken to locate the target, stronger than forecast headwinds resulted in low fuel tanks. Near the coast of France, Lt.<br />
Teague flying the lead ship with Colonel Thompson aboard, instructed all to bail out. Colonel Thompson hesitated several times<br />
returning to his seat. Finally he parachuted too late and was killed because he was too close to the ground. Lt. Teague successfully<br />
landed the plane but was captured by German soldiers who had Col. Thompson’s body draped across the hood of their vehicle. Lt.<br />
Mellor also instructed his crews to bail out because of low fuel. All except one, whose parachute failed to open, Knorr’s crew also<br />
bailed out. All landed safely, but Lt. McBride evaded capture and hid with a French family until the end of hostilities. Lt. Weaver<br />
decided they could not make England and would have to ditch in the channel. Nine landed safely, but Sgt. Dickey died when his<br />
parachute failed to open. Lt. Black decided to try for England, then as the coast guns peppered the plane, he was forced to ditch 15<br />
miles from Dunkirk. The pilot received severe deep scalp wounds and his knees were wrenched so badly he walked with a cane<br />
thereafter. They all scrambled into the cold choppy sea. Miraculously the ship stayed afloat for awhile. Sgt. Dworaczyk entered the<br />
floating ship and worked to release all the dinghies while the crew and the wounded floundered in the cold water. The copilot could<br />
not swim and was thrown from the plane on impact and was severely wounded. The navigator held him until the freezing water<br />
forced his hold to release, he sank and never resurfaced. Once in the rafts, they paddled for England. Sgt. Nissen died of his injuries<br />
and was buried at sea. After 45 days (I presume the dinghies had food and water aboard) and favorable winds, the eight survivors<br />
were picked up by an English fishing boar. In <strong>October</strong>, <strong>1944</strong> the U. S. Government offered the Swiss Legation 62,176 Swiss Francs<br />
or $53,000,000 in full and final settlement. The Swiss took responsibility to make payment for individual claims involved.<br />
41.) After the tragedy of April Fools Day, the 448 th did not fly until April 6 th on a mission to a V-1 site at Witten, France. They<br />
returned without any problems, having fighter protection and inaccurate flak<br />
42.) On April 8 th , twenty-eight planes flew on a mission to Brunswick in the heart of Germany. German smoke screens effectively<br />
hid the original target so they bombed a factory near the target. Other groups had some difficulty with fighters, but the 448 th
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A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ALL THE 448TH’S GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong>S FROM THE TIME OF ARRI-<br />
VAL IN DECEMBER, 1943 TO THE LAST <strong>MISSION</strong> IN APRIL, 1945 LISTING LT. <strong>ROWE</strong>’S 35 MIS-<br />
SIONS WITHOUT DETAIL. HIS <strong>MISSION</strong>S ARE DETAILED EARLIER IN THIS FLIGHT RECORD.<br />
planes all returned safely.<br />
43.) The groups’ target, after launching 31 airplanes, was at Tutow, Germany, a deep penetration in northeast Germany, just<br />
below the Baltic Sea. Weather again hampered assembly and the group got a late start. A recall message was made but seven did not<br />
hear it and continued to the target. Enemy fighters damaged two B-24’s and they were forced to head for Sweden. Lt. Liedka and Lt.<br />
Mosely crews were interned for the rest of the war. Mackenzie attached himself to the 93 rd group after failing to find his group during<br />
assembly. They withstood the fighter attack. Airfields were closed in most of East Anglia because of a weather front moving<br />
through so returning planes landed at other airports.<br />
44.) On April 10 th , Bourges, France was the next target. The 488 th led their combat wing, but another CBW was leading the division.<br />
Captain Skaggs leading 20 th CBW had fuel leaking problems but continued on the mission. After the target, Captain Skaggs<br />
leaned the fuel mixture enough without damaging the engines to conserve gas. On the landing approach, two engines quit and then in<br />
the hardstand the remaining two engine stopped. Lt. Col Judy who made the decision to continue in spite of leaking fuel, received the<br />
Silver Star. Lt. Todt, navigator who noticed the leading CBW veering off course, notified Col. Judy. The colonel broke radio silence<br />
to notify them of the error. A good example of the misuse of awards and decorations. Lt. Todt, who navigated perfectly to the target,<br />
got nothing.<br />
45.) The next day, April 11 th , the target was Bernberg, Germany. American fighters gave good support. On return to base at<br />
Seething, severe winter weather over East Anglia forced an instrument letdown.<br />
46.) Enemy fighters were a menace, but the crews were increasingly concerned about the flak. An exploding shell would burst<br />
into many small red hot fragments and it seemed as though hail was hitting the outside skin of the airplane. All it takes is one of<br />
those fragments in the fuel tank or a vital engine part to create severe problems. This day, April 12 th the group went to Oschersleben<br />
near Magdeburg, and near Bernberg, yesterday's target. Merging cloud layers gave visibility problems, so the leader of the 20th<br />
CBW made the decision to abort the mission near Brussels and dropped on a target of opportunity.<br />
47.) On April 13 th erratic maneuvers on the bomb run of the primary target put many planes out of position and only one<br />
dropped. The rest of the planes on the return trip dropped their bombs on factory site at Lauffen, Germany near Heilbronn.<br />
48.) After several days of deserved rest, the group’s target on April 8 th was a plane factory at Rathenow, Germany. Despite the<br />
dark, menacing weather front they hit the target and turned in time to miss the dark menacing clouds. A few of the planes could not<br />
avoid the weather front but rejoined the group in clear skies satisfactorily. As they neared Hamburg heavy flak was encountered that<br />
punctured a fuel tank in the lead plane leaving a very visible gas stream. They feathered the engine and gave the lead to Flight Officer<br />
Karl Schlund. Many holes damaged the wind of Bim Bam Bola. Upon landing at Seething, the damage was assessed as severe<br />
and the wing was replaced. All planes returned safely.<br />
49.) This second mission was flown the same day, April 18 th to hit a V-1 site at Watten, France. They bombed with G-H aircraft<br />
through an undercast so the flak was inaccurate No enemy fighters appeared and all returned to Seething.<br />
50.) Today, April 19 th , another larger 448 th formation headed for the same V-1 site at Watten, France. Prior to the target, accurate<br />
flak struck the aircraft of Lt. Davis and it quickly caught fire. The formation dropped their bombs and headed for the English<br />
Channel. Others saw the plane explode. Air-Sea-Rescue retrieved the body of Lt. Charette and picked up Robinson from the water.<br />
Except for Sgt Robinson, this was the crews first mission.<br />
51.) A V-1 site at Bonneries, France on April 20 th was the target for the day. Some of the 448 th planes visually sighted and<br />
dropped their bombs. Clouds restricted some planes who did not drop. Lt. Martin’s plane was leading and received flak damage over<br />
the target. A flak burst in the nose killed the navigator and the nose turret gunner. Fire erupted in the bomb bay and the rest bailed<br />
out and became POWs. Early on the 21 st, German planes attacked Seething airfield but no damage was done and no one was injured.<br />
52.) An extremely deep penetration was scheduled for the 21 st into Czechoslovakia, but was recalled. However after take off and<br />
climbing to altitude severe icing conditions caused problems for Lt. Jack O’Brien and the aircraft fell into a spin. Upon the bail out<br />
signal, the navigator exited through the nose wheel well into the English Channel but the plane was righted at about 2,000 feet. They<br />
then searched the area for several hours but were unable to locate him. All aircraft returned.<br />
53.) April 20 th the 448 th ‘s target was Hamm, Germany. Twice the takeoff was delayed to insure that a certain train arrived and<br />
was in the marshalling yards. The visibility was good and the sun was not in their eyes because of the delayed takeoff. After a good<br />
strike dropping their bombs and about 15 minutes from the Channel heading for home, enemy fighters, marked like P-51s, flew over<br />
the group and salvoed their imitation wing tanks from above but no damage was done. Returning during dusk, suddenly over southern<br />
England enemy fighters attacked, killing one airman of the 466 th . Arriving near the airbases further north, it was already dark and<br />
all field lights were on. Ju-88s attacked, striking Lt. Skagg’s and Lt. Blum’s planes. Hydraulic lines were severed and fire broke out<br />
in the bomb bay. Three crew members bailed out. The pilots made a head-on approach for the runway at Seething and two others<br />
bailed out, while Sgt Glevanik stayed aboard and held two broken lines together and stopped the fire in the bomb bay. The impact of<br />
the landing knocked Sgt Glevanik out of the bomb bay, his electric suit snagged onto the plane and he was dragged as the pilots<br />
turned to get the plane off the runway. Sgt Glenavik was released. Confusion rained while Bungay, Hardwick, Rackheath,<br />
Halesworth, Hethel and Seething were all attacked although Seething got the brunt of the strike. Local AA defenses hit Lt. Pitt’s<br />
plane at low altitude and it immediately dived into the ground. In the darkness an enemy plane slipped along side another element of<br />
B-24s and opened fire on Lt. Alpaugh’s aircraft. The crew took their so-called silk (it was actually nylon) parachutes and the aircraft<br />
crashed near Beccles. Captain Skagg’s plane was afire off the runway and lighting up the field for the enemy who was strafing the
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A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ALL THE 448TH’S GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong>S FROM THE TIME OF ARRI-<br />
VAL IN DECEMBER, 1943 TO THE LAST <strong>MISSION</strong> IN APRIL, 1945 LISTING LT. <strong>ROWE</strong>’S 35 MIS-<br />
SIONS WITHOUT DETAIL. HIS <strong>MISSION</strong>S ARE DETAILED EARLIER IN THIS FLIGHT RECORD.<br />
field and daring any B-24 to land. Lt. Appel made a landing approach with its navigation and landing lights out but then the runway<br />
lights went out so they climbed and made another approach. During the second landing attempt the tower was screaming to stay off<br />
the field because two wrecked aircraft blocked the runway. It was too late and both pilots hit the brakes hard. They turned on their<br />
landing lights to see the obstruction. The brakes burned out and it slammed into the two aircraft at about 40 mph and spun off the<br />
runway. All fuel, ignition was turned off and the crew scrambled to freedom. As they scrambled clear of the melee, a fourth aircraft<br />
piled into the obstruction. Diversions were arranged to the other B-24s to airfields south of Norfolk county. The fifteen aircraft laid<br />
low off the English coast for the bombers to return and it paid off. I will not describe the problems on the ground. Thirty eight airmen<br />
were killed and twenty-three injured. The runway was not cleared until late in the morning and ready for the next day’s mission.<br />
54.) The next day, April 24 th , the group was alerted for another mission, this time a very deep penetration to Gablington airfield,<br />
near Augsburg, Germany. It was a nine hour flight and the division formations were so large it took two hours to form over England.<br />
The usual flak greeted them, but the bombing was good and much on target. On the return trip an engine stopped and was feathered<br />
on Lt. Sarkovick’s plane. Col. Heber Thompson slowed the formation so the 3-engine aircraft could keep up. Then the supercharger<br />
gave out on #1 engine, the feathered engine started to unfeather and windmill. Eventually they broke out of the clouds. Seething was<br />
four miles away and they hoped the remaining full-powered engine would not give them any trouble. Heavy, pouring rain blocked<br />
their view. They landed safely with the one engine and using elevator and rudder trimmers.<br />
55.) Again the next morning the crews were alerted for a mission to an aircraft factory at Mannheim, Germany. Lt. Schroeder<br />
and Lt. Sarkovick flying Crud Wagon had everything running smoothly. The ground crew worked throughout the night to repair the<br />
damage from the day before and were informed that all engines were working OK. Flak was sharper and more accurate than yesterday<br />
and their plane quit and virtually exploded. The engine cowling started to rip away piece by piece. Fire broke out, it smoked very<br />
badly and was feathered. Now #3 had a power loss. Sailing along with the wind behind them, they had no chance of turning around<br />
making England with 60 MPH head winds. A recall message was received and the 448 th turned back to England. Lt. Schroeder and<br />
Sarkovick headed for Switzerland with plenty of altitude but losing altitude fast. They jettisoned their bombs and everything else<br />
loose. A Swiss fighter pulled alongside, rocked its wings and fired a green flare. The bomber did the same thing. The fighter took the<br />
lead and flew over the runway, the bomber went through a couple of fences and two of the crew were thrown out but were unharmed.<br />
All were interned, but Sarkovick escaped to France in December, <strong>1944</strong> and returned to England in January. After interrogation<br />
he was flown home to the states.<br />
56.) The next day the crews were dispatched to Paderborn, Germany but were recalled over the North Sea. Deteriorating weather<br />
over East Anglia would have prevented a safe return considering the length of the mission.<br />
57 & 58.) April 27 th , the 448 th had another “two mission” day, part of the stepped up aerial offense before the invasion. Both<br />
were against V-1 sites in France. The first group of planes got back in mid-morning from Wizernes, France. After refueling and<br />
loading bombs a second set of crews hit Bainville, France. Cloud conditions were not real conducive to landing in the total darkness<br />
but all returned OK.<br />
59.) April 29 th twenty-eight crews were alerted for a raid on Berlin. Captain Bryant and Col. Judy, leading the group were hit by<br />
AA fire that knocked off a propeller. They dodged in and out of the clouds to avoid merciless attacks from enemy fighters. Reaching<br />
the English coast they landed at the emergency field at Manston. The B-24 was written off and another plane picked them up for<br />
the trip to Seething. It was a brutal day and six crews were lost. One went down over Berlin and all survived as POWs. Another was<br />
downed over Dummer Lake—three gunners were killed and the others survived. Another over Dummer Lake disappeared in poor<br />
visibility and crashed. Two crews had to bail out over the North Sea and were rescued. A 389 th PFF (PathFinderForce) plane with the<br />
448 th went into the sea about 30 miles off the coast—Air Sea Rescue picked up two bodies, top turret gunner and the bombardier and<br />
seven survivors. Lt. Hortenstien, the navigator from the 448 th was one of the survivors and returned to Seething flying duties.<br />
MAY—<strong>1944</strong><br />
60.) A mission on May 1 st to a V-1 site in France was recalled.<br />
61.) After the setback in the morning of May 1 st , twelve aircraft left for an attack on the marshalling yards in Brussels. Excellent<br />
fighter protection helped to see that all the bombers got back safely but had to wade through heavy flak and other groups converging<br />
on the same target.<br />
62.) On May 4 th a recall messaged the group back to base but on May 6 th got their 62 nd mission for a popular V-1 site at Siracourt,<br />
France. The bombers were unmolested by enemy fighters because of great support from the little friends. However, British<br />
coastal gunners fired on the returning Liberators without damage.<br />
63.) On May 7 th the weather improved and the Eighth rose in full force with 1,000 bombers for the first time. B-17s hit Berlin<br />
and the B-24s hit Munster. They flew over an unbroken undercast and encountered no fighters<br />
64.) The next day, May 8 th , the 448 th went to Brunswick. The formation was strongly opposed and many suffered heavy damage.<br />
One Liberator, not from Seething, but from Old Buckenham, had to bail out over the English coast and the plane crashed south<br />
of Norwich. An uninjured ball-turret gunner, unaware of the bail-out order emerged from the wreckage.<br />
65.) On May 9 th , a formation of twenty-eight planes was to hit the railhead at Liege, Belgium. Take off was on time with no<br />
aborts. Major Kramer and Captain Lambertson’s plane was hit by flak. #3 and #4 engines were set on fire. With the fuel tanks<br />
shortly to blow, the crew bailed out. Everyone made a safe exit except the right-waist gunner who was killed by flak. Seconds later<br />
the aircraft did blow up and all others returned to Seething with no further losses. Major Kramer was housed in the Liege prison, then
184<br />
A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ALL THE 448TH’S GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong>S FROM THE TIME OF ARRI-<br />
VAL IN DECEMBER, 1943 TO THE LAST <strong>MISSION</strong> IN APRIL, 1945 LISTING LT. <strong>ROWE</strong>’S 35 MIS-<br />
SIONS WITHOUT DETAIL. HIS <strong>MISSION</strong>S ARE DETAILED EARLIER IN THIS FLIGHT RECORD.<br />
moved to Stalag 111 and later to Sagan, Poland where he met Major Grunow who was downed two months earlier.<br />
66 & 67.) Major Miller assumed command of the 714 th squadron replacing Major Kramer. The 66 th mission to Mulhouse, France was<br />
cancelled after it got airborne because both of bad weather and because the huge force of bombers crowded the air space. Ineffective<br />
assembly delays were the result of too small an area. More space and more time was required. This was corrected and the 67 th mission<br />
was launched on May 12 th . It was the first large scale attack on synthetic oil production centers. Ruthless frontal attacks from<br />
enemy fighters were encountered with several shot down (none from the 448 th ) and some turned back. Eight hundred of the 900<br />
bombers got through. The 448 th hit Boylan and other groups bombed four other centers.<br />
68.) On May 13 th a huge force of bombers again attacked fighter factories. The 448 th again hit Tutow, Germany. There were no<br />
losses<br />
69.) Weather front after weather front crossed northwest Europe and the next five days all missions were scrubbed. On May 19 th<br />
a warm front and its associated fog caused take offs to be delayed until late morning. The divisions B-17s were to hit big B (Berlin)<br />
and the B-24s, little B (Brunswick). Three B-24s and five B-17s crashed in about 30 minutes but twelve Liberator Groups and fourteen<br />
Fort groups struggled aloft through the hazy conditions. The division was told to delay departure for 30 minutes and when they<br />
crossed the coast at Great Yarmouth a final message raised assembly altitude to 14,000 feet then to 18,000 feet and finally to 23,000<br />
feet. What concerned the crews was the warning Germans had of the major assault coming. Poor weather as well as the contrailmade<br />
clouds created difficult flying conditions for the trailing aircraft. Finally all the wings got into position just before crossing the<br />
Dutch coast. One hundred German fighters engaged the formations and escorting Thunderbolts tangled with the enemy. Then 50<br />
more enemy fighters appeared. The little friends were spread too thin, eight B-24s were downed in one minute. The enemy assault<br />
continued all the way to the target and the other bombers survived the assault. The 20 th CBW did not drop on the first pass and had to<br />
make three 360 o turns to avoid collisions with the other CBWs approaching the target. At this stage attacks had abated and gave the<br />
flak gunners their turn. After the target and at the Rally Point, enemy planes attacked again and 4 B-24s of the 14 th Wing were<br />
downed in seconds. The longer-range P38s arrived and the enemy dispersed. Of the twelve B-24s downed, one was from the 448 th .<br />
The other groups took a mauling and lost the other eleven aircraft.<br />
70.) A mission to Rheims, France was recalled on May 20 th due to heavy cloud cover<br />
71.) A V-1 site at Siracourt, France was bombed on May 21 st .<br />
72.) On May 22 nd , the 448 th returned to France to strike the Orleans airfield. Only light flak greeted the bombers and the Luftwaffe<br />
was absent.<br />
73.) On the 23 rd of May the 448 th continued the attack on airfields, this time at Paris, the Orly field.<br />
74.) The marshalling yards at Mulhouse, France near the Swiss border felt the sting of 448 th bombs on May 25 th . Light flak and<br />
no enemy aircraft.<br />
75.) A second mission on May 25 th by the 448 th sent them to Fecamp, France to bomb gun emplacements.<br />
76.) Another long penetration sent the 448 th to Konz, Germany near Trier to strike marshalling yards. Another CBW crossed in<br />
front of the 448 th and passed ten miles from the target. They made a 360 o turn and bombed the target but in the snafu lost sight of one<br />
section of their Wing. These Seething Liberators attached themselves to the 14 th CBW and returned with no damage or losses.<br />
77.) May 28 th Doolittle dispatched a force of 1,280 bombers to again hit the synthetic oil refineries. The Second Air Division got<br />
a refinery at Zietz, Germany near Merseberg, Germany. The 448 th saw only scattered opposition. About 300 plus enemy aircraft hit<br />
the other groups. Seventeen B-17s and three B-24s were lost, but none from the 448 th or the Second Air Division.<br />
78.) This day, April 29 th , the mission was a repeat hit to Tutow, Germany. The 448 th lost two aircraft on this mission.<br />
79.) The next day, April 29 th , a three squadron force hit Rotenburg, Germany airfield. Ten planes were damaged by flak on the<br />
approach to the target. All but one of the airplanes returned safely to Seething and it ditched in the North Sea off Lowestoft and all<br />
nine were rescued.<br />
80.) On the last day of May the 448 th received a tactical mission and with the entire Second Division bombed the rail yards at<br />
Woippy near Metz, France. Towering cumulus clouds blocked the route so the mission was abandoned. Lt. Gibson hit a target of<br />
opportunity at St. Omer, France.<br />
JUNE—<strong>1944</strong><br />
81) The invasion was not far away as indicated by the 448 th when it took to the skies with 30 B24s and bombed heavy gun emplacements<br />
at Beauvior, France along the coast.<br />
82) On the 3 rd of June, targets were at Stella-Page in the Pas de Calais area. P-38s provided great support but the Luftwaffe was<br />
not seen.<br />
83) June 4 th again the 448 th put up twenty one aircraft, returned to the coastal area of France at Saugette to bomb coastal installations.<br />
84) They made a repeat performance at Saugette, France on June 7 th . This time the targets were three gun emplacements hit by<br />
twenty two aircraft.<br />
85) D-Day June 6 th . The 448 th flew four trips to France (recorded as one mission). Clouds obscured the crews vision to see what<br />
they had hit. The targets were choke points (cross roads etc.) in support of invading troops at Calin, Vierville, Coutances, and again<br />
at Coutances.<br />
86) The support of the troops continued with a mission on June 7 th to Alecon, France but bad weather was the cause of a recall.
185<br />
A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ALL THE 448TH’S GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong>S FROM THE TIME OF ARRI-<br />
VAL IN DECEMBER, 1943 TO THE LAST <strong>MISSION</strong> IN APRIL, 1945 LISTING LT. <strong>ROWE</strong>’S 35 MIS-<br />
SIONS WITHOUT DETAIL. HIS <strong>MISSION</strong>S ARE DETAILED EARLIER IN THIS FLIGHT RECORD.<br />
They hit a target of opportunity at Conches, France.<br />
87) Extremely bad weather again resulted in a recall on a target at Fliers, France. On June 8 th a mission again scheduled for Fliers,<br />
France was changed and the 448 th targeted a bridge at Orleans, France.<br />
88) Flight operations were down for the entire 8 th Air Force on June 6th, however the 448 th returned on June 10 th in support of<br />
the ground forces. Their target was an airfield at Evreuz-Fauville, France. There was light but accurate flak and an explosion rocked<br />
the formation from below. While the concussion was felt by the entire formation, Lt. Towel’s plane was severely damaged. Afire in<br />
the bomb bay was ignited and shortly thereafter the plane broke in two pieces. Five bailed out before the plane disintegrated. Five<br />
were killed.<br />
89) On June 12 th the weather did permit missions to northern France. The 448 th ’s target was a bridge at Ploermel. Poor navigation<br />
took the group over a nearby city. Flak hammered the formation and put holes in almost all the aircraft but none seriously. Three<br />
passes were required before they dropped their bombs. The 446 th group also hit the same target and also had to make there passes.<br />
After the bombing, they flew over Rennes and heavy flak greeted them. One 448 th plane was hit and then lagged behind. German<br />
fighters downed one plane and it crashed in a fiery explosion. One crewman died because his parachute collapsed on descent. Six<br />
survived and evaded but two were capture.<br />
90) Crews prepared for an afternoon mission, also on the 12 th in conjunction with the 446 th to Couches, France. This was a<br />
longer trip and all returned safely.<br />
91) June 13 th a mission schedule for Leipzig, Germany was scratched at the last minute and changed to an airfield at Orleans,<br />
France. Eight planes had been airborne and then because of unrelenting weather, it was cancelled.<br />
92) A tactical target, bridges over the Loire River at Tours was assigned to the 448 th for June 14 th , but an undercast covered the<br />
target. They bombed the secondary target, bridges at Cinq-la-Pile also on the Loire River just down from Tours.<br />
93) On June 16 th the 448 th returned to the northern coast of France at St. Omer and struck a V-1 site. Clouds obstructed the site<br />
and PFF was used.<br />
94) An airfield at Le Mans, France was the target on June 17 th . Eleven aircraft took to the skies, three had to abort and two others<br />
failed to find the group during assembly. The six others proceeded to the target and returned six hours later without causalities.<br />
95) The heavily defended town of Hamburg, Germany was visited on June 18 th . The 8 th sent a total of 300 bombers and the<br />
448 th contributed 3 squadrons. The target hit by the 448 th was an airfield and heavy flak surrounded the bombers and ruptured the oil<br />
line, flight control cables, etc. on one aircraft. All bailed out and survived except one crewman. He was killed by angry civilians<br />
upon landing. One gunner hit his back getting out, another jumped with his parachute in his hand, another had suffered shrapnel<br />
wounds in the leg but survived the disaster.<br />
96) The same day other crews in the group got a V-1 site at Watten, France as their target. It was a short flight and the crew<br />
landed at Seething three hours later.<br />
97) On June 19 th one mission was scrubbed because of menacing clouds to a height of 30,000 feet. However another mission<br />
was scheduled to hit a rocket plant at Haute Cote, France. Heavy accurate flak was encountered but did no damage and all returned<br />
safely.<br />
& 99) The group flew two missions this day, June 20 th . One was a shallow strike at Siracourt, France on another V-1 site. The major<br />
show this day was 1400 heavies and 720 fighters striking twelve separate targets in Germany. The 448th was going for a synthetic<br />
oil plant at Politz, Poland, one of the largest raids of the war. The flak was heavy and accurate. All participating groups of the<br />
second air division in all targets suffered losses. The 44th one, the 382nd four, the 389th six (two as a result of a collision), the 93rd<br />
two, the 492nd 24, the 448th three, the 453 one, and the 446 th three. One of the losses of the 448 th was Major Hackett, commander of<br />
the 715 th squadron. This was the fourth squadron commander lost since the start of operations. The 492 nd took the brunt of the losses<br />
with 14 out of 35 airborne. No less than nineteen Liberators with damage to fuel tanks and controls landed in Sweden rather than<br />
face the heavy head winds home.<br />
100.) The next morning, June 21 st , Seething dispatched 21 bombers to V–1 sites at Siracourt in France. That night saw many preliminary<br />
celebrations as they had completed their 100 th mission. The main celebration was scheduled for June 28 th .<br />
101.) On June 22nd the 448 th delivered 100 tons of explosives on an airfield at Guyancourt, France on the outskirts of Paris. Flak<br />
was heavy and Lt. White’s plane was hit. They attempted to plug leaking fuel lines with cloth and headed for occupied area of<br />
France. Over friendly territory, they bailed out and were met by members of the 29 th Infantry Division.<br />
102.) Aircraft departed Seething on June 24 th for an airfield near Melum, France. Clouds prevented bombing and without visually<br />
seeing the target, it was too close to Paris to risk bombing.<br />
103.) After lunch, the crews were briefed for another mission to a V-1 site at Haute Cote, France. Heavy flak greeted them over<br />
the target and one plane suffered heavy damage. It entered a spin and crashed but miraculously the crew bailed out and became<br />
POWs.<br />
104.) June 25 th three squadrons of aircraft from the 448 th headed for France. One squadron hit an airfield at Bretigny, France, the<br />
second squadron hit a bridge south of Orly airfield and the third hit the Orly airfield. Heavy flak struck them as they crossed Chartes,<br />
France. One plane was damaged and had to land at the emergency field at Manston, England.<br />
105.) Torrential rains on June 26 th precluded any flying, but on June 27 th they were to bomb another V-1 site but were unable to<br />
do so and hit a target of opportunity which was an airfield at Creil, France Flak hit the crew of Lt. McVean. They bailed out near
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A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ALL THE 448TH’S GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong>S FROM THE TIME OF ARRI-<br />
VAL IN DECEMBER, 1943 TO THE LAST <strong>MISSION</strong> IN APRIL, 1945 LISTING LT. <strong>ROWE</strong>’S 35 MIS-<br />
SIONS WITHOUT DETAIL. HIS <strong>MISSION</strong>S ARE DETAILED EARLIER IN THIS FLIGHT RECORD.<br />
Soissons, France. One crewmember was killed when his chute caught on the tail of the plane. Another was killed by ground fire on<br />
descent. Four were captured and the rest evaded. The underground successfully returned them to England. Lt. Turpin’s crew also<br />
crashed and killed everyone on board. Lt. Jarol and crew also fell to flak and there were no survivors. Lt. Dogger’s plane was also hit<br />
and with one smoking engine he made it back to the Seething airfield.<br />
106.) The marshalling yards at Saarbrucken, Germany was their target on June 28 th . Enemy planes attacked just as they crossed<br />
the coast, but P-38s drove them off before any damage could be inflicted. All planes returned. One lost an engine crossing the Channel<br />
but landed OK.<br />
107.) June 28 th , Seething bombers participated in a large effort to attack the airfield at Bernberg, Germany. One plane returned<br />
with an oxygen leak. The lead aircraft had equipment malfunction and seven planes following did not drop. Seventeen aircraft<br />
dropped on the airfield amid very heavy flak. Lt. Warke was hit in the bomb bay and the entire crew perished. Those who did not<br />
bomb went for a target of opportunity, another airfield but got too close to the heavy guns at Brunswick. Lt. Jones kept his plane<br />
flying but had to make a crash landing in Holland and were promptly captured. A gunner in a third plane suffered flak wounds to his<br />
legs as they crossed the Zuider Zee.<br />
JULY—<strong>1944</strong><br />
108.) The first day of July the 448 th was scheduled to attack another V-1 site at Fiefs, France. Bad weather forced a recall. The<br />
108 th mission was then flown on July 2 nd to the same target but one plane aborted because of a fuel leak. Four of the twenty-four<br />
bombers were damaged by flak. Lt. Blanton had an engine knocked out but could not get it feathered. Crossing the Channel the<br />
wind-milling propeller broke loose and damaged another engine. The entire crew bailed out over Essex County in England. Lt.<br />
Schierbrock was flying as copilot on his first mission to get acquainted with the procedures, went through a building and suffered<br />
injuries to his back. He died the next day. His newly arrived crew was given to his copilot Lt. Chuck Meining.<br />
109.) July 6 th the 448 th participated in a mission to take out a railroad bridge in France. Clouds completely hid the ground so<br />
twenty aircraft dropped on bridges near Gein and on Sully-sur-Loire.<br />
110.) A supply replacement facility for V-1s at Rilly-la-Montagune was the target on July8 th . Arriving in Holland clouds made<br />
flying an impossible task and all were recalled.<br />
111.) July 11 th the 448 th participated in an assault deep into Germany at Munich. Three aircraft returned early with problems. The<br />
remaining thirty found intense and accurate flak at the target and four planes were hit. Lt. Wilson’s crew went down with his<br />
bomber. The PFF lead aircraft had six killed from this attack (copilot, pilotage navigator, bombardier and three gunners. Now they<br />
developed a fuel leak and flew to Sweden and were interned. They included Major Conrad, the CO and fourth commander of the<br />
715 th squadron.<br />
112.) This morning, July 12 th , began with a bright sun and a clear blue sky and the 448 th made a return trip to Munich. The day’s<br />
mission went well with first-class results. Lt. Snavely had to land at a fighter strip in Normandy for low fuel and when gassed-up he<br />
returned to Seething only two hours after his scheduled time.<br />
113.) Crews were briefed on July 13 th for a mission to the marshalling yards of Saarbrucken, Germany. Once again heavy flak<br />
struck the bombers. Lt. Grubb lost two engines and had to deal with a fire in another engine. He headed for Switzerland and then<br />
gave orders to abandon ship. The aircraft then exploded and the crew was interned.<br />
114.) Better weather finally arrived and on July 16 th the group returned again to Saarbrucken, Germany to hit the marshalling<br />
yards and depot with good results and no losses. However on the return to Seething crews learned that during the day one crew returning<br />
from a practice mission stopped his plane next to another on a crossing freeway. A second plane landing from a practice mission<br />
slammed into the stopped aircraft killing the nose gunner.<br />
115.) Fog scrubbed an early morning mission on July 17 th but another was scheduled against a V-1 site at St. Sylvestre, France.<br />
Lt. Conner’s aircraft suffered engine damage but made it back to Seething. The heavy flak wounded a veteran in another plane. Another<br />
plane was damaged and upon landing at Seething, the brakes caught on fire. All quickly evacuated and the sub-depot salvaged<br />
what remained.<br />
116.) The 448 th flew in support of the ground troops at Grentheville, France near Caen on July 18 th . Some flak was received and<br />
one officer was wounded.<br />
117.) The briefed target for July 19 th was Eisenach, Germany. Unable to drop on Eisenach, they hit another target at Koblenz,<br />
Germany.<br />
118.) On July 20 th another try was made, with one abort, on the engine factory at Eisenach, Germany. Mistaking Eisenach for<br />
Schmalkalden, they dropped their bombs and again Eisenach was spared.<br />
119.) Back again to Munich on the 21 st to hit a propulsion factory. Munich was ringed with flak batteries and a huge barrage<br />
greeted the 448 th . Lt. Beaver and his crew headed for Switzerland. Lt. Alspaugh had damage to two engines and the crew elected to<br />
head to Italy instead of sure internment in Switzerland. They underwent repairs after landing in Italy and returned home. Lt. Conner<br />
had numerous flak holes in the plane and it collapsed on landing. Lt. Snavely flew his plane all the way home without oxygen.<br />
120.) The target again today, July 23rd, was an airfield at Loan Athies, France. All returned safely but one plane’s landing gear<br />
would not lock down. Appearing to have corrected the problem they came in but the gear collapsed outward. Injuries were avoided<br />
and the plane was salvaged.<br />
121.) A great armada from the 8 th Air Force on July 24 th was bound for Montreuel, France for some carpet bombing around St.
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A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ALL THE 448TH’S GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong>S FROM THE TIME OF ARRI-<br />
VAL IN DECEMBER, 1943 TO THE LAST <strong>MISSION</strong> IN APRIL, 1945 LISTING LT. <strong>ROWE</strong>’S 35 MIS-<br />
SIONS WITHOUT DETAIL. HIS <strong>MISSION</strong>S ARE DETAILED EARLIER IN THIS FLIGHT RECORD.<br />
Lo. Seething aircraft returned with their loads. An undercast prevented bombing for fear of hitting our own troops.<br />
122.) A second trip on July 25 th , again to Montreuil, France for carpet bombing. The ground artillery fired red smoke markers as a<br />
precaution but many dropped short into American troops. Lt. General Lesley McNair, there to observe the attack, was killed in this<br />
unfortunate incident. The planes were pounded with flak. Additional flak guns had been moved in. The 448 th did not have any losses,<br />
but other groups did. The bombing was a success and General Bradley’s troops punctured the German lines and started the great race<br />
across France.<br />
123.) On July 29 th thirty-two aircraft from Seething attacked a synthetic oil refinery at Bremen. Inaccurate flak was encountered<br />
but one aircraft had the aileron cables severed and the rudder jammed. At the emergency runway at Woodbridge, six of the crew<br />
bailed out. Four stayed and landed the plane successfully with minor injuries. A couple hundred holes were counted in the plane.<br />
Another aircraft was hit with three bursts in the nose. Another shell put holes in the waist and rudder. No one was injured. On other<br />
ships crewmen suffered flak wounds.<br />
124.) Oil was the target again on July 31 st , this time at Ludwigshafen, Germany. A heavy undercast required bombing by PFF so<br />
results could not be seen. As always over Ludwigshafen, Germany the units were pounded hard by flak but with losses.<br />
AUGUST—<strong>1944</strong><br />
125, 126, 127.) On the 1 st , 2 nd , and 3 rd , the 448 th attacked fuel and supply depots at Villaroche, St. Dizer, and Donai, France. On<br />
the 2 nd German flak damaged Lt. Madden’s plane and punched many holes in the plane including the hydraulic system. Arriving at<br />
Seething they could not lower the gear manually. After discussion with base officials, it was decided the crew bail out. The pilot<br />
headed the plane toward the North Sea. Bail out was successful and the plane crossed the North Sea and landed in Holland<br />
128.) August 1 st saw the Heinkel aircraft works hit by the 448 th . Enemy fighters were not seen but flak was received. One aircraft<br />
suffered badly enough that a return to England was out of the question. They landed in Sweden where the plane was impounded and<br />
the crew interned..<br />
129.) August 5 th the target was again a deep penetration to Falleisten, Germany near Hannover bombing a buzz-bomb factory.<br />
One aircraft had mechanical problems during assembly and on return overshot the runway and crashed. No injuries but the plane was<br />
salvaged for parts. Thirty-two aircraft made the trip. Flak was intense and damaged two engines on one aircraft. The pilot coaxed the<br />
plane across the English Channel and then shut down one of the damaged engines. The pilot Lt. Snavely feathered the other damaged<br />
engine and set the battered plane down at Seething. The crew was shaken but unhurt. Lt. Ginevan was crippled by horrendous flak<br />
and was not so lucky. He had to ditch in the North Sea. Eight crew members perished, including the pilot . Two were rescued by the<br />
Air-Sea launches from Great Yarmouth. An injured gunner on another aircraft had to receive medical attention for his wounds on<br />
arrival.<br />
130.) The primary target on August 6 th was Kiel, Germany. It was undercast but primarily because of smoke pots, so the secondary<br />
target was Hemmingstadt and its huge oil refinery was bombed. While over Kiel the flak was intense and accurate. Kiel was<br />
heavily fortified with flak batteries. Lt. Gruening’s aircraft was seriously damaged and they headed for and landed in Sweden as internees.<br />
Lt. Delva’s aircraft was so badly damaged it almost was not able to fly and all bailed out. The copilot’s chute failed to open<br />
and after falling 4,000 feet he was able to reach back and it blossomed. However shots from the ground deflated part of his chute and<br />
damaged the Mae West. Landing in the harbor, a boat fished him out and he was a POW for the remainder of the war. Also a waist<br />
gunner in another aircraft was killed by a flak fragment. The navigator and other waist gunner were wounded by flak. Another aircraft<br />
was forced to use the emergency field at Manston, England. Only seven bombed the primary so the rest of the group hit the<br />
secondary.<br />
131.) The chemical works and storage areas in Brussels were targeted on July 7 th . The heavy and merging cloud layers prevented<br />
bombing and all aircraft returned to Seething with their bomb loads.<br />
132.) The entire Second Air Division bombed targets in France on July 8 th . An airfield was the target but one squadron bombed a<br />
railroad bridge at Rouen. Flak knocked several holes in one plane but had no serious injuries. In another aircraft, because of serious<br />
injuries to the bombardier, the pilot elected to land in France to get aid for his bombardier. After repairing some damage he flew<br />
back to Seething minus his bombardier who remained for treatment.<br />
133.) July 10 th an uneventful trip was made to Parcy-sur-Armancon to destroy fuel facilities.<br />
134.) The next day, August 11 th , a fuel dump at St. Florentin was hit by thirty-six planes and all returned without incident.<br />
135.) On August 12 th , as part of two other groups, they neutralized the airfield at Loan-Couborn airfield with great accuracy. Surprisingly<br />
heavy flak was received but only minor damage was received.<br />
136.) German troops reeled back in disarray from strong pressure by Generals Patton and Hodges, but strong and stubborn resistance<br />
was given to the British and Canadian troops. The August 13 th mission was to hit choke points or road junctions southwest of<br />
Rouen which were packed with retreating German units. Although over enemy territory a short while, anti-aircraft damaged several<br />
planes and wounded a waist gunner.<br />
137.) An airfield and its associated fuel storage at Dijon-Longvic, France was hit on August 14 th . Enemy fighters were not seen<br />
and only sporadic flak appeared<br />
138.) On August 15 th , pressure continued on the Luftwaffe with all divisions hitting airfields in western Germany and Holland.<br />
The 448 th attached Plantlunne at Rheine, Germany with thirty-five bombers. No flak or fighters were encountered. Strike photos revealed<br />
German troop convoys in nearby woods so some medium bombers were dispatched to hit the troop concentrations.
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A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ALL THE 448TH’S GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong>S FROM THE TIME OF ARRI-<br />
VAL IN DECEMBER, 1943 TO THE LAST <strong>MISSION</strong> IN APRIL, 1945 LISTING LT. <strong>ROWE</strong>’S 35 MIS-<br />
SIONS WITHOUT DETAIL. HIS <strong>MISSION</strong>S ARE DETAILED EARLIER IN THIS FLIGHT RECORD.<br />
139.) The mission on the 16 th was the industrial section of Germany but principally the oil refinery at Magdeburg, Germany. P-47<br />
fighter escort was met over Holland. At Gottingen, Germany, they withdrew and were replaced by P-51s for the escort. At the end of<br />
the attack, the P51s ranged low over the city along the Elbe river attacking roads crowded with columns of transports<br />
140.) August 18 th , an airfield storage facility at Laneuvillel France was attacked. On the return trip raging ground battles were<br />
witnessed below. Lt. Richard Moody landed with precariously low fuel tanks.<br />
141.) August 24 th , thirty-four aircraft were dispatched to Brunswick Germany. Flak ranged from light to heavy. A burning Liberator<br />
from another group flew above Lt. Gilbert. And the stricken plane dropped its bomb just overhead. Lt. Gilbert was able to avoid<br />
seven of them but one ripped a gash in the left wing without exploding, destroying main-wing support, opened fuel tanks and damaged<br />
the landing gear. He dived to put out the flames from the opened fuel tanks. After the dive of 2,000 feet an engine stopped for<br />
lack of fuel. The engineer transferred fuel from the other tanks. After radioing for fighter protection, twelve P-38s and six P-47s arrived<br />
to shepherd him home. He made a wheels-up landing on the grass strip next to runway 25 with a 6 by 3 hole in the wing. 25<br />
gallons of fuel left and two injured crewmen aboard<br />
142.) August 25 th , Rostock, Germany. This was Rowe’s first mission. See page 31 for details. The target was clearly visible and<br />
John Rowe saw the bombs impacting the target area.<br />
143.) August 26 th . Ludwigshafen, Germany. This was Rowe’s second mission. See page 345 for details. Lt. John Rowe landed<br />
safely with two damaged engines.<br />
144.) Fifteen B-24s were dispatched to Oranienburg, Germany on August 27 th but were recalled after reaching the continent, because<br />
of adverse weather.<br />
SEPTEMBER—<strong>1944</strong><br />
145.) On September 9th, the 448 th returned to war and 3 squadrons led a raid on the marshalling yards at Gustaveburg, Germany.<br />
Hit by flak the H2X equipment would not work., Poor visibility and clouds hampered the mission. Despite the chaff, also know as<br />
window, intense flak was encountered. The lead aircraft, with Major Blum as command pilot, was hit and the tail separated from the<br />
plane. Flames erupted from the gaping hole and the explosion caused some damage to the deputy lead. Major Blum bailed out and<br />
was captured. Only five aircraft bombed in the confusion<br />
146.) Sept 11 th . Magdeburg, Germany. This was Rowe’s third mission. See page 40 for details. Eight aircraft including John<br />
Rowe did not drop because of heavy cloud cover but dropped on Deiphotz as a target of opportunity<br />
147.) September 12 th . Hemmingstadt, Germany. This was Rowe’s fourth mission. See page 44 for details<br />
148.) September 13th. Ulm, Germany. No credit was given for this mission. See page 47 for details.<br />
149)On September 18 th , the 448 th carried K rations, dynamite, mortars and mortar shells all wrapped in neat bundles and dropped<br />
into a clearing area at Groesbeek, Holland. It was a dropping mission and they flew at 400 feet, then down to 100 feet. Dutch<br />
citizens could be seen waving and jumping up and down. P-51 escort covered the drop zone.<br />
150.) Twenty-four aircraft were dispatched on September 21 st to Koblenz, Germany. Two returned early. Accuracy was successful<br />
with no losses.<br />
151.) September 22 nd . Kassel, Germany. This was Rowe’s fifth mission. See page 47 for details.<br />
152.) The 448 th again attacked Koblenz, Germany on September 25 th . The target was the marshalling yards and no flak or fighters<br />
were seen. Had to bomb by PFF and the deputy lead dropped 4 minutes early and all followed except one.<br />
153.) Next day, September 26 th thirty bombers were dispatched to the marshalling yards at Hamm,l Germany. Hamm is in the<br />
heavily flak defended Ruhr Valley but no fighters were seen. The lead ship was hit in the radio compartments and bomb bay. Lots of<br />
smoke but only the IFF (Identification Friend or Foe) equipment was damaged. The deputy lead was also hit but not seriously. This<br />
was the only time in September that bombing was able to be done by visual means.<br />
154.) September 25 th . Kassel, Germany. This was Rowe’s sixth mission. See page 51 for details.<br />
155.) A return trip was made to Kassel, Germany the next day, September 28 th . The entire Second Division returned to obliterate<br />
the Henschel Transportation Works. Only one plane returned unmolested.<br />
156.) September 30th. Hamm, Germany. This was Rowe’s seventh mission. See page 53 for details.<br />
OCTOBER—<strong>1944</strong><br />
157.) A return trip was made to Hamm, Germany on <strong>October</strong> 2 nd to again plaster the marshalling yards. The ever-present flak<br />
was encountered, but no fighters, and all returned safely.<br />
158.) <strong>October</strong> 3 rd . Gaggenau, Germany. This was Rowe’s eight mission. See page 56 for details. Extremely cold and freezing<br />
weather was encountered. Sgt. Zonyk of Rowe’s crew suffered severely when his flying suit malfunctioned. Ice formed in his oxygen<br />
mask making breathing difficult. Over Holland flak struck #1 engine but no serious damage was made., At Gaggenau, unplanned<br />
turns scattered the formation. Only the high right dropped. A second pass was not made and the rest of the group<br />
dropped on the secondary at Pforzheim. It was so cold that some bomb bay doors froze open and would not close. Flak damage<br />
caused one aircraft to crash land at Calais, France.<br />
159.) Thirty-eight aircraft left Seething on <strong>October</strong> 6 th for the oil refinery at Harburg, Germany. Several aborted with serious<br />
problems. Intense accurate flak from a barrage of anti-craft guns met the formation but all returned unscathed. The heavily protected<br />
oil refinery was covered by a smoke screen but the wind shifted and the target was visible. No flak or fighters were encountered.<br />
160.) On <strong>October</strong> 7 th the group was scheduled to hit the Magdeburg oil refinery. The code-word “Green Castle” was received
189<br />
A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ALL THE 448TH’S GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong>S FROM THE TIME OF ARRI-<br />
VAL IN DECEMBER, 1943 TO THE LAST <strong>MISSION</strong> IN APRIL, 1945 LISTING LT. <strong>ROWE</strong>’S 35 MIS-<br />
SIONS WITHOUT DETAIL. HIS <strong>MISSION</strong>S ARE DETAILED EARLIER IN THIS FLIGHT RECORD.<br />
signifying the formation should proceed to the secondary target, a V-2 factory at Clausthal-Zellerfield 30 miles from Magdeburg.<br />
Results were fantastic and the superb run was featured in the division’s newspaper as “Top Bombers”<br />
161.) On <strong>October</strong> 9 th force of twenty-nine aircraft returned to Koblenz, Germany. They were unable to bomb the primary target at<br />
Wetzlar, Germany. The extreme cold penetrated the heavy clothing and oxygen masks continually froze because of condensation.<br />
The temperature gauges in the B-24 stopped at 40 degrees below so no one really knew how cold it was. All aircraft in the second<br />
division then headed for the secondary target at Koblenz. Enemy fighters were driven from the sky but could not suppress the flak.<br />
Clouds impeded the bombers aim but it also made the flak gunner’s aim faulty. No planes were damaged.<br />
162.) This <strong>October</strong> winter weather completely engulfed northern Europe. The winter of <strong>1944</strong>-45 was the worst on record. On the<br />
14 th the bombers again hit Cologne, Germany. Intense flask and smoke-screens were encountered. Cologne had one of the heaviest<br />
concentrations of AA guns in Germany. They did not experience any fighter attacks and fortunately the flak was inaccurate. Flying<br />
was difficult because condensation from preceding aircraft froze, creating thick contrails.<br />
163.)<br />
<strong>October</strong> 15 th . Cologne, Germany. We had an airplane that suffered extreme damage the day before and the landing gear<br />
would not retract after getting airborne so we aborted. No credit for this mission.<br />
164.) <strong>October</strong> 17 th was a return mission to Cologne. The intention of these continuous missions to Cologne was to finish off the<br />
support to German troops trying to break through to Aachen, Germany.<br />
165.) <strong>October</strong> 19 th . Mainz, Germany. A faulty radio compass directed us to the wrong buncher beacon so we aborted. Base<br />
officials were not happy because we did not attach to another group. My crew came first and I did not wish to get caught over the<br />
continent with an inoperative radio compass. That compass is critical when making an instrument let-down. And so many of our<br />
returns involved instrument let-down. We did not receive credit for this mission.<br />
166 .) The group headed for Hamm once again on <strong>October</strong> 22 nd . Clouds covered all of Europe. Forty-four aircraft from Seething<br />
took part. Everyone returned to Seething after being over, but never seeing, enemy territory.<br />
167.) <strong>October</strong> 25 th . Neumunster, Germany. This was Rowe’s ninth mission. See page 59 for details. The primary target was the<br />
Mitteland aqueduct over the Weser River. Heavy weather forced the formation to head for the secondary target at Neumunster.<br />
We were over enemy territory only a few minutes but now had the long haul back over the North Sea.<br />
168.) The oil refinery at Bottrop, Germany in ’happy valley’, the Ruhr, was the target on <strong>October</strong> 26 th . Nineteen of the twenty<br />
aircraft made the target but, due to confusion created when the lead and deputy leads attempted a switch, only ten bombed and nine<br />
carried their bombs back to Seething.<br />
169.) On the 31 st of <strong>October</strong> the oil refinery at Hamburg was listed for attack. Thirty-three aircraft were launched but only seventeen<br />
attacked the target. The group tried to maintain formation integrity but flying in and out of clouds made it impossible. Heavy<br />
flak over the target complicated things and the widely scattered formations made bombing ineffective.<br />
NOVEMBER—<strong>1944</strong><br />
170.) The target was the Bielefeld railroad bridge. It was a typical November day, the 2 nd , with wind blowing straight out of the<br />
Arctic. There were twenty-seven planes and six of them had feathered propellers. When they returned to Seething, the first one down<br />
was Lt. Bechman with ruptured hydraulic lines. The waist gunners threw chutes into the slipstream. A tow truck was waiting for<br />
them and took them off the runway. It seems that all were short of fuel and the tower landed them separated by 30 second intervals.<br />
The stream of aircraft landed safely. It had been an inaccurate bomb run and they left leaving the bridge intact.<br />
171.) November 4 th twenty-nine bombers successfully hit the oil refinery at Gelsenkirchen, Germany. No crew losses but radaraimed<br />
flak gunners blasted the formation for 10 minutes. However, one damaged aircraft landed at a fighter base in Brussels. The<br />
plane was salvaged.<br />
172.) November the 5 th thirty planes raided the secondary target at Karlsruhe, Germany. The primary target was at Metz, France.<br />
Again no losses. Again clouds prevented bombing as it was close to General Patton’s lines. As usual the flak was heavy at Karlsruhe<br />
but no one suffered any damage.<br />
173.) November 6 th , we went to Minden, Germany. This was Rowe’s tenth mission. See page 63 for details.<br />
174.) Today, November 8t h the marshalling yards at Rheine, Germany was the target. The clouds hampered assembly of the<br />
twenty-two aircraft. Flak bursts filled the sky as usual. Eight Liberators could not drop because another group had crossed below<br />
them. All returned safely.<br />
175.) November 9 th a raid was scheduled against an enemy installation at Verny, France (near Metz). The weather was bad and<br />
the enemy installations were camouflaged. General Patton messaged and praised the “magnificent support you gave us. We are now<br />
in Metz.”<br />
176.) November 10 th . Hanau, Germany. This was Rowe’s eleventh mission. See page 68 for details. Originally the plans were<br />
to hit the airfield, but they bombed the marshalling yards instead. All aircraft returned after the seven-hour trip.<br />
177.) Twenty-one B-24s were dispatched to Eschweilier, Germany on November 16 th . The weather was appalling. Low clouds,<br />
heavy rain and poor visibility. The attack was on gun positions east of Aachen and troops were in Eschweilier as a prelude to a push<br />
by the U. S. First Army. This was the worst winter on record. Upon returning, East Anglia was fogged in. All aircraft were diverted<br />
to an RAF field in Lincolnshire. One skidded off the runway into a ditch. Seething remained fogged in for three days and it was only<br />
after, that nineteen were able to return to their home field. Others had been directed as far away as Scotland and were not able to return<br />
for five days.
