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Sudbury (Acton)

Military site : airfield

  • Airmen of the 486th Bomb Group inside the control room at Sudbury. Image via Roland A Andrews. Handwritten caption on reverse: 'Inside Flying Control AAF station # 174 Sudbury, 486 B Gp.'

    Airmen of the 486th Bomb Group inside the control room at Sudbury. Image via Roland A Andrews. Handwritten caption on reverse: 'Inside Flying Control AAF station # 174 Sudbury, 486 B Gp.'

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  • On the outside wall of Tesco's at Sudbury.

    On the outside wall of Tesco's at Sudbury.

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  • Official Air Ministry Record Site Plan-Airfield Site 1945

    Official Air Ministry Record Site Plan-Airfield Site 1945

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  • Official Air Ministry Record Site Plan-Dispersed Sites 1945

    Official Air Ministry Record Site Plan-Dispersed Sites 1945

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  • My Dad , back row 2nd from the left Ashley Crew Back... Ashley, Gil pilot Smith, Ron co- pilot Zeien, Cliff Bombardier Lewis, Wm. Navigator Front ... Carl Woodward (cpl) Crew Chief Harvey Miller, (Sgt) top turret Daniel Weinman (Sgt) Nose gunner Thomas Whitfield (Sgt) Engineer Richard Dawson (Sgt) radio Snglich (cpl) tail gunner

    My Dad , back row 2nd from the left Ashley Crew Back... Ashley, Gil pilot Smith, Ron co- pilot Zeien, Cliff Bombardier Lewis, Wm. Navigator Front ... Carl Woodward (cpl) Crew Chief Harvey Miller, (Sgt) top turret Daniel Weinman (Sgt) Nose gunner Thomas Whitfield (Sgt) Engineer Richard Dawson (Sgt) radio Snglich (cpl) tail gunner

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  • Lewis K. Cloud Crew 486th BG - 833rd BS Standing Left to Right: Harold Love (FE), Aubrey W. Fisher (G), Arnold R. Welch (R/O), Unknown Kneeling Left to Right: Lewis K. Cloud (P), Unknown, Unknown, Fred T. Stehle (CP)

    Lewis K. Cloud Crew 486th BG - 833rd BS Standing Left to Right: Harold Love (FE), Aubrey W. Fisher (G), Arnold R. Welch (R/O), Unknown Kneeling Left to Right: Lewis K. Cloud (P), Unknown, Unknown, Fred T. Stehle (CP)

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  • Nose art of B-24H 42-52764. The B-24's official name was

    Nose art of B-24H 42-52764. The B-24's official name was "Mike - the Spirit of LSU". Mike was the Louisiana State University mascot, nick-named the "Fighting Tiger". This B-24 had the distinction of being the only plane in WW II named for the University. Its regular pilot Lt Alfred Sanders was a former tiger keeper at the Louisiana State University and Mike was his charge.

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  • Crew Chief Frank Hollopeter, running up engine #3 on a B-17G

    Crew Chief Frank Hollopeter, running up engine #3 on a B-17G

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  • Crew Chief Frank Hollopeter, left, performing maintenance on B-17G in the snow, winter 1944/45, Station 174, Sudbury, UK (other ground crew member on right unknown)

    Crew Chief Frank Hollopeter, left, performing maintenance on B-17G in the snow, winter 1944/45, Station 174, Sudbury, UK (other ground crew member on right unknown)

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  • Crew Chief Frank Hollopeter, left, performing maintenance on B-17G in the snow, winter 1944/45, Station 174, Sudbury, UK (other ground crew member on right unknown)

    Crew Chief Frank Hollopeter, left, performing maintenance on B-17G in the snow, winter 1944/45, Station 174, Sudbury, UK (other ground crew member on right unknown)

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Situated between the villages of Great Waldingfield and Acton, the airfield was used by the 486th Bomb Group from March 1944 to August 1945. Facilities for administrative offices for the Combat Wing were also made available here and along with barrack buildings were situated to the east of the airfield.

Accounts of the Americans at Sudbury can be found here: http://americans.sudburysuffolk.co.uk/life-and-death-with-the-486th-bomb...

Detailed history

Not yet known

English Heritage's record description

Not yet known

Service

Units

People

  • Luverne Abendroth

    Military | First Lieutenant | Fighter Pilot | 3rd Scouting Force
    Assigned to 832BS, 486BG, 8AF USAAF. Transferred to 3rd Scouting Force. Ended Tour Duty (ETD).

  • Bruce Alexander

    Military | Second Lieutenant | Pilot | 486th Bomb Group
    Bruce Alexander’s father died in 1931 and his mother Edith raised alone his other siblings, brother Paul J. and sister Phyllis. In 1940, Bruce was working as a clerk in a grocery store. He attended Anaheim High School and studied 4 years there. He was...

  • Joe Altsheler

    Military | Staff Sergeant (3rd Grade) | Ground Crew Aircraft Mechanic | 486th Bomb Group

  • William Annan

    Military | Second Lieutenant | Navigator | 486th Bomb Group
    Killed when B17 43-38137 crashed on takeoff at Woodhall Farm, Sudbury on 15 October 1944.

