Merlin Anson Arnold | American Air Museum in Britain

Lt. Merlin Arnold of the 353rd FG/351st FS receiving an award during a medal giving ceremony. Arnold flew P-51D "Tampa Tramp" aircraft code YJ-I. Arnold was killed bailing out of his plane when he hit the ship.

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Tablets of the Missing.

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Assigned to 504FS, 339FG, 8AF USAAF. Transferred to 351FS, 353FG, 8AF USAAF. Baled out over English Channel, struck tailplane, chute did not open. 30-Mar-45. Killed in Action (KIA)

Awards: AM (5OLC), PH.

Service

People

Leonard Arnold

Military | First Lieutenant | Ordnance and Armament Officer | 353rd Fighter Group
Assigned to 351FS, 353FG, 8AF USAAF. Ordnance and Armament Officer between Nov-44 and Jan-45. Awards: WWII Victory, EAME.
Thomas Brock

Military | First Lieutenant | Fighter pilot | 339th Fighter Group
Assigned to 505FS, 339FG, 8AF USAAF. Transferred to 351FS, 353FG, 8AF USAAF. Failed to Return (FTR) strafing mission to Achmer A/D. Whilst strafing airdrome, hit in coolant system by return fire, bellied in Hopsten. Initially reported as MIA on 21-Mar...
Henry Carbonneau

Military | First Lieutenant | Fighter pilot | 353rd Fighter Group
Flew with the 351st Fighter Squadron/353rd Fighter Group based at Raydon, Suffolk, England from 28-May-44 until Nov-44. On 8-Jun-44 Carbonneau shot down an Me109 for his only aerial victory. Awards: WWII Victory, EAME.
Arthur Carroll

Military | Colonel | Fighter pilot | 353rd Fighter Group
Assigned to 359FS, 356FG, 8AF USAAF. Transferred to 555FTS, 496FTG, 8AF USAAF. Transferred to 351FS, 353FG, 8AF USAAF. Transferred to HQ Sqn, 353FG, 8AF USAAF. Returned to 351FS, 353FG, 8AF USAAF. Credited with 2 x He 111, 1 x Fw 190. Ended Tour of...
Harold Chase

Military | Captain | Fighter pilot | 353rd Fighter Group
Assigned to 351FS, 353FG, 8AF USAAF. Credited with 2 x kills, 1 x damaged [Air]. Credited with 4 x destroyed, 1 x damaged [Ground]. Ended Tour of Duty (ETD). Awards: AM, WWII Victory, EAME.
Gordon Compton

Military | Colonel | Fighter pilot | 353rd Fighter Group
Assigned to 351FS, 353FG, 8AF USAAF. Became squadron C/O after Lt Col Frederick H Lefebre. Compton was a squadron ace with 5 x kills, including the first of two ME262 aerial victories downed on 22 Feb 45 and a second one on 10-Apr-45. Made an emergency...
Bruce Eddy

Military | Flight Officer | Fighter pilot | 353rd Fighter Group
Assigned to 351FS, 353FG, 8AF USAAF. Failed to Return (FTR) escort to Achmer A/D Germany in P-51D 'Lil Boston Bull' 44-14569. Thought KIA crashed near Krefeld on 21-Mar-45, but later liberated Prisoner of War (POW). MACR 13955. ...
James Frye

Military | First Lieutenant | Fighter pilot | 353rd Fighter Group
On 15 Sept 1943, Frye undershot runway on landing on training flight to Ford at Susses in P-47 #42-8503, RTD. ...
Robert Hahn

Military | First Lieutenant | Fighter pilot | 353rd Fighter Group
Assigned to 351, 353FG, 8AF USAAF. Credited with 1 kill, 4 x destroyed and 1 x damaged on the ground. Ended Tour of Duty (ETD). Awards: WWII Victory, EAME.
Lloyd Hally

Military | Captain | Fighter pilot | 353rd Fighter Group
Assigned to 351FS, 353FG, 8AF USAAF. Failed to Return (FTR) strafing mission Nijmegen in P-47 'Angel of Mercy' 42-22523 last seen pursuing a Fw190 down through the overcast over Arnhem. Shot down 21-Sep-44 Killed in Action (KIA). MACR 9003. ...

