8th Air Force
Eighth Air Force Bomber Command became the Eighth Air Force on February 1944, it oversaw bombardment of strategic targets in Europe until 1945.
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42-31511
B-17 Flying Fortress
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The first crew of the 401st Bomb Group to return to the home base in England after a raid on Berlin, Germany, pose beside their plane - the Boeing B-17 'Fool's Luck'. They are, (Left To Right) Back Row: F/Sgt. Jesse H. Lehr, Radio Operator, S/Sgt. Pete D. Henderson waist gunner, 1Lt Donald M Anderson Bombardier, Capt Jere Maupin co-pilot, Capt James J Goodman pilot, 1Lt Robert J Ramsey tail gunner. Front Row: T/Sgt John O Farmer ball turret gunner, S/Sgt Burton A Markle waist gunner, T/Sgt Foster E Dewees top turret gunner and 2Lt Frank P Fraoli navigator. 6th March 1944.
Delivered Denver 16/11/43; Kearney 3/12/43; Presque Is 9/12/43; Assigned 612BS/401BG [SC-D] Deenethorpe 1/1/44; Missing in Action Evere A/fd 10/4/44 with Gaston Fox, Co-pilot: Francis Hoad, Navigator: Darrel Wilson, Bombardier: Leon Mendelson, Ball turret gunner: Don Van Booven, Waist gunner: Chas Sierra (6 Prisoner of War); Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Allen Brown, Radio Operator: Duane Brandt, Waist gunner: Joe Gallas, Tail gunner: Cecil Estess (4 Killed in Action); enemy aircraft, ditched Channel, three miles W of Calais, Fr; Missing Air Crew Report 3939. FOOLS LUCK III.
Service
Units
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401st Bomb Group
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... -
612th Bomb Squadron
Squadron
People
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Donald Anderson
Military | First Lieutenant | Navigator; Bombardier | 401st Bomb Group
DFC/ AM w/ 5 Oak Leaf Cluster/ Unit Citation w/ Oak Leaf Cluster 1 Damaged -
Clifford Barker
Military | Sergeant (Technician Fourth Grade) | Left Waist Gunner | 401st Bomb Group
Barker, a native of Yorktown, Ind., was a burly 6-foot-2 inch forward on the 1948 Kentucky team that finished the season with a 36-3 record, the national title and the nickname of the Fabulous Five. The other starters were Wallace (Wah Wah) Jones at... -
Duane Brandt
Military | Technical Sergeant | Radio Operator / Gunner | 401st Bomb Group
Assigned to 612BS, 401BG, 8AF USAAF. 56 x combat missions. Gaston Fox crew. Failed to Return (FTR) Evere A/D in B-17 42-31511 'Fool's Luck III'; Shot down, ditched in Channel, 3 miles W of Calais 10-Apr-44. Killed in Action (KIA). MACR 3939 ... -
Allen Brown
Military | Technical Sergeant | Top Turret Gunner | 401st Bomb Group
Assigned to 612BS, 401BG, 8AF USAAF. Gaston Fox crew. Shot down 10-Apr-44 in B-17 42-31511 'Fool's Luck III'. Killed in Action (KIA). MACR 3939 Awards: AM (2OLC), PH. -
William Chapman
Military | Staff Sergeant (Technician Third Grade) | Right Waist Gunner | 401st Bomb Group
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Harold Cyr
Military | Sergeant (Technician Fourth Grade) | Tail Gunner | 401st Bomb Group
Shot down during bombing mission over Brunswick, Germany 30 Jan 1944 in B-17G #42-37856 'Fancy Nancy III. ' Prisoner of War (POW). POW -
Foster Dewees
Military | Technical Sergeant | Radio operator | 401st Bomb Group
Assigned to 612BS, 401BG, 8AF USAAF. 29 x combat missions. James Goodman crew. ETD Awards: AM, WWII Victory, EAME. -
Kenneth Dickerson
Military | Sergeant (Technician Fourth Grade) | Ball Turret Gunner | 401st Bomb Group
Shot down during bombing mission over Brunswick, Germany 30 Jan 1944 in B-17G #42-37856 'Fancy Nancy III. ' Killed in Action (KIA). -
Cecil Estess
Military | Staff Sergeant | Tail Gunner | 401st Bomb Group
Assigned to 612BS, 401BG, 8AF USAAF. Gaston Fox crew. Shot down 10-Apr-44 in B-17 42-31511 'Fool's Luck III'. Killed in Action (KIA). MACR 3939 Awards: AM (3OLC), PH. -
John Farmer
Military | Technical Sergeant | Flight engineer | 401st Bomb Group
Assigned to 612BS, 401BG, 8AF USAAF. 29 x combat missions. James Goodman crew. ETD Awards: DFC, AM (4OLC), AF CMD, WWII Victory, EAME.