190<br />
A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ALL THE 448TH’S GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong>S FROM THE TIME OF ARRI-<br />
VAL IN DECEMBER, 1943 TO THE LAST <strong>MISSION</strong> IN APRIL, 1945 LISTING LT. <strong>ROWE</strong>’S 35 MIS-<br />
SIONS WITHOUT DETAIL. HIS <strong>MISSION</strong>S ARE DETAILED EARLIER IN THIS FLIGHT RECORD.<br />
178.) November 21 st thirty bombers were dispatched from Seething as a part of the force bombing of Hamburg, Germany. Flak<br />
was heavy and one plane flown by Lt. Burrows was downed and all crewmen bailed out. One of the planes returned early but all<br />
planes returned safely. Germany moved many of its flak installations providing heavy concentration of AA guns. Lt. Miller’s crew<br />
could hear the red hot shrapnel inside and outside the aircraft hoping it would not strike any of the plumbing or fuel tanks. Later they<br />
counted 360 holes. Another anti-aircraft missile hit an ammunition box in one plane and the exploding box killed a waist gunner dispensing<br />
chaff. One shell hit Lt. Sidney’s plane and went completely through the plane and exploded after leaving the fuselage. Sgt.<br />
Lewis was plastered with Plexi-glass in his upper turret and left to extinguish fires and repair cables using a turnbuckle. On an earlier<br />
mission to Kiel he had to do the same thing to repair damage to rudder, ailerons, and elevator controls.<br />
179.) We generally flew in bad weather, but not in extremely bad weather, but we had it for four straight days. Then on November<br />
25 th thirty aircraft headed for the marshalling yards at Bingen, Germany. Other groups were dispatched to the marshalling yards<br />
at Neunkirchen, and Offenburg. Still others hit the railroad viaducts at Bielefeld. One Seething aircraft had one engine shot out and<br />
landed in France. Lt. Sidey’s plane also took a hit which killed one gunner and wounded another.<br />
180.) On November 26 th , twenty-five aircraft were sent to Bielefeld in an attempt to destroy a stubborn target, the railroad viaducts.<br />
The weather and the small target once again proved difficult and the bridge remained intact.<br />
181.) November 27 th we went to Offenburg, Germany. This was Rowe’s twelfth mission. See page 72 for details. The Alps were<br />
clearly visible. In an attempt not to run into the leader during a turn, one aircraft stalled and entered a spin. The pilot did not<br />
recover until about 1,500 feet from the ground. After control was restored, they headed for hone. Sgt. Zonyk of Rowe’s crew<br />
watched the bombs fall, hit and leave a brown pall of smoke. The return trip was not possible for another aircraft due to flak<br />
damage and it landed in France. Another thought of landing at Lyon, France, but continued home and landed safely.<br />
182.) November 29 th the group returned to Bielefeld to destroy that pesky bridge with 1,000 lb bombs. Clouds obscured the target<br />
totally but they bombed anyway but fate again smiled on the bridge.<br />
183.) November 30 th , Neunkirchen, Germany. This was Rowe’s thirteenth mission. See page 76 for details. Failure to unlock<br />
the controls wrecked one aircraft and it skidded off the runway wrecking the nose and shearing off the nose wheel. It was a long<br />
cold trip for Sgt. Zonyk of Rowe’s crew because his heated suit failed again.<br />
DECEMBER—<strong>1944</strong><br />
184.) December 4 th Koblenz, Germany. This was Rowe’s fourteenth mission. See page 79 for details. Lt. Rowe was flying “Our<br />
Honey” and narrowly averted disaster. The problems are covered on page 79.<br />
185.) Thirty-two 448 th ’s Liberators bombed Minden, Germany on December 6 th with no loss. They formed a force of one hundred<br />
forty bombers that yet again attacked the canal area and aqueduct.<br />
186.) The weather was still extremely cold and foggy. During that period a newly arrived pilot was being checked out, crashed on<br />
take off killing two enlisted men and four officers. The fog lifted but not the bitter cold and flying was resumed on December 11 th<br />
and thirty aircraft were dispatched to the railroad yards at Hanau, Germany on the outskirts of Frankfurt. This was the largest aerial<br />
mission to date with 1,6000 B-17s and B-24s converging on Germany, with 800 Mustangs and Thunderbolts. They had all intended<br />
to pass in review over Paris to boost French morale but weather precluded that show.<br />
187.) December 12 th the 448 th with thirty planes combined with the 446 th and the 44 th to plaster the marshalling yards at Achaffenberg.<br />
All groups had good results with photos to prove it.<br />
188.) The German general Rundstedt struck an offensive on December 16 th . The ground troops in France needed support. The<br />
weather eased marginally and with visibility as low as 150 yards takeoffs were ordered., The target was the town of Ehrang, Germany,<br />
a choke point supplying men, equipment and materials to the German offensive. The 448 th hit communications and transports.<br />
Two aircraft crashed at the end of the runway, but twenty got airborne. One aircraft had to crash-land in Brussels. No one was hurt<br />
but the plane was a complete loss. Because of the continuing fog, planes returning were diverted elsewhere. East Anglia was<br />
shrouded in fog for the next four days.<br />
189.) The 448 th contributed their largest force yet as fifty-three aircraft were destined for Euskirchen. Germany. Clear skies also<br />
gave the German AA guns unobstructed view of the formations. The intense flak hit Lt. Barneycastle and started an immense fire in<br />
the right wing. Diving to put out the fire, a wing gave way and fuel tanks erupted. John Rowe’s navigator, Lt. Best, riding in another<br />
plane to make up a mission, witnessed the explosion.. Five chutes were seen but only three survived and spent the remainder of the<br />
war as POWs<br />
190.) December 25 th , Christmas Day. Waxweiler, Germany. See page 84 for details. Three hundred children enjoyed turkey<br />
and other goodies. Most of the turkey was gone upon return, but for John Rowe it did not matter. He wished he had been there to<br />
enjoy the youngsters.<br />
191.) December 28 th the 448 th again launched its force of thirty-three bombers The runways were icy and the planes climbed<br />
through snow storms to get to the assembly area on many of the days. At times visibility was so bad the control tower could not see<br />
the planes taking off. Personnel worked bitter nights scooping snow from the runways or spreading them with salt. The moment they<br />
cleared the runway it would snow again. The target today was a railroad junction at Kaiserslauten, Germany. When the crews got<br />
home they received fresh eggs instead of the usual powdered variety. That evening General Patton relieved Bastogne. Von<br />
Rundstedt’s attack was Hitler’s last gamble. It was brilliant in conception—but impossible to fully execute. He lost many tanks—we<br />
did also, but we could replace ours.
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A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ALL THE 448TH’S GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong>S FROM THE TIME OF ARRI-<br />
VAL IN DECEMBER, 1943 TO THE LAST <strong>MISSION</strong> IN APRIL, 1945 LISTING LT. <strong>ROWE</strong>’S 35 MIS-<br />
SIONS WITHOUT DETAIL. HIS <strong>MISSION</strong>S ARE DETAILED EARLIER IN THIS FLIGHT RECORD.<br />
192.) Thirty bombers on December 30 th were sent to Mechernich, Germany to demolish an underpass. Bombing was again with<br />
G-H and H2X methods through an undercast. All returned safely.<br />
193.) New Years Eve, December 31 st the Air Forces went to the Remagen railroad bridge with 2,000 block buster bombs. Bombing<br />
was again by G-H through the clouds. No flak or fighters were seen.<br />
JANUARY —1945<br />
194.) January 2 nd . Neuwed, Germany. This was Rowe’s sixteenth mission. See page 88 for details<br />
195.) January 3 rd . Neunkirchen, Germany. This was Rowe’s seventeenth mission. See page 92 for details.<br />
196.) Despite the appalling conditions of ice, snow and sub-zero temperatures the bombers continued their work. Twenty planes<br />
got airborne on the 5 th of January in spite of the weather and hit the marshalling yards at Pirmasens, Germany.<br />
197.) January 6 th . Koblenz, Germany. This was Rowe’s eighteenth mission. See page 96 for details. The bomb bay doors froze<br />
shut on Lt. Rowe’s plane and they were able to drop from the left rack. The primary target was the marshalling yards at Limberg,<br />
Germany but because of the weather, the secondary at Koblenz was hit. Lt. Sampson’s plane developed serious problems and the<br />
crew with the exception of the pilot bailed out at 3,000 feet. When the pilot wished to bail out he saw that the plane was back over<br />
water so he turned the aircraft around and was able to leave at 400 feet.<br />
198.) January 7 th . Ahern, Germany. This was Rowe’s nineteenth mission. See page 100 for details. Serious flak damage<br />
caused one plane to land in France. It could not be repaired and was salvaged for parts.<br />
199.) On January 10 th the group headed for Weweler, Germany. One member of Lt. Rowe’s crew had his oxygen mask freeze<br />
solid from condensation and they had to abort and the crew did not get credit for this mission. See page 104 for details.<br />
200.) January 13 th . Worms, Germany. This was Rowe’s twentieth mission. See page 105 for details.<br />
201.) January 14 th . Hallendorf, Germany. This was Rowe’s twenty-first mission. See page 109 for details. Sgt. Zonyk saw<br />
fighters strafing the airfield at Dummer Lake on the way out.<br />
202.) January 15 th the 448 th took out a railroad bridge at Kilchberg sending smoke and debris into the air. Twenty-two aircraft<br />
were airborne but two then returned to base. Lt. Hausman ran low on fuel returning home, turned around and headed back for the<br />
continent. They let down below the clouds to 6,000 ft. They saw land on the horizon and prayed that enough fuel remained to reach<br />
it. Just then all engines quit for fuel starvation. They reached landfall near Ostend and crash-landed. The plane was a total loss, but<br />
no one was injured. British soldiers picked them up and they were returned on January 20th.<br />
203.) January 16 th the 448 th journeyed to Dresden to bomb the oil refinery with twenty-eight aircraft. They had full gas loads for<br />
the long haul close to the Czechoslovakian border. Lt. Isaacson’s plane was shot down. Lt. Custor was hit twice in the fuel tanks and<br />
headed for Lille, France. They landed safely but the nose wheel collapsed and the plane was written off. Lt. Bunday and his crew<br />
were on the Worms mission, the 200 th , and had to land in France. He and some of his crew were returning to Seething in a C-47. The<br />
plane crashed on take off when they hit a snow squall<br />
204.) On January 28 th the target was an oil refinery and storage tanks at Dortmund, Germany. Snow flurries made the take off<br />
hazardous. Twenty-six aircraft got away and two returned early. The force dropped with G-H equipment with visual assistance. It<br />
was 65 degrees below at 23,000 feet. Everyone was delighted with results.<br />
205.) Again on January 29 th an oil refinery at Munster was hit. Bombing was by H2X through clouds. Intense and accurate flak<br />
pounded the formations. Nine aircraft did not drop and they then hit a target of opportunity at Lippstadt instead. There were no<br />
losses.<br />
206.) January 31 st . Brunswick, Germany. This was Rowe’s twenty-second mission. See page 113 for details.<br />
FEBRUARY—1945<br />
207.) February 3 rd . Magdeburg, Germany. This was Rowe’s twenty-third mission. See page 117 for details.<br />
208.) On February 6 th the target was the railroad yards at Magdeburg, Germany because the oil refinery was obstructed by clouds.<br />
The group was protected by Mustangs and Thunderbolts. Heavy flak greeted the Liberators but enemy fighters in the area did not<br />
attack. Eighty-eight AA guns protected the refinery.<br />
209.) On February 9 th the target again was the oil refinery. Clouds again forced a change of plans and the 448th repeated its performance<br />
of the 6th at Magdeburg against the marshalling yards, again protected by P-51s and P-47s Three bombers aborted. Shrapnel<br />
wounded one man in Sad Sack and Lt. Anderson had to land his plane on the continent. Three Me -109s attacked a straggler who<br />
unfortunately did not make it.<br />
210.) On February 11 th the 448 th dispatched a three squadron force of thirty bombers to hit the bridge over the Rhine at Weser.<br />
Again the secondary target, a fuel depot at Dulman, Germany was the target. Light inaccurate flak greeted the force. Lt. O’Neil decided<br />
to land his plane on the continent.<br />
211.) Oil at Magdeburg was again the target for February 14th. Flak was moderate and accurate but the group had no losses. A<br />
tremendous barrage from the AA guns filled the sky, but the force ran the gauntlet. A 90-knot wind faced the force on the way home<br />
making the return a slow process. Lt. Bobak called for the usual response from each of the crew and the nose turret gunner did not<br />
answer. On checking they found his turret door frozen shut. They forced it open and found him slumped over his guns. His oxygen<br />
mask had frozen, but the walk around revived him just in time.<br />
212.) February 15 th . Magdeburg, Germany. This was Rowe’s twenty-fourth mission. See page 121 for details.<br />
213.) February 16 th . Osnabruck, Germany. This was Rowe’s twenty-fifth mission. See page 125 for details.
192<br />
A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ALL THE 448TH’S GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong>S FROM THE TIME OF ARRI-<br />
VAL IN DECEMBER, 1943 TO THE LAST <strong>MISSION</strong> IN APRIL, 1945 LISTING LT. <strong>ROWE</strong>’S 35 MIS-<br />
SIONS WITHOUT DETAIL. HIS <strong>MISSION</strong>S ARE DETAILED EARLIER IN THIS FLIGHT RECORD.<br />
214.) February 19 th , Siegen, Germany. This was Rowe’s twenty-sixth mission. See page 129 for details.<br />
215.) February 21 st . Nurnberg, Germany. This was Rowe’s twenty-seventh mission. See page 133 for details.<br />
216.) February 22 nd was an unusual bombing venture. It was probably the largest force of planes, heavy bombers, medium bombers,<br />
fighters, RAF and the Fifteenth AF in Italy were involved, an estimated 5,000 aircraft. All bombing was at 10,000 feet or less.<br />
The 448 th hit the marshalling yards at Kreiensen, Germany. The object was to bomb target centers in smaller localities that had not<br />
felt the war effort but was still vital to the German war effort. The Rowe crew did not fly that day. Colonel Thompson and Colonel<br />
Miller requisitioned the crew’s navigator, radio operator and engineer for a trip to Paris. See page 137 for this “O-LA-LA” mission.<br />
217.) The next day Osnabruck was the target again, on February 23 rd . Many aircraft hit the targets of opportunity. Twenty-nine<br />
bombers were dispatched and had to fly sandwiched between two layers of clouds. Bombing was by H2X.<br />
218.) On the 24 th of February, twenty-nine bombers went after oil at Misberg, Germany. It was 10/10 cloud cover so bombing<br />
was again with H2X .There was no flak and swarming escorts of ’little friends’ kept them at bay.<br />
219.) Twenty nine aircraft hit Aschaffenbug, Germany on February 25 th . An ordnance depot was the target. No flak at the target,<br />
but flak rose in anger when they neared Strasbourg, France.<br />
220.) Big B “Berlin” was the target on February 26 th . The 448 th hit railroad yards in North Berlin. Bombing was by H2X. Allied<br />
fighters searched in vain for the enemy. Flak was heavy but all planes returned with little damage or injury.<br />
221.) Thirty-two 448 th aircraft hit the rail yards at Halle, Germany on February 27 th . Because of 10/10 cloud cover H2X was again<br />
used. A strong head wind on the way back caused three of the bombers to land in France<br />
to refuel.<br />
222.) February 28 th . Meschede, Germany. This was Rowe ‘s twenty-eighth mission. See page 138 for details.<br />
MARCH—1945<br />
223.) March 1 st . Augsburg, Germany. This was Rowe’s twenty-ninth mission. See page 143 for details.<br />
224.) March 2 nd . Magdeburg, Germany. This was Rowe’s thirtieth mission. See page 146 for details.<br />
225.) March 3 rd . Magdeburg, Germany. This was Rowe’s thirty first mission. See page 149 for details.<br />
226.) On March 4 th the weather deteriorated with snow showers and squalls. The order was to maintain the initiative in spite of<br />
the weather. Nine aircraft were dispatched and were to fly individually to Nancy, France and assemble there. The target was an airfield<br />
near Stuttgart, Germany. Two aircraft returned early and the seven joined up with the 458 th and hit a target of opportunity and<br />
bombed marshalling yards.<br />
227.) March 5t h . Harburg, Germany. This was Rowe’s thirty-second mission. See page 155 for details.<br />
228.) On March 8 th , the 448 th was destined to hit the marshalling yards at Metzdorf, Germany, but did not drop because of G-H<br />
failure. One ship who attached himself to the 467 th dropped his bombs on the marshalling yards at Dellenberg close to Metzdorf.<br />
229.) March 9 th . Rheine, Germany. This was Rowe’s thirty -third mission. See page 158 for details.<br />
230.) March 10 th . Paderborn, Germany. This was Rowe’s thirty- fourth mission. See page 161 for details.<br />
231.) March 11 th . Kiel, Germany. This was Rowe’s thirty-fifth mission. See page 164 for details.<br />
232.) March 12 th , three 448 th squadrons of eleven each went to Swinemunde, Germany. This was an eight hour flight close to the<br />
Russian lines. Again bombing was by H2X.<br />
233.) March 14 th , 33 bombers of the 448 th hit the rail yards at Gutersloh, Germany. Very light flak and no enemy fighters.<br />
234.) March 15 th , they bombed the German High Command headquarters at Zossen, Germany. Thirty bombers were used but the<br />
results were not good.<br />
235.) On the next mission March 17 th , thirty-one bombers from the 448 th struck the Tiger tank factory at Hannover, Germany.<br />
236.) On March 18 th , 1330 bombers were scheduled to attack Berlin. The second air division had the Tiger tank and armament<br />
works in the city. Seething dispatched thirty bombers. Forty Me-262 jet fighters attacked the formations. The 448 th saw the jets only<br />
from a distance. However other groups lost 24 Liberators and five fighters. Two jets were downed.<br />
237.) The next day, March 19 th , thirty-one bombers from Seething joined a major force hitting the jet factory at Baumenheim,<br />
Germany near Munch. It was an eight hour flight. Visibility was good but results were only fair to good.<br />
238.Hemingstadt, Germany on March 20 th was hit with the oil refinery the target. Results were good. Twenty-one bombers were<br />
supplied by Seething.<br />
239. On March 21 st , Seething launched three squadrons attacking an airfield at Ahlhorn, Germany. The short trip was a ’milk<br />
’run’ for the crews and all returned safely.<br />
240. A second mission on March 21 st was sent against an airfield at Mulheim , Germany. One squadron from the 448 th attached<br />
itself as the low left squadron to the 446 th .<br />
241. Thirty one aircraft from Seething on March 22 nd , hit a jet plane factory at Kitsingen, Germany near Augsberg. They hit the<br />
target with excellent results. Four Me-262s were seen but they did not attack.<br />
242.) Before dawn on March 23 rd , Seething sent a force against both the airfield and aircraft factory at Munster, Germany. Heavy<br />
flak punched several holes in one plane but all returned safely.<br />
243.) This was a supply carrying, hazardous mission to Wesel, Germany during the Rhine crossing. The flight was around 400<br />
feet. Twenty six aircraft from Seething on March 24 th dropped fifty two tons of supplies and helped exploit the new bridgehead but<br />
not without loss. Lt. McFarland had his controls shot out and crashed into a hillside. The lead aircraft suffered serious damage and
193<br />
A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ALL THE 448TH’S GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong>S FROM THE TIME OF ARRI-<br />
VAL IN DECEMBER, 1943 TO THE LAST <strong>MISSION</strong> IN APRIL, 1945 LISTING LT. <strong>ROWE</strong>’S 35 MIS-<br />
SIONS WITHOUT DETAIL. HIS <strong>MISSION</strong>S ARE DETAILED EARLIER IN THIS FLIGHT RECORD.<br />
had to land at Manston, England. Several crewmen had gunshot wounds in the legs and shoulders. Lt. Voight’s landing gear on his<br />
aircraft would not lower and the tires were blown out. The pilot ordered bail-out when they reached Manston, England. The radio<br />
operator snagged his chute so Lt. Risinger gave him his chute and took the snagged chute and jumped with some of it still flapping<br />
behind him but it opened satisfactorily. Everyone landed safely without injury except one and all reassembled at Manston. Many<br />
other Liberators from the groups filled the hardstands at Seething upon their return.<br />
244.) On the same day, March 24 th a smaller formation attacked the jet airfield at Stormede, Germany. No opposition and all returned<br />
to Seething OK.<br />
245.) Twenty-six aircraft were launched on March 25 th for the oil storage facility at Buchen, Germany. The low-left squadron was<br />
several minutes behind schedule because of merging cloud layers and was late in catching up. Several jet fighters attacked and<br />
downed three Liberators and damaged a fourth that finally reached Sweden. That plane crashed just off the coast but all bailed out<br />
except the pilot. His body was found about 30 days later. The rest of that squadron, after the brutal attacks and after dropping their<br />
bombs, could not catch up and took a direct route home A total of thirteen planes were damaged but reached Seething airbase with<br />
many wounded aboard.<br />
246.) Two days of bad weather grounded the 448 th but on March 30 th twenty-four planes were launched to Wilhelmshaven, Germany<br />
to hit the submarine pens. Several aircraft were hit. One with hydraulic lines severed had to land without flaps.<br />
247.) On March 30 th , thirty aircraft from Seething joined with several other planes of the 20 th CBW and headed for Brunswick,<br />
Germany marshalling yards. Me-262s made several runs at the formation but all returned.<br />
APRIL—1945<br />
248.) The first three days of April had been hell. Low scudding clouds brought continuous rain on April Fools Day. The 448 th<br />
group was launched too late on the next day to catch the gap in the weather over a jet airfield housing four squadrons of jet planes in<br />
Aalbourg, Denmark. The aircraft got as far as Helgoland and had to be recalled. Again the next day because of awful weather another<br />
mission was scrubbed. On April 4 th , 20 bombers were sent to bomb an airfield at Wesendorf, Germany near Dortmund. Three<br />
returned early. Me-262s attacked and exploding shells hit Lt. Mains ship in the waist and it fell in two pieces. Only the radio operator<br />
survived. See picture on page 87. Lt. Shafer’s plane was seriously hit. The stricken plane erupted into a gigantic fireball. Seven of the<br />
crew survived. Captain Ray’s aircraft also took a direct hit and seven survived. Sgt. Fagar was pinned inside the plane, but two others<br />
were seen with opened parachutes and never seen after that.<br />
249.) On April 5 th the target was the ordnance depot at Bayreuth, Germany. Only twenty-one of the thirty-nine planes dispatched<br />
got to the target. Because of bad weather many of the aircraft could not locate the formation for assembly. Four had elected to land<br />
on the continent. No flak or fighters were seen.<br />
250.) April 6 th the group sent ten aircraft to strike the marshalling yards at Halle, Germany. Results were good with no losses.<br />
251.) April 7 th , the 448 th joined a large force to hit the target which was an ammunition factory at Duneberg, Germany. A 45 minute<br />
battle ensued with about 100 fighters. They were especially trained to attempt kamikaze-style ramming attacks in order to inflict<br />
losses. About half managed to break through the fighter screen and although they downed eight bombers, they also lost the same<br />
amount of planes. Seething lost no planes, but one Me-109 hit the deputy leader of the 389 th group leading the formation. It contained<br />
the commander of the 389th and the decapitated B-24 fell in a horrifying ball of flame and torn metal.<br />
252.) On the morning of April 8 th , the 448 th sent twenty-eight aircraft to bomb an airfield at Roth, south of Nurnberg, Germany.<br />
All aircraft returned safely.<br />
253.) On April 9 th Seething participated in a 150 plane raid on the airfield at Landsberg, Germany. Neither flak nor enemy planes<br />
contested the mission.<br />
254.) The following day, April 10 th , Seething made another attack on an airfield at Rechlin, Germany. Fifty-five Me-262s were<br />
sent to counter the bombers of the division, but were all gone by the time the 448 th arrived. Several high ranking Russian officers<br />
were visiting the bases of the 8 th Air Force and attending the briefings.<br />
255.) Seething, on April 11 th , made an eight-hour haul to hit another at Regensburg, Germany. There were 1,300 bombers ranging<br />
all over Germany. Seething contributed twenty-nine. In perfectly clear weather no flak or fighters were seen.<br />
256. and 257.) Missions on April 14 th and 15 th were against holdouts along the French coast at Coubre Point and at Toyan, France.<br />
They were fortified port cities that Hitler held to deny their use b y the Allies, which they simply by-passed. On the evening of the<br />
12 th word was received of the death of President Roosevelt.<br />
258.) On April l6 th , sixteen crews bombed the rail yards at Landshut, Germany. Lt. Kelvin’s plane could not attain full power and<br />
crashed off the end of the runway. Medics rushed to the scene were able to extract six crewmembers but fire erupted before the others<br />
could be reached. Heavy flak was encountered and Lt. McCoy’s B-24 took a direct hit over Munich. The mortally wounded aircraft<br />
fell in two pieces. It was the first mission for this crew and the last crew lost in combat.<br />
259.) On April 18 th , sixteen planes were sent to Passau, Germany on the Austrian -Germany border. Flak was encountered but<br />
there were no losses.<br />
260.) April 20 th seventeen bombers were sent to hit a bridge at Muhldorf, Germany. One returned early and all remaining returned<br />
safely.<br />
261.) On April 21 st eleven bombers hit the marshalling yards at Salzburg, Austria. Several landed in France to refuel but all got<br />
back safely.
194<br />
262.) On April 25 th , the last mission of the war, Seething’s fifteen bombers joined a total of 300 aircraft to hit the marshalling<br />
yards again at Salzburg, Austria. One plane was damaged by flak and a crewmember wounded in the chest by flak fragments. On the<br />
following day the American and Russian troops met at the Elbe River.<br />
.<br />
A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ALL THE 448TH’S GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong>S FROM THE TIME OF ARRI-<br />
VAL IN DECEMBER, 1943 TO THE LAST <strong>MISSION</strong> IN APRIL, 1945 LISTING LT. <strong>ROWE</strong>’S 35 MIS-<br />
SIONS WITHOUT DETAIL. HIS <strong>MISSION</strong>S ARE DETAILED EARLIER IN THIS FLIGHT RECORD.
195<br />
The Five Combat Wings & 14 Groups of The Eighth Air Force - World War II<br />
COMBAT COLORS<br />
44TH BOMB GROUP - SHIPDHAM<br />
FOURTEENTH COMBAT WING<br />
B-24 J-105-CO 42-109805 “GYPSY QUEEN” - Gypsy Queen survived the war. Like<br />
many “Libs”, she was extensively modified during her career and is shown here with a<br />
navigators scanning window added to the side of her nose.<br />
492ND BOMB GROUP - PICKENHAM<br />
B-24 J-145-CO 44-40120 “HERKS JERKS” - The 492nd Bomb Group was taken off<br />
bombing operations during August,<strong>1944</strong> after sustaining excessive losses. It became a<br />
special operations unit and many of its planes were transferred our. Herks Jerks went to<br />
the 93rd Bomb Group.<br />
392ND BOMB GROUP - WENDLING<br />
B-24 M-5-FO 42-50527 “HAZEE” - The “M” version of the B-24 was the final model<br />
to see combat in the closing months of the war. Hazee was transferred from the 453rd<br />
Bomb Group.
196<br />
The Five Combat Wings & 14 Groups of The Eighth Air Force - World War II<br />
COMBAT COLORS<br />
93RD BOMB GROUP - HARDWICK<br />
448TH BOMB GROUP - SEETHING<br />
TWENTIETH COMBAT WING<br />
B-24 J-75-CO 42-100150 “SWEATER GAL” This veteran Liberator flew no less<br />
than 79 missions during its career.<br />
446TH BOMB GROUP - BUNGAY<br />
B-24 H-15-FO 42-52594 “NAUGHTY NAN” - Naughty Nan completed 55 missions<br />
before being written off in a crash landing at Bungay on 13 November, <strong>1944</strong>.<br />
B-24 J-65-CF 44-10599 “WINDY MINNIE” - This plane’s career was brought to an<br />
end when it crashed in Luxembourg during a mission to Dortmund on 28 January, 1945.
197<br />
The Five Combat Wings & 14 Groups of The Eighth Air Force - World War II<br />
COMBAT COLORS<br />
467TH BOMB GROUP - RACKHEATH<br />
NINETY SIXTH COMBAT WING<br />
B-24 H-15-CF 41-29385 “DOUBLE TROUBLE” - Double Trouble was another of<br />
the lucky Libs that survived hostilities.<br />
458TH BOMB GROUP - HORSHAM ST. FAITH<br />
B-24 L-10-FO 44-49544 “OH MONA” - Introduced to combat late in <strong>1944</strong>, most<br />
B-24s as in the case of OH MONA, were equipped with H2X radar scanning<br />
equipment (in place of the ball turret). This aircraft also carried a lightweight tail<br />
turret common to most B-24Ls.<br />
466TH BOMB GROUP - ATTLEBRIDGE<br />
B-24 J-140-CO 42-110162 “PARSON’S CHARIOT” - This plane formerly flew<br />
with the 491st Bomb Group. She was destroyed after catching fire upon landing from a<br />
mission to Brunswick on 31 March, 1945.
198<br />
The Five Combat Wings & 14 Groups of The Eighth Air Force—World War II<br />
COMBAT COLORS<br />
489TH BOMB GROUP—HALESWORTH<br />
Col Vance successfully<br />
ditched the<br />
plane he was then<br />
flying, but then an<br />
explosion severed his<br />
foot. Returning home<br />
for further treatment<br />
the C-54 disappeared<br />
in a flight between<br />
Iceland and Newfoundland<br />
NINETY FIFTH COMBAT WING<br />
B-24 H-15-FO 42-94759 “THE SHARON D” - This plane was named by Lt.<br />
Colonel Vance in honor of his little daughter “Sharon”. He was awarded the<br />
Congressional Medal of Honor. The B-24 was later transferred to the 445th<br />
Bomb Group and survived the war.<br />
491ST BOMB GROUIP—METFIELD (Later North Pickkenham)<br />
B-24 J145-CO 44-40101 “TUBARAO” - After flying quite a few combat missions,<br />
Tubarao, which in Portuguese for “Shark”, eventually became a formation<br />
assembly ship (Judas Goat” for the 491st Bomb Group. Later in the war<br />
the Group adopted the tail colors of the 492nd Bomb Group.<br />
B-32 DOMINATOR—THE SUCCESSOR TO THE B-24<br />
The Dominator B-32 was not a conversion. It was the successor to the B-24. Because of numerous delays, Consolidated<br />
lost out on the Very Heavy Bomber contract to the Boeing B-29. 118 Dominator B-32s were built.<br />
After combat tests in the Pacific and over Japan, reports said ’it was suitable for unrestricted combat operations”<br />
and had excellent bombing abilities”. However, the war ended and the final 6 were flown directly from the<br />
assemble line to the scra yard for reclamation. Shown here is “Hobo Queen 11”, a B-32A Dominator of the 312th<br />
Bomb Group, 5th Air Force at the Florida Blanca Airstrip in the Philippines.<br />
198
199<br />
LIST OF ALL <strong>MISSION</strong>S FLOWN BY 448TH BOMB GROUP - World War II<br />
448th BOMB GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong>S (before our crew arrived)<br />
From 16 December, 1943 to 29 June, <strong>1944</strong><br />
(#1 to #107)<br />
Planes Planes<br />
Group Mission # Dispatched Aborted Date Target<br />
Dec., 1943<br />
1 Cancelled Bremen, Germany<br />
1 26 13 2 Osnabruck, Germany<br />
2 27 0 24 Labroye, France<br />
3 28 2 30 Ludwigshaven, Germany<br />
4 19 1 31 LaRochelle A.F., France<br />
Jan., <strong>1944</strong><br />
5 13 2 4 Kiel, Germany<br />
6 13 3 5 Kiel, Germany<br />
7 24 10 11 Meppen &<br />
Zundberg Germany<br />
8 20 0 14 St. Pierre-d'Jongurer, Germany 9<br />
27 4 21 Raye-sur-Authie, France<br />
10 29 7 29 Frankfurt, Germany<br />
11 24 5 30 Brunswick, Germany<br />
Feb., <strong>1944</strong><br />
12 29 10 4 Frankfurt, Germany<br />
13 15 1 5 Tours, France<br />
14 (Recalled) 26 26 6 St. Pol, France<br />
15 26 2 10 Rijen A.F., Holland<br />
16 26 2 11 St. Pol, France<br />
17 27 1 13 St. Pol, France<br />
18 37 4 20 Gotha, Germany<br />
19 37 2 21 Brunswick,<br />
(Hespe Airfield) Germany<br />
20 36 2 22 Enschede, Holland<br />
21 30 3 24 Gotha, Germany<br />
22 31 14 25 Furth, Germany<br />
23 25 0 28 Escalles-Buchy, France<br />
Mar., <strong>1944</strong><br />
24(Recalled) 29 4 2 Frankfurt, Germany<br />
25(Recalled) 27 12 3 Heligoland, Germany<br />
26 29 1 5 Mout de Marsan, France<br />
27 21 1 6 Berlin, Germany<br />
28 23 6 8 Berlin-(Erkner Plant) Germany<br />
29 18 0 9 Neinberg, Germany<br />
30(Recalled) 26 26 13 St. Pol, France<br />
31 31 8 16 Fredrickshafen, Germany<br />
32 28 6 18 Fredrickshafen, Germany<br />
33 25 13 20 Frankfurt, Germany<br />
34 24 1 22 Berlin, Germany<br />
35 22 2 23 Munster, Germany<br />
36 25 5 24 Nancy, France<br />
37 27 2 26 Moyenneville, France<br />
38 24 1 28 Kille, (Airfield) France<br />
39 24 2 29 Watten, France<br />
April, <strong>1944</strong>
200<br />
LIST OF ALL <strong>MISSION</strong>S FLOWN BY 448TH BOMB GROUP - World War II<br />
40 24 2 1 Ludwigshaven, Germany<br />
41 2 0 6 Watten, France<br />
42 28 2 8 Brunswick, Germany<br />
43 31 22 9 Tutow, Germany<br />
44 26 0 10 Bourges, France<br />
45 26 3 11 Bernberg, Germany<br />
46(Recalled) 24 24 12 Oschersleben, Germany<br />
47 18 6 13 Lauffen, Germany<br />
48 4 0 18 1 Watten, France<br />
49 26 6 18 2 Rathenow, Germany<br />
50 25 3 19 Watten, France<br />
51 12 0 20 Bonnieres, France<br />
52(Recalled) 26 26 21 Brux,, Germany<br />
(near Czechoslovakia)<br />
53 26 2 22 Hamm, Germany<br />
54 27 2 24 Gablingen, Germany<br />
55(Recalled) 24 2 25 Mannheim, Germany<br />
56(Recalled) 23 23 26 Paderborn, Germany<br />
57 20 0 27 1 Wizernes, France<br />
58 25 1 27 2 Blainville, France<br />
59 28 1 29 Berlin, Germany<br />
May, <strong>1944</strong><br />
60(Recalled) 22 22 1 1Brussels, Belgium<br />
61 13 2 1 2 Brussels, Belgium<br />
62 24 0 6 Sira Court, France<br />
63 35 3 7 Munster, Germany<br />
64 31 3 8 Brunswick, Germany<br />
65 28 0 9 Leige, Belgium<br />
66 27 3 11 Mulhouse, France<br />
67 19 4 12 Bohlen, Germany 68<br />
28 1 13 Tutow, Germany<br />
69 28 1 19 Brunswick, Germany<br />
70(Recalled) 16 16 20 Rheims, France<br />
71 12 1 21 Sira Court, France<br />
72 21 2 22 Orleans (Airfield) France<br />
73 24 2 23 Orly,(Airfield) France<br />
74 21 3 25 1 Mulhouse, France<br />
75 6 0 25 2 Fecamp, France<br />
76 25 1 27 Konz, Germany<br />
77 25 2 28 Zeitz, Germany<br />
78 27 2 29 Tutow, Germany<br />
79 24 1 30 Rotenberg (Airfield), Germany<br />
80 ? ? 31 Woippy, France<br />
(Recalled over Belgium)<br />
June, <strong>1944</strong><br />
81 30 2 2 Beavoir, France<br />
82 24 2 3 Stella Plage, France<br />
83 27 4 4 Sangatte, France<br />
84 25 5 5 Sangatte, France<br />
85 24 0 6 1 Calin, France<br />
24 0 6 2 Vierville, France<br />
24 0 6 3 Coutances, France<br />
10 0 6 4 Coutances, France
201<br />
LIST OF ALL <strong>MISSION</strong>S FLOWN BY 448TH BOMB GROUP - World War II<br />
86 12 0 7 Conches, France<br />
87 ? ? 8 Orleans, France<br />
88 24 2 10 E-Fauville, France<br />
89 24 4 12 Ploermel, France<br />
90 12 0 12 Conches, France<br />
91 21 1 14 Orleans, France<br />
92 21 0 15 Cinq-la-Pile, France<br />
93 9 2 16 St. Omer, France<br />
94 6 1 17 Le Mans, France<br />
95 27 0 18 1 Hamburg, Germany<br />
96 12 0 18 2 Watten, France<br />
97 6 0 19 Haute Cote, France<br />
98 21 1 20 1 Sira Court, France<br />
99 6 0 20 2 Politz, Poland<br />
100 21 3 21 1 Berlin, Germany<br />
101 12 1 21 2 Sira Court, France<br />
102 34 0 22 Guyancourt, France<br />
21 Mission abandoned 24 1 Melum, France<br />
103 6 0 24 Haute Cote, France<br />
104 32 3 25 Bretigny, France<br />
105 18 0 27 Creil, France<br />
106 21 2 28 Saarbrucken, Germany<br />
107 27 4 29 Bernberg, Germany<br />
448th BOMB GROUP <strong>MISSION</strong>S (from month of our arrival in<br />
Europe)<br />
(see footnote *)<br />
From 1 July, <strong>1944</strong> to 25 April, 1945 (#108 to #262-the last mission )<br />
Group Mission# Rowe Mission # Date Target<br />
July, <strong>1944</strong><br />
108 2 Fiefs, France<br />
109 6 Sully-Sur-Loire, France<br />
110 8 Riley-La-Montagne France<br />
111 11 Munich, Germany<br />
112 12 Munich, Germany<br />
113 13 Saarbrucken, Germany<br />
114 16 Saarbrucken, Germany<br />
115 17 St. Sylvestre, France<br />
116 18 Grentheville, France<br />
117 19 Koblenz, Germany<br />
118 20 Schmalkalden, Germany<br />
119 21 Munich, Germany<br />
120 23 Loan-Athies, France<br />
121 24 Montreuil, France<br />
122 25 Montreuil, France<br />
123 29 Bremen, Germany<br />
124 31 Ludwigschafen, Germany<br />
August, <strong>1944</strong><br />
125 1 Villaroche, France<br />
126 2 St. Dizier, France<br />
127 3 Douai, France<br />
128 4 Rostock, Germany
202<br />
LIST OF ALL <strong>MISSION</strong>S FLOWN BY 448TH BOMB GROUP - World War II<br />
129 5 Fallersleben, Germany<br />
130 6 Hemmingstadt, Germany<br />
131 7 Brussels, Belgium<br />
132 8 Rouen, France<br />
133 10 Pacy-Sur-Armancon, France<br />
134 11 St. Florentin, France<br />
135 12 Loan-Couvron, France<br />
136 13 Tactical Target<br />
South-west of Rouen, France<br />
137 14 Dijon-Longvie, France<br />
138 15 Plantlunne, Germany<br />
139 16 Magdeburg, Germany<br />
140 18 Laneuveville, France<br />
141 24 Brunswick, Germany<br />
142 1 25 Rostock, Germany<br />
143 2 26 Ludwigschafen, Germany<br />
144 27 Oranienburg, Germany<br />
September, <strong>1944</strong><br />
145 9 Gustavsburg, Germany<br />
146 3 11 Magdeburg, Germany<br />
147 4 12 Hemmingstadt, Germany<br />
148 Aborted 13 Ulm, Germany<br />
Scrubbed 14 Berlin, Germany<br />
149 18 Groesbeek, Germany<br />
150 21 Koblenz, Germany<br />
151 5 22 Kassel, Germany<br />
152 25 Koblenz, Germany<br />
153 26 Hamm, Germany<br />
154 6 27 Kassel, Germany<br />
155 28 Kassel, Germany<br />
156 7 30 Hamm, Germany<br />
<strong>October</strong>, <strong>1944</strong><br />
157 2 Hamm, Germany<br />
158 8 3 Pforzheim, Germany<br />
159 6 Harburg, Germany<br />
160 7 Clausthal-Zellerfeld, Germany<br />
161 9 Koblenz, Germany<br />
162 14 Cologne, Germany<br />
163 Aborted 15 Cologne, Germany<br />
164 17 Cologne, Germany<br />
165 Aborted 19 Mainz, Germany<br />
166 22 Hamm, Germany<br />
167 9 25 Neumunster, Germany<br />
168 26 Bottrop, Germany<br />
169 30 Hamburg, Germany<br />
November, <strong>1944</strong><br />
170 2 Bielefeld, Germany<br />
171 4 Geisenkirchen, Germany<br />
172 5 Karlshrue, Germany<br />
173 10 6 Minden, Germany
203<br />
LIST OF ALL <strong>MISSION</strong>S FLOWN BY 448TH BOMB GROUP - World War II<br />
174 8 Rheine, Germany<br />
175 9 Verny, France<br />
176 11 10 Hanau, Germany<br />
177 16 Eschweiller, Germany<br />
178 21 Hamburg, Germany<br />
179 25 Bingen, Germany<br />
180 26 Bielefeld, Germany<br />
181 12 27 Offenburg, Germany<br />
182 29 Bielefeld, Germany<br />
183 13 30 Neunkirchen, Germany<br />
December, <strong>1944</strong><br />
184 14 4 Koblenz, Germany<br />
185 6 Minden, Germany<br />
186 11 Hanau, Germany<br />
187 12 Aschffenburg, Germany<br />
188 19 Ehrang, Germany<br />
189 24 Euskirchen, Germany<br />
190 15 25 Waxweiler, Germany<br />
191 28 Kaiserlautern, Germany<br />
192 30 Mechernich, Germany<br />
193 31 Remagen, Germany<br />
January, 1945<br />
194 16 2 Neuwed, Germany<br />
195 17 3 Neunkirchen, Germany<br />
196 5 Pirmasens, Germany<br />
197 18 6 Koblenz, Germany<br />
198 19 7 Aehern, Germany<br />
199 Aborted 10 Weweler, Germany<br />
200 20 13 Worms, Germany<br />
201 21 14 Hallendorf, Germany<br />
202 15 Kilchberg, Germany<br />
203 16 Dresden, Germany<br />
204 28 Dortmund, Germany<br />
205 29 Munster, Germany<br />
206 22 31 Brunswick, Germany<br />
February, 1945<br />
207 23 3 Magdeburg, Germany<br />
208 6 Magdeburg, Germany<br />
209 9 Magdeburg, Germany<br />
210 11 Dulmen, Germany<br />
211 14 Magdeburg, Germany<br />
212 24 15 Magdeburg, Germany<br />
213 25 16 Osnabruck, Germany<br />
214 26 19 Siegen, Germany<br />
215 27 21 Nurnberg, Germany<br />
216 22 Kreinsen, Germany<br />
217 23 Osnabruck, Germany<br />
218 24 Misberg, Germany<br />
219 25 Aschaffenburg, Germany
204<br />
LIST OF ALL <strong>MISSION</strong>S FLOWN BY 448TH BOMB GROUP - World War II<br />
220 26 Berlin, Germany<br />
221 27 Halle, Germany<br />
222 28 28 Meschede, Germany<br />
March, 1945<br />
223 29 1 Augsburg, Germany<br />
224 30 2 Magdeburg, Germany<br />
225 31 3 Magdeburg, Germany<br />
226 4 Stuttgart, Germany<br />
227 32 5 Harburg, Germany<br />
228 8 Dillenburg, Germany<br />
229 33 9 Rheine, Germany<br />
230 34 10 Paderborn, Germany<br />
231 35 11 Kiel, Germany<br />
232 12 Swinemunde, Germany<br />
233 14 Gutersloh, Germany<br />
234 15 Zossen, Germany<br />
235 17 Hannover, Germany<br />
236 18 Berlin, Germany<br />
237 19 Baumenheim, Germany<br />
238 20 Hemmingstadt, Germany<br />
239 21 Ahlhorn, Germany<br />
240 21 Mulheim, Germany<br />
241 22 Kitzingen, Germany<br />
242 23 Munster, Germany<br />
243 24 Wesel, Germany<br />
244 24 Stormede, Germany<br />
245 25 Buchen, Germany<br />
246 30 Wilhelmshaven, Germany<br />
247 31 Brunswick, Germany<br />
April, 1945<br />
248 4 Wesendorf, Germany<br />
249 5 Bayreuth, Germany<br />
250 6 Halle, Germany<br />
251 7 Duneberg, Germany<br />
252 8 Roth, Germany<br />
253 9 Landsberg, Germany<br />
254 10 Rechlin, Germany<br />
255 11 Regensburg, Germany<br />
256 14 Coubre Point, France<br />
257 15 Royan, France<br />
258 16 Landshut, Germany<br />
259 18 Passau, Germany<br />
260 20 Muhldorf, Germany<br />
261 21 Salzburg, Austria<br />
262 25 Salzburg, Austria<br />
* I have listed above those missions flown by the Group from the month of our crew’s arrival in Europe, July<br />
<strong>1944</strong> to the last mission flown by the Group on April 25, 1945. The archives show that our mission <strong>#8</strong> (Group<br />
mission #158) was to Pforzheim, Germany. My personal record (given to me when we departed Seething in 1945)<br />
and Joe Zonyk's personal record of our missions shows our target as Gaggenau, Germany. Our crews missions are<br />
shown under the column “Rowe Mission #” and also shown in BOLD font.
