Russell, Lester Hebran, Jr

Individual Personnel Data
Name	Russell, Lester Hebran, Jr ‡ ⇗
Rank	Sergeant / Staff Sergeant
Serial Number	11085902 ‡
Unit Assignments	Assigned to the 544th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy), per AAF Station 106 Special Orders #139 dated 16 July 1944, effective 16 July 1944.
Duty	Tail Gunner
MOS	611 - Aerial Gunner
Last Duty Date	30 November 1944
Results	Prisoner Of War POW Camp: Although the National Archives has no information on his POW Camp, a personal memoir of Reginald Gwin (crewmate on the 1944-11-30 mission) states he was confined at 'Stalag Luft 1 Barth' with other surviving members of his crew.
Additional Information	Date of Birth: 8 April 1923 Promoted to Staff Sergeant per AAF Station 106 Special Orders #175 dated 1 September 1944.
Related Documents	Missing Air Crew Report # 11129⇓ (13.277 MB)
Photo Album:	Crew Photo Album⇗

Crew Composition When Assigned to the 384th BG
Replacement Combat Crew
CREWMEMBER	POSITION	RESULTS
2nd Lt. Hughes, Robert Davis⇗	Pilot	CT
2nd Lt. Evans, Hugh Legar⇗	Co-pilot	KIA
2nd Lt. Rasmussen, John Christian⇗	Navigator	CT
2nd Lt. Gabriel, Joseph Albert⇗	Bombardier	CT
S/SGT. Klanke, Edward Franklin⇗	Radio Operator / Gunner	CT
S/SGT. Burns, Arlington (NMI)⇗	Engineer / Top Turret Gunner	CT
SGT. Bellovary, John Joseph, Jr⇗	Ball Turret Gunner	KIA
SGT. Russell, Lester Hebran, Jr	Tail Gunner	POW
SGT. Erich, Milton Benjamin⇗	Flexible Gunner	KIA
SGT. Siffert, Charles William, "Chuck"⇗	Flexible Gunner	TR

