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

Delivered Cheyenne 23 March 1943; Dow Field 10 April 1943; Assigned 407BS/92BG [PY-R] Alconbury 24 April 1943. Was flown by Captain Donald G. Parker on the 17 July 1943 mission to Hannover, Germany. Hit by Unteroffizier Ernst Breton of JG11, it was lost on the 16 November 1943 mission to the salt mines at Knaben, Norway with Pilot Joseph F. Thornton; Co-pilot: Whitney M. Bray; Bombardier: Arthur A. Carmell; Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Laurence E. Dennis; Radio Operator: John Geegee; Ball turret gunner: Dean M. Sommers; Left Waist gunner: Charles H. Hartnett; Right Waist gunner: Otto F. Trammer; Tail gunner: Rolland A. Galloway (9 Prisoner of War). The Navigator: David C. Cesbris bailed out early, landed in Norway and was helped to evade by Norwegian patriots; reached Sweden on 17 Fébruary 1944 and was back in the UK on 15 March 1944. Crashed near Mandal, West of Kristiansand, Norway. Missing Air Crew Report – MACR 1384. FLAGSHIP / FLAG SHIP.

Delivered Cheyenne 23/3/43; Hobbs 3/4/43; Roswell 23/5/43; Hobbs 30/5/43; 3017 BU Hobbs 8/11/44; 4100 BU Patterson 24/3/45; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Altus 9/10/45.

Delivered Tulsa 29/5/44; Hunter 23/6/44; Dow Fd 3/7/44; Assigned 20BS/2BG Amendola 12/7/44; 56m then Returned to the USA Bradley 25/6/45; Sth Plains 27/6/45; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Kingman 27/11/45.

Delivered Cheyenne 14/7/44; Hunter 22/7/44; Dow Fd 4/8/44; Assigned: 390BG Framlingham 4/8/44; Transferred: 549BS/385BG [SG- ] Gt Ashfield 5/8/44; MIA Osnabruck 21/11/44 Pilot: Jim Webb, Francis Riggs, Chas Melhado, Orsen Jensen, Tom Watkins, Tony Vespasiano, Wallace Land, Pryce Spencer (8KIA); Ken Kio (POW); mid air coll w/43-37566 (385BG); crashed Körbecke (District Warburg), Germany. MACR 10413.

Delivered Cheyenne 18/8/44; Lincoln 6/9/44; Grenier 24/9/44; Assigned: 550BS/385BG [SG-T] Gt Ashfield 25/9/44; returning from Osnabruck 21/11/44 Pilot: Cliff Foss (Cobb), Otho Quick, Myron Loyet, Theo Otto, Bob Houston, John Bevilcqua, Gail Anderson (7RTD); Jim Shaver, Ed Myers (2POW); mid-air coll w/43-38270 (385BG), but returned and repaired; MACR 10468; Returned to US: Bradley 26/6/45; 4168 BU Sth Plains 28/6/45; Scrapped: Kingman 5/12/45.

Delivered Tulsa 3/2/44; Grenier 2/3/44; Assigned 401BS/91BG [LL-Z] Bassingbourn 5/3/44; Missing in Action 15m Ludwigshafen 27/5/44; flak, force landed Payerne, Switz; Missing Air Crew Report 5356; 9 INT; Salvaged 9AF Germany 10/12/45. LIBERTY RUN.

Delivered Cheyenne 11/3/44; Kearney 29/3/44; Dow Fd 4/4/44; Assigned: 96BG Snetterton 8/4/44; Transferred: 571BS/390BG [FC-N] Framlingham 9/4/44; MIA {4m} Freidrichahafen 29/4/44 Pilot: Bob Rayburn, Co-Pilot: Henry Crowley, Navigator: Murray Jacob, Bombardier: Chas Heltsley, Engineer / Top Turret Gunner: Dave Thomas, Radio Operator: Bob O’Hara, Ball Turret Gunner: Bill Cusack, Waist Gunner: Dan Chermak, Waist Gunner: Dick Matanle, Tail Gunner: Woodrow Johnson (10POW); flak, one engine smoking, crashed a mile SE of Bitterfeld, 28 miles SW of Potsdam, Germany. MACR 4245.

Delivered Tulsa 2/8/43; Scott 22/10/43; Assigned 401BG Deenethorpe 10/43; transferred 532BS/381BG [VE-N] Ridgewell 21/11/43; Missing in Action 9m Oschersleben 20/2/44 with Kirch Cogswell, Co-pilot: Bill Borrego, Navigator: Bill Meehan, Bombardier: Lorenzo Espinosa, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Ray Leccese, Radio Operator: Frank Urban, Ball turret gunner: Joe Durnin, Waist gunner: John Kangas,Tail gunner: Wilf Miller (9 Prisoner of War); Waist gunner: Chas Duncan (Killed in Action); flak & enemy aircraft, crashed Leipzig Knauthain, Ger, Missing Air Crew Report 2929.

Delivered Hunter 15/6/44; Dow Fd 25/6/44; Assigned 353BS/301BG Lucera 3/7/44; Missing in Action Padua 11/4/45 with Walter Haaser, Cole, Sparks, King, Forche, Brillan, Gordon, Yates, Gamble, Fishleder (10INT); flak, crashed Morbegno, Italy; Missing Air Crew Report 13978.

Delivered Cheyenne 6/12/43; Kearney 24/12/43; Nutts Corner, Belfast, N.I. 14/1/44; Assigned 322BS/91BG [LG-V] Bassingbourn 1/2/44; 77m Missing in Action Merseburg 2/11/44 with Leroy Hare, Co-pilot: Bob Casey, Navigator: Theo Herrick, Bombardier: Roy Cook (4 Prisoner of War); Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Tom Harris, Radio Operator: Frank Holman, Ball turret gunner: Bill Oxby, Waist gunner: Floyd Callen,Tail gunner: George Hanson (5 Killed in Action); riddled by formation of enemy aircraft, tailplane broke away and ship crashed Gnotsch, Ger; Missing Air Crew Report 10144. MAN ‘O WAR II – HORSEPOWER LTD.