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Military
Pilot Lt. Royden LeBrecht with the nose art and name of his B-24D Liberator bomber, # 4111761 - 'The Squaw' - formerly named, 'Sleepy', from the 343rd BS, the 98th BG, and the 9th AF. Lt. LeBrecht and 'The Squaw' were both survivors of the Ploesti oil refinery bombing raid. Aug 1, 1943. Lt. LeBrecht returned to the USA for a war bonds tour in 'The Squaw'. It's art work was toned down for the war bond tour by painting clothing on the previously naked, "squaw" maiden. 1943
Captain Royden L Lebrecht, pilot of the famous B-24 #4111761 "The Squaw", pointing to ack-ack holes in the much traveled combat ship. Fort Worth, TX.
Captain Royden L Lebrecht, pilot of the famous B-24 #4111761 "The Squaw", standing next to the plane's insignia. Lebrecht commented, "She's a good old gal" as he winks at the camera.
![Major Joe M. Kilgore [L] and Captain Royden L Lebrecht [R] posing in the pilot's enclosure of B-24 #4111761](https://www.americanairmuseum.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/media/media-14407.jpeg?itok=w3TNDL50)
Major Joe M. Kilgore [L] and Captain Royden L Lebrecht [R] posing in the pilot's enclosure of B-24 #4111761 "The Squaw", a famed Liberator of 71 missions in the Middle East.
Back Row L to R Gen Hoyt S Vanderberg P 1st Lt Royden L Lebrecht, Denison, TX C 1st Lt Clinton H Killian, Roosevelt, Utah N 1st Lt Grover A Zink, Qron, Kansas B 1st Lt Albert J Mickish, Perry, OK Lt Col Robert H Parham Radio T/Sgt JohnR Reilly, Utica, NY Front Row L to R E T/Sgt Harold F Weir, Lapeer, MI Rad Ast S/Sgt Paul E Davidson, Springfield, Mo Ast Eng S/Sgt John A Givens Jr, Louis, Mo Crew Chief M/Sgt Paul T Bashis, Cambridge, Mass Tail S/Sgt John Gunnu, Albany, NY Gunner S/Sgt Adney J Harmon, Sacco, Maine
L to R Capt Royden L LeBrecht, 1LT Albert J. Mickish (L), Perry, OK - bombardier aboard B-24D serial 41-11761 "The Squaw" of the 343rd Bomb Sq, 98th BG. Standing with him is MSGT John R. Dowdy. Taken during a stopover at Fort Worth Army Air Field, part of a two-ship team with "The Blue Streak" visiting the local Consolidated factory on a War Bond tour.
The crew standing and sitting on top of their famous B-24D Liberator, 41-11761, 'The "Squaw",' that successfully flew on 71 combat missions without a casualty. 1944
B-24D 'The Squaw' 41-11761 with pilot Lt. Royden LeBrecht and the 9th AF Pilots War Bond Tour - 1943
Operation Tidal Wave - General Brereton's last Tidal Wave briefing to the flying officers of the 98th Bomb Group. 1943
B-24D - The Squaw. Lt. Royden LeBrecht Pilot and the second, more toned down bikini clad "Squaw" nose art for the plane's war bond tour around America. 1943
Lt. Royden Louis LeBrecht was a B-24D command pilot in the 9th Air Force, the 98th Bomb Group, and the 344th Bomb Squadron. He flew his B-24D, he named, The Squaw, on Operation Tidal Wave, the large mission to destroy the German held oil refineries at Ploesti, Romania. August 1,1943. He was good friends with most of the the pilots flying alongside him in the 344th Bomb Squadron and on Flight One of the 98th Bomb Group's airplanes flying to Ploesti, including, Lt. John Young, Lt. Robert Nespor, KIA, killed on takeoff to Ploesti, and Pilot Sam Neeley, KIA, killed over the target at Ploesti, all pilots in the 98th Bomb Group's 344th Bombardment Squadron.
Lt. LeBrecht's assigned bomber was the B-24D, SN 41-11761, that he named, The Squaw. On the Ploesti mission, LeBrecht flew in the right side of the first line of the line abreast, "V" formation of the 98th Bomb Group's Flight One. After bombing his target at Ploesti and escaping south from the Ploesti refinery area with very little damage to his plane, 'The Squaw', Lt. LeBrecht decided to stay with and provide cover for his friends in the smoking, shot up B-24 stragglers, and joined up with Col. John Kane and his damaged B-24D, Hail Columbia, Lt. "Gib" Hadley, who was KIA, killed later, trying to ditch his shot up B-24D, Hadley's Harem, just off of the Turkish coast. They had all diverted and followed John Kane's, Hail Columbia, as his navigator, Norman, "The Baron", Whalen from set a course across Turkey to the British airfield at Nicosia, Cyprus, as did many other crippled B-24 bombers escaping Ploesti.
