# 42-40753 - B-24D 'OLE KICKAPOO' - A Consolidated B-24D bomber from the 389th Bombardment Group of the 8th Air Force, and the 564th Bomb Squadron from England, with it's Command Pilot, 2nd Lt. Lloyd Hughes, and his crew, who flew on "Operation Tidal Wave" to destroy the Germans' oil refineries at Ploesti, and were lost bombing "Target Red" at Campina, Ploesti, with both pilots and all but two of the crew KIA in the crash of their B-24. Lt. Lloyd "Pete" Hughes was posthumously awarded the Medal Of Honor for his leadership, skill, and determination to continue on to bomb his target after having his airplane hit by two devastating flak rounds that tore open fuel tanks in his bomb bay and left wing. Now, streaming huge geysers of fuel from his wing and fuselage, and knowing that flying through the flames ahead of him in the Campina Refinery area, would set his plane on fire, Hughes elected to continue to fly toward his target, no matter the cost to his safety and his life. Minutes later, as he did fly through the flames of the already burning oil tanks, 'Ole Kickapoo' was "turned into a blowtorch" as described by his friend, General Philip Ardery, flying slightly behind Hughes in his own B-24. Still, Hughes flew on, his friend Gen. Ardery watching from behind, in wonder, as 'Ole Kickapoo' now streaming long sheets of flames from the burning gasoline behind him, "Pete" dropped his bombs spot on his target at the Campina Refinery. Pulling away from the target and still burning fiercely, Ardery saw that Hughes seemed to attempt to pull his plane into a slight climb to allow his crew to bail out, and, then, he appeared to try to slow his burning airplane and bring it down for a crash landing. It looked as if he would be able to land in the dry river bed of the Prahova River ahead of him, when, suddenly, the left wing blew off, and the plane cartwheeled into the ground. Of the ten men aboard the B-24, Pete Hughes and five others were killed instantly, two more who made it out of the burning wreckage, died of their wounds within days and two of those who survived the crash and their injuries, lived on to became prisoners of war. Pete Hughes left a young grieving wife and family for the sacrifice he made for them, and his country, and for freedom. Pete Hughes' crewmen, living and dead, were all awarded the second highest medal their country could give them, the Distinguished Service Cross, for their bravery and the extreme sacrifices they also made for their families and their countrymen.

B-24D 'OLE KICKAPOO' 42-40753 ~ Lt. Lloyd Hughes Command Pilot And Crew 1943 :

~ Pilot: 2Lt Lloyd H. Hughes, Jr. KIA; Congressional Medal of Honor posthumously
~ Co-Pilot: 2Lt Ronald L. Helder. KIA; Distinguished Service Cross posthumously
~ Navigator: 2Lt Sidney A. Pear. KIA (died of wounds August 6, 1943, surgery hospital in Campina, Rumania.); Distinguished Service Cross posthumously
~ Bombardier : John A. McLoughlin. KIA (died of wounds on August 3, 1943, surgery hospital in Campina, Rumania; Distinguished Service Cross posthumously
~ Engineer/Top Turret Gunner: T/Sgt Joseph E. Mix. KIA; Distinguished Service Cross posthumously
~ Radio Operator: T/Sgt Louis N. Kase. KIA; Distinguished Service Cross posthumously
~ Waist Gunner: S/Sgt Malcolm C. Dalton. KIA; Distinguished Service Cross posthumously
~ Waist Gunner: S/Sgt Edmond H. Smith. POW; Distinguished Service Cross
~ Tail Gunner: S/Sgt Thomas A. Hoff. POW; Distinguished Service Cross
~ Tunnel Gunner: Sgt Avis K. Wilson. KIA; Distinguished Service Cross posthumously

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