George West
Military | First Lieutenant | Pilot | 401st Bomb Group
Assigned to 612BS, 401BG, 8AF USAAF. Shot down 28-May-44 in B-17 42-31034 'Bonnie Donnie'. Killed in Action (KIA). MACR 5309.
Awards: AM (3OLC), PH
Robert L Andrus
Military
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George E. West Crew 401st BG - 612th BS Back Row L to R: Hugh D. Russel (LWG), Alfred J. Morini (RWG), Michael Lefkin (TG), Thomas B. Montgomery (B) Middle Row L to R: Douglas H. McKinnon (CP), George E. West (P), Lloyd A. Nutter (N) Front Row: ? Stewart (BTG), Robert L. Andrus (R/O), Francis L. Russell (FE) This crew was shot down on their 27th mission, 28 May 1944. West, H. Russel, and Lefkin were KIA, the remainder were captured. Stewart was not part of the crew when they were shot down.
Shot down 28 May 1944 in B-17 42-31034 'Bonnie Donnie. ' Prisoner of War (POW).
POW
Service
People
Units served with
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401st Bomb Group
Group
The 401st Bomb Group flew B-17 Flying Fortresses from Deenethorpe, Northamptonshire, from November 1943 to June 1945. Starting their missions at that time meant the focus was very much on the coming invasion attempt of France planned for the following... -
612th Bomb Squadron
Squadron
Aircraft
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42-102393 Diana Queen Of The Chase
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 27/2/44; Hunter 22/3/44; Grenier 2/4/44; Assigned 612BS/401BG [SC-R] Deenethorpe 16/4/44; 111m, Returned to the USA Bradley 8/6/45; 4168 Base Unit, South Plains, Texas 12/6/45; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal... -
42-107039 Ice Cold Katy
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Tulsa 3/2/44; Grenier 27/2/44; Assigned 612BS/401BG [SC-M] Deenethorpe 23/3/44; Returned to the USA Bradley 7/6/45; 4168 Base Unit, South Plains, Texas 13/6/45; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Kingman 28/11/45... -
42-31034 'Bonnie Donnie'
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Dallas 8/9/43; to Gt Falls with Phil Sweet but force landed Pueblo, CO 10/9/43; Scott 20/10/43; Assigned 612BS/401BG [SC-G] Deenethorpe 8/11/43; Missing in Action Cologne 28/5/44 with George West, Waist gunner: Hugh Russell, Tail gunner: Mike... -
42-31087 'Heaven Can Wait', 'Boche Buster'
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 17/9/43; Gt Falls 28/9/43; Assigned 612BS/401BG [SC-K] Deenethorpe 26/10/43; Missing in Action Politz 7/10/44 with Tom Hill, Wilbur Schmedel, Theo Block, Junius Chadwick, Jim Mullins, Vic Shewbert, Ed Hellenbeck, Buddy Keith, Omer... -
42-31496 Salvo Sadie
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 12/11/43; Kearney 27/11/43; Assigned 612BS/401BG [SC-Q] Deenethorpe 1/2/44; Missing in Action Berlin 21/6/44 with Jack Atherton, Co-pilot: Don Awalt, Navigator: Dick Fitzmaurice, Bombardier: John Whelan, Flight engineer/top turret... -
42-97487 Hangover Haven
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 30/11/43; Kearney 16/12/43; Presque Isle 19/12/43; Assigned 612BS/401BG [SC-C] Deenethorpe 12/1/44; crash landed base 3/10/44, Salvaged 2 SAD. HANGOVER HAVEN.
