Harlan Frederick Fricke
Military
7th PRG - 14th PRS
Killed in crash on 11 December 1943
Object Number - UPL 44944 - 1LT Harlan F. Fricke 7th PRG - 14th PRS Killed in crash on 11 December 1943
KOM. Crashed at Warren Farm, Berkshire returning from a reconnaissance mission over enemy territory. AC F-5A#42-13312.
Connections
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Units served with
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Type Category: Reconnaissance
![Photographic officers of the 7th Photographic Reconnaissance Group look through camera lenses infront of a B-17 Flying Fortress. Image stamped on reverse: 'Esten Illustrated.' [stamp], 'Passed for Publication 8 Jul 1943.' [stamp] and '273528.' [Censor no.]. A printed caption was previously attached to the reverse, however this has been removed.](https://assets.americanairmuseum.com/s3fs-public/styles/teaser_thumb_x2/public/freeman/media-380976.jpg.webp?itok=b-IRYuYJ)
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Reconnaissance
Places
- Site type: Airfield
Events
| Event | Location | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Born |
Gardnerville, NV | 10 April 1920 | |
|
Died |
Wantage, UK | 11 December 1943 | "On 11 December 1943 Lt. Harlan Fricke, a 14th squaddron veteran since the rookie days in the States, took off on his 5th sortie in TSGT Sam Quindt's aircraft, Lu Mar. Fricke's assignment was a MET mission to the Abbeville and Poix area to scout weather conditions over a target. Soon after his takeoff the weather at Mount Farm changed, with fog enveloping the field and surrounding area. On his return, LT Fricke could not locate the field and crashed at 1230 hours near Wantage, about 8 miles from Mount Farm. Harlan Fricke was the first pilot from the 14th PRS to be killed. The enlisted men from the squadron took up a collection and purchased a $500 War Bond for the pilot's infant son, Harlan F. Fricke II. They all signed a letter expressing their affection for the pilot and sent it to the tiny baby. Lt. Fricke had never met his son, who was born after Lt. Fricke arrived in England. |
|
Buried |
Gardnerville, NV | Gardnerville Cemetery Gardnerville, Douglas County, Nevada, USA | |
|
Other 7th PRG Combat Tour |
Mount Farm Airfield, UK | 11 December 1943 |
Revisions
"Eyes of The Eighth" - Patricia Fussell Keen, page 78-79
https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/2238/images/44023_08_0…
https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/2375/images/40050_2421…
7th Photo Recon Group Master Directory, 6 June 1996, Losses of the 8th & 9th AFs Vol. I, p. 417 / Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia
