Following recent government announcements the museum is currently closed, there is plenty to explore in our online archive.
The American Air Museum is a charity - Find out how you can support us
20 February 1945
Mission #4 for Pilot Lt. Frank Calicura and crew.
A Bomber crew of the 466th Bomb Group with their B-24 Liberator. Handwritten on image: 'RG Gordon 279-55.' The crew went down over Belgium on 20 February 1945. The control cable on B-24H-20-FO #42-50336 "Pale Ale" had snapped. "Pale Ale" was one of the oldest a/c flying with the 466th BG at that time having served for 9 months exactly at the time of her loss Top Row Left to Right: 2nd Lt Henry Wynia, Bombardier 2nd Lt Jack D Campbell, Co-pilot 2nd Lt Robert G Gordon, Pilot 2nd Lt Ferdinand M Kjar, Navigator Bottom row, left to right Richard R Przybylski, Engineer Harvey H Stamper Jr, Upper Turret Gunner Harold H Hendrickson, Nose Gunner Aloysius W McCloskey, Gunner Sam Kessler, Radio Operator Barney B Fisher, Tail Gunner Gordon had left his seat to bail out, then noticed that Kjar and Hendrickson were still in the nose of the plane. He returned to the pilot's controls to try to gain control of the a/c for those two men to bail out. It was to no avail as the men were trapped by centrifugal forces. All three (Gordon, Kjar and Hendrickson were tragically KIA.
8th Air Force mission 836; February 20, 1945; Nurnberg, Germany. 447th Bomb Group strike photo
Not yet known
"Continuing their offensive against the Nazi communications, 900 Fortresses of the 8th Air Force, attacking in two giant waves, thundered over Nuremberg yesterday to shower the cities huge railway yards and locomotive repair shops with more than 11,000 high explosive bombs and some 300,000 incendiaries"....
"The bombers had a protective screen of more than 700 mustangs and Thunderbolts, some of which strafed rail lines in the Hanover, Stuttgart, and Nuremberg areas. The 55th Mustang Group, which disabled 81 locomotives Monday, shot up another 89 yesterday"
"The raiding force met only minor air opposition".
BOMB TARGETS OF OPPORTUNITY
Not yet known
Not yet known
MISSION ABORTED
Not yet known
Weather causes the mission to be abandoned over Belgium
MARSHALLING YARDS
Not yet known
Not yet known
FIGHTER STRAFING
Not yet known
A mix of 194 P-47s and P-51s strafe rail and road targets. Mix not given in available data.
BOMB TARGETS OF OPPORTUNITY
Not yet known
Not yet known
BOMB TARGETS OF OPPORTUNITY
Not yet known
Not yet known
Military | Chief Master Sergeant | B-17 Toglier in WWII; Aircraft Maintenance until 1967 retirement | 96th Bomb Group
Assigned Dec 1944. Flew 55+ missions in B-17 as togglier. Adcock grew up on a farm in Ellisville, Mississippi, USA. He was career Air Force, retiring in 1967 as a Chief Master Sergeant (CMSAF). Born 3/8/1924 Died 3/16/2017
Military | First Lieutenant | Bombardier | 95th Bomb Group
Military | Lieutenant | Navigator | 95th Bomb Group
John Barnes was born January 31, 1922 in Philadelphia, PA, the son of Leonard and Gertrude Barnes of Emporium, PA . He received his undergraduate and Ph.D from Penn State University. He served in WWII as the navigator of the “Spirit of Martinez with...
Military | First Lieutenant | Navigator, Commanding Officer | 384th Bomb Group
Bob Birney was assigned to the 547th Bomb Squadron on 5 February 1945 and completed 26 missions between 19 February 1945 and 20 April 1945.
Military | Captain | pilot | 96th Bomb Group
Assigned Jan 1945
Military | Technical Sergeant | Togglier | 388th Bomb Group
Military | Technical Sergeant | Radio Operator/Gunner | 351st Bomb Group
Military | First Lieutenant | B-17 Pilot | 95th Bomb Group
Frank Calicura served as a pilot with the 95th Bomb Group.
...
