William Rudolph Asbell

Military

Assigned to 615BS, 401BG, 8AF USAAF. Bill Trimble crew.

Awards: DFC, WWII Victory, EAME (1 x Battle Star).

Post war: Served in Korean and Vietnam conflicts.

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

615th Bomb Squadron

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

People

William Whittfield Trimble

Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
Nationality: American
Unit: 401st Bomb Group 615th Bomb Squadron
Service Numbers: O-36895
Highest Rank: Lieutenant Colonel
Role/Job: Pilot

Aircraft

42-107092

Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
Nicknames: Freckles, Umbriago
Unit: 401st Bomb Group 615th Bomb Squadron

42-31069

Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
Nicknames: Little moe
Unit: 401st Bomb Group 615th Bomb Squadron

42-31369

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

42-31730

Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
Nicknames: Morning Star, Tail End Charlie
Unit: 401st Bomb Group 613th Bomb Squadron 615th Bomb Squadron

A crashed B-17 Flying Fortress of the 401st Bomb Group. Image via R Bowers. First handwritten caption on reverse: 'Home on two engines.' Second handwritten caption on reverse: '"Breezing Home" IY-D, 42-40002. 401 BG.'

42-40002

Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
Nicknames: Breezing Home
Unit: 401st Bomb Group 615th Bomb Squadron

Missions

423

Date: 19 June 1944

412

Date: 14 June 1944

407

Date: 12 June 1944

395

Date: 6 June 1944
Official Description:

388

Date: 3 June 1944
Official Description:

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

Events

Event	Location	Date	Description
Born	Brooks County, GA	31 July 1924
Enlisted		31 October 1942	Spence Field Moultrie Georgia
Enlisted		14 July 1971
Other Discharged USAF		31 May 1973	Honourable discharge.
Died	Palm Harbor, FL	25 September 2007
Buried	Florida National Cemetery Bushnell, Sumter County, FL	28 September 2007	Florida National Cemetery Bushnell, Sumter County, Florida
Other Discharged USAAF			Honourable discharge.

Revisions

Date6 Dec 2021 02:22:56

Contributoracbernstein1

ChangesChanges to aircraft associations and mission associations

Sources

http://401bg.org/Main/History/Members/Details.aspx?ID=0963

Date31 Oct 2021 09:15:44

ContributorAl_Skiff

ChangesChanges to middlename, service number, highest rank, role, biography, awards, events, unit associations and place associations

Sources

https://www.fold3.com/record/30665202/william-r-asbell-social-security-…
https://www.fold3.com/record/84090222/william-r-asbell-wwii-army-enlist…
https://www.fold3.com/record/529539058/william-asbell-1924-veterans-aff…
https://www.fold3.com/record/704209563/asbell-william-r-us-wwii-hospita…
https://www.fold3.com/record/704209562/asbell-william-r-us-wwii-hospita…
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/49983871/william-rudolph-asbell
http://401bg.org/Main/History/Members/Details.aspx?ID=963
http://401bg.org/Main/History/Crews/Details.aspx?CrewId=13501

Date27 Sep 2014 18:28:36

ContributorAAM

ChangesAAM ingest

Sources

Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / http://www.401bg.org/Main/History/Members/Details.aspx?ID=963