Military
Glenn Eugene Kofoed Co-Pilot Paul Bensel Crew - 388th BG Warren Bock Crew - 482nd BG
Paul Bensel Crew 388th BG - 562nd BS Standing Left to Right: Robert B. Leventhal (N), Paul P. Bensel (P), Phillip H. Pick (B), Glenn E. Kofoed (CP) Kneeling Left to Right: Glinford E. Walls (LWG), Victor J. Stackniewicz (BTG), Leander A. Haschke (FE), Bonnie Skloss (WG), Kenneth R. Willis (R/O), James H. Cruchon (TG) Lieutenant Paul Bensel and his crew of the 388th Bomb Group stand with a bomb, personally addressed to Hitler, and their B-17 Flying Fortress (serial number 42-5954) nicknamed "Mister Yank II" before the Regensburg Raid, August 1943. A B-17 nicknamed "Homesick Angel" is visible in the background.
Shot down by flak enroute to the Marshalling Yards at Frankfurt and again on the return on 4 Feb 1944 in B-17F 42-3500. Most of crew baled out, pilot was wounded so LtCol Alford, the H2X operator, made a forced landing near Winterswijk, Holland. Prisoner of War (POW).
Military | Lieutenant Colonel | Command Pilot, Pilot, Command | 482nd Bomb Group
Shot down by flak enroute to the Marshalling Yards at Frankfurt and again on the return on 4 Feb 1944 in B-17F #42-3500. Most of crew baled out, pilot was wounded so LtCol Alford, the H2X operator, made a forced landing near Winterswijk, Holland. LtCol...
Military | Captain | Pilot | 388th Bomb Group
Military | Lieutenant | Pilot | 482nd Bomb Group
Shot down by flak enroute to the Marshalling Yards at Frankfurt and again on the return on 4 Feb 1944 in B-17F #42-3500. Most of crew baled out, pilot was wounded so LtCol Alford, the H2X operator, made a forced landing near Winterswijk, Holland....
Military | Staff Sergeant | Left Waist Gunner, Waist Gunner | 482nd Bomb Group
Shot down by flak enroute to the Marshalling Yards at Frankfurt and again on the return on 4 Feb 1944 in B-17F #42-3500. Most of crew baled out, pilot was wounded so LtCol Alford, the H2X operator, made a forced landing near Winterswijk, Holland....
Military | Staff Sergeant | Right Waist Gunner, Waist Gunner | 482nd Bomb Group
Shot down by flak enroute to the Marshalling Yards at Frankfurt and again on the return on 4 Feb 1944 in B-17F #42-3500. Most of crew baled out, pilot was wounded so LtCol Alford, the H2X operator, made a forced landing near Winterswijk, Holland....
Military | Technical Sergeant | Radio Operator, Tail Gunner | 482nd Bomb Group
Shot down by flak enroute to the Marshalling Yards at Frankfurt and again on the return on 4 Feb 1944 in B-17F #42-3500. Most of crew baled out, pilot was wounded so LtCol Alford, the H2X operator, made a forced landing near Winterswijk, Holland....
Military | Technical Sergeant | Top Turret Gunner | 482nd Bomb Group
Shot down by flak enroute to the Marshalling Yards at Frankfurt and again on the return on 4 Feb 1944 in B-17F #42-3500. Most of crew baled out, pilot was wounded so LtCol Alford, the H2X operator, made a forced landing near Winterswijk, Holland....
Military | Lieutenant | Navigator | 482nd Bomb Group
Shot down by flak enroute to the Marshalling Yards at Frankfurt and again on the return on 4 Feb 1944 in B-17F #42-3500. Most of crew bailed out, pilot was wounded so Lt Col Alford, the H2X operator, made a forced landing near Winterswijk, Holland....
Military | Staff Sergeant | Ball Turret Gunner | 482nd Bomb Group
Shot down by flak enroute to the Marshalling Yards at Frankfurt and again on the return on 4 Feb 1944 in B-17F #42-3500. Most of crew baled out, pilot was wounded so LtCol Alford, the H2X operator, made a forced landing near Winterswijk, Holland....
Military | First Lieutenant | Co-Pilot | 91st Bomb Group The Ragged Irregulars
His 2nd mission as a Co-Pilot was to Schweinfurt on 17 Aug 1943.
...
Group
The 388th Bomb Group flew strategic bombing mission from Knettishall, Suffolk from June 1943 to the end of the war. During this time, though, detachments were sent to Fersfield, Norfolk to conduct Aphrodite missions. In these Aphrodite missions veteran...
Group
The 482nd Bomb Group was a Pathfinder Group, which using radar-equipped aircraft to support bombing missions until March 1944. Aircraft from this Group went ahead of other Bombers and sent information back about the best routes to take and the extent...
