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

Delivered Denver 1/1/44; Grenier 16/1/44; ass 731BS/452BG [7D- ] Deopham Green 24/2/44; on Brunswick mission 23/3/44 Pilot: John Pesch, Co-Pilot: J.C. Amley (2RTD); Navigator: Orrin Webb, Bombardier: Art Rubebstein, Engineer / Top Turret Gunner: Edwin Edwards, Radio Operator: Cole Sage, Ball Turret Gunner: Winfred Bidwell, Waist Gunner: Bill Jamison, Waist Gunner: Grady Searcy, Tail Gunner: Jim Rouse (8POW); Enemy aircraft KO’d #1 & #2 engines and most of crew bailed, however pilots brought ship home to crash-landed in meadow near Ashford, Kent,UK, later repaired; destroyed on ground at Poltava, Rus. by Luftwaffe w/Cliff Owen 2/7/44. Salvaged. 2/7/44. MACR 3550. FOUR FREEDOMS.

Delivered Cheyenne 30/9/43; Gt Falls 14/10/43; Bowman 18/10/43; Assigned 401BG Deenethorpe 16/11/43; transferred 401BS/91BG [LL-F] Bassingbourn 20/11/43; battle damaged Oschersleben 10m 11/1/44 with John Davis, limped back to England and force landed Deopham Green (452BG), UK. Detailed to return to Bassingbourn 4/3/44 with Capt Don Garrett, Co-pilot: Gilbert Falk, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Bob Perkins, Radio Operator: Ron Cannon, pass- John Moran (5 Returned to Duty); after repair crash landed Bunbury Farm, Swaffham Prior, about a mile SW of RAF Newmarket, UK. Salvaged. BUCKEYE BOOMERANG.

Delivered Long Beach 22/10/43; Assigned 92BG Podington 5/12/43; transferred 324BS/91BG [DF-Z] Bassingbourn 10/1/44, then 323BS [OR-Z]; 40m Missing in Action Dessau 30/5/44 with Zack Collier, Co-pilot: John Kelleher, Navigator: William Paul Clements, Bombardier: Harry McDermott, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Harry Ward, Radio Operator: Steve Kogut, Ball turret gunner: George Zimheld, Waist gunner: Tom Cogdill, Tail gunner: Chas Semon (9 Killed in Action); flak KO’d two engines, nothing else heard from, or seen of a/c, assumed to have crashed in the sea; Missing Air Crew Report 5355. BALTIMORE ORIOLE aka JUST PLAIN LONESOME.

Delivered Long Beach 20/1/43; Denver 7/2/43; with John Wedding damaged at Smoky Hill 6/4/43, repaired; Assigned 331BS/94BG [QE-U] Dow Fd 15/4/43; Rougham 13/6/43; transferred 545BS/384BG [JD-B] Grafton Underwood 10/7/43; transferred 367BG/306BG [GY-Y/T] Thurleigh 23/8/43; Cheddington 29/2/44; retUS Homestead 26/6/44; Tinker 26/6/44; transferred Clarke, Phillipines FEA 15/6/45; sal 15/1/48. GOODTIME CHOLLY aka KATHLEEN aka LOMA LEE.

Delivered Denver 27/2/43; Smoky Hill 22/3/43; Tinker 9/4/43; Nashville 13/4/43; Morrison 18/4/43; Assigned 346BS/99BG Navarin 5/5/43; Oudna 4/8/43; Tortorella 11/12/43; transferred 815BS/483BG Tortorella 31/3/44; Missing in Action Weiner Neustadt 10/5/44 with Ray Scranton, Stewart (2 Killed in Action); Ewing, Moyer, Schooler, Mays, kempf, O’Donnell, Torres, Stork (8 Prisoner of War); flak hit, crashed Wiener Neustadt, Ger. Missing Air Crew Report 4846. PATCHES.

Delivered Cheyenne 27/7/43; Geiger 9/8/43; Pendleton 12/8/43; Assigned 509BS/351BG [RQ-H/T] Polebrook 21/9/43; Missing in Action {10m} Oschersleben 11/1/44 with Bill Myers, Co-pilot: John Hart, Bombardier: Art Jones, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Clyde Caudle, Radio Operator: Lavern Sherman, Ball turret gunner: John Ricci,Tail gunner: Jim Mansfield (7 Killed in Action), Navigator: Bill Carmichael, Waist gunner: Bill Bloshko, Waist gunner: Herb Bivens{spinal injury in hospital 6 mths} (3 Prisoner of War); enemy aircraft, crashed Holzerode, six miles NE of Gottingen, Ger. Missing Air Crew Report 1938. EAGER EAGLE II.

Delivered Denver 2/4/43; Smoky Hill 22/4/43; Dow Fd 24/5/43; Assigned 534BS/381BG [GD-B] Ridgewell 15/6/43 JANICE; transferred 364BS/305BG [WF-Q] Chelveston 22/8/43; Missing in Action Stuttgart 6/9/43 with Ellsworth Kenyon, Co-pilot: Tom Davis, Navigator: Martin Licursi, Bombardier: Dick Lewis, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: John Lambert, Radio Operator: Russ Ahlgren, Ball turret gunner: Art Englehardt, Waist gunner: Paul Chabula, Waist gunner: Frank Rollow, Tail gunner: Homer Bagby (10 Returned to Duty); no gas, ditched Channel, all rescued by Air Sea Rescue HSL 156. No MACR.

Delivered Cheyenne 11/2/43; Rapid City 22/2/43; Kearney 12/3/43; Assigned 337BS/96BG [AW-G] Grafton Underwood 14/4/43; Andrews Fd 13/5/43; transferred 412BS/95BG [QW-R] force landed Alconbury after sustaining NBD with Don Eastling 19/5/43; Snetterton 12/6/43; 4m, transferred 323BS/91BG [OR-P] Bassingbourn 12/9/43; 1st with 91BG Missing in Action Anklam 9/10/43 with Morris Gutto, Navigator: Edgar Richardson, Bombardier: Alva Allen, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Bob Crain, Waist gunner: Merle Hilgert (5 Prisoner of War); Co-pilot: Chas Loeber, Radio Operator: Herschel Kelley, Ball turret gunner: John Delaney, Waist gunner: John Bird,Tail gunner: Chas Alishouse (5 Killed in Action); hit by enemy aircraft rocket attacks, crashed Dorpumfeld, near Tolk, 17 miles W of Flensburg, Ger. Missing Air Crew Report 896.

Delivered Denver 20/12/42; Salina 30/12/42; West Palm Beach 4/1/43; Assigned 340BS/97BG 5/4/43; MIA 16/7/43 with Jacob Schell, hit by flak over Villa San Giovanni; 10 RSC.

Delivered Cheyenne Mod Cen 24/6/42; originally slated RAF as [FA685] ; Assigned 92BG Bovingdon /6/42 as PALE FACE; 342BS/97BG Polebrook /8/42; Maison Blanche 20/11/42; {103m}, the first MTO B-17 to complete 100 missions, including participation on first night mission to Rouen, Fr.; Returned to the USA Eglin 12/10/43; was due to return to Boeing but shot down as a drone before paperwork completed. BERLIN SLEEPER II.