Oscar B Bourn
MilitaryShot down by fighters and crashed near Charleville, FR on 25 Feb 1944 in B-17G #42-31245. Prisoner of War (POW).
Copilot on J. R. Coleman's crew. Had to bail out on on the 25 February 1944 mission. When he bailed out, he landed in a woody area. Finally found a farmhouse and asked for help. An old man, old woman, and a young woman and baby were at the house. They allowed Oscar to stay with them for the night. After staying the night, the old man directed Oscar to the forest where he would meet up with the French resistance. Oscar's story of survival was a joke in the French resistance society because it turned out that he stayed with a Czechoslovakian wife of the German military Manager of the large communal farm.
POW, President Unit Citation, Air Medal, Purple Heart
Post war he gained a BS from Univ of Houston and an MS from Northwestern. He retired from Chevron Corps in 1978, then worked his 2500 acre ranch at Meridian.
Connections
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Units served with
![Official insignia of the 306th Bomb Group, approved 6 January 1943, and updated 2 October 1951.](https://assets.americanairmuseum.com/s3fs-public/styles/max_650x650/public/freeman/media-395055.jpg?itok=Fcx5fW4h)
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
![The insignia of the 368th Bomb Squadron, 306th Bomb Group.](https://assets.americanairmuseum.com/s3fs-public/styles/max_650x650/public/freeman/media-395057.jpg?itok=2VFwfFLl)
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Unit: 306th Bomb Group 368th Bomb Squadron
Events
Event | Location | Date | Description |
---|---|---|---|
Died |
11 May 2003 | ||
Born |
Clinton, Missouri | ||
Buried |
Meidian, Texas |
Revisions
Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / MACR 2768, Losses of the 8th & 9th Air Forces, 306th BG Association Directory, 1 September 1999 Edition, First Over Germany pg. 221, 306th BGA Collection, Russell Strong Index Cards, / http://www.306bg.org/crewphotos/Crew%20Pictures%20Adam-Rector/Crew%20Pi…