William E Shields Jr
MilitaryShot down by flak and fighters on a mission to the Marshalling Yards at Frankfurt on 4 Feb 1944 in B-17G #42-38030 'The Merry Widow', Prisoner of War (POW).
William (Tex) Shields
Radio Operator/Gunner, 337th Sqdn., 96th Bomb Group, Snetterton Heath, England
Tex flew 20 missions, he was wounded on the October 8th mission to Bremen. On his 20th mission (Frankfurt, Germany) February 4, 1944 his plane was shot down. He was initially sent to Stalag Luft 6 at Heydekrug, Germany. He was transferred to Stalag Luft 4 and then to Stalag Luft 6 at Barth where he was liberated in May of 1945 when Russian troops captured the camp.
Tex was flown back to Camp Lucky Strike near Paris by the 91st Bomb Group. In June he returned to the states and was discharged in September of 1945.
Connections
See how this entry relates to other items in the archive by exploring the connections below.
Units served with
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Nicknames: The Merry Widow
- Unit: 305th Bomb Group 96th Bomb Group 337th Bomb Squadron
Places
- Site type: Airfield
- Known as: Station 138
Events
Event | Location | Date | Description |
---|---|---|---|
Other Prisoner of war |
4 February 1944 | ||
Born |
Fort Worth, Texas | Stalag Luft 4 Gross-Tychow (formerly Heydekrug) Pomerania, Prussia (moved to Wobbelin Bei Ludwigslust) (To Usedom Bei Savenmunde) 54-16 |
Revisions
Added POW camp information to the POW event and a S/N per WW2 POW records at the National Archives (NARA).
Added a "-" to the A/C serial # in the "Summary biography" to aid clarity & consistency.
Added "Possible DUPLICATE" in the Nickname field so an Admin can check out this person.
Added a connection to A/C #42-38030 listed in the "Summary biography".
Sources: Several bios Tex provided the 8th Air Force Historical Society chapter. lda 3/22/16
Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / MACR 2195, Losses of the 8th & 9th Air Forces; Snetterton Falcons pg 60 & 108