Source:
[No restrictions or Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
| General | |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer: | Boeing |
| Production-Block: | , B-17G-5-BO: 42-31132 to 42-31231 |
| Operational History | |
|---|---|
| Bomb Group: | , 390th Bomb Group |
| Bomb Squadron: | , 569th Bomb Squadron |
| RCL | CC-G |
| MACR | 8910 |
| KSU/ME/KU: | 950a |
| Fate: |
, Lost by flak/aa-fire (10 September 1944) |
History of
B-17 42-31134 / Gung Ho
Delivered Cheyenne 24/9/43; Gr Island 7/10/43; Wilmington 10/10/43; Assigned 569BS/390BG [CC-G] Framlingham 13/10/43; Missing in Action Nurnburg 10/9/44 with Chas McIntosh, Bombardier: Ray Wilson, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Frank Stokes, Radio Operator: Karle Kolmerer, Ball turret gunner: Griffith Williams, Waist gunner: Ernie Starr (6 Killed in Action); Co-pilot: Basil Shafer, Navigator: Duward Bare(wia),Tail gunner: Ben Howell (3 Prisoner of War); flak hit in #4, went down and exploded, crashed in Schweinauer Strasse, Nurnberg, Ger. Missing Air Crew Report 8910. GUNG HO.
B-17 42-31134 / Gung Ho Details
Eyewitness Statement from MACR 8910
At target at 1100 hours, A/C #1134 received a direct hit with #4 engine off and set right wing on fire. A/C flipped over on its back, dropped straight down, exploding and disintegrating a few seconds later. Two chutes were reported seen.
B-17 42-31134 / Gung Ho Crew
| Position | Rank | Name | Status | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | 1LT | Charles F. McIntosh | KIA | - |
| CP | 2LT | Basil L. Schafer | POW | - |
| NAV | 1LT | Duward J. Bare | POW | - |
| BOMB | 2LT | Ray Wilson | KIA | - |
| ENG/TT | T/SGT | Frank T. Stokes | KIA | - |
| RO | T/SGT | Karle E. Kolmerer | KIA | - |
| BT | S/SGT | Griffith M. Williams, Jr. | KIA | - |
| WG | S/SGT | Ernest Starr | KIA | - |
| TG | S/SGT | Ben N. Howell | POW | - |
This page was last updated on 15 August 2023
08. January 2018 access_time 18:31
Just came across your web site while searching information about the B-17. I enjoyed all the information that you have shared. My Dad was in the 569 group and flew in the B-17 Gung Ho. He is still living and is now 95 years old. He was a gunner.
Thanks again
Sandy
08. January 2018 access_time 19:07
Thank you Sandy! All the best to you and your family!
28. April 2019 access_time 2:14
i just saw the email left by’sandy’ from january 2018 and mentioned his father being a gunner on the gung-ho(390th 569 group) my father was also a member of that specific grouo. i would live to get in touch with you sandy! please contact me if you should see this or if anyone here knows how i can contact him. thank you
sean maroney camerapeon@hotmail.com 4/27/2019
12. April 2020 access_time 7:42
Wow, Sandy, my grandad also flew on the Gung-Ho. His name was Will Kline & he was a pilot in 43-44. So amazed to finally find the tail art!
14. September 2020 access_time 7:14
My uncle Max Nauman was a pilot on Gung Ho for servel missions. Thanks for the pictures of the nose art,I am building a model of the plane and now I have the nose art picture. THX again.
15. March 2024 access_time 22:55
dear Sir,
i own the grouping of Lynn Farnham, who was vopilot of your nucléaire, and who flew 35 missions with him. i would like to speak with you, and send to you some scans of your uncle’s photos. do you also have photos or memories you could share ?
30. August 2025 access_time 17:53
I am in possession of a Bible that was gifted to William Paddock from 1st Lt. Charles Fredrick “Fred” McIntosh when they attended flight training school in Texas. Purchased from Mr. Paddock’s estate, it contains a letter written to Mr. Paddock from the widow of 1st Lt McIntosh dated December 26, 1945 and still in the original mailing envelope postmarked December 27, 1945. The letter was a response to an inquiry by Mr. Paddock about his friend, 1st Lt. “Fred” McIntosh whom he met and befriended in flight cadet training school and routinely attended Sunday Services, but lost track of when both were sent to different airfields. The letter details additional accounts regarding the loss of the Gung Ho by some of the surviving crew members who parachuted to safety and ultimately ended up in a POW camp. The letter also discusses Fred’s early days before heading off to Europe. Fred was due for a 30 furlough to return home to visit his wife and 20-month old son, when he was lost over Nurnberg, Germany.
17. January 2026 access_time 22:03
Fred was my grandad, Art’s older brother. While stationed in UK ten years ago I managed to visit the airfield museum in Framlingham where he was once stationed and given his old air traffic logs. I’m now back in UK so will have to make the trip to Nuremberg and St Avold.
18. January 2026 access_time 16:43
Hello, yes, I was able to make contact with the family and I sent the letter and bible to Fred’s son “Monte”.
