James Philip Sampson Jr

Military
media-22152.jpeg UPL 22152 Crew #629 - Warren P. Allen Crew
466th BG - 786th BS

Standing Left to Right: James P. Sampson (N), Warren P. Allen (P), Walter J. Sebo (CP), William M. O'Donnell (B)

Kneeling Left to Right: Robert Rayburn (TTG), Harold Sherlock (FE), James Moore (TG), Daniel Johnson (NG), Donald Miller (R/O), Orrin Winters (BTG) 466th Bomb Group collection

Warren P. Allan Crew

Object Number - UPL 22152 - Crew #629 - Warren P. Allen Crew 466th BG - 786th BS Standing Left to Right: James P. Sampson (N), Warren P. Allen (P), Walter J. Sebo (CP),...

Connections

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Units served with

Three little girls hold up a balloon celebrating the 100th mission of the 466th Bomb Group in front of a B-24 Liberator (serial number 42-95592) nicknamed "Black Cat". Handwritten caption on reverse: 'On our 100 Mission party Day- 18 Aug 1944, Attlebridge, 466th- wouldn't it be something if we could identify these girls? How could I do it?'
  • Unit Hierarchy: Group
  • Air Force: Eighth Air Force
  • Type Category: Bombardment

People

  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 466th Bomb Group 786th Bomb Squadron
  • Highest Rank: First Lieutenant
  • Role/Job: Pilot

Aircraft

  • Aircraft Type: B-24 Liberator
  • Nicknames: Red Hot Riding Hood
  • Unit: 466th Bomb Group 786th Bomb Squadron

Missions

A B-17 Flying Fortress (serial number 42-97904) nicknamed "Lady Janette" of the 452nd Bomb Group drops bombs over the target. Handwritten caption on reverse: 'Stuttgart 5 Sept 44. 452 BG Mott A/C.'
  • Date: 5 September 1944
  • Date: 18 August 1944
  • Date: 14 August 1944
  • Date: 12 August 1944

Places

Aerial photograph of Attlebridge airfield, looking north, the fuel store and a T2 hangar are in the upper centre, 31 January 1946. Photograph taken by No. 90 Squadron, sortie number RAF/3G/TUD/UK/51. English Heritage (RAF Photography).
  • Site type: Airfield
  • Known as: Attlebridge Arsenal, Station 120

Events

Event Location Date Description

Born

Rushville, IN 46173, USA 10 August 1918

Other

Transit to ETO

Borinquen, Aguadilla, Puerto Rico 10 March 1944 We landed at this field in Puerto Rico and spent the night as this was just an overnight stop. We were restricted to the field. We left the next morning. The plane was working just fine and the crew were in good spirits but with little for the gunners to do with their time.

Other

Transit to the ETO

Hyde Park, Guyana 11 March 1944 Atkinson Field We landed at this field in British Guiana near Georgetown which was on a river on the coast. This was another overnight stop. We left the next morning. This place was hot and we were tired. The flying weather has been very good so far.

Other

Transit to the ETO

Belém, PA, Brazil 12 March 1944 We landed here on 12 March. This was another overnight stop. The ATC kept us busy flying from field to field. We took a shortcut over the jungle. This was our choice. We would dive down and buzz some native villages to watch them run in all directions. We also buzzed a sailboat and a herd of cattle. We were flying low over an area just north of the Amazon River when a large white bird got caught in the #2 engine oil cooler. Belem was just south of the Amazon River and below the Equator. It was hot. The bird was removed and the plane is in good condition. We are starting to get tired as this was our third straight day of flying.

Other

Transit to the ETO

Fortaleza, State of Ceará, Brazil 13 March 1944 This was a short flight (5:30 hours) to Fortaleza which is also in Brazil and south of the Equator. We spent three days here and as usual were restricted to base. I don't know how they did it but Allen, Bob, Miller and Moore rented little horses for riding up in the hills. As far as I know the rest of us stayed on base. This would be our last stop before flying over the ocean. All we wanted to do was to just to loaf and rest up as we had been flying for four straight days.

