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41-23711

B-24 Liberator

  • The Consolidated B-24D-1-CO - 41-23711 - Jerks Natural, of the 328th Bomb Squadron, the 93rd Bomb Group, and the 8th Air Force at RAF Alconbury, England, 1942. This photo taken at Gambut Airfield, now Kambut Airfield, Libya. Feb. 1943. The aircraft flew the on the Ploesti mission, diverting safely to Sicily. Aug 1, 1943.

    The Consolidated B-24D-1-CO - 41-23711 - Jerks Natural, of the 328th Bomb Squadron, the 93rd Bomb Group, and the 8th Air Force at RAF Alconbury, England, 1942. This photo taken at Gambut Airfield, now Kambut Airfield, Libya. Feb. 1943. The aircraft flew the on the Ploesti mission, diverting safely to Sicily. Aug 1, 1943.

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  • A B-24 Liberator (serial number 41-23711) nicknamed

    A B-24 Liberator (serial number 41-23711) nicknamed "Jerk's Natural" of the 93rd Bomb Group.

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  • B-24D - 'Jerk's Natural' - Crew - 1943

    B-24D - 'Jerk's Natural' - Crew - 1943

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The B-24D Liberator, 41-23771, named, Jerks Natural, was in the 8th Air Force, the the 93rd Bomb Group, and the 328th Bomb Squadron, based in Britain. It was detached (TDY) to the 9th Air Force in North Africa to assist the 9th Air Force on Operation Tidal Wave to Ploesti, Romania. 1 Aug 1943.
This aircraft flew on the Operation Tidal Wave piloted by Lt. William F. Stein, diverting safely to Sicily with battle damage. 1 Aug 43.

After returning to Britain with the rest of the 8th Air Force, sometime after Operation Tidal Wave, Jerks Natural, was damaged by flak over Austria on a bombing mission to the Wiener Neustadt Bf-109 factory and crashed in Yugoslavia, killing the pilot, Lt. Bill Stein (KIA) and his entire crew, except for the navigator, who bailed out and was taken prisoner. 1 Oct 1943. 9 KIA - 1 POW. MACR 3301. Lost AUT - MACR 3301 - Pilot William F. Stein

Service

Units

  • 8th Air Force

    8th Air Force


    Eighth Air Force Bomber Command became the Eighth Air Force on February 1944, it oversaw bombardment of strategic targets in Europe until 1945. ...

  • 9th Air Force

    9th Air Force

  • 93rd Bomb Group

    93rd Bomb Group

    Group
    93rd Bombardment Group (Heavy) was activated 1-March-1942 at Barksdale Field, Louisiana. On 15-May-1942 the Group moved to Ft. Myers, Florida to continue advanced flight training and also to fly anti-submarine patrols over the Gulf of Mexico; they...

  • 328th Bomb Squadron

    328th Bomb Squadron

    Squadron

People

  • William Anderson

    Military | Staff Sergeant | Tail Gunner | 93rd Bomb Group
    Flew on 1 Aug '43 raid on Ploesti. On 9 Mar 1944 B-24J 42-100320 crashed S of Attleborough, Norfolk on the return from a mission to Hanover/Brunswick, GR. RTD.

  • Willard Babcock

    Military | Lieutenant Colonel | 93rd Bomb Group

  • Philip Bedwell

    Military | Staff Sergeant | Waist Gunner | 93rd Bomb Group
    Assigned to 328BS, 93BG, 8AF USAAF. Crew member of B-24 41-23711 'Jerks Natural', flew on Ploesti raid on 1-Aug-43. ...

  • Naum Diltz

    Military | Staff Sergeant | 93rd Bomb Group
    Took part in Operation Tidal Wave, the raid on Ploesti on 1 August 1943, flying B-24 Liberator 41-23711.

  • Lester Eby

    Military | Staff Sergeant | Gunner | 93rd Bomb Group
    Crew member of B-24 #41-23711 'Jerks Natural', flew on Ploesti raid on 1 Aug 43. 'Jerks Natural' was damaged over Austria on mission to Wiener Neustadt Bf 109 factory and crashed in Yugoslavia on October 1st, 1943. KIA. MACR 3301.

  • Cleveland Hickman

    Military | Captain | Pilot | 93rd Bomb Group
    Assigned to 328BS, 93BG, 8AF USAAF. TDY 9AF. Flew as pilot of B-24 41-23711 'Jerks Natural' on 1-Aug-43 Ploesti raid, diverted safely to Sicily. ...

  • John Jerstad

    Military | Major | B-24 Command Pilot | 376th Bomb Group
    Major John Jerstad was Killed In Action (KIA) on Operation Tidal Wave onboard the B-24D Liberator, Hell's Wench. ...

  • Jack Kasparian

    Military | Technical Sergeant | Flight Engineer; Top Turret Gunner | 93rd Bomb Group
    Assigned to 328BS, 93BG, 8AF USAAF. TDY 9AF. Crew member of B-24 41-23711 'Jerks Natural', flew on Ploesti raid on 1 Aug 43. ...

  • John McDonough

    Military | Second Lieutenant | Bombardier | 93rd Bomb Group
    Lt. John M. McDonough was the bombardier of the B-24D, 41-23711, Jerks Natural, on Operation Tidal Wave the mission to Ploesti Romania. 1 Aug 43. ...