Missions
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VIII Bomber Command 169
30 December 1943
The port area and oil refineries at Ludwigshaven, Germany are the target for this massive attack of 710 heavy bombers. The despatch includes 12 PFF-equipped B-17s from 482BG, 11 of these are effective on the mission, 3 are damaged, and the bomber... -
8th Air Force 174
4 January 1944
The port area of Kiel, Germany and the railroad marshalling yards at Munster, Germany are the Primary targets of this Mission which is organised as two elements: one going to Kiel and the other to Munster. Roger A. Freeman begins to designate aircraft... -
8th Air Force 212
6 February 1944
German airfields and V-Weapon sites in France are the primary targets of this mission. A combined force total of 642 heavy bombers are depatched from 8th Air Force 1st, 2nd and 3rd Bomb Divisions. The primary targets of 1st Bomb Division were the... -
8th Air Force 218
11 February 1944
This mission is composed of two separate elements. 3rd Bomb Division stands down having sustained massive losses of 29 aircraft on the previous day. ... -
8th Air Force 226 BIG WEEK - DAY 1
20 February 1944
This mission is the opening salvo of the Allied Combined Bomber Offensive known officially as "Operation Argument" but remembered in 8th Air Force History as "BIG WEEK". The immediate strategic objective of this six-day operation is the degradation of... -
8th Air Force 228 BIG WEEK - DAY 2
21 February 1944
Day 2 of BIG WEEK is another maximum effort by 8th Air Force to bomb 6 airfields in Germany as primary targets: Diepholz, Gütersloh, Lippstadt, Werl, Achmer and Handorf. In addition the industrial areas of Brunswick city are included as a primary... -
8th Air Force 235 BIG WEEK - DAY 6
25 February 1944
On this final operation of BIG WEEK, Day 6, a combined force of 754 heavy bombers from 1st, 2nd and 3rd Air Divisions are despatched to bomb the German aircraft industries at Regensburg, Augsburg, Stuttgart and Furth, Germany. Mission Summary follows: ... -
8th Air Force 250
6 March 1944
The industrial areas of Berlin and Genshagen, Germany are the primary targets for this mission. A combined force of 730 heavy bombers are despatched from 1st, 2nd and 3rd Air Divisions. The despatch from 3rd Air Division bombs Targets of Opportunity in... -
8th Air Force 255
11 March 1944
This mission is compsed of two separate elements. The first element is despatched to bomb the railroad marshalling yards at Munster, Germany as the primary target. The attack is made by B-17s from 1st Air Division. 3rd Air Division also sends B-17s to... -
8th Air Force 264
18 March 1944
The German aircraft industries and aie depots are the main objectives of this mission. A combined total of 738 heavy bombers from 1st, 2nd and 3rd Air Divisions are despatched to bomb the German aircraft industries at Oberpfaffenhofen and...
Associated Place
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Deenethorpe
Military site : airfield
Deenethorpe was a base purpose-built for American heavy bombers, with the Class A regulation 2,000 and 1,400-yard runways. All the buildings on site,such as the accommodation and administrative blocks, were temporary. In December 1943, several local... -
Stalag Luft IV
Other location
Events
| Event | Location | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Born | Bath, New York | 20 October 1918 |
| Shot Down/Captured | Krensitz, 04509 Krostitz, Germany | 28 May 1944 |
| POW | 78-220 Tychowo, Poland | 28 May 1944 – 30 May 1945 |
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Stalag Luft IV dates are approximate |
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| Died | Hornell, NY 14843, USA | 16 December 1993 |
| Enlisted | Canisteo, NY, USA | 20 December 1993 |
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Hillside Cemetery • Canisteo, Steuben County, New York, USA |
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Revisions
| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 21 November 2021 22:19:57 | acbernstein1 | Changes to mission associations |
| Sources | ||
| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 03 December 2017 04:15:22 | 466thHistorian | Changes to service number, events, place associations and aircraft associations |
| Sources | ||
http://death-records.mooseroots.com/?launch_filters=%5B%7B%22field%22%3A... |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 26 July 2017 10:54:11 | general ira snapsorter | Changes to biography, events and aircraft associations |
| Sources | ||
Merged with duplicate entry to include details from: |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 27 September 2014 18:23:41 | AAM | AAM ingest |
| Sources | ||
Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / MACR 5309, http://www.401bg.org/Main/History/Members/Details.aspx?ID=1370 |
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