391ST BOMB GROUP CREW LISTS
575th
Squadron
Alphabetical by Pilot’s Name
YR MO
ASSIGNED
43 P ALDRIDGE, WILLIAM S., 1LT, 0731780
CP BURGESS, MERLIN K., CAPT., 0404086
B HANTON, EMIL M.,
2LT, 0741340
N
FE LAYCOCK, JOHN F., SGT, 32143301
RG SAYLOR, STERL E., CPL, 12098426
AG KREFT, ANDRE F. SSGT, 12057415
SOURCE: Par.
Lt Aldridge, who had flown over as Stalnaker's co-pilot, was shot down 04/27/44
(42-95845), while flying as first
pilot. Per the hardback history, the
other crew members
on this mission were as shown above. The softback history indicates that there
were 5
survivors, but "Return of the Marauder
Men" lists SSgt Kreft with this date of death (he
is buried in the the
Normandy Cemetery) and also shows Cpl
Saylor on the Wall of the
Missing at
the Ardennes Cemetery, on 04/28/45.
44 9 P BASS, EARL J., 2LT, 0667915
CP WESTBROOK, HAROLD B., 2LT, 0676844
B KENNAIR, THOMAS J., 1LT, 0712163
N
FE LINDSAY, JOHN H., SSGT, 16028379
RG DELAPEEZI (SP?)
AG MCMAHON, WILLIAM J., TSGT, 33279757
SOURCE: SO-126, Hqs 391st Bomb Group 9/24/1944 Par. 4
The source order assigned people as
individuals. Bass identified the names
on his
crew.
Kennair went over as Noland’s bombardier
(Noland was killed on the ferry mission
of 9/24/44).
44 9 P BOLTON, EDWARD H., 2LT, 0819948
CP CHRISTIANSEN, RUDOLPH G., 2LT, 0714664
B LOWE, GENE D., 2LT, 0718114
N
FE BROKER, RAYMOND W.,CPL, 37520471
RG LINDHOLM, JOHN E., CPL, 32862462
AG BOYD, STEWART J., CPL, 12175937
SOURCE: SO-248 HQS AAF STA AAF-236 9/14/1944 Par.
44 P BREESEMAN, RICHARD N. 1LT, 0701879
CP CURTIS, RICHARD D., 1LT, 0731467
B KELLY
N
FE DICKENSON, EUGENE C., SSGT, 37557876
RG GIFFORD, W. G.
AG BURNS, JOE, SSGT, 36853886
SOURCE: Par.
Breeseman and Kelly's names come from the
Ahrweiler mission taxi sheet. They
apparently returned safely. The other names were supplied by an anonymous
contributor at the 1996 reunion, who also wrote
that Maj. Harkins (Ops Officer) flew with
Breeseman on this missison.
Presumably, Curtis did not go.
There is an AG named
Joseph Burns on Brooks
crew in the 575th, but this must be a different J. Burns, as
Brooks's crew did not arrive until January,
1945. Dupuy,
of Fagan's crew, was
Breeseman's bombardier on the 22 Mar 45 mission.
Particulars come from
Dave Garnham's database.
45 1 P BROOKS, JULIAN N., 2LT, 0713690
CP FULTON, DANIEL R., 2LT, 02063598
B MAXON, WILLIAM K., 2LT, 0766321
N
FE BIEL, ROBERT L., CPL, 35488598
RG BROUSSARD, ROLAND L., CPL, 38484851
AG BURNS, JOSEPH P., CPL, 32760769
SOURCE: SO-3 Hqs 391st Bomb Group 1/9/1945 Par. 1
45 3 P BROUGHTON, JOHN R., 1LT, 0727845
CP
B
N
FE KARA, JOHN S., SSGT, 12027583
RG
AG
SOURCE: SO-41 Hqs 391st Bomb Group 3/14/1945 Par. 1
This is an A-26 crew.
