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William M Anderson - Headstone
On 8 Nov 1942, on first mission, B-17F #41-24570 "Panhandle Doggie" 91BG/323BS suffered severe damage on the mission to bomb the German airfield Abbeville/Drucat but plane returned with all crew and was salvaged. He was serving as Pilot on that aircraft. The navigator and bombardier were wounded.
Killed in Action 3 January 1943 in B-17F #42-5084 'Panhandle Doggie II' 91BG/323BS while serving as Pilot. Aircraft received severe damage from flak over the target of St. Nazaire, France and crashed into the sea near Belle Ile-en-Mer, France. His remains have never been recovered.
Service
Units served with
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Group
The 91st Bombardment Group (Heavy) was activated at Harding Field, Louisiana on 15-April-1942 and went to MacDill Field, Florida for the first phase of training from 16-May-1942 to 25-June-1942. The Group was then assigned to 2nd Air Force at Walla...
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Aircraft
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B-17 Flying Fortress
B-17F 41-24570 "Panhandle Dogie" Assigned 323BS/91BG [OR- ] Bangor 10-Sep-42; Bassingbourn 11-Oct-42; damaged on first mission Abbeville 8-Nov-42 limped back to base, and became a Hangar Queen; Salvaged BD 27-Nov-42 10RTD.
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B-17 Flying Fortress
B-17F 42-5084 'Panhandle Dogie II" 91BG/323BS [OR- ] Bassingbourn 14-Dec-42. This is the second aicraft so named by the pilot. Delivered Tulsa 16-Sep-42; New Castle 10-Oct-42; Missing in Action St Nazaire 3-Jan-43 hit by intense flak, crashed off L...
Missions
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8 November 1942
Two Primary (P) targets are the objects of this mission: the German airfield of Drucat at Abbeville, France and the Atclier d'Hellemmes locomotive works at Lille, France. 91BG despatches 15 B-17s to Abbeville and 301BG and 306BG despatch a combined...
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3 January 1943
The U-Boat pens at St. Nazaire, France are once again the target for this mission. This is proving to be a particularly difficult target to destroy due to its massive, reinforced concrete design. It consists of 14 individual pens connected together in...
Associated Place
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Military site : airfield
Now home to a museum all about the aifield and its USAAF residents (http://www.towermuseumbassingbourn.co.uk/) , Bassingbourn opened in 1938 as part of the RAF's pre-war expansion programme. The RAF continued to use it until late in 1942 when its long...
Events
Event |
Location |
Date |
Killed in Action (KIA) |
Belle Île, France |
3 January 1943 |
Killed when aircraft sustained damage from flak over the target and crashed into the sea near Belle Ile-en-Mer, France. His remains were never recovered. The American Battle Monuments Commission (AMBC) does not have any record that his name appears on any Wall of the Missing of any American Cemetery in Europe.
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