B-17 Bomber Flying Fortress – The Queen Of The Skies Latest entries in the database

Delivered Hunter 16/2/45; Grenier 1/3/45; Assigned 8AF 11/2/45; Returned to the USA Bradley 13/6/45; 4168 Base Unit, South Plains, Texas 18/6/45; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Kingman 22/1/46.

Delivered Cheyenne 23/10/43; Gr Island 3/11/43; Romulus 12/11/43; Assigned 360BS/303BG [PU-D] Molesworth 27/12/43; Missing in Action Brux 12/9/44 with Arnold Moselle, Co-pilot: Ken Freeman(wia), Navigator: Bill Mundell, Bombardier: Rufe Parrilla{wia in crash landing, but died 3 days later}, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Don Conley, Radio Operator: Gerald Groth, Ball turret gunner: Frank Crawford, Waist gunner: Jerome Koshar,Tail gunner: Joe Bialobrzeski (9 Returned to Duty); enemy aircraft KO’d two engines, crash landed Hucqueliers, E of Etaples on French coast. MISS LIBERTY.

Delivered Sacramento 17/12/41; MacDill 7/1/42; Assigned 7BG Java, 19BG Hickam; cat E by strafing at Broome, Aus 3/3/42; Written off 30/10/44.

Delivered MacDill 97BG 13/4/42; en route from Sarasota force landed Henderson Fd 9/6/42 with Bob Brown; Bangor 26/6/42; Wendover 15/7/42; Biggs 19/8/42; Topeka 25/9/42; Oklahoma 20/11/42; Hendricks 1/4/43; with Edw Fels force landed Chanute, Il 26/2/44; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Walnut Ridge 19/12/45.

Delivered Cheyenne 4/8/44; Hunter 14/8/44; Grenier 4/9/44; Assigned 326BS/92BG [JW-F] Podington 27/9/44; Green Project 28/5/45, ret 29/5/45; Salvaged 9AF Germany 10/12/45. SOLDIERS VOTE.

Delivered Douglas Aircraft Corp. as model; Written off 30-Sep-44; Recl Comp at Burbank, Cal. 20-Mar-46. Never served in the UK.

Delivered Boeing as experimental aircraft for flight testing 4-May42; also at Oseola and Selfridge, MI. Fields. Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Stillwater, Oklahoma 19-Sep-45. Never served in the UK.

Delivered Denver 29/9/43; Gr Island 20/10/43; Assigned 427BS/303BG [GN-A] Molesworth 18/11/43; battle damaged Weisbaden 15/8/44 with Bob Davies, Co-pilot: Dorwin Sayre, Navigator: George Lange(Walt Martin?), Bombardier: Fred Bryan, Radio Operator: Gene Gorman{Wounded in Action}, Ball turret gunner: Chas Johnson, Waist gunner: Nick Smirnes(Lester Pope?),Tail gunner: Bill Foley{Wounded in Action}; (8 Returned to Duty); eggt-Roy Hughes (Killed in Action); enemy aircraft damaged ship but pilot limped back to base; Salvaged 2 SAD 16/8/44. EMPRESS OF D STREET aka THE FLYING BISON.

Delivered Denver 3/12/43; Lincoln 19/12/43; Savannah 22/12/43; Assigned 32BS/301BG Cerignola 8/1/44; {11m} Missing in Action Regensburg 25/2/44 with Gerald Berner, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Miller, Radio Operator: Simon, Ball turret gunner: Burt, Waist gunner: Palmieri, Waist gunner: Goldman,Tail gunner: Walker (7 Killed in Action); Co-pilot: Macauley, Navigator: Kramer, Bombardier: Reagan (3 Prisoner of War); enemy aircraft, crashed Mittnitz, Ger. Missing Air Crew Report 2594.

Delivered Patterson 2-Dec-41; March 18-Dec-41; MacDill 18-Jan-42; West Palm Beach, (Mercury 6AF) 4-Mar42; Pendleton 3-Aug-42; Ogden 2-Sep-42; Boise 9-Oct-42; Oklahoma City 6-Feb-43; Hendricks, 6-Jul-43; with Phil Bennett crash landed base 7-Jul-43; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Albuquerque 9-Jun-45. HANGAR QUEEN. Never served in the UK.

