Clarence LeRoy Couch
MilitaryYoungest of 5 brothers, enlisted in US Army 1934. Graduated from Aviation Cadets as a bombardier in 1943. Assigned to RAF Thurley in the 306BG in October 1943. Flew 23 combat missions. Shot down 11 April 1944 in B-17 #4231385. Prisoner of War (POW) at Stalag Luft 3 Sagan-Silesia Bavaria (Moved to Nuremberg-Langwasser) 49-11. Reverted to enlisted rank of Master Sergeant after WW2; re-commissioned as Captain in 1951. Flew 55 missions as bombardier on B-26 Night Intruders out of Kunsan, Korea during the Korean Conflict. Retired in 1957 as a Major in the USAF; Died of cancer in 1974.
POW
Connections
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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
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Unit: 306th Bomb Group
Places
![A bomber crew of the 306th Bomb Group wave to Picture Post Girls in front of a B-17 Flying Fortress (serial number 41-24471) nicknamed "Four of a Kind" at Thurleigh in December 1942. Image stamped on reverse: '"Picture Post" [stamp], 'Passed for Publication 11 Dec 1942.' [stamp], '238038.' [Censor no.] Handwritten in censor's blue pencil on reverse: 'American Flying Fortress crew are introduced to the girls they will meet at Picture Post Xmas Party.'](https://assets.americanairmuseum.com/s3fs-public/styles/teaser_thumb_x2/public/freeman/media-379028.jpg.webp?itok=6Gc6iR0j)
- Site type: Airfield
- Known as: Bedford
Events
| Event | Location | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Born |
Cranberry Lake, NY 12927, USA | 15 June 1915 | |
|
Based |
Thurleigh | 10 October 1943 - 11 April 1944 | Flew first mission 10/10/1943; shot down 11/04/1943 |
|
Died Prisoner of War (POW) |
MacDill Air Force Base, Florida | 15 September 1974 - 11 April 1944 | Buried in Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia, USA |
|
Enlisted |
Rochester, NY, USA | Enlisted in US Army. Served 2 years in the Panama Canal Zone, then 2 years in the Civilian Conservation Corps, then re-enlisted in US Army | |
|
Other Commissioned |
Big Spring Army Air Field, TX 79720, USA | Commissioned 2nd Lieutenant upon completion of Bombardier School and Aviation Cadets. |
Revisions
From Major Couch's flight records and Interrogation Forms for each mission flown in B-17s.
Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / MACR 3676 / MACR 3676, NARA, First Over Germany pg. 233, / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database / http://www.306bg.org/crewphotos/Crew%20Pictures%20Adam-Rector/Crew%20Pi…
