Billy Carroll Hulsey

Military
media-17079.jpeg UPL 17079 Picadilly Lilly, 448435

Object Number - UPL 17079 - Picadilly Lilly, 448435

My grandfather told tale of being a young man, a slurried night out with his buddies and the pact among them- to go enlist and end WWII! With crazy notions of all being together forever, he was the only one that held his word. But that is the kind of man he was! He would be the one that did.



He rose through the enlisted ranks to become a Warrant Officer/ Sgt Major, US Army Air Corp. He claimed to have been nicknamed "Bull" for his drill sergeant voice and similarly appropriate demeanor. Later, he completed officer training school, is known to have studied meteorology and is recorded as a Second Lieutenant, B-17 Navigator (1945- Feb through April, completing 27 missions with 44th BG/ 8AF/ 379th).



I am certain, however, he told me he completed something closer to 44 missions- and that they were unofficially shot down just once... You bet that's a good story, too! My research goes on to continue to fill in the blanks of my grandfather's Army-Air Corp/ USAF career.

Connections

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Units served with

The insignia of the 379th Bomb Group.
  • Unit Hierarchy: Group
  • Air Force: Eighth Air Force
  • Type Category: Bombardment
The insignia of the 388th Bomb Group.
  • Unit Hierarchy: Group
  • Air Force: Eighth Air Force
  • Type Category: Bombardment
The insignia of the 44th Bomb Group.
  • Unit Hierarchy: Group
  • Air Force: Eighth Air Force
  • Type Category: Bombardment

People

  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 379th Bomb Group
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 100th Bomb Group 350th Bomb Squadron
  • Highest Rank: Private First Class
  • Role/Job: Engineering
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Civilian
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 388th Bomb Group
  • Role/Job: Pilot
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 490th Bomb Group 850th Bomb Squadron
  • Service Numbers: 6258595
  • Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
  • Role/Job: Airplane Armorer-Gunner
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 388th Bomb Group
  • Service Numbers: 19190377
  • Highest Rank: Technical Sergeant (2nd Grade)
  • Role/Job: Flight Engineer / Top Turret Gunner

Aircraft

  • Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
  • Nicknames: The Lost Angel
  • Unit: 379th Bomb Group 384th Bomb Group 482nd Bomb Group 524th Bomb Squadron 525th Bomb Squadron
  • Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
  • Nicknames: Four of a Kind
  • Unit: 379th Bomb Group 525th Bomb Squadron 527th Bomb Squadron
  • Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
  • Nicknames: Million Dollar Baby
  • Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
  • Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
  • Nicknames: Slew Foot Sue

Missions

  • Date: 16 February 1945
Ground crew attend to a crashed P-51 Mustang nicknamed "Baby Jo" of the 357th Fighter Group. Handwritten caption on reverse: ' Lt Noel Breen ran out of fuel 9 Feb '45.'
  • Date: 9 February 1945
  • Date: 6 February 1945

Places

Events

Event Location Date Description

Born

19 April 1922

Enlisted

5 January 1942 Warrant Officer/ Sgt Major, Army Air Corp.; Later, he completed officer training school and is recorded as a Second Lieutenant, B-17 Navigator (1945- Feb through April; 27 missions with 44th BG/ 8AF/ 379th).

Died

29 July 1990 He is buried in Roselawn Cemetery next to his loving wife, Lucile McKinley Hulsey- the mother of his three children (Larry, Rodney and Sharon).

Revisions

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Contributorjmoore43
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Removed extra info in the "Role/job" field.

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Contributorjmoore43
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Removed extra info from the S/N.

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ContributorFigmnt
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Sources

"United States World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K8G8-26X : accessed 29 July 2015), Billy C Hulsey, enlisted 05 Jan 1942, ; citing "Electronic Army Serial Number Merged File, ca. 1938-1946," database, The National Archives: Access to Archival Databases (AAD) (http://aad.archives.gov : National Archives and Records Administration, 2002); NARA NAID 126323, National Archives at College Park, Maryland.

"United States Social Security Death Index," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:J5M4-23V : accessed 29 July 2015), Bill C Hulsey, 29 Jul 1990; citing U.S. Social Security Administration, Death Master File, database (Alexandria, Virginia: National Technical Information Service, ongoing).

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Sources

Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / www.388bg.info/Personnel.html

Billy Carroll Hulsey: Gallery (2 items)