Dale E Dunn
Military
Photo of Dale E. Dunn
Object Number - UPL 7074 - Dale Eugene Dunn in front of the p51d-10 "Red Rose," (#44-14166); U.S. 8th AF, 361st FG, 374th FS, at Bottisham Airbase 1944.
Dale Eugene Dunn, Lt., Fighter Pilot, USAAF, 8th Air Force, 8th AF Fighter Command, 67th Fighter Wing, 361st Fighter Group, 374th Fighter Squadron (The Yellow Jackets), Bottisham and Little Walden airbases U.K., (base transfer date Sept. 26, 1944-16 days after Dale's landing accident) 70 Missions. Flew a P-51D Mustang (#44-14166).
b. August 2, 1922 - d. January 9, 1997 74 years old
For more information see Dale's 8th AFHS-MN webpage at
https://sites.google.com/site/8thafhsmn/pictures/dale-e-dunn-p-51-fight…
Early life:
Music major; Morningside College, Sioux City IA, 2 years at college, then enlisted.
Met Rosemary, his girlfriend, who he married after the war.
Enlisted 1942
March 11, 1945?
In the book Little Friends, Lt Dunn / Lt. Mitchell is listed on Mission 370, the March 11 mission to the Aachen area , Germany, escorting B-17s which is located on the western central border of Germany where the Netherlands and Belgium meet (The 361st FG typically escorted 8th AF B-17 and B-24 bombers and also did ground attacks. There is no 8th AF strategic attack on Aachen in the 8th AF Combat Chronology for either March 11, 1944 or 1945. It may have been a ground attack mission.) Time up:12:21, Down 17:43.
Dale flew the P-51D "Red Rose" (named after Rosemary), The D model had the bubble canopy and 6 (instead of 4) .50 caliber machine guns in the wings. The plane markings or Code for Red Rose was "B7-V." B7 is the squadron code. V is the particular plane. The number on the tail was 414166. The paint scheme was probably similar to the well-known aerobatic plane "Ferocious Frankie" or "B7-H" from the same squadron also featured in the tank movie "Fury."
May 1944
In May 1944 the 361st Fighter Group converted from Republic P-47 Thunderbolts to North American P-51 Mustangs.
September 10, 1944
The following is from the 8th Air Force Operations History and indicates that on September 10, 1944 at Bottisham airbase he was involved in a landing accident which severely damaged his plane.
1944-09-10 : Aircraft: P-51D10 (#44-14166). Organization: 374FS / 361FG of Bottisham, Cambrdigeshire. Pilot: Dunn, Dale E. Notes: landing accident. Location: Bottisham, Cambrdigeshire England. Damage (0-5 increasing damage): 5
Another record described it as a crash landing. It was totalled.
44-14166 P-51D 374 B7-V
Crash-landed Bottisham 10 Sept 44 - Lt. Dale E Dunn
Connections
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Units served with
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Fighter
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Fighter
Places
- Site type: Airfield
Events
| Event | Location | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Other End Tour of Duty (ETD) |
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Other Promoted |
Revisions
Added Some Punctuation in the "Summary biography" to aid readability.
Removed extra info in the "Role/job" field.
The Eighth Air Force Historical Society of Minnesota Presentations Website
https://sites.google.com/site/8thafhsmn/pictures/dale-e-dunn-p-51-fight…
Dale Eugene Dunn, Lt., Fighter Pilot, USAAF, 8th Air Force, 8th AF Fighter Command, 67th Fighter Wing, 361st Fighter Group, 374th Fighter Squadron (The Yellow Jackets), Bottisham and Little Walden airbases U.K., (base transfer date Sept. 26, 1944-16 days after Dale's landing accident) 70 Missions. 1 victory cross marked on "Red Rose." Flew a P51D10 Mustang (#44-14166).
b. August 2, 1922 - d. January 9, 1997 74 years old
Early life:
Music major; Morningside College, Sioux City IA, 2 years at college, then enlisted.
Met Rosemary, his girlfriend, who he married after the war.
Enlisted 1942
March 11, 1945?
In the book Little Friends, Lt Dunn / Lt. Mitchell is listed on Mission 370, the March 11 mission to the Aachen area , Germany, escorting B-17s which is located on the western central border of Germany where the Netherlands and Belgium meet (The 361st FG typically escorted 8th AF B-17 and B-24 bombers and also did ground attacks. There is no 8th AF strategic attack on Aachen in the 8th AF Combat Chronology for either March 11, 1944 or 1945. It may have been a ground attack mission.) Time up:12:21, Down 17:43.
Dale flew the P-51D "Red Rose" (named after Rosemary), The D model had the bubble canopy and 6 (instead of 4) .50 caliber machine guns in the wings. The plane markings or Code for Red Rose was "B7-V." B7 is the squadron code. V is the particular plane. The number on the tail was 414166. The paint scheme was probably similar to the well-known aerobatic plane "Ferocious Frankie" or "B7-H" from the same squadron also featured in the tank movie "Fury."
May 1944
In May 1944 the 361st Fighter Group converted from Republic P-47Thunderbolts to North American P-51 Mustangs.
September 10, 1944
The following is from the 8th Air Force Operations History and indicates that on September 10, 1944 at Bottisham airbase he was involved in a landing accident which severely damaged his plane.
1944-09-10 : Aircraft: P-51D10 (#44-14166). Organization: 374FS / 361FG of Bottisham, Cambrdigeshire. Pilot: dunn, Dale E. Notes: landing accident. Location: Bottisham, Cambrdigeshire England. Damage (0-5 increasing damage): 5
Another record described it as a crash landing. It was totalled.
44-14166 P-51D 374 B7-V
Crash-landed Bottisham 10 Sept 44 - Lt. Dale E Dunn