44 9 P CAMBIER, ORVILLE J,, 2LT, 0705312
CP HEDSTROM, RAYMOND E., 2LT, 0714079
B ANDERCHECK, EDWARD F., 2LT, 076617
N
FE DAVIS, JO-AL D., CPL, 38458274
RG HARMON, JOHN E., CPL, 20229810
AG DEATON, LESTER L., CPL, 38510218
SOURCE: SO-241 AAF STA AAF-236 9/6/1944 Par. 2
Cambier flew one of the three planes (of six)
that returned safely from the ferry mission
to France on 24 Sep 44.
44 9 P CHATHAM, MILTON E., 2LT, 0715990
CP FREDERICK, HERBERT L., 2LT, 0709560
B EINARSON, HAROLD W., 2LT, 0722647
N
FE HUGHES, ALBERT L., JR., SGT, 34344178
RG LEE, DORMAN W., CPL, 37055650
AG TUTHILL, HULL E., SGT, 12122859
SOURCE: SO-128 Hqs 391st Bomb Group 9/27/1944 Par. 2
44 9 P COULT, CECIL K., 2LT, 0705909
CP FORHAN, THOMAS E., 2LT, 0713730
B ROGERS, WILLIAM K., 2LT, 0723822
FE HALESEY, PAUL A., CPL, 33461265
RG MAYFIELD, WILLIAM H., CPL, 20834438
AG KATSILOMETES, JIM G., CPL, 20927358
SOURCE: SO-124, Hqs 391st Bomb Group 9/21/1944 Par. 6
Note that in OO-2, 391st BG, 02/06/45,
Lt Rogers's middle initial is given as M vice K,
as shown in the above-referenced
order. Rogers must have been navigator
rated, as he
flew lead later as such.
45 1 P FAGAN, WILLIAM M., 2LT, 0720392
CP LEWIS, GOMER J., 2LT, 02063650
B DUPUY, JOE L., 2LT, 02068019
N
FE MAY, ARTHUR H., CPL, 34520803
RG KENT, WENDELL E., PVT, 36687395
AG MCDONALD, MAURICE J., CPL, 11132828
SOURCE: SO-5 Hqs 391st Bomb Group 1/11/1945 Par. 2
Per Par 11, SO-98, 9th BD, 04/08/45,
Lt. Fagan's crew was sent to Pathfinder.
44 8 P GATLIN, JAMES F., JR., 2LT, 0685331
CP BIEZIS, STEPHEN V., 2LT, 0824021
B ADAIR, JOHN J., 2LT, 0746676
N
FE SANCHEZ, JOE R.,
CPL, 39290993
RG WEISSKER, WILLIAM L., SSGT, 14070304
AG COWART, MILTON E., SGT, 18190494
SOURCE: SO-106, Hqs 391st Bomb Group 8/12/1944 Par. 1
Lt Gatlin was shot down on 12/23/44 in
#42-107671 per the softback history. He
is
listed on the Wall of the Missing in the Henri-Chapelle
Cemetery. From the hardback
history, one can infer that the other crew
members were Lt Biezis (Wall, Henri-Chapelle
Cemetery),
SSgt Sanchez (Wall, Luxembourg Cemetery), SSgt Weissker and SSgt
Cowart (both buried in the the Lorraine Cemetery), and Lt. Adair. Lt. Adair was the only
survivor of his crew; he reports in "Who
Dat?" that the other members of the crew were
killed on the ground by SS troops; "Return of the
Marauder Men" gives their date of
death as 12/24/44. Weissker and Cowart must have died in the
shootdown, as their
date of death is given as the 23rd.
45 1 P GOBLE, WILLIAM, JR., 2LT, 0713402
CP LINDSAY, FRANCIS J., 2LT, 02062237
B JOST, LEONARD G., 2LT, 02069453
N
FE MIDDLETON ROBERT W., CPL, 32951679
RG MADELEY, GEORGE N., JR., CPL, 38538457
AG MELZOW, ERNEST J., CPL, 32983498
SOURCE: SO-5, Hqs 391st Bomb Group 1/11/1945 Par. 2
43 P GUBNER, HARRY D., JR., CAPT, 0731574
CP SMITH, RAYMOND B., 2LT, 0795846
B MCCUTCHEON, R. D., JR., 2LT, 0534471
N
FE MARTIN, E. L., SSGT, 18180847
RG BRIDGEWATER, B. B., TSGT, 14188175
AG REAGAN, W. F., SSGT, 31140015
SOURCE: HARDBACK HISTORY Par.
