Merlin Lawson Chardi
Military
Rear L-R :- Chardi (P), Beall (B), Pohl(N), House (CP)
Front: Order unknown - Sgt's Robert Jackson (TG), Ernest Lacross (WG), Ray Sheppard (ENG), John Leonard (WG), James Magruder (BTG)
USAAF Photo
Object Number - UPL 56652 - Chardi crew. 447BG Rear L-R :- Chardi (P), Beall (B), Pohl(N), House (CP) Front: Order unknown - Sgt's Robert Jackson (TG), Ernest Lacross (WG),...
Assigned to 710BS, 447BG, 8AF USAAF. 13 x combat missions. Shot down by flak and crashed E of Saarbrucken en-route to the target Regensburg on 25-Feb-1944 in B-17 42-31431. Prisoner of War (POW). MACR
Awards: AM (OLC), POW, WWII Victory, EAME.
Connections
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Units served with
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
People
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 447th Bomb Group 710th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 16156810
- Highest Rank: Technical Sergeant
- Role/Job: Radio Operator
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 447th Bomb Group 710th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: O-358247
- Highest Rank: First Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Bombardier
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 447th Bomb Group 710th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: O-676804
- Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Co-Pilot / Tail Gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 447th Bomb Group 710th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 18117656
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: Tail Gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 447th Bomb Group 710th Bomb Squadron
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: waist gunner
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Unit: 447th Bomb Group 710th Bomb Squadron
Places
- Site type: Prisoner of war camp
- Known as: Dulag Luft Grosstychow Dulag 12
- Site type: Airfield
- Site type: Prisoner of war camp
- Known as: Stalag Luft III, Sagan, Germany
Events
| Event | Location | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Born |
Alturas, CA | 5 December 1921 | Son of Johnny and Eva Walsh. |
|
Other Prisoner of War (POW) |
Zagan, Poland | 25 February 1944 | Prisoner of War (POW). Stalag Luft III. |
|
Died |
17 April 2001 | Col. Merlin L. Chardi, who was born in Alturas, Calif. on Dec. 5, 1921, passed away April 17, 2001 at Mercy Hospital, Folsom, Calif. as friends of the Colonel informed the Record this week. Col. Chardi was a resident of Cameron Park for 28 years. Preceded in death by his father Johnny Walsh of Sacramento and his brother Burnell Chardi, he is survived by his wife of 56 years, Carolyn; his mother Eva Walsh; sisters-in-law Arlene and Constance and brother-in-law Jay. He is also survived by 26 nieces and nephews and 29 great-nieces and nephews who considered him a true hero and a wonderful role model. Merlin graduated from Sacramento High School in 1940. He attended Sacramento City College and Cal Berkeley before joining the USAAF in 1942. He was a B-17 pilot and squadron commander in England and shot down over Germany on his 13th mission. He was a prisoner of war for 15 months in Stalag Luft 1. He retired from McClellan AFB after 30 years service. In the years that followed he enjoyed skiing, golfing, traveling the world, selling real estate and playing the stock market, and working in his garden. He was a member of the Cameron Park Country Club, SIRS, Phi Chi fraternity, Past President of Cameron Park Rotary Club and a member of the Daedalians. He planted and maintained the trees on Highway 50 at the Cameron Park and Cambridge Rd. exits. He was always out there tending to them, rain or shine, recall friends and family members. | |
|
Buried |
Calvary Catholic Cemetery and Mausoleum Sacramento, Sacramento County, CA | 20 April 2001 | Calvary Catholic Cemetery and Mausoleum Sacramento, Sacramento County, California |
|
Based |
Rattlesden | 25 February 1944 | Assigned to 710BS, 447BG, 8AF USAAF. |
Revisions
ContributorAl_Skiff
Changes
ContributorAAM
Changes
Sources
Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / MACR 2891 / MACR 2891, Losses of the 8th & 9th Air Forces / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database