Delivered Boise 303BG 7/4/42; Salt Lake City 17/5/42; Geiger 24/6/42; Muroc 305BG 5/7/42; Biggs 11/7/42; crashed on take off base 4/11/42 with Lt Chas Byrd, 3 killed, aircraft burned. Salvaged.

Delivered MacDill 18/3/42; West Palm Beach 30/3/42; to Karachi, India; crashed with John Holst 40m NW Mandvi, India 26/4/42; Written off 7/8/43.

Delivered Cheyenne 25/4/44; Hunter 4/5/44; Dow Fd 25/5/44; Assigned 422BS/305BG [JJ-T] Chelveston 4/6/44; transferred 858BS Cheddington 26/6/44; on NLS mission over Holland 4/3/45 with Lt Col Earl Aber (Sqd CO), cp Maurice Harper both died when crashing into sea in attempt to reach ELG at Woodbridge, after rest of crew bailed and returned to base; set on fire by British shore batteries firing at an intruder off Clacton, Essex, UK; Missing Air Crew Report 13535; Salvaged 5/3/45. TONDELAYO.

Delivered Tulsa 29/11/42; Morrison 6/2/43; Assigned 360BS/303BG [PU-G] Molesworth 25/2/43; took off from RAF Kenley following previous day’s raid, but involved in landing accident at RAF North Luffenham after getting lost en route to base 15/10/43; with Bill Heller, Co-pilot: John Coppom, Navigator: Jim Zwayer, Bombardier: John DeSouso, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Bill Huston, Radio Operator: Felix Spoerri, Ball turret gunner: George Payne, Waist gunner: Leon Lanier, Waist gunner: Melvin Schultz,Tail gunner: Tony Laurintis (10 Returned to Duty); transferred 100BG ex-2SAD 4/3/44; Returned to the USA Tinker 18/6/44; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Altus 4/10/45. JUST FOR LAUGHS aka LITTLE WOMAN aka THUMPER AGAIN.

Delivered Cheyenne 29/1/43; Pueblo 19/2/43; Salina 25/2/43; Tinker 20/3/43; Smoky Hill 29/3/43; Presque Is 4/6/43; Assigned 410BS/94BG [GL- ] Earls Colne 12/5/43; Missing in Action Lorient 17/5/43 with Ed Spevak, Co-pilot: Homer Contipidis, Bombardier: Don Nichols,Tail gunner: Walt Minor – Wounded in Action (4 evaded capture); Navigator: Allen Posey, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Fred Ford, ro Chas Morris (?John Wells), Waist gunner: Lewis Taney, Waist gunner: Don Parks (5 Prisoner of War); Ball turret gunner: Joe Melvin (Melaun) (Killed in Action); flak, crashed Lorient; (first group loss). No MACR. MIDNIGHT.

Delivered Cheyenne 8/12/42; Morrison 6/2/43; Assigned 360BS/303BG [PU-J] Molesworth 6/3/43; crash landed Alresford, Hants., UK, 26/9/43 with Bob Cogswell [injured in crash], Co-pilot: Dallas Kendall, Navigator: Ed Cobb, Bombardier: Frank Kulesa, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Gil Bendston, Radio Operator: Ed Deerfield, Ball turret gunner: John Deffinger, Waist gunner: Simeon Oxendine, Waist gunner: Elmer Peterson,Tail gunner: Paul Davis (10 Returned to Duty), crashed Alresford, near Winchester, Hants. Salvaged 20/12/43. BOB’S BOUDOIR aka LADY LUCK.

Delivered Long Beach 9/9/43; Scott 28/10/43; Assigned 614BS/401BG [IW-J] Deenethorpe 14/11/44; Missing in Action Stettin 11/4/44 with Sam Wilson, Co-pilot: Elgin Gattis*, Navigator: Larry Sudakov, Bombardier: John Daly, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Jesse Corley, Radio Operator: Homer Kelley, Ball turret gunner: Beryle Corntassel, Waist gunner: Bill Wolf, Waist gunner: John Morrissey,Tail gunner: Leon Sokol* (10POW- * picked up ten days later over Dutch border); flak, crashed Haus, near Steinhagen, six miles W of Bielefeld, Ger; Missing Air Crew Report 4015. ALSO RAN – STILL RUNNING.