This crew was shot down on 03/25/44
(42-95854). The hardback history lists
Raymond
Smith as
flying co-pilot. According to the softback
history, there were 5 survivors. Dave
Garnham determined from microfilm that
SSgt Reagan was killed. There is another
entry for Raymond Smith, as he flew over as
first pilot.
44 P GUILBEAU, LEE J.,
MAJ, 0426830
CP WHEELER, JOSEPH H., II, F/O, T65581
B SCHWARTZ, JEROME D., 2LT, 0783231
N
FE BONAIVITO, JOSEPH C., CPL, 33680643
RG BECHTOLD, DONALD W., CPL, 13154592
AG SPRINGER, RALPH W., JR., CPL, 32832726
SOURCE: SO-318 HQS, Lake Charles AAF 11/13/1944 Par. 1
This pilot's last name comes from the
taxi sheet for the first mission on 03/04/45.
I
found a pilot with the same last name in the
referenced order. I have included the
crew
on the gamble that there were not two
pilots with this name in a relatively short
timespan.
43 9 P HANISH, BURTON C., 1LT, 026260
CP EKSTROM, ARNE (NMI), 2LT, 0692773
B
N
FE BROCKELBANK, EDWARD H., SSGT, 11032199
RG KISH, WILLIAM E., SGT, 32381719
AG
SOURCE: SO-345 HQS AAB Godman
Field,KY 12/24/1943 Par. 1
A pilot, 2Lt John R. Talton, 0795859, later of the 574th, flew overseas with
this crew in
42-95843. Per OO-2, 391st BG, 02/06/45, by then
Capt Hanish was lead qualified with
Capt Arthur F. Rauschenberger
(of Harlow's crew) and 2Lt Francis L. Miles, 0703566,
(no other
information) as Navigator. On 02/24/45,
Capt Hanish's plane, 42-107576, was
hit by flak and crashed. It turns out that none of the crew members
listed in his original
crew was with him that day (they had
probably gone home upon completion of
missions).
I am indebted to Mrs. Harold E. Harsin for the
following information. She
indicates that her husband (1Lt, 0855860) was
squadron gunnery officer and flew often
with Capt Hanish. Lt Harsin is buried
in the Netherlands Cemetery. The
remainder of
the mission crew follows:
CP Littlejohn, Lew F., 2Lt, 0778171 (I
found this Serial Number)
B Rauschenberger,
Arthur F., Capt (of Harlow's crew)
B Vurgaropulos, John
C., 1Lt (of Willis's crew)
EG Pennington, Ernest H., TSgt,
34728009, of Lippincott' crew
?G Rivoli, Valentine P., SSgt
?G Broffman,
Paul, Sgt
Only Rivoli
survived. A letter to Mrs. Harsin,
dated 1 July 1946, from BGen Leon W.
Johnson states that other crews saw the
left wing break away and that only one
parachute was seen. Only Lt Harsin is
listed in "Return of the Marauder Men," so
remains of the others must have been returned
to the US. Someone at the 1996 reunion
wrote that Broffman
was also from Lippincott's crew and that Rivoli was
from Lakin's crew;
if so this was after changes to their
original crews. Marty Mazurk reports that Hanish told
him that, as a West Point graduate, he had
no set tour of duty, that his tour was until the
end of the war. Also from Marty, Carpenter, of Schreiber’s crew,
became Hanish’s co-pilot but was
not on the mission described above, and
Carpenter survived the war.
43 ? P HARKINS, HERSCHEL S., 1LT, 0668065
CP SQUIER, EUGENE R., 2LT, 0757317
B WECHSLER, HOWARD (NMI), 2LT, 0797108
N WOLFE, LEWIS A., 1LT, 0811826
FE MILLER, STANLEY W., SSGT, 36453560
RG LAWSON, THOMAS T., SGT, 13034170
AG
SOURCE: SO-345 HQS AAB Godman
Field,KY 12/24/1943 Par. 1
On 05/25/44 aircraft 42-107743 was
badly flak damaged; returned on single engine.
