Paul Albert Blaida
Military
Photograph supplied by John Batchelor.
Object Number - UPL 41036 - Crew of B-17 41-9090, 97th Bomb Group.
Flew 36 missions and was also with the 12th, 15th Air Corps & Air Force. Air Medal with 6 Oak Leaf Clusters; 4 Campaign ribbons, two theatres of operation Europe and North Africa; Caterpillar Club.
Lt Blaida was on board B-17E-BO AC# 41-9090 transitioning to England from the United States on 27 June 1942 when, due to bad weather conditions, it had to ditch near an island in Narsarsuaq Fjord, near Narsaq, in 1500ft of water, 35 miles SW of Bluie West One, Greenland. Blaida and the rest of the 12-man crew left uninjured and were brought safely to England.
Paul Blaida parachuted into German territory in North Africa on 18 December 1942 from the stricken B-17 Serial 42-5715, shot down by German fighters over Tunisia. He managed to reach the nearby Allied lines with five other survivors of the crash-landed Fortress. The Co-Pilot and three other crew members were killed. No Missing Air Crew Report for the loss of that Fortress.
Connections
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Units served with
People
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 97th Bomb Group 342nd Bomb Squadron
- Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Co-Pilot
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 97th Bomb Group 342nd Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 16014823 at enlistment, then O-789259
- Highest Rank: First Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Navigator
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 97th Bomb Group 342nd Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 6147552
- Highest Rank: Technical Sergeant
- Role/Job: Engineer
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 97th Bomb Group 342nd Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 18051921 at enlistment, then O-436529
- Highest Rank: Lieutenant Colonel
- Role/Job: Pilot
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 97th Bomb Group 342nd Bomb Squadron
- Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Bombardier
Aircraft
Events
| Event | Location | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Born |
Downers Grove, Illinois | 20 January 1919 | the son of John and Martha Blaida |
|
Enlisted |
Chicago, Illinois, United States | 9 October 1941 | |
|
Other Bailed out |
near Bizerte, Tunisia | 18 December 1942 | from battle-damaged B-17 Serial 42-5715 |
|
Died |
Downers Grove, Du Page County, Illinois, United States | 11 June 2007 | |
| Downers Grove, Du Page County, Illinois, United States | |||
|
Buried |
Clarendon Hills Cemetery, Darien, Illinois |
Revisions
Brought in source from duplicate record:
Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / Losses of the 8th and 9th AF by Bishop and Hay p.15
The pilot was not killed. The Co-Pilot was and Paul Blaida managed to reach the Allied lines with five other survivors.
"Veterans' Stories" - recollections of Paul Blaida
NARA WWII Enlistment Records
research on crash of 42-5715
97th Bomb Group Association, Inc., Roster - June 1, 2000 / Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia