Russell O Chitwood

Military ROLL OF HONOUR

10-Jul-42 Assigned as the Tail Gunner of B-17F #41-24608 [BN-S] "Yahoodi", 303BG/359BS at at Alamogordo Field, New Mexico. Arrived in the UK at Molesworth, UK on 12-Oct-42 with "Yahoodi" as the first aircraft of the 303BG to arrived in England.



Shot down 3 January 1943 in B-17F #41-24608 'Yehudi' while serving as Right Waist Gunner. Aircraft crashed into the sea off the Belle-Ile-en-Mer, France. Participated in 6 Operations (3 were aborted). See Biography events.



Purple Heart, Air Medal

Connections

See how this entry relates to other items in the archive by exploring the connections below.

Units served with

Official emblem of the 303rd Bomb Group approved 7 November 1942.
  • Unit Hierarchy: Group
  • Air Force: Eighth Air Force
  • Type Category: Bombardment

Aircraft

B-17 Flying Fortresses, including (VK-H, serial number 41-24606) nicknamed "Werewolf", of the 303rd Bomb Group. On reverse: US Army Examiner [Stamp].
  • Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
  • Nicknames: Werewolf
  • Unit: 303rd Bomb Group 401st Bomb Group 91st Bomb Group 358th Bomb Squadron
  • Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
  • Nicknames: Yehudi
  • Unit: 303rd Bomb Group 359th Bomb Squadron

Missions

Places

Events

Event Location Date Description

Other

Assigned to Aircraft

Alamogordo, NM 88310, USA 10 July 1942 Assigned as Tail Gunner of B-17F 41-24608 "Yehoodi", 303BG/359BS at Alamogordo Field, Alamogordo, New Mexico.

Other

Arrived in UK

Molesworth, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire PE28, UK 12 October 1942 Arrived at Molesworth, UK as Tail Gunner of B-17F 41-24608 "Yahoodi", 303BG/359BS. The first B-17 of the 303BG to arrive in England.

Other

Mission #1 SSGT Russell O. Chitwood, w/B-17F 41-24608, 303BG/359BS - Aborted

Lorient, France 22 November 1942 Served as Right Waist Gunner of B-17F 41-24608 "Yahoodi", 303BG/359BS on a mission to bomb the U-Boat pens at Lorient, France, but mechanical failures forced the pilot to abort the sortie. RTB OK.

Other

Mission #2 SSGT Russell O. Chitwood, w/B-17F 41-24606, 303BG/359BS

Saint-Nazaire, France 23 November 1942 Served as Tail Gunner of B-17F 41-24606 "Werewolf", 303BG/359BS on a mission to bomb the U-Boat pens at St. Nazaire, France. RTB OK.

Other

Mission #3 SSGT Russell O. Chitwood, w/B-17F 41-24608, 303BG/359BS - Aborted

Rouen, France 23 November 1942 Served as Tail Gunner of B-17F 41-24608 "Yahoodi", 303BG/359BS on a mission to bomb the railroad marshalling yards at Rouen, France, but mechanical failures forced the pilot to abort the sortie. RTB OK.

Other

Mission #4 SSGT Russell O. Chitwood, w/B-17F 41-24608, 303BG/359BS - Aborted

Romilly-sur-Seine, France 20 December 1942 Served as Tail Gunner of B-17F 41-24608 "Yahoodi", 303BG/359BS on a mission to bomb the German air depot at Romilly-sur-Seine, France, but mechanical failures forced the pilot to abort the sortie. RTB OK.

Other

Mission #5 SSGT Russell O. Chitwood, w/B-17F 41-24608, 303BG/359BS

Lorient, France 30 December 1942 Served as Tail Gunner of B-17F 41-24608 "Yahoodi", 303BG/359BS on a mission to bomb the U-Boat pens at Lorient, France. RTB OK.

Other

Killed in Action (KIA)

Belle Île, France 3 January 1943 Killed when aircraft sustained severe damage from flak over the target and crashed into the sea near Belle-Ile-en-Mer, France. His remains have never been recovered.

Other

Mission #6 SSGT Russell O. Chitwood, w/B-17F 41-24608, 303BG/359BS - KIA

Saint-Nazaire, France 3 January 1943 Served as Tail Gunner of B-17F 41-24608 "Yahoodi", 303BG/359BS on a mission to bomb the U-Boat pens at St. Nazaire, France. Aircraft was shot down and he was Killed in Action (KIA)

Revisions

Date
Contributorjmoore43
Changes
Sources

Added Some Punctuation in the "Summary biography" to aid clarity.

 

Date
ContributorLee8thbuff
Changes
Sources

Lee Cunningham 15-Dec-2015. Added Mission #6 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, HIstorian, Mission Report of 3-Jan-43: http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/009.pdf

Date
ContributorLee8thbuff
Changes
Sources

Lee Cunningham 15-Dec-2015. Added Mission #4 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, HIstorian, Mission Report of 20-Dec-42: http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/007.pdf
Lee Cunningham 15-Dec-2015. Added Mission #5 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, HIstorian, Mission Report of 20-Dec-42:

Date
ContributorLee8thbuff
Changes
Sources

Served as Right Waist Gunner of B-17F 41-24608 "Yahoodi", 303BG/359BS on a mission to bomb the German air depot at Romilly-sur-Seine, France, but mechanical failures forced the pilot to abort the sortie. RTB OK.

Date
ContributorLee8thbuff
Changes
Sources

Lee Cunningham 15-Dec-2015. Added Mission #3 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian, Mission Report of 12-Dec-42: http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/006.pdf

Date
ContributorLee8thbuff
Changes
Sources

Lee Cunningham 15-Dec-2015. Added Mission #2 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, HIstorian, Mission Report of 23-Nov-42: http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/004.pdf

Date
ContributorLee8thbuff
Changes
Sources

Lee Cunningham 15-Dec-2015. Added Mission #1 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian, Mission Report of 22-Nov-42: http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/003.pdf

Date
ContributorLee8thbuff
Changes
Sources

Lee Cunningham 15-Dec-2015. Added Arrived in UK event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian, Frank A. Saunders crew page: http://www.303rdbg.com/c-359-saunders.html

Date
ContributorLee8thbuff
Changes
Sources

Lee Cunningham 15-Dec-2015. Added Assigned to Aircraft event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian, Frank A. Saunders crew page: http://www.303rdbg.com/c-359-saunders.html

Date
ContributorLee8thbuff
Changes
Sources

Lee Cunningham 15-Dec-2015. Added assignment to aircraft and arrival in UK to Summary Biography and made connections ro 41-24606 and all mission participations per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian: http://www.303rdbg.com/

Date
ContributorLee8thbuff
Changes
Sources

Lee Cunningham 13-Jan-2015. Added SN and KIA event per MACR 15720; added decorations and Commemorated event per American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) record; made connections to Place, Aircraft and Mission within existing website data; Added crw position and crash location to Biography per "Losses of the 8th & 9th Air Forces" Stan Bishop & John A. Hey MBE.

Date
ContributorAAM
Changes
Sources

Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / Roll of Honor, Losses of the 8th and 9th AFs Vol. 1 by Bishop and Hey pp. 60-61, WWII Memorial web site, MACR 15720