James Alfred Retzlaff

Military

media-52774.jpeg UPL 52774 Sgt James A Retzlaff. 401BG.

USAAF Photo

Object Number - UPL 52774 - Sgt James A Retzlaff. 401BG.

Assigned to 614BS, 401BG, 8AF USAAF. 28 x combat missions. Failed to Return (FTR) Rosenheim in B-17 43-38646 18-Apr-45; crashed near Krallsheim Prisoner of War (POW) MACR 14175

Awards: AM (3OLC), POW, WWII Victory, EAME (2 x Battle Stars).

Connections

See how this entry relates to other items in the archive by exploring the connections below.

Units served with

401st Bomb Group

Unit Hierarchy: Group
Air Force: Eighth Air Force
Type Category: Bombardment

614th Bomb Squadron

Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
Air Force: Eighth Air Force
Type Category: Bombardment

People

Eugene Andrews Viehman

Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
Nationality: American
Unit: 401st Bomb Group 614th Bomb Squadron
Service Numbers: 14120723 / O-926796
Highest Rank: First Lieutenant
Role/Job: Pilot

Aircraft

42-102468

Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
Nicknames: Farmer's Daughter
Unit: 401st Bomb Group 614th Bomb Squadron 615th Bomb Squadron

43-38565

Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
Nicknames: Miss Gee Eyewanna Go Home
Unit: 401st Bomb Group 614th Bomb Squadron

43-38646

Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
Unit: 401st Bomb Group 614th Bomb Squadron

A flight of B-17 Flying Fortresses of the 401st Bomb Group. B-17 (serial number 44-8153) is visible in the foreground. Printed caption on reverse: '59329 AC- 8th AF Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses over Mannheim, Germany, 1 February 1945. A- 8th AF Beoing B-17 Flying Fortresses near Ludwigshafen, Germany, 1 February 1945.' Handwritten caption on reverse: 'IW-N Becomin Back, 338738. IN-C, IW-F,-Q.'

43-38738

Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
Nicknames: Gaposis, Becomin’ Back
Unit: 401st Bomb Group 614th Bomb Squadron

Places

Bomber crews from the 401st Bomb Group look over P-51 Mustang, FT-T, serial number 43-12172, of the 353rd Fighter Squadron, 354th Fighter Group, at Deenethorpe airfield. One of their B-17 Flying Fortresses is in the background. Printed caption on reverse of print: '...401st Bomb Group look over a North American P-51 Mustang at an 8th Air Force base in England, 27 December 1943.'

Deenethorpe

Site type: Airfield
Known as: Benefield

Dulag Luft 12

Site type: Prisoner of war camp
Known as: Dulag Luft Grosstychow Dulag 12

Stalag XIII-C

Site type: Prisoner of war camp
Known as: Stalag 13C

Events

Event	Location	Date	Description
Born	Wisconsin Rapids, WI	14 July 1923	Son of Arthur Retzlaff.
Enlisted	Milwaukee, WI	13 January 1943	Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Other Prisoner of War (POW)	Sandbostel, Germany	18 April 1945	Prisoner of War (POW). Stalag XIIIc.
Died		20 October 2003
Buried	Forest Hill Cemetery Wisconsin Rapids, Wood County, WI	23 October 2003	Forest Hill Cemetery Wisconsin Rapids, Wood County, Wisconsin
Based	Deenethorpe	18 April 1945	Assigned to 614BS, 401BG, 8AF USAAF.

Revisions

Date2 Nov 2021 10:38:02

ContributorAl_Skiff

Changes

Sources

https://www.fold3.com/image/29036572
https://www.fold3.com/record/47524019/james-a-retzlaff-social-security-…
https://www.fold3.com/record/89631717/james-a-retzlaff-wwii-army-enlist…
https://www.fold3.com/record/714055021/retzlaff-james-a-us-veterans-gra…
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/152721702/james-a-retzlaff

Date27 Sep 2014 18:14:05

ContributorAAM

Changes

Sources

Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / MACR 14175 / MACR 14175, http://www.401bg.org/Main/History/Members/Details.aspx?ID=2792 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database

James Alfred Retzlaff: Gallery (1 items)

Object number: UPL 52774 - Sgt James A Retzlaff. 401BG.