Lester Soffen
Military ROLL OF HONOURKIA at Hintermuhlin in B-17 43-38968 Collided with A/C of 95th BG - 43-38551.
Lester served as a Technical Sergeant and Radio Operator / Gunner on B-17G 43-38968, 338th Bomber Squadron, 96th Bomber Group.
B-17G 43-38968 took off, with a crew of 10, from Station 138, England on a bombing mission over Cologne, Germany. Near the target they were involved in a collision with B-17 43-38551 due to poor visibility caused by the weather and crashed near Hintermulen, West of Westerburg, Germany.
Both B-17s disintegrated after the collision and no chutes were seen although observers report it was impossible to have seen a chute because of weather conditions.
Two members of the crew, however, survived: Flt. Off. Theodore E. Yeaton (Pilot) and S/Sgt James M. Bowen (Togglier).
Connections
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Units served with
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
Aircraft
Places
- Site type: Airfield
- Known as: Station 138
Events
Event | Location | Date | Description |
---|---|---|---|
Other Killed in Action |
Westerburg, Germany. | 7 January 1945 | |
Born |
New York State | ||
Buried |
Netherlands American Cemetery and Memorial Margraten, Eijsden-Margraten Municipality, Limburg, Netherlands |
Revisions
Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / MACR 11571 / MACR 11571; Snetterton Falcons, pg 226 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database