Missions, Aircraft, Crews
This individual was credited with 31 Combat Missions.
Number	Date	Target	Position	Aircraft	Mission/Sortie Information
164⇗	24 July 1944	Target: Tactical - Enemy Strong Points Type: Military Location: La Chapelle en Juger & Hébécrevon, France	Tail Gunner	42‑102617⇗	Combat Mission Credit Lead group. Sortie Report⇗
165⇗	25 July 1944	Target: Tactical - Enemy Strong Points Type: Military Location: Montreuil-sur-Lozon, Le Châtel, & La Chapelle en Juger, France	Tail Gunner	43‑38016⇗	Combat Mission Credit High Group. Sortie Report⇗
166⇗	28 July 1944	Target: Synthetic Oil & Chemical Plant Type: Oil Industry Location: Merseburg, Germany	Tail Gunner	43‑37703⇗	Combat Mission Credit Sortie Report⇗
169⇗	1 August 1944	Target: Railroad Bridge Type: Transportation Location: Chartres, France	Tail Gunner	43‑37703⇗	Combat Mission Credit High Group Hot Camera Ship. Sortie Report⇗
170⇗	3 August 1944	Target: NOBALL (V-1 Launch Site) Type: CROSSBOW (V-Weapons) Location: Fleury, Flers, Fiefs, France	Tail Gunner	42‑102459⇗	Combat Mission Credit J Group Flying Spare. Joined formation. Sortie Report⇗
173⇗	5 August 1944	Target: Luftwaffe Controlling Station Type: German Air Force (Luftwaffe) Location: Langenhagen, Germany	Tail Gunner	42‑37822⇗	Flying Spare, Returned As Briefed High group. Sortie Report⇗
177⇗	11 August 1944	Target: Tactical: Coastal Artillery Emplacements Type: Military Location: Brest, France	Tail Gunner	42‑102661⇗	Combat Mission Credit Sortie Report⇗
178⇗	12 August 1944	Target: "Landing Ground" Type: German Air Force (Luftwaffe) Location: La Perthe, France	Tail Gunner	42‑37822⇗	Combat Mission Credit Lead group. Sortie Report⇗
179⇗	13 August 1944	Target: Tactical: Road Network Type: Transportation Location: Beaumont-le-Roger (area), France	Tail Gunner	42‑97282⇗	Combat Mission Credit High group flying spare; joined formation. Sortie Report⇗
180⇗	14 August 1944	Target: Echterdingen Airdrome Type: German Air Force (Luftwaffe) Location: Stuttgart, Germany	Tail Gunner	42‑97320⇗	Aborted Mission After Taking Off Low group. Turned back with a broken exhaust stack in #3 engine. Sortie Report⇗
181⇗	16 August 1944	Target: Delitzsch Air Field and Air Equipment Depot Type: German Air Force (Luftwaffe) Location: Delitzsch, Germany	Tail Gunner	43‑37703⇗	Combat Mission Credit Sortie Report⇗
182⇗	18 August 1944	Target: Tactical: Bridge Type: Transportation Location: Vise, Belgium	Tail Gunner	42‑39888⇗	Combat Mission Credit Low Squadron deputy, lead group. Sortie Report⇗
184⇗	25 August 1944	Target: Airfield & Airpark Type: German Air Force (Luftwaffe) Location: Anklam, Germany	Tail Gunner	42‑97251⇗	Combat Mission Credit Low Squadron deputy, low group. Ground Spare Aircraft; replaced 42‑39888. Sortie Report⇗
186⇗	30 August 1944	Target: NOBALL (V-1 Launch Site) Type: CROSSBOW (V-Weapons) Location: Crepieul, France	Tail Gunner	42‑97282⇗	Combat Mission Credit Sortie Report⇗
188⇗	5 September 1944	Target: I. G. Farben Chemical Works Type: Industry Location: Ludwigshafen, Germany	Tail Gunner	42‑98000⇗	Combat Mission Credit Hot camera ship, low Squadron. Sortie Report⇗
190⇗	9 September 1944	Target: I. G. Farben Chemical Works Type: Industry Location: Ludwigshafen, Germany	Tail Gunner	42‑98000⇗	Combat Mission Credit Sortie Report⇗
192⇗	11 September 1944	Target: Oil Refinery Type: Oil Industry Location: Lützkendorf & Merseburg, Germany	Tail Gunner	43‑38062⇗	Combat Mission Credit 41A Group. Sortie Report⇗
195⇗	17 September 1944	Target: Tank and Gun Concentrations, Tactical Type: Military Location: Eindhoven & 's‑Hertogenbosch (den Bosch), The Netherlands	Tail Gunner	43‑37703⇗	Combat Mission Credit B Squadron. Sortie Report⇗
198⇗	25 September 1944	Target: Railroad Marshalling Yards Type: Transportation Location: Frankfurt am Main, Germany	Tail Gunner	44‑6141⇗	Combat Mission Credit C Wing, lead group. Sortie Report⇗
199⇗	26 September 1944	Target: Steelworks Type: Industry Location: Osnabrück, Germany	Tail Gunner	43‑38062⇗	Combat Mission Credit Sortie Report⇗
200⇗	27 September 1944	Target: Railroad Marshalling Yards (PFF Aiming Points) Type: Transportation Location: Cologne / Köln, Germany	Tail Gunner	43‑38062⇗	Combat Mission Credit Sortie Report⇗
202⇗	30 September 1944	Target: Handorf Airfield Type: German Air Force (Luftwaffe) Location: Münster, Germany	Tail Gunner	43‑38615⇗	Combat Mission Credit Sortie Report⇗
203⇗	2 October 1944	Target: Ford Motor Works Type: Industry Location: Cologne / Köln, Germany	Tail Gunner	42‑102661⇗	Combat Mission Credit Low Squadron deputy. Hot camera ship. Sortie Report⇗
205⇗	5 October 1944	Type: Industry Location: Cologne / Köln, Germany	Tail Gunner	44‑8047⇗	Combat Mission Credit High Squadron deputy. PFF ship. Sortie Report⇗
206⇗	6 October 1944	Target: M/T Factory Type: Industry Location: Stettin / Szczecin, Poland	Tail Gunner	42‑37822⇗	Combat Mission Credit D group deputy Squadron lead. Hot camera ship. Sortie Report⇗
208⇗	9 October 1944	Target: Ball-Bearing Plant Type: Bearings Industry Location: Schweinfurt, Germany	Tail Gunner	42‑97320⇗	Combat Mission Credit Sortie Report⇗
210⇗	14 October 1944	Target: Railroad Marshalling Yards Type: Transportation Location: Saarbrücken, Germany	Tail Gunner	43‑38016⇗	Combat Mission Credit Lead Squadron deputy. Gee-H and hot camera ship. Sortie Report⇗
226⇗	16 November 1944	Target: Tactical - Artillery Positions Type: Military Location: Eschweiler, Germany	Tail Gunner	43‑37703⇗	Combat Mission Credit Landed away at Stratford, due to weather. Sortie Report⇗
227⇗	20 November 1944	Target: Buer Synthetic Oil Plant Type: Oil Industry Location: Gelsenkirchen, Germany	Tail Gunner	43‑38062⇗	Combat Mission Credit Sortie Report⇗
228⇗	23 November 1944	Target: Nordstern Coking Plant at Gelsenkirchener Bergwerks-A.G. Type: Oil Industry Location: Gelsenkirchen, Germany	Tail Gunner	42‑98000⇗	Combat Mission Credit Sortie Report⇗
229⇗	25 November 1944	Target: Synthetic Oil Plant Type: Oil Industry Location: Lützkendorf, Germany	Tail Gunner	43‑38062⇗	Combat Mission Credit Hot camera ship; landed away at Harwell, due to weather. Sortie Report⇗
231⇗	27 November 1944	Target: Railroad Marshalling Yards Type: Transportation Location: Offenburg, Germany	Tail Gunner	43‑38750⇗	Combat Mission Credit Sortie Report⇗
233⇗	30 November 1944	Target: Synthetic Oil Refinery Type: Oil Industry Location: Zeitz, Germany	Tail Gunner	43‑37713⇗	Combat Mission Credit Failed To Return Damaged by flak, force-landed near Rebgeshain, Hesse, Germany. Crew survived combat, but four members were murdered by the local Nazi Ortsgruppenleiter in Beltershain, the others became POW. MACR 11129 Sortie Report⇗

Every effort has been expended to ensure all information on this page is complete and accurate.
Please inform webmaster of any discrepancies or omissions by using the button below.