Dale W Whitson

Military ROLL OF HONOUR

Shot down 16-Aug-44 by fighters in B-17G #42-31673 'Lassie Come Home' while serving as Co-Pilot. Aircraft was attacked by German fighters, exploded in mid-air, and crashed at Deiderode, Germany. Killed in Action (KIA). A 20 or 30mm shell came through the armour plate behind his copilot seat, went through his chest and he was killed instantly.

Connections

See how this entry relates to other items in the archive by exploring the connections below.

Units served with

Unofficial emblem of the 91st Bomb Group.

91st Bomb Group

  • Unit Hierarchy: Group
  • Air Force: Eighth Air Force
  • Type Category: Bombardment

Aircraft

The nose art of a B-17G Flying Fortress (serial number 42-31673) nicknamed "Lassie Come Home" of the 91st Bomb Group Passed for publication 10 Jan 1943. On reverse: Not For Publication, Personal Use Only, US Army Examiner [Stamp].

42-31673

  • Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
  • Nicknames: Lassie Come Home
  • Unit: 91st Bomb Group 322nd Bomb Squadron

Missions

Places

Events

Event Location Date Description

Born

4 February 1923

Other

Killed in Action (KIA)

Deiderode, 37133 Friedland, Germany 16 August 1944 Killed when aircraft was attacked by German fighters, exploded in mid-air, and crashed at Deiderode, Germany.

Buried

Bismarck, Burleigh County, North Dakota, USA Buried by the Germans in a mass grave at Deiderode, Germany, re-interred after the war at Ardennes American Cemetery C-6-131, then his remains were repatriated to Fairview Cemetery in Bismarck, North Dakota.

Revisions

Date
Contributorjmoore43
Changes
Sources

Added a Born event per Find-a-grave Memorial ID 53655444.
SOURCE: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/53655444/dale-w.-whitson

Date
Contributorjmoore43
Changes
Sources

Added punctuation in the "Summary biography" to aid readability.

Date
Contributorbassingbourn91
Changes
Sources

Interview with his pilot, Lenoard F. Figie.

Date
Contributorgeneral ira snapsorter
Changes
Sources

Combined two entries into a single entry. This record now includes information from the following source: MACR 8183 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database.

Date
ContributorLee8thbuff
Changes
Sources

Lee Cunningham 14-Dec-2014. Made connections to Place, Aircraft and Mission within existing website data; Added SN and KIA event oer MACR 8183, Added burial event per "Losses of the 8th & 9th AIr Forces" stan Bishop & John A. Hey MBE; Edited biography for consistency; Assured the COMBINATION of data from a DUPLICATE from original ingest of data form Project Bits and Pieces was incorporated.

Date
ContributorAAM
Changes
Sources

Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / MACR 8183