Grafton Underwood AFB

The airplane departed RAF Grafton Underwood at 1600LT to attack the airport of Villacoublay. Passing south of Paris, it was badly shot about by the German Flak and later shot down by a German fighter. The crew abandoned the airplane that crashed in an open field in Guillerval, 9 km southwest of Étampes. All 10 crew members parachuted to safety, eight evaded and two became PoW.
Crew:
1st Lt Joseph Rosio, pilot,
1st Lt George W. Evans, copilot,
S/Sgt Otho E. Masterson, mechanic,
S/Sgt Lester Brown Jr., radio operator,
2nd Lt Leonard J. Fink, navigator,
2nd Lt Sidney Casden, bombardier,
S/Sgt John H. Houghton, air gunner,
S/Sgt John H. Kuberski, air gunner,
S/Sgt Anthony F. Cucinotta, air gunner,
Sgt Lee Lewis, air gunner.

The airplane departed RAF Grafton Underwood to attack the airport of Villacoublay. Passing over Lisieux, it was shot down by a German fighter and crashed one km south of La Chapelle-Hareng, 14 km northwest of Bernay. Five crew members were killed, four became PoW and one evaded.
Crew:
2nd Lt Thomas A. Cuddeback, pilot,
F/O Luther E. Adair, copilot,
S/Sgt Edward T. Bessey, mechanic, †
2nd Lt George R. Singer, navigator, †
S/Sgt Philip James Fink, radio operator,
2nd Lt James Francis Dillon Jr., bombardier,
S/Sgt Albert L. Suchy, air gunner,
S/Sgt Marvin Frank Brown, air gunner, †
S/Sgt David J. Hardin, air gunner, †
S/Sgt John Vincent Selgo, air gunner. †

The airplane departed RAF Grafton Underwood to attack the airport of Villacoublay. Passing over Dieppe, it was shot down by a German fighter and crashed in Gouchaupre, 15 km east of Dieppe. All 10 crew members abandoned the airplane and parachuted to safety before becoming PoW.
Crew:
1st Lt Lykes Shelton Henderson, pilot,
2nd Lt Paul Francis Shinsky Jr., copilot,
T/Sgt Ivon J. Schultz, mechanic,
S/Sgt Howard Temple Baker, radio operator,
2nd Lt Claudius Earl Belk, navigator,
2nd Lt Andrew C. Conway, bombardier,
S/Sgt Harry A. McKnight, air gunner,
S/Sgt George H. Smith, air gunner,
S/Sgt Joseph A. Lally, air gunner,
Sgt Ralph Eugene Hemmick Jr., air gunner.

The airplane departed RAF Grafton Underwood to attack the airport of Villacoublay. Approaching Paris, it was shot down by a German fighter. The crew abandoned the airplane that crashed in an open field located in Bernouville, 6 km west of Gisors. All 10 crew members parachuted to safety, two evaded and eight became PoW.
Crew:
2nd Lt Howard Cyril Burgoon, pilot,
2nd Lt Victor Charles Kress, copilot,
S/Sgt William Aguiar, mechanic,
S/Sgt Harold S. McFarland, radio operator,
2nd Lt David B. Wilmot, navigator,
2nd Lt Tom J. E. Hunt, bombardier,
T/Sgt Edward Lawrence Peckham, air gunner,
S/Sgt Edward C. Costello, air gunner,
S/Sgt Roland Hairston Jenkins, air gunner,
S/Sgt Henry J. Ullmer, air gunner.

The airplane departed RAF Grafton Underwood on an operation to Hamburg. Passing over the Netherlands, it was shot down by a German fighter and crashed in Smalbroek. A crew was killed and nine others became PoW.
Crew:
1st Lt J. W. Smith, pilot,
Maj S. L. McMillen, copilot,
T/Sgt Robert H. Buckley, flight engineer, †
Cpt J. W. Foister, navigator,
T/Sgt J. J. Reichwein, radio operator,
1st Lt F. J. Meyers, bombardier,
S/Sgt D. A. Pratt, left wing gunner,
S/Sgt S. W. MacArthur, right wing gunner,
S/Sgt L. T. Jones, ball turret gunner,
1st Lt A. W. Nelson, tail gunner.