Units served with

339th Fighter Group

Group
In the years before deployment to the UK, the Group had been designated as a Bombardment Group (Dive) and trained in A-24 and A-25 dive-bombers and P-39 Airacobras. When, in April 1944, they joined the Eighth Air Force in Britain though, the pilots...
353rd Fighter Group

Group
The 353rd Fighter Group was assigned to the Eighth Air Force on 7 June 1943. The group flew P-47 Thunderbolts, and from October 1944, P-51 Mustangs, as escorts for bombing missions across occupied Europe and to strafe targets on the ground. Tactical...
351st Fighter Squadron

Squadron
504th Fighter Squadron

Squadron

Aircraft

44-14732 'Tampa Tampa' 'Bronx Bum'

P-51 Mustang
Assigned to 351FS, 353FG, 8AF USAAF. Personal aircraft of 1st Lt Merlin A Arnold. Failed to Return (FTR) bomber escort to Berlin, A/C abandoned after coolant failure pilot F/O Jerry M Campbell seen to bale out safely over tail and open chute in the...
44-14887

P-51 Mustang
Assigned to 351FS, 353FG, 8AF USAAF. Personal aircraft of 1st Lt Merlin A Arnold. Failed to Return (FTR) Germany, hit by flak and crashed into ground on strafing pass on German airfield 21-Mar-45 2nd Lt June B Stallings KIA. MACR 15905. ...

Missions

8th Air Force 918

30 March 1945

Associated Place

Fowlmere

Military site : airfield
Just as nearby Duxford was known as the 'Duck pond' by American airmen, so Fowlmere was known as 'the Hen Puddle' because of the wet conditions that pervaded the bases during the winter of 1943-1944. The 339th Fighter Group had no choice but to persist...
Raydon

Military site : airfield
Although never used as such, Raydon was built during 1942-43 as an Eighth Air Force bomber base, with three concrete runways, 50 loop and one pan hardstandings, and two dispersed T2 hangars. Initially on loan to the Ninth Air Force, it was first...

Events

Event	Location	Date
Born	Arcadia, FL	2 September 1923
Son of V A Arnold.
Lived in	Tampa, FL, USA	1941
Enlisted	Miami Beach, FL, USA	6 February 1943
Miami Beach, Florida
Assigned	Raydon, Ipswich IP7, UK	28 September 1944 – 2 October 1944
Assigned to 504FS, 339FG, 8AF USAAF.
Transferred	Fowlmere, Royston SG8, UK	2 October 1944 – 30 March 1945
Transferred to 351FS, 353FG, 8AF USAAF.
Promotion	Fowlmere, Royston SG8, UK	21 December 1944
Promoted to 1st Lieutenant.
Killed in Action (KIA)	English Channel	30 March 1945
Killed in Action (KIA). Lost in English Channel.
Buried		1946
Tablets of the missing.

Date	Contributor	Update
24 April 2021 17:52:50	Al_Skiff	Changes to middlename, biography and events
Sources
https://www.fold3.com/image/607532445 https://www.fold3.com/image/310762501 https://www.abmc.gov/decedent-search/arnold%3Dmerlin https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/56287431/merlin-a-arnold
Date	Contributor	Update
16 March 2017 20:28:34	dwgdallas	Changes to media associations
Sources
From the Personal collection of Lt. Billy J. Murray
Date	Contributor	Update
28 February 2017 22:11:28	dwgdallas	Changes to role and person associations
Sources
From the personal Collection of Lt. Billy J. Murray
Date	Contributor	Update
13 February 2017 18:50:41	dwgdallas	Changes to media associations
Sources
personal effects of Lt. Billy J. Murray 353rd FG/ 351st FS
Date	Contributor	Update
07 September 2016 16:59:51	general ira snapsorter	Changes to biography
Sources
Merged with duplicate entry to include details from: - the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia ; - Unit History
Date	Contributor	Update
27 July 2016 09:15:34	Al_Skiff	Changes to service number, highest rank, role, biography, awards, events, unit associations, place associations and aircraft associations
Sources
http://www.littlefriends.co.uk/search.php?searchString=Arnold&Submit=Search https://www.fold3.com/page/529898686_merlin_a%20arnold/details/ https://www.fold3.com/page/84095536_merlin_a%20arnold/details/ http://www.dpaa.mil/Portals/85/Documents/WWIIAccounting/army_air_force.html
Date	Contributor	Update
27 September 2014 18:20:05	AAM	AAM ingest
Sources
Ted Damick, VIII Fighter Command pilots list