41-24580 Hellcat Agnes : No Monkey Business

media-19176.jpeg UPL 19176 B-17F Hell Cat (aka No Monkey Business) 41-24580 (VK-C) 358th BS, 303rd BG, 8AF USAAF.
Crew: [In no particular order]
1st Lt Oran T O'Connor (Pilot), 2nd Lt Eldon T Ruppe (CoPilot), 2nd Lt Bruce W Gordon (Nav),
2nd Lt Earl J Dumont, Jr. (Bomb), Capt Richard E Van Holdt (Group Weather Officer), T/Sgt Bernard H Koenig (Eng), Sgt Bernard A Gergash (Radio), Sgt Sidney V Hall (Gunner), Sgt Jesse R Kinney (Gunner), Sgt Frank L Batterson (Tail).

Object Number - UPL 19176 - B-17F Hell Cat (aka No Monkey Business) 41-24580 (VK-C) 358th BS, 303rd BG, 8AF USAAF. Crew: [In no particular order] 1st Lt Oran T O'Connor...


23-Jan-43 Mission #6 LAST OPERATION U-Boat pens at Lorient, France. (see Biography) 

Missing in Action 23-Jan-43 while on a mission to bomb the port area and U-Boat pens at Lorient, France. Sustained damage from flak, #1 engine smoking, #4 engine feathered. Attacked by fighters and shot down in the area between Brest and the coast. 8POW 2EVD. NO MACR was issued for this loss. Also named No Monkey Business at one time. 

NOTE: No Missing Air Crew Report (MACR) was ever created to document this loss. Bishop & Hey "Losses of the 8th & 9th Air Forces" has it as MACR 15473, but that MACR documents the loss of B-17F 41-24607, 303BG/427BS MIA on 23-Jan-43.

Connections

See how this entry relates to other items in the archive by exploring the connections below.

Units served with

People

Sergeant Bernard Aleys Gergash, of the 303rd Bomb Group, fills a water bucket. Image stamped on reverse: ‘Copyright Current Affairs Ltd.’ [stamp], ‘Passed for Publication 16 Dec 1942. [stamp] and ‘238749.’ [Censor no.] Printed caption on reverse: '32a. Filling the bucket is Sgt. Bernard Aleys Gergash, of 1025 Union Ave., Chicago Heights. Aged 24, he worked as a radio operator with the C.A.A.'
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 303rd Bomb Group 358th Bomb Squadron
  • Service Numbers: 36302819
  • Highest Rank: Sergeant
  • Role/Job: Radio Operator
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 303rd Bomb Group 358th Bomb Squadron
  • Service Numbers: O-728197
  • Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
  • Role/Job: Navigator
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 303rd Bomb Group 358th Bomb Squadron
  • Service Numbers: 17028242
  • Highest Rank: Sergeant
  • Role/Job: Radio Operator
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 303rd Bomb Group 358th Bomb Squadron
  • Service Numbers: 6539223
  • Highest Rank: Sergeant
  • Role/Job: Waist Gunner
Lieutenant-Colonel Charles E. Marion, commanding officer of the 303rd Bomb Group. Passed as censored, but then cleared for publication 9 Apr 1943. Printed caption on reverse: 'Here seen taking his cap from the rack at his British base Lt. Col. (Pilot) Charles E. Marion is commander of his group in the U.S. Air Force and has taken part in 11 raids on the Hun. Educated at Michigan University he has made the Army his career and at 32 years of age holds the Silver Star and Air Medal. His home is with his pare
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 1st Bomb Division 303rd Bomb Group
  • Service Numbers: O-021505
  • Highest Rank: Colonel
  • Role/Job: Assistant Chief of Staff; Director of Operations; CO

Places

Missions

Revisions

Date
Contributoracbernstein1
Changes
Date
ContributorLee8thbuff
Changes
Sources

Lee Cunningham 11-Aug-2015. Added Mission #6 event crew data pere 303BG website Mission Report of 23-Jan-43, Gary Moncur, Historian: http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/011.pdf

Date
ContributorLee8thbuff
Changes
Sources

Lee Cunningham 11-Aug-2015. Added Mission #5 event crew data per 303BG website Mission Report of 20-Dec-42, Gary Moncur, Historian: http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/007.pdf

Date
ContributorLee8thbuff
Changes
Sources

Lee Cunningham 11-Aug-2015. Added Mission #4 event crew data per 303BG website Mission Report of 12-Dec-42, Gary Moncur, Historian: http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/006.pdf

Date
ContributorLee8thbuff
Changes
Sources

Lee Cunningham 11-Aug-2015. Made Mission connections and added Mission #3 event crew data per 303BG website Mission Report of 6-Dec-42, Gary Moncur, Historian: http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/005.pdf

Date
ContributorLee8thbuff
Changes
Sources

Lee Cunningham 11-Aug-2015. Added Mission #2 event crew data per 303BG website Mission Report of 22-Nov-42, Gary Moncur, Historian: http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/003.pdf

Date
ContributorLee8thbuff
Changes
Sources

Lee Cunningham 11-Aug-2015. Added Mission #1 event crew data per 303BG website Mission Report of 18-Nov-42, Gary Moncur, Historian: http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/002.pdf

Date
ContributorLee8thbuff
Changes
Sources

Lee Cunningham 11-Aug-2015. Added Missions #1 thru #6 to Description per 303BG website Mission Reports, Gary Moncur, Historian: http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/

Date
ContributorLee8thbuff
Changes
Sources

Lee Cunningham 22-Jan-2015. Added NOTE to Description to correct source information for this entry.

Date
ContributorLee8thbuff
Changes
Sources

Lee Cunningham 20-Jan-2015. Corrected aircraft ID letter.

Date
ContributorLee8thbuff
Changes
Sources

Lee Cunningham 20-Jan-2015. Added FTR event per MACR 15473

Date
ContributorLee8thbuff
Changes
Sources

Lee Cunningham 20-jan-2015. Added nickname per original ingest data; Converted dates to military-style signification, target information and loss details per "Losses of the 8th & 9th Air Forces" Stan Bishop & John A. Hey MBE; added rank, crew position, full proper names and disposition to crew list per MACR 15473; formatted crew display.

Date
ContributorAAM
Changes
Sources

Dave Osborne, B-17 Fortress Master Log / MACR 15473 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database

41-24580: Gallery (1 items)