B-17 Flying Fortress
41-24553 was assigned to Syracuse 16-Sep-42;Presque Isle 19-Oct-42; Grafton Underwood 25-Oct-42; Assigned 422nd BS305th BG. CHERRY
Missing in Action, 6-Dec-42 on a mission to bomb the Atclier d'Hellemmes locomotive factory at Lille, France. Shot down by Uffz Schnell (3/JG26), crashed near Lille, France. First group loss. 9KIA 1POW No MACR issued.
P 2Lt William A. Prentice (KIA); CP 2Lt Harold W. Shroka (KIA)
N 2Lt Harry O. Williams (KIA); B 2Lt Henry J Webber (POW)
E/TTG MSgt Stewart R. Saunders (KIA); RO SSgt Thomas G Perry (KIA)
BTG SSgt Joseph W. Gleason (KIA); WG SSgt Samuel Q. Jones (KIA)
WG SSgt Edward H. Blount (KIA); TG SSgt Leahmon E. Bryant (KIA)
Group
The 305th Bombardment Group (Heavy), nicknamed "Can Do" was activated 1-March-1942 at Salt Lake City Air Base, Utah which was their primary training base until 11-Jun-1942 when they relocated to Geiger Field, Washington until 29-Jun-1942, then on to...
Squadron
Military | Staff Sergeant | Waist Gunner | 305th Bomb Group Can Do
Shot down 6 December 1942 in B-17 41-24553 'Cherry' while serving as Waist Gunner. Killed in Action (KIA).
Military | Staff Sergeant | Tail Gunner | 305th Bomb Group Can Do
Shot down 6 December 1942 in B-17 4124553 'Cherry' while serving as Tail Gunner. Killed in Action (KIA).
Military | Staff Sergeant | Ball Turret Gunner | 305th Bomb Group Can Do
Shot down 6 December 1942 in B-17 41-24553 'Cherry' while serving as Ball Turret Gunner. Killed in Action (KIA).
Military | Staff Sergeant | Waist Gunner | 305th Bomb Group Can Do
Shot down 6 December 1942 in B-17 41-24553 'Cherry' while serving as Waist Gunner. Killed in Action (KIA).
Military | Staff Sergeant | Radio Operator Gunner | 305th Bomb Group Can Do
Shot down 6 December 1942 in B-17 41-24553 'Cherry' while serving as Radio Operator. Killed in Action (KIA).
Military | Lieutenant | Pilot | 305th Bomb Group Can Do
Shot down 6 December 1942 in B-17 41-24553 'Cherry' while serving as Pilot. Killed in Action (KIA).
Military | Master Sergeant | Top Turret Gunner | 305th Bomb Group Can Do
Shot down 6 December 1942 in B-17 41-24553 'Cherry' while serving as Engineer/Top Turret Gunner. Killed in Action (KIA).
Military | Second Lieutenant | Co-Pilot | 305th Bomb Group Can Do
Shot down 6-Dec-1942 in B-17F 41-24453 'Cherry' while serving as Co-Pilot. Killed in Action (KIA)
Military | Second Lieutenant | Bombardier | 305th Bomb Group Can Do
Prisoner of War (POW). Shot down 6 December 1942 in B-17 41-24553 'Cherry' while serving as Navigator. Returned to the United States after the end of hostilities.
Military | Second Lieutenant | Navigator | 305th Bomb Group Can Do
Shot down 6 December 1942 in B-17 41-24553 'Cherry' while serving as Navigator. Died of Wounds (DOW). Williams died on 11-Dec-1942 and was buried with the rest of the crew.
6 December 1942
The German airfield of Drucat at Abbeville, France is the primary target for 19 B-24s despatched from 44th Bomb Group but are recalled. One squadron of 6 does not hear the recall and proceeds to the target, 1 B-24 MIA.
...
Military site : airfield
Chelveston was adapted and expanded in preparation for the arrival of American forces. Rather than heavy bombers, the first aircraft to fly from its runways were C-47 Skytrains that were flown by the 60th Troop Carrier Group in July 1942. The first...
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 : airfield
| Event | Location | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Failed to Return (FTR) | Lille, France | 6 December 1942 |
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No MACR was issued for this loss. However, it is known that it was shot down by enemy aircraft and crashed near Lille, France. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 01 March 2021 12:33:24 | phil marchese | Changes to description |
| Sources | ||
Restored squadron BG to synopsis which had been deleted when ingest was over-written. Other minor changes to restore format. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 11 January 2020 21:58:48 | jmoore43 | Changes to unit associations |
| Sources | ||
Added a connection to the 8th AF. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 03 January 2020 20:24:48 | jmoore43 | Changes to description |
| Sources | ||
Corrected the spelling of the last name of "2Lt Harold W. Shroka" in the description. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 03 December 2014 19:03:32 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to description and events |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 3-Dec-2014. Edited description for consistency, formatted crew information, all changes per "Losses of the 8th & 9th Air Forces" Stan Bishop & JohnA. Hey MBE. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 08 November 2014 18:45:18 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to production block number, manufacturer, nicknames, description, events, unit associations, place associations and mission associations |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 8-Nov-2014. "Losses of the 8th & 9th Air Forces" Stan Bishop & John A. Hey. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 27 September 2014 18:40:03 | AAM | AAM ingest |
| Sources | ||
Dave Osborne, B-17 Fortress Master Log |
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