Lieutenant Colonel Addison Baker was the Commanding Officer of the 93rd Bomb Group from May 17, 1943, he was killed in Action over Ploesti during Operation Tidal Wave on 1 August, 1943.

In summer 1943 Baker was dispatched to North Africa with the 93rd Bomb Group to take part in Operation Tidal Wave. Baker piloted B-24 Liberator, 'Hell's Wench' (#42-40994) on 1 August 1943. Upon reaching the target area the 93rd Bomb Group turned at the wrong point and headed for Bucharest, Baker attempted to warn the mission commander but when they failed to respond, he broke formation and led the remainder of the force back to the correct point.

On approach to the target 'Hell's Wench' was hit by flak, Baker jettisoned his bombs as both wings were hit, and the aircraft began leaking fuel, and became engulfed in flames. At almost the same time, Baker had to break formation and pull up to avoid mid-air collisions with bombers from the 98th Bomb group, arriving in the target area from the opposite direction.

Baker made attempts to gain altitude so that the crew could escape his burning plane by parachute. But the aircraft lost speed in the climb, rolled over, crashed, and exploded in flames, killing everyone aboard.

Baker's body was never recovered, he was given a memorial site in Florence American Cemetery and Memorial, Florence, Italy. He was posthumously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his role on the mission.

Service

Events

Event	Location	Date
Born	Chicago, Illinois	1 January 1907
Died	Ploesti	1 August 1943
Killed over Il Concordia Vega Refinery, Ploesti
Buried
Commemorated on the Wall of the Missing, Florence American Cemetery.