B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 12/2/43; Walker 26/2/43; Salina 10/3/43; Mitchell 8/4/43; Assigned 339BS/96BG [QJ- ] Grafton Underwood 20/4/43; Missing in Action Kiel 13/6/43 with Bill McKell, Co-pilot: Chas Sweeney, Navigator: Stewart Bachtelle, Bombardier: Alf Anderagg, Radio Operator: Marlowe Smithson (5 Prisoner of War); Flight engineer/top turret gunner: George Treece, Ball turret gunner: Roy Crozier, Waist gunner: Ben Green, Waist gunner: Lloyd Fisher, Tail gunner: Frank Waterman - body recovered 14/8/43 (5 Killed in Action); shot down by enemy aircraft crashed Baltic Sea between Pellworm and Hallikoog, Ger. Missing Air Crew Report 16142 (15829?) . BIG CHIEF II.
Group
Activated 15 June 1942 at MacDill Field, Florida. Initial organization and training at Pendleton Field, Oregon on 29 June 1942. Primary flight training at Davis-Monthan Field in Arizona from 28 Aug. 42 to 31 Oct. 42; then at Biggs Field, El Paso, Texas...
Group
The 96th Bomb Group flew B-17 Flying Fortresses to targets across occupied Europe from May 1943 to April 1945.
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Squadron
Military | First Lieutenant | Bombardier | 96th Bomb Group
Alfred F. Anderegg, B-17 Bombardier, USAAF, Eighth Air Force, 96th Bomb Group (U.K.), ex-POW, Stalag Luft III (100 miles SE of Berlin. Barracks 128, South Compound). The North Compound of Stalag Luft III was where The Great Escape took place.
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Military | First Lieutenant | Navigator | 96th Bomb Group
Shot down 13 June 1943 in B-17 #42-29756, Prisoner of War (POW).
POW
Military | Staff Sergeant | Ball Turret Gunner | 96th Bomb Group
Shot down 13 June 1943 in B-17 #42-29756, Killed in Action (KIA).
Military | Staff Sergeant | Waist Gunner | 96th Bomb Group
Shot down 13 June 1943 in B-17 #42-29756, Killed in Action (KIA).
Military | Staff Sergeant | Waist Gunner | 96th Bomb Group
Shot down 13 June 1943 in B-17 #42-29756, Killed in Action (KIA).
Military | Lieutenant Colonel | Pilot | 306th Bomb Group The Reich Wreckers
Flew 8 missions with the 306th BG until July 1942. Besides being a pilot in the 306th, he was the Assistant Supply Officer. Then became a first pilot in the 96th BG. Shot down 13 June 1943 in B-17 #42-29756. Prisoner of War (POW) at Stalag 7A Moosburg...
Military | Technical Sergeant | Radio Operator | 96th Bomb Group
Shot down 13 June 1943 in B-17 #42-29756, Prisoner of War (POW).
POW
Military | Second Lieutenant | Co-Pilot | 96th Bomb Group
Lt. Charles Sweeney was my Fathers Cousin (Lt. John W. Smith - 466th. Bomb Group). They grew up together and were like Brothers. Before his passing Charles authored a short autobiography. I have condensed his WW2 Service / POW story in a Blog.
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Military | Technical Sergeant | Top Turret Gunner | 96th Bomb Group
Shot down 13 June 1943 in B-17 #42-29756, Killed in Action (KIA).
Military | Staff Sergeant | Tail Gunner | 96th Bomb Group
Shot down 13 June 1943 in B-17 #42-29756, Killed in Action (KIA).
13 June 1943
German naval facilities and port areas at Bremen, Germany and Kiel, Germany are the primary targets for this mission. A formation of 151 B-17s despatched from: 91BG (21); 92BG (17); 303BG (27); 305BG (24); 306BG (28); 351BG (21); and 379BG (13) are to...
Military site : airfield
Grafton Underwood was built in 1941 by George Wimpey and Co. Ltd. It was the first airfield in England to receive an Eighth Air Force flying unit, when in May 1942 personnel of the 15th Bomb Squadron took up residence. As a satellite airfield for...
Military site : non-airfield
Military site : airfield
Intended to be an RAF bomber base, construction of Snetterton Heath started in Autumn 1942 but continued until mid-1943, because it was extended after allocation as an Eighth Air Force bomber base. It had eventually three concrete runways, 50...
| Event | Location | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Failed to Return (FTR) | Europe | 13 June 1943 |
| Failed to Return (FTR) | Germany | 13 June 1943 |
| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 15 July 2020 03:26:20 | jmoore43 | Changes to description |
| Sources | ||
Added a space before the words "Tail gunner" in the A/C “Description” to aid clarity. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 29 May 2020 21:48:09 | kstrykerAK | Changes to markings, unit associations, place associations and mission associations |
| Sources | ||
Snetterton Falcons II: The 96th Bomb Group in World War II by Robert E Doherty & Geoffrey D Ward. Second Edition with Errata and Supplemental Information. Taylor Publishing. 1996. pages 28, 31, 293 |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 27 September 2014 18:40:23 | AAM | AAM ingest |
| Sources | ||
Dave Osborne, B-17 Fortress Master Log / MACR 15829 / MACR 16142 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database |
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