205<br />
Roster of Original Staff And Original Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
ORIGINAL 448TH BOMB<br />
GROUP STAFF AND CREWS<br />
Listed are Headquarters and Squadron staff who flew with the crews and are listed with the crews as passengers. Ground<br />
echelon who traveled via HMS Queen Elizabeth were not listed in the microfilm. Lt. Col. Ever, Captain Kramer & Major<br />
Arnold were transported to England via the ATC through the Northern Route. Of the original 70 crews, only the 62 crews<br />
below flew their own aircraft overseas as a group.<br />
HEADQUARTERS DETACHMENT<br />
Col. James McK. Thompson Major Hubert S. Judy, Jr.<br />
Major James R. Patterson Major Patrick H. Hoey<br />
Captain John S. Laws Captain William R. Reid<br />
1st. Lt. George O. Capp 1st. Lt. John B. D. Grunow<br />
1st. Lt. Aurthur S. Hunt 1st. Lt. Minor L. Morgan<br />
2nd. Lt. William C. Cates, Jr. 2nd. Lt. Robert L. Harper<br />
M/Sgt. Wilfred Carroll M/Sgt. James D. McIntyre<br />
S/Sgt. Ellis L. Copeland T/Sgt. Frank M. Schultz<br />
712th BOMBARDMENT SQUADRON<br />
Major Robert L. Campbell 1st. Lt. William G. Blum<br />
1st. Lt. Clifford C. Gaither 1st. Lt. Robert Lewis<br />
1st. Lt. Earl M. Parks 1st. Lt. Robert W. McDonough<br />
1st. Lt. Harold S. Podolsky 2nd. Lt. John Bilyk<br />
2nd. Lt. Howard M. Oden M/Sgt. Walter C. Brown<br />
T/Sgt. Michael P. Corce M/Sgt. Frank J. Naglak<br />
T/Sgt. Frederick J. Fennewald T/Sgt. Henry C. Corbin<br />
S/Sgt. Delmer A. Akerley T/Sgt. Thomas J. Flynn<br />
S/Sgt. Burton D. Lane S/Sgt. John J. Bernhard<br />
S/Sgt. Edward J. Goodman S/Sgt. Thomas N. Fink<br />
S/Sgt. Robert C. Waddell S/Sgt. Russell M. Jenkins<br />
S/Sgt. Walter J. Kruzich S/Sgt. Henry J. Weigel<br />
Sgt. Nathaniel L. Breunig S/Sgt. Allen L. Bowman<br />
Sgt. Robert M. Dowell S/Sgt. John Truscott<br />
Sgt. Walter C. Engel Sgt. Joseph Ekasla<br />
Sgt. Norman B. Jacobsen Sgt. Benjamin F. Fitzpatrick<br />
Sgt. George B. Palmer Sgt. Lane E. McPhee<br />
Sgt. Bernard F. Seufort Sgt. Cecil Patton<br />
Cpl. Albert N. Alexander Sgt. Eugene S. Teter, Jr.<br />
Cpl. Vincent M. Burke Sgt. Paul Dukas<br />
Cpl. Edward A. Gardiner Cpl. Edward A. Butler<br />
Cpl. George H. LeRoy Cpl. Samuel Katz<br />
Cpl. Balke L. Manler Cpl. Harold R. Lewis<br />
Cpl. Ralph E. Reeder Cpl. Robert L. McCoy<br />
Cpl. Harold D. Stroud Cpl. Albert P. Boyle<br />
Cpl. Thomas J. Towle Cpl. Leonard Aronson<br />
PFC Lewis A. Noce Cpl. Robert L. Cohen<br />
Pvt. Marion E. Carter Cpl. Carl R. Dolmotsch, Jr.<br />
Pvt. Theo2nd. Lt. dore Wladyka PFC Jerome S. Rose
206<br />
Roster of Original Staff And Original Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
CREW #1 - Aircraft #42-7591<br />
2nd. Lt. Jack W. O'Brien P 0741929<br />
2nd. Lt. Raymond L. Boll CP 0806394<br />
2nd. Lt. Seymour D. Ausfresser N 0669946<br />
2nd. Lt. Arthur D. Steele B 0678486<br />
S/Sgt. Joseph J. Buschek E 19056598<br />
S/Sgt. Jerome R. Hess R 36261526<br />
Sgt. Charles L. Hutton AE 35661741<br />
Sgt. Walter D. Garland AR 36556774<br />
Sgt. Jay R. Dempsey G 13145844<br />
S/Sgt. Thomas W. Abbott AG 33162501<br />
Passengers<br />
Capt. William G. Blum 0660545<br />
Capt. Harold S. Podolsky 0561847<br />
M/Sgt. Walter G. Brown 20919786<br />
S/Sgt. Edward J.G. Brown Jr. 37438934<br />
CREW #3 - Aircraft #42-52083<br />
2nd. Lt. William B. Brown P 0742841<br />
2nd. Lt. Kenneth W. Barnett CP 0808934<br />
2nd. Lt. Frederick W. Saltus N 0736658<br />
2nd. Lt. William L. LaBonte B 0684174<br />
Pvt. Earl R. Myrick E 31152194<br />
S/Sgt. Oliver L. Bidne R 39452901<br />
Sgt. Clarence W. Schrader AE 36069204<br />
Sgt. Jacob M. Lebovitz AR 11072772<br />
Sgt. Herman B. Johns G 35588210<br />
Sgt. Russell E. Flamion AG 35715492<br />
Passengers<br />
1st. Lt. Robert Lewis 01702816<br />
1st. Lt. William C. Cates Jr. 0649608<br />
Major Patrick H. Hoey 0405121<br />
Cpl. Leonard Aronson 14082486<br />
CREW #5 - Aircraft #42-7733<br />
2nd. Lt. Robert C. Ayrest P 0680984<br />
2nd. Lt. Irwin Litman CP 0797567<br />
2nd. Lt. Robert F. Boberg N 0687980<br />
2nd. Lt. Robert V. Hess B 0688162<br />
S/Sgt. Frank E. Boule E 36619461<br />
Sgt. Joseph R. Chicoda R 11102704<br />
Sgt. Edward N. Schroeder AE 36285186<br />
Cpl. Harold L. Auker AR 37115617<br />
Sgt. Leonard J. Snell G 16021987<br />
Sgt. Edward A. Odiorne AG 35582869<br />
Passengers<br />
S/Sgt. Henry J. Weigel 39677808<br />
S/Sgt. Walter J. Kruzich 36304202<br />
T/Sgt. Harry C. Corbin 32260926<br />
T/Sgt. Frank M. Schultz R-18697<br />
CREW #2 - Aircraft #41-29191<br />
2nd. Lt. Jack Parker P 0742771<br />
2nd. Lt. John P. Shaw CP 0805990<br />
2nd. Lt. Joseph T. Myer N 0738713<br />
2nd. Lt. Dominic W. Maineri B 0684177<br />
Sgt. James V. Nobe E 37218528<br />
S/Sgt. Albert B. Foreman R 13176763<br />
Sgt. Kenneth W. Ebaugh AE 13136486<br />
Sgt. Robert S. Sale AR 38283629<br />
Sgt. James J. Plazio G 13012943<br />
Sgt. William V. Biles AG 17129606<br />
Passengers<br />
S/Sgt. Burton D. Dane 37195327<br />
S/Sgt. Theodore Wladyka 6994020<br />
Sgt. Robert L. Cohen 31308972<br />
Sgt. Thomas J. Towle 17142410<br />
CREW #4 - Aircraft #42-7767<br />
2nd. Lt. Leroy E. Middleworth Jr. P 0797161<br />
2nd. Lt. Thomas E. Winslett CP 0751783<br />
2nd. Lt. William V. Voorhees Jr. N 0750230<br />
2nd. Lt. John D. McGarry B 0738564<br />
T/Sgt. Clarence L. Campbell E 16035515<br />
Sgt. James J. Gregan R 33193048<br />
Sgt. Walter K. Bickle AE 35611165<br />
S/Sgt. Paul Krasney AR 36324023<br />
Pvt. George Henderson G 7005828<br />
S/Sgt. Harold R. Mattice AG 12138414<br />
Passengers<br />
Sgt. Joseph Ekasola 31082697<br />
Pvt. Martin E. Carter 37375810<br />
S/Sgt. Ellis L. Copeland 34585717<br />
S/Sgt. John R. Truscott 17030411<br />
CREW #7 - Aircraft #42-52098<br />
2nd. Lt. Charles Knorr P 0745700<br />
2nd. Lt. Herbert J. Bunde CP 0751985<br />
2nd. Lt. Stanley Baranofsky N 0687922<br />
2nd. Lt. Charles C. McBride B 0741207<br />
Sgt. William L. Quigley E 12159196<br />
Sgt. Ralph S. Callahan R 12207911<br />
Sgt. Ernest J. Schultz AE 32405166<br />
Sgt. Stanley J. Sarna AR 16147485<br />
Sgt. Jack L. Cooper G 35595779<br />
Sgt. Albert C. Padilla AG 39117760<br />
Passengers<br />
1st Lt. Robert W. McDonough 02043766<br />
2nd. Lt. Robert L. Harper 0667402<br />
M/Sgt. Thomas J. Flynn 38047787<br />
Sgt. Balke L. Mahler 18118003
207<br />
Roster of Original Staff And Original Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
CREW <strong>#8</strong> - Aricraft #41-29232<br />
2nd. Lt. Paul R. Harrison P 0731978<br />
2nd. Lt. James E. Berry CP 0687977<br />
2nd. Lt. Floyd L. Drake N 0750354<br />
2nd. Lt. Frank H. Dial B 0751816<br />
Sgt. George H. Chapman Jr. E 32539122<br />
Sgt. Edward J. Lies R 33308033<br />
Sgt. Howard I. Patchell AE 31228127<br />
Sgt. James M. Donley AR 17077488<br />
Sgt. Robert J. McCormick G 36421148<br />
Sgt. Donald F. Ransom AG 12194131<br />
Passengers<br />
1st. Lt. George O. Capp 0571189<br />
M/Sgt. Frank J. Naglak 37285267<br />
Cpl. Jerome Fisher 34585717<br />
Cpl. Albert P. Royle 11101361<br />
CREW #10 - Aircraft #42-52128<br />
2nd. Lt. Carroll C. Key P 0749479<br />
2nd. Lt. James M. Susoeff CP 0752026<br />
2nd. Lt. John W. Brown N 0809315<br />
2nd. Lt. Harry Fisher B 0688181<br />
S/Sgt. Clyde L. Baird E 14131280<br />
Sgt. Robert W. McKinney R 39454113<br />
Pvt. James E. Anderson AE 35639566<br />
Sgt. Jack C. Williamson AR 34474011<br />
Sgt. Richard L. Auer G 31278064<br />
Sgt. Douglas B. Dann AG 34599839<br />
Passengers<br />
Sgt. Allen L. Bowman 34289531<br />
Cpl. Ralph F. Reeder 36445953<br />
Cpl. Harold D. Stroud 37506477<br />
Cpl. Robert L. McCoy 39555504<br />
CREW #12 - Aircraft #41-28593<br />
2nd. Lt. Donald C.G. Schumann P 0672220<br />
2nd. Lt. Harold E. White CP 0747535<br />
2nd. Lt. Raymond L. Thurber N 0689693<br />
2nd. Lt. Jim Biggerstaff B 0676535<br />
Sgt. Harvey E. Smith E 34516429<br />
Sgt. John M. Hilton R 36281759<br />
S/Sgt. Conrad Holzgraf AE 18015585<br />
S/Sgt. James V. Newton AR 16034261<br />
Sgt. Milliard R. Malwitz G 19175397<br />
Sgt. Isaac H. Odell AG 39278598<br />
Passengers<br />
S/Sgt. Delmer A. Akerley 31300616<br />
Sgt. Cecil Patton 34433802<br />
Sgt. Carl R. Dolmetsch Jr. 35654949<br />
Sgt. Paul L. Doukas 37448346<br />
CREW #9 - Aircraft #42-7681<br />
2nd. Lt. John P. Rhodes P 0745180<br />
2nd. Lt. Eber D. O'Faris CP 0751289<br />
2nd. Lt. Kenneth J. Murphy N 0687958<br />
2nd. Lt. Salem A. Smith Jr. B 0688978<br />
Sgt. Rector R. Cockings E 18053195<br />
Pvt. Dominic Rosas R 38367454<br />
Sgt. William E. Leis AE 18192905<br />
Sgt. Charles A. Heaton Jr. AR 18226363<br />
Sgt. William H. Barbarito Jr. G 31280111<br />
Pvt. Samuel Edwards AG 32738235<br />
Passengers<br />
2nd. Lt. John Bilyk 0873020<br />
2nd. Lt. Howard M. Oden 0735439<br />
S/Sgt. Thomas M. Fink 32413485<br />
Pvt. Jerome S. Rose 35055269<br />
CREW #11 - Aircraft #42-52132<br />
2nd. Lt. Paul R. Helander P 0804331<br />
2nd. Lt. John J. Schneider CP 0652243<br />
2nd. Lt. Alfred E. Cannon N 0809318<br />
2nd. Lt. Henry M. Snyder B 0752588<br />
Sgt. Gerald E. Carroll E 19055027<br />
Sgt. Oclotan U. Richmond R 39263863<br />
Sgt. Norbert F. Duginski AE 16008632<br />
Sgt. Raymond G. Giwojna AR 16133962<br />
Sgt. Bill J. McCullah G 37413477<br />
Sgt. Benjamin Z. Means AG 33424645<br />
Passengers<br />
Sgt. Bernard F. Fitzpatrick 32260948<br />
Sgt. Norman R. Jacobson 12172778<br />
Sgt. George R. Palmer 32707922<br />
Sgt. Albert N. Alexander 33399071<br />
CREW #14 - Aircraft #42-64451<br />
2nd. Lt. Irvin E. Toler P 0746484<br />
2nd. Lt. Edward C. O'Hare CP 0681173<br />
2nd. Lt. John E. Silvia N 0689674<br />
2nd. Lt. Fred J. Bittner B 0688503<br />
Sgt. Thurston E. Johnson E 13135079<br />
Sgt. Herbert C. Bloom R 39101187<br />
Sgt. Lyle E. Steinberg AE 32579409<br />
Sgt. Ray L. Jeffers AR 32369841<br />
Sgt. David A. Gustafson G 16088710<br />
Sgt. Paul E. Crewe AG 35679564<br />
Passengers<br />
T/Sgt. Frederick J. Fenneweld 37184855<br />
Sgt. Bernard F. Soufert 13104652<br />
Sgt. Vincent M. Burke 32882318<br />
Sgt. Edward A. Butler 31138999
208<br />
Roster of Original Staff And Original Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
CREW #15 - Aircraft #41-28611<br />
2nd. Lt. Robert C. Voight P 0737678<br />
2nd. Lt. William C. Edwards CP 0811041<br />
2nd. Lt. Everett F. Stine N 0689683<br />
2nd. Lt. Robert T. Ash B 0688492<br />
S/Sgt. Richard Getz E 12034631<br />
Sgt. Robert W. Rigg R 39549975<br />
Sgt. Clarence R. Marshall AE 33231924<br />
Sgt. Paul E. Brown AR 33380722<br />
Sgt. Miltiades C. Cikes G 31258989<br />
S/Sgt. Thomas R. Hogan AG 13116127<br />
Passengers<br />
Sgt. Walter C. Engel 37292097<br />
Cpl. Edward R. Gerliner 33301403<br />
Cpl. Samuel Katz 33311023<br />
Sgt. George H. Leroy 37609476<br />
CREW #17 - Aircraft #42-52145<br />
1st. Lt. Robert K. Winn P 0724661<br />
2nd. Lt. James H. Harmon CP 0811199<br />
2nd. Lt. David T. Tobin N 0690738<br />
2nd. Lt. Richard J. Brady B 0688504<br />
S/Sgt. Charlie D. Lugosh E 18201733<br />
Sgt. Kenneth L. Dyer R 35568310<br />
Sgt. Edwin H. Pixley AE 17107052<br />
Sgt. Billy J. Espich AR 15354024<br />
Sgt. Robert R. Cook G 15230812<br />
Sgt. Jack W. Porter AG 36181194<br />
Passengers<br />
S/Sgt. Nathaniel L. Brouing 35614932<br />
Sgt. Robert M. Dowell 19114490<br />
Sgt. Eugene S. Teter Jr. 13116301<br />
Cpl. Merle E. Davis 39536529<br />
713th BOMBARDMENT SQUADRON<br />
1st. Lt. Heber H. Thompson 1st. Lt. Chester B. Hackett, Jr.<br />
1st. Lt. William H. Smelter 1st. Lt. Raymond S. McKeeby<br />
1st. Lt. James L. Ferguson 2nd. Lt. Bruce B. McCleary<br />
2nd. Lt. Arthur Klein 2nd. Lt. Francis L. Martin<br />
2nd. Lt. George E. Cone M/Sgt. Seamon A. Pledger<br />
M/Sgt. Anthony P. Dennis M/Sgt. Francis Berrigan<br />
M/Sgt. Frank. A. Miller S/Sgt. Harley A. Kelly<br />
M/Sgt. Willie G. Brantley S/Sgt. James T. Gwaltney<br />
M/Sgt. Robert M. McDowell S/Sgt. Herbert C. Heidrich<br />
S/Sgt. John R. Moore S/Sgt. Joseph N. Musuraca<br />
S/Sgt. John L. Fluke S/Sgt. Earl A. Eggleston<br />
S/Sgt. Veikko Hirvivara S/Sgt. Merle S. Morris<br />
S/Sgt. S.J. Laney S/Sgt. Richard G. Pokorny<br />
T/Sgt. Alva B. Hampton T/Sgt. James C. Inglesby<br />
T/Sgt. Vernon L. Poppo T/Sgt. Curry Dial<br />
T/Sgt. Markus A. Schreacke T/Sgt. James F. Doherty<br />
T/Sgt. Hunter W. Martin T/Sgt. Ernest A. Lapko<br />
Sgt. Dale L. Black T/Sgt. Ralph C. Flees<br />
Sgt. Obest B. Rood Sgt. Thomas C. Schnoor<br />
CREW #16 - Aircraft #41-29208<br />
2nd. Lt. Earle P. Durley Jr. P 0447213<br />
2nd. Lt. Robert B. Haloran CP 0808990<br />
2nd. Lt. Naseeb S. Tweel N 0689696<br />
2nd. Lt. Lester Bise B 0688502<br />
S/Sgt. Clarence H. Stark E 16131107<br />
Sgt. Eamond A. Rock R 32635184<br />
Sgt. John Stemmerman AE 12155113<br />
Sgt. William D. Hackney AR 36539204<br />
Sgt. Joe P. Ford G 39407846<br />
Sgt. William C. Walker AG 18200358<br />
Passengers<br />
Major Robert Campbell Jr. 0406707<br />
1st. Lt. Earl H. Parks 0725909<br />
1st. Lt. Clifford C. Gaither 0857093<br />
M/Sgt. Michael P. Corce 6949840<br />
CREW #18 Aircraft #42-52118<br />
1st. Lt. Alan J. Teague P 0661892<br />
2nd. Lt. Jesse M. Hamby CP 0811196<br />
2nd. Lt. Bruce A. Vaughn N 0690742<br />
2nd. Lt. Roy E. Anderson B 0688300<br />
S/Sgt. Edmund J. Rudnicki E 35300453<br />
Sgt. Simon Cohen R 11130339<br />
Sgt. Joseph M. Redditt AE 34427597<br />
Sgt. Kazmierz Pochopin AR 32591233<br />
Sgt. John A. Duka G 31277387<br />
Sgt. Harvey R. Davis AG 33340771<br />
Passengers<br />
S/Sgt. John J. Bernhard 35474117<br />
S/Sgt. Russell A. Jenkins 17074757<br />
S/Sgt. Robert G. Waddell 14121340<br />
S/Sgt. Lane E. McPhee 17027206
209<br />
Roster of Original Staff And Original Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
Sgt. George M. Mathews Sgt. Ernest H. Stark<br />
Sgt. Charles E. Coyle Sgt. Glade H. Butterfield, Jr.<br />
Sgt. Henry J. Myslinski Sgt. Marvin Koffman<br />
Cpl. Harvey D. Casner Sgt. Charles H. Kruse<br />
Cpl. John R. Ray Cpl. Clarence E. Gibson<br />
Cpl. Frank A. Carpenter Cpl. Robert A. Prouty<br />
Cpl. Vincent E. Lang Cpl. William P. Miller<br />
PFC Guion J. Allen PFC Joseph S. Blouin<br />
PFC Glenn Horner PFC Elmer C. Madsen<br />
Pvt. Francis J. Allen PFC Alvin M. Jampol<br />
CREW #21 - Aircraft #41-28595<br />
2nd. Lt. James J. Bell P 0742831<br />
2nd. Lt. David E. Mellott CP 0749286<br />
2nd. Lt. Hugh X. Cullinan N 0736688<br />
2nd. Lt. Marvin Joseph B 0678418<br />
S/Sgt. James R. Bricker E 35588078<br />
S/Sgt. William E. Ruck Jr. R 13019337<br />
Sgt. Kenneth L. Hess AE 36068383<br />
Sgt. Lloyd T. Williams AR 19122941<br />
S/Sgt. Roger O. Vance G 39530101<br />
Sgt. Daner E. Anderson AG 13033362<br />
Passengers<br />
1st. Lt. James L. Ferguson 0568113<br />
2nd. Lt. George E. Cohen 0861048<br />
1st. Lt. Raymond S. McKeeby 0500564<br />
M/Sgt. Robert M. McDowell Jr. 14037254<br />
CREW #23 - Aircraft #41-29192<br />
2nd. Lt. James P. Sullivan P 0675950<br />
2nd. Lt. Evan J. Evans CP 0752188<br />
2nd. Lt. Kenneth O. Reed N 0416197<br />
2nd. Lt. Leonard B. Harmon B 0676384<br />
S/Sgt. Lawrence H. Vogtmann E 37216961<br />
T/Sgt. William C. Maxwell R 33249071<br />
S/Sgt. William g. Senville AE 31160560<br />
S/Sgt. Clifford W. Harris AR 35662194<br />
S/Sgt. Michael J. Fuller G 11038363<br />
S/Sgt. George A. Herpoulos AG 15377097<br />
Passengers<br />
T/Sgt. Alva B. Hampton 37254291<br />
Sgt. Charles E. Gayle 39404396<br />
Cpl. Vincent E. Lang 32478867<br />
Cpl. James J. Kveten 36647841<br />
CREW #22 - Aircraft #41-28590<br />
2nd. Lt. Robert E. Kraus P 0732021<br />
2nd. Lt. Clive O. Stevens CP 0809059<br />
2nd. Lt. Mathew L. Szydlowski N 0690736<br />
2nd. Lt. Harry A. Kohn B 0684171<br />
S/Sgt. Azizes F. Erban E 11057792<br />
S/Sgt. William H. Pehle R 37308259<br />
S/Sgt. Earl Ellis Jr. AE 15335103<br />
S/Sgt. Junior W. Klug AR 13167639<br />
S/Sgt. Arnold H. Radde G 16085975<br />
S/Sgt. Leon Hawkersmith AG 34149089<br />
Passengers<br />
S/Sgt. Richard G. Pokorny 12095697<br />
T/Sgt. James F. Doherty 32290419<br />
S/Sgt. Max M. Myers 6919517<br />
CREW #24 - Aircraft #42-72981<br />
2nd. Lt. Thomas R. Appel P 0680377<br />
2nd. Lt. Richard L. Henderson CP 0751323<br />
2nd. Lt. Bruce B. Winter N 0705260<br />
2nd. Lt. Reese C. Lee B 0671260<br />
T/Sgt. James A. Pegher E 33268724<br />
S/Sgt. John F. Decker R 13113895<br />
T/Sgt. Furman A. Powell AE 34381553<br />
S/Sgt. George H. Jepson AR 12169791<br />
S/Sgt. Richard L. Maze G 6940927<br />
Sgt. Roy E. Lewis AG 14072402<br />
Passengers<br />
Major Hubert S. Judy Jr. 0406697<br />
1st. Lt. Arthur S. Hunt 0729755<br />
Sgt. Alfred E. Candelaria 39258873<br />
Sgt. Henry J. Myslinski 32422730
210<br />
Roster of Original Staff And Original Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
CREW #25 - Aircraft #42-52120<br />
2nd. Lt. Henry B. Schroeder P 0680731<br />
2nd. Lt. Lewis M. Sarkovich CP 0686600<br />
2nd. Lt. Bruce E. Crane N 0687815<br />
2nd. Lt. Jack R. Smith B 0751850<br />
S/Sgt. Hugh O. Riley E 18052449<br />
Sgt. Moe Liebman R 32411484<br />
Sgt. William E. Seidel AE 36058850<br />
Sgt. Francis W. Scarbrough AR 16030978<br />
Sgt. Alfred B. Maine G 31259024<br />
Sgt. Robert D. Hiller AG 19170207<br />
Passengers<br />
Cpl. Robert A. Prouty 34248906<br />
T/Sgt. Ernest H. Lepke 39606393<br />
T/Sgt. Markus A. Schreacke 36027064<br />
Sgt. Ernest H. Stark 32816868<br />
CREW #27 - Aircraft #42-52121<br />
2nd. Lt. Jack L. Barak P 0806776<br />
2nd. Lt. Anthony Witzkowski CP 0686297<br />
2nd. Lt. Thaine A. Clark N 0687811<br />
2nd. Lt. Martin F. Surovy B 0751854<br />
Sgt. Jesse R. Kain E 15337846<br />
Sgt. Joseph S. Kasacjak R 33416993<br />
Sgt. Floyd E. Sand AE 35347119<br />
Sgt. Van B. Scott AR 18109376<br />
Sgt. Bertrand B. Lutz G 32605895<br />
S/Sgt. Roy E. Maker AG 11116363<br />
Passengers<br />
S/Sgt. Veikko Hirviivara 37178164<br />
Sgt. George M. Mathews 15089461<br />
T/Sgt. James F. Ingelsby 11037040<br />
Pvt. Francis G. Koh. Jr. 36123974<br />
CREW #29 - Aircraft #41-28583<br />
1st. Lt. Robert T. Lambertson P 0732023<br />
2nd. Lt. James L. Thomas CP 0752088<br />
2nd. Lt. Ralph E. Brown N 0809316<br />
2nd. Lt. Robert D. Larew B 0688672<br />
S/Sgt. Perry L. Davenport E 39091485<br />
Sgt. William Sidoruk R 32623822<br />
Sgt. Ray K. Littlejohn AE 34169612<br />
Sgt. Walter D. Petts AR 15382788<br />
Sgt. Andrew P. Long G 32186301<br />
Sgt. Edward D. Roser AG 32678470<br />
Passengers<br />
Capt. Heber H. Thompson 01699234<br />
1st. Lt. William D. Smelter 02043773<br />
M/Sgt. Willie G. Brantley 15098971<br />
Sgt. John R. Ray 18168514<br />
CREW #26 - Aircraft #42-7766<br />
2nd. Lt. William M. Martin P 0805949<br />
2nd. Lt. William A. Bond CP 0808938<br />
2nd. Lt. William S. Cuthbert N 0687930<br />
2nd. Lt. Williard E. Wallace B 0741384<br />
Sgt. William E. Sherratt E 18046491<br />
Sgt. Peter Edgar R 12187861<br />
S/Sgt. Charles F. Voge. AE 18046310<br />
Sgt. Anthony J. Kuzminski AR 11101473<br />
Sgt. David D. Culp G 35538126<br />
Sgt. Ike J. Beasley AG 14058704<br />
Passengers<br />
S/Sgt. John R. Moore 35385158<br />
T/Sgt. Vernon L. Poppe 36175912<br />
Pvt. Alvin M. Jampol 32883696<br />
CREW #28 - Aircraft #42-52123<br />
2nd. Lt. James E. Urban P 0676878<br />
2nd. Lt. Alden P. Anthony CP 0808482<br />
2nd. Lt. Fred Brenner N 0687928<br />
2nd. Lt. Stanley Friedman B 0688184<br />
Sgt. Howard M. Smith E 17038532<br />
Sgt. Wendell R. McClellan R 38285507<br />
S/Sgt. Roy D. Barber AE 14040228<br />
Sgt. George Petula AR 12183208<br />
Sgt. Joseph B. Deffner G 32675587<br />
Sgt. John J. Kelly AG 32782047<br />
Passengers<br />
Cpl. Clarence E. Gibson 16057749<br />
T/Sgt. Curry Dial 15041120<br />
Cpl. Harvey D.Casner 36581785<br />
Pvt. Guion J. Allen 34609898<br />
CREW #30 - Aircraft #42-52097<br />
2nd. Lt. Richard C. Harris P 0494504<br />
2nd. Lt. William C. Moore CP 0808576<br />
2nd. Lt. Warren R. Auch N 0687803<br />
1st. Lt. Frank S. Phillips B 02043738<br />
S/Sgt. Robert E. Whiteside E 15070206<br />
Sgt. Paul T. Dempsey R 12135037<br />
S/Sgt. Alfred F. Massey AE 31124673<br />
S/Sgt. Grady W. McLaughlen AR 19175031<br />
S/Sgt. Harry T. Rummel G 37272148<br />
S/Sgt. George J. Schible AG 13155700<br />
Passengers<br />
2nd. Lt. Bruce B. McCleary 0799815<br />
M/Sgt. Francis Berrigan 38089023<br />
S/Sgt. Harley A. Kelley 19138718<br />
Sgt. Mervin Koffman 31161869
211<br />
Roster of Original Staff And Original Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
CREW #31 - Aircraft #41-29236<br />
2nd. Lt. Stewart F. Chase P 0746293<br />
2nd. Lt. Lorenz G. Johnson CP 0752416<br />
2nd. Lt. Philip Baskin N 0687806<br />
2nd. Lt. John A. Bienapfl B 0744233<br />
S/Sgt. Luther D. Rummage Jr. E 14196490<br />
Sgt. Thomas R. Lee R 18171694<br />
Sgt. Demo D. Saranti AE 12140760<br />
Sgt. Raymond W. Wood AR 19179637<br />
S/Sgt. Harry D. Quillen G 12012673<br />
Sgt. Harry W. Klober AG 33035628<br />
Passengers<br />
T/Sgt. Hunter W. Martin 33221158<br />
T/Sgt. S. J. Laney 38120892<br />
S/Sgt. John L. Fluke 33252139<br />
Pvt. Elmer C. Madsen 39695963<br />
CREW #35 - Aircraft #42-52135<br />
2nd. Lt. Lawrence T. Crepeau P 0747219<br />
2nd. Lt. Robert E. Lehman CP 0750630<br />
2nd. Lt. William F. New N 0690491<br />
2nd. Lt. Otto Ciavardoni B 0688580<br />
Sgt. Dearl Whittaker E 15117053<br />
Sgt. Joseph R. Morrison R 36629920<br />
Sgt. Johnny W. Jones AE 14149210<br />
Sgt. Bashem B. Weide AR 37229920<br />
Sgt. Raymond M. Arnold G 39550987<br />
Sgt. Jesse W. Carroll AG 34369438<br />
Passengers<br />
S/Sgt. Merle S. Morris 17026290<br />
S/Sgt. Charles W. Kruse 37446869<br />
S/Sgt. Dale L. Black 14134595<br />
Sgt. Glade H. Butterfield Jr. 17071649<br />
CREW #37 - Aircraft #41-29240<br />
1st. Lt. Philip B. Thompson P 0725377<br />
2nd. Lt. Robert C. Beirke CP 0811329<br />
2nd. Lt. Bernard C. McGunn N 0690467<br />
2nd. Lt. Lloyd A. Drury B 0747653<br />
Sgt. Arnie R. Gunderson E 17154143<br />
Cpl. Isidore Pertzman R 11057888<br />
Sgt. Robert H. Hale AE 17159570<br />
Sgt. Joseph T. Michalczyk AR 31284067<br />
Cpl. Jerry Mejeur Jr. G 16014523<br />
S/Sgt. John P. Moran AG 31097317<br />
Passengers<br />
Sgt. Obest B. Reed 18043424<br />
M/Sgt. Frank A. Miller 37113148<br />
T/Sgt. Ralph C. Flees 16046785<br />
Cpl. Frank A. Carpenter 38379028<br />
CREW #32 - Aircraft #41-29248<br />
2nd. Lt. George W. Elkins P 0804312<br />
2nd. Lt. Eugene J. Coffey CP 0748576<br />
2nd. Lt. Edward T. Card N 0755172<br />
2nd. Lt. Richard P. Casterline B 0688174<br />
Sgt. Morris F. Cooper E 34570736<br />
Sgt.Thomas V. Tornillo R 32562276<br />
Sgt. George H. Finch AE 19171540<br />
Sgt. Oren E. Casto AR 15338524<br />
Sgt. Mattie A. Laurelli G 32836621<br />
Sgt. Walter Mishaner AG 32830147<br />
Passengers<br />
S/Sgt. James T. Gwaltney 33158448<br />
S/Sgt. Herbert C. Heidrich 37264787<br />
Cpl. William P. Miller 16121346<br />
Cpl. Joseph S. Blouin 39553152<br />
CREW #36 - Aircraft #41-28602<br />
1st. Lt. Max R. Jordon P 0725740<br />
2nd. Lt. Adolph T. Abraham CP 0810982<br />
2nd. Lt. Robert B. Stone N 0689684<br />
2nd. Lt. Searl J. Collins Jr. B 0749611<br />
S/Sgt. John J. Holesa E 15072502<br />
S/Sgt. Jacob E. Edwards R 18000037<br />
Sgt. Anthony J. Daidone AE 32306952<br />
Sgt. Walter S. Baron AR 31133831<br />
Sgt. Archie B. Indorf G 35595495<br />
Sgt. Roy E. Ball AG 35595557<br />
Passengers<br />
Pvt. Glen Horner 38452559<br />
Sgt. Thomas C. Schnoor 39082176<br />
M/Sgt. Anthony P. Dennis 6788860<br />
S/Sgt. Joseph N. Musuraca 35340477<br />
CREW #38 - Aircraft #42-2712<br />
1st. Lt. James E. Curtis P 0725688<br />
2nd. Lt. Donald Clift CP 0811338<br />
2nd. Lt. Emmett J. Moore N 0690683<br />
2nd. Lt. Leonard H. Feingold B 0688744<br />
Sgt. Marion C. Maxton E 37205700<br />
Pvt. Eugene E. Higgins R 36273563<br />
Sgt. Henry I. Gouthier AE 31147965<br />
Sgt. John E. McClone AR 32202248<br />
Sgt. Malcolm W. Crow G 38446782<br />
S/Sgt. Robert P. Hudson Jr. AG 32176645<br />
Passengers<br />
Capt. Chester P. Hackett Jr. 0406683<br />
1st, Lt. Arthur Klein 0796549<br />
1st. Lt. Francis L. Martin 0857096<br />
M/Sgt. Seamon A. Pledger 14057081
212<br />
Roster of Original Staff And Original Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
714th BOMBARDMENT SQUADRON<br />
Captain Glassell S. Stringfellow 1st. Lt. Lester F. Miller<br />
1st. Lt. Carl T. Yast 1st. Lt. Thomas J. Maye<br />
2nd. Lt. Mavin C. Onks 2nd. Lt. Harry J. Oppelt<br />
2nd. Lt. Lester E. Davidson 2nd. Lt. Francis C. Doherty<br />
2nd. Lt. James E. Smithson 2nd. Lt. Robert C. Klein, Jr.<br />
2nd. Lt. John E. Olhaber M/Sgt. Julius E. Ryan, Jr.<br />
M/Sgt. Darwin T. Hall S/Sgt. William M. Camp<br />
S/Sgt. Lloyd S. Brewer S/Sgt. Roy F. Stroop<br />
S/Sgt. Edgar E. Lyon S/Sgt. William P. O'Reilly<br />
S/Sgt. Robert M. Kellner T/Sgt. Ralph Swartzkopf<br />
S/Sgt. Michael E. Kruzinski T/Sgt. Herbert S. Chrzan<br />
S/Sgt. Ernest E. Jones T/Sgt. Manlie A. DePaoli<br />
T/Sgt. James E. Cackett T/Sgt. Harry A. Anderson<br />
T/Sgt. Alfio A. Fontanella Sgt. Frank Masef<br />
T/Sgt. Edward G. Finnegan Sgt. Ronald E. Weaver<br />
Sgt. Billy C. Smith Sgt. John A. Sager<br />
Sgt. William Thorne Sgt. Harry G. Holmberg<br />
Sgt. James E. Taylor Sgt. Stephen E. Bursenski<br />
Sgt. Walter D. Trinder Sgt. Mitchell J. Biernat<br />
Sgt. Clayton R. Harvey Sgt. Will T. Lee<br />
Sgt. Lawrence E. Voorheis Cpl. John R. Shea<br />
Cpl. Edgar S. West, Jr. Cpl. John F. Muller, Jr.<br />
Cpl. Robert C. Swin Cpl. Ralph C. Erskine, Jr.<br />
Cpl. Francis C. Schade Cpl. Louis J. Tora<br />
Cpl. Anthony Rouscotti Cpl. Lawrence R. Jablonski<br />
Cpl. Ned R. Hugley Cpl. Joseph Sulin<br />
PFC David Frank PFC Milton A. Solomen<br />
PFC Walter E. Andress PFC Dennis W. McLaughlin<br />
Pvt. Albert L. Dickerson PFC Emilie E. Tafoya<br />
CREW #41 - Aircraft #41-28588<br />
2nd. Lt. Edward D. Hughey, Jr. P 0677748<br />
1st. Lt. Charles D. Hill CP 0397552<br />
2nd. Lt. Sumner W. Stevens N 0670285<br />
2nd. Lt. Edwin S. Jacobson B 0684114<br />
S/Sgt. Curtis L. Koon E 33252697<br />
Sgt. Carl Anderson R 19185853<br />
Sgt. James C. Hicks AE 17129097<br />
Sgt. Homer C. Risner AR 38333496<br />
Sgt. John L. Reim G 13110217<br />
Sgt. Richard B. Laing AG 19164878<br />
Passengers<br />
S/Sgt. William P. O'Reilly 32139452<br />
Cpl. Edgar S. West, Jr. 18124229<br />
Cpl. robert G. Swin 38504881<br />
Pvt. Albert L. Dickerson 35867339<br />
CREW #42 - Aircraft #42-52108<br />
2nd. Lt. Joseph W. Shank, Jr. P 0743108<br />
1st Lt. Edward J. Pearce CP 0393388<br />
2nd. Lt. Clark S. Bender N 0736682<br />
2nd. Lt. Turner A. Sowell, Jr. B 0747607<br />
S/Sgt. Leonard G. LaJoie E 16023435<br />
S/Sgt. Eugene C. Weishaar R 36704194<br />
Sgt. Park J. Blair AE 13095286<br />
Sgt. Raymond E. Martin AR 39453037<br />
Sgt. William D. Rabor G 39118166<br />
Cpl. Calvin H. End AG 39453465<br />
Passengers<br />
2nd. Lt. John H. Olhaber 0873363<br />
S/S. Ernest E. Jones 13062713<br />
Sgt. Ned R. Hugley 14152714<br />
Sgt. James E. Taylor 36446039
213<br />
Roster of Original Staff And Original Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
CREW #43 - Aircraft #41-29230<br />
2nd. Lt. Lawrence M. Edman P 0740775<br />
2nd. Lt. Lawson D. Campbell CP 0687543<br />
2nd. Lt. Joseph C. Chaffin N 0797265<br />
2nd. Lt. Philip Mufsen B 0684181<br />
S/Sgt. James W. Dailey, Jr. E 38236448<br />
S/Sgt. Jack A. Chormley R 32626123<br />
Sgt. John Wallends,Jr. AE 35514944<br />
Sgt. Harold W. Beaver AR 39269212<br />
Sgt. Tony Gomondo G 15377489<br />
Sgt. Harold L. Delay AG 19188393<br />
Passengers<br />
2nd. Lt. Lester E. Davison 0739076<br />
T/Sgt. Edward G. Finnegan 32385610<br />
T/Sgt. Ralph Schwartzkofp 19094390<br />
Sgt. Frank Macefe 33300883<br />
CREW #45 - Aircraft #41-28599<br />
1st. Lt. James D. Conrad P 0365492<br />
2nd. Lt. Joseph R. Gonzales, Jr. CP 0752196<br />
2nd. Lt. Royal D. Goldenberg N 0687939<br />
2nd. Lt. Benny E. Roark B 0751844<br />
S/Sgt. Paul F. Bland E 35370902<br />
Cpl. Julius S. Kopes R 35746618<br />
Sgt. Bernard W. Anderson AE 16069755<br />
Pvt. Russel E. Towsley AR 35377602<br />
Sgt. Byron V. Bacon G 17035965<br />
Sgt. Jasper W. Early AG 13075590<br />
Passengers<br />
2nd. Lt. Francis C. Doherty 0861158<br />
S/Sgt. Lawrence E. Voorheis 39608515<br />
Cpl. Francis C. Schade 17035965<br />
Cpl. Lawrence J. Jablonski 13075590<br />
CREW #47 - Aircraft #42-7683<br />
F/O Karl M. Schlund P T-61138<br />
F/O William W. Rogers CP T-122253<br />
2nd. Lt. Robert K. Hassel N 0687944<br />
2nd. Lt. Raymond L. Cohee B 0752551<br />
Sgt. Robert G. Woolweaver E 13145931<br />
Cpl. Frank J. Gardner R 13048050<br />
Sgt. Carlton McIntosh AE 14140523<br />
Sgt. William E. Ervin AR 19170231<br />
Sgt. Arthur L. Torness G 17036948<br />
Sgt. James E. Jefferson AG 33486265<br />
Passengers<br />
Sgt. Harry G. Holmberg 36331430<br />
Cpl. Joseph Sulin, Jr. 35599259<br />
Cpl. Walter E. Andress 32473368<br />
Cpl. Dennis W. McLaughlin 38439767<br />
CREW #44 - Aircraft #42-7606<br />
2nd. Lt. Robert W. Carroll P 0680173<br />
1st. Lt. Wirt D. Walker CP 0661573<br />
2nd. Lt. Castleton D. Smith N 0750225<br />
2nd. Lt. John E. Hennessy B 0673163<br />
S/Sgt. Earl F. Brown E 35368548<br />
S/Sgt. Milfred K. Hathaway, Jr. R 31157119<br />
Cpl. Albert E. Childs AE 34266654<br />
Sgt. Randall C. Laing AR 36365095<br />
Cpl. Robert F. Miltner G 39827755<br />
S/Sgt. Melvin F. Schiefelbein AG 35307779<br />
Passengers<br />
M/Sgt. Julious E. Ryan, Jr. 18030400<br />
S/Sgt. Clayton R. Harvey 37276174<br />
Sgt. Walter D. Trinder 32383444<br />
Cpl. Louis J. Tora 12136206<br />
CREW #46 - Aircraft #41-29231<br />
2nd. Lt. Donald R. Coleman P 0805892<br />
2nd. Lt. Edward P. Meents, Jr. CP 0750812<br />
2nd. Lt. Albert DiLorenzo N 0687932<br />
2nd. Lt. Donald H. James B 0752571<br />
S/Sgt. Stanley Malamut E 13154151<br />
Sgt. Royal V. Donihee R 38426739<br />
Sgt. George J. Robichau AE 11116192<br />
Sgt. Willis Mills AR 37419291<br />
Sgt. Ralph Meigs G 14135765<br />
Sgt. Bordie S. Haynes AG 34490741<br />
Passengers<br />
2nd. Lt. Marvin C. Onks 0799842<br />
T/Sgt. Henry A. Anderson 37164217<br />
S/Sgt. Roy N. Stroop 3312689<br />
Sgt. Mitchell J. Biernat 36310611<br />
CREW #49 - Aircraft #42-7768<br />
2nd. Lt. Clair W. Cline P 0746302<br />
2nd. Lt. Robert O. Brockman CP 0687671<br />
1st. Lt. Adin S. Batson N 0687924<br />
2nd.Lt. Ted Strain B 0686204<br />
Sgt. Lin L. Teing E 3660326<br />
Cpl. Maurice M. Taylor R 35724736<br />
Sgt. Ira H. Loyd AE 36431449<br />
Sgt. Hubert A. Hunt AR 38321373<br />
Sgt. Robert H. Yarnell G 35668792<br />
Sgt. Albert Giliotti AG 32717371<br />
Passengers<br />
1st. Lt. Carl T. Yast 0570876<br />
T/Sgt. Herbert S. Chrzan 16027847<br />
S/Sgt. Lloyd S. Brewer 37263834<br />
Cpl. Ralph C. Erskine, Jr. 34770116
214<br />
Roster of Original Staff And Original Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
CREW #51 - Aircraft #42-52115<br />
2nd. Lt. Robert A. Martin P 0732039<br />
2nd. Lt. Joseph B.S. Johnson, Jr. CP 0751708<br />
2nd. Lt. Joseph E. Sutphin N 0741719<br />
2nd. Lt. John E. Johnston B 0752572<br />
S/Sgt. George C. Hunt E 33392182<br />
S/Sgt. Richard C. Thalhamer R 15335752<br />
Sgt. Melvin Porter AE 15325318<br />
Sgt. Charlie Flukinger, Jr. AR 18191275<br />
Sgt. Robert N. Metcalf G 35619527<br />
Sgt. Earl D. Hostetter AG 37499896<br />
Passengers<br />
2nd. Lt. Robert C. Klein 0864058<br />
M/Sgt. Wilfred Carroll 14040294<br />
S/Sgt. Robert M. Kellner 36262680<br />
Cpl. Milton A. Solomon 32573476<br />
CREW #53 - Aircraft #42-7755<br />
2nd. Lt. Walter A. Yuengert P 0742103<br />
2nd. Lt. Edward A. Fox CP 0808980<br />
2nd. Lt. Charles E. Sloan N 0689677<br />
2nd. Lt. Rudolf F. Gabrys B 0751820<br />
Sgt. Howard L. Wilson E 33215816<br />
Sgt. Irving Kolokow R 12189812<br />
Sgt. Albert H. Backhaus AE 38273742<br />
Sgt. Dallas D. Beverlin AR 36707999<br />
Sgt. Edward F. Boss G 33227643<br />
Sgt. Herman Wittenberg AG 13124383<br />
Passengers<br />
S/Sgt. Edgar E. Lyon 16033854<br />
S/Sgt. Michael E. Gruzinski 33300726<br />
S/Sgt. Will T. Lee 35722767<br />
Cpl. John F. Muller, Jr. 12218746<br />
CREW #55 - Aircraft #42-7722<br />
1st. Lt. Thomas J. Keene P 0429657<br />
2nd. Lt. James R. Bettcher CP 0751083<br />
2nd. Lt. Harold W. Smith N 0690687<br />
2nd. Lt. Edwin G. Moran B 0748015<br />
Sgt. Grover C. Bingham E 17122093<br />
Cpl. William J. Demetropoulus R 16156816<br />
Sgt. Brona D. Bottoms AE 18187423<br />
Sgt. Charlie L. Blanton AR 39394021<br />
Sgt. Frederick L. Krepser G 18226472<br />
Sgt. George S. Sansburn AG 39552768<br />
Passengers<br />
Capt. Glassel S. Stringfellow 0416361<br />
2nd. Lt. Harry J. Oppelt 0801356<br />
M/Sgt. Darwin T. Hall 7011025<br />
Cpl. John R. Shea 31110439<br />
CREW #52 - Aircraft #42-52105<br />
2nd. Lt. David E. Manning P 0745722<br />
2nd. Lt. Robert F. Palicki CP 0808887<br />
2nd. Lt. Jerome Slepin N 0689676<br />
2nd. Lt. Arne O. Bergum B 0747568<br />
Sgt. David E. Lackney E 15082537<br />
Sgt. Philip H. Klum R 12186879<br />
Sgt. Irving Mazur AE 12036294<br />
Sgt. William S. Pennypacker AR 13137693<br />
Sgt. Joseph F. Kasprzak G 13155970<br />
Sgt. John B. Nelson AG 39275415<br />
Passengers<br />
2nd. Lt. James E. Smithson 0861750<br />
M/Sgt. James D. McIntyre 31118322<br />
S/Sgt. Stephen H. Burzenski 32229340<br />
Cpl. David Frank 32881627<br />
CREW #54 - Aircraft #41-28609<br />
2nd. Lt. Abraham J. Kittredge P 0745907<br />
2nd. Lt. Charles E. Schmidt CP 0750861<br />
2nd. Lt. Harold E. Smith N 0620728<br />
2nd. Lt. Raymond Junkin B 0743791<br />
Sgt. Harry L. Harris E 39304390<br />
Sgt. Kenneth H. DeSoto R 19186251<br />
S/Sgt. Grady V. Howell, Jr. AE 34038420<br />
Sgt. Clinton D. Stackhouse II AR 18053801<br />
Pvt. Benjamin J.Ochart G 32501763<br />
Sgt. James C. Hussong AG 33552734<br />
Passengers<br />
T/Sgt. James H. Cackett 6974418<br />
Sgt. Billy C. Smith 37244995<br />
Sgt. William Thorne 32465234<br />
Cpl. Anthony Ruscetti 31180117<br />
CREW #56 - Aircraft #42-64447<br />
1st. Lt. Myers Wahnee P 0724574<br />
F/O Stuart K. Barr CP T-61270<br />
2nd. Lt. Richard M. Hager N 0687941<br />
2nd. Lt. Walter S. Maszewski B 0688674<br />
S/Sgt. Walter Farmer E 18214291<br />
Sgt. Lawrence R. Reep R 14166172<br />
Sgt. Richard H. Elliott AE 18227023<br />
Sgt. William W. Cordray AR 35420351<br />
Sgt. John C. Copolla G 11111234<br />
Sgt. Edward J. McGraw AG 16057297<br />
Passengers<br />
1st. Lt. Lester F. Miller 0793358<br />
T/Sgt. Manlio A. DePaoli 32398673<br />
S/Sgt. William L. Camp 38317479<br />
Sgt. John A. Sager 36331018
215<br />
Roster of Original Staff And Original Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
CREW #57 - Aircraft #42-52100<br />
1st. Lt. Elmer H. Hammer, Jr. P 0389298<br />
F/O Morgan Goodpasture CP T-61188<br />
2nd. Lt. Morris A. Thomson N 0689691<br />
2nd. Lt. Roger E. Cuddeback B 0671293<br />
S/Sgt. Edwin J. Wingfield E 19175590<br />
Sgt. Thaddeus M. Domzalski R 6899699<br />
Sgt. Arthur R. Krueger AE 19124094<br />
Sgt. Francis A. Farris AR 36633396<br />
Sgt. Melvin P. Rosencranz G 11081549<br />
Sgt. Fred G. Rowe AG 16162393<br />
Passengers<br />
1st. Lt. Thomas J. Maye 01695844<br />
T/Sgt. Alfio A. Fontanella 11065954<br />
Sgt. Roland B. Wheeler 11071493<br />
Pvt. Emilie E. Tayofa 37344783<br />
715th BOMBARDMENT SQUADRON<br />
Major Kenneth D. Squyres 1st. Lt. Kenneth C. Doty<br />
1st. Lt. Jack P. Edwards 1st. Lt. Andrew J. Hau<br />
1st. Lt. Joseph E. Kaiser 1st. Lt. Robert R. Thornton<br />
2nd. Lt. John A. Black 2nd. Lt. Henry B. Gabrielson<br />
2nd. Lt. Howard A Garaas 2nd. Lt. John J. Baldwin<br />
M/Sgt. William G. Cooper M/Sgt. Robert E. Futrell<br />
M/Sgt. Gerald W. Gensinger M/Sgt. Paul R. Riendeau<br />
M/Sgt. Reynaldo C. Valdez M/Sgt. Marvin V. Druen<br />
S/Sgt. Stewart R. Chandler T/Sgt. Kenneth C. Johnson<br />
S/Sgt. Torbio P. Hernandez T/Sgt. John E. McGuinness<br />
S/Sgt. Charles G. Manrose T/Sgt. Richard E. Chaney<br />
S/Sgt. George E. Murphy S/Sgt. Arthur E. Holder<br />
S/Sgt. Raymond R. Slocum S/Sgt. Max M. Myers<br />
T/Sgt. John L. Dodgen S/Sgt. Eugene M. Moisanen<br />
T/Sgt. Albert F. Kolb S/Sgt. Walter M. Rude<br />
Sgt. Harrell Blackeney S/Sgt. Herschel L. Hargrove<br />
Sgt. Keanon P. Cates Sgt. Herbert E. Jones<br />
Sgt. James F. Lynch Sgt. Thomas P. Nigri<br />
Sgt. Angelo Paradise Sgt. James C. Powers<br />
Sgt. Vernon L. Siegel Sgt. John L. Sullivan<br />
Sgt. James W. Woodul Sgt. Joe R. Voto<br />
Sgt. Murray D. Zimney Sgt. Billie B. Bell<br />
Cpl. Ralph H. Bent Sgt. Alfred E. Candelaria<br />
Cpl. William I. Davidson Cpl. Corydon T. Jennings<br />
Cpl. Dometrio T. Landi Cpl. Henry L. Pedicone<br />
Cpl. Donald E. Rink Cpl. Jerome R. Spielberg<br />
Cpl. James J. Kveton Cpl. Albert J. Barnabee<br />
PFC Daniel O. Burmeister Cpl. Ralph E. Bradford, Jr.<br />
PFC Hubert L. Pierson
216<br />
Roster of Original Staff And Original Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
CREW #61 - Aircraft #41-28578<br />
2nd. Lt. Thomas A. E. Foster P 0741894<br />
2nd. Lt. Francis G. Rogers CP 0687768<br />
2nd. Lt. Paul V. Dailey N 0736627<br />
2nd. Lt. Donald W. Hanslik B 0739094<br />
S/Sgt. James F. Brandt E 35741985<br />
S/Sgt. Arthur Angelo R 11100398<br />
Sgt. Charles F. Hipps AE 33253299<br />
Sgt. Chester W. Janeczko AR 36553040<br />
Sgt. Billie C. Pollard G 38425993<br />
Sgt. Umberto F. Ostarello AG 36604398<br />
Passengers<br />
S/Sgt. Clinton C. Harrison 18043198<br />
S/Sgt. Marvin V. Druen 35286136<br />
S/Sgt. Stewart R. Chandler 11023960<br />
Sgt. Corydon T. Jennings 6939175<br />
CREW #63 - Aircraft #42-7739<br />
2nd. Lt. John R. McCune P 0741991<br />
2nd. Lt. Loyd F. Morse CP 0808577<br />
2nd. Lt. Maurice L. Hooks N 0672950<br />
2nd. Lt. James I. Misuraca B 0685087<br />
S/Sgt. Woodrow W. Yager E 34374567<br />
S/Sgt. Norrell B. Sawyer, Jr. R 38329184<br />
S/Sgt. Bernis F. Bowers AE 38319652<br />
S/Sgt. Kirk C. Dickson AR 33125833<br />
S/Sgt. Williard D. Cobb G 11085357<br />
S/Sgt. Earl R. Kennedy AG 17100533<br />
Passengers<br />
1st. Lt. Joseph E. Kaiser 0710387<br />
T/Sgt. Charles G. Manrose 17030425<br />
Sgt. Joe. R. Voto 35576246<br />
Cpl. Dometrio T. Landi 13086359<br />
CREW #65 - Aircraft #42-7709<br />
2nd. Lt. Philip J. Chase P 0745621<br />
2nd. Lt. Bernard L. Reed CP 0750844<br />
2nd. Lt. Harry K. Farrell, Jr. N 0688013<br />
2nd. Lt. Roland B. Hallinger B 0673156<br />
S/Sgt. Arthur S. Meyerowitz E 32000985<br />
S/Sgt. Joseph De Frame R 11118062<br />
S/Sgt. Thomas M. McNamara AE 16088447<br />
S/Sgt. William D. Dunham AR 34303305<br />
S/Sgt. Anthony Walesik G 33034529<br />
S/Sgt. Howard R. Peck AG 39272980<br />
Passengers<br />
1st. Lt. Jack P. Edwards 0793143<br />
2nd. Lt. John A. Black 0806611<br />
2nd. Lt. Henry B. Gabrielson 0860698<br />
Sgt. Herbert F. Jones 16114162<br />
CREW #62 - Aircraft #41-28601<br />
2nd. Lt. Alfred H. Locke P 0680460<br />
2nd. Lt. Errol A. Self CP 0805988<br />
2nd. Lt. John N. Hortenstine N 0673077<br />
2nd. Lt. Arthur C. DelClisur B 0688513<br />
Pvt. Virgil H. Carroll E 32414596<br />
Sgt. Frank Cappella R 32672842<br />
Sgt. Pedro S. Paez AE 39255107<br />
S/Sgt. Dale R. Van Blair AR 16076061<br />
S/Sgt. Albert N. Spadafero G 11090413<br />
S/Sgt. Henry L. Beisclair AG 14084140<br />
Passengers<br />
2nd. Lt. John L. Baldwin 0860778<br />
S/Sgt. George E. Murphy 35250626<br />
Cpl. Hubert L. Pierson 12101184<br />
Cpl. Daniel O. Burmeister 17146367<br />
CREW #64 - Aircraft #42-7754<br />
1st. Lt. Alvin D. Skaggs P 0726497<br />
2nd. Lt. Benjamin F. Baer CP 0806604<br />
2nd. Lt. Donald C. Todt N 0750173<br />
2nd. Lt. Elbert F. Lozes B 0671380<br />
M/Sgt. George Glevanik E 33115177<br />
S/Sgt. Stanley C. Filipowicz R 11039297<br />
S/Sgt. Ray K. Lee AE 17014781<br />
S/Sgt. William E. Jackson, Jr. AR 15102452<br />
S/Sgt. Eugene Gaskins G 14082144<br />
S/Sgt. Francis X. Sheehan AG 16110241<br />
Passengers<br />
Major Kenneth D. Squyres 0406033<br />
1st. Lt. Arch C. Doty 0913666<br />
T/Sgt. Kenneth C. Johnson 19017049<br />
Sgt. Albert J. Barnabee 36566628<br />
CREW #66 - Aircraft #42-52116<br />
2nd. Lt. John R. Tarrant, Jr. P 0676820<br />
2nd. Lt. Roland P. Thomason CP 0687719<br />
2nd. Lt. Grant W. Collins N 0687992<br />
2nd. Lt. Paul S. Markiewicz B 0685084<br />
Sgt. Roger E. Otto E 17069645<br />
Sgt. Bernard W. Janata R 15377089<br />
Sgt. William H. McAdoo AE 33256512<br />
Sgt. Louis A. Marcantonio, Jr. AR 11091423<br />
Sgt. Carl W. Loftus G 35643496<br />
Sgt. Alfred Salotti AG 12203692<br />
Passengers<br />
M/Sgt. Robert E. Futrell 17032131<br />
M/Sgt. Reynolds C. Valdez 18102186<br />
T/Sgt. Albert F. Kolb 32141941<br />
S/Sgt. James W. Woodul 6939291
217<br />
Roster of Original Staff And Original Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
CREW #67 - Aircraft #42-7758<br />
2nd. Lt. Gail A. Sheldon P 0805992<br />
2nd. Lt. Marion L. Peek CP 0809036<br />
2nd. Lt. John P. Lahart N 0687950<br />
2nd.Lt. Irwin R. Larson B 0749973<br />
T/Sgt. Norris M. Christian E 18115189<br />
Sgt. John L. McGrath R 31237174<br />
Sgt. Paul S. McCray AE 35635979<br />
Sgt. George H. Parker AR 14074246<br />
Sgt. Arthur C. Koth G 37655875<br />
Sgt. Sam E. Batchelor AG 32783734<br />
Passengers<br />
1st. Lt. Andrew J. Hau 0660993<br />
T/Sgt. Richard E. Chaney 36533403<br />
T/Sgt. John L. Dodgen 6928354<br />
S/Sgt. Billie B. Bell 13103027<br />
CREW #69 - Aircraft #42-7713<br />
2nd. Lt. William F. Ferguson P 0681366<br />
2nd. Lt. Walter J. Bulawa CP 0808947<br />
2nd. Lt. Charles P. Weisenburgh N 0689706<br />
2nd. Lt. Harry Kasbarian B 0688359<br />
S/Sgt. Walter T. Kelly E 14040497<br />
PFC Wladyslaw R. Gerafin R 12171902<br />
Sgt. Henry W. Allen, Jr. AE 14187838<br />
Sgt. Norman F. Acido AR 19174760<br />
