Thomas Andrew Smith
MilitaryThomas Smith was Tail Gunner on his first operation on board of B-17G #42-31191 'Virginia Lee' on the 27 March 1943 mission to Bordeaux/Merignac airfield. Hit by German fighters, crash-landed on the beach at Le Porge-Océan, near Laruau (Gironde), France. Smith managed to evade capture with the help of French citizens and members of the Résistance. He and Navigator Walsh and Ball Turret Gunner Volz were hidden in various places in the region West and South-West of Bordeaux. They left by C-47 from Biarritz, France on 13 September 1944 and were interviewed for their E&E report in London the following day. See the details of Thomas Smith‘s evasion at http://www.evasioncomete.be/fsmithta.html
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: 447th Bomb Group 710th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 11021237 at enlistment, then O-806253
- Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Pilot
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 447th Bomb Group 710th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 18016065 at enlistment, then O-755011
- Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Bombardier
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 447th Bomb Group 710th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 37652344
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: Radio Operator/Gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 447th Bomb Group 710th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 39454700 at enlistment, then O-692881
- Highest Rank: Lieutenant Colonel
- Role/Job: Co-Pilot
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 447th Bomb Group 710th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 38274314
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: Waist Gunner
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Nicknames: Virginia Lee
- Unit: 447th Bomb Group 710th Bomb Squadron
Missions
- Date: 27 March 1944
Places
- Site type: Airfield
Events
| Event | Location | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Born |
Shelby, Montana, USA | 1 October 1925 | |
|
Enlisted |
7 December 1942 | as a Private in the Air Corps in Butte, Montana | |
|
Other left the aircraft on foot |
27 March 1944 | on the beach at Le Porge-Océan, near Laruau (Gironde), France, after the crash-landing there of B-17 # 42-31191 | |
|
Other evaded capture |
27 March 1944 - 4 September 1944 | Helped by French citizens and members of the Résistance | |
|
Died |
22 June 1997 | ||
| Shelby, Toole County, Montana, USA | |||
|
Buried |
Thomas Smith rests at the Woodlawn Cemetery in Columbia Falls, Flathead County, Montana, USA |
Revisions
NARA WWII Enlistment records
NARA WWII POW records
WWII Draft Cards for Montana
Escape & Evasion Report E&E 2064
VA Gravesite Locator
Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / MACR 3546 / MACR 3546, Lossses of the 8th & 9th Air Forces / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database