On
10/06/44, then Major Harkins aircraft,
42-107837, was badly flak damaged. Per
OO-2,
391st BG, 02/06/45, Maj
Harkins was lead qualified with by then Capt Barnes (of Ives
crew) and Wolfe, who undoubtedly arrived
much later than Harkins, as Navigator.
The
aircraft that Harkins flew over (42-95805)
became Cat E on 05/21/44. Lt. Petrich was
flying it, and it was badly damaged by a
gunner in 827 test-firing guns. Undercarriage
collapsed after brakes burned out.
44 4 P HARLOW, FREDERICK S., CPT, 0397369
CP WAKELAND, VERNON E., F/O, T1786
B RAUSCHENBERGER, ARTHUR F., 2LT, 0741368
N
FE COUGHRAN, JOHN P., SGT, 19180946
RG MCKENZIE, FRED N., SGT, 34507416
AG CLARKE, EDWARD C., SGT, 19060408
SOURCE: SO-107 AAF STA AAF-236 4/19/1944 Par. 1
On 02/24/45, by then Capt Rauschenberger was killed when flying on a mission with
Capt Hanish. Wakeland
returned a 2Lt with serial number 0887215 per Par 4, SO-1, 9th
Bombardment Division, 09/25/44, which
lists aircrew personnel for return to the ZI.
The
tail number of the aircraft ferried over
(42-107626) comes from SO-37, Hqs 3rd AF
Staging Wing, Hunter Field, 02/06/44.
44 9 P HESLEP, ALVIN R., 1LT, 0672102
CP
B HUNTER, PHILIP H., 1LT, 0676282
N
FE WAGGONER, SSGT
RG BASS, JOHN C., TSGT, 15082110
AG WATSON, JAMES, SSGT, 13031587
SOURCE: SO-126, Hqs
391st Bomb Group 9/24/1944 Par. 4
These crewmen reported as
individuals. Lt Heslep
was on the Ahrweiler mission and
apparently returned to base. I have been unable to identify his crew
entirely.
Apparently, Jim Watson was at the 1996
reunion and entered the gunners' names and
his serial number. I already had Bass's particulars from orders,
but I did not know that
he was on this crew. From the 22 March 45 taxi sheet, Hunter flew
with him then.
44 9 P HORSTMAN, CHARLES J., 2LT, 0705954
CP O'CONNELL, JOHN H., 2LT, 0715295
B SMITH, PHILLIP, 2LT, 0718158
N
FE DERVIN, JUNIES C., CPL, 38420996
RG RODGERS, JAMES M., CPL, 17043492
AG PINGLE, RAY E., CPL, 35791929
SOURCE: SO-128,
Hqs 391st Bomb Group 9/27/1944 Par. 2
SO-220, Hqs Barkdale Field, 8/7/44, gives the flight engineer's name as
Kervin, which I
suspect is correct.
44 9 P IVES, WALTER J., MAJ, 0396904
CP COX, JAMES C.,
2LT, 0818508
B BARNES, JOHN W., 2LT, 0659510
N
FE BENNETT, RUSSELL G., SSGT, 11054993
RG COCHRAN, ROBERT C., TSGT, 34205733
AG ALAKEL, ROBERT N., SSGT, 31083774
SOURCE: SO-121, Hqs
391st Bomb Group 9/13/1944 Par. 11
43 P JACOBI, SAMUEL
(NMI), 2LT, 0796828
CP HUDSON, DONALD J., 2LT, 0693781
B EMMINGER, HAROLD J., 2LT, 0733165
N
FE BOSTON, GEORGE A., SGT, 17160225
RG GRAZIER, GUY W., SGT, 35596133
AG SURMAN, JOHN S., SSGT, 32732716
SOURCE: SO-345 HQS AAB Godman
Field,KY 12/24/1943 Par. 1
44 P JANNSEN, EDWARD M., CAPT, 0401174
CP THOMPSON, BRAXTON S., CAPT, 0433607
B
N
FE
RG SKEENS, CLYDE B.,
TSGT, 15114659
AG SANCOMB, E. E.,
SOURCE: Par.