Sgt. Leon A. Ward, Jr. G 19203253<br />
Sgt. Bernard D. Prabucki AG 32731039<br />
Passengers<br />
1st. Lt. Robert R. Thornton 0430028<br />
M/Sgt. Paul R. Riendeau 11041902<br />
Sgt. Harrell Blakeney 34394406<br />
Cpl. Ralph H. Bent 34448756<br />
CREW #71 - Aircraft #42-7717<br />
2nd. Lt. Harvey E. Broxton P 0747201<br />
2nd. Lt. Dwight W. Covell CP 0811341<br />
2nd. Lt. Robert F. Fauerback N 0687825<br />
2nd. Lt. Clair E. Sharp B 0746837<br />
Sgt. Donald V. Birdsall E 12171708<br />
Sgt. Joe K. Corziatti R 18<strong>1944</strong>85<br />
Sgt. Robert E. Hudson AE 16162433<br />
Sgt. Keith C. Tindall AR 17127045<br />
Sgt. Irving Elba G 32711613<br />
Sgt. Henry Kubinski AG 36555495<br />
Passengers<br />
T/Sgt. John E. McGuinness 35353545<br />
S/Sgt. Toribio P. Hernandez 18117463<br />
S/Sgt. Arthur E. Holder 38049055<br />
Sgt. Murray D. Zimney 32415988<br />
CREW #68 - Aircraft #41-29234<br />
2nd. Lt. Charles W. Billings, Jr. P 0805886<br />
2nd. Lt. William H. Thomas CP 0751490<br />
2nd. Lt. Everard P. Wandell N 0687968<br />
F/O Edward E. George B T-1527<br />
S/Sgt. Robert B. Kerrick E 19124091<br />
Cpl. Jack R. Callison R 34212424<br />
Sgt. Walter R. Johnson AE 13075999<br />
Sgt. Albert R. Kohl AR 33394522<br />
Sgt. Ulmer E. Bradley, Jr. G 34333520<br />
Sgt. John H. Briana AG 31294483<br />
Passengers<br />
1st. Lt. John E. D. Grunow 0422081<br />
S/Sgt. Eugene M. Moisanen 39185209<br />
S/Sgt. Raymond R. Slocum 37211151<br />
Sgt. Keenan B. Cates 39271325<br />
CREW #70 - Aircraft #41-28580<br />
2nd. Lt. John R. Bringardner P 0737530<br />
2nd. Lt. Frank B. Jordon CP 0750608<br />
2nd. Lt. Marvin V. McCormick N 0406793<br />
2nd. Lt. Billy Gregory B 0688348<br />
Sgt. R. L. Cockrell E 1416<strong>1944</strong><br />
Sgt. George V. Crump R 11068765<br />
S/Sgt. Lawrence H. Ramming AE 18057181<br />
Sgt. Warren O. Watson AR 38140198<br />
Sgt. Charles A. Goud G 32720062<br />
Sgt. Joseph J. Marganski AG 11100792<br />
Passengers<br />
2nd. Lt. Howard A. Garaas 0861175<br />
M/Sgt. Gerald W. Gensinger 19016924<br />
Sgt. Donald E. Rink 16115013<br />
Cpl. Ralplh E. Bradford, Jr. 34649814<br />
CREW #73 - Aircraft #42-64444<br />
2nd. Lt. William O. Ross P 0745186<br />
2nd. Lt. William T. Burkett CP 0686889<br />
2nd. Lt. George W. Wenthe N 0690750<br />
2nd. Lt. Richard H. Grant B 0666073<br />
S/Sgt. Arthur F. Mied E 16000220<br />
Sgt. Harold L. Kindt R 13094588<br />
Sgt. Norman C. Benson AE 37176337<br />
Sgt. Eddie J. Guidry AR 38263722<br />
Sgt. Charles Susine, Jr. G 32720096<br />
Sgt. Jack M. Garrett AG 6931747<br />
Passengers<br />
S/Sgt. Herschel L. Hargrove 19052983<br />
S/Sgt. Angelo M. Paradise 12131025<br />
Sgt. James F. Lynch 33318548<br />
Sgt. Thomas P. Nigri 12164850
218<br />
Roster of Original Staff And Original Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
CREW #74 - Aircraft #41-29235<br />
2nd. Lt. Jack Swayze P 0745215<br />
2nd. Lt. Marshall T. McRae CP 0678891<br />
2nd. Lt. Gary Young, Jr. N 0740686<br />
2nd. Lt. Arthur B. Rayburn B 0751843<br />
Sgt. Harry H. Gottlieb E 13151960<br />
Sgt. James H. Parker R 13119675<br />
Pvt. Ernest L. Wright AE 38055990<br />
Sgt. Warren J. Johnson AR 19178635<br />
S/Sgt. Angelo A. Valenzano G 12129290<br />
S/Sgt. William A. Keeler AG 35326310<br />
Passengers<br />
T/Sgt. Walter M. Rude 20944697<br />
T/Sgt. John L. Sullivan 31142763<br />
Sgt. James C. Powers 36446898<br />
Sgt. Vernon L. Siegel 32409076<br />
CREW #77 -- Aircraft #42-7764<br />
1st. Graham Guyton P 0390541<br />
2nd. Lt. Thomas R. Allen, Jr. CP 0807659<br />
2nd. Lt. Richard M. Wheelock N 0687970<br />
2nd. Lt. Pickney W. Seiders B 0751847<br />
S/Sgt. Woodrow Callahan E 6964020<br />
Sgt. Oscar L. Brown R 14085761<br />
Sgt. Dennis C. Quinlan AE 32556595<br />
Sgt. Kenneth Ciolek AR 34685047<br />
Sgt. Ralph K. Brannon G 36150354<br />
Sgt. Josh K. Askew AG 34563344<br />
Passengers<br />
Col. James McK. Thompson 017992<br />
Captain John S. Laws 0415499<br />
Major James R. Patterson 0472768<br />
1st. Lt. Minor L. Morgan 0660224<br />
CREW #75 - Aircraft #41-28589<br />
2nd. Lt. Jack L. Black P 0442068<br />
2nd. Lt. Joseph Pemfret CP 0810214<br />
2nd. Lt. Peter A. Mermert, Jr. N 0690696<br />
2nd. Lt. Robert P. Burkartsmeier B 0688578<br />
Sgt. Charles C. Nissen E 32589610<br />
Cpl. Eugene J. Dworaczyk R 18201999<br />
Sgt. Michael J. Curran AE 37319744<br />
Sgt. Wilfred F. Haschle AR 37266508<br />
Sgt. Harold Benvenutti G 16168965<br />
Sgt. Richard L. Campbell AG 39273785<br />
Passengers<br />
M/Sgt. William G. Casper 20367101<br />
Sgt. William I. Davidson 33432354<br />
Cpl. Henry L. Pedicone 12185410<br />
Cpl. Jerome R. Spielberg 32691072
219<br />
Roster of Replacement Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
448TH BOMB GROUP<br />
REPLACEMENT CREWS<br />
This is not intended to be a complete list of all replacement crews. It is a list compiled from the 448th Bomb<br />
Group’s monthly activity summaries (January, <strong>1944</strong> through July, 1945). As you can see those summaries did not include<br />
very much data in the first quarter of <strong>1944</strong> on incoming replacement crews. That data is certainly available in some record<br />
but I wasn’t able to locate it. The June <strong>1944</strong> monthly history says the group had 106 replacement crews from inception<br />
through June, <strong>1944</strong>. I was able to locate only 70 replacement crews from the monthly histories for that same period. I am<br />
obviously short some 36 crews for that period. This partial list contains some 209 crews. There was probably 240 or so<br />
replacement crews so this list is better than none at all. The photocopies were hard to read and I apologize for names may<br />
be misspelled, titles wrong or a few serial numbers misread.<br />
The group history reports 70 original crews of which 67 arrived at their station. The microfilm record lists only<br />
62 who flew planes overseas. I must assume the other 8 unknown original crews traveled with the ground echelon on the<br />
QE II. The difference between the original 70 and the 67 that arrived is accounted for by the following three incidents: (1)<br />
Lt. Carroll C. Key who had an accident at Belem, (2) Lt. Joseph W. Shanks who crashed into the Atlas mountains and (3)<br />
Lt. John P. Rhodes who crashed off the end of the runway at Marrakech.<br />
DECEMBER, 1943<br />
20 December, 1943 to 713th squadron (This was crew #28<br />
replacing Lt. James E. Urban who along with his crew are<br />
all listed has having lost their lives in the line of duty. Date<br />
is unknown.)<br />
2nd Lt. Leonard Thornton P<br />
2nd Lt. Joe Shogan CP<br />
(The first co-pilot’s name is unknown<br />
Joe Shogan was assigned about the<br />
Crew’s 15th Mission.)<br />
2nd Lt. Bill Regan N<br />
2nd Lt. Bernard Smith B<br />
Ed Miller ?<br />
Sol Schatz ?<br />
Carmine Valentino ?<br />
Jack Hess ?<br />
Bill Nicholson ?<br />
Kenny Rohrback ?<br />
JANUARY <strong>1944</strong><br />
1 January, <strong>1944</strong> to 714th squadron<br />
2nd Lt. Frank Gibson P<br />
2nd Lt. Garth Connole CP<br />
2nd Lt. Paul Schauwacker N<br />
2nd Lt. Roy Allen B<br />
S/Sgt. Larry Putgenter E<br />
T/Sgt. Bob Smith R<br />
Sgt. Chuck Barlow RW<br />
(wounded & replaced by<br />
Sgt. Julius Rebeles)<br />
Sgt. Frank Benjamin TG<br />
Sgt. Richard Collins BG<br />
Sgt. Daley LW<br />
(This was crew #42, evidently replacing Joseph W.<br />
Shank Jr.)<br />
7 January, <strong>1944</strong> to 715th squadron<br />
2nd Lt. Ridd J. Solomon P 067344<br />
2nd Lt. Pierre L. Deleambre CP 0806310<br />
2nd Lt. Jay Pace B 0673931<br />
2nd Lt. Frank Hamouz N 0676479<br />
S/Sgt. John Allen 13026655<br />
Sgt. Robert H. Norman 39406577<br />
Sgt. John J. Shreve 36530979<br />
Sgt. Lloyd Jackson 37223205<br />
Sgt. Robert F. Hendriks 16047117<br />
7 January, <strong>1944</strong> to 715th squadron<br />
2nd Lt. Leonard I. Kronheim 0533872<br />
2nd Lt. Harold J. Kreichbaum 0683028<br />
2nd Lt. Donald R. Silverstrom 0736735<br />
2nd Lt. Jack R. Nehrich 0679204<br />
S/Sgt. John J. Kreyer Jr. 12180074<br />
S/Sgt. Louis G. Klein 37263325<br />
Sgt. Stanley W. Mazeika 31173936<br />
Sgt. Albert R. Cavalier 13044384<br />
Sgt. Robert D. Crudele 15374093<br />
Sgt.Charles E. Brown 16076433<br />
January 11 - 2 crews assigned to the 715th squadron but<br />
not identified.<br />
January 26 - 2 crews assigned to the 713th squadron but<br />
not identifed.<br />
January 26 -1 crew assigned to the 715th squadron but<br />
not identifed.<br />
January 29 - 2 crews assigned to the 712th squadron but<br />
not identifed.
220<br />
January 30 - 1 crew assigned to the 713th squadron but not<br />
identifed.<br />
29 January, <strong>1944</strong> to 712th Squadron<br />
2nd Lt. Vincent E. Liedka P 0-795781<br />
2nd Lt. Zachariah F. Jackson CP 0-681101<br />
2nd Lt. Ronald L. McAllister N 0-683842<br />
2nd Lt. Charles A. Oliver B 0-68601<br />
S/Sgt Duncan K. Thomson 37439809<br />
T/Sgt William L. McCauley 33274219<br />
S/Sgt Walton E. Gaskins 34463828<br />
Sgt James A. Carelock 13118837<br />
Sgt Paul L. Russell 32269037<br />
Sgt Lee W. Bryant 34388723<br />
29 January, <strong>1944</strong> to 712th Squadron<br />
2nd Lt. Robert F. MacKenzie P 0-743045<br />
2nd Lt. Ernest J. Dellia CP 0-671301<br />
2nd Lt. James J Kenney B 0-743030<br />
F/O Leonard J. Levine N T122082<br />
S/Sgt Henry (NMI) Kunstler 32612248<br />
S/Sgt Albert C. Johnson Jr 33344383<br />
Sgt Lyle W. Johnson 37236946<br />
Sgt Clarence C. Thompson 16079278<br />
Sgt Leo F. Amell 12079325<br />
Sgt Felix J. Siojk 32571404<br />
29 January, <strong>1944</strong> to 713th Squadron<br />
2nd Lt. Max E. Turpin P 0-675891<br />
2nd Lt. Eldon H. Gueck CP 0-805910<br />
2nd Lt. Jack (NMI) Boykoff N 0-750177<br />
2nd Lt. Robert W. Adams B 0-684122<br />
S/Sgt William F. Hallman 14142190<br />
S/Sgt Clyde A. Burnette 14141825<br />
S/Sgt Thomas R. Culpepper 14180050<br />
Sgt George A. Daneau 11021582<br />
Sgt William R. Phillips 15089281<br />
29 January, <strong>1944</strong> to 715th Squadron<br />
2nd Lt. Stanley C. Cooper P 0-533917<br />
2nd Lt. Wesley V. Helvey CP 0-805916<br />
2nd Lt. Michael J. Shonesky N 0-673821<br />
2nd Lt. Charles E. Faller B 0-684145<br />
S/Sgt Thomas W. Patterson 38338554<br />
S/Sgt John A. Yatsko 35351914<br />
Sgt Frank J. Demaine 12189633<br />
Sgt Albert (NMI) Digioia 32365095<br />
Sgt Julius H. Dothage 37402124<br />
Sgt Joseph F. Nickerson 35572323<br />
FEBRUARY <strong>1944</strong><br />
11 February, <strong>1944</strong> to 713th squadron (did not indicate<br />
position or serial number. This was crew #46, the number<br />
later assigned to Rowe replacement crew. Original pilot<br />
Roster of Replacement Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
was Lt. Donald Coleman, contracted malaria and his crew<br />
members were reassigned as follows:<br />
Lt. Ronald C. Warnock<br />
Lt. Laurence R. Wenzel<br />
Lt. Sam Buller<br />
Lt. Frank L. French<br />
S/Sgt. Delbert B. Coulter<br />
S/Sgt. John J. Feyti<br />
S/Sgt. Eugene M. Harmon<br />
S/Sgt. Glen C. Haun<br />
S/Sgt. George F. Kerr<br />
S/Sgt. William F. Morgan<br />
(This crew was downed on February 24, <strong>1944</strong>, except<br />
that Lt. Wenzel was not aboard. He had been replaced<br />
by F/O Morgan Goodpasture.)<br />
The following four pilots are shown as having flown<br />
missions in February, are not listed as original crews, but<br />
were never listed as being accepted as replacement crews. I<br />
do not have names of crewmembers except for Lt.<br />
Markiewcz.<br />
His plane crashed on the English coast February 20 so all<br />
members were listed.<br />
1. Lt. Markiewcz<br />
Lt. Nardi - injured<br />
Sgt. Whyte - injured<br />
Lt. Edward A. Markiewcz - killed<br />
Lt. Harry J. Oppelt - killed<br />
Lt. Donald Keegst - killed<br />
Sgt. Daniel B. Doughtery - killed<br />
Sgt. Emmett E. Fallert - killed<br />
Sgt. Robert F. Holland - killed<br />
S/Sgt. Henry J. Opper - killed<br />
2. Lt. S. Johnson<br />
3. Lt. Russell O. Reindal<br />
4. Lt. Williams<br />
REPLACEMENT CREWS – April, <strong>1944</strong><br />
10 April, <strong>1944</strong> To 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. William R. Hayes P 0807436<br />
2 nd Lt. F. Schrammel CP 0817282<br />
2 nd Lt. Stephen P. Tiffany B 0698240<br />
2 nd Lt. Calvin J. Ellis N 0689455<br />
S/Sgt Richard Anderson 31144511<br />
S/Sgt Leon L. Watson 35347140<br />
Sgt Atlee (nmi) Arola 32729518<br />
Sgt James H. Johnson 18135249<br />
Sgt Gabriel A Latsko 33298420<br />
Sgt Paul W. Sorensen 39568993<br />
10 April, <strong>1944</strong> To 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Thomas M. Plese P 0807044
221<br />
2 nd Lt. Lawrence E.<br />
Anderson CP 0806031<br />
2 nd Lt. Richard P. Tustin B 0814449<br />
F/O Lt. Alfred B.<br />
Tallman Jr N T-1575<br />
S/Sgt Roy E. Herndon 17122516<br />
S/Sgt Joseph E. Holmes 11117911<br />
Sgt Roland M. Oheyne 36400251<br />
Sgt John S. Davis 13100224<br />
Sgt John B. Murphy Jr 11036674<br />
Sgt Dale B. Stensrud 17155439<br />
10 April, <strong>1944</strong> To 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt Raymond Peterson P 0808471<br />
2 nd Lt Joseph H. Wells CP 0695115<br />
2 nd Lt Barry S. Brook B 0694323<br />
F/O Kenneth A. Moulten N T-122066<br />
S/Sgt John R. Myer 15196732<br />
Sgt Obert T. Bjorseth 37175175<br />
Sgt John (nmi) Gedz 16041662<br />
S/Sgt Denver L. Putman 37324697<br />
Sgt Frank E. Carlson 20759430<br />
Sgt Louis A. Mauduit 18171029<br />
10 April, <strong>1944</strong> To 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt William W. Blanck P 0808340<br />
2 nd Lt Dee L. Johnson CP 0684740<br />
2 nd Lt William Carlson B 0814246<br />
2 nd Lt Joseph (nmi)<br />
Risovich N 0754852<br />
S/Sgt James A. Chambers 1416246<br />
S/Sgt Joseph E. Harney Jr 11111620<br />
Sgt John B. Barker 18215974<br />
Sgt John L. Burns 37380177<br />
Sgt Stanley Pasternak 32326895<br />
Sgt James R. Tune 38428344<br />
10 April, <strong>1944</strong> To 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt John W. Cathey P 0806373<br />
2 nd Lt Arthur J. Brisson CP 0751983<br />
2 nd Lt Joseph J. Knederis B 0814346<br />
F/O Carl M. Carlson N T-1686<br />
T/Sgt Culmer H. Darby 20304517<br />
S/Sgt Clifton W. Linnell 11118117<br />
S/Sgt Russell E. Howle 15097532<br />
Sgt Jack (nmi) Arluck 33426161<br />
Sgt Anthony J. Novelli 12158891<br />
Sgt Arnold J. Wetzel 32466922<br />
10 April, <strong>1944</strong> To 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt Roy A. Fischer P 0747385<br />
2 nd Lt Victor F. Hoff CP 0751329<br />
2 nd Lt Robert F. Poole B 0695694<br />
2 nd Lt John H. Williams N 0741431<br />
S/Sgt Trevor V. Chatfield 14067521<br />
S/Sgt Leroy S. Dausman 36414751<br />
Roster of Replacement Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
S/Sgt Pietro A. Romano 11130608<br />
Sgt Ray L. Goudy 16160271<br />
Sgt Maurice (nmi) Oliver 18117473<br />
Sgt John C. Olney 38370120<br />
REPLACEMENT CREWS – May, <strong>1944</strong><br />
6 May, <strong>1944</strong> To 713 th Squadron<br />
1 st Lt. Charles F. Mills P 0789734<br />
1 st Lt. John L. Guthrie CP 0561170<br />
2 nd Lt. Orlin L. Munns B 0702171<br />
2 nd Lt. John B. Shields BN 0694507<br />
S/Sgt Robert G. Cutrone 32737209<br />
S/Sgt Dale A. Van Vorce 15070615<br />
Sgt Thomas M. Alston 19100844<br />
Sgt Elmer L. Morgan 37500623<br />
Sgt John C. Wemmert 36814033<br />
Sgt Emil P. Zahmow 37165866<br />
6 May, <strong>1944</strong> To 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Thomas K. Foster P 0744267<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert G. Silver Jr CP 0751045<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert C. Phillips ?? 0697507<br />
2 nd Lt. Donald R. Allen B 0703697<br />
2 nd Lt. Nunci J. Piucci N 0695524<br />
S/Sgt Warren W. Duncan 15103389<br />
S/Sgt Benjamin C. Kirschner 39405684<br />
Sgt John R. Foss 34707354<br />
Sgt Edward H. Owen 16116533<br />
Sgt Leonard M. Siegel 13142404<br />
Sgt Robert B. Spruill 14080837<br />
6 May, <strong>1944</strong> To 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Ulrich W. Tschanz P 0805538<br />
2 nd Lt. James R. Pruitt CP 0816575<br />
2 nd Lt. Lionel Greenberg B 0703242<br />
2 nd Lt. Charles W.<br />
Penhorwood N 0744212<br />
S/Sgt Arthur O. Archambault 31173522<br />
S/Sgt Robert H. Kuck 16144168<br />
Sgt Hulick H. Barney 39857402<br />
Sgt Arlin W. Turner 18140043<br />
Sgt Frederick A. Schoonmaker 32734039<br />
Sgt Jap R. Wilson Jr 18076005<br />
6 May, <strong>1944</strong> To 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Jack L. Mercer P 0810916<br />
2 nd Lt. John D. Masters CP 0758712<br />
2 nd Lt. John E. Neel B 0702172<br />
2 nd Lt. Warren G. PhillippiN 0695523<br />
S/Sgt Allah M. Johnson 39408979<br />
S/Sgt William G. Rekart 35546615<br />
Sgt Thomas Mistretta 30207255<br />
Sgt Thomas C. Murphy 37559557<br />
Sgt Charles E. Nelson 32606827<br />
Sgt Francis A. Oltman 32000266
222<br />
10 May, <strong>1944</strong> To 712 Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Raymond A.<br />
Wermeyer P 0749370<br />
2 nd Lt. Jerold I. Grosscup CP 0685117<br />
2 nd Lt. Mathew L. Crovitz B 0686231<br />
2 nd Lt. Ralph A. Hagerty N 0692489<br />
Sgt Alvin W. Shaw 38002227<br />
S/Sgt Herman L. Caruso 32491419<br />
Sgt Sigmund Borowicz 16149171<br />
S/Sgt Floyd R. Myers 13110172<br />
Sgt George L. Shadi 32712151<br />
Sgt Edward F. Jones 31219006<br />
13 May, <strong>1944</strong> To 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. John R.B.Swartzel P 0755785<br />
2 nd Lt. Paul F. Dwyer CP 0700712<br />
2 nd Lt. Francis E. Azevedo B 0761022<br />
2 nd Lt. William L.<br />
Conglaton N 0702017<br />
S/Sgt Kenneth E. Buck 19095637<br />
Sgt John J. Cornwall 33099397<br />
Sgt William A. Hamner 37554286<br />
Sgt Joseph E. Bernier 31260146<br />
Sgt Harold C. Coorsey 37551120<br />
Sgt Harvey C. May 18089684<br />
13 May, <strong>1944</strong> To 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Michael Kuchwara P 0751155<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert P. Nimmq CP 0761826<br />
2 nd Lt. Morel H. Papa B 0698906<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert H. Cooper N 0705951<br />
S/Sgt Calvin C. Crumbley 34686327<br />
S/Sgt Richard J. Subay 35535596<br />
Sgt Lawrence J. Kennedy 31242459<br />
Sgt Jones J. Hyman Jr 14109533<br />
Sgt Harold J. Romar 32861806<br />
13 May, <strong>1944</strong> To 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. John A. White P 0128586<br />
2 nd Lt. Richard T. Looms CP 0700634<br />
2 nd Lt. D.R. Crandall B 0761046<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert C. Knapp N 0678368<br />
S/Sgt Victor L. Cieslewicz 32829960<br />
S/Sgt Frank A. Paladino 32816209<br />
Sgt Clyde H. Bush 14190404<br />
Sgt Eugene J. Eck Jr 33504264<br />
Sgt Walter L. Shipley 33576194<br />
Sgt Stanley J. Wasielewski 35052631<br />
13 May, <strong>1944</strong> To 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Henry S. Hasiak P 0702043<br />
2 nd Lt.William A. Warke CP 0693082<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert T. White B 0684924<br />
2 nd Lt. Edgar C. Scanlon Jr<br />
N 0701312<br />
S/Sgt Jerry M. Parsons 16035535<br />
Roster of Replacement Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
S/Sgt Robert J. Cashin 37553432<br />
Sgt Millard L. Brown 15171462<br />
Sgt Robert B. Thompson 17066011<br />
Sgt Norman H. Johnson 36740128<br />
Sgt Gordon W. Wright 12072510<br />
13 May, <strong>1944</strong> To 712 th Squadron<br />
1 st Lt. Wade H. Williford P 0796932<br />
2 nd Lt. Frederick A.Burns CP 0690361<br />
2 nd Lt. Henry N.<br />
Vanderster B 0816007<br />
2 nd Lt.Robert M.Wagoner N 0747685<br />
S/Sgt Charles D. Dennis 33296402<br />
S/Sgt William E. Larecy 18191917<br />
S/Sgt Jack (nmi) Matau 35373000<br />
S/Sgt Elmer E. Hinnenkamp 37243033<br />
S/Sgt Eugene A. Lloyd 13170475<br />
S/Sgt Ray H. Wingate 15354833<br />
14 May, <strong>1944</strong> To 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Alexander J.<br />
Shogan P 0812674<br />
2 nd Lt. Joseph R. Dowalo CP 0761906<br />
2 nd Lt. George E.<br />
Farschman B 0700720<br />
2 nd Lt. Edgar N. Clyde N 0701566<br />
S/Sgt Edward J. Brunetti 37401441<br />
S/Sgt Vincent Majewski 12098906<br />
Sgt Robert A. Berman 16089526<br />
Sgt Leslie H. Douglas 38371608<br />
Sgt Riley L. Golden 34764141<br />
Sgt Merril N. Smith 39909895<br />
14 May, <strong>1944</strong> To 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Ralph T. Welsh P 0755811<br />
2 nd Lt. Alonzo A. Bacon CP 0760225<br />
2 nd Lt. Frank J. Erbacher B 0700713<br />
2 nd Lt. Phillip M. Goplen N 0699069<br />
S/Sgt Isadore A. Buechner 36810940<br />
S/Sgt Alfred R. Carrington 13116923<br />
Sgt Charles T. Berrier Jr 18014682<br />
Sgt Kenneth R. Snyder 33564734<br />
Sgt Robert K. Snyder 33564733<br />
Sgt Vincent K. Torfin 37549075<br />
23 May, <strong>1944</strong> To 712 th Squadron<br />
1 st Lt. Wayne L.Carmead P 0725143<br />
2 nd Lt. James A. Burt CP 0701891<br />
2 nd Lt. Glenn R. Mack B 0712625<br />
2 nd lt. Joseph L. Borsh N 0697765<br />
S/Sgt Frank (nmi) Patico 12163953<br />
S/Sgt Ellis W. Register 39279329<br />
Sgt Roland F. Alling 32041217<br />
Sgt John M. Garrity 13078399<br />
Sgt Spencer B. Tisenby 33450852<br />
Sgt Jack (nmi) Yeaman 35094550<br />
23 May, <strong>1944</strong> To 714 th Squadron
223<br />
1 st Lt. Donald A. Briox P 0730071<br />
2 nd Lt.Thornton M.BrownCP 0701898<br />
2 nd Lt. Walter K. Kurk B 0712602<br />
2 nd Lt. James P. Bonnell N 0697763<br />
S/Sgt Mathew M. Gill 11101269<br />
S/Sgt Raymond L. Swinehart 36725295<br />
Sgt Howard O. Giles 32916714<br />
Sgt Carl M. Johnson 37662603<br />
Sgt Russell F. Kelly 37601472<br />
Sgt William E. Wallace 36417002<br />
24 May, <strong>1944</strong> To 714 th Squadron<br />
1 st Lt. William H.Gibson P 0437393<br />
F/O John K. Elam CP T-123927<br />
1 st Lt. Lawrence W.<br />
Nichols Jr B 0668746<br />
2 nd Lt. Arthur M. ColemanN 0700864<br />
S/Sgt John P. Gallagher 32748370<br />
Sgt Earl W. Lathrop 37513289<br />
Sgt Clarence H. Landon 17127399<br />
Sgt Leonard C. Lundgren 39569989<br />
Sgt Gordon C. Wendling 37554062<br />
Sgt Marion J. Barbre 13033490<br />
26 May, <strong>1944</strong> To 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Louis U. Weitzel P 0886046<br />
2 nd Lt. Norman R.<br />
Doughty CP 0163732<br />
2 nd Lt.Vincent A.Scarpino B 0712677<br />
2 nd Lt. Allen D. Cassady N 0697990<br />
S/Sgt Donald M. Langland 39280955<br />
S/Sgt Leo F. Czekuc 16086691<br />
Sgt Fornie G. Burley Jr 38467657<br />
Sgt Jack W. Clair 39404665<br />
Sgt Jay L. Hendrickson 37552207<br />
Sgt Charles Mathison 34802625<br />
25 May, <strong>1944</strong> To 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Edward K.<br />
Schultz Jr P 0693070<br />
2 nd Lt. Aaron E. Caplan CP 0703006<br />
2 nd Lt. Vaiden U. Dozier B 0690385<br />
2 nd Lt.Michael J.Kentosh N 0701428<br />
S/Sgt Francis S. Dorman 39121768<br />
S/Sgt Ralph F. Hannah 34601186<br />
Sgt Frank J. Bernard 15087102<br />
Sgt Alfred C. Dupuis 31269193<br />
Sgt Hervey N. Whitfield 38370714<br />
Sgt Rudolph J. Ujcic 33427246<br />
25 May, <strong>1944</strong> To 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Peter D. MacVean P 0886043<br />
2 nd Lt. John E. Hurley CP 0706182<br />
2 nd Lt. John Savich B 0712676<br />
2 nd Lt. Lawrence E.<br />
Carney Jr N 0697988<br />
S/Sgt Charles E. Messerli 37470822<br />
Roster of Replacement Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
S/Sgt Harry G. Pace Jr 16059707<br />
Sgt Marshall L. Adamson 37553875<br />
Sgt John J. Ruelle 36451286<br />
Sgt Robert W. Slack 39912946<br />
Sgt Leo Williams 38450998<br />
26 May, <strong>1944</strong> To 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Andrew N. Panicci P 0809034<br />
2 nd Lt.Miles B.Drawhorn CP 0701989<br />
2 nd Lt.John H.Schlicher Jr B 0712679<br />
2 nd Lt. Duane G.<br />
Christensen N 0697767<br />
S/Sgt Howard A. Lindstrom Jr 11096394<br />
S/Sgt James S. Bourne Jr 20449914<br />
Sgt Walter E. Anderson 37553220<br />
Sgt Lawrence R. Chandler 36420424<br />
Sgt Walter L. Maddox 19143330<br />
Sgt Leland C. Wright 35606442<br />
27 May, <strong>1944</strong> To 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Clive J. Howell P 0812266<br />
2 nd Lt. Victar D. Dothcek CP 0697993<br />
2 nd Lt. Arthur B. Majestic B 0701940<br />
F/O Lt.Robert J.Branizza N T-125180<br />
S/Sgt Herschel O. Hamblin 13062783<br />
S/Sgt Bertil S. Johnson 35099377<br />
Sgt George J. Grubisa 32916135<br />
Sgt James L. Vajgl 35527301<br />
Sgt Alexander Istvanovich 37551499<br />
Sgt Sammie D. Vinson 14177911<br />
27 May, <strong>1944</strong> To 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Kenneth D. Miller P 0816344<br />
2 nd Lt. Donald E. Ericson CP 0820732<br />
2 nd Lt. Gilbert S.Newman B 0707312<br />
2 nd lt. Charles A.Albrecht N 0706767<br />
S/Sgt Carl C. Gillespie Jr 35618326<br />
S/Sgt Jesus A. Balderrama 18097389<br />
Sgt Robert J. Allaire 31321177<br />
Sgt Charles J. Balkash 12030926<br />
Sgt Donald C. Butzer 33168929<br />
Sgt Chester H. Anderson 19124405<br />
28 May, <strong>1944</strong> To 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Glenn F. Jones P 0745107<br />
2 nd Lt. Lloyd W. Kilmer CP 0699677<br />
2 nd Lt. James R. Cooper B 0712780<br />
2 nd Lt. Donald S. Powell N 07015080<br />
S/Sgt Wilton L. Tawwater 38369444<br />
S/Sgt Lester C. Smith Jr 34705391<br />
Sgt James B. Baker 38453284<br />
Sgt Harry P. Barker 17076386<br />
Sgt Olaf Bratland 37549500<br />
Sgt Oscar E. Clayton 33628616<br />
28 May, <strong>1944</strong> To 713 th Squadron<br />
Capt Alfred C. Fox P 01699253<br />
1 st Lt. Louis Cepelak CP 01172408
224<br />
2 nd Lt. Leo L. Lovel B 0708267<br />
2 nd Lt. Dudley T. Hall N 0684964<br />
S/Sgt Martin A. Wiencek 36635105<br />
S/Sgt Harold Goltz 36725357<br />
Sgt Sherman Hammon 39462177<br />
Sgt William G. McCabe 38467568<br />
Sgt Neal H. Pauley 19133990<br />
Sgt Verne S. Franklin 37515321<br />
28 May, <strong>1944</strong> To 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Gaylord E. Felton P 0691250<br />
2 nd Lt. Vito R. Scorrano CP 0702339<br />
2 nd Lt. Raymond W.<br />
Bearden B 0708390<br />
2 nd Lt. John T. Polashek N 0699053<br />
S/Sgt William P. Brown 15057778<br />
S/Sgt Joseph F. Hollwood Jr 11103701<br />
Sgt Maynard D. Davis Jr 20441422<br />
Sgt Raymond W. Duran 32863803<br />
Sgt William D. George 14142421<br />
Sgt Gerald D. Yoquelet 35550361<br />
28 May, <strong>1944</strong> To 715 h Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Leroy A. Dunston P 0693793<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert D.<br />
Kitchingman CP 0699376<br />
2 nd Lt. Charles F. Gavalek N 0708441<br />
F/O Walter Woodward B T-123256<br />
S/Sgt Earl W. Bernard 16014444<br />
S/Sgt Emil A. Glos Jr 39279338<br />
Sgt Joseph I. Berg 36809886<br />
Sgt Tony Burciaga 38415479<br />
Sgt Blaine O. Bonewell 38563284<br />
Sgt Julian Proctor 34651641<br />
REPLACEMENT CREWS – June, <strong>1944</strong><br />
June 2, <strong>1944</strong> To The 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Leland L.Beckman P 0693915<br />
2 nd Lt. Charles A. Yant CP 0819243<br />
2 nd Lt.William F.Gavenda B 0706926<br />
2 nd Lt. Morris F. Epps N 0698536<br />
S/Sgt Avery L. Knight 20951889<br />
S/Sgt Robert R. Reed 31257194<br />
Sgt Dowey Conn 15119160<br />
Sgt George C. Copeland 18108467<br />
Sgt Michael J. Eannone 32891699<br />
Sgt Dan A. Wais 35788495<br />
June 2, <strong>1944</strong> To The 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. George w. Wilson P 0692843<br />
2 nd Lt. William Beck CP 0817378<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert J. Gann B 0707040<br />
2 nd Lt. Stash J. Fridye N 0698543<br />
S/Sgt Emil J. Lukas 16077719<br />
S/Sgt Edward J. McNulty 12121713<br />
Roster of Replacement Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
Sgt Richard J. Liedahl 37558286<br />
Sgt Albert J. McKinnon Jr 38465380<br />
Sgt Robert A. Rudolph 12148861<br />
Sgt Joseph B. Starek 33423281<br />
June 4, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Steward W. Felker P 0813491<br />
2 nd Lt. Walter J. Johnson CP 0702441<br />
2 nd Lt. James F. Beaver B 0760987<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert G. Edwards N 0699063<br />
S/Sgt Wilbur L. Riffle 33416298<br />
S/Sgt James J. Donovan 33054081<br />
Sgt William M. Henderson 39573130<br />
Sgt Robert D. Pollock 37507377<br />
Sgt Fred W. Waxler 16170709<br />
Cpl Andrew W. Provencher 31321195<br />
June 4, <strong>1944</strong> To The 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Leroy Conner P 0690934<br />
2 nd Lt. Rex H. George CP 0708445<br />
2 nd Lt. Thaddeus L.<br />
Grochowski B 0702270<br />
2 nd Lt. Alton L. Kraft N 0702055<br />
S/Sgt Albert R.Sabo 15112917<br />
S/Sgt John A. Shawkey 33410285<br />
Sgt John H. Bretthauer 32864850<br />
Sgt Henry H. Mazer 11019077<br />
Sgt David P. Patterson 19178400<br />
Sgt Donald L. Wright 35094415<br />
June 5, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron - This must be a<br />
crew reassignment. Note that they were assigned on May<br />
13, <strong>1944</strong> to the 715th squadron.<br />
2 nd Lt. William A. Warke P 0693082<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert T. White CP 0684924<br />
2 nd Lt.Edgar C.Scanlon Jr B 0701312<br />
2 nd Lt. Henry S. Hasiak N 0702043<br />
T/Sgt Robert J. Cashin 37553432<br />
T/Sgt Jerry M. Parsons 16035535<br />
S/Sgt Robert W. Thompson 17066011<br />
S/Sgt Norman H. Johnson 36740128<br />
S/Sgt Gordon W. Wright 12072510<br />
S/Sgt Millard L. Brown 15171462<br />
June 5, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. George W. Booth P 0815061<br />
2 nd Lt. Richard W. Davies CP 0717575<br />
2 nd Lt. Somon G. Pilson B 0821353<br />
2 nd Lt. Bryandt S.Wilson N 0698625<br />
S/Sgt George M. Hansen 36440522<br />
S/Sgt Robert D. Long 39281985<br />
Sgt Norman H. Cohen 11054347<br />
Sgt Stephen V. Lawnicki 36649419<br />
Sgt William N. Crisler Jr 18177131<br />
Sgt Floyd D. Leverett 38449723<br />
June 5, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Mauro Dellaselva P 0816706<br />
2 nd lt. Jerome Israel CP 0712572
225<br />
2 nd Lt. Cyrus J.Alexander B 0704866<br />
2 nd Lt. Milton V. Bates N 0703423<br />
S/Sgt Leo H. Mays 33532342<br />
S/Sgt Leo J. Lorenz Jr 16083793<br />
Sgt Raymond R. Baldridge 38415285<br />
Sgt James M. Childers 36343748<br />
Sgt Gerald M. Brooks 36458478<br />
Sgt Raymond L. Wolhaupter 37563766<br />
June 6, <strong>1944</strong> To The 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Wilmer E. Goad P 0684313<br />
2 nd Lt. Donald L. Farrar CP 0692542<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert C. Hagan B 0694668<br />
2 nd Lt. Matt C. Reynolds N 0690822<br />
S/Sgt Jack W. Dougan 33411369<br />
S/Sgt James C. Flowe 34606522<br />
S/Sgt William D. Crist 17166279<br />
S/Sgt Anthony A. Raschi 11105581<br />
S/Sgt Samuel Sherkin 32619909<br />
Sgt Glenn K. Copeland 17128185<br />
June 7, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Aldrich A. Deahos P 0695733<br />
2 nd Lt. Harry Schwartz CP 0820841<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert E. Lee B 0712609<br />
F/O James R. Horst N T-124037<br />
S/Sgt John H. Copeland 35544943<br />
S/Sgt Lorene r. Alexander 34771241<br />
Sgt Wilbur M. Hedblade 39573636<br />
Sgt James L.Houston Jr 14135586<br />
Sgt Arthur H. Peterson 32393682<br />
June 7, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Billie C. Blanton P 0663471<br />
2 nd Lt. Glenn L.. Brown CP 0701892<br />
2 nd Lt. George E. Klein B 0712592<br />
2 nd Lt. Fred Berkard N 0697984<br />
S/Sgt Adrian J. Denbroeder 31242442<br />
S/Sgt Robert P. Lawson 39477278<br />
Sgt Armor L. McKain III 33506938<br />
Sgt Paul E. Sherlock 35790464<br />
Sgt Salvatore J. Sparacio 32639951<br />
Sgt Bernard Stelzer 12127655<br />
June 7, <strong>1944</strong> To The 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Charles E. Fouche P 0695786<br />
2 nd Lt. Grenville K. Baker CP 0819192<br />
2 nd Lt. Samuel E. Martin B 0712072<br />
2 nd lt. Alan N. Houghton N 0704204<br />
S/Sgt Eugene E. Mortimer 15121484<br />
S/Sgt Harry A. Striker Jr ?????????<br />
Sgt Charles B. Lackner 16132383<br />
Sgt Walter Dukas 36741204<br />
Sgt Albert Marquez 16187438<br />
Sgt William O. Watts 6396841<br />
June 7, <strong>1944</strong> To The 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Marshall L. ?????? P 0693924<br />
2 nd Lt. ?????? W. ?????? CP 0703403<br />
Roster of Replacement Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
2 nd Lt. ?????? E. ?????????B ????????<br />
F/O ?????? L. Symonds N T-123654<br />
S/Sgt ????? M. Stephen 15020112<br />
Sgt ?????? ? Barker 37237540<br />
Sgt ?????? ? Luna 36366920<br />
Sgt????????????????? 19186110<br />
Sgt Robert B. Morgan 18139966<br />
June 10, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. William C.Dogger P 0697624<br />
2 nd Lt. Harvey L. Luke Jr CP 0712862<br />
2 nd Lt. Joseph Remitz B 0705429<br />
2 nd Lt. Raymond E.<br />
Sumrell N 0703535<br />
S/Sgt Wallace Kaplan 32417924<br />
S/Sgt Richard B. Smith 35542432<br />
Sgt Arthur H. Keeling 36422811<br />
Sgt Clarence W. Kronbetter 36459122<br />
Sgt Ben Maness Jr 34800896<br />
Sgt John G. Shia 11065201<br />
June 10, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Carl A. Eggert P 0692864<br />
2 nd Lt. Augustine J.<br />
Adomants CP 0820690<br />
2 nd Lt. John W. Cone B 0713134<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert E. Hosse N 0704203<br />
S/Sgt Harry N. Harcis 16146257<br />
S/Sgt Edward P. Schichel 32131077<br />
Sgt Robert Lloyd 33430722<br />
Sgt Donald F. Mach 36459074<br />
Sgt Harley D. Plante 31299299<br />
Sgt John S. Sexton 34138838<br />
June 10, <strong>1944</strong> To The 713 th Squadron<br />
1 st Lt. Alwyn F. ??????? P 0693942<br />
2 nd Lt. Frederick L.Butler CP 0699506<br />
2 nd Lt. John H. McBroom B 0817843<br />
2 nd Lt. Roy D. Thompson N 0712703<br />
S/Sgt Harold Shapiro 39277650<br />
Sgt James E. Wells 14170895<br />
Sgt George H. Bonner 31315653<br />
Sgt Gordon L. Lowe 34721324<br />
Sgt Walter Modjecka 35552764<br />
Sgt Prentiss H. Price 34613906<br />
June 17, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Edward J. Malone P 0663538<br />
2 nd Lt. Theodore A.<br />
Sengerman CP 0823724<br />
2 nd Lt. Wilfred L.Kimball B 0708206<br />
2 nd Lt. William F.Kerner N 0709923<br />
S/Sgt Carl V. Hoppe 36562772<br />
S/Sgt William P. Lantz 3503614<br />
Sgt Webb M. Floyd 20407423<br />
Sgt Frank D. Hobbs 31374364<br />
Sgt Walter F. Krueger 39619583<br />
Pvt Richard W. Beteau 31265832
226<br />
June 17, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Michael M.<br />
Senkewitz P ????????<br />
2 nd Lt. Milton Halpern CP ????????<br />
F/O Michel M. Herbst B T-124758<br />
2 nd Lt. Leon Shapiro N 0708277<br />
S/Sgt James P. Bennett 328???81<br />
S/Sgt ????? D. Connell 17083219<br />
Sgt Martin M. Bingham 32929444<br />
Sgt Kenneth F. Bradfield 37528316<br />
Sgt Ray B. Crepes 16169420<br />
Sgt Darwin Miller 36867001<br />
June 17, <strong>1944</strong> To The 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Cecil R. Frensko P 0696355<br />
2 nd Lt. Odus E. Jones CP 0819405<br />
2 nd Lt. Richard B. Kimball B 0712132<br />
2 nd Lt. Thomas C.<br />
Breckson N 0708?46<br />
S/Sgt Stanley S. Tabel 3131?899<br />
S/Sgt Floyd K. Gardner 36386669<br />
Sgt John J. Hadamik 36650832<br />
Sgt Bernard A. Kelley 17120834<br />
Sgt John G. Legner 35788445<br />
Sgt Antonio A. Sciachitano 17155164<br />
June 21, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
Capt Gordon R. Koons P 0428507<br />
2 nd Lt. Edward E. Hanson CP 0820006<br />
2 nd Lt. Ralph C. Dimick B 0713007<br />
2 nd Lt. Charles W.Bonner N 0703429<br />
S/Sgt Robert M. Avery 19055485<br />
S/Sgt Elven O. Coleman 14142308<br />
Sgt Edward E. McGinnis 39208597<br />
Sgt James C. Popp 33675524<br />
Sgt John L. Meeker 38223332<br />
Sgt Enoch C. Slack 34607237<br />
June 21, <strong>1944</strong> To The 713 th Squadron<br />
Capt Andrew J.<br />
Andreson Jr P 0391093<br />
2 nd Lt. John W. Allen Jr CP 0763828<br />
2 nd Lt.William G.Newlon B 0712419<br />
2 nd Lt. Vernon L. Gilmore N 0698883<br />
S/Sgt Mathew W. Spahn 36216344<br />
S/Sgt John H. Reis 15113353<br />
Sgt Otto R. Palumbo 32840613<br />
Sgt Robert C. Schweitzer 33682852<br />
Sgt Robert F. Kalous 32880507<br />
Sgt Charles F. Donati Jr 32787054<br />
June 21, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Lloyd H. Haddock P 0695739<br />
2 nd lt. Robert J.Rentschler CP 0819414<br />
2 nd Lt. Crystal Lang B 0712606<br />
2 nd Lt. Pat Farris N 0706827<br />
S/Sgt Franklin Holtmeier 33171371<br />
S/Sgt Richard M. Kennedy 12096831<br />
Roster of Replacement Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
Sgt Ernesto Concepcion 32886753<br />
Sgt Lester E. Seabaugh 37519903<br />
Sgt William V. Pyke 19161730<br />
Sgt Everett W. Marah 37620884<br />
June 22, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
1 st Lt. Harold C. Turpin P 0807541<br />
2 nd Lt.Charles W.Wilson CP 0704863<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert J. Nystrom B 0715412<br />
2 nd Lt. Theodore J.<br />
Conway Jr N 0703454<br />
Sgt Thomas A.<br />
Loughlin Jr 36851964<br />
S/Sgt Keith D. Wann 39117819<br />
S/Sgt Walter D. Bookamer 13109114<br />
Sgt James S. Smidy 33667892<br />
Sgt Joseph Skledar Jr 33431803<br />
Sgt Leo A. VanWorst 32813059<br />
June 22, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
1 st Lt. James H. Brownell P 0392071<br />
2 nd Lt. Roy M. Johnston CP 0704941<br />
2 nd Lt. Lawrence R.<br />
Hastings B 0713177<br />
2 nd Lt. John E. Cumming N 0703461<br />
S/Sgt Stanley E. Womack 39279099<br />
S/Sgt Beurall K. Binns 38452541<br />
Sgt Walter Johnson Jr 37497081<br />
Sgt Robert B. Kress 35632387<br />
Sgt Lee A. Parsons 35218774<br />
Sgt Clarence M. Smith 34607622<br />
June 22, <strong>1944</strong> To The 715 th Squadron<br />
1 st Lt. Marcus S. Horton P 0885996<br />
2 nd Lt. Floyd D. Mahl CP 0712415<br />
2 nd Lt. Erwin J. Kaidy B 0764139<br />
2 nd Lt. Milton Q. Alber N 0685414<br />
S/Sgt Kenneth W. Prieb 17131824<br />
S/Sgt Lynn H. Satterfied 34726926<br />
Sgt Robert E. Morel 35800893<br />
Sgt Robert L. Reeves 19136151<br />
Sgt Harold E. Fowler 34677771<br />
Sgt Fred A. Ozbirn 39039218<br />
June 27, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. James E. Hande P 0700924<br />
2 nd Lt. James W. Kelly CP 0767562<br />
2 nd Lt. Stanley Milberg B 0711458<br />
F/O Thomas S. Dolan N T-2515<br />
S/Sgt Ernest J. Atchley 14123141<br />
S/Sgt Arthur N. Weisz 15374533<br />
Sgt James R. Martin 14190906<br />
Cpl Frank Gavura 35892692<br />
Cpl John C. Guisto 32894262<br />
Cpl Walter L. Buhr 37538204<br />
June 27, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Harry W. Kraus P 0761129<br />
2 nd Lt. Edward T. Luszcz CP 0768150
227<br />
2 nd Lt. Lawrence J. Wolfe B 0708605<br />
2 nd Lt. Norval S. Hovey N 0766270<br />
Sgt John Q. Adams 36813515<br />
Sgt Kuell Hinson 34729617<br />
Sgt Earl R. Kennedy 38439451<br />
Cpl Earl J. Estes 35892315<br />
Cpl Warren W. Fankhauser 35759849<br />
Cpl William K. Perry 38419774<br />
June 27, <strong>1944</strong> To The 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. William C. Beall P 0761852<br />
2 nd Lt. Harry E. Betts CP 0767977<br />
2 nd Lt. Harvey C. Baker B 0709463<br />
2 nd Lt. Charles E.<br />
Langton Jr N 0766294<br />
S/Sgt Otto K. Smith 18202005<br />
Sgt John C. Bruno 32605097<br />
Sgt John M. Jenkins Jr 34602346<br />
Cpl George W. Dickinson 20225687<br />
Cpl Carl E. Himes 33757446<br />
Cpl Peter J. Murray 32456666<br />
June 27, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. James J.<br />
Schierbrock P 0699776<br />
2 nd Lt.Charles W.Meining CP 0767599<br />
2 nd Lt. Willis E. Cobb B 0711341<br />
2 nd Lt. Glen M. Larsen N 0766295<br />
S/Sgt Francis P. Horan 19089823<br />
S/Sgt Robert E. Simmons 11082391<br />
Sgt George D. Jeffries 15377838<br />
Sgt Joseph T. Marek 39557546<br />
Sgt Verlon A. Pallmer 38507597<br />
Cpl William W. Rowe 38352599<br />
June 28, <strong>1944</strong> To The 713 th Squadron<br />
F/O Elliott J. Sidey P T-1882<br />
2 nd Lt. John P. Deren CP 0712088<br />
F/O Melvin Krisel B T-12349<br />
2 nd Lt. William E.<br />
Sallade II N 0716961<br />
S/Sgt John S. Thomson 13112482<br />
S/Sgt Louis A. Owens 35094874<br />
S/Sgt Ralph E. Mull 33236631<br />
Sgt Ernest R. Easterling 14130912<br />
Sgt John M. MacDonald 39618727<br />
Sgt Michael Perkowski 32826132<br />
June 28, <strong>1944</strong> To The 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Dale E. Grubb P 0697412<br />
2 nd Lt.Edwin W.Carnahan CP 0705227<br />
2 nd Lt. Bernard Epstein B 0712535<br />
2 nd Lt. Norman G. Marks N 0716922<br />
S/Sgt Frank S. Thomas 34800965<br />
S/Sgt John E. Everett 34608727<br />
Sgt John O. Barnes 37282755<br />
Sgt John R. Etherington 32487582<br />
Sgt Clare W. Hubbard 36459200<br />
Roster of Replacement Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
Sgt Eusebio Rodriguez Jr 18197677<br />
June 28, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Huntington S.<br />
Gruening P 0760729<br />
2 nd Lt.Thomas C.Dahlgren CP 0768472<br />
2 nd Lt. John A. Bolton B 0710843<br />
2 nd Lt.William B.Norman N 0765341<br />
Sgt Frank C. Dow 14102360<br />
S/Sgt Lester F. Haughton 16111367<br />
Sgt Ray L. Syrles 38405523<br />
Cpl George E. Hyde Jr 37538367<br />
Cpl Frank J. Wilcheck 37620869<br />
