Military
John R. Barcus
Staff Sargent John Raymond Barcus was a waist gunner on the B-24D SN #41-23778 - 'Lady Luck' Assigned to the 66th Bomb Squadron, the 44th Bomb Group, and the 8th Air Force. He flew on the Ploesti raid as part of Lt. Felber's crew, on temporary deployment, TDY, to the 9th Air Force. The B-24 'Lady Luck' and SSgt. Barcus returned safely to Benghazi, Libya. He was was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross medal for his participation in the mission. August 1, 1943.
'Lady Luck' was shot down over Foggia, Italy 16 August, 1943.
Military | Lieutenant Colonel | Pilot | 44th Bomb Group The Flying Eightballs
Assigned to 66BS, 44BG, 8AF USAAF. Took part in Operation Tidal Wave, the raid on Ploesti on 1-Aug-43, flying B-24 Liberator 41-23778 'Lady Luck'. 25 x combat missions. Moved up to Group Operations. ETD.
Awards: DFC, AM (3OLC), WWII Victory, EAME.
Military | Second Lieutenant | B-24D Co-Pilot | 389th Bomb Group
2nd Lt. Ronald Lee Helder was a B-24 pilot in the 8th Air Force, the 389th Bomb Group, and the 564th Bombing Squadron in WWII. He flew as Co-pilot with his friend, Command Pilot Lt. Lloyd H. Hughes, in the B-24D Lt. Helder called, 'Ole Kickapoo',...
Eighth Air Force Bomber Command became the Eighth Air Force on February 1944, it oversaw bombardment of strategic targets in Europe until 1945.
...
Group
The 44th Bombardment Group (Heavy) was activated 15-January-1942 at McDill Field, Florida and equipped with B-24Cs. The Group moved to Barksdale Field, Louisiana and acted as a training unit for the 90th 93rd and 98th Bomb Groups and flew anti...
Squadron
B-24 Liberator
The B-24D Liberator bomber, SN #41-23778 renamed 'Lady Luck' from 'Jenny' - Survived Operation Tidal Wave over Ploesti Romania, August 1, 1943.
...
B-24 Liberator
Assigned to 66BS, transferred to 67BS, transferred to 506BS all with 44BG, 8AF USAAF. Shot down ?-Mar-44.
1 August 1943
Operation TIDAL WAVE. B24D Liberators attack the oil refineries at Ploesti, Romania. The bombers flew low to avoid radar detection and dropped time delayed bombs. Out of the 177 B-24s that took part in the raid 167 managed to attack their targets. 57 B...
Military site : airfield
Shipdham was built in 1941-1942, the first US heavy bomber airfield in the English county of Norfolk. It was a standard design, with T2-type hangars and a domestic site dispersed to the south east. Improvements were carried out to increase the number...
| Event | Location | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Born | Saint Charles, IL, USA | 15 March 1921 |
|
Son of Raymond Merle and Marjorie [McMasters] Barcus. |
||
| Lived in | West Chicago, IL, USA | 1942 |
|
West Chicago, Illinois. |
||
| Enlisted | Chicago, IL | 20 August 1942 |
|
Chicago, Illinois |
||
| Based | Shipdham | 1943 – 1944 |
|
Assigned to 66BS, 44BG, 8AF USAAF. |
||
| Tidal wave survivor | Ploiești, Romania | 1 August 1943 |
|
Flew Ploesti raid on 1-Aug 43 as part of Felber crew, B24 41-23778 'Lady Luck' TDY 9th AF, returned safely to Libya. |
||
| Hospitalised | September 1944 | |
|
Hospitalised, gasoline burns. |
||
| Died | Hines Va Hospital: Leehey David MD, 2100 S 5th Ave # 111L, Hines, IL 60141, USA | 18 February 2006 |
|
Hines VA Hospital, Maywood, IL, USA. |
||
| Buried | North Cemetery, Saint Charles, Kane County, IL | 21 February 2006 |
|
North Cemetery, Saint Charles, Kane County, |
||
| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 22 February 2021 00:41:58 | Kickapoo | Changes to biography |
| Sources | ||
The Great Ground-Air Battle Of 1 August 1943 - James Dugan & Carroll Stewart |
||
| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 22 February 2021 00:37:24 | Kickapoo | Changes to biography |
| Sources | ||
The Great Ground-Air Battle Of 1 August 1, 1943 - James Dugan & Carroll Stewart |
||
| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 26 December 2020 13:52:04 | Al_Skiff | Changes to middlename, service number, biography, awards, events, unit associations and place associations |
| Sources | ||
https://www.fold3.com/image/96177805 |
||
| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 12 February 2020 15:34:16 | general ira snapsorter | Changes to biography |
| Sources | ||
| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 22 March 2015 18:15:35 | Al_Skiff | Changes to biography, awards, events, unit associations, aircraft associations and mission associations |
| Sources | ||
| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 27 September 2014 18:16:34 | AAM | AAM ingest |
| Sources | ||
Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / Ploesti' by Dugan & Stewart |
||
