Lieutenant Colonel Addison Baker was the Commanding Officer of the 93rd Bomb Group from May 17, 1943. He was killed in action (KIA) over Ploesti during Operation Tidal Wave on 1 August, 1943.

In the summer of 1943, Baker was dispatched to North Africa with the 93rd Bomb Group to take part in Operation Tidal Wave, to bomb the oil refineries at Ploesti. Baker piloted the B-24D Liberator, Hell's Wench, 42-40994, on the Ploesti mission. Upon reaching the target area, the Group Lead Pilot, Col. K.K. Compton, of the 93rd Bomb Group turned at the wrong point and headed for Bucharest ! Baker and several other shocked pilots behind Compton, attempted to warn the element command pilot, but, when Compton failed to respond, Baker broke formation and led the remainder of the men in the 93rd Bomb Group, who wanted to attack their targets, back toward Ploesti.

On approach to the target, Hell's Wench, took two direct flak hits, causing Baker to jettison his bombs as both of his wings were hit, the aircraft began leaking fuel, and became engulfed in flames. At almost the same time, Baker had to break formation and pull up to give his men a last desperate chance to bail out and live. As Col. Baker and his copilot, Major John Jerstad, made an attempt to gain altitude, so that his crew could escape their burning plane by parachute, the aircraft lost speed in the climb, stalled, rolled over, crashed, and exploded in flames, killing everyone aboard. 10 KIA.
1 Aug 1943.

Addison Baker's body was never recovered. He was given a memorial site in Florence American Cemetery and Memorial, Florence, Italy. He was posthumously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his role and sacrifice on the Ploesti mission. 1 Aug 1943.

Service

Events

Event	Location	Date
Born	Chicago, Illinois	1 January 1907
Died	Ploesti	1 August 1943
Killed over Il Concordia Vega Refinery, Ploesti
Buried
Commemorated on the Wall of the Missing, Florence American Cemetery.