Pfc Edwin B. Hungerford 37611178<br />
June 28, <strong>1944</strong> To The 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.Richard M. Moody P 0761256<br />
2 nd Lt.Douglas P.Pederson CP 0768209<br />
2 nd Lt. Jack Glichsman B 0709343<br />
2 nd Lt.Robert M.<br />
Thompson N 0765768<br />
S/Sgt William R. Gamble 33675510<br />
Sgt Robert A. Bacon 33453497<br />
Sgt Raymond R. Grambau 16134775<br />
Sgt Joseph J. Hannon Jr 20262532<br />
Cpl William J. Maynard 35873288<br />
Cpl Harold E. McBurney Jr 37675906<br />
June 28, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Orville L. Daenzer P 0700396<br />
2 nd Lt. Paul L.Grossinger CP 0825622<br />
2 nd Lt. John C. Morris B 0712886<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert S. Wheeler N 0717004<br />
S/Sgt Charles F. Sparenberg 13075941<br />
S/Sgt Hugh K. Burleigh 13021606<br />
Sgt Clifford Blalock 36539045<br />
Sgt John A. Czarnowski 31089542<br />
Sgt Ned W. Thomas 33255948<br />
June 28, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Harold A. Piper P 0700535<br />
2 nd Lt. Edwin E.<br />
Peckmann CP 0764133<br />
2 nd Lt. Daniel F. Mangin B 0713037<br />
2 nd Lt.Maurice L.<br />
Ashkikaz N 0716820<br />
S/Sgt Angelo W. Percaccciolo 32867227<br />
S/Sgt Arthur F. Decker 36480121<br />
Sgt Robert C. Baker 39212940<br />
Sgt David N. Cassell 33655802<br />
Sgt Gilbert F. Morris Jr 38344789<br />
Sgt Albert I. Schletter 32934891<br />
June 28, <strong>1944</strong> To The 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Wallace C. Score P 0819983<br />
2 nd Lt. Leo F. McGeough CP 0706542<br />
2 nd Lt.Michael R.Carestio B 0706631<br />
2 nd Lt. Ray B. Bremer N 0696631<br />
S/Sgt William J. Harkins 33589393
228<br />
S/Sgt Harry Whitfield Jr 32725008<br />
Sgt Curtis O. Brown 37085123<br />
Sgt Edward L. Kellams 33540211<br />
Sgt Daniel A. Paris 36867333<br />
June 28, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Bennie F. Adams P 0818546<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert J. Byrne CP 0716828<br />
2 nd Lt. Frank ? Webb B 0717311<br />
F/O Richard E. Winslow N T-2373<br />
S/Sgt Eugene F. Norman 20761171<br />
S/Sgt Clyde A. Randall 39561345<br />
Sgt Lawrence R. Berger Jr 13158242<br />
Sgt Delmar E. Knight 37477496<br />
Sgt Leonard R. Pannell 37534218<br />
Sgt Kenneth O. Ryhal 35056220<br />
REPLACEMENT CREWS – July, <strong>1944</strong><br />
July 2, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
1 st Lt.William W.Snavely P 026257<br />
2 nd Lt.Marion T.Sebastian CP 0689169<br />
F/O William R. Morris N T-2103<br />
S/Sgt Frederick C. Aldrich 11084306<br />
S/Sgt Lawrence W. Barham 39199288<br />
Sgt Marvin W. Hicks 34765397<br />
Sgt Robert A. Grabowski 16136791<br />
Sgt Thomas A. Logue 34506317<br />
Sgt Frank L. Parkinson Jr 38370437<br />
July 2, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.William W.Gilbert P 0686239<br />
2 nd Lt. Anson F. Barton CP 0821143<br />
2 nd Lt. Willard D. Powers N 0691911<br />
S/Sgt Edward F. Daum 13038479<br />
S/Sgt Doriel S. Gilbert 39905264<br />
Sgt William R. Fisher Jr 17129136<br />
Sgt Robert R. Jendrusiak 32189572<br />
Cpl Herbert B. Kemp 34396777<br />
Cpl Victor R. Sandie 12054350<br />
July 2, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
Capt Walter W. Dillon P 024832<br />
2 nd Lt. John E. Harmer CP 0817431<br />
1 st Lt. Charles W. Parish N 0734495<br />
T/Sgt Filmore G. Layman 18058079<br />
T/Sgt Edward J Bornheimer 36125498<br />
S/Sgt Harry C. Barney 11101925<br />
Sgt Morton H. Kessler 12203638<br />
Sgt Erwin S. Kostick 36285883<br />
Sgt George E. Nugent 37356752<br />
July 2, <strong>1944</strong> To The 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Douglas O. Morse P 0686267<br />
2 nd Lt. John J. Sullivan CP 0696718<br />
2 nd Lt.Raymond F.Knight N 0744532<br />
S/Sgt Clarence J. Russi 35599476<br />
Roster of Replacement Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
S/Sgt Truman K. Anderson 18167649<br />
Sgt Arlie H. von Tersch 39452865<br />
Sgt Stanley Dubee 12147992<br />
Sgt Floyd D. Eckrosh 17097350<br />
Sgt Robert J. Frolli 19042400<br />
July 4, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.Thomas F.<br />
Mulligan P 0691620<br />
2 nd Lt. Richard H. Wright CP 0687730<br />
2 nd Lt. Edwin F. Hewitt N 0813700<br />
S/Sgt George C. Contois 11085347<br />
S/Sgt Steven M. Alexander 18045347<br />
Sgt James M. Fisher 39905167<br />
Sgt Hugh L. Manchester 32852631<br />
Sgt Harold V. P. Shultis 31285894<br />
Sgt Lloyd D. Reid 31303765<br />
July 4, <strong>1944</strong> To The 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. John D. Sutton P 0812683<br />
F/O Henry J. Radziswicz CP T-123686<br />
2 nd Lt. Irving ????? N 0805948<br />
S/Sgt Marvin R. Riazzo 32452657<br />
S/Sgt Vincent Cautero jr 12159538<br />
Sgt John J. Hattersley 32910112<br />
Sgt Chester W. Hartley 37614749<br />
Sgt Warren A. Jeffries 17144034<br />
Sgt Edward E. Skuba 11043905<br />
July 4, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Harold S. Spicer P 0815255<br />
2 nd Lt Paul S. Elder CP 0819506<br />
2 nd Lt. Frank J. Plaushin N 0700763<br />
S/Sgt Jerome Stuart 32863671<br />
Sgt Archie A. Brajkovich 37666901<br />
Sgt Calvin C. Burroughs 38517521<br />
Sgt Richard L. Markham 13117459<br />
Sgt Frank J. Kromer 33690091<br />
S/Sgt Earl L. Andreason 35151070<br />
July 4, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Roy E. Stahl P 0695782<br />
F/O Sylvester Krol CP T-125521<br />
2 nd Lt. Leo M. Conner N 0768005<br />
2 nd Lt.Warren W.Hoster Jr B 0703143<br />
S/Sgt Larry L. Bush 18050809<br />
S/Sgt Verlyn L. Colby 38396157<br />
Sgt Leon M. Renier 37559361<br />
Sgt Emmett R. Wallace 38451228<br />
Sgt Harold G. Von Needa Jr 33504399<br />
Pvt Carl R. Lane 19125608<br />
July 4, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. William T.<br />
Hensey Jr P 0699416<br />
2 nd lt. Kenneth E. Ensign CP 0768043<br />
F/O Jack S. Comer N T-124501<br />
2 nd Lt. Clarence H.Mellor B 0766323<br />
Sgt William A. Lillard 34724435
229<br />
M/Sgt Walton B. Kelly 18002434<br />
Sgt George L. Allen 34580133<br />
Cpl Larry L. Archambault 35913851<br />
Cpl Charles E. Grant 34763091<br />
Cpl John J. Thompson 32147899<br />
July 4, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Rudy H. Johnson P 0699423<br />
2 nd Lt. William I. Hall CP 0768529<br />
2 nd Lt. Frederick W.<br />
Schaefer Jr N 0710389<br />
2 nd Lt.Theodore E.Matson B 0766320<br />
Sgt John R. Dunkel Jr 13030915<br />
Sgt Charles R. Cambino 34800374<br />
Cpl Parry L. Alexander 39709129<br />
Cpl Earl L. Arnett 19122288<br />
Cpl Albert M. Brown 38498077<br />
Cpl Frank S. Brown 39709160<br />
July 15, <strong>1944</strong> To The 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.Andrew T.Panchura P 0821068<br />
2 nd Lt.Charles M. Epes Jr CP 0827794<br />
2 nd Lt.Edward L.Burnetta N 0712994<br />
2 nd Lt. Garland L. Purvis B 0768894<br />
Sgt Charles M. Lighty 19093022<br />
Sgt Richard D. Baker 6565398<br />
Sgt Carlos M. Dreyfus 12146077<br />
Sgt William J. McCollum 33831280<br />
Sgt Lloyd H. Searle 11017107<br />
Sgt Robert R. Shrode 39277959<br />
July 15, <strong>1944</strong> To The 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Edmond G.<br />
Postemsky P 0821075<br />
2 nd Lt. Clifford B. Unwin CP 0827089<br />
2 nd Lt.Wyllys B.Jennings N 0715414<br />
2 nd Lt. James T. Bell B 0769089<br />
Sgt Alessandro L. Falconi 31231533<br />
S/Sgt LeRoy J. Canning 13151559<br />
Sgt LeRoy J. Brizzolara 32771334<br />
Cpl Adley V. Benoit 38486715<br />
Cpl Charles C. Payne 34737456<br />
Cpl Julien Polge 32937895<br />
July 15, <strong>1944</strong> To The 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Carl H. Holt P 0821282<br />
2 nd Lt. John f. Cushman CP 0827787<br />
2 nd Lt. Gordon L. Britt N 0712372<br />
2 nd Lt. James E. Fields B 0769111<br />
Sgt James F. Kiely 11069461<br />
S/Sgt Williams P. Jones 14024677<br />
S/Sgt Romagene Tiner 38175134<br />
Sgt Bertram Charnow 32693364<br />
Cpl Michael J. Hill 33703706<br />
Cpl Robert H. Kessler 12204555<br />
July 15, <strong>1944</strong> To The 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Harry G. Allen Jr P 0820694<br />
Roster of Replacement Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
2 nd Lt. Donald L. Allen CP 0823215<br />
2 nd Lt. Harry O. Wolfe Jr N 0715414<br />
2 nd Lt. Donald E. Burke B 0769089<br />
Cpl Harold Freedman 31309882<br />
S/Sgt Albert R. Pizzoli 13030192<br />
Sgt Charles H. Carn 32800347<br />
Sgt Jesse L. Shugars 36300412<br />
Cpl Clifford T. Cashbit 6711225<br />
Cpl Edward H. Cristello 13171893<br />
July 19, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
F/O Albert J. Lewis P T-123500<br />
2 nd Lt. John E. Briggs CP 0713345<br />
2 nd Lt.William D.Fitch Jr N 0717419<br />
2 nd L.t Robert F. Rikard B 0706903<br />
Sgt William F. Smith 33568893<br />
S/Sgt Thomas E. Martin 6925869<br />
Sgt Clinton W. Engledow 39555929<br />
Sgt Cloyd G. Jordon 12083990<br />
Sgt Louis C. Schlorman 35622664<br />
Cpl Maurice M. Finberg 37573487<br />
July 19, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.Donald G. Ginevan P 0817832<br />
2 nd Lt.Billy R. Greenwade CP 0820260<br />
2 nd Lt. Albert F. Duval B 0716390<br />
2 nd Lt.Charles F.Swanson N 0717118<br />
Sgt Robert J. Jones 12093034<br />
S/Sgt John V. Kary 19071394<br />
Sgt Robert H. Castell-Blanch 39120014<br />
Sgt Ned A. Chidester 17014458<br />
Sgt John H. Mitchell 32910987<br />
Pvt Charles D. Jones 19169839<br />
July 19, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
F/O Hosea E. Matthaes P T-123558<br />
2 nd Lt. Thomas E. Miller CP 0825942<br />
2 nd L.t Aurel H. Muntean B 0717476<br />
2 nd Lt.Martin W.Richards N 0706902<br />
S/Sgt Selwyn Kaplan 12088705<br />
Sgt Vincent J. Haley 37356759<br />
Sgt Eugene M. Petagine 32712083<br />
Cpl Virgil C. Combs Jr 37539520<br />
Cpl Robert T. Davis 37622762<br />
Cpl Frank DeCola 13131566<br />
July 19, <strong>1944</strong> To The 715 th Squadron<br />
F/O Dodson B. Craybeal P T-123734<br />
F/O William G. Payne CP T-124156<br />
2 nd Lt. Walter A. Ford B 0717420<br />
F/O Wesley W. Palmer N T-2225<br />
Sgt Donald C. Renkel 32767448<br />
S/Sgt Joe Dovico 37654273<br />
Cpl John C. Adams 39037615<br />
Cpl Richard J. Byrne 33733437<br />
Cpl William J. Hartman 33795867<br />
Cpl Douglas E. Walker 38507353
230<br />
July 26, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Ernest G. Brock P 0696423<br />
2 nd Lt. Paul E. Cooper CP 0760790<br />
2 nd Lt. Paul Horback N 0712730<br />
F/O Edward H. Korfer B T-2521<br />
Sgt William R. Frees 39169984<br />
Sgt Ernest Jerrell 35702077<br />
Cpl Edward R. Hess 12122431<br />
Cpl Eugene E. Loose 17122186<br />
Cpl Clyde C. White Jr 39323460<br />
S/Sgt Russell C. Miller Jr 33432255<br />
July 26, <strong>1944</strong> To The 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Sherman F.<br />
Furey Jr P 0699838<br />
2 nd Lt. William J.<br />
Dickinson CP 0768372<br />
2 nd Lt. Clifford Linder B 0712617<br />
2 nd Lt. Rex B. Olson N 0766344<br />
Sgt Charles Granato 38458037<br />
Sgt Philip J. Donovan 31259007<br />
Sgt Florence T. McCarthy 31308816<br />
Cpl Colston H. Browne 32957421<br />
Cpl Walter C. Hoke 33507??3<br />
Cpl Stephen L. Kott 32872778<br />
July 26, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Bernard Hansen P 0699815<br />
2 nd Lt. Earl W. Aldrich CP 0767961<br />
2 nd Lt. William C.<br />
Richardson B 0713226<br />
2 nd Lt Enrico P. Maggenti N 0766513<br />
Sgt Curtis C. Drouillard 36570067<br />
S/Sgt Kenneth T. Rariden Jr 16149505<br />
Sgt Lee R. Cosby 18135077<br />
Sgt Jacob A. Womack 38508815<br />
Cpl John Birkhead 35727385<br />
Cpl Linn C. Garrison 37484571<br />
July 26, <strong>1944</strong> To The 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. ??????? T. Ferrie P 0701915<br />
F/O Theodore E.Bojalski CP T-2725<br />
2 nd Lt.Michael S.Onderick B 0712652<br />
2 nd Lt. Harold R.<br />
????brigtsen N 0766288<br />
Sgt James W. Riley 31111543<br />
S/Sgt Ernest J. Hudgens 38413048<br />
Sgt Leonard H. Campbell 18007499<br />
Sgt George F. Mahar 32025159<br />
Sgt Eugene L. Pointer 20759244<br />
Cpl Charles C. Wolfe 20819988<br />
July 31, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. William H.<br />
Wilhelmi P 0705193<br />
F/O John E. Lariviere CP T-125458<br />
2 nd Lt. Billy J. Baker B 0723267<br />
2 nd Lt. John W. Bice N 0722136<br />
Roster of Replacement Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
Cpl John G. Vahle Jr 17071832<br />
Cpl Lewis T. Kidston 31236198<br />
Sgt Maxwell W. Mackenzie 39192491<br />
Cpl Joseph Longo 36818513<br />
Cpl Jack J. O’Donnel 15333914<br />
Cpl Julius Sakovics 13153800<br />
July 31, <strong>1944</strong> To The 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.Gordon F. Hillman P 0753285<br />
2 nd Lt.Alden J. Hershiser CP 0768545<br />
2 nd Lt.Herbert E. MacNeil B 0712626<br />
2 nd Lt.Donald G. Ziebell N 0717014<br />
S/Sgt Benson F. Quisenberry 37220343<br />
S/Sgt Leonard R. Saunders 38400777<br />
Sgt Walter G. Cheslock Jr 33603748<br />
Sgt Anthony J. Dachille 33795339<br />
Sgt Frank G. Robertson 34713843<br />
Sgt Stanley Z. Swiencki 33603529<br />
July 31, <strong>1944</strong> To The 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Allan C. Wight P 0705191<br />
2 nd Lt. Murray R.<br />
Apfelbaum CP 0715930<br />
2 nd Lt. Donald V.Flanders B 0715104<br />
2 nd Lt. Donald H.Longley N 0772187<br />
S/Sgt Arthur M. Harrington 32028157<br />
Sgt Robert G. Kennohan 39130128<br />
Cpl Donald E. Corson 18097867<br />
Cpl Benjamin F. Edwards Jr 34637549<br />
Cpl James A. Hauersperger 36743743<br />
Cpl Philip G. Zapp 15113968<br />
July 31, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Sidney R.<br />
Williamson P 0705469<br />
2 nd Lt. Howard O.<br />
Sandbeck CP 0715930<br />
2 nd Lt. Miles S. Baldwin N 0723555<br />
2 nd Lt. Raymond T.<br />
Binkley B 0706675<br />
Sgt William J. Arnone 19180982<br />
Sgt Lawrence N. Keeran 18166757<br />
Cpl Edwin C. Brannan 34829295<br />
Cpl Donald W. Clapp Jr 31190423<br />
Cpl Dante J.Macario 33727569<br />
Cpl Charles A. Spapperi 36693347<br />
REPLACEMENT CREWS – AUGUST <strong>1944</strong><br />
August 3, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Herbert H. Jonson P 0764033<br />
2 nd Lt. Lawrence H.<br />
Daniels CP 0772305<br />
2 nd Lt.Alexander J.Prieski B 0713105<br />
2 nd Lt. John D. Caldwell N 0769003<br />
Cpl Edward V. Langowski 16089625<br />
Cpl Edward V. Longowski 16089625
231<br />
Cpl George A. Constable 33262058<br />
Cpl William M. Craignile 16171891<br />
Cpl Luttie W. Rehar 33759444<br />
Cpl William C. Price 39920430<br />
Cpl John R. Rainwater 38350831<br />
August 3, <strong>1944</strong> To The 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. John A. Jordon P 0764691<br />
2 nd Lt. Norman S. Harris CP 0809951<br />
2 nd Lt. Dwain Butler B 0713118<br />
2 nd Lt. Harold Cherry N 0768937<br />
Cpl. Charles A. Mainini 39694607<br />
Cpl Joseph Hollowatch 32558010<br />
S/Sgt Earl Fannin 15017821<br />
Cpl John McConnell 32866523<br />
Cpl Walter G.Rush 39017617<br />
Cpl Bill B. Rysor 38589094<br />
August 3, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Wilbur C. Bryson P 0764111<br />
2 nd Lt.William L. Horrell CP 0772380<br />
2 nd Lt. Harry D. Freivogel B 0713163<br />
2 nd Lt.Bernard L. Parsons N 0769060<br />
Cpl Henry A. Remsburg 35157582<br />
Cpl Robert R. Brady 33626111<br />
Cpl Gasper W. Interrante 33832534<br />
Cpl Donald J. Kamler 32820201<br />
Pvt Francis B. Neumann 17114026<br />
Cpl Robert C. Weber 35216675<br />
August 3, <strong>1944</strong> To The 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Howard E. Doane P 0763970<br />
2 nd Lt. Earl H. Pattee CP 0772473<br />
2 nd Lt. Eugene Forman B 0715014<br />
2 nd Lt. John S. Moll Jr N 0769055<br />
Cpl Zigmund Ozimkowski 36565548<br />
Cpl Luke G. Eresnahan 42030668<br />
Cpl Melvin F. Foss 19022561<br />
Cpl Charles J. Jackson 15103207<br />
Cpl Archie J. Taylor 38563189<br />
Cpl Robert I. Ussak 12086689<br />
August 8, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Harold G. Soldan P 0701967<br />
2 nd Lt. Clement L. Maher CP 0770700<br />
2 nd Lt. Burrell E. Weaver B 0723217<br />
2 nd Lt. John B. Wade Jr N 0772901<br />
Cpl James W. McConkie 19120091<br />
Cpl James C. Alexander 33514768<br />
Cpl Peter J. Campbell 11113767<br />
Cpl Dale L. Emlet 13122914<br />
Cpl Arthur E. Evans 35339481<br />
Cpl Philip G. Farnsworth 31318641<br />
August 8, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. John M. Buxton P 0703311<br />
2 nd Lt. Howard D.<br />
Hinckley CP 0771716<br />
2 nd Lt. Earl T. Brown B 0722813<br />
Roster of Replacement Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert D. Butler N 0772901<br />
Cpl Leo E. Stephens 37558474<br />
Cpl Louis D. Babini 31420626<br />
Cpl John L. Burkhead 36770874<br />
Cpl Alex Kocheran 33414605<br />
Cpl Donald M. McCoy 35763351<br />
Cpl James R. Robinson 35756585<br />
August 8, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Floyd C.Reynolds P 0710233<br />
2 nd Lt. Curtis H. Hockett CP 0699370<br />
2 nd Lt. Rex L.Furness N 0723344<br />
Cpl Kenneth W. Eastman 16125335<br />
Cpl Leon T. Crisp 36639569<br />
Cpl Calvin H. Ellis 36600851<br />
Cpl Anthony F. Turk 35311311<br />
Cpl Shirley L. Wahl 36884022<br />
Pvt Ralph W. Polhamus 16150299<br />
August 8, <strong>1944</strong> To The 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Francis I. Botkin P 0668304<br />
2 nd Lt.Richard W.GoshornCP 0771623<br />
2 nd Lt. George H. Pogge B 0718974<br />
2 nd Lt. Thomas N. Mize N 0773427<br />
Cpl Lawrence M. Wilhelm 37604383<br />
T/Sgt Charles A. Shipp 18025053<br />
Cpl James R. Boatright 17130553<br />
Cpl Armand J. Dansereau 31439980<br />
Cpl Kenneth D. Johnson 36696966<br />
Cpl Harold M. Macauley Jr 36364958<br />
August 9, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
F/O James C. Weaver P T-123563<br />
F/O Anthony A. Kolinski CP T-2784<br />
2 nd Lt. Hugh Ewing Jr B 0723333<br />
F/O Paul Hyman N T-125702<br />
Cpl Charles A. Koon 14181097<br />
Cpl John F. Curran 31423296<br />
Cpl Vincent J. DePalma 32757453<br />
Cpl James P. Kane 20382599<br />
Cpl Albert R. O’Donnell 19047939<br />
Cpl Harold H. Brakhage 38274268<br />
August 9, <strong>1944</strong> To The 713 th Squadron<br />
F/O Joseph E.Mlynarczyk P T-123724<br />
F/O Sidney R.Hallman Jr CP T-3102<br />
2 nd Lt.James B.Faircloth JrB 0723597<br />
F/O Kenneth C. Goodrich N Y-3365<br />
Cpl Harold L. Gilmoew 15131285<br />
Cpl Bernard J. Deick 37579649<br />
Cpl Martin Dolinsky 32926985<br />
Cpl John S. Knoy 35146610<br />
Cpl Andrew Kuriatnyk 17012914<br />
Cpl Kenneth Ryan 36460485<br />
August 9, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Frank E. Bastian Jr P 0702217<br />
2 nd Lt.Donald W.DisbrowCP 0715735<br />
F/O David O. Holst N T-125814
232<br />
Cpl William J. Degnan Jr 16137912<br />
Cpl Robert E. Coletti 12220736<br />
Cpl Paul C. DiGiacomo 12206795<br />
Cpl Dewey A. Holst 37533407<br />
Cpl Frederick G. Theobold 12089380<br />
Cpl William O. Wilbur Jr 11046908<br />
August 9, <strong>1944</strong> To The 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. David D. Cooper P 0719018<br />
F/O Severyn G. Szudarek CP T-123549<br />
F/O Paul C. Harp B T-2146<br />
2 nd Lt. Herbert M. Lerner N 0771943<br />
Cpl Merwyn G. Cook 18162136<br />
Cpl Ralph R. Capps 38563914<br />
Cpl Isaiah H. Houston Jr 13063152<br />
Cpl Thomas J. Kinsey 33709627<br />
Cpl William F. Smith 36192203<br />
Cpl Roy S. Willis 36461713<br />
August 10, <strong>1944</strong> To The 713 th Squadron<br />
1 st Lt. Arthur C. Nelson P 0691054<br />
1 st Lt. Charles R. Bastien CP 0702218<br />
1 st Lt. Lee J. Woods B 0703839<br />
1 st Lt. Robert G. Schultz N 0695540<br />
T/Sgt Robert N. Carter 39278692<br />
T/Sgt William J. Conroy 35585394<br />
S/Sgt Donald E. Preston 12174207<br />
S/Sgt Robert E. Tracy 16152396<br />
S/Sgt Alfred G. Kaiser 38394572<br />
S/Sgt Cletus L. Kennedy 16053455<br />
August 12, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. William N.<br />
Stonebraker P 0705264<br />
2 nd Lt. John R. Richards CP 0820825<br />
2 nd Lt. Francis J. Bergin B 0723274<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert W. Ross N 0772801<br />
S/Sgt Wilbur J. Vogel 34444049<br />
Sgt John T. Powers 37046266<br />
Sgt Clarence E. Williams 34775842<br />
Cpl Curtis L. Cagle 34809077<br />
Cpl Jesse J. Myers 38564460<br />
Cpl Orville D. Stuard 38463954<br />
August 12, <strong>1944</strong> To The 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Richard C. Vogel P 0701980<br />
2 nd Lt. Leslie M. Sellers CP 0713563<br />
2 nd Lt. Myron B. Koth B 0719099<br />
2 nd Lt. Warren H. Neville N 0717091<br />
Sgt Charles G. Genkinger 35794316<br />
Sgt Clyde L. Turner Jr 14147654<br />
Cpl James F. Burnett 36698275<br />
Cpl John S. Phillips 17057058<br />
Cpl Carl G. Stenberg 31423442<br />
August 12, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. John C. Rowe P 0699740<br />
2 nd Lt. Bruce J. Anderson CP 0771263<br />
2 nd Lt. Oscar Rudnick B 0716766<br />
Roster of Replacement Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
2 nd Lt. Richard H. Best N 0722263<br />
Cpl Joseph H. Zonyk 16118907<br />
Cpl Martin H. Miller Jr 35583733<br />
Cpl Charles W. Robertson 35217685<br />
Cpl John Roche 11048564<br />
Cpl Robert L. Sammons 35775968<br />
Cpl Francis E. Scott 37622104<br />
August 12, <strong>1944</strong> To The 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Elvin M. Sheffield P 0706079<br />
2 nd L.t Jack G. Miller CP 0771095<br />
2 nd Lt. John P. Blottie B 0718483<br />
2 nd Lt. George M. Steel, Jr N 0716776<br />
Sgt Harold C. Riepenhoff 15327526<br />
Sgt Frederick E. Recuparo 32545098<br />
Sgt George J. Swift 35588372<br />
Cpl George E. Crane 32760452<br />
Cpl Arthur E. Koch 31292972<br />
Cpl Thomas S. Tinney 14192708<br />
August 16, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Edgar M. Jones P 0705698<br />
2 nd Lt. John P. Zima CP 0771209<br />
2 nd Lt. James C. Powell B 0719142<br />
F/O John R. Tierney N T-1330<br />
Cpl Kazmer J. Szabo 35606817<br />
T/Sgt Floyd W. Jenkins 17027698<br />
Cpl Howard J. Casey 18156360<br />
Cpl Nelson E. DeVaughan 34727348<br />
Cpl Romeo G. Valentino 33600679<br />
Cpl Robert M. Williams 6898122<br />
August 16, <strong>1944</strong> To The 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Joseph M.Madden P 0818715<br />
2 nd Lt. Harry D. Gouge CP 0771384<br />
2 nd Lt. Attilio<br />
Pasquinelli Jr B 0694702<br />
2 nd Lt. Ivan A. Brewer N 0773293<br />
Cpl Nathan Bernstein 33739991<br />
Cpl William O.L. Broberg 33687791<br />
Cpl Daniel F. Daly Jr 32892950<br />
Cpl Ray F. Gipp 36836560<br />
Cpl Ronald L. Kincade 35755768<br />
Cpl Donald C. O’Connor 35351387<br />
August 16, <strong>1944</strong> To The 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. William D. Smith P 0700560<br />
2 nd Lt. Leon E. Lyon CP 0709159<br />
2 nd Lt. Lewis R. Hyde B 0722318<br />
2 nd Lt. Michael A.<br />
Cocchiola N 0717285<br />
Sgt Charles B. Ellis 31282488<br />
Cpl Leon G. Farnham 12094220<br />
S/Sgt Earl M. Aspin 17157076<br />
Cpl Benjamin W. Johnson Jr 38539599<br />
Cpl James B. Malone 34829133<br />
Cpl Frank M.J. Stelmachowski 36657060<br />
August 16, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron
233<br />
2 nd Lt. Ralph J. Camburn P 0822637<br />
2 nd Lt. Dale T. Corder CP 0711886<br />
2 nd Lt. Eugene W.<br />
Fichtenkort N 0718092<br />
F/O Harold H. Dorfman B T-126347<br />
Sgt Blasé J. Benziger 12178397<br />
Sgt Eldon E. Preisel 16070121<br />
Cpl Herbert R. Barney Jr 31306708<br />
Cpl Ira M. Welkowitz 12122677<br />
Cpl William O. Wheeler 35627714<br />
REPLACEMENT CREWS – SEPTEMBER <strong>1944</strong><br />
September 7, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.William C. Holden P 0709581<br />
2 nd Lt. Harold E. Bishop CP 0718531<br />
2 nd Lt.Harvey B.Nachman N 0722956<br />
2 nd Lt. Ross B. Webb B 0776841<br />
Cpl Edward S. Sherman 16079232<br />
Cpl Horace J. Gardner 35787511<br />
Cpl Patrick S. Raspante 12205391<br />
Cpl Clair D. Rowe 37682574<br />
Cpl Waldon D. Walls 33436328<br />
Cpl David A. Webster 34771489<br />
September 7, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert W.<br />
Westbrook P 0705865<br />
2 nd Lt. Bille B. Morrison CP 0721908<br />
2 nd Lt. Patrick J.<br />
Pariavecchia N 0205799<br />
2 nd Lt. Daniel M. Boone B 0776605<br />
Cpl Charles J. Schulz Jr 32649915<br />
Cpl Edward J. Bednar 33505277<br />
Cpl Kenneth C. Blodgett 14130523<br />
S/Sgt Howard M. Bullis 6908104<br />
Cpl Leslie D. Haneline 38599343<br />
Cpl Wilbert A. Shander 16142213<br />
September 7, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert L. Mains P 0680467<br />
2 nd Lt Allan L. Lake CP 0206031<br />
2 nd Lt. John B. Hankin Jr N 0828688<br />
2 nd Lt. John W. Johnson B 0776565<br />
Cpl Charles E. Cupp Jr 36854167<br />
Cpl Harry J. Allen 39621301<br />
Cpl Charles H. Daman 39463985<br />
Cpl Frank S. Merkovich 36314180<br />
Sgt Antonio Munoz Jr 1800??96<br />
Cpl Anthony C. Villari 35919619<br />
September 7, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. James S. Thomas P 0705165<br />
2 nd Lt.Harold C. Hardesty CP 0721393<br />
2 nd Lt. Solomon Block N 0206046<br />
2 nd Lt. Glenn D.<br />
Vanderpool B 0776593<br />
Roster of Replacement Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
Cpl William E. Bynum 14100252<br />
Sgt Earl W. Horntvedt 16111521<br />
Cpl Roy E. Rudy 33238210<br />
Cpl Larrel C. Scott 18193185<br />
Cpl Denham Ward 35879442<br />
Cpl Hanover Weaver 34730275<br />
September 10, <strong>1944</strong> To The 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Charles P. Quirk P 0822179<br />
2 nd Lt. Edward J. Rutter CP 0826005<br />
2 nd Lt. Victor Troese N 0558009<br />
2 nd Lt. Alexander J.<br />
Walczak B 01031776<br />
Sgt Kenneth V. Olson 37557035<br />
Sgt John C. Lyles 34709491<br />
Cpl Edwin R. Hoover 33235826<br />
Cpl Clyde W. Levan 33330267<br />
Cpl John L. Sharpless 13175457<br />
Pvt Roy E. Hicks 36880290<br />
September 9, <strong>1944</strong> To The 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. George E.<br />
Franklin Jr P 0711174<br />
2 nd Lt. Virgil H. Gage CP 0709231<br />
2 nd Lt. John r. Nettles N 0776776<br />
F/O Jack E. Wright B T126383<br />
Cpl John R. Freaney 32930606<br />
Sgt Harold L. Goettsch 37195076<br />
Sgt John S. Carroll 33387406<br />
Sgt Isadore A. Epstein 11100206<br />
Sgt George E. Letlow Jr 38544775<br />
Sgt Joseph R. Rossi 35610657<br />
September 9, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. L.C. Barneycastle P 0685258<br />
2 nd Lt. Albert S.<br />
Broadfoot Jr CP 0719548<br />
2 nd Lt. Reuben Young Jr N 0722941<br />
2 nd Lt. Bernard X. Ferrari B 0717048<br />
T/Sgt James C. Lunt 19064266<br />
S/Sgt Eathen P. Newcomb 15058708<br />
Cpl Russell B. Alvis 13094122<br />
Cpl Patrick H. George 19022087<br />
Cpl Roland L. Grubbs 37488400<br />
Cpl Aron W. Smith 37476724<br />
September 9, <strong>1944</strong> To The 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Joe P. Bowers P 0711120<br />
2 nd Lt.Ebonezer J.Murphy CP 0772446<br />
2 nd Lt. John A. Smith N 0703909<br />
2 nd Lt. Richard F. Drowne B 0717044<br />
Cpl Matthew F. Fourneyron 12162834<br />
Sgt Herbert C. Dennis Jr 33321540<br />
Cpl Raymond G. Burke 36730017<br />
Cpl Edwin F. Handzlik 36585389<br />
Cpl Leon E. Kelly 34671680<br />
Cpl Paul D. Levoy 36654552<br />
September 9, <strong>1944</strong> To The 715 th Squadron
234<br />
1 st Lt. Downey L.<br />
Thomas Jr P 0725006<br />
2 nd Lt. Reynold R.<br />
Peterson CP 020557998<br />
2 nd Lt. Wilbur I. Padgett N 0829543<br />
F/O David E. Ellis B T-3759<br />
Cpl Melvin H. Free 39290455<br />
Sgt Bobbie E. Carlisle 18116352<br />
Cpl Felix Edwards 34731320<br />
Cpl Jefferson D. Johns 34818295<br />
Cpl Louis Noday 35609985<br />
Cpl Cadis W. Owen 38518826<br />
September 10, <strong>1944</strong> To The 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Peter Protich P 0822802<br />
2 nd Lt. Harold F Closz CP 0828382<br />
2 nd Lt. Leo R. Nikula N 0723503<br />
2 nd Lt. James R. Huss B 0776898<br />
Cpl John A. Logan 39279056<br />
Cpl Michael Molish 12062930<br />
Cpl Jose M. Saenz 38533905<br />
Cpl Wayman C. Snyder 14157850<br />
Cpl Jack N. Sweet 32489878<br />
Cpl Bernard Weiss 39264151<br />
September 16, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Walter W. Shue P 0823996<br />
2 nd Lt. Carl E. Martin CP 0710984<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert L. Eirich N 0723596<br />
2 nd Lt. Charles E.<br />
Thompson B 0717918<br />
Sgt Leonard G. Kubelik 16080851<br />
Sgt Ralph W. Lee 18124429<br />
Cpl Thomas R. Elliott 35119862<br />
Cpl Carmi D. Ferguson 39333902<br />
Cpl John E. Meintzer 15174501<br />
Cpl Emil E. Nemec 36755454<br />
September 16, <strong>1944</strong> To The 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Charles A. Platt P 0704853<br />
2 nd Lt. Glenn W. Doyle CP 0709531<br />
2 nd Lt. Harold J. Weeks Jr N 02058596<br />
2 nd Lt. John W. Snyder B 0773346<br />
Cpl Jessie F. Kinsey 39574662<br />
Cpl Marvin L. Davis 39701060<br />
Cpl Pete Blair 33419020<br />
Cpl Liborie W. Papalia 32676287<br />
Cpl Ernest L. Zimmerman 38567796<br />
September 16, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Wesley J. Isaacson P 0710948<br />
2 nd Lt. Alfred L. Kopitzki CP 0823091<br />
2 nd Lt.Raymond E.Custer N 02058425<br />
2 nd Lt. Richard M. Styslo B 0776923<br />
Cpl Robert M. Pittman 38391518<br />
Cpl George T. Loupinas 36855654<br />
Cpl Delvin H. Meyer 38558995<br />
Cpl Richard A. Morties 32941623<br />
Roster of Replacement Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
Cpl Alfred L. Secor 39194577<br />
Cpl George Suchorsky 32909556<br />
September 16, <strong>1944</strong> To The 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Richard J.<br />
Hambleton P 0772357<br />
2 nd Lt. John R. Walker CP 0720970<br />
2 nd Lt. James A. Ennis N 0699151<br />
2 nd Lt.William J.Southern B 0772891<br />
Cpl Finno C. Krotke 19101360<br />
Cpl Harry S. Hunter Jr 33693748<br />
Cpl Thomas D. Johnson 18216222<br />
Cpl John J. Riordan 33614084<br />
Cpl William W. Rorsher Jr 33710491<br />
Cpl Edward D. Smith 33545769<br />
September 18, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Axel D. Johnson P 0705396<br />
2 nd Lt. Vincent Luine CP 02056532<br />
2 nd Lt. Omero Menegazzi N 0721481<br />
2 nd Lt. Bernard L. Nogues B 0772992<br />
Cpl Bernard E. Coons 39858706<br />
Cpl James R. Delaney 16137713<br />
Cpl Bailey A. McNair 34705728<br />
Cpl Richard P. Miller 13159210<br />
Cpl Robert C. Mount 36368248<br />
Cpl Robert S. Yetter 33322965<br />
September 21, <strong>1944</strong> To The 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Stephen H.<br />
Hodgson P 0800887<br />
2 nd Lt. Edward S.Connell CP 0822894<br />
2 nd Lt. Edwin A. Scales N 0723442<br />
F/O Albert Vanderhoof Jr B T126277<br />
Cpl Robert E. Coker 34659229<br />
Cpl Julian A. Duncan 34810727<br />
Cpl Cecil C. Gwennap 35923419<br />
Cpl Ernest J. Kelley 32835857<br />
Cpl Vincent R. Stakun 31392279<br />
Cpl George Wyda 33689697<br />
September 21, <strong>1944</strong> To The 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. John M. Ray Jr P 0741086<br />
2 nd Lt. John M. Pearce CP 0811433<br />
2 nd Lt. Arnold W. Rubin N 0723175<br />
F/O Ara J. Adams B T126430<br />
Cpl Hobart F. Chester 36420756<br />
Cpl Peter J. Fager 39617321<br />
Cpl John L. Garrity 31416602<br />
Cpl Francis T. Hildenberger 33828036<br />
Cpl Peter E. Lane 34650923<br />
Cpl Edward H. Webb 16134528<br />
REPLACEMENT CREWS– OCTOBER <strong>1944</strong><br />
<strong>October</strong> 31, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
1 st Lt. John J. Caldwell P 0437194
235<br />
2 nd Lt. Richard D. Mace CP 0779964<br />
1 st Lt.Michael N. Opacick N 01280832<br />
1 st Lt. Delmo M. Pearce B 0670230<br />
S/Sgt Louis R. Thibert 16021388<br />
Cpl Noble Germany 14192853<br />
Cpl Richard C. Gilchrist 11099681<br />
Cpl Raymond R. Kutchinski 32923000<br />
Cpl Robert S. McLoughlin 32315454<br />
Cpl Godfrey R. Wood 11004227<br />
<strong>October</strong> 31, <strong>1944</strong> To The 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. James G. Blank P 0567334<br />
2 nd Lt. John K. Huber CP 0831942<br />
2 nd Lt. Bernard F. Pargh N 02065215<br />
2 nd Lt. Francis X. Pollio B 0505968<br />
Cpl William T. Harriman 17111211<br />
Cpl Norris L. Kanarek 13133595<br />
Cpl Christopher C. King 32747076<br />
Cpl Derward E. Morrow 11043372<br />
Cpl John A. Woldman Jr. 35398840<br />
REPLACEMENT CREWS – NOVEMBER <strong>1944</strong><br />
November 7, <strong>1944</strong> To The 712 th Squadron<br />
1 st . Lt. Irwin W. Ruge P 0855352<br />
2 nd Lt. Joseph H. Leroy CP 02057328<br />
2 nd Lt. George S.<br />
Robertson N 02066045<br />
2 nd Lt. Walter T.Foreman B 0780246<br />
S/Sgt Randall D. Fowler 190003642<br />
Cpl Maurice E. Bordner 36685995<br />
Cpl Myron Revak 33611590<br />
Cpl Laurence W. Scholny 36676361<br />
Cpl John T. Ziino 36652218<br />
November 13, <strong>1944</strong> to 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Joseph F. Steffan P 0719786<br />
2 nd Lt. Henry Y. Edgerton CP 02061656<br />
2 nd Lt. Gerald J. Gottlieb N 02068377<br />
S/Sgt Edward C. Murphy Jr 35370754<br />
Cpl Harold Resnikoff 18231599<br />
Cpl Davis E. Denning 34870892<br />
Cpl James H. Gilmore Jr 14185681<br />
Cpl Donald A. Payne 23178062<br />
Cpl William Wright Jr 328?8722<br />
November 13, <strong>1944</strong> to 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Irving Smarinsky P 0710613<br />
2 nd Lt. Horace B. Lane CP 0771451<br />
F/O Sidney V. Peters Jr N T129862<br />
F/O Arthur Hoffman B T5541<br />
Cpl Edward J. Grossman 32931086<br />
Cpl Harold C. Haynes 39712761<br />
Cpl Francis J. Kelly Jr 11103783<br />
Cpl Gerard J. Perry 31323473<br />
Cpl Robert Turner Jr 38519135<br />
Cpl Elton L. Nichols 385186?2<br />
Roster of Replacement Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
November 13, <strong>1944</strong> to 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.William L. Voight P 0774829<br />
F/O Lt.Fred S.Risinger Jr CP T3539<br />
2 nd Lt. Edward J.<br />
O’Donoghue N 0926916<br />
F/O Willis D. Lonn B T5548<br />
Cpl Dale K. Huson 39558319<br />
Cpl Richard N. Kudukis 16102597<br />
Cpl John J. Noone 33908745<br />
Cpl Wilmer L. Polk 38392524<br />
Cpl Jerry J. Russ 36635?08<br />
Cpl Joseph S. Ulakovich 35235649<br />
November 13, <strong>1944</strong> to 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Harry R. Mulrain P 0828221<br />
2 nd Lt.Thomas F.Murphy CP 02068446<br />
2 nd Lt. Joseph O’Connor N 0832207<br />
Cpl Warren R. Dolan 36893315<br />
Cpl William K. Jann 42072013<br />
Cpl Roger E. Leland 31281991<br />
Cpl Jack C. McKay 37672915<br />
Cpl Carey A. Stephens Jr 34796131<br />
Cpl James S. Champion Jr 33713755<br />
November 13, <strong>1944</strong> to 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Frederick W. Tod P 0776133<br />
F/O Lt. Warren N.<br />
Peterson Jr CP T2849<br />
2 nd Lt. Howard R.Morton N 01055394<br />
2 nd Lt. Herman J.D.James B 0783073<br />
Cpl Robert F. Harrison 37483658<br />
Cpl Robert L. Koscki 37563258<br />
Cpl Chester J. Labus 33795580<br />
Cpl Joseph W. Noonan 37632374<br />
Cpl John R. Peterson 36483559<br />
Cpl James R. Turnley 33715358<br />
November 13, <strong>1944</strong> to 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.Donald G. Stuhmer P 0827990<br />
2 nd Lt. Boardman G.<br />
Getsinger Jr CP 0831691<br />
2 nd Lt.William J. Nugent N 02068448<br />
Cpl Keith B. Mink 31450251<br />
Cpl John B. Klein Jr 37140182<br />
Cpl Robert P. McDonald 36435101<br />
Cpl Robert J. Dyer 37683078<br />
Cpl Kenneth T. Ritter 33642094<br />
November 14, <strong>1944</strong> to 712 th Squadron<br />
1 st Lt. James R.C. Cook P 01633141<br />
1 st Lt. Alonzo D.<br />
McAllister CP 0448096<br />
2 nd Lt. Edwin F. Slowick N 0818961<br />
2 nd Lt. Dean E. Peterson B 02064312<br />
T/Sgt John P. Delaney 6289405<br />
Cpl Garland E. Flinn 39472117<br />
Cpl Franklin a. Halferty 35346939<br />
Cpl Howard W. Ivery 35814638
236<br />
Cpl Richard H. McAdams 32609119<br />
Cpl Joseph N. Rodgriquez 16083229<br />
November 15, <strong>1944</strong> to 713 th Squadron<br />
1 st Lt. Howard L. Smith P 0675638<br />
2 nd Lt. John A. Harron CP 0721400<br />
2 nd Lt. Waldo J. Marolf N 02065172<br />
2 nd Lt.Alvin C.Nickerson B 02065407<br />
Cpl Arthur W. Carter Jr 12178347<br />
Cpl John J. Dunden Jr 32937983<br />
Cpl Harry E. Huster Jr 13083681<br />
Cpl David L. Phillips 35633197<br />
Cpl Melvin Schlenoff 33902781<br />
Cpl Mervin E. Schwartz 37589627<br />
November 15, <strong>1944</strong> to 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. John J. Opman P 0822071<br />
2 nd Lt.Donald A.Ouellette CP 0831779<br />
2 nd Lt.Charles J.BallantineN 02065209<br />
Cpl Henry A. Calika 36865856<br />
Cpl Louis Kaplan 12177527<br />
Cpl John M. Roche 36677473<br />
Cpl Harry J. Steeves 11141377<br />
Cpl Edmund B. Szymczak 42027284<br />
Cpl James F. Wivinis 16188906<br />
November 15, <strong>1944</strong> to 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.Harlyn H.Schroeder P 0826014<br />
2 nd Lt. Delwin D.Roorda CP 02062050<br />
2 nd Lt. Joe F. Castle N 01046037<br />
Cpl Norwood A.D. Adler 358099??<br />
Cpl Raymond M. Dailey 35779718<br />
Cpl Thomas L. Economy 3205???6<br />
Cpl Frank C. Lippman 42?????4<br />
Cpl Ervin A. Schilling 161???23<br />
Cpl Edward L. Wetterneck 36823304<br />
November 15, <strong>1944</strong> to 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.Sylvester J. Peresie P 0824201<br />
2 nd Lt. William J. Smith CP 0778984<br />
F/O Henning E. Helsing N T129680<br />
F/O Anthony L. Germele B T5453<br />
Cpl Wayne Sarver 19163202<br />
S/Sgt Noyle A. Wright 19021145<br />
Cpl William F. Eaton Jr 35433622<br />
Cpl Raymond J. Lewis 32948304<br />
Pvt Michele P. Ricciarll Jr 42101769<br />
Cpl James O. Yokley 14194515<br />
November 15, <strong>1944</strong> to 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Guilford D.<br />
Wikender P 0778638<br />
F/O Lex W. Jones CP T128986<br />
F/O Walter D. Fortner N T131825<br />
F/O Ernest R. Belinskas B T5589<br />
Cpl David O. Anthony 36682781<br />
Cpl William T. Matejka 36831384<br />
Cpl Charles W. Peacock 13151754<br />
Cpl James E. Riddle 13189973<br />
Roster of Replacement Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
Cpl Charles R. Steele 33437571<br />
Cpl Warren F. Wheelock 13070564<br />
November 15, <strong>1944</strong> to 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Paul J. Jones P 0718659<br />
2 nd Lt. James Mucha CP 02059408<br />
2 nd Lt. Herman Engel Jr N 02065525<br />
Cpl Charles W. Blaney Jr 36759119<br />
Cpl Leonard E. Dailey 38540952<br />
Cpl Edward W. Danecki 36826828<br />
Cpl Alvin J. Stout 37703586<br />
Cpl William J. Wilson 34892326<br />
Pvt Albert J. Dentley 34824130<br />
November 16, <strong>1944</strong> to 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Earl Furnace P 0711175<br />
2 nd Lt. Thorpe L. Friar CP 0770626<br />
2 nd Lt. Norman W.<br />
Kanwisher N 02056413<br />
S/Sgt Nathan J. Malkin 32087779<br />
S/Sgt James E. Howell 33737992<br />
Sgt Alexander Yarosky 12101126<br />
Sgt Morris E. Gannon 34684506<br />
Sgt. William P. Franks 12203781<br />
Sgt. James C. Allison 39616772<br />
November 16, <strong>1944</strong> to 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Joseph B. Brown P 0708484<br />
2 nd Lt. Richard C.<br />
Seymour CP 0772233<br />
2 nd Lt. Orvie O. Caste Jr N 0722944<br />
S/Sgt Phillip Mazzagetii 38420922<br />
S/Sgt Francis M. Louthan ?6294269<br />
Sgt Jack D. Cowdin 18046184<br />
Sgt Ben E. Vegors Jr 19142303<br />
Sgt William R. Kamedish 17158055<br />
Sgt Leroy R. Romig Jr 33832822<br />
November 16, <strong>1944</strong> to 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Walter Bobak P 0768921<br />
2 nd Lt. Alfred Christ CP 0776203<br />
2 nd Lt.Richard C.Wagner N 0712953<br />
2 nd Lt. Leslie A. Beaton B ???????<br />
S/Sgt Richard Mickelson 17157786<br />
S/Sgt Oranzo J. Ruscitti 39331840<br />
S/Sgt Collis Carlee 14184267<br />
Sgt Morris E. Gannon 34684506<br />
Sgt Donald Bock 17132532<br />
Sgt Arthur Myers 35875778<br />
Sgt Franklin Morgan 35706996<br />
Sgt Richard L. Dietrick 13144154<br />
November 16, <strong>1944</strong> to 714 th Squadron<br />
Capt Edward M. Wall P 0795106<br />
1 st Lt. Willis H. Young CP 0776203<br />
1 st Lt. Charles F. Reeves PN 0712359<br />
1 st Lt. Herman Salyer DRN 0702965<br />
1 st Lt. Norman Segal B 0668794<br />
T/Sgt Ansel J. Gladish 16028322
237<br />
T/Sgt Robert M. Carlton 11129862<br />
Sgt Victor a. Jensen 17028486<br />
S/Sgt Clarence S. Scollard 3745?625<br />
S/Sgt Willoughby 39084353<br />
S/Sgt Harold G. Beams 11071294<br />
November 16, <strong>1944</strong> to 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.Daniel R.Durbin Jr P 0704903<br />
2 nd Lt. Thomas L.<br />
McQueid CP 0886697<br />
2 nd Lt. Donald G. Leetch N 0712854<br />
S/Sgt James H. Count 42001035<br />
S/Sgt Joy C. Christensen 19115992<br />
Sgt James E. McCown 14200127<br />
Sgt Joseph C. Svaton 12175709<br />
Sgt Harry F. McCurdy 12159282<br />
Sgt Alfonso C. Gessonius 39272064<br />
November 17, <strong>1944</strong> to 712 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. James J. Shafter P 0771554<br />
2 nd Lt. John R. Paxson CP 02057389<br />
2 nd Lt. Neal W. Pettit N 0206618<br />
S/Sgt Walter W. Petrovich 35601205<br />
Cpl Virgil F. Beall 38076333<br />
Cpl Daniel G. Graham Jr 16088972<br />
