Charles L Herman
Military1-May-42 Assigned as a Navigator with the crew of Eugene E. Rochester but no record could be found concerning the aircraft assignment. 303BG website does not indicate that Eugene E. Rochester ever completed advanced flight training and there is no record of him ever flying missions with the 303BG out of Great Britain. It is possible that he "washed out" of advanced pilot training and his crew became unassigned to a particular aircraft. No definite record could be located to confirm when 1LT Charles L. Herman arrived at Molesworth, UK and on what date that might have been. Records indicate that he flew 4 Operations (1 was aboarted) with the 303BG/427BS as Navigator of B-17F #41-24584 "Susfu".
303BG records indicate that he was transferred to the 303BG/360BS sometime in January, 1943, but exact date could not be determined.
On 23-Jan-43 in B-17F #41-24579 'Thumper' 303BG/360BS while serving as Navigator the aircraft received battle damage on mission to Lorient, France and upon return nine crew members baled out. Herman was one of four men that were injured. The pilot and co-pilot landed wheels-up at Lulsgate Bottom airfield near Bristol. No MACR issued
Mission Participation (UNDER CONSTRUCTION). See Biography events.
Connections
See how this entry relates to other items in the archive by exploring the connections below.
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
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
People
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 303rd Bomb Group 360th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: O-435855
- Highest Rank: First Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Pilot
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Nicknames: Thumper
- Unit: 303rd Bomb Group 360th Bomb Squadron
Missions
- Date: 23 January 1943
Places
- Site type: Airfield
Events
| Event | Location | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Other Mission #1, 1LT Charles L. Herman, w/ B-17F 41-24584, 303BG/427BS |
Lorient, France | 22 November 1942 | Served as Navigator of B-17F 41-24584, "Susfu", 303BG/427BS on a mission to bomb the U-Boat pens at Loreint, France. RTB OK. |
|
Other Mission #2, 1LT Charles L. Herman, w/ B-17F 41-24584, 303BG/427BS |
Lille, France | 6 December 1942 | Served as Navigator of B-17F 41-24584, "Susfu", 303BG/427BS on a mission to bomb the carriage and wagon works at Lille, France. RTB OK. |
|
Other Mission #3, 1LT Charles L. Herman, w/ B-17F 41-24584, 303BG/427BS - Aborted |
Rouen, France | 12 December 1942 | Served as Navigator of B-17F 41-24584, "Susfu", 303BG/427BS 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, 1LT Charles L. Herman, w/ B-17F 41-24584, 303BG/427BS |
Lorient, France | 30 December 1942 | Served as Navigator of B-17F 41-24584, "Susfu", 303BG/427BS on a mission to bomb the U-Boat pens at Lorient, France. RTB OK. |
|
Other Squadron Transfer |
Molesworth, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire PE28, UK | 4 January 1943 | 1LT Herman was transferred to the 303BG/360BS, Surrounding circumstances are unknown and the transfer date is approximate |
|
Other Mission #5, 1LT Charles L. Herman, w/ B-17F 41-24579, 303BG/360BS - BO/RTD |
Lorient, France | 23 January 1943 | Served as Navigator of B-17F 41-24579 "Thumper", 303BG/360BS on a mission to bomb the U-Boat pens at Lorient, France. The aircraft sustained battle damage on the raid but the pilot managed to fly it back to England, where he orderd the crew to bale out. 1LT Herman baled out of battle near Bristol, England. BO/RTD |
Revisions
Added a "#" to the A/C serial number in the "Summary biography" to aid clarity.
Lee Cunningham 9-Jan-2016. Correcting typo in Squadron transfer note.
Lee Cunningham 9-Jan-2016. Added Squadron Transfer event based on 303BG records, 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian; http://www.303rdbg.com/
Lee Cunningham 9-Jan-2016. Added Mission #5 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian, Mission Report of 23-Jan-43 http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/011.pdf
Lee Cunningham 9-Jan-2016. Added Mission #4 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian, Mission Report of 30-Dec-42 http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/008.pdf
Lee Cunningham 9-Jan-2016. Added Mission #3 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian, Mission Report of 12-Dec-42 http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/006.pdf
Lee Cunningham 9-Jan-2016. Added Mission #2 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian, Mission Report of 6-Dec-42 http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/005.pdf
Lee Cunningham 9-Jan-2016. Added Mission #1 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian, Mission Report of 22-Nov-42 http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/003.pdf
Lee Cunningham 9-Jan-2016. Added initial assigment information to Summary Biography and made connections to Place, AIrcraft (through 23-Jan-43) and mission through 23-Jan-43) per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian: 303BG Personnel Roster http://www.303rdbg.com/
Lee Cunningham 12-Feb-2015. Added RTD event per 303rd Bomb Group website, historian Gary Moncur; made connections to Place, Aircraft and mission within existing website data.
Lee Cunningham 12-Feb-2014. Confirmed SN and edited Biography based on 303rd Bomb Group website records, historian Gary Moncur.
Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / Losses of the 8th & 9th AFs Vol. 1 by Bishop and Hey p. 66