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John J Allen

Military

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Assigned to 368BS, 306BG, 8AF USAAF. Reported to 306BG on 29-Apr-44. He flew on Gwynn Boswell crew as co-pilot. When he was detached service with the 1st Scouting Force (364th FG/384th FS), baled out at Neuringe on 3-Feb-45 from P-51 44-13686. POW at Stalag Luft III. Died non Battle (DNB) Jun-45 in Rheims, France.

Awards: DFC, AM (3OLC), POW, WWII Victory, EAME (3 x Battle Stars).

Service

People

  • Gwynn Boswell

    Military | First Lieutenant | Pilot | 306th Bomb Group The Reich Wreckers
    Reported to group on 29 Apr 1944. AM 1OLC, DFC

Units served with

  • 306th Bomb Group The Reich Wreckers

    306th Bomb Group The Reich Wreckers

    Group
    Constituted as 306th Bombardment Group (Heavy) on 28 Jan 1942. Activated on 1 Mar 1942. Trained for combat with B-17's. Moved to England, Aug-Sep 1942, and assigned to Eighth AF Eighth Air Force in September 1942 Station 111 Thurleigh. During combat,...

  • 364th Fighter Group

    364th Fighter Group

    Group
    The 364th Fighter Group flew 342 missions in P-38 Lightnings and P-51 Mustangs from Honington, Suffolk. The missions ranged from escorting bombers and dive-bombing and strafing targets to area patrol missions across a swathe of land that took in France...

  • 1st Scouting Force

    1st Scouting Force

    Squadron

  • 368th Bomb Squadron

    368th Bomb Squadron

    Squadron

  • 383rd Fighter Squadron

    383rd Fighter Squadron

    Squadron

  • 385th Fighter Squadron

    385th Fighter Squadron

    Squadron

Aircraft

  • 44-13686 'Rugged Rebel III' 'Rugged Rebel'

    P-51 Mustang
    Assigned to 384FS, 364FG, 8AF USAAF. Transferred to Scouting Force (Experimental) (SFX), 8AF USAAF. Transferred to 1st Scouting Force, 8AF USAAF. Failed to Return (FTR) 3-Feb-45. Lt John J Allen POW. MACR 12173.

Associated Place

  • Honington

    Military site : airfield
    Honington was in use by Eighth Air Force units for a longer period than any other air base in England. The air base, built in the mid 1930s as part of the RAF's expansion programme had seen plenty of action as an RAF base before it was handed over to...

  • Thurleigh

    Military site : airfield
    Built for RAF use in 1941-42, Thurleigh was initially used by RAF Bomber Command before being handed over to the Eighth Air Force. Its runways and hardstandings were improved, and the B-17s of the 306th Bomb Group began using the base. It was their...

Events

Event Location Date
Born 7 March 1920

Son of John G and Elizabeth [Dahm] Allen.
Based Thurleigh 29 April 1944 – 18 September 1944

Assigned to 368BS, 306BG, 8AF USAAF.
Detached Service (DS) Honington, Bury Saint Edmunds, Suffolk IP31, UK 18 September 1944

Detached service with 1st Scouting Force.
Transferred Honington, Bury Saint Edmunds, Suffolk IP31, UK 22 October 1944

Transferred to 383FS, 8AF USAAF.
Prisoner of War (POW) Zagan, Poland 3 February 1945 – May 1945

Prisoner of War (POW). Stalag Luft III.
Baled out Neuringe, Twist, Germany 3 February 1945

P-51D 44-13686 suffered engine problems and crashed at Neuringe on 3-Feb-45. POW
Died Rheims, France 5 June 1945

Died non Battle (DNB) Rheims, France.
Buried Saint Mary Catholic Cemetery and Mausoleum Evergreen Park, Cook County, IL November 1948

Re-Interred
Saint Mary Catholic Cemetery and Mausoleum
Evergreen Park, Cook County, Illinois
Nationality
American
Nickname
Not yet known
Service numbers
O-750510
Highest rank
First Lieutenant
Role/job
Co-Pilot; Pilot
Awards
  • Air Medal with 3 oak leaf clusters
  • Distinguished Flying Cross
  • Prisoner of War Medal
  • World War II Victory Medal
  • European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with 3 bronze stars

Revisions

Date Contributor Update
17 November 2021 15:42:00 Al_Skiff Changes to biography, awards, events and person associations
Sources

https://www.fold3.com/image/46713130
https://www.fold3.com/image/310762495
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/109582442/john-j-allen
Date Contributor Update
07 September 2016 12:29:04 general ira snapsorter Changes to unit associations and aircraft associations
Sources

Merged with duplicate entry to include details from:
- the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia ;
- MACR 12173 ;
- Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database
Date Contributor Update
04 July 2016 20:39:34 Al_Skiff Changes to biography, awards, events, unit associations and place associations
Sources

http://www.littlefriends.co.uk/search.php?searchString=Allen
Date Contributor Update
27 September 2014 18:16:12 AAM AAM ingest
Sources

306th BG Association Directory, 1 September 1999 Edition, MACR 12173, First Over Germany pg. 266, 306th BGA Collection [Russell Strong index card], NARA, History of the Scouting Forces [Hap Chandler book], / Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / Ted Damick, VIII Fighter Command pilots list / http://www.306bg.org/crewphotos/Crew%20Pictures%20Adam-Rector/Crew%20Pic...

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