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Military
Ground crew enjoy coffee and doughnuts provided by an American Red Cross officer in front of B-17 'The Careful Virgin', 1943. Earl Brooks is on the far right of the photograph.
Sergeant Earl Brooks was a mechanic, instrument specialist on the ground crew of the 91st Bomb Group. One of the aircraft he worked on was 'The Careful Virgin'.
His daughter Rose remembers:
"He was a mechanic and instrument specialist. He never talked about the war but was very loyal and worked thousands of hours to help other vets. I believe he had PTSD before it had a name. He never turned his back on a veteran. He was DAV officer for our county and past post commander of VFW in Coldwater, Michigan."
"He worked tirelessly for a brother. He had hoped to attend one of the 91st reunions but it did not happen. He died after suffering with cancer in 1990. He taught me respect of country, flag and veterans by example."
Group
The 91st Bombardment Group (Heavy) was activated at Harding Field, Louisiana on 15-April-1942 and went to MacDill Field, Florida for the first phase of training from 16-May-1942 to 25-June-1942. The Group was then assigned to 2nd Air Force at Walla...
Squadron
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 9/9/42; Boise 16/9/42; wrecked on landing with broken crankshaft, rep; Cheyenne 11/10/42; Assigned 323BS/91BG [OR-W] Bassingbourn 29/1/43 and first in group to have AFCE fitted at 2 SAD Lt Staughton 8/3/44; transferred 7/5/44 50+m...
Military site : airfield
Now home to a museum all about the aifield and its USAAF residents (http://www.towermuseumbassingbourn.co.uk/) , Bassingbourn opened in 1938 as part of the RAF's pre-war expansion programme. The RAF continued to use it until late in 1942 when its long...
| Event | Location | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Born | Michigan, USA | |
| Died | 1990 | |
| Lived in | Coldwater, MI 49036, USA |
| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 12 November 2015 17:53:04 | Lucy May | Changes to biography |
| Sources | ||
Correspondence with Earl Brooks' daughter, Rose. |
||
| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 04 November 2015 13:21:01 | Lucy May | Created entry with surname, firstname, nationality, highest rank, role, biography, unit associations, place associations and aircraft associations |
| Sources | ||
Correspondence with Earl Brooks' daughter, Rose. |
||
