B-17 Bomber Flying Fortress – The Queen Of The Skies

Delivered Cheyenne 3/9/42; Assigned 423BS/306BG [RD-S] Thurleigh 16/5/43 OLD FAITHFUL; transferred 323BS/91BG [OR-N] Bassingbourn 11/9/43; transferred 322BS [LL-S]; Missing in Action Schweinfurt 14/10/43 with Bob Slane, Co-pilot: Joe Johnson, Bombardier: Bill Runner, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Sherman Sly, Radio Operator: Vic Kuhlman, Ball turret gunner: Lou Brown, Waist gunner: Chas Croth, Waist gunner: Bob Solomon (8 Prisoner of War), Navigator: Art Foster (EVD-ret UK 19/9/44),Tail gunner: Claud Smith (Killed in Action); enemy aircraft KO’d #3 & #4, crash landed on rail line S of Metz, Fr. Missing Air Crew Report 899. Salvaged by Luftwaffe, and restored to be used by KG 200 for spares.

Delivered Cheyenne 5/3/44; Gr Island 27/3/44; Grenier 7/4/44; Assigned: 600BS/398BG [N8-J] Nuthampstead 27/4/44; on training mission 4/5/44 Pilot: Lt E. Ford in mid-air collision with 42-107191, damaged left wing but returned safely; (32m) MIA Brandenburg 6/8/44 w/Ike Alhadeff, Co-Pilot: John Sigsworth, Navigator: Clarry Evans, Bombardier: Paul Foster, Engineer / Top Turret Gunner: Martin Chavez, Radio Operator: Orville Elsrod, Ball Turret Gunner: Nathan Mirell, Waist Gunner: Tudor Mellville, Tail Gunner: Dave Walker (9POW); flak, crashed Stade, near Hamburg, Germany. MACR 7886. AGONY WAGON III.

Delivered Long Beach 16/10/43; Gr Island 8/11/43; Assigned 423BS/306 BG [RD-K] Thurleigh 18/12/43; Missing in Action Brunswick 29/3/44; enemy aircraft set fuselage alight, crash landed Polder Ronde Hoep, Ouder-Amstel, seven miles SW of Amsterdam, Hol; Missing Air Crew Report 3481. WAMPUS CAT.

Delivered Denver 11/2/43; Dow Fd 13/6/43; Assigned 335BS/95BG Horham 15/6/43; transferred 549BS/385BG [XA-Z] Gt Ashfield /43; damaged in base explosion 3/9/43; Missing in Action Ludwigshafen 30/12/43 with Rueben Eckhardt, Navigator: Kingsley Sumner (2 evaded capture); Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Art Enders, Radio Operator: Leroy Acridge, Ball turret gunner: Bob Crumrine, Waist gunner: Jim Lires, Waist gunner: Rowland Burch, Tail gunner: Floyd Montgomery (6 Prisoner of War); Co-pilot: Chas Erichsen, Bombardier: John Hay (2 Killed in Action); flak, crashed Fresnicourt, Sain-en-Gohelle,Fr; Missing Air Crew Report 1898. THE GROUND HOG.

Delivered Tulsa 5/4/44; Hunter 20/6/44; Grenier 28/6/44; Assigned 340BS/97BG Amendola 3/7/44; Missing in Action Brux 20/10/44 with Don Wilson, Hayes, Thomas, Adams, Harborn, Calley, Catollo, Rupurt, Corning, Phillips; flak or out of gas, crashed Yugoslavia; Missing Air Crew Report 9591.

Delivered Tulsa 3/4/44; Hunter 16/6/44; Dow Fd 28/6/44; Assigned 815BS/483BG Sterparone 3/7/44; Missing in Action Moosbeirbaum, Aus 28/8/44 with Jonas Blank, Corenthal, Penn, Emmett Jones, Perperone, Schreiner, Nicholaisen (7 Prisoner of War); Whye, Tucker, Cunningham (3 evaded capture & reurn 10/9/44); mechanical failure, crashed Karlstadt; Missing Air Crew Report 11278.

Delivered Cheyenne 18/7/44; Kearney 27/7/44; Grenier 8/8/44; Assigned 860BS/493BG Debach 10/8/44; Missing in Action Brunswick 3/3/45 with Chas White, Walter Helm, Jim Gunderson, George Lemberling, Marvin Knight, Fred Graf, Loren Arment, Doyle Whitney, Bob Boatman (9 Prisoner of War); enemy aircraft, crashed Apelern, Ger?. Missing Air Crew Report 12887.

Delivered Cheyenne 24/1/44; MacDill 5/2/44; Morrison 9/3/44; Assigned 840BS/483BG Tortorella 13/3/44; Missing in Action Budapest 14/7/44 with 1Lt Ewald A Swanson, 2Lt Paul Berndt, Gramenzi, Simonelli, Hish, Bell, Kelley, Tucker (8 Prisoner of War); Henderson, Dudley (2 Killed in Action); flak, nose blown off, crashed Solt; Missing Air Crew Report 6901. MIZPAH.

Delivered: Long Beach 23/9/43; Gr Island 6/10/43; assigned 548BS/385BG [GX-A] Gt Ashfield 23/10/43; MIA Bremen 13/11/43 Pilot: Ben McCall, Tail Gunner: Bill Butler{found in tail section near Oldenburg, Germany. (2KIA); Co-Pilot: Clovis Ginn, Navigator: John Replogle, Bob Lambiaso, Engineer / Top Turret Gunner: Larry Charland, Radio Operator: Stan Easterbrook, Ball Turret Gunner: Ed Berthiaume, Waist Gunner: Bill Bowels, Waist Gunner: Lyne Wood (8RTD -rescued from sea); mid-air coll. w/42-30717 (385BG), ditched North Sea 20 miles of UK coast; MACR 1403. WAR CRY.

Delivered Cheyenne 29/4/43; Sioux City 13/5/43; Smoky Hill 10/6/43; Dow Fd 15/6/43; Assigned 560BS/388BG Knettishall 16/6/43 IZA BLUE; detailed Duren 20/10/43 with Bob Simmons, crew ?, (10 Returned to Duty); but recalled due to extreme weather, eventually getting lost until spotting small airfield near Lichfield, Staffs, and needed seven attempts to land in meadow beyond runway, hitting tree and wrecked aircraft; Salvaged. IMPATIENT VIRGIN.