  • Kermit Morris

    Military | Staff Sergeant | 93rd Bomb Group
    Took part in Operation Tidal Wave, the raid on Ploesti on 1 August 1943, flying B-24 Liberator 41-23711.

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Missions

  • Operation Tidal Wave

    1 August 1943
    Operation TIDAL WAVE. B-24D Liberators attack the oil refineries at Ploesti, Romania. The bombers flew low to avoid radar detection and dropped time delayed bombs. Out of the 177 B-24s that took part in the raid 167 managed to attack their targets. 57...

Places

  • Alconbury

    Military site : airfield
    Alconbury had been constructed as a satellite airfield for RAF Upwood and Wyton and was used by RAF Squadrons: Nos. 15, 40 and 156. In preparation for the arrival of American heavy bombers, the base was developed in 1942 with the runways extended. When...

  • Hardwick

    Military site : airfield
    Planned as an RAF bomber airfield, Hardwick was used first by the 310th Bomb Group, equipped with B-25 Mitchells. In December 1943, the B-24 Liberators of the 93rd Bomb Group moved in, and remained until the end of the war, flying over 330 missions....

Events

Event Location Date
Survived Ploesti Ploiești, Romania 1 August 1943

Flew the Aug. 1, 1943, Ploesti mission, diverting safely to Sicily.
Failed to Return (FTR) Yugoslavia 1 October 1943

A/C was damaged over Austria on mission to Wiener Neustadt Bf 109 factory and crashed in Yugoslavia on October 1st, 1943. 9 KIA 1 POW MACR 3301.
Assigned Benghazi, Libya

328th BS, 93rd BG, 8th AF, TDY 9th.
Nicknames
Jerks Natural
Production block number
B-24D-1-CO
Manufacturer
Consolidated
Markings and paint scheme/livery

The B-24D, 41-23711, Jerks Natural, was painted in the USAAF's standard olive drab, with it's ventral surfaces painted in standard gray camouflage. It's national insignias were white or, sometimes, dull gray stars, on blue roundels, with yellow surrounding borders around the roundels earlier in 1943, later changed to red, and, then, dark blue surrounds, later in 1943. Most of the 93rd Bomb Groups' planes had the British blue, white, and red "fin flashes" painted on the outsides of their vertical fins, with their respective RCL letters, B, for Jerk's Natural, and their abbreviated serial numbers, 123711, for Jerk's Natural. It's crew painted yellow bomb markings on the forward fuselage, each, indicating a successful bombing mission over Europe. The count in this photo is fourteen yellow bombs, signifying fourteen successful European missions. The two black bombs indicate two night missions over Africa. And the fourteen red bombs indicate day missions over targets in the MTO, often over German army land targets in North Africa. The German crosses on Jerk's Natural's fuselage represent enemy fighters claimed shot down by the plane's gunners. Finally, the submarine represents a U-Boat sunk in the Gulf of Mexico before, Jerks Natural, was deployed to Britain.

Revisions

Date Contributor Update
08 October 2021 09:31:04 Kickapoo Changes to description
Sources

Added details for accuracy and clarity. - Kickapoo
Date Contributor Update
08 October 2021 04:59:45 Kickapoo Changes to markings
Sources

Spelling, punctuation changes. Details added. - Kickapoo
Date Contributor Update
08 October 2021 04:56:44 Kickapoo Changes to markings and description
Sources

Black Sunday - Michael Hill Best Web - B-24 - 41-23771
Date Contributor Update
08 October 2021 04:51:23 Kickapoo Changes to nicknames, markings and description
Sources

Black Sunday - Michael Hill Best Web - B-24 - 41-23771 - Jerks Natural
Date Contributor Update
27 March 2021 03:24:56 Kickapoo Changes to description
Sources

Best web - B-24 - # 41-23711
Date Contributor Update
27 March 2021 02:57:10 Kickapoo Changes to unit associations
Sources

Best Web - B-24 - ' Jerk's Natural '
Date Contributor Update
27 March 2021 02:18:28 Kickapoo Changes to description
Sources

Best Web - B-24 - #41-23771
Date Contributor Update
27 March 2021 02:15:37 Kickapoo Changes to description
Sources

Best Web - B-24 - #41-23771
Date Contributor Update
12 February 2018 11:03:05 Lucy May Changes to place associations
Sources

Took off from Hardwick on 1 Oct 1943 mission: https://www.fold3.com/image/28650502
Date Contributor Update
15 July 2015 09:46:11 jrugman Changes to markings and person associations
Sources

Page 69, The Mighty Eighth in Color, Roger Freeman
Date Contributor Update
12 April 2015 21:06:38 Al_Skiff Changes to person associations
Sources

http://www.aviationarchaeology.com / MACR 3301
Date Contributor Update
12 April 2015 18:18:03 Al_Skiff Changes to production block number and nicknames
Sources

http://www.aviationarchaeology.com / MACR 3301
Date Contributor Update
12 April 2015 17:51:15 Al_Skiff Changes to description, events, unit associations, person associations, place associations and mission associations
Sources

http://www.aviationarchaeology.com / MACR 3301
Date Contributor Update
27 September 2014 18:40:01 AAM AAM ingest
Sources

MACR 3301 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database

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