William M Thorns
Militaryphoto made during visit with B Thorns
On 17 August 1943, Bill Thorns' crew led the first shuttle mission, which was heading for Regensburg, Germany. He was flying in B-17 42-30366 'Fertile Myrtle 3rd'. "Col Curtis LeMay commanded this mission from our plane".
His crew led the 3rd Air Division in same plane as above on Mission 115, second Schweinfurt Mission on 14 October 1943. This mission was led by Col. Archie Old from our plane ("this was my 20th Birthday").
Bill married Dorothy May on August 17th 1946. He says "those milestones never leave you".
DFC, Air Medal (3Oak Leaf Cluster's) Pres. Unit Citation, Europen, African, Middle Eastern Campaign, American Defense.
Connections
See how this entry relates to other items in the archive by exploring the connections below.
Units served with
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
Aircraft
Places
- Site type: Airfield
- Known as: Station 138
Events
Event | Location | Date | Description |
---|---|---|---|
Born |
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | 14 October 1923 | |
Died |
Santa Rosa Beach, FL | 10 May 2020 |
Revisions
As told to me by Bill Thorns at the 8th Air Force Historical Society in Nashville, October 2014.
Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / self