Military
Staff Sgt. Alan Magee, of Plainfield New Jersey
Jun-42 Assigned as a Ball Turret Gunner with the 303BG/360BS at Alamogordo Field, Alamogordo, New Mexico. 303BG records to do not indicate that we was permanently assigned to a crew and do not specify when he arrived in the UK.
3-Jan-43 Shot down while serving as Ball Turret Gunner on B-17F 41-24620 "Snap! Crackle! Pop!", 303BG/360BS while on a mission to bomb the U-Boat pens at Lorient, France. he was wounded in his Ball Turret and discovered that his chest pack had a large hole in the middle. He made his way to the bomb bay waiting for T/Sgt Alfred M. Union (R) to bail out. The B-17 exploded before he could bail out and he was tossed out unconscious from the B-17 without a parachute. He fell over 20,000 feet and crashed onto the glass roof of the St. Nazaire railroad station and tangled in the steel girders. He was badly wounded. His arm was nearly torn off and had badly damaged teeth, legs, knees and ankles. Was cut down from the roof by German soldiers. He was well treated by German doctors in a series of hospitals and at his POW camp. After his rescue in St. Nazaire, and his miraculous survival, he stated: "I don't know how I got there, but here I am, thanks to God. See the Alan Magee Story "20,000 Feet Without a Chute". http://www.303rdbg.com/magee.html
Participated in 7 Operations
Air Medal, Purple Heart, Prisoner of War medal.
Group
The 303rd Bombardment Group (Heavy) was activated on 3-Feb-1942 at Pendleton Field, Oregon. They assembled at Gowen Field, Idaho on 11-February 1942 where it conducted flight training until 12-Jun-1942. The Group then moved to Alamogordo Field, New...
Squadron
B-17 Flying Fortress
Assigned 360BS/303BG [PU-H] Bangor 14/10/42; Molesworth 16/10/42; on training flight with Arthur Adams, Co-pilot: Gene Witterstetter, Navigator: Glen Herrington, Bombardier: Mike Libonatti, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Lew Hart, Radio Operator:...
B-17 Flying Fortress
B-17F #41-24585 "Wulfe-Hound" was assigned 360BS/303BG [PU-B] Bangor 14-Oct-42; Molesworth 16-Oct-42; Missing in Action Rouen-Sotteville 12-Dec-42 sustained damage from enemy aircraft, force landed in a field in France. Was removed and repaired by the...
B-17 Flying Fortress
B-17F 41-24620 'Snap, Crackle, Pop' assigned 360BS/303BG [PU-D] Bangor 14-Sep-42; Molesworth 16-Oct-42; was one of the first group of 40 B-17s deployed to England by the USAAF 8th Air Force. Plane was named by its original pilot, then-Lt. Jacob Wayne...
B-17 Flying Fortress
B-17F 42-2967 "Shak Hak" was Assigned 360BS/303BG [PU-G] Bangor 18-Sep-42; Molesworth 16-Oct-42.
...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Assigned 360BS/303BG [PU-G] Presque Is 27/11/42; Molesworth 13/12/42; Returned to the USA 2/7/44; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Arledge 22/11/44. IZA VAILABLE.
17 November 1942
The U-Boat pens at St. Nazaire, France are the Primary (P) target for a combined force of 49 B-17s despatched from 91BG (20), 303BG (16) and 306BG (13). Another element of 14 B-24s despatched from 93BG also joins the bombing force on St. Nazaire. The...
18 November 1942
The U-Boat pens at Lorient and La Pallice, France are the Primary (P) targets for this mission. However, those at St. Nazaire, France are attacked by 21 B-17s of 303BG when they are mistaken for those of Lorient. The force attacking Lorient is composed...
22 November 1942
The U-Boat pens at Lorient, France are the Primary (P) target of this mission. A combined force of 68 B-17s despatched from 91BG (18), 303BG (18) 305BG (23) and 306BG (9) against the target but a 10/10 could cover prevents all but 11 from 303BG from...
6 December 1942
The German airfield of Drucat at Abbeville, France is the primary target for 19 B-24s despatched from 44th Bomb Group but are recalled. One squadron of 6 does not hear the recall and proceeds to the target, 1 B-24 MIA.
...
20 December 1942
The German Air Depot at Romilly-sur-Seine, France is the Primary (P) target for a combined force of 80 B-17s despatched by 91BG (17), 303BG (21); 305BG (23) and 306BG (19). 60 B-17 are effective on the target, but 7 are MIA and 1 is DBR.
...
30 December 1942
The U-Boat pens at Lorient, France are the target for this mission. A combined force of 77 B-17s are despatched by 91BG (19); 303BG (16); 305BG (13) and 306BG (18). Only 40 are effective on the target. All but 1 B-17 from the 18 despatched by 306BG is...
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...