Military | Captain | Pilot on B-17 | 379th Bomb Group
Military | Technical Sergeant | Radio Operator | 305th Bomb Group Can Do
Assigned 365BS, 306BG, 8AF USAAF. 22 x combat missions. Failed to Return (FTR) Oranienburg in B-17 43-38803; mid air collision with B-17 43-38803, crashed Wilsnack, Germany 10-Apr-45 Killed in Action (KIA) MACR 13876.
Awards: AM (2OLC), PH.
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Denver 9/2/44; Rapid City 2/3/44; Dow Fd 3/4/44; Assigned 398BG Nuthampstead 25/4/44; no ops, transferred 562BS/388BG Knettishall 29/4/44 WORRY BIRD; Returned to the USA Bradley 8/6/45; 4168 Base Unit, South Plains, Texas 29/11/45;...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Denver 28/8/43; Scott 16/9/43; Assigned 544BS/384BG Grafton Underwood 7/11/43; transferred 547BS [SO-N]; transferred to 364FG Leiston, Sfk, UK. 11/43; Returned to the USA Bradley 14/7/45; 4185 BU Independence 17/7/45; Reconstruction Finance...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 26/11/43; New Castle 10/12/43; Presque Is 15/12/43; Assigned 547BS/384BG [SO-C] Grafton Underwood 21/1/44; sal battle damaged 27/4/44. NEVADA AVENGER.
...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 2/6/44; Hunter 13/6/44; Dow Fd 24/6/44; Assigned 569BS/390BG [CC-L] Framlingham 29/6/44; Returned to the USA Bradley 3/7/45; 4168 Base Unit, South Plains, Texas 4/7/45; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA)...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 28/7/44; Hunter 8/8/44; Dow Fd 30/8/44; Assigned 569BS/390BG [CC-V] Framlingham 2/9/44; Returned to the USA Bradley 30/6/45; 4168 Base Unit, South Plains, Texas 6/7/45; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA)...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Lincoln 20/9/44; Grenier 11/10/44; Assigned 334BS/95BG [BG-B] Horham 13/10/44; 67m, Returned to the USA Bradley 26/6/45; 4168 Base Unit, South Plains, Texas 28/6/45; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Kingman 29...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Lincoln 14/10/44; Dow Fd 26/10/44; Assigned 561BS/388BG Knettishall 29/10/44; while on navigation exercise 17/5/45 with H.J. Cole, cp V. Ferguson, two navigators and two grounded crew, on as makeshift ttg and r/op (6 Killed in Action); crash...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Lincoln 28/8/44; Grenier 15/9/44; Assigned 748BS/457BG [H] Glatton 30/9/44; Returned to the USA Bradley 8/6/45; Sth Plains 13/6/45; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Kingman 25/11/45.
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Lincoln 16/9/44; Dow Fd 2/10/44; Assigned 336BS/95BG [ET-Y] Horham 13/10/44; battle damaged Nurnberg 20/2/45 with R. Lee Young, #2 feathered, crash landed near A-78 AF Florennes, Bel; 9RTD; 39m, sal 28/2/45. CADET NURSE.
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Lincoln 18/9/44; Grenier 11/10/44; Assigned 561BS/388BG Knettishall 12/10/44; Returned to the USA Bradley 28/6/45; Sth Plains 1/7/45; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Kingman 17/12/45. SUPERMOUSE.
| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 17 September 2018 05:50:40 | spiritofmartinez45 | Changes to description |
| Sources | ||
made changes to text error |
||
| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 17 September 2018 05:08:08 | spiritofmartinez45 | Changes to description |
| Sources | ||
newspaper article in personal collection |
||
| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 17 September 2018 04:55:12 | spiritofmartinez45 | Changes to person associations and aircraft associations |
| Sources | ||
| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 17 February 2015 00:57:28 | bkhougham | Changes to aircraft associations |
| Sources | ||
My father was Henry Wynia, the bombardier. I found this information along with the plane's name, Pale Ale, in his WWII military papers. |
||
| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 27 September 2014 18:43:09 | AAM | AAM ingest |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham, 8th Air Force missions research database / Stan Bishop's 'Losses of the US 8th and 9th Air Forces', the Combat Chronology of the US Army Air Forces and the work of Roger Freeman including the 'Mighty Eighth War Diary'. |
||
