Lewis Page Johnson Jr
MilitaryOn May 1, 1943, assigned target was the uboat yards at St. Nazaire and a navigational error on return took the group over heavily defended Brest. The B-17 #42-29649 was attacked by fighters and caught on fire. The pilot landed at Cornwall, the BTG Maynard 'Snuffy' Smith was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his actions on this day. 3 parachuted out of the burning plane and were lost.
Earlier on 22 March 1943 a 20 mm shell killed waist gunner Ray Henn (after he shot down an enemy fighter) and injured waist gunner Kenneth F. Powell.
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: 306th Bomb Group 423rd Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 19061810
- Highest Rank: Technical Sergeant
- Role/Job: Radio Operator
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 306th Bomb Group 423rd Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 34198412
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: Waist Gunner
![Gunners of the 306th Bomb Group sit atop ammunition for a B-17 Flying Fortress. Image stamped on reverse: 'Sport and General.' [stamp], 'Passed for publication 9 Jul 1943.' [stamp] and '273718.' [Censor no.] Printed caption on reverse: ''THE DEFENSIVE POWER OF FLYING FORTRESSES. The extremely heavy defense of the Flying Fortresses has enabled them to fight their way through to targets like Huls and Kiel in the face of the most intensive fighter opposition aerial warfare has ever seen. The result of these](https://assets.americanairmuseum.com/s3fs-public/styles/teaser_thumb_x2/public/freeman/media-379033.jpg.webp?itok=HZKmtCgX)
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 306th Bomb Group 381st Bomb Group 423rd Bomb Squadron 533rd Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 13087745
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: Flight Engineer; Top Turret Gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 306th Bomb Group 423rd Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 12042154
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: Waist Gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 306th Bomb Group 423rd Bomb Squadron
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: Waist Gunner
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Unit: 306th Bomb Group 423rd Bomb Squadron
Places
![A bomber crew of the 306th Bomb Group wave to Picture Post Girls in front of a B-17 Flying Fortress (serial number 41-24471) nicknamed "Four of a Kind" at Thurleigh in December 1942. Image stamped on reverse: '"Picture Post" [stamp], 'Passed for Publication 11 Dec 1942.' [stamp], '238038.' [Censor no.] Handwritten in censor's blue pencil on reverse: 'American Flying Fortress crew are introduced to the girls they will meet at Picture Post Xmas Party.'](https://assets.americanairmuseum.com/s3fs-public/styles/teaser_thumb_x2/public/freeman/media-379028.jpg.webp?itok=6Gc6iR0j)
- Site type: Airfield
- Known as: Bedford
Revisions
Made a connection to "BTG Maynard Harrison Smith" and removed an incorrect connection to "Co-Pilot Maynard H Smith".
Corrected a typo in the "Summary biography" - "Powell" was misspelled.
Updated middle name per info in the book "Masters of the Air" by "Donald L. Miller" on pg. 141.
Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / Losses of the 8th and 9th Air Forces Vol. 1 by Bishop and Hey pp. 113-4,497,First Over Germany by Russell Strong pp. 40, 79, 105-8, 138