zoom_in
Source:
www.americanairmuseum.com
Production-block:
B-17G-1-BO: 42-31032 to 42-31131
Manufacturer:
Boeing
- Bomb Group:
- 447th Bomb Group
- Bomb Squadron:
- 709th Bomb Squadron
MACR: 2279 / KSU/ME/KU: 746
History of
B-17 42-31108 / Devil’s Mate
Delivered Cheyenne 20/9/43; Harvard 4/10/43; Assigned 709BS/447BG Rattlesden 21/11/43; Missing in Action Frankfurt 29/1/44 with Clyde Allen, Co-pilot: Harry Gottlieb, Navigator: Dick Martin, Bombardier: Harry DeLong, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Clyde Lockhart, Radio Operator: Howard Sikes, Ball turret gunner: Fred Dragone, Waist gunner: Joe McDermott, Waist gunner: Larry Palocsko,Tail gunner: Floyd Inman (10 Killed in Action); enemy aircraft, crashed Waldecker road, Gonderhausen, near Waldeck castle, 14 miles SW of Koblenz, Ger. Missing Air Crew Report 2279 THE DEVIL’S MATE.
Last updated: 31. October 2021
B-17 42-31108 / Devil’s Mate Crew
| Position | Rank | Name | Status | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | 1LT | Clyde M. Allen | KIA | - |
| CP | 2LT | Harry Gottlieb | KIA | - |
| NAV | 2LT | Richard A. Marten | KIA | - |
| BOMB | 2LT | Harry B. DeLong | KIA | - |
| ENG/TT | T/SGT | Clyde F. Lockhart | KIA | - |
| RO | T/SGT | Howard E. Sikes | KIA | - |
| BT | S/SGT | Fred A. Dragone | KIA | - |
| WG | S/SGT | Joseph F. McDermott | KIA | - |
| WG | S/SGT | Larry J. Palocsko | KIA | - |
| TG | S/SGT | Floyd T. Inman | KIA | - |
01. November 2021 access_time 0:58
Lt. Frederick J. Hughes Lost Over Germany Sept 30 1944 I would like name of plane and info on him Thanks mike
04. April 2023 access_time 23:28
Hello Mike: You asked your question about LT Frederick J. Hughes quite a while ago. I’m now doing an article about what took place on 30 September 1944.
The 493rd BG mission to the Marshalling Yard in Bielefeld, Germany lost two aircraft (1 survivor in each crew). However, there was one death in another plane – LT Frederick J. Hughes, Navigator. The aircraft was B-17G 43-38198 and it was named “$1.98”.
12. December 2021 access_time 18:29
I am the great nephew of 1lt Clyde Allen, pilot of Devil’s Mate KIA 29 Jan 1944. I was wondering if anyone had information on the German pilot who shot his B-17 down. Thank you!!
05. March 2022 access_time 18:05
Greetings Jason, The Devil’s Mate crashed in the “Baybachtal” valley close to Gondershausen, Germany, after being disabled in an air battle overhead the nearby village of Bickenbach on Jan. 29, 1944. We’ve been trying to re-identify the (now densely forested) crash location for commemoration purposes. I’ll check the German archives to see if the planes & pilots involved in the battle that day can be identified. To be continued…
07. March 2022 access_time 17:18
Thanks Steve!!! We are hoping to visit the area this summer and are looking forward to any further information you might find!! Take care!!!
17. February 2023 access_time 20:13
Greetings Jason,
It’s been a while, but we’ve found the answer to your initial question:
The Devil’s Mate was almost definitely shot down on Jan. 29, 1944 by Lt. Heinz Schlechter, 5./J27 (5. Staffel/Jagt Geschwader 27 – 5th Squadron/27th Fighter Squadron) flying a Messerschmidt Bf 109 G-6 aircraft.
On May 12, 1944, Schlechter had to bail out after colliding with a B-17 by Merzhausen north of Frankfurt. The linked webpage below describes this battle (unfortunately only in German), but the pictures at the bottom show the B-17 (on the left) coming down without its tail and Schlechter (on the right) with a cast on his right arm and wearing an American flyer’s jacket after the collision. He survived the war, but evidently passed away in March 2016.
https://www.einsatzhafen-merzhausen.de/der-einsatzhafen/geschichte-1944-1945/12-05-1944/
Best wishes, Steve G.
P.s. We’ve located the actual crash site of The Devil’s Mate deep in the valley beneath our home. We hope to spend a bit more time down there once the spring weather dries things up a bit. Just for reference, the site lies just off the “Wolfsgraben” stream at Google coordniates: 50.149099, 7.453484
To be continued…..
30. May 2023 access_time 4:05
My uncle Clyde Lockhart was on that plane. Is it possible to get photos of actual crash site? His mother my grandmother never knew where her son died. Thank you for any information!
16. August 2023 access_time 19:43
Hi Terry, Sorry for the late response. Here are the „Devil’s Mate“ crash site coordinates:
(50.1490040, 7.4535403)
You can plug these right into Google Maps. The site is along the small (Wolfsgraben) stream between Gondershausen and Beulich. The 10 airmen were initially buried in the cemetery in Beulich until they were officially moved the end of the war. I believe your uncle was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.
Please send me an email address and I‘ll send some pictures when we’re at site next tume.