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Stalag Luft IV

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  • Stalag Luft IV compound

    Stalag Luft IV compound

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  • Drawing/ cartoon in a diary belonging to S/Sgt Raymond J. O'Connon of B24 42-78340 Butch M'Love. Made while he was a POW in Stalag Luft IV.

    Drawing/ cartoon in a diary belonging to S/Sgt Raymond J. O'Connon of B24 42-78340 Butch M'Love. Made while he was a POW in Stalag Luft IV.

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  • Stalag Luft IV

    Stalag Luft IV

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  • The Black March, 1945

    The Black March, 1945

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  • Back Row - Left to Right T/Sgt. Andrew Muzik, Radio (POW 21 May 43); 2nd Lt. Ed Reynolds, Bombardier; 1st Lt. Norm Retchin, Pilot (POW 21 May 43); 2nd Lt. Stan Dahlman, Co-pilot (KIA 17 Aug 43); 2nd Lt. Bob Paulson, Navigator Front Row - Left to Right S/Sgt. Joe Wing, Waist Gunner (KIA 21 May 43); S/Sgt. Charles Huber, Waist Gunner (POW 21 May 43); T/Sgt. Elmer Kalfsbech, Top Turret Gunner (POW 21 May 43); S/Sgt. Cloren Meade, Ball Turret Gunner (POW 21 May 43); S/Sgt. John Conrad, Tail Gunner (POW 21 May 43) Retchin's Wretches - This crew joined the 323rd Squadron 4 April 1943 and posed for this photo on 9 April 1943. It was the third replacement crew to arrive in the 323rd. It was part of the Harris Provisional Group that arrived in England in mid-March. They had traveled the Southern route and left the states on 27 Feb 1943. This was the 59th crew trained at Bovingdon in March 1943. The crews were distributed among the original combat groups. The crew posed in front of 42-29559 (Stupntakit). They were flying in s/n 657 when seven of these crewmen were shot down over Wilhelmshaven on 21 May 1943. Lt. Dahlman was KIA on the Schweinfurt Raid 17 Aug 1943 flying on Stupntakit.

    Back Row - Left to Right T/Sgt. Andrew Muzik, Radio (POW 21 May 43); 2nd Lt. Ed Reynolds, Bombardier; 1st Lt. Norm Retchin, Pilot (POW 21 May 43); 2nd Lt. Stan Dahlman, Co-pilot (KIA 17 Aug 43); 2nd Lt. Bob Paulson, Navigator Front Row - Left to Right S/Sgt. Joe Wing, Waist Gunner (KIA 21 May 43); S/Sgt. Charles Huber, Waist Gunner (POW 21 May 43); T/Sgt. Elmer Kalfsbech, Top Turret Gunner (POW 21 May 43); S/Sgt. Cloren Meade, Ball Turret Gunner (POW 21 May 43); S/Sgt. John Conrad, Tail Gunner (POW 21 May 43) Retchin's Wretches - This crew joined the 323rd Squadron 4 April 1943 and posed for this photo on 9 April 1943. It was the third replacement crew to arrive in the 323rd. It was part of the Harris Provisional Group that arrived in England in mid-March. They had traveled the Southern route and left the states on 27 Feb 1943. This was the 59th crew trained at Bovingdon in March 1943. The crews were distributed among the original combat groups. The crew posed in front of 42-29559 (Stupntakit). They were flying in s/n 657 when seven of these crewmen were shot down over Wilhelmshaven on 21 May 1943. Lt. Dahlman was KIA on the Schweinfurt Raid 17 Aug 1943 flying on Stupntakit.

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  • Prison mug shots taken while in Dulag Luft at Wetzlar before he was moved to Stalag Luft IV. T/Sgt. Charles Sturgeon, who was 20 yrs. old at the time, was captured after he bailed out of Fifinella. Several months later he was moved to Stalag Luft I (Barth) where he stayed until being liberated in May 1945. After being liberated, he was able to find his record out of a pile of records three feet high and three feet in diameter. T/Sgt. Sturgeon remembered noticing a group of POWs gathered around the pile of records looking for the one with their picture. He walked over to the pile, looked down, and immediately saw his picture on the ground in plain sight. T/Sgt. Sturgeon remembered how,

    Prison mug shots taken while in Dulag Luft at Wetzlar before he was moved to Stalag Luft IV. T/Sgt. Charles Sturgeon, who was 20 yrs. old at the time, was captured after he bailed out of Fifinella. Several months later he was moved to Stalag Luft I (Barth) where he stayed until being liberated in May 1945. After being liberated, he was able to find his record out of a pile of records three feet high and three feet in diameter. T/Sgt. Sturgeon remembered noticing a group of POWs gathered around the pile of records looking for the one with their picture. He walked over to the pile, looked down, and immediately saw his picture on the ground in plain sight. T/Sgt. Sturgeon remembered how, "One guy said he had been there two hours looking for his and still didn't find it." CONTRIBUTED BY CHARLES STURGEON

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Detailed history

Allied aircrew shot down during World War II were incarcerated after interrogation in Air Force Prisoner of War camps run by the Luftwaffe, called Stalag Luft, short for Stammlager Luft or Permanent Camps for Airmen.

