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41-11803

B-24 Liberator

  • The B-24D Liberator, 41-11803, Rosie Wrecked 'Em, and crew from the 9th Air Force, the 98th Bomb Group, and the 344th Bomb Squadron. Rosie Wrecked 'Em, was flown by Lt. Herbert Arens on the mission to destroy the oil refineries at Ploesti, Romania, on the right wing of Col. John Kane in the lead ship, Hail Columbia. Lt. Arens had to abort and turn back to home base at Benghazi, Libya, because of mechanical problems. The copilot, Lt. Kittredge Hamlin - standing second from left. Pilot Capt. Herbert Arens is standing far left. Aircraft, 41-11803, flew on the wing of Col. Kane on the Ploesti raid but had to return to base because of mechanical problems. Copilot Kittredge Hamlin is standing - second from left. He left North Africa for the states on or about Aug 8, 1943 after 45 missions. This photo was taken prior to that date. Pilot Capt. Herbert Arens is standing far left.

    The B-24D Liberator, 41-11803, Rosie Wrecked 'Em, and crew from the 9th Air Force, the 98th Bomb Group, and the 344th Bomb Squadron. Rosie Wrecked 'Em, was flown by Lt. Herbert Arens on the mission to destroy the oil refineries at Ploesti, Romania, on the right wing of Col. John Kane in the lead ship, Hail Columbia. Lt. Arens had to abort and turn back to home base at Benghazi, Libya, because of mechanical problems. The copilot, Lt. Kittredge Hamlin - standing second from left. Pilot Capt. Herbert Arens is standing far left. Aircraft, 41-11803, flew on the wing of Col. Kane on the Ploesti raid but had to return to base because of mechanical problems. Copilot Kittredge Hamlin is standing - second from left. He left North Africa for the states on or about Aug 8, 1943 after 45 missions. This photo was taken prior to that date. Pilot Capt. Herbert Arens is standing far left.

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  • The B-24D Liberator, 41-11803, Rosie Wrecked 'Em, and crew in the 344th BS, the 98th BG, and the 9th AF. Lt. Herbert Arens and his copilot, Lt. Kitt Hamlin flew, Rosie Wrecked 'Em, on the Ploesti oil refinery mission, on the wing of Col. John Kane, but had to return to base (RTB) because of mechanical problems. 1 Aug 1943. Because my Father In Law, Copilot, Lt. Kittredge

    The B-24D Liberator, 41-11803, Rosie Wrecked 'Em, and crew in the 344th BS, the 98th BG, and the 9th AF. Lt. Herbert Arens and his copilot, Lt. Kitt Hamlin flew, Rosie Wrecked 'Em, on the Ploesti oil refinery mission, on the wing of Col. John Kane, but had to return to base (RTB) because of mechanical problems. 1 Aug 1943. Because my Father In Law, Copilot, Lt. Kittredge "Kitt" Hamlin, (standing second from left), left North Africa for the States, about, 8 Aug 1943, after 45 missions, this photo was taken prior to that date. I assume that the Pilot, Capt. Herbert Arens, is standing far left. - Kitt Hamlin passed away 26 Jan 1993. Contributor - Marc D. Flink

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The B-24D Liberator, 41-11803, Rosie Wrecked 'Em, was in the 9th Air Force, the 98th Bomb Group, the Pyramiders, and the 344th Bomb Squadron. The pilot, Lt. Herbert Arens, flew, Rosie Wrecked 'Em, on the Ploesti oil refinery mission, flying on the wing of his element leader, Col. John Kane, in Flight 1, but had to abort the mission and turn back with mechanical problems. Returned To Base (RTB). 1 Aug 43.

Service

Units

  • 9th Air Force

    9th Air Force

  • 98th Bomb Group

    98th Bomb Group

    Group
    The 98th trained for bombardment missions with B-24 Liberators during the first half of 1942. ...

  • 344th Bomb Squadron

    344th Bomb Squadron

    Squadron
    The 344th Bombing Squadron was first activated at MacDill Field, Florida as one of the original three squadrons assigned to the 98th Bombardment Group. The 344th soon moved to Barksdale Field, Louisiana, where it began to train as a Consolidated B-24...

