Charles H Lain
MilitaryFront row, from left to right : Bernard J. Komasinski, pilot; Winfield Scott Gippert, Co-Pilot; Edgar W. Michaels, Navigator; Charles H. Lain, Bombardier.
Back row, from left to right : Stanley J. Hulewicz Jr, Tail Gunner; Frank LaFazia, Ball Turret Gunner and Assistant Engineer; John H. McKee, Radio Operator/Gunner; Nelson E. Brott, Right Waist Gunner and Assistant Radio Operator; Walter E. Bohenko, Left Waist Gunner and Frank N. Schaeffer, Engineer. (Photo courtesy of Frank N. Schaeffer.)
► Note : Ball Turret Gunner LaFazia was replaced by S/Sgt Coley W. Richardson (not in the photo) for the 8 August 1944 mission when the Komasinski crew was shot down in B-24 "My Peach" Serial 42-100415.
Added photo of the Komasinski crew
On his 6th mission, Charles Lain was Bombardier of B-24 # 42-100415 when it ran into mechanical trouble on return in the afternoon from the 8 August 1944 mission to bomb the airfield at Romilly-sur-Seine, France. Cut over his left eye by his parachute while exiting the plane, he landed near Vauchamps (Marne), France. Soon joined by Navigator Edgar Michaels, Left Waist Gunner Walter Bohenko and Tail Gunner Stanley Hulewicz, Lain and his comrades were helped in their evasion of capture by French patriots and underground fighters. Liberated by US troops, Lain, Michaels, Bohenko and Hulewicz were together at US 3rd Army HQ in Reims with their Pilot Bernard Komasinski, Co-Pilot Winfield Gippert, Top Turret Gunner Nelson Brott. All left Laval, France, by air in a C-47, landing in Grove, England on 31 august 1944. Escape & Evasion Report E&E 1298.
Connections
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Units served with
People
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 44th Bomb Group 506th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 16079990
- Highest Rank: Sergeant
- Role/Job: Radio Operator/Gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 44th Bomb Group 506th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 13128486 and O-717473
- Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Navigator
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 44th Bomb Group 506th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 34129217
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: Ball Turret Gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 44th Bomb Group 506th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 16116632
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: Flight Engineer; Top Turret Gunner
Aircraft
Missions
Places
Events
Event | Location | Date | Description |
---|---|---|---|
Born |
North Judson, Indiana, United States | 25 July 1920 | |
Enlisted |
La Fayette, Indiana, United States | 24 August 1942 | as a Private in the Air Corps |
Other Evaded |
Marne, France | 8 August 1944 - 27 August 1944 | Landing near Vauchamps (Marne) France. Helped by French patriots and underground fighters of the FFI (Forces Françaises de l’Intérieur), he was liberated on 27 August 1944 by advancing US troops. He was back in England on 31 August. Escape & Evasion Report E&E 1298. |
Died |
O’Fallon, Missouri, United States | 3 January 1997 | |
North Judson, Indiana, United States | |||
Buried/ Commemorated |
Round Lake Cemetery, Knox, Indiana, United States |
Revisions
Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / MACR 8080 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database