Vernon Duncan
Military | Second Lieutenant | Co-Pilot/Pilot | 388th Bomb Group
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Kenneth Hanley Betts
Military
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2LT Kenneth H. Betts Navigator Monty Givens Crew 388th BG - 562nd BS Shot down and captured 6 March 194
Shot down in a frontal attack by fighters on the return from a mission to Klein Machnow, Berlin on 6 Mar 1944, B-17G #42-31135 'Suzy Sagtitz' crashed near Schoonebekerveld, Holland. Prisoner of War (POW).
POW
Service
People
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Montgomery Givens
Military | Major | Pilot | 388th Bomb Group
Shot down in a frontal attack by fighters on the return from a mission to Klein Machnow, Berlin on 6 Mar 1944, B-17G #42-31135 'Suzy Sagtitz' crashed near Schoonebekerveld, Holland. Prisoner of War (POW). Held in POW camp Stalag Luft 1, Barth Vogelsang... -
Henry Rodgers
Military | First Lieutenant | Pilot | 388th Bomb Group
24 AUG 1943 after takeoff from N. Africa, shuttlerun to Regensburg, A/C B-17 #42-30230 'Homesick Angel' ran out of gas and crashed in cornfield in Suffolk.
Units served with
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388th Bomb Group
Group
The 388th Bomb Group flew strategic bombing mission from Knettishall, Suffolk from June 1943 to the end of the war. During this time, though, detachments were sent to Fersfield, Norfolk to conduct Aphrodite missions. In these Aphrodite missions veteran... -
562nd Bomb Squadron
Squadron
Aircraft
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42-30212 Quarterback
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 29/4/43; Sioux City 14/5/43; Smoky Hill 11/6/43; Dow Fd 16/6/43; Assigned 562BS/388BG Knettishall 17/6/43; transferred Aphrodite project, Missing in Action V-sites, Watten 6/8/44 with Lt Joeseph P Andrecheck & T/Sgt Raymond Healy (2... -
42-31135 Suzy Sagtitz
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 25/9/43; Gr Isle 8/10/43; Romulus 12/10/43; Assigned 562BS/388BG Knettishall 14/10/43; Missing in Action Berlin 6/3/44 with Montgomery Givens, Co-pilot: Harry Teat, Navigator: Ken Betts, Bombardier: Larry McMillan, Flight engineer... -
42-3295 Tech Supply / Wailuiku Maui
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 27/4/43; Bangor 15/6/43; Assigned 562BS/388BG Knettishall 23/6/43 TECH SUPPLY; crash landed base ex-Pas De Calais 24/12/43, Salvaged 2/6/45. WAILUIKU MAID. -
42-37886 Blitzing Betsy
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Denver 2/10/43; Gr Island 21/10/43; Assigned 562BS/388BG Knettishall 25/10/43; Missing in Action Berlin 6/3/44 with Lowell Watts captured by civilians, Co-pilot: Bob Kennedy, Navigator: Emmett Murphy, Bombardier: Ed Kelley, Flight engineer... -
42-39861 Ramp Tramp
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Long Beach 23/9/43; Gr Island 13/10/43; Assigned 561BS/388BG Knettishall 26/10/43; sal 31/5/45.
Missions
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VIII Fighter Command FO-193
30 November 1943
This mission is composed of two fighter elements despatched to provide escort to B-17 bomber formations attackin at Bremen, Germany. The frist element is a combined force of 20 P38s from 55FG (including some from 20FG). 1 aircraft Failed to Return (FTR... -
VIII Bomber Command 149
5 December 1943
This mission is composed of three elements. The first element is a combined force of 216 B-17 from 1st Bomb Division that included: 91BG (10); 92BG (19); 303BG (20); 305BG (20); 306BG (21); 351BG (35); 379BG (21); 381BG (30); 384BG (20); and 301BG (20)... -
VIII Bomber Command 154
13 December 1943
The port areas at Bremen and Kiel, Germany are the primary targets for this mission. This is the first mission where more than 600 aircraft are despatched. This mission is comprised of 8 elements. The first element consists 182 B-17s from: 91BG (31);... -
VIII Bomber Command 159
20 December 1943
The port area of Bremen is the target for 546 heavy bombers. The total includes 12 PFF-equipped B-17s from 482BG. All 12 of these are effective on the target and 11 are damaged. The bomber gunners of this element claim 1-1-0 (this total included with... -
VIII Bomber Command 161
22 December 1943
This mission is composed of two forces directed at two separate targets, the communication centers at Osnabruck and Munster, Germany. The force attacking at Osnabruck is composed of two elements. The first element is composed of 227 B-17s (2 are PFF... -
VIII Bomber Command 164
24 December 1943
This mission is directed at V-Weapon sites in the Pas-de-Calaise area of France. The attacks are made between 1330-1510hrs. The mission is composed of three elements. The first element is a force of 277 B-17s from 1st Bomb Division that included: 91BG ... -
8th Air Force 174
4 January 1944
The port area of Kiel, Germany and the railroad marshalling yards at Munster, Germany are the Primary targets of this Mission which is organised as two elements: one going to Kiel and the other to Munster. Roger A. Freeman begins to designate aircraft... -
8th Air Force 182
11 January 1944
Three aviation industry targets in Germany are bombed. The bomber force consists of 291 B-17s despatched from 1st Bomb Division in two elements, one element of 177 B-17s is despatched to Oschersleben, Germany as the primary target, the other 1BD... -
8th Air Force 187
21 January 1944
This mission is directed at 36 V-Weapon sites (34 in the Pas-de-Calaise area and 2 in the Chrebourg area of France) 24 of these are bombed successfully. All three Bomb Divisions participate in the attacks and the bomber gunners claimed 5-1-2 of... -
8th Air Force 206
3 February 1944
The port area and Naval facilities at Wilhelmshaven, Germany was the primary target for this mission. 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Bomb Divisions all participated. ...
Associated Place
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Knettishall
Military site : airfield
Knettishall was built to Class A standard for an American Bomb Group that would be bringing up to forty heavy bombers with them in three or four Squadrons. The 388th Bomb Group, which stayed at Knettishall for their entire service in the ETO, flew B-17...
Events
| Event | Location | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Born | Warren, Pennsylvania, USA | 10 September 1918 |
| Enlisted | Pittsburgh, PA | 11 November 1942 |
| POW | Stalag Luft I | March 1944 – May 1944 |
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Stalag Luft I |
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| Shot Down/Captured | Oud Schoonebekerveld, The Netherlands | 6 March 1944 |
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The Givens crew were shot down by Fw190's of JG11 just inside the Dutch German border while returning from Berlin. |
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| Died | 24 October 2006 | |
| Buried | Arlington National Cemetery | 30 November 2006 |
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Arlington National Cemetery |
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Revisions
| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 23 February 2019 00:04:23 | 466thHistorian | Changes to middlename, service number, events, person associations, place associations, aircraft associations and mission associations |
| Sources | ||
http://www.388bg.info/servlet/Controller?pageType=detail&id=388-I-BET01-... |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 27 September 2014 18:17:52 | AAM | AAM ingest |
| Sources | ||
Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / MACR 3082 / MACR 3082, Obit Washington Post November 26, 2006, Losses of the 8th & 9th Air Forces / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database |
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