After the mission, Lt. LeBrecht and his crew returned to USA for war bonds tour in his airplane, 41-11761, The Squaw, with Lt. John S.Young and his crew, who flew the B-24D, The Blue Streak, and Major Walter Stewart and his crew, flying the B-24, Bomerang, back to Fort Worth, Texas, for their war bond tour. 1944
Military | First Lieutenant | B-24 Command Pilot | 98th Bomb Group
2nd Lt. Herbert W. Arens was a B-24D command pilot in the 9th Air Force, the 98th Bomb Group, and the 344th Bomb Squadron. He flew the B-24D Liberator bomber, 41-11803, named, Rosie Wrecked 'Em, on the mission to destroy the oil refineries at Ploesti,...
Military | Staff Sergeant | Gunner | 98th Bomb Group
Crew member B-24D, 41-11761, The Squaw, flew on Operation Tidal Wave 1-Aug-43, diverted to Cypress. Returned to base ar Benghazi, Libya. RTB. 3-Aug-43. Flew to Fort Worth, Texas, USA for a war bond tour with, The Squaw.
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Military | Staff Sergeant | Tail Gunner | 98th Bomb Group
Crew member on the B-24D, 41-11761, The Squaw. Flew on the 1-Aug-43 Ploesti mission. Damaged by flak and diverted to Cyprus. Returned to base at Benghazi, Libya 3-Aug-43. Flew to Fort Worth, Texas for a war bond tour with, The Squaw. 1944
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Military | First Lieutenant | B-24D Command Pilot | 98th Bomb Group
Gilbert Ben "Gib" Hadley was born and raised in Arkansas City, Kansas. He was the son of Perry Arthur Hadley and Beulah Pearl Bacastow, born 6-May-21. Kansas was his home and enlistment state, and Cowley County was included within the archival record.
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Military | Staff Sergeant | Gunner | 98th Bomb Group
Crew member of the B-24D, 41-11761, The Squaw, that flew on the 1-Aug-43 Ploesti bombing mission. Damaged over Ploesti by flak, they diverted to Cypress. Returned to base at Benghazi, Libya 3-Aug-43. Flew to Fort Worth, TX, USA for war bonds tour with...
Military | Second Lieutenant | B-24D Co-Pilot | 389th Bomb Group
2nd Lt. Ronald Lee Helder was a B-24 pilot in the 8th Air Force, the 389th Bomb Group, and the 564th Bombing Squadron in WWII. He flew as Co-pilot with his friend, Command Pilot Lt. Lloyd H. Hughes, in the B-24D Lt. Helder called, Ole Kickapoo,...
Military | Second Lieutenant | B-24 Command Pilot | 389th Bomb Group
Lloyd Herbert Hughes Jr., better known to his friends, as "Pete," flew his fifth mission, as pilot of a B-24D Liberator bomber in an attack against the Axis oil refineries in Ploesti, Romania. He was killed August 1, 1943 when his plane was severely...
Military | Brigadier General | B-24 Command Pilot - Commanding Officer 44th Bomb Group | 44th Bomb Group The Flying Eightballs
Col. Leon Johnson, the commander of the 44th Bomb Group from the 8th Air Force in Britain provided superior leadership in planning and training his pilots from the 8th Air force from the U.K. to employ very low altitude flying, before and during...
Military | Colonel | B-24 Bomb Group Commanding Officer / B-24 Command Pilot | 98th Bomb Group
John Riley Kane was a colonel in the United States Army Air Corps and, later, in the United States Air Force. He received the U.S. military's highest decoration, the Congressional Medal of Honor, in World War II, for his leadership, courage, and...
Military | First Lieutenant | B-24 Co-pilot | 98th Bomb Group
First Lt. Clinton Killian was First Lt. Royden LeBrecht's co-pilot on their B-24D, The Squaw. He flew on the 1-Aug-43 mission to Ploesti, Romania, and diverted to Cyprus after flying cover for the damaged B-24s, Hail Columbia, The Sandman, and Hadley...
Group
The 98th trained for bombardment missions with B-24 Liberators during the first half of 1942.
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Squadron
The 344th Bombing Squadron was first activated at MacDill Field, Florida as one of the original three squadrons assigned to the 98th Bombardment Group. The 344th soon moved to Barksdale Field, Louisiana, where it began to train as a Consolidated B-24...
B-24 Liberator
The B-24D Liberator bomber, named, The Sandman, was named, and flown, by Lt. Robert Sternfels and his co-pilot, Lt. Barney Jackson, in the 9th Air Force, the 98th Bomb Group, and the 345th Bomb Squadron, on Operation Tidal Wave, the famous mission to...
B-24 Liberator
- The B-24D, 41-24198, in the 9th Air Force, the 98th Bomb Group, and the 344th Bomb Squadron, was one of 2 B-24Ds in the MTO based at Benghazi, Libya, with identical nose art pictures, and both named, The Vulgar Virgin, this one, 41-24198, flown...
B-24 Liberator
The B-24D, named, Hadley's Harem, was Lt. Gilbert Hadley's personal airplane and the one he flew, with his CoPilot, Lt. James Lindsey, on the mission to destroy Hitler's oil refineries at Ploesti, Romania. As Hadley was approaching his target refinery,...
B-24 Liberator
The B-24D Liberator, Raunchy, 41-11819, was in the 344th Bomb Squadron, the 98th Bomb Group, and the 9th Air Force, based at Benghazi, Libya, North Africa, in early 1943.
