William Joseph O'Leary Jr

Military
Nine men in Air Force uniform posed in two rows in front of an airplane.  Five men standing to the rear and four men seated in front on large canvas bags.  Some of the men are  wearing  cold weather flying gear.  There is also some gear lying in front of the men. UPL 66500 UPL 66500 384th Bomb Group Lead Crew/5 April 1945, Ingolstadt (Ordnance Depot).
Back L-R: 2nd Lt. John Pylman (N), 1st Lt. William Cavanaugh (N), Maj. Edgar Ulrey (AC/CP), Lt. Frederick Blencowe (N; did not fly mission), 1st Lt. William “Doc” Frazier Jr. (B).
Front L-R: F/O William O’Leary (OBS/TG), Pvt. Charles Vickers (TT), TSgt. Thomas Benson (RO), 1st Lt. Jack K. Smith (P).
384th Bomb Group collection
On

Object Number - UPL 66500 - 384th Bomb Group Lead Crew/5 April 1945, Ingolstadt (Ordnance Depot). Back L-R: 2nd Lt. John Pylman (N), 1st Lt. William Cavanaugh (N), Maj. Edgar...

Assigned to the 384th Bomb Group, 547th Bomb Squadron on AAF Station 106 Special Orders #254 dated 23 December 1944, George F. Ruckman Crew. 22 combat missions



In O'Leary's own words: "I'm proud to say that I flew my first Mission as a co-pilot on a B-17 while still 19 years of age. On my 9th Mission, Feb 1, 1945, as a co-pilot on Ruckman's crew, I suffered a damaged ear drum as the result of flying with a very bad cold. I was confined to the Base Hospital for thirteen days, plus a few trips to the Thrapston General Hospital.



On February 3rd, 1945, Ruckman's Crew, with a replacement for me, flew a mission to Berlin where our B-17 Stardust sustained major flak damage, and was forced to land on a Russian controlled airfield in Poland. The fate of the Crew was not known for over forty days. When Doc Vivian, 547th Flight Surgeon, cleared me for flight duty, I had no crew or airplane to fly.



Captain Shelley, 547th Flight Operations Officer, called and asked if I would like to get some missions in flying as Group Observer in the tail gunner's position in the Group Lead airplane. I flew several missions in that capacity, as well as a replacement for co-pilots on other crews. I completed a total 22 missions. In the interim I was commissioned from F/O, and 'checked-out' as a First Pilot. I participated in the Green Project and other minor projects, before returning to the U.S. on 21 April 1946."

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Units served with

The insignia of the 384th Bomb Group.
  • Unit Hierarchy: Group
  • Air Force: Eighth Air Force
  • Type Category: Bombardment

People

  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 384th Bomb Group 547th Bomb Squadron
  • Service Numbers: O-777244
  • Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
  • Role/Job: Pilot

Aircraft

  • Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
  • Nicknames: Stardust
  • Unit: 384th Bomb Group 547th Bomb Squadron

Places

Events

Event Location Date Description

Born

8 January 1925

Died

19 April 2023

Revisions

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Contributorjmoore43
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Sources

Added " / " in the "Role/job" field as a separator to aid readability.

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Sources

William Joseph O'Leary: Gallery (5 items)