Clair A Tyler
Military ROLL OF HONOUR9-Feb-42 Assigned as Co-Pilot to B-17F 42-5262, 303BG/360BS at Molesworth, UK. 303BG records do not indicate that he was in the original complement of aircraft and crews of the 303BG at Molesworth, UK in October 1942. It seems likely that he was part of a replacement crew and was processed through one of the Combat Crew Replacment Centers prior to his assigment with the 303BG.
6 March 1943 Shot down in B-17F 42-5262, 303BG/360BS while serving as Co-Pilot. The aircraft crashed into Bay of Biscay after a FW-190 attack that knocked out engines 1 & 2. Copilot 2LT Tyler and the LWG SGT Robert L. Stevenson were killed instantly. The other 8 survived in leaky rafts for 12 hours before a German boat hauled them aboard to become Prisoners of War (POW)s Plane crashed into Bay of Biscay. Killed in Action (KIA).
Participated in 3 Operations (NO aborts) See Biography events.
Air Medal, Purple Heart
Connections
See how this entry relates to other items in the archive by exploring the connections below.
Units served with
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
Aircraft
Missions
- Date: 6 March 1943
- Date: 27 February 1943
- Date: 26 February 1943
Places
- Site type: Airfield
Events
| Event | Location | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Other Assigned to Aircraft |
Molesworth, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire PE28, UK | 9 February 1943 | Assigned as Co-Pilot on B-17F 42-5262, 303BG/360BS at Molesworth, UK. |
|
Other Mission #1, 2LT Clair A. Tyler, w/B-17F 42-5262, 303BG/360BS |
Wilhelmshaven, Germany | 26 February 1943 | Served as Co-Pilot of B-17F 42-5262, 303BG/360BS on a mission to bomb the naval facilities and U-Boat pens at Wilhelmshaven, Germany. RTB OK |
|
Other Mission #2, 2LT Clair A. Tyler, w/B-17F 42-5723, 303BG/360BS |
Brest, France | 27 February 1943 | Served as Co-Pilot of B-17F 42-5723, 303BG/360BS on a mission to bomb the port area and U-Boat pens at Brest France. RTB OK. |
|
Other Mission #3, 2LT Clair A. Tyler, w/B-17F 42-5262, 303BG/360BS |
Lorient, France | 6 March 1943 | Served as Co-Pilot of B-17F 42-5262, 303BG/360BS on a mission to bomb the U-Boat pens at Lorient, France. Aircraft was shot down by fighters and he was killed in the attack. |
|
Born |
St, Kuis Obispo, California | ||
|
Other Commemorated |
Saint-James, France | Commemorated on the Wall of the Missing, Brittany American Cemetery. | |
|
Other Killed in Action (KIA) |
Dezert Point - L' école de surf de Pors Carn - La Torche, 171 Rue du Musée de la Préhistoire, 29760 Penmarch, France | 6 March 1943 | Killed when aircraft was attacked by fighters while on a mission to Lorient, France. Aircraft crashed into the sea off of Penmarch Point, France. His remains have never been recovered. |
Revisions
Lee Cunningham 27-Feb-2016. Correcting typo in Mission #1 event title.
Lee Cunningham 27-Feb-2016. Added Mission #3 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian, Mission Report of 6-Mar-43: http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/020.pdf
Lee Cunningham 27-Feb-2016. Added Mission #2 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian, Mission Report of 27-Feb-43: http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/018.pdf
Lee Cunningham 27-Feb-2016. Added Mission #1 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian, Mission Report of 14-Feb-43: http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/015.pdf
Lee Cunningham 27-Feb-2016. Added Assigned to Aircraft event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian, 303BG Personnel Roster: http://www.303rdbg.com/
Lee Cunningham 27-Feb-2016. Made connections to Place, Aircraft and Missions; Added Assignment statement and Participations statement to Summary Biography per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian, 303BG Personnel Roster; http://www.303rdbg.com/
Lee Cunnungham 3-Jul-2015. Added Decorations and Commemorated event per American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) records. Made connections to Place and Mission within existing website data; Added unit and crew position to Description per MACR 15536.
Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / MACR 15536 / MACR 15536, 3 Losses of the 8th & 9th AFs Vol. 1, pp. 88-89 by Bishop & Hey, 303rd web site mission report. AMBC and NARA web sites / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database