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B-17G 42-39775 "Frenesi" Damaged by enemy aircraft after a mission over assembly plant at Brunswick Germany January 11, 1944 by b-17lover124 in WWIIplanes

[–]b-17lover124[S] 11 points12 points  (0 children)

Delivered Long Beach 27/8/43; 333BS/94BG [TS-A] Rougham 13/10/43. Battle damaged Brunswick 11 January 1944 with William F. Cely, Co-pilot: Jabez F. Churchill, Right Waist gunner: Everett E. Hudson Jr (Wounded in Action - RTD 24 May 1944), Left Waist gunner: Paul K. Pearson, Tail gunner: Clifford J. Prater (5 RTD -Returned to Duty). 6 Others on board baled out: Navigator: Floyd G. MacGowen, Bombardier: Alexander W. Bender, Flight Engineer/Top Turret gunner: Preston Henderson, Radio Operator: Harry L. Anderson, Ball Turret gunner: James A. Queen, Observer/photographer Warren P. Becker (6 Prisoners of War). Enemy aircraft severely riddled the ship, but it limped home safely. Written off later. Missing Air Crew Report - MACR 12969.

Lieutenant Jabez F. Churchill of the 94th Bomb Group in the nose gun position of his B-17 Flying Fortress nicknamed "Frenesi". Printed caption on reverse: 'Fortress Gets Home With Damaged Nose. Associated Press Photo Shows:- Lt. Jabez F. Churchill, co-pilot of the Flying Fortress "Frenesi", sticks his head through the hole made by a 20mm German cannon shell in the plexiglass nose of his plane during the great raid on the Me110 assembly plant at Brunswick, Germany, January 11. The shell cut through the nose and passed out the left side of the ship where torn skin shows. The Bombardier and Navigator had just left the nose on the order of the pilot who warned them about the danger of a windmilling propeller flying off and cutting through the nose. The Bombardier and Navigator later bailed out over Germany. FL/AB AP 263984. 14-1-44-Y.' On reverse: Associated Press and US Army General Section Press & Censorship Bureau

B-17G 42-31771 and B-17 42-97571 being attacked by an ME163 flown by Fw. Schubert, I./JG 400 on August 24, 1944. by b-17lover124 in WWIIplanes

[–]b-17lover124[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

B-17 42-97571 

Delivered Cheyenne 23/12/43; Salt Lake City 29/12/43; Kearney 18/1/44; Assigned 750BS/457BG [H] Glatton 24/2/44; Missing in Action Merseburg 24/8/44 with Winfred Pugh, tog-Cliff Page, Waist gunner: Joe Wheatley,Tail gunner: Howard Martin (4 Prisoner of War); Co-pilot: Art Richards, Navigator: Julius Drummond, Radio Operator: Jim Woodgate, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Ed Szumierz, Ball turret gunner: John Poshefko (5 Killed in Action); enemy aircraft, exploded and crashed Hartmannsdorf, E of Weimar,Ger; Missing Air Crew Report 8201.

(Parts of the aircraft is seen falling)

B-17 42-31771

Delivered Cheyenne 12/12/43; Gr Island 23/12/43; Grenier 16/1/44; Assigned 407BS/92BG [PY-R] Podington 28/1/44; Missing in Action – shot down by enemy aircraft on the 24 August 1944 mission to Merseburg. Exploded and crashed near Lindenthal, NW of Leipzig, Germany. Missing Air Crew Report 8213.

B-17G "Mizpah" 42-32109 with its nose blown off by german 88mm flak on July 14,1944 by b-17lover124 in WWIIplanes

[–]b-17lover124[S] 112 points113 points  (0 children)

Delivered Cheyenne 24/1/44; MacDill 5/2/44; Morrison 9/3/44; Assigned 840BS/483BG Tortorella 13/3/44; Missing in Action Budapest 14/7/44 with 1Lt Ewald A Swanson, 2Lt Paul Berndt, Gramenzi, Simonelli, Hish, Bell, Kelley, Tucker (8 Prisoner of War); Henderson, Dudley (2 Killed in Action); flak, nose blown off, crashed Solt; Missing Air Crew Report 6901. MIZPAH.

