DeForest Earl Main
Military
ARowe95
Object Number - UPL 30196 - DeForest E. Main
RWG, Rayburn crew. 381st BG, 534th BS, 8th AF. Shot down 19 April 1944 in B-17 #42-38004 'Ol' Man Tucker'. Mission #94 to the airfield at Eschwege, Germany. MACR 4052. 3 KIA, 6 POW. Wounded in the left side and leg by 20mm shrapnel. After bailing out, he was helped out of a tree by ETTG S/Sgt William Purser who stayed with him until captured by local townspeople. They both escaped capture by the Gestapo after an extremely heated argument between them and a Luftwaffe Major and Colonel. POW Stalag Luft IV and Stalag Luft I.
Detroit, MI
S/Sgt Main became a tool and die maker for Ford Motor Company for many years. He had 4 children, 6 Grandchildren and 10 Great-Grandchildren.
Connections
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Units served with
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
People
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 381st Bomb Group 534th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 34315592
- Highest Rank: Master Sergeant
- Role/Job: Ball Turret Gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 381st Bomb Group 534th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: O-810115
- Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Co-Pilot
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 381st Bomb Group 534th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 13107939
- Highest Rank: Sergeant
- Role/Job: Ball Turret Gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 381st Bomb Group 534th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 0812971
- Highest Rank: First Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Pilot
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 381st Bomb Group 534th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 32213378
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: Tail Gunner
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Nicknames: Ol Man Tucker
- Unit: 381st Bomb Group 534th Bomb Squadron
Missions
- Date: 19 April 1944
Places
- Site type: Airfield
- Site type: Prisoner of war camp
- Known as: Stalag Luft I, Barth, Germany
- Site type: Prisoner of war camp
- Known as: Stalag Luft 4, Gross Tychow, Pomerania
Events
| Event | Location | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Born |
Detroit, MI, USA | 6 April 1919 | |
|
Enlisted |
Detroit, MI, USA | 11 October 1942 | |
|
Based |
25 February 1944 - 19 April 1944 | ||
|
Other Prisoner of War |
Nordhausen, Germany | 20 April 1944 - 11 May 1944 | Civilian Hospital |
|
Other Prisoner of War |
Frankfurt, Germany | 12 May 1944 - 14 May 1944 | Dulag Luft Frankfurt |
|
Other Prisoner of War |
GrossTychowo, Poland | 18 May 1944 - 26 January 1945 | Stalag Luft IV |
|
Other Prisoner of War |
Barth, Germany | 3 February 1945 - 15 May 1945 | Stalag Luft I |
|
Died |
Monroe, MI, USA | 26 September 2000 |
Revisions
Brought in information from duplicate record. Source:
Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / MACR 4052
MACR 4052 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database
