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B-17 Flying Fortress
![A B-17 Flying Fortress of the 390th Bomb Group [42-3306] crashes near Dunkirk whilst flying with a mission with B-17 Flying Fortress (serial number 42-5914), 15 August 1943. Handwritten caption on reverse: '385BG.' Printed caption on reverse: '25620 USAF - Boeing B-17](https://www.americanairmuseum.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/freeman/media-413759.jpg?itok=7ele0LFq)
A B-17 Flying Fortress of the 390th Bomb Group [42-3306] crashes near Dunkirk whilst flying with a mission with B-17 Flying Fortress (serial number 42-5914), 15 August 1943. Handwritten caption on reverse: '385BG.' Printed caption on reverse: '25620 USAF - Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortress" going down over area south of Dunkirk, occupied France. U.S. Air Force Photo.'
![A B-17 Flying Fortress of the 390th Bomb Group [42-3306] crashes near Dunkirk whilst flying with a mission with B-17 Flying Fortress (serial number 42-5914), 15 August 1943 Handwritten caption on reverse: '15/8/43.' Printed caption on reverse: '25620 AC - Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress going down over area south of Dunkirk, occupied France. U.S. Air Force Photo.'](https://www.americanairmuseum.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/freeman/media-413758.jpg?itok=xnrMoSEw)
A B-17 Flying Fortress of the 390th Bomb Group [42-3306] crashes near Dunkirk whilst flying with a mission with B-17 Flying Fortress (serial number 42-5914), 15 August 1943 Handwritten caption on reverse: '15/8/43.' Printed caption on reverse: '25620 AC - Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress going down over area south of Dunkirk, occupied France. U.S. Air Force Photo.'
Delivered Cheyenne 23/5/43; Dow Fd 13/7/43; Assigned 569BS/390BG [CC-L] Framlingham 14/7/43; Missing in Action Vitry-En-Artois 15/8/43 with Bill Lawrence (Prisoner of War); Co-pilot: Bill Middledorf, Navigator: Joe Birdwell, Bombardier: Francis Harkins, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Walt Sentkoski (4 evaded capture); Radio Operator: Bill Murphy, Ball turret gunner: Bernie Stevens, Waist gunner: Pat Caron, Waist gunner: Romaine Fiffe,Tail gunner: Pete Mrjenovich (5 Killed in Action); aircraft broke in half in mid-air coll with 42-30320 over target area, crashed Bonvinchen, near St Omer, Fr. Missing Air Crew Report 258. PHOENIX.
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 14/5/43; Gore 15/5/43; Cheyenne 20/5/43; Geiger 28/5/43; Gt Falls 7/6/43; Langley 25/6/43; Cutbank 27/6/43; Smoky Hill 1/7/43; Dow Fd 11/7/43; Assigned 569BS/390BG [CC-S] Framlingham 11/7/43; badly damaged 11/12/43 over Emden with
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Group
The 390th Bomb Group flew B-17 Flying Fortresses from Framlingham, Suffolk, between July 1943 and the end of the war in Europe. The Group was engaged in strategic missions until the invasion of Europe when its role became more of a tactical one. This...
Squadron
Military | Second Lieutenant | Navigator | 390th Bomb Group
Assigned to 569th 390BG, 8AF USAAF. Shot down 15-Aug-43 in B-17F 42-3306 baled out successfully. Evaded (EVD). MACR 258.
Awards: WWII Victory, EAME.
Military | Staff Sergeant | Left Waist Gunner | 390th Bomb Group
Assigned to 569th 390BG, 8AF USAAF. Shot down 15-Aug-43 in B-17F 42-3306. Killed in Action (KIA). MACR 258.
Awards: PH.
Military | Staff Sergeant | Right Waist Gunner | 390th Bomb Group
Assigned to 569th 390BG, 8AF USAAF. 2 x missions. Shot down 15-Aug-43 in B-17F 42-3306. Killed in Action (KIA). MACR 258.
Awards: PH.
Military | Second Lieutenant | Bombardier | 390th Bomb Group
Francis Harkins served as a bombardier with the 390th Bomb Group. He was part of crew number 18. On 15 August 1943, he was shot down in B-17 #423306. Francis evaded capture with the help of many different French people. The names of the people known to...
Military | Second Lieutenant | Pilot | 390th Bomb Group
Assigned to 569th 390BG, 8AF USAAF. Shot down 15-Aug-43 in B-17F 42-3306 baled out successfully. Prisoner of War (POW). MACR 258.
Awards: POW, WWII Victory, EAME.
Military | Colonel | Pilot | 390th Bomb Group
William Middledorf served as a co-pilot with the 569th Bomb Squadron of the 390th Bomb Group. He flew bombing missions out of Framlingham, England. On 15 August 1943, he was shot down in B-17F 42-3306. He was able to evade capture, helped by French...
Military | Staff Sergeant | Tail Gunner | 390th Bomb Group
Assigned to 569th 390BG, 8AF USAAF. 2 x combat missions. Shot down 15-Aug-43 in B-17F 42-3306 unable to bale out. Killed in Action (KIA).
Awards: PH.
Military | Staff Sergeant | Radio Operator / Gunner | 390th Bomb Group
Assigned to 569th 390BG, 8AF USAAF. Shot down 15-Aug-43 in B-17F 42-3306 unable to bale out. Killed in Action (KIA).
Awards: PH.
Military | Staff Sergeant | Top Turret Gunner | 390th Bomb Group
Assigned to 569BS, 390BG, 8AF USAAF. Shot down in B-17 42-3306 'Phoenix' 15-Aug-43. Baled out successfully. Evaded (EVD).
Awards: WWII Victory, EAME.
Military | Staff Sergeant | Ball Turret Gunner | 390th Bomb Group
Assigned to 569BS, 390BG, 8AF USAAF. Shot down 15-Aug-43 in B-17F 42-3306 'Phoenix' unable to bale out. Killed in Action (KIA).
Awards: PH.
15 August 1943
German airfields in Holland and France are the targets for this mission. All of the attacks were made late in the afternoon just prior to sunset. The mission is composed of two elements. The first element is a combined force of 180 B-17s from: 91BG (20...
Military site : airfield
Built for the Eighth Air Force from 1942 to 43, Framlingham was home first to the 95th Bomb Group, before that unit moved to RAF Alconbury. From 1943 to 1945, it was operated by the 390th Bomb Group. The airfield was handed back to the RAF in 1945, and...
Other location
| Event | Location | Date |
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| Manufactured | Long Beach, CA, USA | April 1943 |
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Built at Douglas. |
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| Delivered | Francis E. Warren AFB, WY, USA | 23 May 1943 |
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Delivered Cheyenne AAF 23-May-43. |
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| Assigned | Framlingham, Woodbridge IP13, UK | 14 July 1943 |
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Assigned 569BS, 390BG, 8AF USAAF. |
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| Crashed | 59670 Bavinchove, France | 15 August 1943 |
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Failed to Return (FTR) Missing in Action Vitry-En-Artois |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 02 May 2017 21:19:22 | Al_Skiff | Changes to production block number, nicknames, markings, events and unit associations |
| Sources | ||
| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 12 June 2016 10:16:07 | Rainer | Changes to aircraft associations |
| Sources | ||
Updated aircraft connections |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 27 September 2014 18:40:43 | AAM | AAM ingest |
| Sources | ||
Dave Osborne, B-17 Fortress Master Log / MACR 258 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database |
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