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Military
2nd Lt Herbert W Claxton. 401BG
Page 253 of the 401st Bomb Group unit history. Many of the 8th Air Force Groups produced an unofficial unit history in the months after the war ended in Europe but before they were redeployed out of the ETO (European Theater of Operations). Resembling a college yearbook, unit histories were an unofficial – and often tongue-in-cheek – record of the unit’s time based in the UK. They include photo montages showing different aspects of base life. Often the servicemen in the photos are unnamed. The American Air Museum hopes that by adding unit histories to the website as individual pages, the men in the photos will be identified and associated to their person entries. Many included lists of personnel and a mailing address, providing a means for servicemen to keep in contact with each other after the war. These lists are now incredibly useful records of where US airmen in England in 1945 called their home.
Assigned to 614BS, 401BG, 8AF USAAF. 27 x combat missions. Failed to Return (FTR) Bordeaux in B-17 42-31315 'Liberty Run', on 19-Jun-44; flak shot off the tail, A/C ditched in Bay of Biscay. Interned (INT) in Spain.
Awards: AM (OLC), WWII Victory, EAME (1 x Battle Star).
Military | First Lieutenant | Pilot | 401st Bomb Group
Assigned to 614BS, 401BG, 8AF USAAF. 23 x combat missions. Failed to Return (FTR) Bordeaux in B-17 42-31315 'Liberty Run', on 19-Jun-44; flak shot off the tail, A/C ditched in Bay of Biscay. Interned (INT) in Spain.
Awards: AM, WWII Victory, EAME.
Military | First Lieutenant | Co-Pilot | 401st Bomb Group
Assigned to 614BS, 401BG, 8AF USAAF. 31 x combat missions. ETD
Awards: DFC, AM (3OLC), WWII Victory, EAME (2 x Battle Stars).
Military | First Lieutenant | Pilot | 401st Bomb Group
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 Tulsa 16/2/44; Kearney 22/3/44; Grenier 3/4/44; Assigned 614BS/401BG [IW-G] Deenethorpe 16/4/44; Missing in Action Politz, Poland 7/10/44 with Alex Harasym, Clarry Barsuk, Glen Topic, Jarvis Friduss, Emanuel Saylor, John Bailey, George Capps ...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 19/10/43; Gr Island 1/11/43; Romulus 18/11/43; Assigned 614BS/401BG [IW-C] Deenethorpe 23/12/43; Missing in Action Bordeaux 19/6/44 with Garrett Filemyr, Co-pilot: Herb Claxton, Navigator: Ed Robinson, Bombardier: Bob Monteil, Flight...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 28/11/43; Wendover 12/12/43; Nutts Corner, Belfast, N. I. 20/1/44; Assigned 748BS/457BG Glatton 9/1/44; 749BS; transferred 614BS/401BG [IW-Q] Deenethorpe 11/3/44.
...
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...
| Event | Location | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Born | Lakewood, NJ | 24 March 1922 |
|
Son of Walter Underwood and Catherine Yale [Kelsey] Claxton. |
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| Lived in | Ocean County, NJ | 1942 |
| Enlisted | New York City, NY | 8 July 1942 |
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New York City, New York |
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| Based | Deenethorpe | June 1944 – October 1944 |
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Assigned to 614BS, 401BG, 8AF USAAF. |
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| Interned (INT) | Spain | 19 June 1944 – 4 July 1944 |
|
Failed to Return (FTR) Bordeaux in B-17 42-31315 'Liberty Run', on 19-Jun-44; flak shot off the tail, A/C ditched in Bay of Biscay. Interned (INT) in Spain. |
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| Discharged USAAF | 12 July 1945 | |
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Honourable discharge. |
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| Died | Largo, FL | 21 January 1997 |