Other

Transit to the ETO

Dakar, Senegal 16 March 1944 This was our longest flight (12:00 hours), to Dakar on the west coast of Africa. I had to plot our position by the stars and Miller checked it by radio. We flew through many clouds and thunderstorms as we crossed the equator again. We when got close to the point of no return it was time for Allen to cut back to a lean fuel mixture to conserve our fuel supply. We heard that one plane ditched, out of fuel. This flight was mostly at night. We hit Dakar on the head, but my ETA was late. It sure was good to see land! They put us in beds with netting and sprayed for bugs. We only spent one night here. Our flight across the ocean was over, and now we were ready for the desert.

Other

Transit to the ETO

Marrakesh 40000, Morocco 17 March 1944 We flew low over the Sahara to Marrakesh in Morroco. This was the most sand we had ever seen, and a bad place to get lost. We were there for four days. There was a line of mountains just south of Marrakesh with a valley through them to the city. Allen took us through the valley by following all the turns, sometimes we had very sharp turns, turning the plane on it's side as we were as low as possible. This was an exciting experience as Allen and Sebo really had to fly through those mountains. There were many planes here. Some headed to the 8th AF, some to the 15th AF in Italy and others to the far east.

Other

Combat Mission/Crash Landing

55300 Saint-Mihiel, France 5 September 1944 "Our 30th mission was to Karlsruhe on the Rhine River, a large industrial city. We started our bomb run and went through heavy flak where we were hit many times. We were able to complete our bomb run but then had to drop out of formation and try to limp back to France. We crash landed with wheels up in a field near St. Miheil, France. It was a miracle that none of us were seriously hurt, as we had three engines gone and no hydraulics or electrical systems. Allen and Sebo did a good job though, of bringing the plane in and getting it on the ground. The 4th Armored Divisionpicked ups up and it took us about a week to get back to base. We were listed as MIA back at our base. We stayed at three different places during our time in France. We were originally supposed to fly 32 missions, but they let us call it a complete tour after our ordeal on this mission." - James P. Sampson

Died

Tallahassee, FL, USA 10 December 2008 James Philip Sampson Sr., 90, passed away on Wednesday, December 10, 2008. He was a resident of Westminster Oaks Retirement Community. Funeral services will be held at noon EST Friday, December 12, 2008 at St. Stephen Lutheran Church, 2198 N. Meridian Road. Entombment will be at Tallahassee Memory Gardens. Jim was born on a farm in 1918 in Rushville, Indiana and grew-up in Albion, Michigan. During WWII he was a First Lieutenant in the 8th Air Force and served as a navigator on a B-24 bomber in Europe. He received a Distinguished Flying Cross after being shot down over France. After the war, he returned to college and graduated from the University of Illinois in 1950. After practicing as an architect in Madison, Wisconsin, he became a faculty member in Architectural Engineering at the University of Miami until he retired in 1983. He enjoyed spending time with his family, as well as gardening, reading, cooking, and working around the house. He moved to Tallahassee in 1993. He was a kind and caring man who will be missed by all who knew him.

Buried

Tallahassee, FL, USA 13 December 2008 Memory Gardens Cemetery Tallahassee Leon County Florida, USA
Albion, MI 49224, USA 807 Berrion Street

Revisions

Date
Contributor466thHistorian
Changes
Sources

466th BG Archives
Mission list provided by James P. Sampson to Chris Brassfield, circa 2003

Date
Contributor466thHistorian
Changes
Sources

466th BG Archives - "History of Red Hot Riding Hood" by James P. Sampson

Date
Contributor466thHistorian
Changes
Sources

"Attlebridge Arsenal" - Chris Brassfield & Earl Wassom
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSln=Sampson&GSfn=Jame…;

Date
ContributorAAM
Changes
Sources

Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / Unit roster in the book ATTLEBRIDGE ARSENAL by Wassom and Brassfield, page 350

James Philip Sampson: Gallery (4 items)