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

Delivered Long Beach 4/9/43; Assigned 535BS/381BG [MS-L] Ridgewell 23/1/44; transferred 837BS/487BG Lavenham 17/7/44, then 838BS; retUS 1377 BU Grenier 24/9/45; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Walnut Ridge 14/12/45. BUCKET O’ BOLTS.

Delivered Denver 3/1/43; Salina 9/1/43; Tinker 26/2/43; Assigned 422BS/305BG [JJ-Y/D] Chelveston 6/4/43; Missing in Action Hannover 28/9/43 with Capt Harvey Rodgers, Radio Operator: Frank Lang, Waist gunner: Joe Lickose, Waist gunner: Marvin Sirus (4 Prisoner of War), Co-pilot: Lou Bower, Navigator: George McClintic, Bombardier: Curtis Reese, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Ed Yozgadlian, Ball turret gunner: Joe Mahoney,Tail gunner: Malvern Heatherington{never found} (6 Killed in Action); shot down by enemy aircraft, crashed Landringhausen, S of Wunsdortf, 11 miles SW of Hannover, Ger. Missing Air Crew Report 906. (First B-17 lost on night mission). CENTAUR.

Delivered Denver 23/5/43; Dow Fd 4/7/43; Assigned 548BS/385BG [GX-U] Gt Ashfield 9/7/43; Returned to the USA Bradley 3/7/44; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Altus 14/8/45. MAYFLY.

Delivered Fairfield 4/9/44; Hunter 25/9/44; Grenier 3/10/44; Assigned 601BS/398BG Nuthampstead 11/10/44; transferred 427BS/303BG [GN-A] Molesworth 28/10/44; Missing in Action Germersheim 13/1/45 with pilot 2Lt Oliver T Eisenhart, copilot 2Lt Henry McCullough, Navigator 2Lt Maurice Merrick, Bombardier F/O Herring Joyce, Flight Eng S/Sgt Sam Hindman, Radio Sgt Bernie Kaufmann, Ball turret Sgt Bill Kimber, Waist gun Sgt Jack Thompson, tail gun Sgt Therman Conaway (9 Killed in Action); direct flak hit in the tail, crashed Roxheim, Ger; Missing Air Crew Report 11574.

Delivered Salt Lake City 7-Sep-40; Lowry 24-Jul-43; to Class 26 Hobbs. NM ; Written off 17-Oct-43. It was one of the aircraft that played the part of B-17 ‘Mary-Ann’ in the film ‘Air Force’, which was released in 1943 by Warner Bros.

Delivered Cheyenne 21/12/44; Hunter 4/1/45; Dow Fd 21/1/45; Assigned as PFF 350BS/100BG [LN-U] Thorpe Abbotts 23/1/45; RetUS, Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Walnut Ridge 5/1/46.

Delivered Lincoln 9/10/44; Grenier 23/10/44; Assigned 482BG H2X Alconbury 25/10/44; transferred 349BS/100BG [XR-G] Thorpe Abbotts 27/10/44 (npo) KLEEN SWEEP; damaged when parked and hit in taxi accident at 40ADG Stansted by 43-39042; 482BG Alconbury 20/5/45; Returned to the USA Bradley 4/6/45; Sth Plains 8/6/45; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Walnut Ridge 26/11/44; LITTLE SWEETHEART.

Delivered Dallas 25/9/44; Hunter 24/10/44; Dow Fd 31/10/44; Assigned 305BG Chelveston 1/11/44; transferred 418BS/100BG [LD-P] Thorpe Abbotts 3/11/44; RetUS, Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Walnut Ridge 28/12/45.

Delivered Dallas 14/7/44; Langley 17/8/44; Grenier 14/9/44; Assigned 95BG PFF Horham 25/9/44; 1m, transferred 350BS/100BG [LN-B] Thorpe Abbotts 26/9/44; Returned to the USA Bradley 2/7/45; with Rich Voight to Tulsa, OK, 5/7/45; Independence 24/8/45; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Kingman 21/12/45. JUMBO.

Delivered Hunter 27/11/44; Grenier 7/12/44; Assigned 349BS/100BG [XR-H] Thorpe Abbotts 12/12/44; Returned to the USA Bradley 22/6/45; Sth Plains 24/6/45; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Kingman 20/12/45. (npo) WOODY WOODPECKER.