Willard G Spangler

Military
media-33359.jpeg UPL 33359 Second Lieutenant Willard G. Spangler , Co-Pilot, 388th Bomb Group Charles D Taylor collection

"Iowans of the Mighty Eighth", Chapter 22 "Biographies", by Charles D Taylor.

Object Number - UPL 33359 - Second Lieutenant Willard G. Spangler , Co-Pilot, 388th Bomb Group

Prisoner of War (POW) Shot down by flak and crashed near Pierrelay in B-17 Fourth Term 42-97171

He was manager of a telephone company before entering the AAF in February 1943, trained as a pilot and joined the Group at Knettishall in April 1944. On his 13th mission August 2nd the plane took several hits and he was knocked out. When he came to he discovered that the rest of the crew had bailed out except the bombardier who was trapped. He managed to land the plane, was taken prisoner and sent to Stalag Luft 111. At the camp they got very little food - Red Cross parcels were not distributed - and when released he weighed just 96 pounds.

He was afterwards Postmaster at Everly for 30 years.



DFC; Air Medal and cluster

Connections

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Units served with

The insignia of the 388th Bomb Group.
  • Unit Hierarchy: Group
  • Air Force: Eighth Air Force
  • Type Category: Bombardment

People

  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 388th Bomb Group 563rd Bomb Squadron
  • Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
  • Role/Job: Navigator

Aircraft

  • Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
  • Nicknames: 4th Term
  • Unit: 388th Bomb Group 563rd Bomb Squadron

Places

  • Site type: Prisoner of war camp
  • Known as: Stalag Luft III, Sagan, Germany

Events

Event Location Date Description

Born

Big Cabin, Oklahoma, USA

Other

Prisoner of War (POW)

68-100 Zagan, Poland 2 August 1944
Everly, IA 51338, USA

Revisions

Date
ContributorHelen
Changes
Sources

Iowans of the Mighty Eighth

Date
Changes
Sources

"Iowans of the Mighty Eighth", Chapter 22 "Biographies", by Charles D Taylor.

Date
ContributorAAM
Changes
Sources

Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / MACR 7745 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database

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