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Page 28 of the 385th Bomb Group unit history.
Many of the 8th Air Force Groups produced an unofficial unit history in the months after the war ended in Europe but before they were redeployed out of the ETO (European Theater of Operations).
Resembling a college yearbook, unit histories were an unofficial – and often tongue-in-cheek – record of the unit’s time based in the UK. They include photo montages showing different aspects of base life. Often the servicemen in the photos are unnamed. The American Air Museum hopes that by adding unit histories to the website as individual pages, the men in the photos will be identified and associated to their person entries. Many included lists of personnel and a mailing address, providing a means for servicemen to keep in contact with each other after the war. These lists are now incredibly useful records of where US airmen in England in 1945 called their home.
Delivered Dallas 4/8/43; Denver 16/8/43; Dalhart 17/8/43; Assigned 551BS/385BG [HR-R] Gt Ashfield 8/9/43; Missing in Action Regensburg 25/2/44 with Delmer Gray, Co-pilot: Jim Friend, Navigator: George Wisnick, Bombardier: Sgt John Breitenbachtogg, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: John Yurco, Ball turret gunner: Henry Tidd, Tail gunner: Lew Tormohlen (7 Killed in Action); Radio Operator: Woodrow Kuhn, Waist gunner: Adam Maurer, Waist gunner: Tom Roberts (3 Prisoner of War); flak, exploded mid-air over Regensburg, Ger. Missing Air Crew Report 2776. FOOLISH VIRGIN aka THE DORSAL QUEEN.
Service
Units
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Group
The 385th Bomb Group, who took the nickname "Van's Valiants" after their first Commanding Officer Col. Elliot Vandevanter, flew B-17s from Great Ashfield, Suffolk. The Group led the famous attack on the Focke-Wolfe aircraft factory at Marienburg on 9...
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People
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Military | Staff Sergeant | Bombardier, Bombardier; Togglier | 385th Bomb Group
Damaged by fighters and shot down by flak over the target of Regensburg and exploded in mid-air on 25 Feb 1944 in B-17F #42-30822 'The Dorsal Queen'. Killed in Action (KIA).
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Military | Second Lieutenant | Co-Pilot | 385th Bomb Group
Damaged by fighters and shot down by flak over the target of Regensburg and exploded in mid-air on 25 Feb 1944 in B-17F 42-30822 'The Dorsal Queen'. Killed in Action (KIA).
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Military | Lieutenant | Pilot | 385th Bomb Group
Damaged by fighters and shot down by flak over the target of Regensburg and exploded in mid-air on 25 Feb 1944 in B-17F #42-30822 'The Dorsal Queen'. Killed in Action (KIA).
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Military | Technical Sergeant | Radio Operator | 385th Bomb Group
Damaged by fighters and shot down by flak over the target of Regensburg and exploded in mid-air on 25 Feb 1944 in B-17F #42-30822 'The Dorsal Queen'. Prisoner of War (POW).
POW
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Military | Staff Sergeant | Left Waist Gunner, Waist Gunner | 385th Bomb Group
Damaged by fighters and shot down by flak over the target of Regensburg and exploded in mid-air on 25 Feb 1944 in B-17F #42-30822 'The Dorsal Queen'. Prisoner of War (POW).
POW
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Military | Staff Sergeant | Right Waist Gunner, Waist Gunner | 385th Bomb Group
Damaged by fighters and shot down by flak over the target of Regensburg and exploded in mid-air on 25 Feb 1944 in B-17F #42-30822 'The Dorsal Queen'. Prisoner of War (POW).
POW
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Military | Staff Sergeant | Ball Turret Gunner | 385th Bomb Group
Damaged by fighters and shot down by flak over the target of Regensburg and exploded in mid-air on 25 Feb 1944 in B-17F #42-30822 'The Dorsal Queen'. Killed in Action (KIA).
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Military | Sergeant | Tail Gunner | 385th Bomb Group
Damaged by fighters and shot down by flak over the target of Regensburg and exploded in mid-air on 25 Feb 1944 in B-17F 42-30822 'The Dorsal Queen'. Killed in Action (KIA).
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Military | Second Lieutenant | Navigator | 385th Bomb Group
Damaged by fighters and shot down by flak over the target of Regensburg and exploded in mid-air on 25 Feb 1944 in B-17F #42-30822 'The Dorsal Queen'. Killed in Action (KIA).
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Military | Technical Sergeant | Top Turret Gunner | 385th Bomb Group
Damaged by fighters and shot down by flak over the target of Regensburg and exploded in mid-air on 25 Feb 1944 in B-17F #42-30822 'The Dorsal Queen'. Killed in Action (KIA).
Places
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Military site : airfield
The airfield was built in 1942 by John Laing & Son Ltd. 108,000 tons of concrete was used in its construction, creating a Class 'A' airfield suitable for heavy bombers. The 385th Bomb Group took up residence in the summer of 1943, and remained at the...
Events
Event |
Location |
Date |
Failed to Return (FTR) |
Germany |
25 February 1944 |