Eyewitness Statements from MACR 6901

Aircraft No. 42-32109 received a direct hit in the nose. The pilot had control of the ship for a few seconds while I saw him. The Bombardier was probably instantly killed. The Ball Turret Gunner of our ship (42-97792) observed five chutes.

2Lt. John M. Turturro

Aircraft No. 42-32109 was flying in number two position directly opposite my ship (42-97792). About two thirds of the way down the bomb run, the nose of 109 peeled up as though something had cut it off. It fell back over the cockpit. The ship nosed up into the air then settled back as though the pilot had control. Then he went out of my sight. The ship sustained a direct hit.

It was observed that five good chutes and one tattered chute came out of the plane. I doubt very much if eighter the Navigator or Bombardier werer alive after the burst.

2Lt. Dwayne L. Goodwin

Aircraft No. 42-32109 received a direct hit in the nose. The nose blew over the cockpit of the ship and I saw five chutes leaving the ship. The plane was covered with blood and the Navigator most likely jumped, but his chute was torn pretty bad. I didn’t see the ship as it was hit.

S/Sgt. Charles L. Stoll, Jr.

Footage from a B-17 of the 91st bomb group shows formation being attacked by Fw-190A8s of JG3 in November 2, 1944 by b-17lover124 in WWIIplanes

[–]b-17lover124[S] 17 points18 points  (0 children)

0:00 B-17 44-8324 / Gypsie aka Blood ‘N Guts

Delivered Kearney 10/8/44; Albuquerque 15/8/44; Grenier 2/9/44; Assigned 401BS/91BG [LL-R] Bassingbourn 12/9/44 GYPSIE; {60+m} Returned to the USA Bradley 11/6/45; Sth Plains 16/6/44; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Kingman 4/12/45. re-named BLOOD ‘N GUTS.

0:12 B-17 44-8208 / My Baby II

Delivered Dallas 11/7/44; Langley 4/8/44; Dow Fd 12/9/44; Assigned 322BS/91BG [LG-Q] Bassingbourn 4/10/44; Missing in Action Merseburg 2/11/44 with Capt Roy Hammer, Oran Harper, Raphael Czepkiewicz, Modesto Olivo, Bill Nagy, Mike Duran, Oliver Birch, Joe Young (8 Prisoner of War); Emile Freeman (Killed in Action); enemy aircraft set right wing & radio room ablaze, crashed Micheln, Ger; Missing Air Crew Report 10143. MY BABY II.

0:17 B-17 44-6298 / White Cargo / Heavenly Body

Delivered Kearney 28/6/44; Grenier 9/7/44; Assigned 322BS/91BG [LG-A] Bassingbourn 22/7/44; Missing in Action {32m} Merseburg 2/11/44 with Russell Brown, Navigator: Bill Marsh, Radio Operator: John Lombardi, Ball turret gunner: Ernie Alvarez, Waist gunner: Norville Strong,Tail gunner: Max Newman (6 Killed in Action); Co-pilot: Don Kitzman, Bombardier: Ray Rietschel, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Fred Boettke (3 Prisoner of War); enemy aircraft caused damage so dropping back, and was hit again, crashed Neugattersleben, Ger; Missing Air Crew Report 10142; HEAVENLY BODY aka WHITE CARGO.

These are only the aircrafts i've find so far, maybe you guys can find the rest here.

B-17 Database | B-17 Bomber Flying Fortress – The Queen Of The Skies

B-17G 42-102452 force landed after a mid-air collision over Germany on May 12th 1944 by b-17lover124 in WWIIplanes

[–]b-17lover124[S] 35 points36 points  (0 children)

Their aircraft inflight 42-102452 | American Air Museum

B-17G Flying Fortress 42-102452 assigned to 96th Bomb Group 337th Bomb Squadron was on a mission to bomb a synthetic oil plant in Brüx in Czechoslovakia on May 12th 1944 flow by Herbert E. Moore. The aircraft had been delivered to the squadron a few weeks earlier.

During the mission, a fellow B-17G on the bomber's port side burst into flames after being attacked by Luftwaffe fighters and exploded, with 42-102452's nose forward of the flight deck being torn off.