Military site : airfield
Molesworth was one of the early stations used by the Eighth Air Force in the UK, first occupied by the 15th Bomb Squadron’s Douglas Bostons in June 1942. Built in 1940 and extended and improved in 1942, Molesworth is most associated with the 303rd...
| Event | Location | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Born | Plainfield, New Jersey | 13 January 1919 |
| Assigned to Unit | Alamogordo, NM 88310, USA | July 1942 |
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Assigned as an Aerial Gunner with the 303BG/360BS at Amalogordo Field, Alamogordo, New Mexico. |
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| Mission #1, SSGT Alan E. Magee, w/B-17F 42-2967, 303BG/360BS | Saint-Nazaire, France | 17 November 1942 |
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Served as Ball Turret Gunner on B-17F 42-2967 "Shak Hak", 303BG/360BS on a mission to bomb the U-Boat pens at St. Nazaire, France. RTB OK. |
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| Mission #2, SSGT Alan E. Magee, w/B-17F 42-2967, 303BG/360BS | 18 November 1942 | |
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Served as Ball Turret Gunner on B-17F 42-2967 "Shak Hak", 303BG/360BS on a mission to bomb the U-Boat pens at St. Nazaire, France. RTB OK. |
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| Mission #3, SSGT Alan E. Magee, w/B-17F 41-24602, 303BG/360BS | 22 November 1942 | |
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Served as Left Waist Gunner on B-17F 41-24602 "Yardbird II", 303BG/360BS on a mission to bomb the U-Boat pens at Lorient, France. RTB OK. |
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| Mission #4, SSGT Alan E. Magee, w/B-17F 41-24585, 303BG/360BS | Lille, France | 6 December 1942 |
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Served as Ball Turret Gunner on B-17F 41-24585 "Wulf Hund", 303BG/360BS on a mission to bomb the carriage and wagon works at Lille, France. RTB OK. |
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| Mission #5, SSGT Alan E. Magee, w/B-17F 41-24602, 303BG/360BS | Romilly-sur-Seine, France | 20 December 1942 |
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Served as Left Waist Gunner on B-17F 41-24602 "Yardbird II", 303BG/360BS on a mission to bomb the German air depot at Romilly-sur-Seine, France. RTB OK. |
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| Mission #6, SSGT Alan E. Magee, w/B-17 42-2973, 303BG/360BS | Lorient, France | 30 December 1942 |
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Served as Ball Turret Gunner on B-17F 42-2973 "Iza Vailable", 303BG/360BS on a mission to bomb the U-Boat pens at Lorient, France. RTB OK. |
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| Mission #7, SSGT Alan E. Magee, w/B-17 41-24620, 303BG/360BS WIA/POW | Lorient, France | 3 January 1943 |
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Served as Ball Turret Gunner on B-17F 41-24620 "Snap! Crackle! Pop!", 303BG/360BS on a mission to bomb the U-Boat pens at Lorient, France. The aircraft was shot down and crashed but although serious;y wounded he managed to bail out and was captured as a Prisoner of War (POW) |
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| Prisoner of War (POW) | Krems an der Donau, Austria | 3 January 1943 – 3 July 1945 |
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Held at Stalag 17B, Braunau-Gneikendorf (near Krems), Austria. Recovered from his wounds while interred as a POW. Officially Returned to Military Control (RMC) 3-Jul-45. |
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| Buried | Grape Creek, Texas, USA | 2003 |
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Pioneer Memorial Park |
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| Died | San Angelo, Texas, USA | 20 December 2003 |
| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 21 March 2020 17:48:12 | jmoore43 | Changes to middlename |
| Sources | ||
Added his middle name per Find-a-grave Memorial ID 33587420. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 03 January 2020 21:54:06 | jmoore43 | Changes to events |
| Sources | ||
Added birth, death & burial events per info for Find-a-grave MEMORIAL ID 33587420. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 03 January 2020 21:43:04 | jmoore43 | Changes to events |
| Sources | ||
Correctd typos in the event descriptions. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 03 January 2020 21:36:57 | jmoore43 | Changes to biography |
| Sources | ||
Corrected the mis-spelling of "U-Boat" in the "Summary biography". |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 13 February 2016 21:03:22 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to biography |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 13-Feb-2016. Added loss details and made a connecting link to his story http://www.303rdbg.com/magee.html |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 27 January 2016 18:19:06 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to biography |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 27-Jan-2016. Correcting typo in Summary Biography. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 26 January 2016 23:00:30 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to events |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 26-Jan-2016. Added Prisoner of War event per National Archives & Records Administration (NARA) WWII POW databse. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 26 January 2016 22:55:49 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to events |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 26-Jan-2016. Added Mission #7 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian, Mission Report of 3-Jan-43: http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/009.pdf |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 26 January 2016 22:51:21 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to events |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 26-Jan-2016. Added Mission #6 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian, Mission Report of 30-Dec-42: http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/008.pdf |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 26 January 2016 22:48:20 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to events |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 26-Jan-2016. Added Mission #5 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian, Mission Report of 20-Dec-42: http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/007.pdf |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 26 January 2016 22:44:14 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to events |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 26-Jan-2016. Added Mission #4 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian, Mission Reoprt of 6-Dec-42: http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/005.pdf |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 26 January 2016 22:41:03 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to events |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 26-Jan-2016. Added Mission #3 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian, Mission Reoprt of 22-Nov-42: http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/003.pdf |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 26 January 2016 22:38:15 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to events |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 26-Jan-2016. Added Mission #2 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian, Mission Reoprt of 18-Nov-42: http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/002.pdf |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 26 January 2016 22:37:04 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to events |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 26-Jan-2016. Added Mission #1 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian, Mission REoprt of 17-Nov-42: http://www.303rdbg.com/missionreports/001.pdf |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 26 January 2016 22:31:48 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to events |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 26-Jan-2016. Added Assigned to Unit event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian, Paul F. Flickenger crew page: http://www.303rdbg.com/c-360-flickenger.html |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 26 January 2016 22:29:10 | Lee8thbuff | Created entry with surname, middlename, firstname, nationality, service number, highest rank, role, biography, unit associations, place associations, aircraft associations and mission associations |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 26-Jan-2016. Added New Person entry per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, Historian, Paul F. Flickenger crew page: http://www.303rdbg.com/c-360-flickenger.html |
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