Jannsen led the Ahrweiler mission on 12/23/44,
flying 42-107743, Silver Star. Garside
of
Schreiber's crew flew as his Bombardier
that day. Jannsen's
serial number comes from
SO-218, Laughlin AAF, 2 Sep 43. An anonymous contributor at the 1996 reunion
provided the CP, RG, and AG names plus that of
McDowell (from Tucker's crew) as EG.
Capt Thompson may have had a crew, but
I have not found any evidence of that, such
as his name on a taxi sheet.
43 1 P KELLEY, GLENN D., 1LT, 0348517
CP SNOW, PARKER B., 2LT, 0757314
B FODOR, JOSEPH P., 2LT, 0793238
N
FE JOHNSON, EDWARD J., SSGT, 32624456
RG MATIS, WILLIAM (NMI), SGT, 19040245
AG CLARK, ALLEN O., SSGT, 17086753
SOURCE: SO-345 HQS AAB Godman Field,KY 12/24/1943 Par. 1
Allen Clark advises me that Fodor was
also a navigator. Kelley flew over in
42-95827.
44 4 P KIEDINGER, CECIL E., 2LT, 0808557
CP NELSON, CLYDE W.,
JR., 2LT, 0815208
B MOTLEY, WILLIAM F., 2LT, 0699227
N
FE WALL, FREDERICK H., SSGT, 37303205
RG SOMERVILLE,
JAMES(NMI),JR.,SSGT 32787503
AG SMITH, RAYMOND E., SGT, 35099978
SOURCE: SO-107 AAF STA AAF-236 4/19/1944 Par. 1
From the 22 Mar 45 taxi sheet, a first
pilot named Nelson of the 575th flew that
day; he was probably the above Nelson.
44 9 P KIRTON, WILLIAM T., 2LT, 0699428
CP GOODLANDER, OLIVER L., 2LT, 0824130
B CRISP, JACK P., 2LT, 0703379
N
FE DRANCHAK, JOSEPH, SGT, 33602705
RG HERRIN, JAMES A., SGT, 19098631
AG BRADY, VANCE H., SSGT, 36514571
SOURCE: SO-121 Hqs
391st Bomb Group 9/13/1944 Par. 12
At the 1996 reunion, Vance Brady
supplied the following information: the
airplane name
(The Grinning Gremlin), but not the
number, and that Lt Crisp was injured in a ground
accident and was replaced by "Doc"
Bogart. From the Ahrweiler taxi sheet,
the number is
given as 855-R. The
entire number almost surely is 42-95855, opcode O8-R.
44 P KLOEPFER, WILLIAM A., 1LT, 0681120
CP HULTON, JOHN V., 2LT, 0822009
B WOLFE, EDWARD, 2LT, 0761272
N
FE HUMBLE, HAROLD R., SSGT, 38468334
RG HAYNES, DELMER L.,
SSGT, 20725360
AG STEVENS, JAMES F.,
SSGT, 11054924
SOURCE: Par.
Lt Kloepfer
was shot down on 12/23/44 in 42-95944, Miss Behavin. I have assumed that
the above crew, listed in the hardback history, was his
regular crew, as I can find them
on no other crew. Lts Kloepfer and Hulton are buried in
the Lorraine Cemetery.
45 3 P KRISTOLICH, HENRY R., 2LT, 0819829
CP
B
N
FE AINSCOUGH, VADEN E., SSGT, 16019480
RG
AG
SOURCE: SO-41 Hqs 391st Bomb Group 3/14/1945 Par. 1
This was an A-26 crew.
44 4 P LAKIN, ROBERT K., 2LT, 0684356
CP CREIGHTON, JOHN R., JR. 2LT, 0689847
B CASTAGNONI, ALDO (NMI), 2LT, 0669996
N
FE LEO, PHILIP (NMI), SSGT, 12058657
RG KANE, WALTER J., SSGT, 39279401
AG CARTER, CHARLES
C., SGT, 39568039
SOURCE: SO-98 AAF STA AAF-236 4/10/1944 Par. 3
Lakin flew over in 42-107591. Per OO-2, 391st BG, 02/06/45, by then Capt Lakin was
lead qualified with Lt Vurgaropulis
(of Willis's crew) as Bombardier and Lt Rogers (of
Coult's crew) as Navigator.
