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Military
Originally assigned to the 92BG at Bovington as part 1LT Charles N. Austin's crew at Bovington, UK as an arial gunner. Aircraft assignment with the 92BG and the number of missions flown with 92nd Group have not yet been determined.
The Austin crew was transferred as a replacement crew to the 303BG/358BS on 10-Feb-43 at which time SGT Deal was assigned to B-17F #41-24558 "Hunga Dunga" as an aerial gunner. He participated in 9 operations (2 were aborts) with the 303BG. (See Biography Events).
Shot down by flak and fighters 18th March 1943 in B-17F #41-24558 [VK:F] 'Hunga Dunga', 303BG/358BS while serving as Tail Gunner. Target was submarine yards at Vegesack, Germany. Killed in Action (KIA).
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...
Group
The 92nd Group sometime after arrivial in the UK converted to the role of in-theater combat crew indocrination and training. For this role, the Group traded its B-17F complement and obtained the B-17E, mostly from the 97th BG which was departing for...
Squadron
B-17 Flying Fortress
B-17F-25-BO 41-24558 [VK:F] "Hunga Dunga" was assigned to the 358BS/303BG [VK-F] at Bangor. Maine on 14-Oct-42; arrived at Molesworth, UK on 16-Oct-42; Missing in Action Vegasack 18-Mar-43 when it was attacked by enemy aircraft near Helgoland. Germany...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 8/12/42;
...
14 February 1943
The marshalling yards at Hamm, Germany are once again slated at the primary target for this mission. A force of 74 B-17s are despatched: 91BG (20); 303BG (17); 305BG (17); 306BG (20), but weather once again forces the mission to be recalled before...
16 February 1943
The port area and U-Boat pens at St. Nazaire, France are designated as the primary target of this mission of 71 B-17s and 18 B-24s. B-17s are from 91BG (18); 303BG (15); 305BG (18); 306BG (20) of these 59 are effective on the target and 6 are lost....
26 February 1943
After 10 days of weather related delays of the bomber offensive, a mission is organised with the port facilities of Emden, Germany as the primary target. However, Emden is obscured by cloud cover and all formations divert to attack the port facilities...
27 February 1943
With weather and cloud cover continuing to frustrate bombing efforts against targets in Northern Germany, VIII Bomber Command decides to mount a raid against the harbour facilities at Brest, France. A total of 60 B-17s are destached: 91BG (18); 303BG ...
4 March 1943
After several weather-caused aborted attempts in attacking the marshalling yards at Hamm, Germany, the 8th Air Force is finally successful in attacking this target. A total of 71 B-17s are despatched: 91BG (20); 303BG (18); 305BG (12) amd 306BG (21)....
6 March 1943
German U-boats continue to attack convoys headed fro Great Britain in the North Atlantic with good success. Many of the U-boat packs operate from St. Nazaire, Lorient and Brest, France, so destroying harbour facilities at these locations remain a...
8 March 1943
The railroad marshalling yards at Rennes and Rouen, France are the primary targets for this mission. A formation comprised of 67 B-17s: 91BG (14); 303BG (19); 305BG (16) and 306BG (18) is despatched to bomb at Rennes. Conditions are good with no cloud...
13 March 1943
The railroad marshalling yards at Amiens/Longeau, France are the primary target for this mission but the rail line at Romescamps, the German airfield at Abbevile/Drucat and two other targets of opportunity are also bombed. 80 B-17s are despatched: 91BG...
18 March 1943
The U-Boat pens at Vegesack-Bremen are the primary target of this mission. 76 B-17s are despatched: 91BG (18); 303BG (20); 305BG (18) and 306BG (20). These are joined by 17 B-24's: 44BG (9) and 93BG (15). Of the 103 aircraft despatched 97 are effective...
Military site : airfield
Bovingdon, in Hertfordshire (often confused with Bovington, Dorset), was built in 1941-42 as a bomber station but was never developed into a fully-fledged heavy bomber airfield as it did not have the required 2,000 yard runway.
...
