Date & Time:
Nov 17, 1942
Type of aircraft:
Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress
Operator:
Registration:
42-2969
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Military
Survivors:
No
Site:
Lake, Sea, Ocean, River
Schedule:
Predannack - Gibraltar - Algiers
MSN:
7905
YOM:
1942
Country:
World
Region:
World
Crew on board:
11
Crew fatalities:
11
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
0
Other fatalities:
0
Total fatalities:
11
Circumstances:
The airplane departed RAF Predannack on a flight to Algiers-Maison Blanche Airport with an intermediate stop in Gibraltar. On board were 11 crew members, among them Brigadier General Asa North Duncan (Chief of Staff, Headquarters, Eighth Air Force) who was flying to North Africa to witness Operation Torch. The aircraft was flying in loose formation at about 400 feet when it was seen with one engine on the right wing on fire. The formation had been flying about one hour after departure from Predannack and was about 145 km west of Brest, France. A propeller was feathered and the whole wing appeared to be on fire. Moments later it crashed in the Celtic Sea enveloped in a sheet of flames and sank immediately. One man was seen in a dinghy and five or six other in the water with Mae Wests. The men were over flown in the next hour by another B-17 and later by other aircraft but no one was rescued. Two bodies were later recovered and the rest of the crew and passenger were never located.
Crew:
Br Gen Asa North Duncan,
Maj John M. Knox,
1st Lt Leslie S. Birleson,
1st Lt Clark M. Garber Jr.,
1st Lt Joshua Kaplan,
1st Lt John C. Roysden,
T/Sgt Paul W. Padgett,
S/Sgt Roger J. Arendt,
S/Sgt Arthur B. Spell,
Sgt Lilburn L. Haddox,
Sgt Welcome L. Talbot.
Crew:
Br Gen Asa North Duncan,
Maj John M. Knox,
1st Lt Leslie S. Birleson,
1st Lt Clark M. Garber Jr.,
1st Lt Joshua Kaplan,
1st Lt John C. Roysden,
T/Sgt Paul W. Padgett,
S/Sgt Roger J. Arendt,
S/Sgt Arthur B. Spell,
Sgt Lilburn L. Haddox,
Sgt Welcome L. Talbot.
Probable cause:
Engine fire in flight.