44 9 P LEAVITT, VERNON P., 2LT, 0704841
CP SMITH, ROBERT O., 2LT, 0715833
B MAZURK, MARTIN K., 2LT, 0712193
N
FE NICHOLS, LEROY L., CPL, 37558043
RG SOUZA, ALVARO D., CPL, 19093064
AG SCHNEIDER, ROBERT C., CPL, 17115190
SOURCE: SO-248 HQS AAF STA AAF-236 9/14/1944 Par. 1
Per Martin Mazurk
at the 1996 reunion, when he was transferred to Saunders crew to
become a lead crew, he was replaced by Covino, not a rated bombardier, but what was
called a "toggleer."
44 9 P LIPPINCOTT, JOHN I., JR., 2LT, 0706212
CP LITZSINGER, HERBERT S., 2LT, 0713304
B BANKS, BEN T., 2LT, 712269
N
FE PENNINGTON, ERNEST H., CPL, 34728009
RG THROWER, HAROLD P., CPL, 38372802
AG TERRY, MEYER, SSGT, 32465832
SOURCE: SO-241 AAF STA AAF-236 9/6/1944 Par. 2
Cpl Pennington was killed on 02/24/45,
on a mission with Capt Hanish (see Comments
there).
44 12 P MARTIN, ALBERT C., 1LT, 0721817
CP SHIPP, JOHN W.
B PIGGOTT, M. O.
N
FE SMEAD, TOM
RG SHEPPARD, THOMAS K., TSGT, 38159990
AG KELLY, NATHAN
SOURCE: Par.
Info from pilot, except as noted
below. He is brother of Clarence R.
Martin, also a pilot
in the 575th. The first name, rank, and serial number for
Sheppard come from SO-127,
Hqs 391st BG, dated 9/1/43; it is possible
that he is not the right Sheppard in this case.
44 8 P MARTIN, CLARENCE L., 2LT, 0705131
CP SIENKNECHT, ARLO F., 2LT, 0715814
B MAYER, HARRY S., JR., 2LT, 0712192
N
FE STARKWEATHER, MARVIN R., CPL, 37518497
RG TORRES, EUGENE E., CPL, 18121116
AG PEPI, ALBERT L., CPL, 39047311
SOURCE: OO-101 NORTH ATL WG, BANGOR FLD 7/23/1944 Par. 3
On 02/24/45, flying 44-67902 (Hube), Lt Martin crashed due to severe flak damage. His
airplane for the flight over was 43-34347.
44 12 P MARTIN, CLARENCE R., 2LT, 0721614
CP PHILLIPS, WILLIAM I., 2LT, 02061759
B ATTANASIO,
CARMINE, F/O, T-132544
N
FE ROVELLI, HERMAN M., CPL, 31288381
RG STEWART, HERBERT S., CPL, 15121616
AG MOSIER, JAMES C.,
CPL, 42025887
SOURCE: Par.
Albert Martin, brother of Clarence R.,
both pilots in the 575th, supplied Clarence's name,
and he had thought that the co-pilot's
name was Pinkham. All the names shown
above,
aside from the pilot's, were supplied by
Bill Phillips, co-pilot, at the 1996 reunion.
44 P MARTIN, MAX M., 2LT, 0686574
CP
B PALMER, WAYNE R., 1LT, 0681761
FE SHACKELFORD, CLAUDE C., SSGT, 19174305
RG SEBRING, KEENOY F., TSGT, 19167324
AG CHRIST, ROBERT E., SSGT, 33621249
SOURCE:
From the softback history, on
05/08/1944 hydraulics were damaged leading to collapse
of the landing gear at touchdown (41-31972). The crew listed here was provided by
Bob Christ at the end of the year 2001. He did not provide the name of a
co-pilot. Bob
advises that their airplane was 31716 and that its name was
"Six Hits and a Miss." The
Miss,
a picture of a girl, was featured on the nose.