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Assigned to Group | Molesworth, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire PE28, UK | 10 February 1943 |
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Assigned with the crew of 1LT Charles N. Austin from 92BG to B-17F 41-24558 "Hunga Dunga", 303BG/358BS. |
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| Mission #1 SGT Fred O. Deal, w/41-24558, 303BG/358BS - Recalled | Hamm, Germany | 14 February 1943 |
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Assigned as Right Waist Gunner on B-17F 41-24558 "Hunga Dunga", 303BG/358BS. Mission was to bomb the industrial areas of Hamm, Germany, mission was recalled. RTB OK. |
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| Mission #2 SGT Fred O. Deal, w/41-24558, 303BG/358BS | Saint-Nazaire, France | 16 February 1943 |
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Served as Tail Gunner on B-17F 41-24558 "Hunga Dunga", 303BG/358BS on a mission to bomb the U-Boat pens at St. Nazaire, France. RTB OK. |
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| Mission #3 SGT Fred O. Deal, w/41-24558, 303BG/358BS - Aborted | Wilhelmshaven, Germany | 26 February 1943 |
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Assigned as Tail Gunner on B-17F 41-24558 "Hunga Dunga" on a mission to bomb the U-Boat pens at Wilhelmshaven, Germany. However, the bombardier suffered altitude sickness and the pilot aborted the mission. RTB OK |
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| Mission #4 SGT Fred O. Deal, w/41-24558, 303BG/358BS | Brest, France | 27 February 1943 |
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Served as Tail Gunner on B-17FG 41-24558 "Hunga Dunga" on a mission to bomb the U-Boat pens at Brest, France. RTB OK. |
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| Mission #5 SGT Fred O. Deal, w/41-24558, 303BG/358BS | Rotterdam, Netherlands | 4 March 1943 |
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Served as Tail Gunner on B-17FG 41-24558 "Hunga Dunga" on a mission to bomb the railroad marshalling yards at Rotterdam, Holland. RTB OK. |
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| Mission #6 SGT Fred O. Deal, w/42-5432, 303BG/358BS | Lorient, France | 6 March 1943 |
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Served as Tail Gunner on B-17F 42-5432 "The Hunting Club", 303BG/358BS on a mission to bomb the power station and adjacent bridge at Lorient, France. The crew was that of 1LT Charles N. Austin which had been flying B-17F 41-24558 "Hunga Dunga". That aircraft was not despatched as part of the formation. It is probable that it had received some minor damage on the previous mission to Rotterdam. RTB OK. |
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| Mission #7 SGT Fred O. Deal, w/41-24558, 303BG/358BS | Rennes, France | 8 March 1943 |
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Served as Tail Gunner on B-17F 41-24558 "Hunga Dunga", 303BG/358BS on a mission to bomb the railroad marshalling yards at Rennes, France. RTB OK. |
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| Mission #8 SGT Fred O. Deal, w/41-24558, 303BG/358BS | Amiens, France | 13 March 1943 |
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Served as Tail Gunner on B-17F 41-24558 "Hunga Dunga", 303BG/358BS on a mission to bomb the railroad marshalling yards at Amiens, France. RTB OK. |
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| Killed in Action (KIA) | Jade Bight, Germany | 18 March 1943 |
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Killed when aircraft was shot down by flak and Grman fighters and crashed on the sand flats of the Jadebusen (Jade Bight) south of Wilhelmshaven, Germany. |
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| Mission #9 SGT Fred O. Deal, w/41-24558, 303BG/358BS | Bremen-Vegesack, Bremen, Germany | 18 March 1943 |
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Killed when aircraft was attacked by flak and German fighters and crashed on the sand flats of the Jadebusen (Jade Bight) south of Wilhelmshaven, Germany. |
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| Buried | Oldenburg, Germany | 20 March 1943 |
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Buried by the Germans in the Cemetery of Oldenburg, Germany. Exact grave location not determined. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 12 November 2021 19:21:51 | jmoore43 | Changes to biography |
| Sources | ||
Corrected a typo in the "Summary biography" - "participated" was misspelled. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 05 December 2015 18:32:41 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to events |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 5-Dec-2015. Added burial location per "Losses of the 8th & 9th Air Forces", Stan Bishop & John A. Hey, MBE. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 05 December 2015 18:30:25 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to events |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 5-Dec-2015. Added Mission #9 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, historian, Mission Report of 18-Mar-43. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 05 December 2015 18:25:58 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to events |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 5-Dec-2015. Added Mission #8 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, historian, Mission Report of 13-Mar-43. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 05 December 2015 18:24:02 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to events |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 5-Dec-2015. Added Mission #7 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, historian, Mission Report of 8-Mar-43. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 05 December 2015 18:21:52 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to events |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 5-Dec-2015. Added Mission #6 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, historian, Mission Report of 6-Mar-43. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 05 December 2015 18:19:18 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to events |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 5-Dec-2015. Added Mission #5 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, historian, Mission Report of 4-Mar-43. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 05 December 2015 18:16:35 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to events |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 5-Dec-2015. Added Mission #4 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, historian, Mission Report of 27-Feb-43. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 05 December 2015 18:13:34 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to events |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 5-Dec-2015. Added Mission #3 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, historian, Mission Report of 26-Feb-43. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 05 December 2015 18:11:10 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to events |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 5-Dec-2015. Added Mission #2 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, historian, Mission Report of 16-Feb-43. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 05 December 2015 18:08:49 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to events |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 5-Dec-2015. Added Mission #1 event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, historian, Mission Report of 14-Feb-43. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 05 December 2015 18:00:57 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to events |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 5-Dec-2015. Added Assigned to Group event per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, historian, Charles N. Austin crew page. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 05 December 2015 17:57:41 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to mission associations |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 5-Dec-2015. Made connections to all mission participations based on research of Mission Reports at 303BG website, Gary Moncur, historian. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 05 December 2015 17:54:26 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to biography, unit associations, place associations and aircraft associations |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 5-Dec-2014. Added 92BG assignment to Summary biography, made connections to 92BG, Bovington and 42-5432 per 303BG website, Gary Moncur, historian, Charles N. Austin crew page. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 04 August 2015 17:57:16 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to service number, biography, events, place associations, aircraft associations and mission associations |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 4-Aug-2015. Made connection to Place, Aircraft and Mission within existing website data; Edited Summary Biography with A/C model letter, Radio Call Letters, Unit association and crew position, and added SN per MACR 15149. Added Burial event per "Losses of the 8th & 9th Air Forces", Stan Bishop & John A. Hey MBE. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 27 September 2014 18:10:20 | AAM | AAM ingest |
| Sources | ||
Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / Roll of Honor, Losses of the 8th & 9th AFs Vol. I by Bishop & Hey, p. 91, 303rd web site |
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