Cpl William L. Kaiser 39577186<br />
Cpl Taylor L. Tarkington 18177172<br />
Cpl Anderson C. Wright 33836022<br />
November 17, <strong>1944</strong> to 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.Kenneth A.Wheeler P 07??679<br />
2 nd Lt.William B.Wiveol CP 0775691<br />
2 nd Lt. Cecil L. Pullen N 02065825<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert H. Piccolo B 0787890<br />
Cpl Robert Drummond 32953248<br />
Cpl Robert S. Messner 12228588<br />
Cpl Paul V. Oskowski 33920308<br />
Cpl Edward W. Pinner 16078736<br />
Cpl Russel R. Sage 35704763<br />
Cpl Edward Wagner 33920010<br />
November 17, <strong>1944</strong> to 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Stanley L. Winter P 0???175<br />
2 nd Lt. Howard A.<br />
Courtnery CP 07????2<br />
F/O Roland T. Hauver N T?9678<br />
F/O Leo J. Dymerski B T????5<br />
Cpl Robert D. Poswor 329?6851<br />
Cpl Walden L. Gibbs ????0835<br />
Cpl Gomber D. Hess ?3919766<br />
Cpl Paul J. Misera ?3?19908<br />
Cpl Linwood H. Peaslee ?13?3568<br />
Cpl George J. Weinberger 39206663<br />
November 17, <strong>1944</strong> to 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.Albert B.Sanders Jr P 0721222<br />
2 nd Lt.Wallace K. Grimes CP 02059504<br />
2 nd Lt. Joseph L. Nathan N 02066023<br />
S/Sgt Gilbert A. Mathias 36247431<br />
Roster of Replacement Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
Cpl Irvin F. Alvey 36685927<br />
Cpl Robert F. Eldridge 17168478<br />
Cpl Warren E. Lutin 36868144<br />
Cpl John P. Royski 42????49<br />
Cpl Pat J. Terrarova ?2238842<br />
November 17, <strong>1944</strong> to 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Courtland C.<br />
Crandall P 0825?81<br />
2 nd Lt. Allan J. Carey Jr CP 0829162<br />
2 nd Lt. Marshall K. Dan N 02066023<br />
Sgt Lewis W. Miller 33158948<br />
Cpl Joseph M. Guthrie 13201139<br />
Cpl Marcus K. Jorgensen 36685028<br />
Cpl John J. Madden 32440676<br />
Cpl Milton M. Olson 36647360<br />
Cpl Oscar W. Olson Jr 15134212<br />
November 17, <strong>1944</strong> to 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Maurice ? ?????? P 0771029<br />
2 nd Lt. Harry H. ????? CP 072?589<br />
2 nd Lt.Clayton J. Berg N 0777561<br />
S/Sgt Carl O. Hightower 18031704<br />
Sgt Bernard T. Fusco ????03??<br />
Cpl Michael D. ????ine ????????<br />
Cpl Robert W. Meroff Jr ????????<br />
Cpl Neil M.Lunis 368?????<br />
Cpl James F. Cummings 15??4578<br />
November 17, <strong>1944</strong> to 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Henry E. Mielke P 0775475<br />
2 nd Lt. Harlan R. Edson CP 02065971<br />
2 nd Lt.Raymond J.Kincaid N 0779157<br />
Cpl Laurence A. Harris 36685434<br />
Cpl Floyd E. Hudson 34916461<br />
Cpl Floyd L. Johnston 35558872<br />
Sgt Jerome A. Korte 36477450<br />
Cpl Harry A. McClure Jr 17168640<br />
Cpl Carl A. Newpher 33681761<br />
November 17, <strong>1944</strong> to 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Paul G. O’Neil P 0?71113<br />
2 nd Lt. Theodore R.<br />
Zimmerman CP 02058344<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert J. Wilkins N 02066088<br />
Sgt Angelo A. Adelizzi 16036369<br />
Cpl Donald Brittingham 13141526<br />
Cpl Dean E. Coolman 16159504<br />
Cpl John R. Gerber 35225207<br />
Cpl Harold L. Lang 39704462<br />
Cpl Myron Rosenthal 36869665<br />
November 17, <strong>1944</strong> to 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.David G. Anderson P 0720103<br />
2 nd Lt.Quinton B. McLay CP 02058848<br />
2 nd Lt. ???? A.Hammond N 02065546<br />
Cpl William B. Davis 33541273<br />
Cpl Theodore E. Dyson 11104482
238<br />
Cpl James W. Harrison 20926606<br />
Cpl Joseph E. Jendzeisyk 12240678<br />
Cpl Raymond W. Kubik 36882355<br />
Cpl Joseph M. Szeliga 36015701<br />
REPLACEMENT CREWS – DECEMBER <strong>1944</strong><br />
December 11, <strong>1944</strong> to 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Knute P. Stalland P 0721875<br />
2 nd Lt.Theodore Warner Jr CP 0928014<br />
2 nd Lt. John M. Heard N 02069015<br />
Cpl Oryn M. Blashe 36841206<br />
Cpl Bobbie C. Glass 38478645<br />
Cpl Frank E. Grogan Jr 14124065<br />
Cpl John M. Kropp 36819181<br />
Cpl Dale W. Overy 35296070<br />
Cpl Joseph F. Parks 38579450<br />
December 13, <strong>1944</strong> to 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Francis R. Piliere P 0829290<br />
2 nd Lt. Raymond E. Gale CP 02063602<br />
2 nd Lt. Joseph F. Chaput N 02068949<br />
Sgt William M. Garrett Jr 38414271<br />
Cpl Ronald F. Burke 11114531<br />
Cpl Milton Greenfield 33791521<br />
Cpl Charles H.J. Nigrin 33734022<br />
Cpl Nicholas W. Porcaro 33828756<br />
Cpl Norman R. Veenstra 31410192<br />
December 13, <strong>1944</strong> to 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.Frederick J.Ha?ned P 0829199<br />
F/O John Ke??ey CP T129030<br />
2 nd Lt. John F. Cascio N 20268947<br />
Sgt Robert O. Folt 13040574<br />
Cpl Harold W. Hulspeth 36677535<br />
Cpl Joseph A. Hutchinson 29924714<br />
Cpl Wallace D. Laufer 36768931<br />
Cpl Edward H. McCuen 18167550<br />
Cpl Bernard M. O’Leary Jr 12205415<br />
December 17, <strong>1944</strong> to 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.William A.Hammes P 0829469<br />
2 nd Lt. John Potgeter CP 0777808<br />
F/O Jules Klingsberg N T132959<br />
1 st Lt. Frank P. Law B 01296394<br />
Cpl William K. Krebs 37704414<br />
Cpl Elbert I. Moore 34732029<br />
Cpl Jerry L. Obermiller 37603717<br />
Cpl Donald J. O’Rourke 36866359<br />
Cpl Charles P. Swindler 33544297<br />
Cpl Elmer C. Witty 36832293<br />
December 20, <strong>1944</strong> to 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Kay L. Flinders P 0721683<br />
2 nd Lt. Lurty M. Reid CP 0831800<br />
2 nd Lt. John J. McNamee N 02068430<br />
Cpl Nick Anast 36696595<br />
Cpl Henry F. Devine 16056638<br />
Roster of Replacement Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
Cpl Earl B. Jordan 34782003<br />
Cpl William B. Meharg 34793089<br />
Cpl Edwin S. Mitchell 33735195<br />
Cpl William E. Myers 1310?591<br />
December 20, <strong>1944</strong> to 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert L. Stewart P 0721683<br />
2 nd Lt. Harold E. Daniels CP 0778657<br />
F/O Charles A. Bales N T126387<br />
F/O Charles M.<br />
Shumaker Jr B T-5625<br />
Cpl William H. Hadley 15304043<br />
Cpl Henry A. Holkenbrink 36693927<br />
Cpl Bernard P. Martin 32810002<br />
Cpl Victor L. Miller 12209561<br />
Cpl Robert V. Ray 36764240<br />
Pvt Frederick Z. Conley 32948839<br />
December 20, <strong>1944</strong> to 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Raymond E.<br />
Bunday P 07?1341<br />
2 nd Lt. George H. Helm CP 0674042<br />
2 nd Lt.Neal P.Schumacher N 02070152<br />
2 nd Lt.Leslie N.Talifaferro B 0785438<br />
Cpl Clarence H. Bales 3772?311<br />
Cpl Charles V. Clark 35233954<br />
Cpl Glenn D. Hill 17147109<br />
Cpl Paul J. Hurton 31427378<br />
Cpl James P. Mathews Jr 34829996<br />
Cpl Harry D. Repp Jr 13141053<br />
December 20, <strong>1944</strong> to 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.Robert A. Paeschke P 0776007<br />
2 nd Lt. Hugh S. Holburn CP 0828623<br />
2 nd Lt. Harold W. Onstad N 02068452<br />
Sgt Paul N. Boyerl 16132172<br />
Cpl Richmond H. Dugger Jr 33645037<br />
Cpl Robert E. George 38534143<br />
Cpl Frank P. Rinaldi 15375752<br />
Cpl Herbert D. Smith 33543226<br />
Cpl Reno A. Tonegate 39403855<br />
December 23, <strong>1944</strong> to 714th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Gordon L. Brock P 0715134<br />
2 nd Lt. Richard Maxwell CP 0928894<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert Angele N 02071489<br />
2 nd Lt. Willard Wombold B 0785447<br />
S/Sgt Alfred F. Mendus 13009899<br />
Cpl Mark W. Anthony 33841613<br />
Cpl Milton F. Burchett, Jr. 37243572<br />
Cpl Richard W. Carlin 16123152<br />
Cpl Edward J. Chu 42120988<br />
Cpl Horace Deane 31371193<br />
REPLACEMENT CREWS – JANUARY 1945<br />
January 17, 1945 to 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.Forrest E.McCreadyP 0721826
239<br />
2 nd Lt. Harold O.Pittenger CP 02071826<br />
2 nd Lt. Eddie O.<br />
McLaughlin Jr N 0928913<br />
2 nd Lt. Earl S. Patterson B 02069712<br />
Cpl Claud E. Lamoy Jr 34848201<br />
Cpl Pat H. Cochran 37706247<br />
Cpl Arthur J. Helganz 36574014<br />
Cpl Merle L. Law 35172764<br />
Cpl Darwin D. Dague 36594095<br />
Cpl Eugene T. Short 36837020<br />
January 20, 1945 to 714 th Squadron<br />
1 st Lt.Samuel H. Moseley P 0727645<br />
2 nd Lt. Charles H. Herring CP 0719070<br />
F/O Forrest F. Hauser N T127938<br />
Cpl George J. Jacobs 15119406<br />
Cpl Sidney Friedman 36760306<br />
Cpl John F. McCarthy 32845101<br />
Cpl Robert C. Rhinard 16153786<br />
Cpl Theodore C. Mower 33708165<br />
Cpl George A. Watkins 33812489<br />
REPLACEMENT CREWS – FEBRUARY 1945<br />
February 2, 1945 to 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. George R. Onufer P 0720343<br />
2 nd Lt. Carl T. Wiley Jr. CP 02058322<br />
F/O Harry S. Wells N T133897<br />
Cpl James O. Attaway 14185093<br />
Cpl Irving H. Horn 12219597<br />
Cpl Frederick D. Neilsen 33682680<br />
Cpl Edward J. Parciak 31379608<br />
Cpl Robert F. Schreier 17071898<br />
Cpl Charles E. Smith 13128493<br />
February 2, 1945 to 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Neil R. McCluhan P 02059556<br />
2 nd Lt. Elias L. King CP 02059938<br />
2 nd Lt. John K. Zeigler N 02071774<br />
2 nd Lt. John C. Carabello B 0785567<br />
Cpl John Berardelli 1308705?<br />
Cpl Donald S. Clark 1532739?<br />
Cpl Wade R. Dodds 3514797?<br />
Cpl Kirby L. Lyle 3468498?<br />
Cpl Chris Snow Jr. 3694707?<br />
Cpl Frederick W. Wichman 3529400?<br />
February 2, 1945 to 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Richard H. Page P 0719717<br />
2 nd Lt. Frederick D. Smit CP 0928938<br />
F/O Richard I.Wooderson N T133901<br />
Cpl Robert F. McClatchey 36758004<br />
Cpl Edmund J. Misbach Jr 1109547?<br />
Cpl Herbert P. Neville 3140761?<br />
Cpl William H. Peel 3462495?<br />
Cpl John Snyder Jr. 3144044?<br />
Cpl Stanley W. Thatcher 1312673?<br />
Roster of Replacement Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
February 5, 1945 to 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.Edward V.AndersonP 02058100<br />
F/O Harold W. Goodman CP T134557<br />
F/O John W. Stanford N T64721?<br />
F/O Douglas R. Schenks B T134393<br />
Cpl Gilbert R. Schenks 38473375<br />
Cpl Bruno J. Murski 1806128?<br />
Cpl Kenneth R. Knowles 1418500?<br />
Cpl Leon P. Stone 3851334?<br />
Cpl John N. Geratey 16173370<br />
Cpl Daniel W. Taylor 33646051<br />
February 11 1945 to 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.Douglas W.TorranceP 0830752<br />
F/O Lt. Alexander A.<br />
Calomeni CP T65763<br />
2 nd Lt. Frederick T.<br />
McKinley N 02074504<br />
Cpl Richard G. Brede 39461036<br />
Cpl Harold M. Burt 36880261<br />
Cpl Lawrence J. Caruso 42009565<br />
Cpl James E. Gleason Jr 31302882<br />
Cpl Edward Paretti 32974580<br />
Cpl Harriman M. Merrill 34598186<br />
February 11, 1945 to 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Horace R. Rigel P 0834016<br />
F/O Earl B. Saxe CP T130599<br />
2 nd Lt. John R. Williams N 02072937<br />
Cpl Vernon E. Burknoske 33734815<br />
Cpl Franklin H. Hastings 33389960<br />
Cpl Louis J. Ladas 31205305<br />
Cpl William Schneider 36761014<br />
Pvt Francis J. Chelland 13056160<br />
Pvt Lucian A. Whipple Jr 14045409<br />
February 11, 1945 to 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.Karl W.Augenstein P 0834347<br />
F/O Herman Decktor CP T65766<br />
F/O John F. Sharpe Jr N T134593<br />
Cpl Salvatore C. DeRosa 32987179<br />
Cpl Norman R. Dunphe 31369563<br />
Cpl John F. Gant 17136302<br />
Cpl William A. Poland 6947419?<br />
Cpl Wilbur Semelvers 35216214<br />
Cpl Robert J. Konkol 33609314<br />
February 15, 1945 to 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.Frederick E.Clarke Jr.P 02061880<br />
F/O David G. Coomer CP T65686<br />
2 nd Lt. Urbain L. Doyle N 02074678<br />
Cpl Frank B. Barrett 14184648<br />
Cpl Harry D. Mitchell III 13140966<br />
Cpl William J. Roberts 31390075<br />
Cpl Dalfino T. Sarina 39417289<br />
Cpl Robert H. Steeves 31405559<br />
Cpl George D. Moreno 39710307<br />
February 15, 1945 to 714 th Squadron
240<br />
2 nd Lt. Gilbert N. Davis P 02064877<br />
F/O Donald E. Fletcher CP T6569<br />
2 nd Lt.Edward M.Furman N 01011479<br />
Cpl Seymour Kaufman 32790620<br />
Cpl Dorman Robertson Jr 38603342<br />
Cpl Paul A. Sarica 33695897<br />
Cpl Fred Stephens 36879277<br />
Cpl Clarence R. Winters 33837338<br />
Cpl Alfred W. Morin 11102998<br />
February 22, 1945 to 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Stanley E. Guiney P 02062098<br />
2 nd Lt. John R. Bohannan CP 0837440<br />
2 nd Lt. Edward R. Casey N 0274665<br />
Cpl Robert H. Corregan 12089866<br />
Cpl Howard P. Martin 33344841<br />
Cpl Nick Mosora 35098758<br />
Cpl Stanley L. Trebbs 36758034<br />
Cpl William J. Juhas 33709727<br />
Cpl Francis G. McCarthy 31310306<br />
February 22, 1945 to 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.Albert W.Halfhill Jr P 02061489<br />
2 nd Lt. Leo T. Fleisch CP 0837596<br />
F/O Craig F. Dinsbier N T137315<br />
T/Sgt James W. Mayfield 6938444<br />
Sgt Joseph F. Macone 11056977<br />
Cpl George F. Lange 11138664<br />
Cpl Francis A. Marrocco 31369915<br />
Cpl Frank M. Zelenitz 35216736<br />
Cpl George Zunigz 18090196<br />
February 27, 1945 to 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Donald M. Ford P 02058765<br />
2 nd Lt.Ralph J. Radowick CP 0930445<br />
2 nd Lt.Clement R. Grosso N 02074401<br />
1 st Lt. William M. Jones B 01285766<br />
Cpl Van W. Fowers 16197961<br />
Cpl Harold B. Heyler 36881409<br />
Cpl Norman C. Poorman 38686629<br />
Cpl Victor F. Reys 33730924<br />
Cpl Charles L. Wingo 33904910<br />
Cpl Edward R. Mikiua 33608921<br />
February 27, 1945 to 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.Elmer M.Homelvig P 02050191<br />
2 nd Lt.Delbert M.Gablock CP 02063603<br />
2 nd Lt.Ferris W.Kennedy N 0930408<br />
F/O Victor Q. Smith B T5715<br />
Cpl John R. Cray 37358202<br />
Cpl Charles E. Nelms 37627536<br />
Cpl Cleatus G. Stone 36742647<br />
Cpl Walton J. Tombari 31381182<br />
Cpl Dale T. Wreisner 17145062<br />
Cpl Emory G. Repass 36657226<br />
February 27, 1945 to 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.Forrest F.Anderson P 0832341<br />
2 nd Lt. Arthur R. Seat Jr CP 02062385<br />
Roster of Replacement Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
2 nd Lt Frank W. Leonard N 02074477<br />
F/O Jerome Brown B T6830<br />
Cpl Elberon G. Andrews 35912737<br />
Cpl Benjamin S. Daniel 16138345<br />
Cpl Douglas J. Fowler 34765092<br />
Cpl Charles E. Schmucker 37706944<br />
Cpl John W. Wideman 37704363<br />
Cpl ????? ? Hutchinson 35221450<br />
February 27, 1945 to 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Harry S. Constable P 0806223<br />
2 nd Lt. Clayton H.Johnson CP 02061962<br />
2 nd Lt. John J.<br />
McConnell Jr N 02074493<br />
F/O John J. Northrup B T5773<br />
Cpl Calvin J. Barnett 16130439<br />
Cpl William J. Davis Jr 37722410<br />
Cpl Byron A. Thomas 39925056<br />
Cpl Milton Clanoff 12129063<br />
Cpl Bernard J. Varney Jr 31339387<br />
Cpl Thomas G. Treadwell 14140979<br />
February 27, 1945 to 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. William E. Dupree P 0832118<br />
2 nd Lt. Harold Major Jr CP 02067316<br />
2 nd Lt. Charles B.<br />
McDonald N 02074495<br />
F/O Harry E. Floyd Jr B T5696<br />
Sgt Peter A. Tell 32075346<br />
Cpl John D. DeLang 17067161<br />
Cpl Paul D. Hestor 18228003<br />
Cpl Walter A. Scheel 35836693<br />
Pvt William A. Oiler 35436498<br />
Cpl Richard E. Sprenkle 3351255?<br />
February 27, 1945 to 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Paul E. Westrick P 02062099<br />
2 nd Lt. Everett R.<br />
Pickering CP 02067346<br />
2 nd Lt. Leon H. Martin N 02074515<br />
2 nd Lt. Thomas V. Scott B 0785138<br />
Sgt William J. Grize 31124923<br />
Cpl Donald J. Eidson 20953835<br />
Cpl Roderic H. Landreth 19215638<br />
Cpl Stuart D. Van Deventer 3858893?<br />
Pvt Herman Watts 1508761?<br />
Cpl John J. Benyo 3360843?<br />
REPLACEMENT CREWS – MARCH 1945<br />
March 17, 1945 to 713 th Squadron<br />
F/O James F. Wagner P T64147<br />
F/O Jerome F. Wassman CP T65186<br />
F/O John W. Allan N T135845<br />
Sgt Linwood O. Patten 33062946<br />
Cpl Robert B. Bailey 33904874<br />
Cpl Robert D. Catone 12229951
241<br />
Cpl Gerald L. Goble 13133481<br />
Cpl Charles P. Holbrook 11104593<br />
Cpl Harrison G. Newcomb Jr 34540299<br />
March 17, 1945 to 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. David L. Davis P 0835454<br />
2 nd Lt. John E. Morrison CP 0837510<br />
2 nd Lt. David M.<br />
Chambers Jr N 02077198<br />
2 nd Lt.William R. Fulton B 02071953<br />
Sgt George S. VanHorn 33364717<br />
Cpl Johnny R. Clary 18210123<br />
Cpl William J. Hawthorne Jr 31336558<br />
Cpl Harold W. Poland 32266456<br />
Cpl James I. Sessums 14150844<br />
Cpl Wayne J. Roache 39918707<br />
March 17, 1945 to 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. John F. Walker P 0821814<br />
2 nd Lt. Stephen Blazek Jr CP 02071938<br />
F/O Donald E.Francisco JrN T66102<br />
F/O Frank Barilla B T137618<br />
S/Sgt Edward L. James 36425125<br />
Sgt John P. O’Conner 11062033<br />
Cpl Simon e. Bukovitz 33429594<br />
Cpl Joseph T. Hurley 31372110<br />
Cpl Leonard A. Poritz 34787460<br />
Cpl Richard S. Shely Jr 15119576<br />
March 29, 1945 to 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. James K. McFerren P 02058231<br />
F/O Alfred M. Bettman CP T65109<br />
2 nd Lt, Ralph E. Williams N 02072939<br />
Cpl Walter D. Grindle Jr 34946134<br />
Cpl Edward V. Ladas 31378761<br />
Cpl Verl D. Moore 13188308<br />
Cpl William C. Morrow 18193279<br />
Cpl Lyle W. Peebles 33712182<br />
Cpl Dean G. Shumaker 15127506<br />
March 29, 1945 to 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. John W. Trostle P 0834062<br />
2 nd Lt. Joe H. Davis CP 0836899<br />
2 nd Lt. Harold W. Harkey N 02075368<br />
Cpl Thomas M. Duke 13142682<br />
Cpl Burton R. Johnson 39334101<br />
Cpl Wynton B. Hudson 18098130<br />
Cpl Robert M. Martin 14193914<br />
Cpl Adelard O. Soucy 31366556<br />
Cpl Francis B. Higgins 34817643<br />
March 29, 1945 to 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. John C. McCoy P 02057337<br />
F/O Bernard J. Banas CP T65103<br />
F/O Clarence H. Leimer N T135784<br />
F/O Saverio J. Juliano B T134418<br />
Cpl Bronislaw J. Kardys 31252333<br />
Cpl Angelo J. Leonetti 13125368<br />
Cpl Frank J. Matula 12100312<br />
Roster of Replacement Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
Cpl Abe L. Morgan 34738387<br />
Cpl Irria J. Peterson 38174375<br />
Cpl James E. Smith 34634691<br />
March 29, 1945 to 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Edward S. Lytle P 02061999<br />
2 nd Lt. Joseph Schweitzer CP 0783844<br />
2 nd Lt. Walter J. David N 02076574<br />
Cpl Donald T. Fox 13113363<br />
Cpl James A. Lamb 35884404<br />
Cpl Stanley Dressler 33260322<br />
Cpl James L. Hicks Jr 33658449<br />
Cpl Philbert N. Weber 17132130<br />
March 29, 1945 to 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Walter J. Peters P 02061755<br />
2 nd Lt. William P.<br />
Leibensperger CP 02062232<br />
2 nd Lt. William P. Leftwich 0928110<br />
Cpl Dewey R. Brosey 35417282<br />
Cpl Alfonso A. Coronado 39421226<br />
Cpl Thomas W. Koopman Jr 32803329<br />
Cpl Donald R. Morrison 19142756<br />
Cpl William J. Wheeler Jr 34903986<br />
Cpl Louis F. Thronson 36834799<br />
March 30, 1945 to 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Warren C. Howard P 0718644<br />
2 nd Lt. John F. Moran CP 0783808<br />
F/O Francis H. Wander N T137476<br />
Cpl John G. Brough 39924939<br />
Cpl Willis C. Conkle 35919380<br />
Cpl Karl G. Kersh 38545998<br />
Cpl Victor L. Patti 17136617<br />
Cpl Miles C. Taylor 18242673<br />
Cpl Charles S.Cobb 14190321<br />
March 29, 1945 to 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Odis O. Willett P 0928360<br />
2 nd Lt. George C.<br />
Bothwell Jr CP 0930903<br />
F/O Adelbert W. Zeitlow N T137479<br />
Sgt William H. Bixler 33111866<br />
Sgt Robert E. Youngquist 20625440<br />
Cpl Eugene F. Dunn 13142661<br />
Cpl Delmar L. Fouts 17070006<br />
Cpl Vincent P. Pronesti 33797807<br />
Cpl Frederick F. Shook 13188211<br />
REPLACEMENT CREWS – APRIL 1945<br />
April 2, 1945 to 713 th Squadron<br />
1 st Lt.Harry H.Mortimore P 01012827<br />
F/O Melville W. Cave CP T129249<br />
F/O Leonard E.Roecker Jr N T7267<br />
2 nd Lt.Luther C.Shelton Jr B 0832712<br />
Sgt Lyle R. Stalnaker 6661496<br />
Cpl Carl W. Anderson Jr 39465799<br />
Cpl Dean A. Brinkerhoff 39858488
242<br />
Cpl Edward E. Carson II 35069576<br />
Cpl Clinton Frankenfield 39218669<br />
Cpl Harry B. Puckett 37732855<br />
April 2, 1945 to 713 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. John Thomas Jr P 0835218<br />
F/O Lawrence Supienko CP T????<br />
2 nd L.t Ansel W. Stork N 0206??50<br />
F/O Joseph A. Benjamin B T??14<br />
Cpl Joseph A. Felipe 3??40149<br />
Cpl Ted M. Harris 39727606<br />
Cpl Raymond E. Neuse 18233046<br />
Cpl William W. Oakey 36838835<br />
Cpl Joseph P. Pilla 37627405<br />
Pvt James E. King 34801078<br />
April 2, 1945 to 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. George H. Roos Jr P 0833590<br />
2 nd Lt. Shirley W. John CP 02070846<br />
2 nd Lt. Peter L. Hollod N 02073125<br />
2 nd Lt. William A.Denten B 0786902<br />
Cpl William L. LeFore 39473173<br />
Cpl Walter R. Budrey 11138060<br />
Cpl Lee E. Cale 37728044<br />
Cpl Woodrow J. Dawson 14191354<br />
Cpl Clyde W. Holder Jr 34923610<br />
Cpl Stephen P. L???? 13141847<br />
April 2, 1945 to 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.William O.Whetsell P 0835306<br />
F/O James Beadling CP T133671<br />
2 nd Lt. Lawrence C.Taylor N 02069157<br />
2 nd Lt. James E. Muenker B 0785206<br />
Cpl Roy H. Bassler 31328988<br />
Cpl Paul B. Davis 14159877<br />
Cpl William T. Hall Jr 18242578<br />
Cpl Robert S. Peterson 11139116<br />
Cpl Robert W. Putney 36645347<br />
Cpl William A. Stone Jr 34657359<br />
April 2, 1945 to 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt.William A.Winburn III<br />
P ????237<br />
2 nd Lt. John A. Burgeman CP 09?????<br />
2 nd Lt.Bernard S.Vaemoni N 020691??<br />
F/O Lawrence W. Tolj Jr B T8294??<br />
Cpl Terrence F. Coyle Jr 4208???1<br />
Cpl Frank R. Delgrosso 33731?46<br />
Cpl John F. Durbin 35833754<br />
Cpl Russell L. Jewett 39918607<br />
Cpl Roy Richburg Jr 1824????<br />
Cpl Franklin D. Stevens 37616969<br />
April 17, 1945 to 715 th Squadron<br />
Capt Daniel H. LaPointe P 0727029<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert J. Hertell CP 01014677<br />
2 nd Lt. George H.Thomas N 02076780<br />
F/O Vincent Donato B T9126<br />
Roster of Replacement Crews Ordered To England - World War II<br />
S/Sgt James Thonis 6147780<br />
Sgt Edward G. Knertz 20253672<br />
Cpl Jack J. Coats 36854728<br />
Cpl Robert E. Greenwell 14160706<br />
Cpl Clay D. McCraw 38608644<br />
Cpl Laverne C. Stricker 16133091<br />
April 17, 1945 to 715 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Joseph H. Andres P 02061462<br />
2 nd Lt. Raymond W. Peterson<br />
CP 02071040<br />
2 nd Lt. Baruyr a. Poladian N 01052521<br />
2 nd Lt. Eugene Stetz B 0788108<br />
Sgt Bernard V. Wright 6874699<br />
Cpl James E. Helmuth 38563671<br />
Cpl Robert B. Loy 16032276<br />
Cpl Daniel J. Marek 38421916<br />
Cpl Vernon E. Moore Jr 34508607<br />
Cpl John A. Waynick 14200281<br />
April 19, 1945 to 714 th Squadron<br />
2 nd Lt. Leroy D. Sentor P 0828794<br />
2 nd Lt. Robert H. Grimes CP 02057280<br />
2 nd Lt. William H. Byrd N 02065953<br />
T/Sgt Ervin D. Sengstock 36828946<br />
T/Sgt James H. Triplet 17159733<br />
S/Sgt Coleman E. King 39295906<br />
S/Sgt Arthur J. Rekart 37612440<br />
S/Sgt Leo M Schade 37624028<br />
S/Sgt Albert M. Kaplan 12100300<br />
S/Sgt John D. O’Leary 12064281<br />
April 19, 1945 to 715 th Squadron<br />
1 st Lt.Robert E.Langenfeld P 0720526<br />
2 nd Lt. George W. Warner CP 0776156<br />
2 nd Lt. Charles W. Parker N 0783148<br />
T/Sgt Robert A. Noel 38478377<br />
T/Sgt Glen M. Hotz 15130720<br />
S/Sgt James E. Davenport 16189182<br />
S/Sgt William J. Potthoff 32984688<br />
S/Sgt Robert J. Krause 36840120<br />
S/Sgt Philip G. Smith 12176765<br />
S/Sgt Edward P Speers 13072554<br />
Arrival date of Lt. Guynes crew shown below is unknown<br />
(about December, <strong>1944</strong>)<br />
Lt. James W. Guynes<br />
Lt. James M. Larson<br />
F/O Aram G. Kadehgian<br />
Lt. Carroll A. Michaels<br />
S/Sgt Lloyd E. Newton<br />
Pvt. Edmund A. Schierenbeck<br />
Sgt John E. Schilling<br />
Sgt James M. Hammon Jr.<br />
Pvt Joseph H. Mull Jr.<br />
Sgt Donal F. Schleicher
243<br />
B-24 DEVELOPMENT AND B-24 CONVERSIONS - World War II<br />
B-24 DEVELOPMENT
244<br />
B-24 DEVELOPMENT AND B-24 CONVERSIONS - World War II<br />
B-24 CONVERSIONS<br />
C-87 LIBERATOR EXPRESS TRANSPORT<br />
This is a B-24 modified with all armament and bombing systems removed for passengers and freight.<br />
The first one (named Pinocchio) was made from a crashed B-24D undergoing repairs, to meet Army<br />
Air Corp specifications. The nose glass was replaced by a hinged metal cap that was hinged on the<br />
upper starboard side for ease of loading and unloading. The tail was faired over with a plexiglass<br />
window. A floor was installed in the bomb bay area and port windows in the sides. A large cargo<br />
door was installed on the port side forward of the tail. Two hundred and ninety one were built in Fort<br />
Worth (including 25 for the RAF and six sleeper aircraft) and thirty five in San Diego for the Navy<br />
designated RY-3.<br />
C-87 PRESIDENTIAL AIRCRAFT<br />
A C-87 was selected for the Presidential aircraft and was the forerunner of today’s Air Force One.<br />
Even the above unarmed C-87 shown here has a certain lethal appearance. Because of its range,<br />
Winston Churchill also used a C-87. It also ferried Roosevelt’s cabinet ministers on dipomatic<br />
missions around the world. Some crew and passenger comforts were added such as cabin heat and<br />
oxygen.
245<br />
B-24 DEVELOPMENT AND B-24 CONVERSIONS - World War II<br />
C-109 TANKER<br />
The C-109 tanker was a B-24J stripped of armament, bombing systems, and turrets. Fairings covered the<br />
turret openings. The C-109 transported fuel to all Air Force units throughtout the world. The C-109 shown<br />
here came to an unlucky end. Before the accident note the 156 camel mission marks representing 156 trips<br />
over “the hump” between India and China. It carried 2900 gallons (1 tank in the nose, 2 tanks in the<br />
bomb bay and 3 tanks in the rear fuselage) & could discharge all in one hour.<br />
F-7 PHOTO RECONNAISSANCE LIBERATOR “Photo Fanny” was assigned to the<br />
22nd BG on Okinawa. All bombing equipment was removed. F-7A had three (3) cameras in the<br />
nose and three<br />
(3) in the bomb<br />
b a y . O n e<br />
hundred and<br />
eighty two (182)<br />
were built. The<br />
F-7B differed<br />
only from the F-<br />
7A in that it<br />
carried (11)<br />
cameras, all in<br />
the bomb bay.<br />
Thirty two of<br />
these were built.
246<br />
B-24 DEVELOPMENT AND B-24 CONVERSIONS - World War II<br />
PB4Y-2 PRIVATEER<br />
The primary role of the PB4Y, both 1 and 2, was medium to low level long range patrol so the weight was reduced<br />
considerably by replacing the turbo-supercharged engines with non-supercharged engines and replacing the twin-fins<br />
and rudder with a single tail. A 7 foot extension was added to the fuselage to accommodate a Flight Engineer’s station<br />
for the long over-water flights and it was called PB4Y-2 Privateer. It carried two dorsal carried a pair of .50 caliber<br />
machine guns. The Sperry ball turret was eliminated. Seven hundred and thirtmounted power turrets. The waist gun<br />
positions were replaced with a tear drop shaped “blister” one each side that y nine were built at San Diego. They were<br />
in service until 1964 and the only U.S. heavy bomber to fly in all four of America’s modern wars.<br />
(XB-24N was an extensive redesign of the B-24J made by consolidated for the Army Air Force featuring a<br />
single tail and rudder giving increased stability, with a nose and tail turret, as well as other aerodynamic refinements<br />
reducing drag and improving performance of the B-24. In a test program in November, <strong>1944</strong> it was found to be<br />
superior in all respects to the B-24J and represented the ultimate in war-time development. Thousands were ordered by<br />
the Army Air Force only to be cancelled before a single production aircraft could be built when the war ended.)<br />
PB4Y-1 NAVY LIBERATOR<br />
This was the first Navy version of the B-24 J, L, M & D frames but with little change. Production totaled 977. It was<br />
for anti-submarine patrol & to search out Japanese warships. The above Navy sea blue planes with red tails & red outer<br />
wings were stationed in Alaska & designed with those colors to aid search parties in case of a crash landing.
247<br />
TIME OUT FOR “R & R”(REST AND RELAXATION) THEN BACK TO “R & R”(RETURN & REALITY)- World War II<br />
REST AND RELAXATION<br />
aka “FLAK LEAVE”<br />
KNIGHTSHAYES COURT, TIVERTON DEVON<br />
About halfway through a crew’s allotted missions, they<br />
were sent to (“R & R”) various “Rest & Relaxation”<br />
centers located around Great Britain. These places were<br />
administered by the 8th Air Force Service Command.<br />
These hostels were large county estates with extensive<br />
sport and amusement facilities. The first rest home was<br />
set up in January,1943. The officers of our crew were<br />
sent to the country estate known as Knightshayes Court<br />
in Tiverton, Devon. It was requisitioned by the<br />
authorities and used as a convalescent home for all<br />
Allied forces but in particular by the Eighth Air Force<br />
for rest and recuperation. How enjoyable it was to get<br />
into casual clothes, play bridge, go to the skeet range,<br />
play volleyball and having red cross girls for partners.<br />
No wake-up calls for missions - one could sleep late in<br />
large beds with fresh linens. The happy hour before<br />
dinner was most enjoyable and dinner was served in a<br />
large elegant oak paneled dining room. These places<br />
were referred to as “flak shacks” or “flak houses” by<br />
the veterans. Knightshayes Court was the country<br />
estate of Sir John Amory whose wealth was from the<br />
leather & shoe industry. However, after R&R (Rest &<br />
Relaxation) came another R&R (Return to Reality)<br />
and back to the war. Many ex-service men have<br />
revisited it down through the years and rekindled<br />
memories of this house and its lovely grounds. After<br />
the war, Sir John & Lady Heathcoat Amory occupied<br />
it again and lived in the house until Sir John’s death in<br />
1972, when it was handed over into guardianship of<br />
the National Trust. Lady Amory still lives in the east<br />
wing of the house. Sir John’s brother was Viscount<br />
Amory, distinguished member of parliament,<br />
Chancellor of the Exchequer & Governor General of<br />
Canada who died in 1981.
248<br />
THE NOSE ART ON OUR AIRCRAFT - World War II<br />
THE GREMLIN’S ROOST<br />
Page thirteen (13) of this “Flight Record” addresses the<br />
application of the nose art on our aircraft when it was<br />
picked up by our crew in Topeka, Kansas. The crewmembers<br />
preferred a sexy, busty blonde which would<br />
have been OK, however it appeared to have been overdone<br />
at the time. “THE GREMLIN’S ROOST” was<br />
selected for the reasons given on page thirteen (13). The<br />
artist applied the applicable crewmember with a caricature<br />
of a gremlin representing that particular crewmembers<br />
duties. As you can see from the picture above,<br />
Bruce Anderson is shown as flying blind, and Richard<br />
Best, navigator is puzzled by the moon, stars and other<br />
heavenly bodies. Part of John Roche’s caricature is visible<br />
but I do not recall what humor was applied to his<br />
position (flight engineer) or to any of the other crewmembers.<br />
The nose art as you can see was personalized.<br />
If I had known at the time that this aircraft was<br />
not permanently assigned to our crew and that replacement<br />
crews flying overseas were not flying their own<br />
planes, but simply ferrying replacement planes to replace<br />
those shot down or otherwise damaged, I would<br />
have had a different form of nose art. Crews didn’t<br />
have their own planes contrary to public perception<br />
and press stories. Both crews and planes arriving overseas<br />
were replacements and were not assigned together<br />
but separately to whatever Bomb Group needed<br />
a crew or an aircraft.
249<br />
712TH<br />
SQUADRON<br />
HISTORY FROM ACTIVATION MAY, 1943 TO ARRIVAL IN ENGLAND - World War II<br />
713TH<br />
SQUADRON<br />
Special Order No. 58 was issued from<br />
Headquarters, Second Air Force, Fort George<br />
Wright, Washington, date April 22, 1943 pursuant<br />
to instructions in a restricted War Department<br />
letter of April 6, 1943 activating certain Army Air<br />
Force Units including the 448th Bombardment<br />
Group (H) and it's four Squadrons, the 712th,<br />
713th, 714th and 715th. The station of activation<br />
was AAB, Gowen Field, Boise, Idaho. Levels of<br />
strength required were 25% by June 1, 1943, 50%<br />
by July 1, 1943 and 100% by July 25, 1943. The<br />
order was issued by Command of Major General<br />
Johnson and signed by Edwin B. Broadhurst, Lt.<br />
Col. acting Chief of Staff, and by Harris F.<br />
Scherer, Colonel, Adjutant General.<br />
The unit was formally organized at Gowen<br />
Field, Boise, Idaho under Special Order No. 145<br />
of Headquarters, Second Air Force on May 25,<br />
1943. The greater part of the personnel for the<br />
448TH BOMBARDMENT GROUP<br />
20TH COMBAT WING<br />
2ND BOMBARDMENT DIVISION<br />
EIGHTH AIR FORCE<br />
714TH<br />
SQUADRON<br />
715TH<br />
SQUADRON<br />
Headquarters detachment and the four Squadrons<br />
(712, 713, 714, 715) was supplied by the 6th,<br />
43rd, 52nd, and 411th Squadrons and<br />
Headquarters detachment of the 29th<br />
Bombardment Group (H) at Gowen Field, Boise,<br />
Idaho. The original Headquarters detachment<br />
obtained from the 29th Group had the strength of<br />
seven officers and 9 enlisted men. Each squadron<br />
had eleven officers and 58 enlisted men, except<br />
the 713th which had twelve officers. Special<br />
Order No. 147 amended No. 145 adding one<br />
officer and 6 enlisted men to each squadron. The<br />
713th still had one extra officer. The personnel<br />
were left attached to the 29th Group for rations,<br />
quarters, and duty until the Group moved out to<br />
its new station.<br />
GROUP COMMANDER - Colonel James McK.<br />
Thompson (O-17992). He was 37 years of age
250<br />
HISTORY FROM ACTIVATION MAY, 1943 TO ARRIVAL IN ENGLAND - World War II<br />
and had enlisted in the Regular Army on February<br />
22, 1929. He took flying training at Brooks Field,<br />
Texas, and at Kelly Field, Texas completing his<br />
training in 1939. In 1933-34 he attended<br />
Engineering and Armament School at Chanute<br />
Field, Illinois. He took technical training at<br />
Maxwell Field Alabama Tactical School in 1940.<br />
Prior to his assignment as Commanding Officer<br />
Col. James McK. Thompson<br />
Commanding Officer<br />
of the 448th Bomb Group, he was Air Inspector at<br />
Knollwood Field, Headquarters Technical<br />
Training Command.<br />
GROUP EXECUTIVE OFFICER - Lt. Col. Carl<br />
L. Elver (0-25516), 36 years of age and was<br />
commissioned in the Officers Reserve Corps June<br />
6, 1942. He was called to active duty May 30,<br />
1942. Prior to this assignment, Colonel Ever was<br />
Executive Officer of LeMoore Flying School,<br />
California.<br />
DEPUTY COMMANDER - Major (now Lt. Col.)<br />
Hubert Stonewall Judy, Jr. (0-406697). Lt. Col.<br />
Harvey Regan originally filled this position but<br />
was transferred on July 27, 1943 to Hamilton<br />
Field, California for overseas duty. Major Milton<br />
Major (Now Lt. Col.) Karl Elver<br />
Ground Executive<br />
Major Hubert Stonewall Judy, Jr.<br />
Air Executive<br />
E. Thompson became Deputy Commander but he<br />
too was transferred from the Group on <strong>October</strong>
251<br />
HISTORY FROM ACTIVATION MAY, 1943 TO ARRIVAL IN ENGLAND - World War II<br />
14, 1943. Col. Judy was 28 years of age and<br />
assumed this position on <strong>October</strong> 16, 1943. He<br />
was called to active duty from the Officers<br />
Reserve Corps on March 15, 1941. He is a<br />
graduate of Oklahoma University and served as<br />
flying instructor at Kelly Field from active duty to<br />
June 26, 1943. He was a student officer at the Fort<br />
Worth B-24 School and an Engineer-Pilot with<br />
the 29th Bomb Group, Gowen Field, Boise,<br />
Idaho. Prior to this assignment he was<br />
Commanding Officer of the 331st Provisional<br />
Group at Casper, Wyoming.<br />
GROUP ADJUTANT - Major James R.<br />
Patterson (0-472768). Captain Kenneth<br />
Parkinson filled this position until <strong>October</strong><br />
19,1943. Major Patterson was 27 years of age and<br />
called to active duty from the Officers Reserve<br />
Corps on May 16, 1942. Prior to this assignment<br />
he was Executive Officer of Sacramento Air<br />
Captain (now Major)James R. Patterson<br />
S-1<br />
Reserve Command Center. He also assumed other<br />
duties as Assistant Executive Officer, Group<br />
Captain (now Major) Ronald V. Kramer<br />
Operations Officer<br />
Administrative Inspector & S.I. and Air Inspector.<br />
OPERATIONS OFFICER - Major (formerly<br />
Captain) Ronald W. Kramer (0-430686), 23<br />
years of age, enlisted December 12, 1941 & was<br />
commissioned in the AUS September 2, 1942. He<br />
was a pre-war private pilot and received advance<br />
flying training at Barksdale, Florida. Prior to this<br />
assignment, Major Kramer was instructor-pilot<br />
with the 411th Bomb Squadron at Gowen Field,<br />
Boise, Idaho.<br />
ASSISTANT OPERATIONS OFFICER - Captain<br />
(formerly 1st. Lt.) John E. Grunow (0-422081),<br />
24 years of age, enlisted June 5, 1941. After<br />
completing pilot training, he attended small arms<br />
school at Camp Perry, Ohio. He joined the Group<br />
July 27, 1943 and was a pilot in the 382nd Bomb<br />
Group (H) prior to this assignment.<br />
ASSISTANT OPERATIONS OFFICER - 1st. Lt.<br />
Frank E. Phillips (0-2043736), 24 years of age<br />
was called to active duty from the Officers<br />
Reserve Corps on December 1, 1942. He had pre
252<br />
HISTORY FROM ACTIVATION MAY, 1943 TO ARRIVAL IN ENGLAND - World War II<br />
flight training at Santa Ana and took bombardiers<br />
training with tactical units. He joined the group<br />
on August 20, 1943 and was previously a<br />
bombardier with the 382nd Bomb Group.<br />
G R O U P<br />
N A V I G A T I O N<br />
OFFICER - 1st. Lt.<br />
Minor L. Morgan (0-<br />
660224), 23 years of age<br />
and commissioned in<br />
the AUS on May 2,<br />
1942. Prior to this<br />
assignment, he was<br />
navigator with the 43rd<br />
Bomb Squadron, 29th<br />
Bombardment Group at<br />
Gowen Field, Boise,<br />
Idaho.<br />
GROUP<br />
BOMBARDIER<br />
OFFICER - 1st. Lt.<br />
Arthur S. Hunt (0-<br />
Lt. John E. D. Grunow<br />
Assistant Operations Officer<br />
729755), 24 years of age and was commissioned<br />
in the AUS on May 20, 1941. He had primary<br />
flight training at King City, California and<br />
advanced flying training at Kirtland Field,<br />
California. Prior to this assignment he was<br />
Bombardier-instructor with the 52nd Bomb<br />
Squadron at Gowen Field, Boise, Idaho.<br />
INTELLIGENCE OFFICER - Major (formerly<br />
Captain) Suel O. Arnold (0-492476), 46 years<br />
old and commissioned in the AUS on September<br />
16, 1942. He served 19 months in the field<br />
artillery in World War I (10 of those months in<br />
the AEF in France). In civilian life, he was a<br />
corporation attorney in Milwaukee for 18 years.<br />
He attended the AAFIS School at Harrisburg, Pa.<br />
Prior to joining the Group, he was S-2 Officer<br />
with the 331st Bomb Group at Casper, Wyoming.<br />
The first movement was of a group of key<br />
personnel in two echelons to the Army Air Force<br />
School of Applied Tactics, Orlando, Florida as<br />
designated in Special Orders No. 147 and 148,<br />
dated 22 May, 1943 and 28 May, 1943 issued by<br />
448th Headquarters at Gowen Field, Idaho. The<br />
rail echelon arrived at Orlando on 2 June, 1943<br />
and was joined by the air echelon under Special<br />
Order No. 151 dated 31 May, 1943 and by the<br />
2 ND AIR DIVISION LOSSES<br />
GROUP AIRFIELD <strong>MISSION</strong>S SORTIES LOSSES<br />
93 Hardwick 396 9321 140<br />
44 Shipdham 343 9157 192<br />
389 Hethel 321 8683 153<br />
392 Wendling 285 8015 184<br />
445 Tibenham 282 8085 133<br />
446 Bungay 273 8180 86<br />
448 Seething 262 7707 135<br />
453 Old Buckenham 259 7431 83<br />
458 Horsham 240 6592 65<br />
466 Attlebridge 232 6478 72<br />
467 Rackheath 212 6087 48<br />
491 North Pickenham<br />
& Metfield 187 5548 70<br />
489 Halesworth 106 3259 41<br />
(Above division losses taken from “The 1000 Day Battle” by James<br />
Hoseason.)