The full number was probably 41-31716,
as it was a 575th airplane.
All of these people were listed in Par 4, SO-1, 9th Bombardment
Division,
09/25/44, which named only individual aircrew personnel for return to the ZI.
45 3 P MCCULLOCH, STANLEY B., JR., 1LT, 0795794
CP
B
N
FE PURNELL, JAMES E., JR., TSGT, 13087889
RG
AG
SOURCE: SO-41 Hqs 391st Bomb Group 3/14/1945 Par. 1
This was an A-26 crew.
43 2 P MITCHELL, KENNETH W., 1LT, 0731630
CP GUBNER, HARRY D., JR., CAPT, 0731574
B
N CLARK, JIM B., 2LT, 0669006
FE APPELDORN, PHILIP L., SGT, 35650937
RG WALDRIP, CALEY B., TSGT, 14061439
AG
SOURCE: SO-345 HQS AAB Godman
Field,KY 12/24/1943 Par. 1
Apparently Capt Gubner
merely flew overseas as a co-pilot. He
became the Squadron
Operations
Officer. Gubner has another
entry as first pilot. Someone at the
1996
reunion gave the names Wexler as navigator and
Shiro as co-pilot on Mitchell's crew. A
45 1 P NAUGLE, RICHARD C., 2LT, 0720331
CP TURNER, RALPH F., JR., 2LT, 0833444
B SUTCLIFFE, GEORGE C., F/O
N
FE WERRA, JOSEPH C., CPL, 36822556
RG AMBER, JOHN B., TSGT, 15072426
AG MORRIS, EUGENE TURNER
SOURCE: Par.
Info provided by Dick Naugle, except that Dave Morris provided the number
(44-677924) of the
Aircraft
ferried over.
44 9 P NOLAND HOWARD H., 2LT, 0705412
CP BUSTLE, JAMES R., F/O, T-125306
B KENNAIR,
THOMAS J., 2LT, 0712163
N
FE CRIDER, JACOB E., SSGT, 35482133
RG TERRIAN, WARREN E., CPL, 16089427
AG TALLEY, JAMES E., CPL, 17053378
SOURCE: SO-220 HQS
AAB, Barksdale Field, LA 8/7/44 Par. 21
Lt
Noland was flying one of the three planes that crashed returning from a ferry mission
to
France on 09/24/44. He was flying 42-95853, "Miss
Laid," and crashed in Hatfield Heath.
According
to Bob Mynn in an article, "When the Weather
Won," his crew were Crider and
Terrian. Note that he did not have a co-pilot for this
ferry mission. All were killed and are
buried in the American Military Cemetery at Madingley. Noland’s
name is spelled Nolan
in several instances, creating some confusion. Kennair later flew
with Bass, and his name
was often misspelled as Kinnair.
43 P O'HARE, DONALD D., 1LT, 0735810
CP DAPRATO, ROBERT
F., F/O, T122880
B
N
FE FOSTER, JAMES M.,
SGT, 34526666
RG WEIS, JERRY E., TSGT, 19080569
AG BATES, CALVIN L., SSGT, 19049133
SOURCE: SO-345 HQS AAB Godman Field,KY 12/24/1943 Par. 1
Someone at the 1996 reunion supplied Bates's name; his particulars come from SO-7,
Hqs 391 BG, 2/7/43. A pilot, 1Lt Thomas H. Brown, 0664959, flew
overseas with this
crew according to the referenced
order. They flew over in 42-95808,
Idiot's Delight.
43 2 P OLFSON, JUNIOR W., 2LT, 0525673
CP COFFIN, CHARLES
H., 2LT, 0693633
B LANFORD, EDWIN H., 2LT, 0666683
N
FE RICE, RAYMOND J., PVT, 19056906
RG NEWTON, JAMES A., TSGT, 32328795
AG ARMSTRONG, STERLING D.,SGT,
15104653
SOURCE: SO-345 HQS AAB Godman
Field,KY 12/24/1943 Par. 1
At the 1996 reunion, Jim Newton
supplied Lanford and Armstrong's names and
corrected his serial number, which I had managed
to garble. He also indicated that Jim
Clark, who flew over with Mitchell,
became their navigator. Armstrong's
particulars come
from SO-7, 391BG, 2/7/43. On 05/28/44 flak damaged hydraulics
(42-95852); belly
landed at base. Olfson flew over in
42-95847, Scrumptious.