Missions
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8th Air Force 176
5 January 1944
This mission consists of five elements: The first element is a combined force of 131 B-17s are despatched by 1st Bomb Division: 92BG; 303BG; 305BG; 306BG; 379BG; 384BG; and 482BG to bomb the shipyards and industrial areas of Kiel, Germany. 119 are... -
8th Air Force 182
11 January 1944
Three aviation industry targets in Germany are bombed. The bomber force consists of 291 B-17s despatched from 1st Bomb Division in two elements, one element of 177 B-17s is despatched to Oschersleben, Germany as the primary target, the other 1BD... -
8th Air Force 187
21 January 1944
This mission is directed at 36 V-Weapon sites (34 in the Pas-de-Calaise area and 2 in the Chrebourg area of France) 24 of these are bombed successfully. All three Bomb Divisions participate in the attacks and the bomber gunners claimed 5-1-2 of... -
8th Air Force 198
29 January 1944
The primary target for this mission was the railroad marshalling yards and industrial areas of Frankfurt, Germany. A combined force of 863 heavy bombers were despatched in three elements to make the attack. The combined bomber gunner claims on enemy... -
8th Air Force 200
30 January 1944
This mission has the aviation industry at Brunswick, Germany as the primary target. The mission is composed of a combined force pf 777 heavy bomber aircraft despatched in three elements: 1st Bomb Division; 2nd Bomb Division and 3rd Bomb Division. The... -
8th Air Force 206
3 February 1944
The port area and Naval facilities at Wilhelmshaven, Germany was the primary target for this mission. 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Bomb Divisions all participated. ... -
8th Air Force 208
4 February 1944
The railroad marshalling yards at Frankfurt, Germany were focus of this mission, but other railroad marshalling yards in the area were attacked as well. Weather and navigational errors frustrate target acquisition.748 heavy bombers were despatched in a... -
8th Air Force 210
5 February 1944
German airfield in France are the targets for this mission. All three Bomb Divisions despatch aircraft. The combined bomber gunner's claims of all three Bomb Divisions were 5-0-5 (displayed with Chateauroux element of 1BD). Summary as follows: ... -
8th Air Force 212
6 February 1944
German airfields and V-Weapon sites in France are the primary targets of this mission. A combined force total of 642 heavy bombers are depatched from 8th Air Force 1st, 2nd and 3rd Bomb Divisions. The primary targets of 1st Bomb Division were the... -
8th Air Force 230 BIG WEEK - DAY 3
22 February 1944
The German aircraft industry is again targeted in Day 3 of BIG WEEK. A combined total od 789 bombers (maximum effort) are despathed from 1st 2nd and 3rd Air Divisions. Fighter opposition is heavy and bomber losses in 1st Air Division are massive - 39...
Places
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Deenethorpe
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... -
Presque Isle Army Airfield
Military site : airfield
Events
| Event | Location | Date |
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| Delivered | Denver AAF, CO | 16 November 1943 |
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Delivered Denver AAF 16-Nov-43. |
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| Crashed | 3 miles W of Calais | 10 April 1944 |
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Failed to Return (FTR) Evere Airfield 10-Apr-44 with Fox crew; downed by enemy aircraft, ditched, three miles W of Calais, France; 6 x POW, 4 x KIA MACR 3939 |
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| Assigned | Deenethorpe, UK | |
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Assigned 612BS, 401BG, 8AF USAAF. |
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Revisions
| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 14 September 2021 21:31:11 | acbernstein1 | Changes to mission associations |
| Sources | ||
http://401bg.org/Main/History/Aircraft/Details.aspx?ID=31511 |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 23 February 2020 13:23:05 | Al_Skiff | Changes to production block number, markings, events and unit associations |
| Sources | ||
| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 19 January 2020 23:45:56 | jmoore43 | Changes to description |
| Sources | ||
Added a space in front of the words "Tail gunner" in the A/C “Description” for clarity. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 18 January 2020 04:59:00 | jmoore43 | Changes to nicknames |
| Sources | ||
Added the nickname mentioned in the A/C “Description”. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 27 September 2014 18:40:38 | AAM | AAM ingest |
| Sources | ||
Dave Osborne, B-17 Fortress Master Log / MACR 3939 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database |
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