The airplane departed RAF Grafton Underwood on an operation to Hamburg. Passing over the Netherlands, it was shot down by a German fighter and crashed into the Dollard Bay, some 15 km northeast of Winschoten. Four crew members were killed and six others became PoW.
Crew:
2nd Lt John R. Way, pilot, †
2nd Lt S. R. Fabian, copilot,
2nd Lt R. M. Janson, navigator,
2nd Lt T. J. Corrigan, bombardier,
T/Sgt Hill, flight engineer,
S/Sgt Gadomski, radio operator,
S/Sgt Westlake, left wing gunner,
S/Sgt William R. Feagin, right wing gunner, †
Sgt Charles E. Crawford, ball turret gunner, †
S/Sgt Raymond E. Dodge, tail gunner. †

The airplane departed RAF Grafton Underwood on an operation to Antwerp. Passing over the Netherlands, it was shot down by a German fighter and crashed in Goes. Four crew members were killed and six others became PoW.
Crew:
2nd Lt Robert J. Olbinski, pilot,
2nd Lt Harry R. Swift, copilot,
T/Sgt Ernie M. Trickett, flight engineer, †
2nd Lt Richard E. Grandpre, navigator,
T/Sgt Ollie E. Reed, radio operator,
2nd Lt Douglas H. Turner, bombardier, †
S/Sgt George W. Waterman, waist gunner, †
S/Sgt William J. Counihan Jr., waist gunner,
S/Sgt George F. Werbanec, ball turret gunner,
S/Sgt Harry J. Cooke, tail gunner. †

The aircraft was involved in a mid-air collision with a second USAAF Boeing B-17F registered 42-30131 during a practice flight. They were two of sixteen bombers which were landing out of their formation on return to base at RAF Grafton Underwood. Initial confusion on the correct landing runway had been resolved but had caused these two aircraft to go-around for another attempt because of poor spacing. 42-30036 is believed to have bounced during its first attempt to land and was going around the pattern at a lower level than 42-30131 which was now above it on base leg by about 1,000 feet. They both turned final about the same time without the pilots seeing the other aircraft. The control tower was showing a red light to 42-30131 but this was not observed by the crew. A call from the tower to 'pull up' was misheard and both aircraft pulled up about the same time. The tail of 42-30036 hit the nose and then n°2 engine of the upper aircraft. Momentarily locked together, the propeller sliced through the tail of this aircraft, cutting off the vertical stabilizer a few feet forward of the fin. This bomber reared straight up, fell off on its left wing and headed nose down for the ground where it exploded in flames on impact.
Source: Joe Baugher
Crew:
2nd Lt Samuel A. Eggers Jr.,
2nd Lt Ellwood D. Kowalski,
2nd Lt Leo A. Murphy,
F/O Jack L. Griffin,
S/Sgt Jean L. Blaise.

The airplane departed RAF Grafton Underwood on an operation to Saint-Omer. The crew had been warned about the possibility of being attacked while taking off or landing. Consequently, the machine guns were charged. When the pilot banked the aircraft during the Group assembly, the right waist gun discharged about 50 rounds resulting in the aircraft's right horizontal stabilizer being shot off and cutting the control cable to the right aileron. The tail gunner and a waist gunner had been wounded by this action. The damage was so severe, the aircraft was very difficult to fly but was brought back over base where six crew bailed out. The pilots then took the aircraft towards the coast where the bombs and armament were jettisoned over The Wash, then turning back over land so that the bombardier and navigator could bail out safely near King's Lynn. Next, the pilot and copilot took their crippled plane back out to sea to ditch it away from built-up areas. They both bailed out somewhere off Blakeney, Norfolk. The copilot was picked up by an RAF rescue launch. The pilot had been in the freezing North Sea for some time before the Sheringham Lifeboat found him, unconscious. He did not survive.
Crew:
Cpt Derrol W. Rogers, pilot +9.

The crew departed RAF Upwood on a training exercise. En route, one of the engine failed and the pilot lost control of the airplane that lost height and crashed nearby RAF Grafton Underwood. Both crew members were killed.
Crew:
Sgt Peter Desmond Thompson, pilot,
Sgt Allan Ian Wilson Fairbairn, wireless operator.