B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Denver 17/3/43; Pueblo 8/4/43; Smoky Hill 7/5/43; Dow Fd 21/5/43; Assigned 534BS/381BG [GD-J] Ridgewell 24/5/43 with Alan Tucker, Earl Muchway, Dave Harris, Dick Rylands, Chas Raglin, Bill Savage, Jim Klingenberger, John Willdredge, Grover Bonsall, Dan Vina; Missing in Action Anklam 9/10/43 with Jim Loftin, Co-pilot: Chester Cornell, Navigator: Hyman Beckerman, Bombardier: Stan Czarny, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Leon Kwoka, Ball turret gunner: Gene Cyrek, Waist gunner: Joe Nader, Waist gunner: Allen Huhn (8 Prisoner of War), Radio Operator: Chas Silverberg,Tail gunner: Allen Alford (2 Killed in Action); enemy aircraft, crashed Schonberg, Ger. Missing Air Crew Report 886. BATTLIN' BOMBSPRAYER.
Group
The 381st Bomb Group flew B-17 Flying Fortresses from Ridgewell, Essex between June 1943 and April 1945. The Group was awarded two Distinguished Unit Citations, the first for bombing shipyards at Bremen, whilst under heavy attack, on 8 October 1943 and...
Squadron
Military | Staff Sergeant | Tail Gunner | 381st Bomb Group
Tail gunner, Loftin crew. 381st BG, 534th BS. Shot down 9 October 1943 in B-17 #42-29958 'Battlin' Bombsprayer'. Mission #37 to the Arado Aircraft components at Anklam, Germany. MACR 886. Killed in Action (KIA). Buried in the Ardennes AMC.
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Military | Second Lieutenant | Navigator | 381st Bomb Group
Navigator, Loftin crew. 381st BG, 534th BS, 8th AF. Shot down 9 October 1943 in B-17 #42-29958 'Battlin' Bombsprayer'. Mission #37 to the Arado Aircraft components at Anklam, Germany. MACR 886. Prisoner of War at Stalag Luft III and Stalag XIIID.
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Military | Second Lieutenant | Co-Pilot ; Pilot | 381st Bomb Group
Co-pilot, Loftin crew. 381st BG, 534th BS, 8th AF. Shot down 9 October 1943 in B-17 42-29958 'Battlin Bombsprayer'. Mission #37 to the Arado Aircraft components at Anklam, Germany. MACR 886. Prisoner of War at Stalag Luft III and Stalag XIIID.
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Military | Staff Sergeant | Right Waist Gunner, Left Waist Gunner | 381st Bomb Group
LWG, Larson crew. Original member of the Tucker crew. Member of the Hagarty crew. 381st BG, 534th BS, 8th AF. Shot down 11 January 1944 in B-17 #42-3118 'The Green Hornet'. Mission #59 to the aircraft factories at Oschersleben, Germany. Struck by an...
Military | Staff Sergeant | Ball Turret Gunner | 381st Bomb Group
BTG, Loftin crew. 381st BG, 534th BS, 8th AF. Shot down 9 October 1943 in B-17 #42-29958 'Battlin' Bombsprayer'. Mission #37 to the Arado Aircraft components at Anklam, Germany. MACR 886. Prisoner of War at Stalag Luft IV.
Brooklyn, NY
POW
Military | Second Lieutenant | Bombardier | 381st Bomb Group
Bombardier, Loftin crew. 381st BG, 534th BS, 8th AF. Shot down 9 October 1943 in B-17 #42-29958 'Battlin' Bombsprayer'. Mission #37 to the Arado Aircraft components at Anklam, Germany. MACR 886. Prisoner of War at Stalag Luft III and Stalag XIIID.
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Military | Staff Sergeant | Right Waist Gunner | 381st Bomb Group
RWG, Loftin crew. 381st BG, 534th BS, 8th AF. Shot down 9 October 1943 in B-17 #42-29958 'Battlin' Bombsprayer'. Mission #37 to the Arado Aircraft components at Anklam, Germany. MACR 886. Prisoner of War at Stalag XVIIB.
Minnesota
Military | Technical Sergeant | Top Turret Gunner; Flight Engineer | 381st Bomb Group
ETTG, Loftin crew. 381st BG, 534th BS, 8th AF. Shot down 9 October 1943 in B-17 #42-29958 'Battlin' Bombsprayer'. Mission #37 to the Arado Aircraft components at Anklam, Germany. MACR 886. Prisoner of War at Stalag Luft III and Stalag XIIID.
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Military | First Lieutenant | Pilot | 381st Bomb Group
Pilot, Loftin crew. 381st BG, 534th BS, 8th AF. Shot down 9 October 1943 in B-17 #42-29958 'Battlin Bombsprayer'. Mission #37 to the Arado Aircraft Components at Anklam, Germany. MACR 886. Prisoner of War at Stalag Luft III and Stalag XIIID.
Texas
Military | Technical Sergeant | Left Waist Gunner | 381st Bomb Group
LWG, Loftin crew. 381st BG. 534th BS, 8th AF. Shot down 9 October 1943 in B-17 #42-29958 'Battlin' Bombsprayer'. Mission #37 to the Arado Aircraft components at Anklam, Germany. MACR 886. Prisoner of War at Stalag Luft III and Stalag XIIID.
...
3 September 1943
German airfields in France and the Caudron-Renault works at Paris are the targets for this mission. The mission is composed of three elements. The first element is a combined force of 168 B-17s from: 91BG (14); 351BG (19); 381BG (22); 92BG (19); 305BG ...
6 September 1943
This mission was planned as massive attack of 338 B-17s on the industrial areas of Stuttgart, Germany and would be supported by a formation of 69 B-24s flying a diversion. This would be the first action from the UK for the B-24 Groups that had recently...
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...
2 October 1943
This mission is composed of three elements, two or which are directed at the industrial areas of Emden, Germany and the other at the German airfield at Woensdrecht, Holland. The first element is a formation of 163 B-17s from 1st Bomb Division which...
9 October 1943
This mission is composed of 6 elements. The first element is a combined force of 115 B-17s from: 303BG (20); 379BG (20); 384BG (21); 351BG (21); 91BG 16; and 381BG (16) dispatched to bomb the industrial areas of Anklam, Germany. 106 aircraft are...
Military site : airfield
Built during 1941-42 as an RAF bomber station, Ridgewell operated as a satellite to RAF Stradishall until May 1943. It had three concrete runways, initially 36 pan hardstandings, and two dispersed T2 hangars. Taken over by the Eighth Air Force in June...
| Event | Location | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Failed to Return (FTR) | Denmark | 9 October 1943 |
| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 02 December 2017 05:45:44 | ARowe95 | Changes to person associations |
| Sources | ||
ARowe95 |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 02 December 2017 04:14:49 | ARowe95 | Changes to markings, description and mission associations |
| Sources | ||
ARowe95 |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 27 September 2014 18:40:25 | AAM | AAM ingest |
| Sources | ||
Dave Osborne, B-17 Fortress Master Log / MACR 886 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database |
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