  • Gilbert Ashley

    Military | Captain | Pilot | 486th Bomb Group

  • Edmund Barcikowski

    Military | Second Lieutenant | Co-Pilot | 486th Bomb Group
    Prisoner of War (POW) crashed at Unddorp on 6 Dec 1944 in B-17 'Mr. Tacoma' #4337944

  • Charles Bateman

    Military | Second Lieutenant | Tail Gunner | 486th Bomb Group
    Killed in Action (KIA) Crashed at Merseburg in B-17 'Marge' #4338110

  • William Beeson

    Military | First Lieutenant | Navigator | 486th Bomb Group
    William was an architect when he joined the AF a few months before Pearl Harbor. He was and accomplished musician. He had finished his tour of 25 missions, but remained and was KIA on his 31st mission over Merseburg, Germany. (there is an AF photo of...

  • John Belay

    Military | Lieutenant | Navigator | 486th Bomb Group
    Member of Unger crew.

  • Howard Berodt

    Military | Colonel | B24/B17 Pilot | 486th Bomb Group

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Aircraft

  • 41-28745

    B-24 Liberator
    Assigned to 486BG, 8AF USAAF. Transferred to 733BS, 453BG, 8AF USAAF. Failed to Return (FTR) mission to Brunswick. Shot down flak went down 2km west of Salzdahlum, four chutes seen, one on fire 8-May-44. 3 x POW, 7 x KIA. MACR 4590.

  • 42-52764 'Mike' ' Spirit of LSU'

    B-24 Liberator
    Assigned to 832nd Bomb Squadron, 486th Bomb Group, 8th AF USAAF. Named after LSU's mascot Mike the Tiger, as its regular pilot Lt Alfred Sanders was a former track star at the Louisiana State University. Failed to Return (FTR) raid to Luztkendorf,...

  • 42-98008 American Beauty

    B-17 Flying Fortress
    Delivered Dallas 30/4/44; Kearney 14/6/44; Presque Is 5/7/44; Assigned PFF 834BS/486BG [2S-G] Sudbury 7/7/44; 61m transferred 92BG Podington 7/7/45; Returned to the USA Bradley 8/7/45; 4168 Base Unit, South Plains, Texas 11/7/45; Reconstruction Finance...

  • 43-37883 Blue Streak

    B-17 Flying Fortress
    Delivered Cheyenne 1/6/44; Hunter 10/6/44; Dow Fd 28/6/44; Assigned 833BS/486BG [4N-C] Sudbury 2/7/44; transferred 834BS [2S-T]; 27m Missing in Action Merseburg 2/11/44 with Dave Paris, Co-pilot: Gene Schmidt, Navigator: Bill Beeson, Bombardier: Walt...

  • 43-37927 The Last Roundup

    B-17 Flying Fortress
    Delivered Cheyenne 6 June 1944; Kearney 16 June 1944; Grenier 30 June 1944; Assigned 832BS/486BG [3R-G] Sudbury 2 July 1944; 36 missions flown. Missing in Action Merseburg 6 December 1944. Pilot : Bruce C. Alexander; Co-Pilot Charles B. Bryson;...

  • 43-37928

    B-17 Flying Fortress
    Delivered Cheyenne 6/6/44; Kearney 19/6/44; Grenier 1/7/44; Assigned 851BS/490BS Eye 2/7/44; transferred 832BS/486BG [3R-S] Sudbury 10/44; 43m crash landed base with Bob Snure 18/4/45; taxi accident with Art Gottleib at Meeks Fd, Iceland en route home...

  • 43-37944

    B-17 Flying Fortress
    Delivered Cheyenne 8/6/44; Kearney 20/6/44; Dow Fd 9/7/44; Assigned 834BS/486BG [2S-R] Sudbury 11/7/44; 34m Missing in Action Merseburg 6/12/44 with Bob Miller, Edmund Barcikowski, Fred Kinsler, Dick Hobgood, Marion Taylor, Bill Effinger, Jim Mathis,...

  • 43-37945

    B-17 Flying Fortress
    Delivered Cheyenne 8/6/44; Kearney 24/6/44; Grenier 30/6/44; Assigned 834th Bomb Squadron/486th Bomb Group [2S-K] Sudbury 2/7/44; 75m collided with 43-37891 taxi accident with Bob Schwartz 20/5/45, Salvaged 21/5/45.

  • 43-38110

    B-17 Flying Fortress
    Delivered Cheyenne 27/6/44; Kearney 8/7/44; Grenier 15/7/44; Assigned 835BS/486BG [H8-L] Sudbury 19/7/44; 12m Missing in Action Merseburg 28/9/44 with Fred Oltman, (mission leader)-Bill Mitchell, drn-Russ Curtis, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Chas...

  • 44-6202

    B-17 Flying Fortress
    Delivered Tulsa 30/5/44; Assigned 486BG as THE BABY SHOE III; transferred Boca Raton 29/8/44; 3501 BU Boca Raton 2/9/44; 4119 BU Brookley 19/9/45; 3501 BU Boca Raton 7/10/45; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Kingman 20...

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Number
174
Known as
Acton
Construction date
Not yet known
USAAF from date
Not yet known
USAAF to date
Not yet known
Closure date
Not yet known

Revisions

Date Contributor Update
15 December 2018 20:10:22 Knickjh72 Changes to person associations
Sources

http://www.486th.org/BS832/Kurbjun.htm
Date Contributor Update
02 October 2014 14:29:56 Carl Changes to description
Sources

http://americans.sudburysuffolk.co.uk/life-and-death-with-the-486th-bomb...
Date Contributor Update
27 September 2014 18:02:18 AAM AAM ingest
Sources

Barry Anderson, Army Air Forces Stations (Alabama, 1985) / Roger Freeman, The Mighty Eighth War Manual (London, 1991)

http://www.pastscape.org.uk/hob.aspx?hob_id=1430319&sort=4&search=all&cr... Suffolk&rational=q&recordsperpage=10

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