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Military
2nd Lt Emil Smetana, 401BG.
Ronald R. Rohner Crew 401st Bomb Group Standing L to R: Ray Surowski (B),, John Morreale (R/O),, Homer Arbogast, Cliff Barker (LWG). Kenneth Dickerson (BTG), Lowel Reif.(RWG) Kneeling L to R: Stanley Johnson (N), Emil Smetana (B), Ronald Rohner (P), Frank Leonard (CP).
2nd Lt Emil Smetana, 401BG.
Assigned to 612BS, 401BG, 8AF USAAF. Shot down during bombing mission over Brunswick, Germany 30-Jan-44 in B-17 42-37856 'Fancy Nancy III'. Killed in Action (KIA). MACR 2876
Awards: AM, PH.
Military | Second Lieutenant | Pilot | 401st Bomb Group
Son of Walter and Arlene Rohner; brother of Kathleen. Enlisted in the US Army, National Guard, on March 3, 1941 at Camp Flint in Auburn, California. He was attending Placer Junior College at the time but withdrew when the Guard became an active part of...
Group
The 401st Bomb Group flew B-17 Flying Fortresses from Deenethorpe, Northamptonshire, from November 1943 to June 1945. Starting their missions at that time meant the focus was very much on the coming invasion attempt of France planned for the following...
Squadron
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 10/8/43; Gr Isle 3/9/43; Assigned 613BS/401BG [IN-N] Deenethorpe 3/1/44; Missing in Action Berlin 8/5/44 with Dana Lenkelt, Co-pilot: Wendell Johnson, Bombardier: Harry Dershimer, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Jesse Pack, Radio...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 4/11/43; Kearney 1/12/43; Romulus 9/12/43; Grenier 10/12/43; Presque Is 14/12/43; Assigned 613BS/401BG [IN-J] Deenethorpe 6/1/44. Missing in Action Frankfurt 2 March 1944 with William G. Sheahan, Co-pilot: Elliott B. Ogden, Navigator...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Denver 16/11/43; Kearney 3/12/43; Presque Is 9/12/43; Assigned 612BS/401BG [SC-D] Deenethorpe 1/1/44; Missing in Action Evere A/fd 10/4/44 with Gaston Fox, Co-pilot: Francis Hoad, Navigator: Darrel Wilson, Bombardier: Leon Mendelson, Ball...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Denver 21/9/43; Scott 7/10/43; Assigned 612BS/401BG [SC-B] Deenethorpe 23/12/43; Missing in Action Brunswick 30/1/44 with Ron Rohner, Navigator: Stan Johnson, Bombardier: Emil Smetana, Radio Operator: John Morreale, Ball turret gunner: Ken...
31 December 1943
This mission is the last heavy bomber operation of 1943. 1943 had been a very "tough" year for the 8th Air Force in the European Theater of Operations (ETO). 23365 B-17s had been despatched on missions and 881 had Failed to Return (FTR) for a loss...
5 January 1944
This mission consists of five elements: The first element is a combined force of 131 B-17s are despatched by 1st Bomb Division: 92BG; 303BG; 305BG; 306BG; 379BG; 384BG; and 482BG to bomb the shipyards and industrial areas of Kiel, Germany. 119 are...
24 January 1944
The primary target of this mission was the Zukunft power station at Eschweilier, Germany. The mision was composed of 563 bombers three elements from 1BD, 2BD and 3BD. The despatch from 2BD was recalled due to weather before it could take off. Mission...
29 January 1944
The primary target for this mission was the railroad marshalling yards and industrial areas of Frankfurt, Germany. A combined force of 863 heavy bombers were despatched in three elements to make the attack. The combined bomber gunner claims on enemy...
30 January 1944
This mission has the aviation industry at Brunswick, Germany as the primary target. The mission is composed of a combined force pf 777 heavy bomber aircraft despatched in three elements: 1st Bomb Division; 2nd Bomb Division and 3rd Bomb Division. The...
Military site : airfield
Deenethorpe was a base purpose-built for American heavy bombers, with the Class A regulation 2,000 and 1,400-yard runways. All the buildings on site,such as the accommodation and administrative blocks, were temporary. In December 1943, several local...
Cemetery
| Event | Location | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Born | Detroit, MI | 1 May 1921 |
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Son of Anna Kuchka. |
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| Enlisted | Detroit, MI, USA | 2 December 1942 |
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Detroit, Michigan |
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| Based | Deenethorpe | 1943 – 30 January 1944 |
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Assigned to 612BS, 401BG, 8AF USAAF. |
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| Died | 38154 Beienrode, Germany | 30 January 1944 |
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Shot down during bombing mission over Brunswick, Germany 30-Jan-44 in B-17 42-37856 'Fancy Nancy III'. Killed in Action (KIA). MACR 2876 |
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| Buried | Netherlands American Cemetery | 1946 |
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Re-Interred |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 28 October 2021 19:07:56 | Al_Skiff | Changes to biography, events, unit associations and place associations |
| Sources | ||
https://www.fold3.com/image/28605518 |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 01 December 2016 15:10:58 | Lucy May | Changes to biography and awards |
| Sources | ||
Brought in information from duplicate record. Sources: href="http://www.401bg.org/Main/History/Members/Details.aspx?ID=1177">http://www.401bg.org/Main/History/Members/Details.aspx?ID=1177> |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 12 September 2016 02:36:37 | 466thHistorian | Changes to service number |
| Sources | ||
| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 12 September 2016 02:35:58 | 466thHistorian | Changes to events, person associations, unit associations, place associations, aircraft associations and mission associations |
| Sources | ||
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSln=SMETANA&GSfn=EMIL&... |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 27 September 2014 18:09:05 | AAM | AAM ingest |
| Sources | ||
MACR 2276 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database |
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