Born 22 Dec 1925 Toledo, Lucas County, Ohio. Enlisted in US Army Air Corps 10 Feb 1944 at Ft Benjamin Harrison, Indiana. 4 years HS, Single no dependents. Reported to Thurleigh Field, UK 13 Dec 1944. Assigned originally to Benjamin Olsen Crew. Was Waist gunner on Weollner crew on A/C #43-39031 on mission to bomb Bingen-on-the-Rhine, Germany on 29 Dec 1944. There was a crew of nine men. This was his first mission. A/C was struck by flak in bomb bay area just after bombs away and bomb bay doors were still open. Fire broke out in AC and it begin descent in spiral to crash. All crew bailed out. Five men captured and sent to POW camps, and four men were KIA. Sgt Lehnert was released from POW camp 30 June 1945. Died 14 Nov 1999 in Toledo, Ohio and buried Toledo Memorial park. He wrote an account of his POW experience soon after he returned home from the war.