| General | |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer: | Boeing |
| Production-Block: | , B-17G-10-BO: 42-31232 to 42-31331 |
| Operational History | |
|---|---|
| Bomb Group: | , 306th Bomb Group |
| Bomb Squadron: | , 368th Bomb Squadron |
| MACR: | 2768 |
| Fate: |
, Lost by enemy aircraft (25 February 1944) |
History of
B-17 42-31245 / Top Hat
Delivered Cheyenne 7/10/43; Grand Island 1/11/43; Dallas 6/11/43; Assigned: 368BS/306BG [BO- ] Thurleigh 14/12/43; MIA Augsburg 25/2/44 Pilot: Jim Coleman, Co-Pilot: Oscar Brown, Bombardier: Clinton Snyder, Engineer / Top Turret Gunner: Rex Hayes, Radio Operator: Calvin Garrison, Ball Turret Gunner: Phillip Vaught, Waist Gunner: Bill Wiersma, Waist Gunner: Joe Buckley, Tail Gunner: Fred Organ (9POW); Navigator: Louis Rodriguez (EVD, but INT Switz); Enemy aircraft, crashed La Francheville, two miles SW of Charleville, Fr; MACR 2768. TOP HAT.
Information may include corrections and additions based on Jing’s research.
B-17 42-31245 / Top Hat Crew
| Position | Rank | Name (First Name, Middle Initial, Last Name) | Status | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | F/O | James R. Coleman | UNK | - |
| CP | 1LT | Oscar B. Bourn | UNK | - |
| NAV | 1LT | Louis Rodriguez | UNK | - |
| ENG/TT | T/SGT | Rex L. Hayes | UNK | - |
| RO | T/SGT | Calvin G. Garrison | UNK | - |
| BT | S/SGT | Phillip D. Vaught | UNK | - |
| WG | S/SGT | William Wiersma | UNK | - |
| WG | S/SGT | Joseph E. Buckley | UNK | - |
| TG | S/SGT | Fred T. Organ | UNK | - |
| TOG | S/SGT | Clinton E. Snyder | UNK | - |
This page was last updated on 26 August 2018
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21. September 2021 access_time 19:32
My grandpa Clinton Snyder was the bombardier on this aircraft and was presumed dead after the plane was shot down and was taken pow after he escaped the crash
03. August 2026 access_time 1:18
My uncle Oscar b Bourn was the copilot on “ top Hat when it was lost and was my uncle. He hid with the French underground on a farm for a period of time after bailout but was later captured and interrogated as a spy ( he had changed to civilian clothes ) by the ss and spent the rest of the war as a POW. In the 1980s He wrote about his experience in the “ Echos” magazine that was published by his BG.