28. January 2026 access_time 16:09
Outstanding, thank you
16. June 2019 access_time 19:43
My Dad, Duward Bare, was the navigator and sometimes the bombardier on the Gung Ho. He kept copies of all his mission notes until the plane was shot down and he became a prisoner of war. Is the photo the actual Gung Ho or a stock photo of a B-17 from the 390th bomb group. Was there no nose art?
16. June 2019 access_time 20:35
Hello Beverley,
the first photo is from Wikipedia and I thing it’s a very early photo of 42-31134 Gung Ho without the noseart.
I added a second photo where the nose art is visible.
24. March 2025 access_time 21:46
Incredible! My uncle, George Thompson, was a radio operator on the Gung Ho! Unfortunately, we lost uncle George about 15 years ago. I know my cousin would love to know more from men who served with him
04. March 2021 access_time 0:18
My grandfather also was on the Gung-Ho. He was a tail gunner. He was on the Gung-Ho for group mission 139 on 6/29/44. I am researching his WW2 history.
26. September 2021 access_time 0:27
So very glad to stumble across this website. Thanks to the authors of it. My uncle Fred (Charles Frederick McIntosh) was pilot on Gung Ho when shot down on Sept. 10, 1944. The above report is in error, Lyle Shafer, co-pilot survived the explosion, spent almost a year in German prison, and was released at the end of the war. We became very good friends and he wrote up the story of the hit and subsequent crash. Lyle brought Duward Bare to a family reunion and I got to meet him. Also, there were two Gung-Ho aircraft and this one was previously named Dottie. Lyle took my cousin, Fred’s son over to Germany in the 80’s and showed him the exact landing spot of his parachute and the factory building where he saw the fuselage crash thru the roof. Dave H
26. September 2021 access_time 8:43
Hello Dave, thank you for sharing the story and information. I have updated the status of Lyle Shafer. He status now is POW. Bombardier was KIA instead POW.
Cheers
Jing
30. August 2025 access_time 18:24
Dave, reach out to me as I have a letter written by the widow of 1st Lt. Charles Fredrich “Fred” McIntosh. Peggie McIntosh. The letter mentions Fred’s 20-month old son and the fact that he was due to come home on furlough. I’ve been trying to find anyone related to Fred.
17. January 2026 access_time 22:05
Hi Steve, were you able to get in touch with David? If not I can give my grandad’s address as I’m sure he would appreciate an old letter written by Fred.
27. August 2022 access_time 21:36
Should anyone like information about the 390th Bomb Group and/or about the four squadrons (568th, 569th, 570th and 571st) and about any personnel who served in any capacity in the 390th, please visit the website or email me.
28. August 2022 access_time 1:34
Hello Glenn,
I know your site and I am using it for my own research.
It’s a really good source to check history of B-17s and personnel records of the 390th BG!
Thank you! 🙂
Cheers
Jing
11. January 2025 access_time 3:00
Uncle George died 11/22/10. I’ve heard he was trained on side Turret then as radio operator/navigator. If you have information that would be great. Thanks, Madeleine kj5634@swbell.net
13. January 2023 access_time 22:16
Dear Dave H & others,
I started researching Freddie McIntosh after hearing of him in old recordings from the late pastor RB “Bob” Thieme Jr from my childhood church, who also served in WW2 and said he was Fred’s best friend at the time. I think Bob’s account needs to be mentioned here for its severe discrepancies with the facts. Im not sure of Bob’s motives for twisting the story, but he claimed that everyone but Freddie made it out of the plane alive, which I believe was disrespectful to the other 5 men who died that day. In addition, Bob claimed the incident happened over Berlin rather than Nuremberg. Dave, can you comment on the actual relationship of relationship of Bob Thieme, if any, to your uncle?
You can find one recording of Bob’s story here:
https://youtu.be/zhZNSsCUHLw
17. February 2024 access_time 4:11
Mike D
I’m not sure why Bob Thieme would twist the facts as he did. Back in the early ’40’s, Fred knew Bob Theime well, but I think Bob later went “off the rails” doctrinally as well as distorted details of Fred’s last mission.
The above record is true regarding the number of men that made it out of Fred’s B-17. In the 1990’s, I met two of them, Lyle Shafer and Duward Bare, getting to know Lyle very well. Right after Lyle got out of prison camp and back home, he wrote my grandparents and told the facts of the mission and details of how the plane went down. I have his letter. How I would like to correspond with some contributors of this forum who had close loved ones on that airplane. The loss of those men affected a lot of lives, even to this day.
Dave – david.hoisington@gmail.com
15. March 2024 access_time 22:56
dear Sir,
i own the grouping of Lynn Farnham, who was copilot of your uncle, and who flew 35 missions with him. i would like to speak with you, and send to you some scans of your uncle’s photos. do you also have photos or memories you could share ?
18. September 2024 access_time 4:57
I don’t understand your comment ” I own the grouping of Lynn Farnham , who was copilot of your uncle, and who flew 35 missions with him.” I have copies of my uncle Fred McIntosh logbook and do not see anything about Farnham. He kept a private diary of each day’s flights, usually recording the names of the co-pilots he flew with.
Also to clarify again, only three men survived the explosion and crash of “Gung Ho”.
Dave – david.hoisington@gmail.com
Boise, Idaho
17. January 2026 access_time 22:07
*Peggie