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B-24 Liberator
The B-24D Liberator bomber, 41-11761, was first named, Sleepy, by the men in the 8th Air Force and the 93rd Bomb Group in the U.K. It was, later, renamed, The Squaw, by it's Command Pilot, Lt. Royden LeBrecht, after being transferred to the 9th Air...
B-24 Liberator
The B-24D, Hail Columbia, 41-11825, was assigned to the 9th Air Force, the 98th Bomb Group, and the 344th Bombing Squadron. It was first assigned to the 344th Squadron's CO, Col. John R. Kane's, personal aircraft until Kane became the 98th Bomb Group's...
B-24 Liberator
The B-24D Liberator, 41-11768, named, Kickapoo, was Lt. John S. Young's regularly assigned B-24D, after his 98th Bombardment Group moved out of Egypt, to the air bases at Benghazi, Libya. John Young was from Dallas, Texas, like so many of the men...
B-24 Liberator
The B-24D, 42-40753, was a Consolidated B-24D bomber from the 389th Bombardment Group, of the 8th Air Force, and the 564th Bomb Squadron from England. It's Command Pilot on Operation Tidal Wave, was 2nd Lt. Lloyd Hughes, and his crew. They flew on...
1 August 1943
Operation TIDAL WAVE. B-24D Liberators attack the oil refineries at Ploesti, Romania. The bombers flew low to avoid radar detection and dropped time delayed bombs. Out of the 177 B-24s that took part in the raid 167 managed to attack their targets. 57...
| Event | Location | Date |
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| Born | Denison, TX, USA | 21 April 1919 |
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21-Apr-19 Royden Louis Lebrecht born in Denison, Texas. He is son of Louis H. and Myrtle Azola Walton Lebrecht. [Source: City of Denison birth records]Dennison, Texas, USA. |
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| Enlisted | Dallas, TX | 10 November 1941 |
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Dallas, Texas |
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| Assigned | Benghazi, Libya | 1943 |
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343rd Bomb Squadron, 98th Bomb Group, 9th Air Force. |
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| Survived Ploesti | Ploiești, Romania | 1 August 1943 |
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Pilot B-24 41-11761 'The Squaw' flew on the 1st Aug 43 Ploesti raid, diverted to Cypress. |
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| War Bonds Tour | 1944 | |
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Returned to Fort Worth, TX, USA for war bonds tour with A/C. |
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| Died | Tucson, AZ | 28 July 2003 |
| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 17 January 2022 14:49:47 | decwriter | Changes to service number, biography and awards |
| Sources | ||
Corrected AM to reflect AM with six Oak Leaf Clusters per NARA files. Removed UNSM and added ADSM, ACM based on date of entry. He earned at least one bronze service star on the EAME Campaign Medal. Corrected spelling in bio entry. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 03 September 2021 20:34:12 | Kickapoo | Changes to biography |
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Punctuation. - Kickapoo |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 16 May 2021 00:03:44 | Kickapoo | Changes to biography |
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Best Web - B-24 - 'Bomerang' |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 06 May 2021 10:17:00 | Kickapoo | Changes to biography |
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Best Web - B-24 - 'Bomerang' |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 06 May 2021 04:57:47 | Kickapoo | Changes to biography |
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Best Web - B-24 - 41-11761 |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 06 May 2021 04:29:41 | Kickapoo | Changes to biography |
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Best Web - B-24 - 41-11761 |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 27 April 2021 14:09:50 | Al_Skiff | Changes to middlename, service number, biography and events |
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https://www.fold3.com/image/624758697 |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 26 February 2021 00:29:30 | Kickapoo | Changes to biography, events and person associations |
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Grayson County Texas - GenWeb Family - LeBrecht Family Chronology |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 24 October 2020 09:48:49 | Kickapoo | Changes to role |
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Ploesti -- James Dugan & Carroll Stewart |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 24 October 2020 09:23:03 | Kickapoo | Changes to person associations |
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Ploesti -- James Dugan & Carroll Stewart |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 24 October 2020 09:18:34 | Kickapoo | Changes to aircraft associations |
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Ploesti -- James Dugan & Carroll Stewart |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 24 October 2020 08:18:16 | Kickapoo | Changes to nickname, biography, awards and events |
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Black Sunday - Michael Hill |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 24 October 2020 07:05:12 | Kickapoo | Changes to role, biography, person associations, unit associations, place associations and aircraft associations |
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Black Sunday - Michael Hill |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 24 October 2020 06:46:33 | Kickapoo | Changes to biography |
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Black Sunday - Michael Hill |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 31 March 2015 18:56:01 | Al_Skiff | Changes to events and media associations |
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USAAF Photo. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 31 March 2015 16:30:53 | Al_Skiff | Changes to aircraft associations |
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USAAF Photo. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 31 March 2015 16:06:01 | Al_Skiff | Changes to events |
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USAAF Photo. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 31 March 2015 16:03:52 | Al_Skiff | Created entry with surname, middlename, firstname, nationality, highest rank, role, biography, events, unit associations, aircraft associations, mission associations and media associations |
| Sources | ||
USAAF Photo. |
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