Elmer J Romigh Jr

Military
media-7170.jpeg UPL 7170 Crew #705
Elmer J. Romigh Crew
B-24H-15-FO #42-52598 "Guess Who's Here" Code: 6L-O
466th BG - 787th BS

Standing Left to Right: Elmer J. Romigh (P), Herbert C. Lashlee (CP), Woodrow Bullerman (N), Burt Berstein (B)

Kneeling Left to Right: E.L. Wilson (FE), James K. Gray (G), John E. Barr (R/O), William A. Line (G), William Sabalaske (WG), Edgar H. Miller (TG)

This crew completed 31 missions, except for Sabalaske who was interned in Switzerland when flying as a replacement gunner with the the Flynn Crew.
466th Bomb Group collection

466th BG Historian

Object Number - UPL 7170 - Crew #705 Elmer J. Romigh Crew B-24H-15-FO #42-52598 "Guess Who's Here" Code: 6L-O 466th BG - 787th BS Standing Left to Right: Elmer J....

Pilot - one of the original cadre of pilots for the 466th BG

Also served in Korea and Vietnam

Connections

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Units served with

Places

Events

Event Location Date Description

Born

27 September 1920

Other

1st 466th BG Combat mission

22 March 1944 Flight time was 09:00 hours. We were awakened at 0300, dressed in our flying gear, went to the mess hall and had breakfast for fried Spam and eggs, then to the briefing room at 0515. When the briefing officer pulled the curtains back, there was a long red ribbon directly from Attlebridge to Berlin! This raid put us in the big time without a warmup. Our target was the aero engine factory of the Brandenburgisch Motor Works at Abasdorf, 15 miles north of the center of Berlin. The Freidrichstrasse RR station was our secondary target. Take off was at 0745 for the lead plane and we all followed at 30 second intervals. As we approached the target, squadrons of aircraft of aircraft were entering and leaving. A group of 12 just coming out of the flak area when one of the aircraft pulled up, started a turn to the right and exploded into a ball of fire. Four objects dropped out of the smoke cloud, possibly the four engines. I had just seen 10 men die and now knew this war was for real.

Other

Aborted 466th BG Combat mission

8 April 1944 We took off for Brunswick and after we got over Germany several of the crew came down with cramps caused by the gas from what we had eaten for breakfast. As they could not function and were in severe pain, we broke formation and returned to England at a low altitude. We were able to return without incident. Our flying time was 5 hours. We lost six crews on the mission.

Other

4th 466th BG Combat mission

9 April 1944 Flying time was 8 hours. This was a rough one, but not as bad as the day before. Flak and fighters resulted in 11 aircraft being damaged. The group lost one crew, #517 (Clinton Caverne Crew). Caverne was on his first mission as first pilot.

Other

9th 466th Combat Mission

27 April 1944 Flight time was 4:15 hours. Same as mission #7. These two missions were for a "No-Ball" target since it was a facility for launching buzz bombs. These were reinforced concrete facilities and we carried 1000 pound bombs to penetrate the concrete. On this particular mission we were in a single 12 ship formation and I was leading the 3 ship element behind the lead element. This target had a single anti-aircraft battery of 5 guns that fired in unison. I guess they had one radar unit for targeting. We heard every salvo they fired at us and each salvo was closer than the last. The target was on a peninsula of land and we were in their range for only about 5 minutes. By the time they had fired their last salvo, I was flying almost under the lead ship and if they had fired one more I think it would have been right in the middle of the formation. No one was shot down, but we all suffered flak damage. My bombardier recorded 12 holes but I think there were many more. I heard them all hit us every time they fired!

Other

14th 466th BG Combat Mission

24 May 1944 Flying time was six hours. A milk run. Bombed the airdrome and returned by 1100.

Other

30th 466th BG Combat Mission

7 July 1944 Flying time was 6:15 hours. Oil installation. Lots of flak and fighters but our position was not attacked. I remember this because of the large number of twin engine German fighters that were present and seeing a large number of them shot down by our escort fighters. Some JU-88's and ME-109's made a pass at the lead section of our formation and hit the #1 engine of one plane, but it returned safely to base. I understand one P-47 shot down six German twin engine aircraft. Take off was at 0500 and lading at 1115.

Died

26 May 2004

Buried

30 May 2004 Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery San Antonio Bexar County Texas, USA Plot: Section 40 Site 272

Revisions

Date
Contributor466thHistorian
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Sources

466th BG Archives

USAF HRA Reel #2037154, page 143

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Contributor466thHistorian
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466th BG Historian

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Contributor466thHistorian
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466th BG Historian

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Contributor466thHistorian
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Elmer Romigh's mission log.

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Contributor466thHistorian
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466th BG HIstorian
findagrave.com

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ContributorAAM
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Sources

Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / Unit roster in the book ATTLEBRIDGE ARSENAL by Wassom and Brassfield, page 350 & Page 390 in the book 2ND AIR DIVISIONby Turner Publishing Company, 1998 edition (D790.A2S45)

Elmer J Romigh: Gallery (2 items)