Stalag Luft IV was located at Gross Tychow, Pomerania, (now Tychowo, Poland), 20 kilometers southeast of Belgard.

Air Corps NCO's were held at this camp.

Further detailed information, photographs and stories can be found at :
http://www.b24.net/pow/stalag4.htm

Connections

People

  • Paul Abrahamson

    Military | Staff Sergeant | Right Waist Gunner | 95th Bomb Group
    Assigned to 335BS, 95BG, 8AF USAAF. Failed to Return (FTR) Frankfurt in B-17 42-30181 'Herky Jerky II' 24-Jan-44; shot down by fighters, Prisoner of War (POW). MACR 2258 Awards: POW, WWII Victory, EAME.

  • William Adams

    Military | Sergeant | Togglier / Nose Gunner | 491st Bomb Group
    Assigned to 854BS, 491BG, 8AF USAAF. 1 x combat mission. ...

  • Marshall Adamson

    Military | Staff Sergeant | Right Waist Gunner | 448th Bomb Group
    Shot down by flak and crashed near Vez on 6/27/44 in B-24 #42-50344, Prisoner of War (POW).

  • Andrew Addison

    Military | Sergeant | Waist Gunner | 100th Bomb Group
    Assigned to 349BS, 100BG, 8AF USAAF. Chas Peterson crew. Failed to Return Abbeville mission in B-17 43-37591; collided with another aircraft 5-Jun-44. Prisoner of War (POW). MACR 5383. Awards: POW, WWII Victory, EAME.

  • Bill Addison

    Military | Technical Sergeant | Top Turret Gunner | 303rd Bomb Group
    Shot down 29 November 1943 in B-17 #42-29498 'Dark Horse', Prisoner of War (POW). POW

  • Winston Adkins

    Military | Technical Sergeant (2nd Grade) | Radio Operator | 100th Bomb Group
    Shot down by fighters and crashed near Hanover on a mission to Brunswick on 10 Feb 1944 in B-17G #42-31265. Prisoner of War (POW). POW

  • Norman Adler

    Military | Sergeant | Waist Gunner | 301st Bomb Group
    Assigned 32BS, 301BG, 15AF USAAF. Returned from Blechhammer raid in B-17 44-8001 7-Aug-44 when part of crew baled out due to flak hits RTD. Failed to Return (FTR) Lechfeld 12-Sep-44 flak, crashed Karwendelhaus; Prisoner of War (POW) MACR 8622. ...

  • Julio Aguilar

    Military | Staff Sergeant | Armorer; Gunner, Ball Turret Gunner | 445th Bomb Group
    Shot down 30 December 1943 in B-24 #42-7508 'Liberty Belle', Prisoner of War (POW). POW

  • Lloyd Albern

    Military | Sergeant | Ball Turret Gunner | 303rd Bomb Group
    Shot down by fighters near Berlin on 9/12/44 in B-17 'Lonesome Polecat' #42-31177, Prisoner of War (POW). POW

  • Andrea Alcarese

    Military | Staff Sergeant (Technician Third Grade) | Tail Gunner | 388th Bomb Group
    On a mission to Poznan, Poland, B-17G #42-39894 'Barbara' left the formation due to a fuel leak and was shot down by fighters, exploded in mid-air, and crashed near Funen, Denmark on 20 Feb 1944. Prisoner of War (POW).

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Known as
Stalag Luft 4, Gross Tychow, Pomerania

Revisions

Date Contributor Update
16 December 2019 17:03:56 Emily Changes to media associations
Sources

Associated Media
Date Contributor Update
19 January 2017 19:45:07 Al_Skiff Changes to person associations
Sources

Added Joseph Philippone, Norm Palme, Walter Lancaster, Richard Hall
Date Contributor Update
11 March 2015 10:20:26 general ira snapsorter Changes to history
Sources

Correct typo errors.
Date Contributor Update
11 March 2015 10:19:06 general ira snapsorter Created entry with name, known as, latitude, longitude and history
Sources

Added place, with detail from http://www.b24.net/pow/stalag4.htm

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