Delivered Long Beach 23/3/43; Kearney 15/4/43; Wendover 2/5/43; Dow Fd 27/5/43; Assigned 418BS/100BG 30/5/43 Thorpe Abbotts; transferred 360BS/303BG [PU-C] Molesworth 13/7/43; {28m} 1 Base Air Depot, Burtonwood 5/4/44; Returned to the USA Tinker 6/6/44; Culver 25/7/44; Las Vegas 9/11/44; Kelley 10/6/45; Culver 1/9/45; Love Fd 8/10/45; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Kingman 14/12/45. ALLEY OOP.

Delivered Cheyenne 9/10/42; Geiger 4/12/42; Ainsworth 20/3/43; Moses Lake 7/8/43; with M.D. Dickey force landed MacDill 11/1/44; 3701 BU Amarillo 12/11/44; 2114 BU Lockbourn 16/3/45; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Walnut Ridge 14/12/45.

Delivered Denver 27/8/43; Assigned 401BG Deenethorpe 2/11/43; transferred 532BS/381BG [VE-B] Ridgewell 21/11/43; Missing in Action Augsburg 25/2/44 with Don Henderson, Co-pilot: Jack Fournier, Bombardier: Nick DeRose, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Raoul Ramos (4 Prisoner of War); Navigator: Earl Wonning, Radio Operator: Boyd Burgess, Ball turret gunner: Anthony Korkuc*, Waist gunner: Tom Hunnicut, Waist gunner: Tony Bartolo,Tail gunner: Dale Schilling (6 Killed in Action); turbo-chargers damaged by flak and attack by ME109, with Curt Clemens of III/JG3; crashed Willmandingen, nine miles SW of Reutlingen, Ger; seen burning on ground by other crews of 532BS; Missing Air Crew Report 2933. (* Nephew Bob Korkuc wrote book on this loss, called – Threads of a Distant Past.)

Delivered Strategic Arms Depot (SAD) 2-Dec-41; Assigned 13AF Hawaii 1-Jan-42; transferred 431BS/11BG Hickam Field, HI 25-Oct-42, then to 26BS; Written off 31-Oct-44. JOE BFTSPLK. Never served in the UK.

Delivered Wright Field 13-Oct-41; Assigned 36BS/28BG Elmendorf, Alaska 3-Mar-42; Kodiak, Alaska 21-Mar-42; Lockbourn, OH. 21-APr-42; Returned to the USA Tinker, OK 17-Jul-43; with Bill Oakley force landed Lockbourn, OH 29-Jun-44; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Altus. Oklahoma 9-Oct-45. Never served in the UK.

Delivered Cheyenne 18/7/44; Kearney 27/7/44; Grenier 8/8/44; Assigned 861BS/493BG [G6-S] Debach 10/8/44; Missing in Action Magdeburg 12/9/44 with Chas Spencer, Co-pilot: Dawson Watters, Ball turret gunner: Norman Carter,Tail gunner: Vernon Van Dinter (4 Killed in Action); Navigator: Harry Leibowitz, Bombardier: Sam Cale, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Gene Pax, Radio Operator: Bob Bodwell, Waist gunner: Buford Balay (5 Prisoner of War); enemy aircraft, crashed Aderstedt, N of Halberstadt, Ger. Missing Air Crew Report 8867.

Delivered Cheyenne 18/8/44; Lincoln 27/8/44; Grenier 18/9/44; Assigned 360BS/303BG [PU-H] Molesworth 20/9/44; transferred 398BG Nuthampstead 22/5/45; no ops, RAF Valley 2/6/45; Returned to the USA Bradley 8/6/45; 4168 Base Unit, South Plains, Texas 14/6/45; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Kingman 14/12/45. JACKIE.