253<br />
HISTORY FROM ACTIVATION MAY, 1943 TO ARRIVAL IN ENGLAND - World War II<br />
DATE OF<br />
OTHER POSITIONS S.N. AGE RANK NAME USA COM<strong>MISSION</strong><br />
PHOTO INTELLIGENCE OFFICER 0-571189 31 1st. Lt. George O. Capp 1-20-43<br />
He studied at the Army Air Force Intelligence School at Harrisburg, Pa. Courses were combat intelligence<br />
and photo intelligence. Prior to this assignment, he was photo intelligence officer for the 411th Bomb<br />
Squadron.<br />
ENGINEERING OFFICER 0-415499 23 Captain William R. Laws 1-9-42<br />
He had engineering courses at the A.C. Technical School and prior to this assignment, he was Commanding<br />
Officer of a squadron for the 18 Replacement Wing at Salt Lake City.<br />
GROUP STATISTICAL OFFICER 0-649388 25 Captain Franklin R. Miles 9-12-42<br />
He was a 1st Lt., now Captain. He studied at the Army Air Force Statistical School, Orlando, Florida. Prior<br />
to this assignment, he was the Statistical Officer with a provisional Bomb Group, Casper, Wy.<br />
ASSISTANT GROUP STATISTICIAN 0-649608 23 1st Lt. William C. Cates 12-5-42<br />
He graduated from Officers Candidate School, Miami Beach and attended the AAF Statistical School. Prior<br />
to this assignment he was the Statistical Officer for the 1st. Heavy Bombardment Hdqtrs. and was 2nd Lt.,<br />
now 1st. Lt.<br />
GROUP WEATHER OFFICER 0873363 27 2nd. Lt. John H. Olhaber 5-10-43<br />
0-873264 ? 2nd. Lt. Arthur K. Howell ?<br />
Prior to his assignment to the Group, Lt. Olhaber was Weather Officer for the 399th Bombardment Group,<br />
Wendover, Utah. He studied at the Army Air Force Weather School. Lt. Olhaber was killed enroute to<br />
England in an aircraft that crashed at Marrakech, French Morocco. He was succeeded by Lt. Arthur K.<br />
Howell from the 58th Statistical Complement Squadron.<br />
GROUP COMMUNICATIONS OFFICER 0-859458 22 1st. Lt. Jack G. Nelson 12-26-42<br />
Lt. Nelson was 2nd., now 1st. Lt. He attended AAFTS Communications<br />
School.Prior to this assignment, he was Group Communications Off. for the 29th BG. at Gowen Field,<br />
Boise, Idaho.<br />
GROUP FLIGHT SURGEON 0-405121 35 Major Patrick H. Hoey 10-12-40<br />
Prior to this assignment, he was Group Surgeon with the 331st Prov.Bomb Group (H). He took a refresher<br />
course at the Medical Field Surgery School, Randolph Field, Texas. He was a Captain., now Major.<br />
GROUP DENTAL OFFICER 0-1689892 31 Captain Julius M. Flsohn 7-20-42 He was 1st. Lt., now Captain and joined<br />
the Group on 7-5-43. He was Assistant Dental Surgeon at Wendover Field, Utah.<br />
GROUP CHAPLAIN 0-494940 40 Captain William R. Reid 9-8-42<br />
In Civilian life, he was University Pastor at Cornell University. He attended Army Chaplain School at<br />
Harvard University. He was the Chaplain with the Second Air Force Headquarters prior to this assignment.<br />
For medical reasons he was not allowed to go overseas and the Group remained without a Chaplain.<br />
SPECIAL SERVICES OFFICER 0-579576 33 2nd. Lt. Herbert F. Walters 4-16-43<br />
He joined the Group after attending the Special Services Officers School at Miami Beach, Florida.<br />
POST EXCHANGE OFFICER 0-93993 35 Captain William A. Thompson 6-12-42<br />
He attended the Army Post Exchange School at Princeton University. Prior to joining the Group on 9-4-43,<br />
he was Field Exchange Officer at Wendover Field, Utah.<br />
SERGEANT MAJOR 14040294 28 M/Sgt. Wilfred J. Carroll 1-28-41<br />
He was Sergeant Major with the 29th Bombardment Group (H) prior to this unit assignment.<br />
AIRPLANE INSPECTOR 6788860 35 M/Sgt. Anthony P. Dennis 10-9-41<br />
He previously served 11 years in the U.S. Army and had courses in engine mechanics at Luke Field<br />
Technical School. Prior to this assignment, he was Air Inspector with the 29th Bombardment Group at<br />
Gowen Field, Idaho.<br />
INTELLIGENCE CHIEF 31118322 23 M/Sgt. James D. McIntyre 4-27-42<br />
Sgt. McIntyre was inducted. He attended the Second Air Force Intelligence School at Salt Lake City, Utah.<br />
Prior to this assignment, he was Intelligence Chief with the 382nd Bombardment Group.<br />
OPERATIONS CHIEF 6994020 23 M/Sgt. Theodore Wladyke 3-1-40<br />
He served one year and two months in the Regular Army and was operations chief with the 29th<br />
Bombardment Group prior to this unit assignment.<br />
S-4 CHIEF 33221158 28 T/Sgt. Hunter W. Martin 9-1-42<br />
Sgt. Martin was also inducted. He attended the Clerical School at Gowen Field and was S-4 chief with the<br />
29th Bombardment Group prior to this unit assignment.<br />
ARMAMENT INSPECTOR 37200833 26 T/Sgt. Walker H. Abington 5-7-42<br />
Like Sgts. McIntyre and Martin above, Sgt. Abington was inducted. He was in the ROTC for 3 years and<br />
attained the rank of Captain and attended armament school at Lowry Field, Colorado. He was previously<br />
Armament Inspector with the 29th Bombardment Group prior to this unit assignment.<br />
Group Commander James McK. Thompson who<br />
was assigned under Special Order No 78, Ft.<br />
George Wright, Washington and by Deputy<br />
Commander Harvey Regan assigned under<br />
Special Order No. 21, El Paso, Texas. This<br />
movement was made with four B-24 aircraft<br />
which served as the training nucleus during the<br />
period in Orlando.<br />
After attending classes for two weeks, the<br />
Group moved to Pinecastle Army Air Base for
254<br />
HISTORY FROM ACTIVATION MAY, 1943 TO ARRIVAL IN ENGLAND - World War II<br />
448 TH BOMB GROUP STATISTICS<br />
Dropped 15,286 tons of bombs – 140 tons of supplies<br />
47 enemy aircraft destroyed<br />
98 aircraft MIA (missing in action)<br />
17 aircraft abandoned on the continent<br />
31 aircraft lost by salvage<br />
875 men MIA (missing in action)<br />
85 men KIA (killed in action)<br />
119 men injured or died of wounds<br />
68.7% of missions to Germany<br />
29.1 % of missions to France<br />
2.2% of missions to Holland & Belgium<br />
172 different targets – 110 in Germany, 57 in France,<br />
5 in Holland & Belgium<br />
4 cargo missions to France<br />
1 troop & equipment movement to France<br />
Aircraft maintenance was high (on average 80%<br />
of aircraft on hand was fully operational)<br />
Of the original 70 crews, 2 were lost enroute, 27<br />
completed their tours, 28 MIA, 5 transferred<br />
to other units, 1 lost by accident, and 7 split<br />
up for spares.<br />
(Above statistics taken from “The 1000 Day Battle” by<br />
James Hoseason.)<br />
two weeks of simulated combat conditions. Here<br />
the Group worked under the 9th Bombardment<br />
Group. Upon receipt of designated targets from<br />
Headquarters, it was the duty of the 448th<br />
Bombardment Group staff to plan the complete<br />
mission and to execute it. Operations were carried<br />
out in tents, personnel lived in tents, ate from<br />
mess kits and got a taste of operating under<br />
primitive conditions.<br />
The drama of an actual sea-search added<br />
to the training. On a simulated mission to<br />
Charleston, N.C., a plane from another Group<br />
stationed on the same field was reported down at<br />
sea off the Atlantic coast. Upon their return from<br />
the simulated mission, all Groups were dispatched<br />
on a search. After 48 hours it was ascertained that<br />
the missing aircraft made a safe landing at a<br />
remote field inland from the coast. The time in the<br />
search was good indoctrination for those<br />
participating and not considered wasted<br />
time.<br />
On 30 June, 1943 a move was<br />
made from Orlando to Wendover Field,<br />
Utah again in two echelons, rail and air.<br />
On the same date an advance party from<br />
those remaining at Gowen consisting of<br />
2 officers and 8 enlisted men left Gowen<br />
for Wendover to be followed by the<br />
remainder of the ground echelon on 2<br />
July, 1943 under Special Order No. 183.<br />
On 1 July, 1943 Captain Lester M. List<br />
was assigned to the Group from the 29th<br />
Bombardment Group as Executive<br />
Officer of the 713th Squadron. The air<br />
echelon from Orlando arrived at<br />
Wendover Field on 6 July, 1943 with the<br />
ground echelon arriving 7 July. The<br />
Group went through a manning period<br />
and the first consignment of 12 crews<br />
arrived 18 July, 1943. An operational<br />
training period was begun but training<br />
was difficult with only four aircraft.<br />
Considerable planning was required.<br />
Most crews had not completed first<br />
phase training so it was necessary to<br />
carry through all three phases of training. A very<br />
intensive period of ground school was also begun<br />
for both ground and flying pesonnel.<br />
THE 448TH’S COMMANDING OFFICERS WERE:<br />
Col. James M. Thompson—From inception May, 1943<br />
until April 1, <strong>1944</strong> when he was killed leading a raid on<br />
that day.<br />
Col. Gerry Mason—April 3, <strong>1944</strong> to Nov. 13. <strong>1944</strong><br />
Col. Charles B. Westover—Nov. 14, to May 27, 1945<br />
Col. Lester F. Miller—May 27, 1945 to July, 1945.<br />
The only major change in the Group was<br />
the transfer of Lt. Col. Harvey Regan to Hamilton<br />
Field, California for an overseas assignment. He<br />
was replaced with Major Milton Thompson on 15<br />
July, 1943. On 10 August, 1943 the Group<br />
acquired 16 more crews and another 10 crews on
255<br />
HISTORY FROM ACTIVATION MAY, 1943 TO ARRIVAL IN ENGLAND - World War II<br />
27 August, 1943. During<br />
the period 7 more B-24's<br />
were acquired. The Group<br />
was alerted for a move to<br />
Fairmount, Nebraska in the<br />
middle of August but it was<br />
cancelled. On 1 September,<br />
1943 the Group was in<br />
phase two training with 39<br />
crews, and 11 aircraft.<br />
Phase three<br />
training in Squadron and<br />
Group formation was<br />
accomplished at Sioux City<br />
Air Base and completed on<br />
3 November, 1943. On that<br />
date the Group left Sioux<br />
City and proceeded to<br />
Herrington, Kansas for<br />
processing and transfer to<br />
overseas duty per Special<br />
Order No. 307 issued at<br />
Sioux City, Iowa dated 3<br />
November, 1943. The<br />
Group had 38 crews and 11<br />
aircraft. Only just prior to<br />
the move to Herrington,<br />
Kansas was the full<br />
complement of ground<br />
crew, combat crews, staff<br />
and aircraft made up. It<br />
appears the training was<br />
hurried and incomplete.<br />
Captain Kramer and 1st Lt.<br />
John Grunow were experienced<br />
four-engine pilots<br />
and had been test pilots at Wright Patterson Field.<br />
Most of the other pilots had less than 30 hours of<br />
four-engine flying time.<br />
At Herrington, Kansas all crews<br />
were checked by operations on both actual flights<br />
and in the classroom for proficiency or lack of it.<br />
The entire Group passed all tests. The flight<br />
echelon was given clothing wherever shortages<br />
existed. All attended classes in security, briefing<br />
SEE LARGER PICTURE ON PAGE 292<br />
classes for the flight to the theatre of operations<br />
and technical classes for particular crew positions.<br />
The men were given beneficial lectures by others<br />
who had been shot down and escaped from the<br />
enemy. All personal records were checked and<br />
wills and allotments made available to those<br />
desiring them. After medical checks were given,<br />
the first crews were ready for departure to<br />
Morrison Field, West Palm Beach, Florida on 11<br />
November, 1943. The Group now had 60 crews
256<br />
HISTORY FROM ACTIVATION MAY, 1943 TO ARRIVAL IN ENGLAND - World War IIand the planes left during the next 7 days.<br />
COMMANDING GENERAL - 8TH AIR FORCE<br />
James (Jimmy) H. Doolittle<br />
and the planes left during the next 7 days. There<br />
were a few delays and the last ship left on 30<br />
November, 1943.<br />
At Morrison Field, a final check of<br />
equipment, ships and personnel was made - - -<br />
and then the trip across. It was the winter season<br />
and the southern route was taken. The air echelon<br />
departed in 64 planes and the destination was<br />
Puerto Rico. Lt. Col. Carl Ever, Captain Kramer,<br />
and Major Suel Arnold were transported to<br />
England by ATC through the northern route.<br />
Their task was to ready the field at Seething and<br />
to get everyone prepared at 20th Combat Wing<br />
for the arrival of over 2000 men and equipment.<br />
Each aircraft carried a sealed envelope to be<br />
opened after being air-borne for 2 hours. It read<br />
"for assignment with the Eighth Air Force in the<br />
United Kingdom".The southern route took them to<br />
Trinidad, to Belem, to Natal. At Belem, Brazil,<br />
2nd Lt. Carroll C. Key, pilot of crew #10 lost his<br />
left arm when he ground looped his plane while<br />
landing during a tropical rain storm. He landed<br />
too long on a short runway and broke the left<br />
undercarriage. The propeller from #2 engine<br />
broke, entered the cockpit and severed his arm.<br />
No one else was injured and the rest of the crew<br />
was flown to England by ATC.<br />
The Atlantic crossing from Natal, Brazil<br />
to Dakar, Africa was a 1200 mile (11 hours) overwater<br />
flight. Take-off was at 01:00 hours, the first<br />
night take off of the trip. Crews were warned<br />
about false signals from German submarines<br />
duplicating the Dakar radio-range and to use dead<br />
reckoning if their compass reading differed from<br />
the radio-range. Considering the first 6 or so<br />
hours were in darkness, celestial navigation could<br />
be used. The trip was uneventful except for one<br />
plane which jettisoned all equipment to maintain<br />
and hold altitude. From Dakar they flew north to<br />
Marrakech, French Morocco.<br />
From Marrakech, aircraft were dispatched<br />
to the U.K. over a period of 11 days. Their next<br />
stop would be St. Mawgan Field, Newquay,<br />
England. It was a midnight departure flying<br />
northwest to the 12 o Meridian and parallel to the<br />
Spanish coast to the United Kingdom. To insure<br />
against turning too soon and flying over occupied<br />
France, crews were to fly 30 minutes beyond their<br />
ETA before turning to England. They also had to<br />
avoid the Bristol Channel (no planes allowed) and<br />
P-38 LIGHTNING<br />
One of our little friends - 364th FG was stationed at<br />
Honington
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HISTORY FROM ACTIVATION MAY, 1943 TO ARRIVAL IN ENGLAND - World War II<br />
to avoid barrage balloons in this part of England<br />
noted for fog and low ceilings.<br />
Crew #42 piloted by 2nd Lt. Joseph W.<br />
Shanks lost an engine 75 miles out. On his<br />
return to Marrakech, he flew too far south and<br />
crashed into the Atlas mountains with 14 men<br />
aboard which included the Group Weather<br />
Officer, Lt. John H. Olhaber. On December 8,<br />
P-51 MUSTANG<br />
One of our little friends - their home base was at<br />
Little Walden.<br />
1943, 2nd Lt. John P. Rhodes with crew #9<br />
flying "Finks Jinx" crashed after take off. It<br />
blew up with 14 men aboard which included the<br />
712th Squadron's Communication Officer, Lt.<br />
John Bilyk. Those following had to take off over<br />
the fire and heat at the end of the runway. Crew<br />
#5 piloted by Robert C. Ayrest in "Laki-Nuki"<br />
took off the day before (7 December, 1943) and<br />
were unaccounted for after arrival in England by<br />
other crews. They had force landed in Wales<br />
after running out of fuel. They over-flew the<br />
Brest Peninsula in France due to wind shifts.<br />
They attempted a landing thinking they were in<br />
England. The Germans were directing them to<br />
an appropriate runway when the crew saw the<br />
German markings on parked aircraft. After<br />
raising their landing gear and climbing out,<br />
German defenses began firing, scoring several<br />
hits in the left wing and wounding the pilot.<br />
However, they struggled back to England and<br />
crash landed in Wales. The entire crew escaped<br />
injury but the plane was totally destroyed when<br />
it burned.<br />
On 9 December, 1943 a briefing was<br />
given at St. Mawgan Airfield for the flight to<br />
Seething Airfield near Norwich in County<br />
Norfolk. The flight skirted London and then up to<br />
East Anglia. On the morning of 10 December,<br />
they took off in three ship elements and flew<br />
formation for the two hundred miles. However, a<br />
severe and blinding snowstorm forced a landing<br />
at an RAF base near Swindon. In the middle of<br />
the afternoon it cleared and they proceeded. This<br />
time they over-flew and passed the English coast<br />
but made contact with Seething Tower, USAAF<br />
Station #146 (code name "Bright Green") and at<br />
arrival were directed in by yellow flares.<br />
Individual aircraft were met by a jeep and<br />
directed to its appropriate hard-stand. Individual<br />
Squadrons were flagged to their separate areas.<br />
They were greeted by familiar faces because the<br />
ground echelon was there and had won the sea-air<br />
race to Seething and the war. There grinning faces<br />
and cheery "hellos" were welcomed by the airborne<br />
travelers. The first plane arrived on 24<br />
November, 1943 and the majority of the flight<br />
echelon was at Seething Airfield by 5 December,<br />
1943 although the last plane did not arrive until<br />
22 December, 1943. It was on that day, 22<br />
December, 1943 that the 448th Bomb Group flew<br />
its first mission over enemy territory at<br />
Osnabruck, Germany.<br />
P-47 THUNDERBOLT<br />
One of our little friends affectionately known as<br />
“The Jug” - 355th FG was stationed at Steeple<br />
Morden<br />
MOVEMENT OF THE GROUND ECHELON<br />
The micro-film records did not provide a<br />
list of the officers and enlisted men attached to
258<br />
HISTORY FROM ACTIVATION MAY, 1943 TO ARRIVAL IN ENGLAND - World War II<br />
the ground echelon. The ground echelon left its<br />
home base at Sioux City, Iowa on 8 November,<br />
1943, four days after the air-echelon left on its<br />
first leg, to Herrington, Kansas for overseas duty.<br />
They were alerted at 18:00 hours, but then had to<br />
wait for a raging snow storm to abate. The storm<br />
FW-190 (FOCKE WULF)<br />
One of our little enemies<br />
was so intense, there were large snow drifts<br />
around all the aircraft at Sioux City Airfield<br />
where they had been stationed. They moved on a<br />
special secret military train on the Illinois Central<br />
R.R. Line to Chicago, Illinois where they<br />
continued on the Grand Trunk and Canadian<br />
National Railway through Port Huron, Michigan<br />
to Buffalo, New York and arrived at Camp<br />
Shanks, Orangeburg, New York at 22:30 hours on<br />
11 November, 1943. The personnel had not been<br />
permitted to leave the train at anytime. The<br />
equipment was above average. It was a cold start<br />
until the engines developed steam but the<br />
consensus of the men was that it was a<br />
comfortable trip. Lt. Mason E. Phillips, Adjutant<br />
of the 712th Squadron was responsible for the<br />
great food enroute. Upon detraining, the men<br />
marched one mile to their quarters and the<br />
baggage followed immediately.<br />
Processing began the following morning<br />
and lasted four days. All men received proper<br />
clothing not previously provided. Gas masks were<br />
issued and instructions on its use. A five mile hike<br />
was made with full equipment. Obstacle courses<br />
ME-262 MESSERSCHMITT<br />
One of our little enemies.<br />
were negotiated with full pack and a dry run was<br />
made on abandoning ship with full pack on a 35<br />
foot tower with rope ladder. Processing included<br />
medical inspections, security lectures, censorship<br />
instruction, an opportunity for modifying<br />
insurance and allotment deductions and other<br />
personal legal matters.<br />
The group departed Camp Shanks at 10:00<br />
hours 21 November, 1943 and embarked at 18:00<br />
hours the same day on H.M.S. Queen Elizabeth.<br />
The ships Commandant was Captain A.K.<br />
Aspden. The vessel was operated under the joint<br />
ME-109 - MESSERSCHMITT<br />
One of our little enemies<br />
command of the Royal Canadian Air Force and<br />
The Transportation Corp. of the U.S. Army. The<br />
ship left the port of New York at 15:30 hours on<br />
23 November, 1943. Six days were spent at sea.<br />
Orderly rooms were established and internal<br />
traffic regulations put into effect. The 712th and<br />
713th Squadrons were assigned K.P. duty for the<br />
duration of the voyage. A school program was
259<br />
HISTORY FROM ACTIVATION MAY, 1943 TO ARRIVAL IN ENGLAND - World War II<br />
HEADS OF DEPARTMENTS - 448TH BOMB GROUP (March, 1945 left to right)<br />
Back Row - Major Laws, Capt. Brown, Capt. Doty, Capt. Runyan, Capt. Edmonds, Capt. Bonner, Major Huey, Capt. Hunt<br />
Middle Row - Major Pederson, Major Parks, Capt. Fries, Capt. McLaughlin, Capt. Klein, Lt. Col. Grabel, Capt. Gates, Lt.<br />
Calkins, Capt. Thompson, Capt. Elshon<br />
Front Row - Capt. Nelson, Lt. Predham, Lt. Owens, Warrant Officer Murphy, Lt. Col. Miller, Col. Westover, Major<br />
Searles, Major McDwyer, Major Simmons<br />
devised and classes held regularly. Church<br />
services were conducted on Sunday in the<br />
Officers lounge. Most information, security<br />
precautions and alerts were given through the<br />
central address system. Emergency and action<br />
station drills were held each day and executed<br />
well considering the huge number of men<br />
participating. Morale was high and few men got<br />
sea-sick. Aboard ship, the Red Cross provided<br />
each officer and enlisted man with a carton of<br />
cigarettes. Each enlisted man also received<br />
another R.C. package containing more cigarettes,<br />
reading material, playing cards, sewing kit and<br />
soap. The ship dropped anchor in the River Clyde,<br />
Scotland at 05:00 hours on 29 November, 1943<br />
After having been detailed to police the entire<br />
vessel, the men disembarked at 15:15 hours on 30<br />
November, 1943. Upon arrival at Greenock,<br />
Scotland, the American Red Cross served the men<br />
coffee, doughnuts and cigarettes. The attraction of<br />
the moment, (after 6 days at sea) was an<br />
American Red Cross "lassie" from Toledo, Ohio<br />
serving with the R.C. They departed by train from<br />
Greenock at 17:30 hours and arrived at<br />
Ditchingham, Norfolk County, England at 08:00<br />
hours on 1 December, 1943. U.S. Government<br />
vehicles were waiting and transported the men to<br />
U.S.A.A.F. Station #146, Seething.<br />
On its first combat mission to Osnabruck,<br />
Germany on 22 December, 1943, three planes<br />
were lost. Lt. David Manning was hit, fell out of<br />
formation and was downed by fighters. All 10<br />
crew and an observer-passenger were killed. Lt.<br />
Ed Hughey Jr. had to leave formation and was
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HISTORY FROM ACTIVATION MAY, 1943 TO ARRIVAL IN ENGLAND - World War II<br />
also shot down. All were killed except the<br />
assistant engineer and the top turret gunner who<br />
were POW'S. In the melee, it was reported that<br />
someone dropped their bombs on Lt. Joe Smith's<br />
plane and one ripped off his wing just outboard of<br />
#4 engine. He flipped over and fell. No chutes<br />
were seen. However, a search of the 448th’s<br />
records do not show that they had a pilot named<br />
Joseph Smith. It was probably a plane from<br />
another group flying under the formation during<br />
the bomb run. Thirty men were lost, 3 airplanes<br />
lost and 5 heavily damaged. Colonel Thompson<br />
was killed after a scheduled mission to<br />
Ludwigschafen, Germany. It was a mission<br />
failure as described in Charles McBride's book of<br />
that mission called "<strong>MISSION</strong> FAILURE AND<br />
SURVIVAL". They never did reach their<br />
intended target because of bad weather and poor<br />
navigation and bombed Switzerland instead. Col.<br />
Thompson was killed after bailing out over<br />
France for lack of fuel. This narrative is intended<br />
to cover only the activation and make-up of the<br />
448th Bomb Group and its movement to the<br />
combat zone. For graphic recollections of the<br />
missions, the reader is referred to the many<br />
personal synopsis on file at the Second Division<br />
713TH SQUADRON OFFICERS - (APRIL, 1945 left to right)<br />
Lt. Irons, Capt. Olson, Capt. Franklin, Capt. Brook, Lt. Col. Thompson, Major Leroy (Jack) Smith, Lt. Wack, Capt. Ray,<br />
Capt. Cooper.<br />
Memorial Library at Norwich, Norfolk County,<br />
England, similar to the 35 included herein.<br />
The following was extracted from<br />
instructions provided to all flight crews entering<br />
the United Kingdom. To keep it brief and because<br />
of current readers lack of interest, I have omitted
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HISTORY FROM ACTIVATION MAY, 1943 TO ARRIVAL IN ENGLAND - World War II<br />
lists of radio terms to be memorized, list of<br />
restricted signals, degrees of priority, phonetic<br />
alphabet, bomber command organization, British<br />
radio aids to navigation list, and procedure<br />
examples.<br />
RADIO ORGANIZATION IN THE UNITED<br />
KINGDOM<br />
OR WHAT'S WHAT AND WHO CARES<br />
FIXES - How to do it without a hammer and nail.<br />
When it comes to finding out where you<br />
are, the Limeys are a very clever lot of people.<br />
For instance they have a system whereby your<br />
radio operator, in correct procedure, can ask<br />
"Where in the hell are we?" and they will come<br />
back and tell you exactly where you're lost and it<br />
is darn accurate too. If you are still lost, they'll tell<br />
you where to go and how you "Cawn't miss it".<br />
Now here's how this fix business works.<br />
There are a number of radio direction finding<br />
stations on frequencies between 270-440 KC"s<br />
which these British Joes call MF (medium<br />
frequency). These stations work in groups of three<br />
and are referred to as MF DF section. Suppose<br />
your stooging (that's Limey talk for being lost)<br />
around the North Sea looking for landmarks to<br />
locate yourself. Don't look too much because<br />
they're few and far between out there - and you<br />
can't find any. The thing to do is get your radio<br />
operator on the ball. If you're alone, he'll let out<br />
his radio antenna and "toot sweet". He'll get a fix<br />
for you in latitude and longitude and even a QTE<br />
(that's a true bearing). It's simpler than all hell.<br />
The thing to do is have your radio operator<br />
practice getting fixes on training missions.<br />
This fix business is the answer to a lost<br />
navigator's distress prayer, because the air-sea<br />
GROUP STAFF OFFICERS - 448TH BG - (1945 left to right)<br />
Standing - Major Snavely, Capt. Onks, Capt. Hansen, Lt. Col. Beaudry, Col. Westover, Lt. Col. Koons, Lt. Col. Miller,<br />
Lt. Col. Thompson, Lt. Col. Stroud.<br />
Kneeling - Major R. Smith, Major Leroy (Jack) Smith, Major Haley.
262<br />
HISTORY FROM ACTIVATION MAY, 1943 TO ARRIVAL IN ENGLAND - World War II<br />
rescue Joes work in cooperation with these MF<br />
DF section guys. If you're going swimming in the<br />
water (ditching) and you're afraid you might get<br />
tired before long, have the radio operator tell the<br />
MF people to meet you out there with a towel,<br />
change of underwear and even a clean dicky dirt<br />
(shirt to you).<br />
QDM - or Show me the way to go home.<br />
Every bomber command base for heavy<br />
bombers and medium also have a direction<br />
finding station that is able to give you a magnetic<br />
course to fly to reach that station. Yep, we got one<br />
on this station also. If you're coming back from<br />
"der vaterland" and pretty tired from knocking the<br />
hell out Goering's P-shooters, your radio operator<br />
can get you the exact courses to steer to reach<br />
home and your "sack". Don't be a sad sack; come<br />
home the easy way and it's a cinch. But don't be a<br />
pig about it. There may be someone else who<br />
wants to get through and he may be in real<br />
trouble. Use QDM's sparingly.<br />
BEACONS - for use with the radio compass.<br />
Round and round it goes - where it stops - only<br />
God knows.<br />
MF fixed beacons<br />
Our British friends, it seems, have decided<br />
that the Battle Of Britain is just about over so they<br />
have scrubbed the "Multi-Group" beacon<br />
organization in which everything changed. They<br />
have substituted this new "MF" fixed beacon<br />
organization. This new system is a cinch. It's easy<br />
to use and as simple as all hell. They have set up<br />
14 fixed beacons operating on a fixed frequency<br />
with call signs. All the "poop" (coordinates,<br />
frequencies and call signs) are given on the<br />
navigator's flimsy; take a look and see for<br />
yourself.<br />
Now here's a "little gen" (that's British for<br />
info). The frequencies are in the medium<br />
frequency band anywhere from 200-1000 KC's<br />
and the call signs are similar to those used in the<br />
"splasher beacon" organization. For example,<br />
each call sign consists of a number 7, a letter and<br />
a number 7. Like this: 7(letter)7. Easy, ain't it? This<br />
call sign is sent once every minute at the rate of<br />
eight words a minute. The nice thing about this<br />
beacon organization is that it operates twenty four<br />
(24) hours a day and usually can be heard from 150<br />
to 200 miles away. Give it a loose try some time<br />
and check it out for yourself - they say "you cawn't<br />
miss it". I dare you to find it.<br />
But there is a catch to everything on this<br />
Island, and there is a catch to these fixed "MF"<br />
beacons. You know the old Limey custom -<br />
"Pardon me, old cock, it's tea-time" - well, our<br />
brothers in arms (you take the brother, I'll take his<br />
sister) have decided to shut each of the beacons<br />
down one hour during the day for maintenance<br />
work. So, if you try to tune in one of these beacons,<br />
and you "cawn't find it" - well they've turned it off<br />
for maintenance inspection. But they only turn one<br />
of the 14 beacons off for one hour at a time during<br />
the day; other than that, they are on continuously.<br />
SPLASHERS:<br />
Nope - nothing to do with splashing around<br />
in the water, only if you use them sensibly they will<br />
prevent you from undue splashing. These splasher<br />
radio beacons are similar to the multi-group only in<br />
that they are in the same geographical locations. At<br />
every splasher site there are 3 transmitters giving<br />
forth simultaneously, all using the same call signs<br />
but each on a different frequency. See? The idea of<br />
3 transmitters is to fox Jerry. If he jams our<br />
beacons (wise you up on this later) on one<br />
frequency, you have two other frequencies to work<br />
with - we hope. But you ask "who in hell wants to<br />
use beacons to get running fixes with, when there is<br />
a radio operator who can get the MF section to do<br />
the same thing? At times there may be several<br />
reasons why the radio Joe can't do that service,<br />
because:<br />
1. He may be asleep dreaming of the<br />
lassie with the British chassie he just gave those<br />
silk stocking to -<br />
2. The air may be jammed by other<br />
ships trying to get unlost.<br />
3. It may be necessary to observe
263<br />
HISTORY FROM ACTIVATION MAY, 1943 TO ARRIVAL IN ENGLAND - World War II<br />
OTHER SQUADRON OFFICERS ON NORTH SIDE OF AIRFIELD (left to right)<br />
Back Row - Lt. Col. Stroud, Major Milburn, Capt. Jamison, Lt. Keith, Capt. Hau, Lt. Baldwin, Capt. Grew, Capt. Cook,<br />
Lt. McAllister, Lt.Moran<br />
Front Row - Lt. Palmer, Capt. Hoffman, Lt. Dumas, Lt. Ferrie, Capt. Garras, Lt. Lebowvitz, Lt. Jacobson.<br />
strict radio silence - mum's the word; surprise<br />
party for Hitler.<br />
In all those cases above mentioned,<br />
use your compass.<br />
BUNCHERS:<br />
They are also radio beacons similar to<br />
splashers and there are 5 in this district. Right in<br />
our own back yard we have a buncher and it's<br />
used to assemble combat wings. It transmits only<br />
on a single frequency, giving forth with a single 3<br />
character call sign (a number, a letter, a number)<br />
per minute. The number in the case of buncher<br />
beacons is always 8 (eight), so if you hear a call<br />
sign, 8M8, you know darn well it's the buncher<br />
beacon shared by Hardwick and Seething.<br />
Whereas the fixed MF beacon uses the number 7<br />
such as 7H7 it's either a splasher or a fixed MF<br />
beacon. The splashers and bunchers are turned on<br />
every time a formation or flight is scheduled. The<br />
schedule is given to the radio operator. DEMAND<br />
he give it to you.<br />
A word of advice - never try to home on<br />
broadcast stations in the United Kingdom,<br />
particularly not on BBC. Our Limey friends in an<br />
attempt to fox Jerry have set up transmitters all<br />
over England so that when they broadcast a<br />
program from London, it's transmitted<br />
simultaneously from all these various transmitters<br />
all over England and makes homing on BBC<br />
impossible. SO, don't dood it. Your radio compass<br />
will only spin and get you dizzy.<br />
DEFINITIONS:<br />
JAMMING - When Jerry superimposes<br />
another signal on the one you are trying to listen<br />
to, or home on, the net result is that the compass<br />
spins and the sound is horrible. He merely drowns<br />
you out, that's all.<br />
MEACONING - When Jerry imitates a<br />
beacon, this is what he does. He sets up a receiver<br />
and tunes in the beacon he wants to spoil. Then he<br />
hooks up a transmitter to this receiver and tunes<br />
the transmitter to the same frequency as the<br />
beacon he wants to spoil. The receiver keys the<br />
transmitter and you have two identical beacons
264<br />
HISTORY FROM ACTIVATION MAY, 1943 TO ARRIVAL IN ENGLAND - World War II<br />
working at the same time on the same frequency<br />
right in step with each other, but from different<br />
places; one in England and one in Germany. The<br />
result is that the signal you have is weak and<br />
fades and your compass goes round and round<br />
and round. Also, if you use your loop L-R switch,<br />
rotate the loop through 180 degrees, and if you<br />
find three minimums the beacon is being<br />
MEACONED. The Air Force has made<br />
arrangements so that when they find out that Jerry<br />
is meaconing a splasher beacon, they mutilate it<br />
by sending a series of dots over the call sign of<br />
the beacon so that you can't read it. But<br />
remember, this is done only to the splashers.<br />
QDM: - Magnetic course (but without<br />
wind and drift and compass deviation applied) to<br />
steer to reach home without getting lost.<br />
WT: - All that means is C.W. or<br />
continuous wave. When some bloke refers to WT,<br />
all he means is some other bloke is using a radio<br />
transmitter with a sending key so that dits and<br />
dahs may be sent.<br />
RT: In the states we say "voice". Our<br />
British friends say RT. That's when you pick up a<br />
mike and talk over the radio. RT really means<br />
radio telephony. SEE?<br />
DARKY:<br />
This "darky" organization has nothing to<br />
do with colored or southern accent - You all know<br />
that don't you all? So if you all will listen, it will<br />
be expounded to you' all. As you all know by<br />
now, the British boys do lots of night flying and<br />
occasionally while "stooging" around they forget<br />
where they all are so that is primarily to give<br />
immediate aid to lost planes at night. The darky<br />
organization is made up of numerous low<br />
powered RT stations which are scattered<br />
throughout the U.K. and are as numerous as flies<br />
on a garbage truck - "you simply cawn't miss<br />
them". The range is approximately 10 miles (that<br />
is why your command set is cut down to that<br />
range) and operates on a frequency of 6440 KC's.<br />
All darky stations will maintain a listening watch<br />
on this frequency from dusk to dawn. Some<br />
stations are listening out during daylight hours,<br />
especially control towers which are also used as<br />
darky stations.<br />
A definite procedure must be adhered to<br />
when calling a darky station. You can't just yell<br />
"darky, darky, where is yo'all?" into your mike.<br />
The procedure identifies you as a friendly aircraft<br />
and is as follows:<br />
AIRCRAFT - "Hello darky (three<br />
times), this is brand-new P for P poor calling (3<br />
times). Are you receiving me (2 times). Over to<br />
you, over." (Note: please do not use a southern<br />
accent as a Damm Yankee might be at the RT on<br />
the ground.)<br />
DARKY - "Hello, brand new P for<br />
P poor, this is Seething answering (3 times). I am<br />
receiving you loud and clear (2 times). Over to<br />
you, over. (Note: If the darky comes back in a<br />
definite southern accent you are either too far<br />
south or dreaming - wake up and try again.)<br />
If your call sign is not understood on the<br />
first transmission because of your "too southern<br />
accent" (he may be a northerner) the darky station<br />
will reply, "Hello Nemo (call sign for unidentified<br />
aircraft), this is darky answering." Until he can<br />
identify your call signs, he'll not tell you who he<br />
is and hence you don't know where you are.<br />
"Mayday" is the emergency word in radio<br />
organization. When you yell that 3 times at the<br />
beginning of your transmission you're first in line<br />
to talk with him and weep your little (?) troubles<br />
on his shoulder.<br />
Finally, when you get this darky by the toe<br />
on RT, he can give you any one of several aids:<br />
1. Tell you the name of the station<br />
he's calling from - hence spot yourself.<br />
2. If you twist his wrist, he will<br />
also tell you his bearing and distance from well<br />
known points, such as a large town, well known<br />
airdrome, etc.<br />
3. They will, upon twisting of the<br />
wrist, direct you to the nearest drome for landing.<br />
4. If you say "pretty please", they<br />
will contact the nearest searchlight battery and<br />
have them direct you by means of a beam laid
265<br />
HISTORY FROM ACTIVATION MAY, 1943 TO ARRIVAL IN ENGLAND - World War II<br />
along the ground in the direction you should fly.<br />
They do this by turning on the light while<br />
pointing upward, slowly lowering it in the desired<br />
direction. This is done three times; the third time<br />
it will remain down for 3 minutes or until the<br />
sound of engines has died away.<br />
SQUEAKERS: or "step on the cats tail again,<br />
Marandee, those yanks are coming".<br />
Balloon barrages are dangerous to Jerry as<br />
well as yourself if you don't watch out and take<br />
heed. So, in order to prevent you guys from<br />
knocking down too many balloons and vice-versa,<br />
they put up a warning signal on them. The<br />
warning is done by placing low powered<br />
transmitters called "squeaker" about the perimeter<br />
of the balloon barrage. They sound like air raid<br />
sirens and are transmitted on a frequency of 6440<br />
KC's. But can be heard anywhere from 6410-6470<br />
KC's. See, you really cawn't miss it. The range is<br />
approximately 10 miles but may vary from 2-20<br />
miles - can't tell - it keeps changing from time to<br />
time. So don't be a rat and ruin those pretty silver<br />
balloons. Keep your eyes and ears open.<br />
V.H.F. - or punch and yell. Who's on what and<br />
why:<br />
The thing most cussed at by pilots and copilots,<br />
that has letters "A", "B", "C", and "D"<br />
inscribed next to push-buttons, is called the VHF<br />
set. The letter indicates a particular channel of<br />
that set, for instance:<br />
Channel "A" - has the frequency of<br />
the 20th Combat Wing which includes the 93rd<br />
Bomb Group, 446th Bomb Group, and the 448th<br />
Bomb Group.<br />
Channel "B" - has the frequency of<br />
all the groups in the 2nd Air Division. So, if you<br />
want to talk to Joe Blow, group flight leader of<br />
the 44th, you punch the "B" channel button and<br />
yell like hell for him - he should answer.<br />
Channel "C" - has the frequency<br />
of the RAF fighter-bomber command and the<br />
AAF fighter-bomber command. For example - a<br />
bunch of you guys are going across the channel<br />
and there'll be P-shooters of the AAF and RAF to<br />
keep you company. So in order to have<br />
communications of some type with both, some<br />
ships have the American fighter-bomber crystals in<br />
channel "C" and other ships have RAF fighterbomber<br />
crystals in channel "C". It'll always tell you<br />
on the pilot's radio flimsy what ships have what.<br />
Next time take a look and see for yourself.<br />
Channel "D" - is now the air-sea<br />
rescue channel. Every ship in the group has this<br />
channel in working order. And the way it works is<br />
something like this: Suppose you are coming in on<br />
a wing and a prayer and you run out of prayers over<br />
the channel. IMMEDIATELY - toot sweet - punch<br />
channel "D", yell "MAYDAY, MAYDAY from<br />
bad egg R for rotten" (3 times). If you're still in the<br />
air at this time, give them the course you're flying,<br />
approximate location in reference to some well<br />
known landmark or point on the coast and if you're<br />
losing altitude - but fast - impress that on them too.<br />
What happens is that they "fix" you while you're<br />
jabbering to them and tell these air-sea rescue Joes<br />
to start out after you - and they do. Got some good<br />
rum aboard those ships.<br />
WHO GUARDS WHAT AND WHY:<br />
It's simple - during group and combat wing<br />
assembly, everybody stands by on channel "A".<br />
You can see the reason for that, can't you? Then<br />
when the combat wing goes to join or make up the<br />
division formation, the flight leader of both<br />
sections switches over to channel "B" (that's<br />
division channel) and stays on that channel in case<br />
the Joe's from some other group call. Now the guys<br />
who guard the fighter channel "C" have to talk nice<br />
to the fighter boys and keep them around for<br />
protection purposes. The boys guarding channels<br />
"A", "C", and "D" are assistants of the group flight<br />
leader and pass on to him any information they<br />
pick up, see, it's simple - you cawn't miss.<br />
THE BATTLE OF COMMUNICATIONS: Half a<br />
league, half a league, half a league onward, into the<br />
valley of flak rode the 900. While shot and hero fell<br />
- the interphone went dead...<br />
Hell of a mess ain't it? But don't cuss<br />
because it might be your fault. Did you take care of
266<br />
HISTORY FROM ACTIVATION MAY, 1943 TO ARRIVAL IN ENGLAND - World War II<br />
your equipment or did you throw it on the flight<br />
deck and have every Tom, Dick and Harry step on<br />
it? You know, fellows, it just takes one little wire<br />
shorting across to the other to put your interphone<br />
out. When you jump on your mike and kick your<br />
headset around, you're knocking yourself in the<br />
head. It takes just as much time to hang your<br />
equipment up as to throw it on the floor, so, for<br />
Pete's sake, hang it up and save trouble all around.<br />
Then there is another little matter of headsets and<br />
throat mikes missing from your airplane - don't go<br />
to the signal supply room and request more of the<br />
same - there just ain't anymore. Too many guys<br />
have taken for granted that headsets and throat<br />
mikes become personal property - but it ain't so -<br />
they are all part of the aircraft and should be left<br />
in the aircraft at all times. How's about digging<br />
them out of your sack and turning them in, for we<br />
have no more to put in the ships hen these are<br />
gone. The Chaplain's telephone number is Ext. 19<br />
and 186. Might as well call him as us for more<br />
headsets and mikes; he at least can punch your<br />
ticket.<br />
But in order to make sure that these last<br />
headsets and mikes don't disappear, we've taken<br />
all of them out of the ships and turned them over<br />
to the unit equipment officer. When you go out to<br />
fly, check out a headset and mike from him.<br />
Incidentally, the best that the latrine rumor offers<br />
is that there is 72 bucks worth of platinum in each<br />
throat mike. It ain't so - there is nothing to the<br />
rumor. The mike is made up of carbon particles<br />
and nothing more; so don't take them and try to<br />
salvage the platinum that ain't there.<br />
DEATH OF A BIG BOMBER<br />
It happened late Sunday.<br />
A lazy pile of smoke crawling over the desert.<br />
Ten miles out,<br />
Broke suddenly, springing skyward,<br />
Frightened - - breathing close in short gasps.<br />
Someone pointed . . . . .<br />
"Whose " . . .?<br />
Sound inaudible; words still-born<br />
In the slow moan of a siren<br />
And everyone starts running.<br />
"Whose ship ?" they gasp.<br />
Flames now,<br />
And smoke grown bold,<br />
Coughing from the ground in deep black bursts,<br />
And we could hear the bombs explode<br />
One by one - - twenty of them.<br />
As cars grind into gear; the crash truck<br />
And tiny asbestos teddy men crouch, expectant.<br />
"But they're all dead now. I - - -"<br />
"Whose ship was it ?"<br />
"Whose ship !"<br />
When we reached her the flame had gone,<br />
And the black skeleton,<br />
Prostrate, groaning from the awful heat . . .<br />
She lay like a live thing,<br />
And in her death throes, dug the sand,<br />
Twisting and moaning.<br />
Helpless - - we stood watching, she snapped<br />
Suddenly,<br />
And remained still.<br />
Many voices now; raucous on the stagnant air,<br />
And many men running - - like a foolish puzzle<br />
in the sand.<br />
They pieced them together - - the dead ones,<br />
the parts of men.<br />
And they counted nine.<br />
The Caravarserai began,<br />
A long line of trucks in the great expanse of desert.<br />
But all the way back a small voice was asking:<br />
"Were they really dead, those men, were they, were they ?"<br />
Cpl. Norman V. Ashton<br />
448th Group Chaplain's Assistant<br />
WORLD WAR II - EPILOGUE<br />
Oh, now that the battles are over<br />
I'll tell you what we won:<br />
A chance to fight more in some other war,<br />
And our pride in a job well done.<br />
The heroes who died aren't remembered.<br />
The wounded we try to forget,<br />
And the poor damn sinners who came out as<br />
winners<br />
Are blamed for the national debt.<br />
The krauts soon got richer than we are,<br />
The Japs found gold in their sun,<br />
But this we can say till our last dying day:<br />
They sent us to war and we won.<br />
So bless 'em all, bless 'em all, bless 'em all.<br />
The long, the short and the tall,<br />
There will be no promotion this side of the ocean,<br />
I still say, my lads, bless 'em all!<br />
Anonymous
267<br />
It was my wish to include at the beginning<br />
of this Flight Record, biographical sketches on<br />
those members of our crew who have been in<br />
contact with each other since the end of the war,<br />
thereby making this revision a truly replacement<br />
crew flight record. This however did not come to<br />
JOHN ROCHE - FLIGHT ENGINEER<br />
pass so I am including in this Epilogue, the data<br />
that I do have and also those pictures I have<br />
taken of crewmembers.<br />
John Roche, our flight engineer, told Joe<br />
Zonyk when John joined our crew in Boise,<br />
Idaho, that he had been a flight engineer with the<br />
Air Transport Command before applying for<br />
combat duty. John was born in Peabody,<br />
Massachusetts and had been employed in the textile<br />
industry. John was also engaged to a hometown<br />
girl, Rita (last name unknown) whom he eventually<br />
married. John and Rita then moved to Beverly,<br />
Massachusetts. They had four children. Rita died<br />
in the early 1980's and John died as the result of a<br />
heart attack in 1984 before we were able to get<br />
together as a crew again after the war.<br />
Joe Zonyk, radio operator, was born in<br />
Vicksburg, a small town in southwestern Michigan<br />
and graduated from high school in 1940. He<br />
worked one year after graduation to earn enough<br />
money to start college at Hillsdale, Michigan, a<br />
small liberal arts school until he enlisted in the<br />
Army Air Corps aviation cadet program in August<br />
of 1942. Joe was then called to active duty in<br />
February, 1943 and assigned to pre-flight in San<br />
Antonio, Texas, qualifying for the Pilot Program,<br />
class 43-K (Joe and JCR were undoubtedly both in<br />
the San Antonio Classification Center and in preflight<br />
together because JCR was also class 43-K).<br />
Unfortunately, Joe washed-out of primary flight<br />
LEFT TO RIGHT: JOHN ROCHE, SHORTY,<br />
WESTY, MARTY MILLER, SEATED IS<br />
CHARLIE ROBERTSON (Shorty and Westy were<br />
not with our crew)
268<br />
JOE ZONYK during his training in the States<br />
training and was then assigned to radio school at<br />
Truax Air Field, Sioux Falls, South Dakota. After<br />
completing this training, Joe then went on to<br />
gunnery school at Yuma, Arizona. From Yuma,<br />
Joe joined our crew in Boise, Idaho. After our<br />
crew completed our 35 missions, Joe was asked to<br />
stay on as a radio instructor for an additional six<br />
weeks for orientation of newly arriving radio<br />
operators. When the war ended in Europe, Joe got<br />
a non-stop flight from Prestwick, Scotland to<br />
Bradley Field in Connecticut, then on to Santa<br />
Ana, California and honorably discharged on<br />
September 19, 1945. The U.S. Postal Service<br />
beckoned, and after 32 years, going up in the<br />
ranks, Joe became Superintendent of Mails and<br />
Assistant Postmaster and retired the last day of<br />
1977.<br />
Clifton H. Evans was born 11 November,<br />
1923 in Little Rock, Arkansas. His father was a<br />
civil engineer, so the family moved several times<br />
during his childhood following his father's “jobs".<br />
He was going to school in Amarillo, Texas when<br />
the war came. Amarillo is cattle country, so Cliff<br />
was given the nickname "Cow-Cow". Even today,<br />
when you visit the old airbase at Pampa you will<br />
EPILOGUE<br />
see a cattle operation and the large metal hangers<br />
used in 1943 to service and hanger the Cessna<br />
"Bobcat" are now used to store bailed hay and<br />
straw. Cliff lacked only one course (½ semester)<br />
graduating from high school. He was deferred for<br />
school to complete this course and also enrolled in<br />
a 4-hour daily course in aircraft mechanics at the<br />
Junior College. He was sworn into the U.S. Army<br />
Air Force on 3 February, 1943 and applied for<br />
Pack Artillery. He was sent to Sheppard Field for<br />
training, but was then sent to Lowery & Buckley<br />
JOE ZONYK in civilian dress, a picture which we<br />
all carried on all missions for use by the<br />
underground if required.<br />
Fields for armorer training. He then was assigned<br />
to the 448th Heavy Bombardment Group, 714th<br />
Squadron at Wendover, Utah and traveled with<br />
the 448th BG to Seething, England. Although an<br />
armorer, he asked for and got combat status. He
269<br />
flew at first as a substitute armorer gunner for<br />
different crews but not getting in many missions<br />
that way. On one mission, just before the<br />
invasion, Cliff decided to try-out a backpack<br />
parachute when they came back over Seething<br />
Airfield. “Good Jump”, "Bad reception”. The<br />
Squadron C.O., Colonel Stringfellow, put him on<br />
hard labor and "broke him" to private. However,<br />
he was soon back to buck Sgt., transferred to the<br />
713th Squadron and again to S/Sgt. Cliff had<br />
completed 9 missions with different crews when<br />
he was assigned to our crew in September, <strong>1944</strong> to<br />
replace Scotty and then flew all of his other<br />
missions with us. After completing his missions<br />
with us, he was returned to the States and to Kelly<br />
field for pilot training. This training was<br />
discontinued when the war ended and Cliff was<br />
discharged in January, 1946. Cliff re-enlisted in<br />
the fall of 1947 and requested assignment to<br />
Intelligence. He graduated from the<br />
Oberammergau Occupation Intelligence School in<br />
Neubiberg, Germany. Cliff was part of a small<br />
cadre of NCO's and Officers sent to Ike's old H.Q.<br />
at Bushy Park to re-establish a SAC capability in<br />
the U.K. He helped set up NATO squadrons in<br />
Europe where he established intelligence training<br />
EPILOGUE<br />
LEFT TO RIGHT: John Roche, Charlie Robertson, Westy, and Marty<br />
Miller. Westy was from New York. He was not a member of our crew.<br />
facilities. For his work with NATO ,<br />
he received the A. F. Commendation<br />
Medal. After retiring from the USAF<br />
as a senior Master Sergeant with 21<br />
years of service, Cliff began a career<br />
in the Forest Service and retired from<br />
there in 1964 after 19 years as a<br />
highly-respected and well-qualified<br />
timber sale administrator.<br />
When World War II arrived,<br />
the Air Corp had only a handful of<br />
pilots and no navigators. Pilots were<br />
expected to perform that duty as a<br />
sideline and less than 200 were dualqualified.<br />
In the 1930's, navigation<br />
was used primarily in a naval<br />
environment and an effort was made<br />
to use the term avigator related to<br />
CLIFTON EVANS, taken July <strong>1944</strong> at Seething,<br />
England<br />
aviation, but it didn't "catch on". The only<br />
navigator "schoolhouse" there was in 1940 was
270<br />
operated by Pan American near Miami. Major<br />
General Delos Emmons returning from a trip to<br />
England in 1940 had a conversation with a Pan<br />
CLIFTON EVANS, taken March <strong>1944</strong> at<br />
Seething,, England<br />
Am Clipper navigator and out of that conversation<br />
came a solution: Pan Am agreed to take on the<br />
instruction of Air Corp navigators at cost. The<br />
site selected was Coral Gables. Pan Am's<br />
operating base was there and the University of<br />
Miami, also there, agreed to provide classroom<br />
space, billeting and feeding. Six of the first 46<br />
graduates were sent to Barksdale, Louisiana to be<br />
instructors. The course was short, experience level<br />
low, but the ball was rolling. Three more schools<br />
were opened and the four bases were turning out a<br />
peak of 13,500 navigators annually from an 18<br />
week course. Richard Best received his training at<br />
Miami and took the photo of the University shown<br />
here. It was all a major feat of training when you<br />
think about the "Thousand Plane Raids” of <strong>1944</strong><br />
made by the Eighth in England and the Fifteenth<br />
in Italy; and remember that of the 20,000 to<br />
EPILOGUE<br />
30,000 aircrew members in those formations - less<br />
than 1% had been in uniform, or even up in an<br />
airplane, four years before.<br />
The 448ths Group formation code-name<br />
was "Big Bear". The mission Commander was<br />
"Blue". The Commander's lead plane was "Big<br />
Bear Blue". However, the Germans were always<br />
listening, so radio silence was maintained on both<br />
take-off and assembly. During assembly and<br />
when flying formation, there was the constant risk<br />
of collision. Formation flying was brutally tiring<br />
work and endless hours of close formation flying<br />
through flak, fighters and weather called for<br />
endurance and skill. As a result, a mission was<br />
physically tiring, but the emotional strain was the<br />
CLIFTON EVANS, in the U.S. Forest Service.<br />
Taken February 29, 1964.<br />
worst. Fortress Germany always gave us a warm<br />
reception and the Grim Reaper rode in many B-
271<br />
MARTY L. MILLER - Seething, England, <strong>1944</strong><br />
EPILOGUE<br />
24's and B- 17's. There were no "foxholes" in the<br />
sky to avoid fighters or flak. Every man who flew<br />
over Germany always faced death or<br />
imprisonment. Your psychological safety<br />
mechanism shut out all such thoughts, otherwise a<br />
man just wouldn't survive, That was the true<br />
horror of the air-war and has probably passed<br />
from many memories over the years. Your head<br />
tells you, and it is easy to think, that your friends<br />
were killed doing what they wanted to do, but<br />
your heart tells you they were there because they<br />
were required to be there. Fatalism (or Fate is the<br />
hunter) is another protection against such<br />
tragedies, but is a weak one. Our minds were<br />
psychologically prepared for such events and thus<br />
were devoid of emotional protest, but our hearts<br />
were not so easily silenced. We always hoped that<br />
men, women and children were in their shelters<br />
and that our bombs were destroying things and not<br />
people. The greatest fear was of survival if you<br />
got shot down or fear that you may get a bullet or<br />
piece of flak tearing into your body. Many<br />
instances have been documented of individuals<br />
having safely parachuted from their planes, only<br />
to be killed or beaten by civilians after landing as<br />
revealed in some of the Missing Air Crew Reports<br />
quoted in the stories of our missions presented<br />
earlier in this "Flight Record". Many who served<br />
lost their lives - the supreme sacrifice one can<br />
make for his or her country. Many who died are<br />
still buried on foreign soil in cold and unfriendly<br />
graves never to be visited by friends or family.<br />
Some are still “missing in action” and their<br />
destiny unknown.<br />
CHARLIE ROBERTSON - Seething,, England<br />
<strong>1944</strong><br />
Many who were physically and mentally disabled<br />
have never been able to resume the daily rigors or<br />
activities of a normal life. Some are confined to<br />
hospital beds or aimlessly wandering the streets
272<br />
SHORTY, WESTY AND MARTY MILLER<br />
West and Shorty were not with our crew.<br />
and byways of America. They certainly<br />
deserve more than that for everything they<br />
sacrificed for their country. Consider the<br />
tragic loss of fond hopes and dreams for the<br />
future for them and their families. The<br />
unbearable suffering they have undergone<br />
and continue to undergo. How can anyone<br />
ever forget the loss of a family member or<br />
other loved one?<br />
Hazards existed in England as well as<br />
over enemy held territory. "Old Man<br />
Winter" had England and the Continent in<br />
his icy-grip. Pilot error (or other personnel<br />
error) created enough problems, but<br />
blowing snow, fog and haze make for poor<br />
visibility. Rain, sleet and icy runways<br />
created numerous accidents. Many B-24's<br />
collided over the skies of England. Many crews<br />
EPILOGUE<br />
finished their required missions in 60 days or less<br />
during the better weather of summer and the<br />
"Overlord" invasion. But the weather was<br />
hideous during the fall and winter of <strong>1944</strong>/45 and<br />
many mission days were scrubbed, aborted or<br />
simply washed away by fog, sleet, rain and or<br />
snow. Many times the group was "stood down",<br />
but now with H2X and the ability to BTO (bomb<br />
through overcast), weather didn't always hold us<br />
up. We took-off with rain & sleet pelting our<br />
windshields and then having to make an<br />
instrument let-down on our return. Even after<br />
take-off, sometimes the weather "won" and the<br />
mission was recalled. If the bombs had been<br />
“armed", the message "put the pins back in"<br />
would be given and we'd head for home. The<br />
return trip home may have been as hazardous as<br />
the "bomb run". Tired pilots had to be especially<br />
alert after hours of close formation, after evading<br />
fighters, flak, and flying in bad weather, with<br />
wounded on board, with a damaged aircraft and<br />
returning to a field either “socked in" or with a<br />
low ceiling and poor visibility. Lt. Glass and Lt.<br />
Rollins of the 453th BG collided on the approach<br />
TOP ROW: Robert Sammons, extreme left - Charlie Robertson, extreme right.<br />
BOTTOM ROW: Marty Miller, extreme left - Joe Zonyk, extreme right.<br />
to their home field after a mission to Magdeburg.
