Killed in Action (KIA) near Dusseldorf in B-17 #4338668



1st Lt James D. Hannaman enlisted in Portland, Oregon on 29 September 1942. He was killed when the Eight Air Force bomber on which he was co-pilot went down over Düsseldorf on 10 January 1945. He had been in the service since April 1943 and left for overseas duty in September 1944. He was a former student at the University of Oregon and was associated with his father, the late George L. Hannaman, in the contracting firm of "Viesko and Hannaman" before entering air corps active service.

"A/C 668 received a direct hit by flak at Düsseldorf between #1 and #2 engines. The A/C peeled out of formation and went into a 30 sec dive in an attempt to extinguish the fire. A/C leveled off about 25,000 feet for a short time then the left wing came off and A/C went into an uncontrolled dive with A/C 151 reporting observing it hitting the ground in a mass of flames. Of the nine men crew, four were able to bail out before the plane went into spin. Surviving crew member reports indicate that

1st Lt Hannaman was on his way to the escape hatch, when the plane went into the spin.

He, and three other crew members, did not get the chance to bail out before the plane hit the ground and were killed in the crash."

"The B-17 plane of which Lieutenant Hannaman was co-pilot was on fire and the crew continued to drop their bombs rather than break out of formation. Flak got the plane just as went into the target. I could see the flames licking back from the engine. When I glanced back again the left wing was wrapped in flame. They hung onto their bombs and stayed in formation. When we reached the target the wing looked like a giant bonfire, but they got their bombs on the objective. Every man in the formation was hoping for a miracle to put those flames out. Then they pulled away and started down. We will never forget their courage."

According to reports, he held the plane together long enough to complete the mission before going down.

1st Lt James D. Hannaman was first buried at Temporary American Military Cemetery Margraten BlockV, Row 3, Grave 53.