B-17 Flying Fortress
B-17F 41-24501 assigned 368BS/306BG [BO- ] Westover 28-Aug-42; Thurleigh 2-Oct-42; Missing in Action St Nazaire 3-Jan-43, hit by flak, lost two engines, crashed near Le Croisic, France. 4KIA 6POW MACR 15627.
P 1Lt James M. Ferguson (POW); CP 2Lt John B Elliott (POW)
N 2Lt Donald R. Greene (KIA); B 1Lt Robert T. Levy (KIA)
E/TTG TSgt Charles A. Edinger (POW); RO TSgt Richard G. Hackworth (POW)
BTG SSgt Robert Kingen (POW); WG SSgt James V Loving (POW)
WG SSgt Earl L. Kerbow (KIA); TG SSgt Rupert W. Arnold (KIA)
Group
Constituted as 306th Bombardment Group (Heavy) on 28 Jan 1942. Activated on 1 Mar 1942. Trained for combat with B-17's. Moved to England, Aug-Sep 1942, and assigned to Eighth AF Eighth Air Force in September 1942 Station 111 Thurleigh. During combat,...
Squadron
Military | Staff Sergeant | Tail Gunner | 306th Bomb Group The Reich Wreckers
Killed in Action on 3 January 1943 in B-17F 41-24501 while serving as Tail Gunner. Aircraft had two engines shot out by flak over the target, the U/B (submarine) base at St. Nazaire, France. Pilot Ferguson flew the severely damaged plane out to sea but...
Military | Technical Sergeant | Engineer/Top Turret Gunner | 306th Bomb Group The Reich Wreckers
On 3 January 1943 while serving as Engineer/Top Turret Gunner on B-17F 41-24501 the aircraft had two engines shot out by flak over the target, the U/B (submarine) base at St. Nazaire, France. Pilot Ferguson flew the severely damaged plane out to sea...
Military | Second Lieutenant | Co-Pilot | 306th Bomb Group The Reich Wreckers
On 3 January 1943 while serving as Co-Pilot of B-17F 41-24501 two engines were shot out over the target of the U/B (submarine) base at St. Nazaire, France. Pilot 1Lt Ferguson flew the severely damaged plane out to sea but conditions worsened as another...
Military | First Lieutenant | Pilot | 306th Bomb Group The Reich Wreckers
On January 1943 in B-17F 41-24501 while serving as Pilot the aircraft has two engines shot out by flak over the target of the U-Boat pens as St. Nazaire, France. He flew the severely damaged aircraft out to sea but conditions worsened as another engine...
Military | Second Lieutenant | Navigator | 306th Bomb Group The Reich Wreckers
Killed in Action 3 January 1943 in B-17F 41-24501 while serving as Navigator. Target was the U/B (submarine) base at St. Nazaire, France. 2 engines were shot out by flak over the target. Pilot Ferguson flew the severely damaged plane out to sea but...
Military | Technical Sergeant | Radio Operator | 306th Bomb Group The Reich Wreckers
On 3 January 1943 while serving as Radio Operator in B-17F 41-24501 2 engines were shot out by flak over the target the U/B (submarine) base at St. Nazaire, France. Pilot Ferguson flew the severly damaged plane out to sea but conditions worsened as...
Military | Staff Sergeant | Waist Gunner | 306th Bomb Group The Reich Wreckers
Killed in Action on 3 January 1943 in B-17F 41-24501 while serving as Waist Gunner. The aircraft had 2 engines shot out over the target, the U/B (submarine) base at St. Nazaire, France. Pilot Ferguson flew the severely damaged plane out to sea but...
Military | Staff Sergeant | Ball Turret Gunner | 306th Bomb Group The Reich Wreckers
On 3 January 1943 while serving as Ball Turret Gunner in B-17F 41-24501, 2 engines were shot out over the target, the U/B (submarine) base at St. Nazaire, France. Pilot Ferguson flew the severly damaged plane out to sea but conditions worsened as...
Military | Second Lieutenant | Bombardier | 306th Bomb Group The Reich Wreckers
On 6 Sept 1942 while serving as Bombardier on B-17F 41-24516 'Meltin Pot' the aircraft lost 2 engines off Londonderry after flight from Newfoundland. Landed in shallow water and all crew members walked ashore.
...
Military | Staff Sergeant | Waist Gunner | 306th Bomb Group The Reich Wreckers
On 3 January 1943 while serving as Waist Gunner in B-17F 41-24501 the aircraft had two engines shot out over the target, the U/B (submarine) base at St. Nazaire, France. Pilot Ferguson flew the severely damaged plane out to sea but conditions worsened...
3 January 1943
The U-Boat pens at St. Nazaire, France are once again the target for this mission. This is proving to be a particularly difficult target to destroy due to its massive, reinforced concrete design. It consists of 14 individual pens connected together in...
Military site : airfield
Built for RAF use in 1941-42, Thurleigh was initially used by RAF Bomber Command before being handed over to the Eighth Air Force. Its runways and hardstandings were improved, and the B-17s of the 306th Bomb Group began using the base. It was their...
| Event | Location | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Failed to Return (FTR) | Le Croisic, France | 3 January 1943 |
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Both inboard engines were lost to flak damage over the target. Pilot headed out to sea over the point at Le Croisic, France but losing another engine he turned back towards the French coast. The navigator and bombardier baled out and came down in the sea and drowned. WG SSgt Kerbow was shot and killed by ground fire as he descended in his parachute. TG SSgt Arnold baled out but his chute failed to open. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 14 January 2015 19:16:15 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to markings, description, events, unit associations, place associations and mission associations |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 14-Jan-2015. Marking added per "The Mighty Eighth Warpaint & Heraldry" Roger A. Freeman; made connections ro Squadron, Place and Mission within existing website data; Added FTR description per "Losses of the 8th & 9th Air Forces" Stan Bishop & John A. Hey MBE and MACR 15627; edited description, converted dates to military-style signification; Added crew position, rank, full proper name and disposition of crew members per MACR 15627, formatted crew display. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 27 September 2014 18:40:02 | AAM | AAM ingest |
| Sources | ||
Dave Osborne, B-17 Fortress Master Log / MACR 15627 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database |
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