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Military
James Gibson was Left Waist Gunner on B-17 Serial 42-39840, hit by Flak on the 1 December 1943 mission to Solingen/Leverkusen, Germany. Baled out; aircraft flown back to base. Evaded capture for 10 days before he was arrested. See the story of his evasion and capture at https://www.evasioncomete.be/fgibsonjo.html
Military | Corporal | Ball Turret gunner | 401st Bomb Group
Mark Bauer was Ball Turret gunner on B-17 Serial 42-39840, hit by Flak on the 1 December 1943 mission to Solingen/Leverkusen, Germany. Evaded capture for 10 days before he was arrested. See the story of his evasion and capture at https://www...
Military | Second Lieutenant | Navigator | 401st Bomb Group
Charles Bryant was Navigator on B-17 Serial 42-39840, hit by Flak on the 1 December 1943 mission to Solingen/Leverkusen, Germany. Aircraft flown back to base. Returned to Duty (RTD). Six members of the crew baled out over Belgium. See their individual...
Military | Technical Sergeant | Engineer/Top Turret Gunner | 401st Bomb Group
Joseph Burns was Engineer on board B-17 #42-39840 on the 1 December 1943 mission to Solingen and Leverkusen, Germany. Severely damaged by Flak and thinking the plane was lost, Burns and five other crew members bailed out and landed near Alken, Belgium....
Military | Captain | Pilot | 401st Bomb Group
Completed 25 bombing mission as a Pilot with the 401st Bomb Group between 26-Nov-43 and 12-Jun-44. He was Pilot of B-17 42-39840, hit by Flak on the 1-Dec-943 mission to Solingen/Leverkusen, Germany. Six crew members baled out (1 of them managed to...
Military | Staff Sergeant | Right Waist Gunner | 401st Bomb Group
Ruben Miller was Right Waist gunner on B-17 Serial 42-39840, hit by Flak on the 1 December 1943 mission to Solingen/Leverkusen, Germany. Baled out; aircraft flown back to base. Evaded capture for 10 days before he was arrested. See the story of his...
Military | Second Lieutenant | Co-Pilot | 401st Bomb Group
John Mitchell was Co-Pilot of B-17 #42-39840 "The Lopin' Lobo", hit by Flak on the 1 December 1943 mission to Solingen/Leverkusen. The Fortress was flown back to England, but six men had baled out over Belgium (see their pages at www.evasioncomete.be >...
Military | Staff Sergeant | Right Waist Gunner | 401st Bomb Group
Raymond Nield was Right Waist gunner on B-17 Serial 42-39840, hit by Flak on the 1 December 1943 mission to Solingen/Leverkusen, Germany. Aircraft returned to base. Baled out and evaded capture. Was back in the UK on 6 February 1944. See the story of...
Military | Second Lieutenant | Bombardier | 401st Bomb Group
Robert Rowe was Bombardier of B-17 #42-39840 "The Lopin' Lobo", hit by Flak on the 1 December 1943 mission to Solingen/Leverkusen. The Fortress was flown back to England, but six men had baled out over Belgium (see their pages at www.evasioncomete.be >...
Military | Technical Sergeant | Radio Operator | 401st Bomb Group
Irving Tatkin was Radio Operator on B-17 Serial 42-39840 "The Lopin' Lobo", hit by Flak on the 1 December 1943 mission to Solingen/Leverkusen, Germany. Baled out; aircraft flown back to base. Evaded capture until he was arrested in February 1944. See...
Group
The 401st Bomb Group flew B-17 Flying Fortresses from Deenethorpe, Northamptonshire, from November 1943 to June 1945. Starting their missions at that time meant the focus was very much on the coming invasion attempt of France planned for the following...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Long Beach 17/9/43; Scott 3/10/43; Assigned 613BS/401BG [IN-A] Deenethoprpe 13/10/43; transferred AFSC 6/6/44 as development and test aircraft and designated XB-17G; Returned to the USA, used by US Navy from 20/11/45; 4148 BU Bedford 30/1/46;...
1 December 1943
This mission was directed at the industrial areas of Leverkusen and Solingen, Germany. The mission is composed of two elements. The first element is a combined force of 221 B-17s from 1st Bomb Division that included: 91BG (27); 92BG (18); 303BG (17);...
Military site : airfield
Deenethorpe was a base purpose-built for American heavy bombers, with the Class A regulation 2,000 and 1,400-yard runways. All the buildings on site,such as the accommodation and administrative blocks, were temporary. In December 1943, several local...
| Event | Location | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Born | 24 December 1919 | |
|
Saint-Louis, Missouri, USA |
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| Baled out | 1 December 1943 | |
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of 42-39840 over Belgium |
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| Evaded capture | 1 December 1943 – 11 December 1943 | |
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Helped by Belgian citizens and members of the Résistance. Captured. |
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| Prisoner of War (POW) | 11 December 1943 – May 1945 | |
|
Stalag Luft 4 |
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| Buried | 2002 | |
|
James Gibson rests at the Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery, Saint-Louis, Missouri |
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| Died | 1 March 2002 | |
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Saint-Louis, Missouri, USA |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 05 June 2021 10:26:26 | ED-BB | Changes to middlename, service number, role, biography, events, place associations and mission associations |
| Sources | ||
Personal research at various sources for his page at https://www.evasioncomete.be/fgibsonjo.html |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 27 September 2014 18:14:47 | AAM | AAM 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=484 |
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