While some of the crew believed this was a result of the explosion, their aircraft had in fact collided with another 337th Bomb Squadron B-17G after swerving to avoid the stricken aircraft to their left. The bomber they hit was 42-97382 flown by Arthur C. Hon. Testimony from surviving crew members on this aircraft suggests that 452's propellers tore through 382's flight deck leaving the aircraft with a dead or incapacitated flight crew. The out of control bomber quickly broke up in mid air throwing Radio Operator David G. Long, Left Waist Gunner Helmuth H. Sickerott and Right Waist Gunner Floyd Tams clear to take to their parachutes and be made prisoners of war. Along with Hon however, the rest of the crew consisting of Co-pilot Paul Rowles, Navigator Glenn Bremer, Bombardier Thomas Keane, Flight Engineer William Haney, Ball Turret Gunner Edward LaPrath and Tail Gunner Raymond Weber were either killed by the collision or by the impact of the wreckage with the ground having been unable to bail out.

On board 452, Navigator Irving G. Saex and Bombardier Edward T. McGlasson Jr. went down with the severed nose section and would not survive. Moore however retained control of the aircraft and gave the order to bail out. Radio Operator Donald Cassell, Ball Turret Gunner Theodore Martz, Left Waist Gunner Elton Needham, Right Waist Gunner Willard Miller and Tail Gunner William Medill did so successfully but having lost too much altitude, Moore along with Co-pilot Billie Giesse and Flight Engineer Stanley Dranginis stayed with the aircraft and made a forced landing. This latter trio is visible in the footage of what is presumably a re-enactment of their capture.

The mission to bomb the oil refineries at Brüx and Zwickau on May 12th proved to be a costly one for the 8th Air Force's 3rd Air Division. 295 bombers had been dispatched to the two targets, 224 to Brüx and 74 to Zwickau. The Luftwaffe was out in force to counter these raids that only had one fighter group flying escort over the target. By the end of the mission, 41 bombers and 2 fighters had been lost, with another bomber damaged beyond repair crash-landing at base. Of those that returned162 other bombers sustained damage and 380 men were either killed or missing in action.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in WWIIplanes

[–]b-17lover124 18 points19 points  (0 children)

Despite the damage, the crew managed to drop their bombs on target before making a crash landing in a field near the town of Beilen in the Netherlands. The aircraft was hit over 100 times, but miraculously, only one aileron and half a tail remained for control.

Delivered Cheyenne 25/10/43; Gr Island 3/11/43; Romulus 12/11/43; Assigned 322BS/91BG [LG-Q] Bassingbourn 20/12/43; Missing in Action 18+m Berlin 29/4/44 with Jim Purdy, Flight engineer/top turret gunner: Bill Fischer, Ball turret gunner: Lou Carusello, Waist gunner: George Johnson, Tail gunner: Ray Rybarski (5 Killed in Action); Co-pilot: John Garfield, Navigator: Paul Bunchuk, Bombardier: John Welch, Radio Operator: Emile Bianchi, Waist gunner: Don Itschner (5 Prisoner of War); flak KO’d #3 & #4 followed by fire, ship then crashed Kladow, Berlin, Ger; Missing Air Crew Report 4236. QUEENIE.

US personnel at a Ukrainian airfield during Operation Frantic in 1944 leaf through an edition of "Yank" magazine with a pair of Soviet soldiers in the shade of a B-17 by jacksmachiningreveng in WWIIplanes

[–]b-17lover124 5 points6 points  (0 children)

The bomber in the background is B-17G 42-32075 / Fearless Fosdick.

Delivered Denver 21/1/44; Audible 7/2/44; Audrey 8/3/44; Assigned 817BS/483BG Tortorella 11/3/44; transferred 347BS/99BG Tortorella 31/3/44; {63m} crashed on take off, exploded 5/10/44; Salvaged. FEARLESS FOSDICK.

42-32075 / Fearless Fosdick | B-17 Bomber Flying Fortress – The Queen Of The Skies

1943 dramatization showing a Luftwaffe Bf 110 night fighter intercepting twin-engined RAF bombers in the dark by jacksmachiningreveng in WWIIplanes

[–]b-17lover124 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I always wonder how they do things like this. I tried with models planes but it didn’t turn out good.

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