44 P PETRICH, MICHAEL R., 1LT, 0684039
CP SULLIVAN, ROBERT B., 2LT, 0669809
B INSLEY, EDWIN G., TSGT, 33064534
N
FE MARTEL, ERNEST,
TSGT, 31150127
RG AMBROSE, BRIAN B., SSGT, 34240010
AG READ, ROBERT R., SSGT, 32058677
SOURCE: Par.
Michael Petrich
recently supplied the above-listed crew names along with some
interesting sidelights. He left the US on Christmas Day, 1943, some
days ahead of the
initial deployment of the 391st. As a result of being hospitalized in Northern
Ireland, he
lost his first crew. The above-listed names are his second crew;
he had the first
replacement crew for the 575th. His ferry airplane number (42-95864) comes
from a
Morrison Field order, SO-473, dated
12/24/44; it would only be a coincidence if this
airplane ended up in the 391st. On 05/21/44, Petrich
was flying 42-95805 which was
badly damaged by a gunner in 827 test-firing
guns. Undercarriage collapsed after
brakes burned out. Lt Petrich was shot
down in 42-107811 on 07/05/44. The
softback
history says that there were known to be
survivors, and obviously Petrich survived.
"Return of the Marauder Men"
lists Sgt Martel as buried in the Normandy Cemetery and
Sgt Insley on the Wall of the Missing in the Brittany Cemetery.
Serial numbers come
from Dave Garnham's database.
43 P RUBLE, JAMES C.,
1LT, 01699365
CP TAVENER, CLARK A., 2LT, 0757331
B
N
FE MILLER, FRANCIS
W., SGT, 33187117
RG SHREVES, FORREST E., SGT, 37506082
AG
SOURCE: SO-345 HQS AAB Godman Field,KY 12/24/1943 Par. 1
44 P RUTLEDGE,
EUGENE (NMI) 2LT, 0672682
CP MARTIN, ROBERT J., 2LT, 0691583
B WYLDER, EDWARD J., 2LT, 0744170
N
FE SHANNON, HARRY O., SGT, 16055819
RG PAULIS, STANLEY R., SSGT, 36447601
AG WHITE, GEORGE D., SGT, 12155697
SOURCE: SO-98 AAF STA AAF-236 4/10/1944 Par. 3
The tail number of the aircraft ferried
over comes from SO-37, Hqs 3rd AF Staging Wing,
Hunter
Field, 02/06/44.
43 P SAMUEL, JOHN S., MAJ, 021742
CP WILKINSON, EDWARD S., 2LT, 0795542
B
N
FE MATTHEWS, JOHN J. F., SGT, 32491739
RG GALLO, LARRY F., SGT, 33429374
AG
SOURCE: SO-345 HQS
AAB Godman Field,KY 12/24/1943 Par. 1
Col Samuel's mission aircraft on
05/20/44 (42-107740) was so badly flak damaged that it
had to be sent to the service
squadron. He flew over in 42-95848. Wilkinson is shown as a
first pilot on the Mission #4 taxi sheet.
44 P SAUNDERS, ROBERT M., 2LT, 0690258
CP ALBERT, KENNETH D., 2LT, 0689003
B MAZURK, MARTIN K., 2LT, 0712193
N
FE WILKES, JOHN J., JR., SSGT, 39183822
RG RAEF, LEONARD E., SSGT, 18078365
AG
SOURCE:
All of these names were supplied by
Martin Mazurk.
I already had Wilkes's name and
particulars from an extract of an R&R order
sent to me by Clyde Kirkbride, but I still do
not know for sure that he was a flight
engineer. Apparently, Saunders had no
bombardier but was ready to lead, so Mazurk was transferred from Leavitt to Saunders.
Saunders,
Raef, and Albert’s serial numbers come from Dave Garnham's database.
43 2 P SCHIRMER, LAWRENCE F., 1LT, 0731678