273<br />
EPILOGUE<br />
GLOSTER E 28/39<br />
In its permanent home, the British Science Museum. The world’s first jet-propelled airplane. This plane flew<br />
3 short flights in May, 1941 and then a 17 minute flight on May 15, 1941.<br />
All eleven aboard Lt. Rollins plane perished in the<br />
crash about twelve feet from the runway<br />
approach. And it was reported to be their 35th and<br />
last mission. So close and yet so far. They had<br />
light flak and no fighters, but can you call it an<br />
"easy mission". I was told by another 448ther who<br />
had been transferred to the 453rd that this crew<br />
had already flown its 35th mission, but had an<br />
earlier credited “recall mission” cancelled and was<br />
made to fly this “36th mission”.<br />
Not very much concerned me once we<br />
were in the air and on a mission. At that point we<br />
had committed ourselves and my mind was<br />
occupied with the demands of flying the aircraft. I<br />
felt as cool as a cucumber. It wasn't the fear of<br />
death that concerned me as much as the constant<br />
and eternal dodging of death that eventually<br />
makes a man a coward because it's only a question<br />
of time. Sometimes I felt that I had already lived<br />
beyond my time and sleep would not come easy<br />
when I was informed the night before that I would<br />
fly a mission in the morning. Fear grows on you,<br />
day by day, and undermines your reason. In spite<br />
of the base parties, week-end passes, flak leave or<br />
other activities designed to lessen your concern,<br />
you lose interest in life beyond the next mission<br />
and that may be the reason our crew and so many<br />
other young airmen survived it all. It takes a<br />
brave man to experience real cold fear - - - our<br />
deceased heros, ordinary men and women, were<br />
brave because they had no other choice. We all<br />
react to fear differently - - - the situtation may be a<br />
stimulant or a depressant. The men in the infantry<br />
may have envied the airmen his cozy and more<br />
comfortable life on the ground and may have even<br />
coveted his manner of fighting and dying.<br />
Formations seemed serene as seen from 20,000<br />
feet below - - - but then the sudden and<br />
spectacular whine of death in a broken aircraft -<br />
and it's all over. Ah that's the way to go. The<br />
airmen who die are free of lice, mud encrusted<br />
feet, clean shaven and cleanly attired. That's a<br />
"clean death?" Maybe? But its death just the same<br />
and it comes with terrifying suddenness - - - if the<br />
crew is fortunate. A young airman, the "cream of<br />
the crop", a perfect specimen of manhood in his<br />
prime of life, might finish a good breakfast of<br />
eggs and coffee and filled with plans for the
274<br />
evening or next day, ride out to his aircraft, takeoff<br />
and a couple of hours later be a charred corpse<br />
in the wreckage. While everyone was concerned<br />
about a piece of' flak tearing through his body,<br />
there was the most dreaded hell of all - - fire!!!<br />
Few crews ever talked about it. The subject was<br />
"verboten", but the ugly thought of falling for<br />
miles enclosed in the embrace of roaring sheets of<br />
an orange-yellow horror, fed by raw gasoline, is<br />
beyond description. There just isn't anyway of<br />
transferring the terror of the helpless victims or of<br />
giving the reader a picture of the hell of seeing the<br />
horror of a falling and burning airplane until a<br />
merciful earth gives the crew eternal peace. It<br />
takes only a tracer bullet or a piece of red-hot flak<br />
striking your fuel tank or having raw gasoline<br />
spewing against the hot engines to transform a<br />
smoothly operating airplane into a spiraling torch.<br />
Some are fortunate enough to "bail out" into<br />
empty space before being engulfed in flames, but<br />
other helpless airmen must ride the flaming hearse<br />
to earth. The continual exposure on bombing<br />
raids to flak and fighters was like drink, it could<br />
be a stimulant or a depressant. The first time a<br />
crew watches another crew and friend explode and<br />
burn, you experience anger, hate, frustration, and<br />
fear. You realize this life truly is not forever and<br />
that war, no matter how noble the cause, is<br />
EPILOGUE<br />
The Gloster Meteor F.1 which entered service with Britains No. 616 Squadron<br />
in July, <strong>1944</strong>. This is the jet our crew flew practice missions with. This jet was<br />
a further development of The Gloster shown on page 250.<br />
supremely senseless and wasteful<br />
of a countries finest youth.<br />
If it is just a bullet wound, it<br />
is no less painful when inflicted at<br />
20000 feet then on the ground.<br />
There is no place to hide in the sky.<br />
Those who have experienced it say<br />
when a .50 caliber bullet strikes<br />
you in the thigh, you think you've<br />
been kicked by an angry mule.<br />
Stunned, blind with pain, you may<br />
slump into unconsciousness.<br />
The British and the French<br />
were flying every mission with<br />
determination and probably hatred.<br />
We knew that an ocean would not<br />
LEFT TO RIGHT: John Rowe, Richard Best, Oscar Rudnick.<br />
Taken at Gowen Field, Boise, Idaho.
275<br />
RICHARD BEST during training in the States.<br />
protect us from the German disregard for the<br />
sanctity of human life whatever one’s race or<br />
religion, or protect our freedom as<br />
individuals or as a country. But the<br />
Americans carried no hatred for the<br />
Germans. Crews did not look<br />
forward to the next mission,<br />
especially after seeing their first<br />
plane and personal friend blown out<br />
of the sky; but we carried no hatred,<br />
just determination. One of the most<br />
dangerous parts of a mission was<br />
from the initial point (IP) on the<br />
bomb run until "bombs away".<br />
Bombing runs were always bordered<br />
in with flak, which crowded all the<br />
planes from both sides. Flak was<br />
concentrated, usually intense, and<br />
accurate because bombing accuracy<br />
depended upon aircraft flying a<br />
steady, level and fixed course from the IP until<br />
bombs were released and Germans operating the<br />
flak batteries knew it. Flak was so thick it looked<br />
like a floating black cloud. A shell exploding<br />
would send thousands of pieces of the shell, called<br />
shrapnel, in all directions and you could hear the<br />
EPILOGUE<br />
smaller pieces rattling the outside skin of your<br />
aircraft. The larger red hot pieces would pierce the<br />
aircraft, and hopefully not hit a vital part, the gas<br />
tank or injure anyone. We were constantly<br />
battling weather, frustration, fear and the enemy.<br />
A crew might have "33 to go", "15 to go",<br />
whatever, but it was a real barrier more than just a<br />
statistic. German fighters were always a danger.<br />
Their principal fighters were the Focke-Wulf 190<br />
and the Messerschmitt 109. In addition to<br />
machine guns, the cannon equipment on the<br />
FockeWulf 190A-8 was formidable: two 13mm<br />
cannons and two 20mm cannons, complimented<br />
by 30mm cannon on the wings. Their ability to<br />
create real havoc was evident in our groups 154th<br />
mission (our crews #6) when they hammered the<br />
445th BG and shot down 25 bombers in 3 minutes<br />
(see page 47). The protection we received from<br />
our "little Friends" was quite good most of the<br />
time, but the crews were very concerned about the<br />
J. <strong>ROWE</strong> suited up and ready for take-off at Seething Airfield.<br />
"deadly" flak batteries and about the extremely<br />
fast Me262, a German jet fighter (see mission #31<br />
on page 124 to 126 when two off my left were<br />
downed by an Me262). It is generally not known,<br />
but the British were also developing jet aircraft.<br />
The Gloster E28/29 W4041/G was the world's
276<br />
first jet propelled airplane<br />
(picture on page 250). It<br />
made three short flights<br />
from a grass field and then<br />
in May, 1941 it was<br />
moved to a larger field and<br />
made a 17 minute flight.<br />
From that single jet, a twin<br />
jet plane was developed,<br />
The Gloster Meteor (page<br />
80 & page 251). In<br />
<strong>1944</strong>/45, our crew actually<br />
flew practice gunnery<br />
missions with that plane to<br />
give gunners practice<br />
leading the faster aircraft.<br />
As with the Me262, the<br />
range was short. It hadn't<br />
been developed to the<br />
point where its range could<br />
reach Germany. It was<br />
used however to down<br />
numerous German pilotless V-1 "flying bombs".<br />
It had a preset gyroscopic guidance system with<br />
which the Gloster or other fighters could upset it<br />
and it would fall into the North Sea. Between<br />
fighters, guns and balloons, the V-l’s success rate<br />
fell to 30%. Following the invasion, when<br />
airfields were occupied in Holland, several were<br />
based there. However, none ever encountered an<br />
Me 262 in combat, but were used to destroy<br />
ground installations.<br />
Some felt that living through a shoot-down<br />
and surviving would be better than the fear of<br />
facing each new mission to complete a tour, but<br />
tomorrow held so many questions there was never<br />
any time for me to think about that or about<br />
promotions, medals or raises in pay. Personally, I<br />
did not want to experience a shoot-down, not that<br />
I looked forward to the next mission. I just didn't<br />
think about it and for the most part concentrated<br />
on other things. Of course, you couldn't help but<br />
think about it when the night before, they came to<br />
your barracks to announce the flight and which<br />
crews would be flying. Sleeping then was<br />
EPILOGUE<br />
The Army Air Corps navigation training program began here. Richard Best received<br />
his schooling here.<br />
difficult, fitful, and restless. This might be the last<br />
night alive. You were awakened about 2 or 3 in<br />
the morning, got dressed in unheated barracks,<br />
walked to chow (I keep reading today about the<br />
fresh eggs flight crews had before every mission<br />
but we always had powdered eggs) and then were<br />
trucked to the briefing room.<br />
Briefing usually started one hour after<br />
wake-up time. The briefing room was a well<br />
lighted large hall (large size Quonset hut). In the<br />
front was an elevated platform for the briefing<br />
team with a large map of Southern England and<br />
Western Europe behind it and covered with a<br />
curtain. Other maps, bulletins, and "keep your<br />
mouth shut" posters were on the walls. Various<br />
aircraft models were hung from the ceiling. A<br />
motley collection of benches and folding chairs<br />
faced the briefing platform. Your name was<br />
checked off as you entered the hall. Of the 300 or<br />
so present, the average age was about 22. Crew<br />
qualifications were strict. All were healthy, above<br />
average intelligence, the pick of the crop. Only<br />
the best would do. All were aware that this day
277<br />
might be the last. MP's were<br />
posted, doors locked and the<br />
base Commander would tell<br />
you what the day's target was<br />
and the curtain would be<br />
drawn revealing the location<br />
and the routes in and out. A<br />
long mission or a heavily<br />
d e f e n d e d t a r g e t d r e w<br />
noticeable comments from<br />
around the room. The briefing<br />
would take about 15 minutes<br />
including a weather report and<br />
forecast. Much of the data<br />
presented was also in the<br />
information sheets provided<br />
showing formation position,<br />
code names, magnetic courses, time and routes to<br />
and from the target. No excuses after the mission<br />
was announced, not even sick-call. The only<br />
escape now was a "scrubbed mission". Gunners<br />
might get a separate briefing on the types of<br />
enemy aircraft to expect. Navigators also had a<br />
separate briefing and picked up maps and charts.<br />
Co-pilots went to Intelligence for the escape kits.<br />
Then everyone went to the equipment room for<br />
electric suits, electric shoes, steel flak helmets,<br />
and flak jackets. First on were the long-johns,<br />
then the electric suit and shoes, flight overalls,<br />
heavy lined boots and jacket. Generally you<br />
carried your Maewest (life jacket) and parachute<br />
to the hardstand. You left your wallet, family<br />
photos and currency behind. The escape kits<br />
included Continental currency, nonmilitary maps<br />
of the target area and food for several days. We<br />
each had a passport photo in civilian clothes for<br />
use by the under-ground. Timing was extremely<br />
important in order to coordinate format-ion<br />
assembly. Information sheets showed engine<br />
start-up time, take-off time, arrival time over the<br />
buncher beacon for formation assembly, land-fall<br />
time and location for arrival at the enemy coast,<br />
arrival-time at the IP and arrival-time at the target.<br />
On the return route, the landfall position and time<br />
EPILOGUE<br />
The Mermaid Pub also known as “The Swinging Teat”.<br />
was given for departing the enemy coast as well as<br />
the time and location for arriving at the English<br />
coast and time of arrival back to your home base.<br />
The last item before leaving the briefing room was<br />
synchronization of all watches.<br />
After the briefing we were trucked to the<br />
revetment where our plane was located. Being<br />
born on a farm in Iowa, and raised in South<br />
Dakota, I was always reminded of the times my<br />
grandfather trucked hogs to market for slaughter.<br />
So some preferred to walk. Because of the time<br />
schedule, we and most of the crews took the ride.<br />
Often times after engines were started, take-off<br />
time would be delayed. Gas tanks were then<br />
topped off again because every drop was<br />
important. Occasionally there might be two<br />
delays. The coffee wagon would come around but<br />
few wanted a full bladder at 20,000 feet in an<br />
unpressurized aircraft. Sometimes a second<br />
breakfast might be available. You can imagine<br />
how the lives of the English people would be<br />
disturbed before daylight when 140 to 160 engines<br />
were started on each airfield, with airfields 5 to 10<br />
miles apart in all directions. And then the noise<br />
level of 1000 bombers taking off and assembling<br />
overhead. The life raft aboard the plane included a<br />
handcrank apparatus (called "Gibson Girl") for
278<br />
sending distress signals, rations, and cloth maps<br />
that would not disintegrate in water. After we<br />
returned from a mission and after debriefing, I<br />
must say I enjoyed the sandwiches the British<br />
women served right on the flight line. And that<br />
shot of rye whiskey (sometimes scotch) sure<br />
brought you back to life. After being on oxygen<br />
for hours, that first cigarette was like lighting a<br />
blowtorch.<br />
Ground crews treated the planes under<br />
their responsibility as they would their children.<br />
They worked in bitter cold, rain, wind and snow.<br />
Many built eight foot high shelters on the flight<br />
line from old "bomb crates". They "sweated<br />
out" each returning mission and were on hand to<br />
see the flight crews come in. They were always<br />
extremely interested in "their" planes, how they<br />
performed and what was needed to keep them in<br />
the best possible condition. Then, after<br />
debriefing, the flight crews headed for the "sack"<br />
or for the mess hall depending upon the time.<br />
Barracks were a metal Quonset hut (in England<br />
it was called Nissan hut) with small army beds.<br />
The huts were pre-fab corrugated steel half<br />
cylinders set on cement with no insulation. They<br />
were "bloody" iceboxes that cold winter of<br />
<strong>1944</strong>/45. Some airfields had larger barracks, but<br />
ours had twelve individuals assigned to each<br />
barrack. One small (and I mean small) bucket of<br />
coal per week was allotted for each barrack. A<br />
close watch was required for someone from<br />
another barrack was always looking for coal.<br />
The one bucket of coal didn't last long, so we<br />
had rigged up a contraption above the pot-bellied<br />
stove that would drip old discarded aircraft oil<br />
onto hot bricks inside the stove. The stove<br />
would get red hot and we finally decided that<br />
this was as dangerous or more so than flying<br />
missions. Our barrack was certainly better than<br />
a GI foxhole, but it goes without saying that the<br />
occasional 72 hour pass (to London or<br />
elsewhere) was welcomed just to be able to sleep<br />
in a large hotel bed and to have a different meal.<br />
For safety, all barracks, mess halls, squadron and<br />
EPILOGUE<br />
group operations, & group headquarters were not in<br />
close proximity to each other. Land being farmed,<br />
grazing cattle, and forest separated them.<br />
Therefore, one of my first actions was to purchase a<br />
bicycle from another flyer that had just completed<br />
his tour. It was not only handy for "tooling" around<br />
the base but was great for touring the countryside<br />
and visiting "The Mermaid" or other local pubs.<br />
LEFT TO RIGHT: Leonard Thornton, Richard<br />
Best, and Clair Rowe visit the “Mermaid Pub”<br />
again after 50 years.<br />
After approximately 15 missions, crews were<br />
given “R & R" leave. The crews called it "flak<br />
leave" and we spent our 7 days on the large private<br />
estate of Sir John Amory at Tiverton, Devon in the<br />
south of England, which is described on page 224<br />
of this "Flight Record". We had large beds, airy<br />
rooms, beautiful countryside, excellent meals, maid<br />
service and best of all no agenda or schedule to<br />
adhere to. Now we did have real eggs for breakfast.<br />
We could do as we wished with our time provided
279<br />
we were in by midnight. Richard and Bruce<br />
"sneaked out" for a brief excursion to Exeter.<br />
This leave provided the "R & R" (Rest and<br />
Relaxation) needed, but arrival back at Seething<br />
was another "R & R" (Return and Reality).<br />
Memories from the long past? Richard<br />
sums it up best when he says "buzz bombs and<br />
rockets, stand-downs, the Regent Palace Hotel and<br />
tea and cakes, scotch whiskey served by friendly<br />
waitresses in tea cups because it was the wrong<br />
hour, fish and chips in a newspaper, pubs and<br />
guiness, gin and lemon syrup, lined leather boots<br />
and Eisenhower jackets tailor made on Bond<br />
EPILOGUE<br />
SEE PHOTO OF AIRFIELD ON PAGE 295<br />
Street, a restaurant where they served braised<br />
chicken with latkas, the tube. I can close my eyes,<br />
take a sniff, and I'm in London fifty years ago.<br />
And then after 35 missions, 14 days on a boat in<br />
the middle of a convoy". At that time, 45 to 50<br />
years ago, we were the "fine young men", many<br />
making the supreme sacrifice, and the whole<br />
world shouted it from the roof tops. The common<br />
danger shared by every crew built a bond among<br />
them that is hard to describe and it was true also<br />
of our crew. As they say, "we were closer than<br />
brothers", certainly more than just friends. There<br />
was camaraderie found only when, time after
280<br />
time, we faced danger together and were<br />
dependent upon each other. At Seething airfield<br />
alone, there were approximately 3000 personnel<br />
with the vast majority of the crews (about 90<br />
crews) in their early twenty's, the pick of the crop,<br />
all with good minds and vigorous healthy bodies.<br />
Over thirty five thousand of those airmen in<br />
EPILOGUE<br />
Bruce Anderson Joe Zonyk Clifton Evans John Rowe Richard Best Marty Miller<br />
� �<strong>1944</strong> - SEETHING, ENGLAND<br />
� �1992 - OMAHA, NEBRASKA<br />
England lost their lives in the airwar. What an<br />
immense contribution those young men with their<br />
inquiring minds, could have made in the<br />
immerging technological world after the conflict<br />
was over. Was it really worth it? The writing of<br />
this flight record carries me back over the<br />
vanished years, and its events recall to me how
281<br />
transitory is this life and all its affairs. It is now all<br />
over, but there is very little to tell the generations to<br />
come, what happened then. Now there are only<br />
memories in the minds of those who lived through<br />
it all. A few of us remain to tell the younger<br />
generations the story of those years., but many airmen<br />
in the line of duty then and many now have or<br />
will be closing their accounts in the Great Book of<br />
Life. With no exceptions, those airmen were a<br />
manly, sterling breed of young men. We aren't<br />
youngsters anymore and fast approaching old age.<br />
When we are gone - the sad fact is - it won't mean a<br />
thing. History does not provide a lesson to those<br />
who have not experienced it. It is the principal<br />
reason we have had wars since time began and that<br />
wars will always be with us. The past is difficult to<br />
recapture and impossible to explain to a new<br />
generation. Even in England most of the younger<br />
generation have no recollection of the air-war.<br />
Each generation is limited to it’s own time and<br />
experience. Nothing is forever. Without a thought<br />
for their grandchildren, the public wants to know<br />
"what are you doing for me now".<br />
Many families have never been touched by<br />
the effects of war and will never know or<br />
understand the sacrifices and hardships others have<br />
undergone to protect the American way of life<br />
which we all cherish. Everyone owes them a debt<br />
of undying gratitude that can never be repaid. It is<br />
highly probable that the U.S. will again be involved<br />
in another war. As long as there are those who seek<br />
power, there will be aggression. America is the<br />
envy of the world. It is the one nation that has<br />
provided shelter and homes for millions of<br />
immigrants fleeing tyranny. Because of the nature<br />
of mankind we will always be confronted with<br />
conflicts and forced to defend ourselves, to protect<br />
and preserve our way of life.<br />
War is hell! Don't let anyone ever tell you<br />
differently. Anyone who has faced death in combat<br />
will tell you so. Most of our battles have been<br />
fought on foreign soil but for the first time now we<br />
face the possibility of bombardment from an<br />
overseas force of our own homes, factories, cities<br />
and towns. Are Americans ready to accept that? I<br />
EPILOGUE<br />
hope we never diminish our will, strength and<br />
preparedness for any eventuality.<br />
I consider our crew one of the lucky ones.<br />
We survived World War II, although the memories<br />
of our experiences made a profound impression<br />
upon me and effected the remainder of my life. I<br />
was 19 years of age when I enlisted and 20 years of<br />
age when I went off to war. I was a citizen-soldier,<br />
prepared to do what I had to do for my country but<br />
had no intentions (and never did) of making the<br />
military service a career.<br />
Nobody wants to put themselves into a<br />
position facing death. Millions like us were in the<br />
same situation, some even in worse situations. We<br />
were just citizens fighting for our country. We<br />
survived, but how I don't know. Our crew was one<br />
of the lucky ones. We are not heroes. Everyone<br />
must be ready to preserve and protect our nation<br />
against outside aggressions. We must maintain a<br />
strong defense. Less than that, we leave ourselves<br />
open as prey for any transgressor who has designs<br />
on our country and therefore our families, homes<br />
and cities.<br />
Despite the tragically brief lifespan of the<br />
35,000 United States airmen killed while stationed<br />
in England, the aura of glamour proved irresistible<br />
to most young men, as it did to me. Crews were<br />
expendable - airplanes were not. Authorities<br />
accepted the human fodder with a willingness that<br />
should have frightened the young air recruits but it<br />
apparently did not. I have not seen any final<br />
composite figures of United States losses for only<br />
flight crewmembers of heavy bombers, only the<br />
35,000 figure for all airmen noted above.<br />
However, odds for survival did not favor the<br />
heavy bomber crews of the Royal Air Force. Sixty<br />
percent of all flight crewmembers were killed, 12<br />
percent taken prisoner, I percent evaded capture and<br />
3 percent were wounded. Only 24 percent of<br />
operational bomber crewmembers ended the war<br />
unscathed.<br />
To fly in peacetime was and is a thrill and a<br />
pleasure that beggars description. The incomparable<br />
thrill of civilian flight is an experience any young<br />
man or woman cannot forget. Plunging through
282<br />
EPILOGUE<br />
misty white clouds, seeing metal shine and gleam in<br />
the sun, sailing in and out of mountains of clouds and<br />
being challenged by the high blue yonder is not easily<br />
forgotten. Flying in wartime was vastly different. It<br />
took Good mechanics, Gas, and Guts. But then it<br />
was all over. For those who survived it, discharges<br />
and medals were framed and hung on a wall, uniforms<br />
discarded or hung in the dark. Families were waiting<br />
at home and Universities beckoned to continue an<br />
interrupted education.<br />
This is not the same country that my generation<br />
was born in and raised in. We talk about civil rights in<br />
the other countries, but many of our own faults overshadow<br />
other countries. I have to shift gears drastically<br />
to think how the current generation thinks. Consider<br />
how they talk. Today we use such dishonest language,<br />
which is used to distort and disguise.<br />
“Termination of pregnancy”. This is supposed to be<br />
the birth of a child, which by the design of nature is<br />
the way pregnancy is brought to an end. “Pro-choice”.<br />
How glaringly escapist. Choice is meant to choose<br />
something, but its use here is final and unbending.<br />
“Sexually active.” As if we were talking about something<br />
no more significant than chewing gum or bird<br />
watching. What is at issue here is behavior. From a<br />
moral point of view and the natural law it is wrong,<br />
hazardous and psychologically produces deep and<br />
emotional damage. We use cute and slippery phrases<br />
like “safe sex and “alternate life-style’ in a vain attempt<br />
to cover or justify a perverse and aberrational<br />
behavior. They dress up their phrases in pretty language<br />
in violations of the natural law so they aren’t<br />
recognized for what they are. Lets call a spade a spade<br />
and a rose a rose. I was always certain that the safest<br />
place in the world was a woman’s womb, but now<br />
they invade it to kill. I thought Nazi Germany was bad<br />
and this simply tell us how far this country has deteriorated<br />
in the last 50 years. It is certainly not the same<br />
country that I fought for, or that so many of my veteran<br />
flying friends died for, when they had to helplessly<br />
ride their flaming hearses to earth.
283<br />
EPILOGUE
284<br />
EPILOGUE<br />
SQUADRON FORMATION OVER “SPLASHER BEACON” BEFORE HEADING<br />
FOR THE TARGET<br />
ASSEMBLY OF THREE (3) SQUADRONS AT 8000, 9000, & 10000 FEET AFTER SAFELY ABOVE THE OVERCAST, AS SEEN FROM ABOVE THE<br />
SPLASHER BEACON LOOKING TOWARD THE GROUND.<br />
SPLASHER BEACON LOOKING TOWARD THE GROUND
285<br />
EPILOGUE
286<br />
EPILOGUE<br />
ASSEMBLY AND FORMATION OVER THE TARGET<br />
AS THE B-24s NEARED THE TARGET, IT WAS NECESSARY FOR SQUADRONS TO MOVE FROM<br />
THE STANDARD FORMATION INTO A “LINE ASTERN” FORMATION. AFTER RELEASING BOMBS,<br />
THEY DESCENDED SLIGHTLY TO PICK UP SPEED, CLEAR THE TARGET, AND REGAIN<br />
STANDARD FORMATION AT THE RALLY POINT.
287<br />
EPILOGUE<br />
TOP VIEW & FRONT (head on ) VIEW OF ORIGINAL SQUADRON FORMATION<br />
WE FLEW THIS FORMATION OUR FIRST FIVE <strong>MISSION</strong>S. ALTHOUGH THE<br />
ELEMENTS OF THREE ARE REFERRED TO AS LEAD - HIGH RIGHT - LOW LEFT - AND -<br />
BUCKET, THE NUMBERS BY EACH AIRCRAFT DESIGNATES THE OFFICIAL POSITION<br />
OF EACH PLANE IN THE SQUADRON. THE MAKE UP OF THE FORMATION WAS<br />
CHANGED. SEE THE DIAGRAM ON THE NEXT PAGE FOR THE FORMATION USED ON<br />
OUR LAST 30 <strong>MISSION</strong>S.
288<br />
EPILOGUE<br />
EPILOGUE<br />
TOP VIEW & FRONT (head on) VIEW OF THE CHANGED SQUADRON FORMATION<br />
THIS IS THE FORMATION OUR CREW FLEW ON OUR LAST 30 <strong>MISSION</strong>S. THERE IS NO HIGH<br />
RIGHT OR LOW LEFT ELEMENT OF THREE AIRCRAFT. THE LEAD ELEMENT CONSISTS OF 7<br />
AIRCRAFT AND THE BUCKET CONSISTED OF EITHER THREE OR FOUR AIRCRAFT.
289<br />
EPILOGUE<br />
T/Sgt. Selwyn Kaplan<br />
I came to this land in search of death,<br />
But death like life has passed me by,<br />
Permitting me only to feel its breath,<br />
Not having the grace to let me die.<br />
Death like life, has played with me,<br />
Giving and taking as in a game,<br />
Refusing to grasp full victory,<br />
Not knowing it seems the sport grows tame.<br />
by poet airman Selwyn Kaplan<br />
Replacement Crew #46 had completed its tour of missions on March 11, 1945. T/Sgt. Kaplan and his crew<br />
also completed theirs in March. I (John Rowe) flew on a training mission with a newly arrived rookie pilot<br />
whose name I do not now recall; and Lt. Broadfoot along with T/Sgt. Kaplan, both having completed their<br />
tours, flew with the newly arrived rookie pilot Paul Westrick. We returned successfully to the airfield, but a<br />
P-47 aircraft giving simulated real life practice attacks for the gunners made one final buzzing of<br />
Westrick’s plane, came too close, and hit the B-24’s tail. Both planes crashed. Eight including the fighter<br />
pilot, Lt. Broadfoot, and Sgt. Kaplan were killed. Death did not truly pass him by as he recalls in the above<br />
verse. Ironically, the P-47 lived up to its name The Galloping Catastrophe. The verse is undated and<br />
unsigned but surely his as it was found while clearing out his possessions along with another verse which he<br />
had signed.
290<br />
THE AMERICAN CEMETERY<br />
AND<br />
MEMORIAL AT MADINGLEY - CAMBRIDGE<br />
This cemetery is situated 3 miles east of Cambridge. It contains the remains of 3812 of our<br />
dead who gave their lives while flying out of England during World War II. There are also<br />
5126 who are identified on “Tablets of the Missing” who gave their lives in the service of<br />
their country but whose remains were never recovered or identified. Most of those recorded<br />
on the “Tablets of the Missing” died in the battle of the North Atlantic or in the strategic<br />
air bombardment of Northern Europe. Major Glenn Miller is among them having been lost<br />
in the English Channel on a flight to France on December 15, <strong>1944</strong>. The cemetery lies on<br />
the north slope of a wide prospect, framed by woodlands on both the west and south sides.<br />
Each grave is marked by a headstone of white marble - a Star of David for those of the<br />
Jewish faith and a Latin Cross for all others. This is one of fourteen permanent cemeteries<br />
on foreign soil. This cemetery is on 31 acres donated by the University of Cambridge. The<br />
31 acres is United States Territory and the cemetery is maintained by the United States<br />
Government. (See page 290 for more detailed information about this Cemetery.)
291<br />
THE AMERICAN CEMETERY AT MADINGLEY - CAMBRIDGE<br />
On the left<br />
is the cross and<br />
inscription used to<br />
mark the burial<br />
s i t e o f a n<br />
u n i d e n t i f i e d<br />
veteran.<br />
O n t h e<br />
right is the World<br />
War II victory<br />
ribbon and medal.<br />
Not visible and just before this reflecting pool & behind the camera man who took this picture is<br />
the main entrance and the flagpole platform. Above is the great mall with its reflecting pools. The<br />
sweeping curve of the burial area can be seen just to the left of the reflecting pools and in the<br />
middle picture above as well as the picture on the preceding page. On the right in the picture are<br />
the “Tablets of the Missing” and on far end is the memorial with its chapel, and it has two huge<br />
military maps, the State Seals and a mosaic ceiling memorial to the Dead of our Air Forces.
292<br />
THE AMERICAN CEMETERY AT MADINGLEY - CAMBRIDGE<br />
FLAGPOLE PLATFORM<br />
At the American Cemetery At Madingley, Cambridge. It Is Just To The Right Of The Entrance To The<br />
Cemetery And Looks Down On The Reflecting Pool.
293<br />
THE AMERICAN CEMETERY AT MADINGLEY—CAMBRIDGE<br />
A SANCTUARY OF PEACE AND REFLECTION<br />
Madingley Cemetery is the responsibility of the American Battle Monuments Commission (an independent agency of<br />
the Executive Branch of the US Government), which was established in 1923. The ABMC’ responsibility is to commemorate<br />
the service and achievements of United States Armed Forces since April 6, ll917; the date the US entered World War 1.<br />
The cemetery covers 30.5 acres. It was constructed on the site of a temporary cemetery established in <strong>1944</strong> on land<br />
donated by the University of Cambridge. Construction of the cemetery was completed and the dedication ceremony held on l6<br />
July 1956. After the war, it became the only World War 11 cemetery in the British Isles.<br />
Many of those buried at Madingley were American servicemen and women who served as crewmembers of Britishbased<br />
American aircraft and were temporarily interred in the UK. Most of the remainder gave their lives in the invasions of<br />
North Africa and France, the training areas of the UK or the waters of the Atlantic.<br />
Madingley Cemetery is situated on the North slope of a hill from which, on a clear day, Ely Cathedral can be seen<br />
some 14 miles away. Woodland surrounds the cemetery to the west and south.<br />
The Memorial Chapel<br />
On the north face of the beautiful Portland stone memorial chapel, five pylons are each inscribed with one of the<br />
years from 1941 to 1945, the period during which the United States was involved in World War Two.<br />
At the west end, the entrance to the Memorial bears the dedication “TO THE GLORY OF GOD AND IN MEM-<br />
ORY OF THOSE WHO DIED FOR THEIR COUNTRY 1941-1945”.<br />
The teakwood main doors bear bronze models of military equipment and naval vessels. The south exterior is a great<br />
map depicting each location in the UK where an American unit (of battalion or larger size) was stationed during the Second<br />
World War. Bases of units brigade-size or larger are actually named. Principal air and sea approach routes from the US to the<br />
UK are shown and the map also features the coats of arms of the United States and United Kingdom.<br />
Inside the memorial chapel, the main feature of the “museum room” is the wall map “The Mastery of the Atlantic-<br />
The Great Air Assault”. Below the map, six places contain key maps recording the development of the war against Germany<br />
and Japan. The seven, central, plaque describes the operations portrayed by the great map.<br />
The War and Navy Department seals and the principal decorations awarded US armed services are featured behind glass panels<br />
beside and above the main memorial door. These include the Air Medal; Distinguished Flying Cross and Silver Star; Distinguished<br />
Service Cross; Medal of Honor—Army; Distinguished Service Medal-Army; Soldier’s Medal; Purple Heart;<br />
Bronze Star; Legion of Merit; Navy Cross; Medal of Honor-Navy; Distinguished Service Medal-Navy; and Navy and Marine<br />
Corps Medal.<br />
The windows of the Memorial contain stained glass replicas of the seals of the States of the Union arranged in the<br />
order of their joining. Above them appear the seals of the United States, District of Columbia, Alaska, Hawaii and Puerto<br />
Rico.<br />
The words “FAITH” and “HOPE” are set into the chancel rail. At the base of the Portland stone altar are the Tablets<br />
of Moses. A bronze cross stands on the altar, which is flanked by two large ornamental candelabra with mosaic embellishments.<br />
A mosaic of the Archangel trumpeting the arrival of the Resurrection and the Last Judgment covers the wall above<br />
the altar and the entire ceiling of the Memorial is covered with pictures of ghostly aircraft making their final flight, accompanied<br />
by angels. The ship and aircraft above the altar memorializes the members of the naval and air forces who ware buried or<br />
commemorated at the cemetery.<br />
The tablets of the missing are inscribed on a 427 foot long Portland stone wall. Here are listed the names and details<br />
of 5,126 missing in action, lost or buried at sea and also “Unknowns” whose remains were either never found or positively<br />
identified prior to interment. As asterisk denotes those subsequently identified.<br />
Along the wall stand four statues: a soldier, airman, sailor and coastguardsman.<br />
The grave area contains 3,812 headstones-Stars of David for those of the Jewish faith and Latin crosses for all others.<br />
They represent some forty two percent of those temporarily interred in the JK. The headstones in the fan shaped graves area<br />
are arranged in seven curved plots marked A-G. The headstones within the plots are in seven concentric arcs whose wide<br />
sweep across the green lawns is best viewed from the mall near the Chapel.<br />
Two of the headstones represent burials of two and three servicemen, respectively, whose names are unknown but<br />
could not be separately identified.<br />
The plantings include rows of pagoda trees, rose of Sharon, firethorn, forsythia and cotoneaster. Polyantha roses border<br />
the reflecting pool. Double-pink hawthorn trees line the north side of the graves area. A boxwood hedge encloses each<br />
grave plot. Tulip trees, catalpa, beech, oak and liquidamber (sweetgum) are also planted.
294<br />
THE AMERICAN CEMETERY AT MADINGLEY - CAMBRIDGE<br />
EULOGY<br />
(Given at The American Cemetery & Memorial - Madingley, Cambridge by John Rowe during a 448th Bomb Group Reunion<br />
in 1998 - Norwich and Seething, England<br />
ONCE AGAIN WE HAVE RETURNED TO BRITAIN, NOT TO THE BATTLEFIELD OF THE SKIES,<br />
BUT TO THE VILLAGES AND AIR BASES WHERE LASTING FRIENDSHIPS WERE FORMED. OURS IS A<br />
SPECIAL BOND WITH THE VILLAGE OF SEETHING. OUR REUNION HOWEVER IS NOT ONLY TO PAY<br />
RESPECT TO THE PEOPLE OF SEETHING, BUT TO OUR WARTIME COMRADES WHOSE LAST<br />
RESTING PLACE IS IN BRITISH SOIL.<br />
ALL OF US HAVE COMRADES HERE WHO WE KNEW PERSONALLY. FIFTY-FOUR OR FIVE<br />
YEARS AGO WE REMEMBER THEM FOR THEIR GENEROSITY OF SPIRIT, THEIR SENSE OF FUN,<br />
THEIR SHEER UNADULTERATED PASSION FOR LIFE. FOR THEM, THE “FRIENDLY INVASION” OF<br />
THESE ISLES PROVED TO BE A ONE-WAY TICKET AND NOW BURIED ON FOREIGN SOIL THEY ARE<br />
SELDOM VISITED BY FRIENDS OR FAMILY.<br />
SOME ARE STILL MISSING AND THEIR DESTINY UNKNOWN. WE OWE THEM A DEBT OF<br />
UNDYING GRATITUDE THAT CAN NEVER BE REPAID. WITH NO EXCEPTIONS, THEY WERE A<br />
MANLY, STERLING BREED OF YOUNG MEN. WE REALIZE THAT LIFE IS NOT FOREVER BUT WAR<br />
NO MATTER HOW NOBLE THE CAUSE, MAY BE NECESSARY BUT IS SUPREMELY SENSELESS AND<br />
WASTEFUL OF A COUNTRIES FINEST YOUTH.<br />
THIS REUNION CARRIES ALL OF US BACK OVER THE VANISHED YEARS, AND ITS EVENTS<br />
RECALL TO US HOW TRANSITORY IS THIS LIFE AND ALL ITS AFFAIRS. NOW THERE ARE ONLY<br />
MEMORIES IN THE MINDS OF US WHO LIVED THROUGH IT ALL AND WE WILL SOON BE CLOSING<br />
OUR ACCOUNTS IN THIS GREAT BOOK OF LIFE. SCARCELY ONE IN FIVE CAN CLAIM A CLEAR<br />
MEMORY OF WORLD WAR II.<br />
THE PAST IS DIFFICULT TO RECAPTURE AND EXPLAIN TO THE YOUNGER GENERATION.<br />
HISTORY DOES NOT PROVIDE A LESSON TO THOSE WHO HAVE NOT EXPERIENCED IT. THOSE OF<br />
US THAT REMAIN MUST KEEP TELLING THE YOUNGER ONES THE STORY OF THOSE YEARS<br />
BECAUSE IT WILL SOON RECEDE INTO THE HISTORY BOOKS LIKE WORLD WAR I.<br />
WE MUST ALWAYS REMEMBER IN OUR PRAYERS, THOSE BURIED HERE. AN ENGLISH SOLDIER<br />
POET OF WWII , SGT. HAROLD PERKINS, WROTE A POEM CALLED “REMEMBER THEM”. I WOULD LIKE<br />
TO CONCLUDE, FIRST BY READING THE LAST VERSE OF “REMEMBER THEM” AND FINALLY WITH A<br />
PRAYER.<br />
IN YOUR JOY, DO NOT FORGET<br />
THE HOME WITH A VACANT PLACE,<br />
A PLACE THAT NEVER CAN BE FILLED<br />
EXCEPT BY ONE DEAR FACE.<br />
THE FACE OF ONE WHO, FAR AWAY<br />
HIS LIFE HE FREELY GAVE,<br />
THAT THOSE HE LOVED MIGHT LIVE IN PEACE<br />
WHILE HE SLEEPS IN A SOLDIER’S GRAVE.<br />
PLEASE BOW YOUR HEADS FOR A MOMENT AND WE’LL ASK FOR GOD’S BLESSING: GENTLE AND<br />
LOVING FATHER, WE COMMEND TO YOU ALL BURIED HERE AT MADINGLEY WHO HAVE BEEN FREED<br />
FROM SIN AND DEATH. BRING THEM TO THE FULLNESS OF LIFE AND HAPPINESS WITH YOU. BLESS<br />
THOSE WHO SERVE THEIR COUNTRY IN THE MILITARY. MAY THEY NEVER HAVE TO LIFT A HAND<br />
AGAINST OTHERS WHO ARE THE WORK OF YOUR HANDS. HASTEN THE DAY WHEN WAR WILL BE NO<br />
MORE. INSTILL IN THE HEARTS OF ALL LEADERS EVERYWHERE, A SPIRIT OF PEACE.<br />
BE WITH US NOW AS WE TRAVEL. BE OUR SAFETY EVERY MILE OF THE WAY. GUIDE US<br />
SAFELY AS YOU GUARDED ABRAHAM IN ALL HIS WANDERINGS. GUIDE US TO OUR NEXT<br />
DESTINATION FROM HERE AND BRING US ONE DAY CLOSER TO OUR DESTINATION WITH YOU.<br />
WE ASK THIS IN YOUR NAME AND THE NAME OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.<br />
AMEN
295<br />
USAAF STATION #146—SEETHING AIRFIELD, SEETHING ENGLAND.<br />
SEETHING AIRFIELD—Picture taken <strong>October</strong>, 1945 after cessation of hostilities. Note the leftover<br />
bombs and ammunition stored on the runways.
296