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B-17 Flying Fortress
All of these ships were part of the "Original 41". They were the first aircraft assigned to the 379th BG and flown overseas by the Group. Closest is 42-3113 FR-F "No Nose Art"; Then 42-29891 WA-N is "Dangerous Dan" - Next is 42-29893 WA-Q "El Diablo" shot down over Nantes, France 9/16/43 - Furthest away is 42-5828 WA-O; later she would be re-designated WA-D and named "Sweater Girl". WA is code for the 524th BS and FR- is code for the 525th BS. Assigned Air Combat Crews: 42-3113 - Noel R. Britten Crew 42-29891- William Jones Crew 42-29893 – Lester Brumley Crew 42-5828 – William Brownlow III Crew
1st Lt. John N. BeilStein, 379th Bomb Group, 8th Army Air Force, Bombardier on B-17F "El Diablo"
Crew of B-17F 42-29893 "El Diablo" in summer 1943. 1st Lt. John N. Beilstein - Bombardier, top row - 2nd from right
Floyd H. Jamerson
John Semach
Delivered Cheyenne 4/3/43; Sioux City 16/3/43; Kearney 8/4/43; Dow Fd 22/4/43; Assigned 524BS/379BG [WA-Q] Kimbolton 24/4/43; Missing in Action Nantes 16/9/43 with Floyd H. Jamerson - Pilot, and Radio Operator -John F. Paznar both Killed in Action; Earl H. Guyette - Co-pilot, Joseph F. Burkowski - navigator, Alvin M. Rabun -Flight engineer/top turret gunner, Charles T. Gray - ball-turret gunner, James P. Reid - waist gunner, and Howard E. Moody - waist gunner were all captured; John N. Beilstein - bombardier, and John Semach - tail gunner evaded and escaped and returned to duty. Plane was shot down by Fw-190 20mm cannon that hit cockpit, killing pilot and severely wounding Paznar - Paznar bailed out but died in German custody; German pilot was Josef Lorey. B-17 crashed near La Nouette, 5km NW of Ercé-en-Lamée, Ille-et-Vilaine Department, France. Missing Air Crew Report - MACR 1346.
Group
The 379th Bomb Group (H) (heavy), based at Kimbolton, flew more sorties than any other Bomb Group in the Eighth Air Force and dropped a greater bomb tonnage than any other Group. The B-17 Flying Fortress Group was awarded two Distinguished Unit...
Squadron
Military | First Lieutenant | Bombardier | 379th Bomb Group
Shot down 16 September 1943 in B-17 #42-29893. Evaded.
Military | First Lieutenant | Bombardier | 379th Bomb Group
Assigned to 524BS, 379BG, 8AF USAAF. 30 x combat missions. Failed to Return (FTR) mission to Wernigeerode in B-17 42-31028; Hit by flak, exploded in mid-air and crashed near Munster, Germany on 22-Feb-44, Prisoner of War (POW). MACR 2872.
...
Military | First Lieutenant | Pilot | 379th Bomb Group
Silver Star
Military | Second Lieutenant | Navigator | 379th Bomb Group
Shot down 16 September 1943 in B-17 #42-29893. Prisoner of War (POW).
Military | Technical Sergeant | Ball Turret Gunner | 379th Bomb Group
Shot down 16 September 1943 in B-17 #42-29893. Prisoner of War (POW).
POW
Military | Second Lieutenant | Co-Pilot | 379th Bomb Group
Shot down 16 September 1943 in B-17 #42-29893. Prisoner of War (POW).
POW
Military | Second Lieutenant | Pilot | 379th Bomb Group
Shot down 16 September 1943 in B-17 #42-29893. Killed in Action (KIA).
Military | Staff Sergeant | Right Waist Gunner, Waist Gunner | 379th Bomb Group
Shot down 16 September 1943 in B-17 #42-29893. Prisoner of War (POW).
POW
Military | Technical Sergeant | Radio Operator | 379th Bomb Group
Shot down 16 September 1943 in B-17 #42-29893. Killed in Action (KIA). Earlier on May 10, 1943, took off from Gander in B-17 #42-3143 en route to Prestwick, Scotland, but landed at Bunduran, Ireland.
Purple Heart, AM w/ 3 Oak Leaf Cluster
Military | Staff Sergeant | Top Turret Gunner | 379th Bomb Group
20 MM burst into the cockpit and the A/C went down out of control on 16 Sep 1943 on the Nantes, France ball bearings mission.
16 September 1943
This mission is composed of two elements: Bomb Groups from 1st Bomb Division and Bomb groups from 3rd Bomb Division. The first element is a combined force of 147 B-17s from: 91BG (18); 303BG (19); 305BG (16); 351BG (19); 379BG (19); 381BG (20); and...
Military site : airfield
Planned for RAF use, Kimbolton airfield was built by W and C French Ltd. in 1941. The airfield was increased in size to accommodate a full US heavy Bomb Group, and the first such unit to us it was the 91st Bomb Group, who arrived in September 1942....
| Event | Location | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Failed to Return (FTR) | France | 16 September 1943 |
| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 11 March 2019 20:07:05 | Nimitz41 | Changes to description |
| Sources | ||
Updated information from MAC #1346 and private documents of John N. Beilstein |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 11 March 2019 19:54:14 | Nimitz41 | Changes to nicknames |
| Sources | ||
Information from Bombardier John N. Beilstein's personal service records |
||
| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 04 October 2018 12:15:34 | ED-BB | Changes to description and mission associations |
| Sources | ||
Connection with mission number |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 27 September 2014 18:40:24 | AAM | AAM ingest |
| Sources | ||
Dave Osborne, B-17 Fortress Master Log / MACR 1346 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database |
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