Delivered Denver 17/2/43; Sioux City 14/3/43; Kearney 9/4/43; Dow Fd 14/4/43; Assigned 526BS/379BG [LF-F] Kimbolton 22/4/43; Missing in Action St Nazaire 29/5/43 with Capt John Hall, Co-pilot: Willard Thomas, Navigator: Bill Koves, Bombardier: Jim Griffith (4 Prisoner of War); Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Mike Belock, Radio Operator: Frank Adrick, Ball turret gunner: Bob Vanderstraeten, Waist gunner: Clarry Gallamore, Waist gunner: George Hague, Tail gunner: Bob Kuehl (6 Killed in Action); flak, crashed Kerdavid, 10 miles E of Lorient, Fr. Missing Air Crew Report 1370.

 

"It was about 17:00 hrs on Saturday 29-May-43 when a formation of B-17’s flew over Auray on a westerly heading- One of the Forts was in trouble and had three German fighters on her tail, the bomber was seen making circles over Auray. It is believed that during the attack one of the German fighters was shot down and crashed at Pluneret (a village a few miles west of Auray) near a railway bridge. The badly damaged bomber was seen coming from the south-west, at this moment five crew members baled out. The pilot, 1st Lieutenant Willard S. Thomas, landed at Saint-Goustan near the left bank of the Auray river; he was immediately captured by German soldiers. Three other flyers were Captured (it is believed that one of them landed at Auray too) and the fifth one was found dead. Meanwhile, the doomed Fort was diving towards the hamlet of Kerdavid at Crac'h- The B-17 chopped off the top of several trees, smashed through a hedgerow, was diverted by some tree stumps, careered into a wheat field, slammed into a big ash tree and burst into flames. Two engines were catapulted on impact, one of them struck the roof of a bam and put it on fire; the other one tore in through the roof of a farm shed. Burning pieces thrown from the wreckage fell on a haystack setting it ablaze. Luckily, there were no civilian casualties. The plane burned for 24 hours; ammunition exploded, sending stray bullets across the area.

The day after German soldiers removed five charred bodies from the remains of B-17 'Up and at them', the bodies were put in coffins and a farmer was ordered to take them to the Auray road in his cart. Then, the remains of the five flyers were taken to the Guidel cemetery to be buried. A couple of days after, a German recovery team cleared the crash site, what was left of the bomber was hauled away on several lorries."

 

From eyewitnesses of Mr and Mrs Moisan and Mr. Jean Le Guennec collected by Mr. Georges Le Mero.