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42-29915

B-17 Flying Fortress

Delivered Cheyenne 8/3/43; Gore 31/3/43; Bangor 14/4/43; Assigned 524BS/379BG [WA-U] Kimbolton 22/4/43; Missing in Action Wilhelmshafen 11/6/43 with Ray Zucker, Co-pilot: Abram Birch, Navigator: Harry Anderson, Bombardier: Tony Amaya, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Julius Lee, Radio Operator: Russell Good, Ball turret gunner: John Sneed, Waist gunner: Paul Hammond*, Waist gunner: Jim Keeler*,Tail gunner: Mike Froehlioch (10 Killed in Action); enemy aircraft, crashed North Sea; (*bodies washed up a month later). Missing Air Crew Report 1760. THUNDER GOD.

Service

Units

  • 379th Bomb Group

    379th Bomb Group

    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...

  • 524th Bomb Squadron

    524th Bomb Squadron

    Squadron

People

  • Anthony Amaya

    Military | Second Lieutenant | Bombardier | 379th Bomb Group
    Assigned to 524BS, 379BG, 8AF USAAF. 2 x combat missions. Failed to Return (FTR) Bremen / Wilhelmshaven in B-17 42-29915 11-Jun-43; Shot down, plane crashed into North Sea. Killed in Action (KIA). MACR 1760 Awards: AM, PH.

  • Harry Anderson

    Military | Second Lieutenant | Navigator | 379th Bomb Group
    Assigned to 524BS, 379BG, 8AF USAAF. 2 x combat missions. Failed to Return (FTR) Bremen / Wilhelmshaven in B-17 42-29915 11-Jun-43; Shot down, plane crashed into North Sea. Killed in Action (KIA). MACR 1760 Awards: AM, PH.

  • Abram Birch

    Military | Second Lieutenant | Co-Pilot | 379th Bomb Group
    Assigned to 524BS, 379BG, 8AF USAAF. 2 x combat missions. Failed to Return (FTR) Bremen / Wilhelmshaven in B-17 42-29915 11-Jun-43; Shot down, plane crashed into North Sea. Killed in Action (KIA). MACR 1760 Awards: PH.

  • Michael Froehlich

    Military | Staff Sergeant | Tail Gunner | 379th Bomb Group
    Assigned to 524BS, 379BG, 8AF USAAF. 1 x combat missions. Failed to Return (FTR) Bremen / Wilhelmshaven in B-17 42-29915 11-Jun-43; Shot down, plane crashed into North Sea. Killed in Action (KIA). MACR 1760 Awards: PH.

  • Russell Good

    Military | Technical Sergeant | Radio Operator Gunner | 379th Bomb Group
    Assigned to 524BS, 379BG, 8AF USAAF. 2 x combat missions. Failed to Return (FTR) Bremen / Wilhelmshaven in B-17 42-29915 11-Jun-43; Shot down, plane crashed into North Sea. Killed in Action (KIA). MACR 1760 Awards: AM, PH.

  • Paul Hammond

    Military | Sergeant | Waist Gunner | 379th Bomb Group
    Assigned to 524BS, 379BG, 8AF USAAF. 2 x combat missions. Failed to Return (FTR) Bremen / Wilhelmshaven in B-17 42-29915 11-Jun-43; Shot down, plane crashed into North Sea. Killed in Action (KIA). MACR 1760 ...

  • James Keeler

    Military | Staff Sergeant | Waist Gunner | 379th Bomb Group
    Assigned to 524BS, 379BG, 8AF USAAF. 2 x combat missions. Failed to Return (FTR) Wilhelmshaven 11-Jun-43 in B-17 42-29915; Shot down, plane crashed into North Sea. Killed in Action (KIA). MACR 1760 Awards: PH.

  • Julius Lee

    Military | Technical Sergeant | Top Turret Gunner | 379th Bomb Group
    Assigned to 524BS, 379BG, 8AF USAAF. 2 x combat missions. Failed to Return (FTR) Wilhelmshaven 11-Jun-43 in B-17 42-29915; Shot down, plane crashed into North Sea. Killed in Action (KIA). MACR 1760 Awards: AM, PH.

  • John Sneed

    Military | Staff Sergeant | Ball Turret Gunner | 379th Bomb Group
    Assigned to 524BS, 379BG, 8AF USAAF. 2 x combat missions. Failed to Return (FTR) Wilhelmshaven 11-Jun-43 in B-17 42-29915; Shot down, plane crashed into North Sea. Killed in Action (KIA). MACR 1760 Awards: PH

  • Raymond Zucker

    Military | First Lieutenant | Pilot | 379th Bomb Group
    Assigned to 524BS, 379BG, 8AF USAAF. 2 x combat missions. Failed to Return (FTR) Wilhelmshaven 11-Jun-43 in B-17 42-29915; Shot down, plane crashed into North Sea. Killed in Action (KIA). MACR 1760 Awards: AM, PH

Missions

  • VIII Bomber Command 61

    29 May 1943
    Three primary targets are selected for this mission. The U-Boat pens at St. Nazaire, France are selected as the target for a force of 169 B-17s despatched from: 91BG (23); 92BG (22), 303BG (30); 305BG (25) 306BG (24); 351BG (21) and 379BG (24). This is...

  • VIII Bomber Command 62

    11 June 1943
    The harbour facilities, port areas and U-Boat pens at Wilhelmshaven and Cuxhaven, Germany are the primary targets for this mission. This is the largest number of heavy bombers yet despatched on a single mission - 252. This is the first mission flown...

Places

  • Kimbolton

    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....

Events

Event Location Date
Manufactured Long Beach, CA 1943

Built at Boeing.
Delivered Cheyenne AAF, WY 8 March 1943

Delivered Cheyenne AAF.
Assigned Kimbolton, UK 22 April 1943

Assigned 524BS, 379BG, 8AF USAAF.
Crashed North Sea 11 June 1943

Failed to Return (FTR) Wilhelmshaven 11-Jun-43; downed by enemy aircraft, crashed North Sea off Emden, Germany 10 x KIA MACR 1760
Nicknames
'Thunder God'
Production block number
B-17F-75-BO
Manufacturer
Boeing
Markings and paint scheme/livery

Coded WA-U.

Revisions

Date Contributor Update
24 July 2019 19:53:34 Al_Skiff Changes to production block number, nicknames, markings, events, unit associations and mission associations
Sources

https://www.fold3.com/image/28714300
https://b17flyingfortress.de/en/b17/42-29915-thunder-god/
https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/51800
379th Bombardment Group Anthology, Volume 2: November 1942-July 1945
Date Contributor Update
27 September 2014 18:40:24 AAM AAM ingest
Sources

Dave Osborne, B-17 Fortress Master Log / MACR 1760 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database

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