People

  • Herbert Arens

    Military | First Lieutenant | B-24 Command Pilot | 98th Bomb Group
    2nd Lt. Herbert W. Arens was a B-24D command pilot in the 9th Air Force, the 98th Bomb Group, and the 344th Bomb Squadron. He flew the B-24D Liberator bomber, 41-11803, named, Rosie Wrecked 'Em, on the mission to destroy the oil refineries at Ploesti,...

  • Joe Ellison

    Military | Second Lieutenant | Navigator / Group Intelligence Officer | 98th Bomb Group
    Took part in Operation Tidal Wave, the raid on Ploesti on 1 August 1943, flying in B-24 Liberator 41-11803.

  • Joseph Fasano

    Military | Staff Sergeant | Tail Gunner | 98th Bomb Group
    Took part in Operation Tidal Wave, the raid on Ploesti on 1 August 1943, flying in B-24 Liberator 41-11803.

  • Kittredge Hamlin

    Military | Captain | B-24 Co-Pilot | 98th Bomb Group
    Lt. Kittredge "Kitt" Hamlin was assigned as CoPilot on the B-24D Liberator bomber, 41-11803, Rosie Wrecked 'Em, in the 344th BS, the 98th BG, and the 9th AF, "The Force For Freedom", in the MTO in North Africa. He flew on the Ploesti oil refinery...

  • Ancil Holman

    Military | Staff Sergeant | Gunner | 98th Bomb Group
    Took part in Operation Tidal Wave, the raid on Ploesti on 1 August 1943, flying in B-24 Liberator 41-11803. ...

  • Harry Kaminsky

    Military | Sergeant | Left Waist Gunner | 98th Bomb Group
    Took part in Operation Tidal Wave, the raid on Ploesti on 1 August 1943, flying in B-24 Liberator 41-11803.

  • Warren Kidder

    Military | Sergeant | Top Turret Gunner | 98th Bomb Group
    Took part in Operation Tidal Wave, the raid on Ploesti on 1 August 1943, flying in B-24 Liberator 41-11803.

  • Charles Lawson

    Military | Technical Sergeant | Right Waist Gunner | 98th Bomb Group
    Took part in Operation Tidal Wave, the raid on Ploesti on 1 August 1943, flying in B-24 Liberator 41-11803.

  • Martin Maloney

    Military | Sergeant | Radio Operator | 98th Bomb Group
    Took part in Operation Tidal Wave, the raid on Ploesti on 1 August 1943, flying in B-24 Liberator 41-11803.

  • Thomas Shryock

    Military | Second Lieutenant | Bombardier | 98th Bomb Group
    Took part in Operation Tidal Wave, the raid on Ploesti on 1 August 1943, flying in B-24 Liberator 41-11803.

Missions

  • Operation Tidal Wave

    1 August 1943
    Operation TIDAL WAVE. B-24D Liberators attack the oil refineries at Ploesti, Romania. The bombers flew low to avoid radar detection and dropped time delayed bombs. Out of the 177 B-24s that took part in the raid 167 managed to attack their targets. 57...

Events

Event Location Date
Survived Ploesti Ploiești, Romania 1 August 1943

Flew on 1st Aug 43 Ploesti oil refinery raid on the wing of Col. Kane, having to abort before the target because of mechanical problems.
Assigned Benghazi, Libya

344th BS, 98th BG, 9th AF.
Nicknames
Rosie Wrecked 'Em
Production block number
B-24D
Manufacturer
Consolidated
Markings and paint scheme/livery
Not yet known

Revisions

Date Contributor Update
04 October 2021 06:35:44 Kickapoo Changes to nicknames and description
Sources

The Great Ground-Air Battle Of 1 August 1943 - James Dugan & Carroll Stewart
Date Contributor Update
18 April 2015 17:25:04 Al_Skiff Created entry with serial number, aircraft type, production block number, manufacturer, nicknames, description, events, unit associations, mission associations and media associations
Sources

http://www.b24bestweb.com / http://www.freewebs.com

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