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B-17 Flying Fortress
AC # 42-31226 'The Saint & Ten Sinners' 613th BS, 401st BG
James Sharp crew. 401BG. Rear L-R: Dave Stephens - Jim Drain - Vincent Huss - Jim Sharp - Myles Busse - Unkn - Unkn - Unkn - Unkn Front L-R: Bill Thomas - Alf Tomkinson - John Sederis - Rodney 'Bob' Tobine - Unkn A/C is B-17 42-31226 'The Saint and Ten Sinners'.
Delivered Denver 4/10/43; Gr Island 16/10/43; Memphis 19/10/43; Assigned 613BS/401BG [IN-G] Deenethorpe 22/12/43; Missing in Action Berlin 29/4/44 with Don Butterfoss, Co-pilot: Bob Westfall, Navigator: Bernie Boyle, Bombardier: Bob Kerpen, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Alf Truszkowski, Radio Operator: Roger McCauley, Ball turret gunner: Everett Stanley, Waist gunner: John Reeves,Tail gunner: Bill Lee (9 Prisoner of War); Waist gunner: Bill Watkins (evaded capture); flak KOd #1 and #2, crashed Veldweg, two miles W of Beekbergen, Hol; Missing Air Crew Report 4345.
Group
The 401st Bomb Group flew B-17 Flying Fortresses from Deenethorpe, Northamptonshire, from November 1943 to June 1945. Starting their missions at that time meant the focus was very much on the coming invasion attempt of France planned for the following...
Squadron
Military | Flight Officer | Navigator | 401st Bomb Group
Shot down 29 April 1944 in B-17 #4231226. Prisoner of War (POW).
POW
Military | Second Lieutenant | Pilot | 401st Bomb Group
Shot down 29 April 1944 in B-17 #4231226. Prisoner of War (POW).
POW
Military | Major | Bombardier | 401st Bomb Group
Shot down 29 April 1944 in B-17 #4231226. Prisoner of War (POW).
POW
Military | Sergeant | Tail Gunner | 401st Bomb Group
Shot down 29 April 1944 in B-17 #4231226. Prisoner of War (POW).
POW
Military | Staff Sergeant | Radio Operator | 401st Bomb Group
Shot down 29 April 1944 in B-17 42-31226. Prisoner of War (POW).
POW
Military | Master Sergeant | Flight engineer / Top turret | 401st Bomb Group
Assigned to 613BS, 401BG, 8AF USAAF. James Sharp crew.
...
Military | Sergeant | Right Waist Gunner, Waist Gunner | 401st Bomb Group
Shot down 29 April 1944 in B-17 #4231226. Prisoner of War (POW).
POW
Military | First Lieutenant | Pilot | 401st Bomb Group
Assigned to 613BS, 401BG, 8AF USAAF. Jim Sharp crew.
Awards: DFC (OLC), AM (3OLC), WWII Victory, EAME.
Military | Sergeant | Ball Turret Gunner | 401st Bomb Group
Shot down 29 April 1944 in B-17 #4231226. Prisoner of War (POW).
POW
Military | Captain | Pilot | 401st Bomb Group
Assigned to 613BS, 401BG, 8AF USAAF. 24 x combat missions. "The Bonnie Donnie" flown by Capt Stelzer, after Frankfurt mission set down on her belly. Rains and snow had mired the ground on adjacent turf so that a glide landing would have been impossible...
22 March 1944
The German aviation industries at Oraneinburg and Basdorf were the intended primary target for this mission but dense cloud cover prevented the attack on these targets. The secondary target of Berlin, Germany and surrounding Targets of Opportunity (TOs...
24 March 1944
This mission is composed of two elements, one from 1st Air Division and the other from 2nd Air Division. A total of 436 hevay bombers are despatched. The primary target for 1st Air Division is the the ball bearing plants at Schweifurt, Germany. 2nd Air...
26 March 1944
9 V-Weapon sites in the Pas-de-Calaise, France area and 7 V-Weapon sites in the Cherbourg, France area are the targets of this mission. A combined force of 573 heavy bombers from all three Air Divisions are despatched. Mission Summary follows:
...
19 April 1944
29 April 1944
Military site : airfield
Deenethorpe was a base purpose-built for American heavy bombers, with the Class A regulation 2,000 and 1,400-yard runways. All the buildings on site,such as the accommodation and administrative blocks, were temporary. In December 1943, several local...
| Event | Location | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Failed to Return (FTR) | Germany | 29 April 1944 |
| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 10 September 2021 13:23:21 | acbernstein1 | Changes to nicknames, markings and mission associations |
| Sources | ||
http://401bg.org/Main/History/Aircraft/Details.aspx?ID=31226 |
||
| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 27 September 2014 18:40:37 | AAM | AAM ingest |
| Sources | ||
Dave Osborne, B-17 Fortress Master Log / MACR 4345 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database |
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