| MISSION DATA: | |||
| DATE | 384th BG Mission # | 8th AF Mission # | 384th PRIMARY TARGET |
| 1943‑08‑17 | 17 | 84 | Target: Ball-Bearing Plant Type: Bearings Industry Location: Schweinfurt, Germany |
| First Schweinfurt: The 384th Bombardment Group (H) flew as the low group of the 202nd Provisional Combat Bomb Wing on today's mission. The mission was planned as a 'Double Strike' against Schweinfurt-Regensburg industrial plants. [Note: contrary to the implication in naming the raid, Schweinfurt and Regensburg are not neighboring cities; they are, in fact, over 100 miles apart.] The first air strike task force was supplied by the 4th Bomb Wing, which took off late due to heavy fog: they could still reach Africa by dark, but just barely. The second task force - the 1st Bomb Wing, including the 384th BG - was scheduled to take off 90-minutes after the 4th BW, to ensure the enemy fighters had exhausted their fuel and would be limited in their ability to mount a defense. In the event, the 1st BW was repeatedly delayed, also by weather, for almost four hours, allowing the enemy pilots ample time to refuel, rearm (and have a meal, if they wished!). As a consequence, losses were heavy. Both forces, however, inflicted enormous damage on their assigned targets, but the cost was immense. | |||
| SORTIE DATA: | ||
| COMBAT CREDIT | STATUS | TARGET ATTACKED (MODE) |
| Yes |
Failed To Return Comments: Low Squadron lead. Damaged by enemy aircraft and flak; crashed about 20 miles north of Rheims (between Sissonne and Montcornet), France. MACR 291 |
Primary (Visual) |
| SORTIE AIRCRAFT DATA: | ||||
| TYPE | SERIAL NUMBER | SQUADRON | SQ CODE | NAME |
| B-17F | 42‑30147 ⇗ | 544th | SU*O | M'HONEY |
| SORTIE CREW DATA: | |||
| POSITION | CREWMEMBER | UNIT | STATUS |
| Pilot | Wilson, Clayton Russell⇗ | 544 | POW |
| Co-pilot | Brown, Dewey Carlyle, Jr⇗ | 544 | Evaded |
| Navigator | Bloesch, Fred Ernest, Jr⇗ | 544 | POW |
| Bombardier | Stevens, Herman Daniel⇗ | 544 | POW |
| Radio Operator | Des Rochers, John Mowbray⇗ | 544 | Evaded |
| Engineer/Top Turret | Long, Vern Porter⇗ | 544 | Evaded |
| Ball Turret | Kendall, George Joseph⇗ | 544 | POW |
| Tail Gunner | Hook, Jack Franklin⇗ | 544 | POW |
| Waist (Flexible) Gunner | Klein, Ellis Hall⇗ | 544 | Evaded |
| Waist (Flexible) Gunner | Penick, Eugene Walker⇗ | 544 | POW |
| SORTIE-RELATED DOCUMENTS: | |
| TYPE | IDENTIFICATION |
| MACR | Missing Air Crew Report # 291⇗ |
| ESCAPE | Escape & Evasion Report # 165⇗ |
| ESCAPE | Escape & Evasion Report # 166⇗ |
| ESCAPE | Escape & Evasion Report # 192⇗ |
| ESCAPE | Escape & Evasion Report # 193⇗ |