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Military
B-24 Liberator 42-40776 'Old Blister Butt' 564th BS, 389th BG, 8th AF, pilot Robert L Wright and crew. Flew on 1st Aug 43 Ploesti oil refinery raid, returning safely to Libya. Maj Howard J LaLonde 3rd from left rear row.
Flight crew pose in front of B-24 Liberator #4111817 'Stinger' 415 BS, 98 BG, 9 AF which launched from Benghazi, Libya on the 1st Aug 43 Ploesti raid. 'Stinger' successfully returned with only 1 crew member WIA.
389BG Pictorial Review Pg 16, featuring William Nading, Andrew Opsata and William Selvidge.
Assigned to 389BG, 8AF, detached to 514BS, 98BG, 9AF USAAF. 27 x combat missions. Pilot of B-24 Liberator 41-11817 'Stinger' participated in the 1st Aug 43 Ploesti oil refinery raid returning safely to Libya with only one crew member WIA.
Awards: DFC, AM (3OLC), WWII Victory, EAME.
Military | Second Lieutenant | Bombardier | 98th Bomb Group
Assigned to 415BS, 98BG, 9AF USAAF. Bombardier of B-24 Liberator 41-11817 'Stinger' participated in the 1st Aug 43 Ploesti oil refinery raid returning safely to Libya with only one crew member WIA.
Awards: AM, WWII Victory, EAME.
Military | Staff Sergeant | Gunner | 389th Bomb Group
Gunner on B-24 Liberator 41-11817 'Stinger' which participated in the 1st Aug 43 Ploesti oil refinery raid returning safely to Libya, gunner hit by flak WIA.
Awards: DFC, AM, PH, WWII Victory, EAME.
Military | Major | Navigator | 389th Bomb Group
Assigned to 389BG, 8AF. Detached to 415BS, 98BG, 9AF. 26 x combat missions. Navigator of B-24 Liberator 41-11817 'Stinger' participated in the 1-Aug-43 Ploesti oil refinery raid returning safely to Libya with only one crew member WIA. Regular A/C was...
Military | Technical Sergeant | Flight Engineer / Top Turret | 98th Bomb Group
Assigned to 415BS, 98BG, 9AF USAAF. Crew member of B-24 Liberator 41-11817 'Stinger' participated in the 1-Aug-43 Ploesti oil refinery raid returning safely to Libya with only one crew member WIA.
Awards: AM, WWII Victory, EAME.
Military | Staff Sergeant | Waist Gunner | 98th Bomb Group
Assigned to 415BS, 98BG, 9AF USAAF. Crew member of B-24 Liberator 41-11817 'Stinger' participated in the 1st Aug 43 Ploesti oil refinery raid returning safely to Libya with only one crew member WIA.
Awards: DFC, AM, PH, WWII Victory, EAME.
Military | Staff Sergeant | Tail Gunner | 98th Bomb Group
Assigned to 415BS, 98BG, 9AF USAAF. Crew member of B-24 Liberator 41-11817 'Stinger' participated in the 1st Aug 43 Ploesti oil refinery raid returning safely to Libya with only one crew member WIA.
Awards: DFC, AM (OLC), WWII Victory, EAME.
Military | Second Lieutenant | Co-Pilot | 98th Bomb Group
Assigned to 415BS, 98BG, 9AF USAAF. Co-Pilot of B-24 Liberator 41-11817 'Stinger' participated in the 1-Aug-43 Ploesti oil refinery raid returning safely to Libya with only one crew member WIA.
Awards: DFC, AM, WWII Victory, EAME.
Military | Staff Sergeant | Waist Gunner | 98th Bomb Group
Crew member of B-24 Liberator 41-11817 'Stinger' participated in the 1st Aug 43 Ploesti oil refinery raid returning safely to Libya with only one crew member WIA.
Awards: DFC, AM, PH, WWII Victory, EAME.
Group
The 389th Bomb Group, known in more familiar terms as "the Sky Scorpions", flew strategic bombing missions in B-24 Liberators from Hethel, England. They also sent detachments to join bases in North Africa at Benghazi No. 10, Libya, between 3 July 1943...
Group
The 98th trained for bombardment missions with B-24 Liberators during the first half of 1942.
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Squadron
Established as a B-24 Liberator reconnaissance squadron in early 1942. Engaged initially in antisubmarine patrols over the Gulf of Mexico; redesignated as a heavy bomb squadron and trained by Third Air Force. Deployed to Egypt in June 1942 over South...
B-24 Liberator
The B-24D Liberator, # 41-11817 'Stinger' participated in the 1st Aug 43 Ploesti oil refinery raid returning safely to Libya with only one crew member WIA. On Operation Tidal Wave, 'STINGER''s pilot was Lt. Andrew Opsata. And it's navigator was Maj...
B-24 Liberator
B-24D Liberator #42-40776 'H' 'Old Blister Butt' 564th BS, 389th BG, 8th AF, flew on 1st Aug 43 Ploesti oil refinery raid piloted by Robert L Wright, returning safely to Libya.
...
1 August 1943
Operation TIDAL WAVE. B24D Liberators attack the oil refineries at Ploesti, Romania. The bombers flew low to avoid radar detection and dropped time delayed bombs. Out of the 177 B-24s that took part in the raid 167 managed to attack their targets. 57 B...
Military site : airfield
Construction of Hethel airfield began in 1941, and was finished in late 1942. The number of hardstandings was increased from the planned 36 to 50 in 1942, in order to accommodate a full heavy bomb group. The 320th Bomb Group occupied the base for ten...
| Event | Location | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Born | Colgan, ND | 4 October 1919 |
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Son of Stephen Edward and Tillie A [Hamberg] Opsata. |
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| Assigned | Benghazi, Libya | 1943 – 1944 |
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Assigned to 415BS, 98 BG, 9AF USAAF. |
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| Survived Ploesti | Ploiești, Romania | 1 August 1943 |
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Pilot of B-24 Liberator 41-11817 'Stinger' participated in the 1st Aug 43 Ploesti oil refinery raid returning safely to Libya with only one crewmember WIA. |
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| Died | Bellingham, WA | 17 June 2014 |
| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 17 April 2021 18:32:28 | jmoore43 | Changes to nickname |
| Sources | ||
Flagged as a "Possible DUPLICATE" in the Nickname field so an Admin can check out this person. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 29 January 2021 15:49:07 | Al_Skiff | Changes to surname, middlename, biography, awards, events, unit associations, place associations, aircraft associations and media associations |
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https://www.fold3.com/image/32191616 |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 01 January 2021 17:24:42 | Al_Skiff | Changes to service number, highest rank, biography, awards, events and person associations |
| Sources | ||
| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 17 April 2020 19:48:54 | jmoore43 | Changes to biography and unit associations |
| Sources | ||
Added a "-" to the A/C serial number in the "Summary biography" to aid clarity & consistency. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 30 March 2015 18:27:25 | Al_Skiff | Created entry with surname, firstname, nationality, highest rank, role, biography, events, unit associations, aircraft associations, mission associations and media associations |
| Sources | ||
USAAF Photo. |
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