Squadron
Squadron
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 29/4/43; Sioux City 14/5/43; Smoky Hill 11/6/43; Dow Fd 16/6/43; Assigned 562BS/388BG Knettishall 17/6/43; transferred Aphrodite project, Missing in Action V-sites, Watten 6/8/44 with Lt Joeseph P Andrecheck & T/Sgt Raymond Healy (2...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 29/4/43; Gore 9/5/43; Sioux City 10/5/43; Smoky Hill 11/6/43; Dow Fd 15/6/43; Assigned 562BS/388BG Knettishall 1/6/43; crashed on take off for Bremen after encountering mechanical problems 13/11/43 with Bob Simons, Co-pilot: Alvin...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 30/4/43; Sioux City 13/5/43; Smoky Hill 11/6/43; Dow Fd 15/6/43; Assigned 562BS/388BG Knettishall 17/6/43; following Regensburg shuttle mission suffered battle damaged over Bordeaux on return trip to base 24/8/43, with Lloyd...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 13/5/43; Smoky Hill 30/5/43; Dow Fd 15/6/43; Assigned 562BS/388BG Knettishall 17/6/43; Missing in Action Bremen 26/11/43 with Bill McCown, Co-pilot: Bill Stantial, Navigator: Winston Hall, Bombardier: Vince McHugh, Flight engineer...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Long Beach 16/7/43; Rome 6/8/43; Assigned 812BS/482BG [MI-J] Alconbury 9/43 (H2-X); Missing in Action Frankfurt 4/2/44 with Warren Bock Wounded in Action, Co-pilot: Glen Kofoed, Navigator: Dwight Lambert, Bombardier: Regis Murtha, Flight...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Long Beach 30/5/43; Kearney 10/6/43; Dow Fd 7/7/43; Assigned 562BS/388BG Knettishall 11/7/43; Returned to the USA 30/3/44. Salvaged 4/1/46. MR YANK II.
24 July 1943
Three targets in Norway are the primary targets for this first mission flown by 8th AIr Force to Norway. They are the nitrate works at Heroya and the port areas at Trondheim and Bergen. The first element is a combined force of 180 B-17s from: 91BG (22)...
25 July 1943
This mission was composed of three elements. The primary targets were the diesel engine works at Hamburg, Germany; the shipyards at Kiel, Germany and the aircraft industries at Warnemude, Germany, but weather frustrated the effort. The first element...
28 July 1943
The German aircraft industry at Kassel (Fieseler works) and Oscherleben, Germany are the primary targets of this mission. 182 B-17s from: 91BG (20); 92BG (17); 303BG (20); 305BG (21); 306BG (24); 351BG (21); 379BG (19); 381BG (20); and 384BG (20) are...
29 July 1943
The primary targets for this mission are the port facilities at Kiel, Germany and the Heinkel aircraft factories at Warnemunde, Germany. A combined force of 168 B-17s from: 91BG (18); 92BG (14 these included 1 Y-B40 gunship); 305BG (19); 306BG (18);...
30 July 1943
The aircraft factories at Kassel, Germany are the primary targets for this mission. The mission is flown by two elements of B-17s which attack 15 minutes apart. The firts element is a combined force of 119 B-17s from: 91BG (20); 303BG (23); 351BG (21);...
12 August 1943
This mission is separated into two elements. The first element is a combined force of 183 B-17s from 1st Bomb Division: 91BG (22); 92BG (19); 303BG (20); 305BG (20); 306BG (20); 351BG (21); 379BG (21); 381BG (20); and 384BG (20) are dispatched to bomb...
15 August 1943
German airfields in Holland and France are the targets for this mission. All of the attacks were made late in the afternoon just prior to sunset. The mission is composed of two elements. The first element is a combined force of 180 B-17s from: 91BG (20...
17 August 1943
The mission flown on 17-Aug-43, the 1st anniversary of the 1st mission flown by the 8th Air Force, is probably the most written about mission of the war. This is the famous Schweinfurt/Regensburg mission on which 60 B-17s are lost. It has been dubbed ...
24 August 1943
The 8th Air Force is intent on dishing out some "pay back" to the Luftwaffe for the toll it took on bombers of the 17-Aug-43 mission to Schweinfurt/Regensburg. So, This mission has three attack elements and a diversion element. The attack elements are...
31 August 1943
This mission is composed of two elements. The first element is composed of 170 B-17s from: 91BG (16); 92BG (19); 303BG (20); 305BG (18); 306BG (18); 351BG (21); 379BG (21); 381BG (19); and 384BG (18). The primary target for this element is German...
Military site : airfield
Alconbury had been constructed as a satellite airfield for RAF Upwood and Wyton and was used by RAF Squadrons: Nos. 15, 40 and 156. In preparation for the arrival of American heavy bombers, the base was developed in 1942 with the runways extended. When...
Military site : airfield
Knettishall was built to Class A standard for an American Bomb Group that would be bringing up to forty heavy bombers with them in three or four Squadrons. The 388th Bomb Group, which stayed at Knettishall for their entire service in the ETO, flew B-17...
| Event | Location | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Born | Blackfoot, Idaho | 10 March 1919 |
| Lived in | Long Beach, CA | October 1940 |
|
233 Euclid Avenue |
||
| 388th BG Combat Tour | Knettishall Airfield, UK | 24 July 1943 – 26 September 1943 |
| 482nd BG Combat Tour | RAF Alconbury, UK | October 1943 – 4 February 1944 |
| Shot Down/Captured | near Meddo, Netherlands | 4 February 1944 |
| POW | Barth, Germany | 15 February 1944 – May 1945 |
|
Stalag Luft I |
||
| Died | Spokane, WA | 25 January 2008 |
| Buried | Blackfoot, ID | 28 January 2008 |
|
Grove City Cemetery |
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