The story
At the date of 15-08-1944, time: 1330, the aircraft type B-24 has been lost. The location of the plane was found at: Wapserveen (gem. Havelte). The unit of crew and plane is: 466BG/787BS. First flyer rank: 1st Lieutenant, name: J. Suchiu. The plane belonged to the Allied forces.
Crew: Ford B-24H-15-FO Liberator - #42-52597 - "U8-W" - "LADY LIGHTNING" - 15 Aug 1944 - MACR #8428
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O-425057 - 1st Lt. - Pilot - John Suchiu - Warren, Trumbull County, OH - KIA
15131815 - O-700972 - 2nd Lt. - Co-Pilot - Mervin Louis Ransom - Sandusky County, OH - POW - Stalag Luft 3 and Stalag 7A
31082194 - O-701433 - 2nd Lt. - Bombardier - Arthur Palladino - Revere, Suffolk County, MA - POW - Stalag Luft 1
14147607 - O-691887 - 2nd Lt. - Navigator - William B. Gatlin - Fulton Co., GA - POW - Stalag Luft 3
14046730 - T/Sgt. - Engineer / Top Turret Gunner - Emile G. Piazza - Hancock Co., MS - POW - Stalag Luft 4
32739130 - T/Sgt. - Radio Operator - Frederick J. "Fred" Gerritz - Erie County, NY - EVD
33558860 - S/Sgt. - Ball Turret Gunner - Jerome Ralph Samburg - Baltimore City Co., MD - KIA
33560157 - S/Sgt. - Right Waist Gunner - Lowell D. Stiles - Fairmont, WV - KIA
35608603 - S/Sgt. - Left Waist Gunner - Edward Anthony Dobran - Mahoning Co., Ohio - POW - Stalag Luft 3
35553545 - S/Sgt. - Tail Gunner - Robert Richard Abbott - Findlay, Hancock County, OH - KIA
John Suchiu
Mervin Louis Ransom
Arthur Palladino
Arthur Palladino
Emile G. Piazza
Frederick J. "Fred" Gerritz
Jerome Ralph Samburg
Lowell D. Stiles
Edward Anthony Dobran
Robert Richard Abbott
Thanks to PATS (see source link for more info)
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You have arrived at just one small part of Back to Normandy — a personal project dedicated to preserving stories, images, music and memories of the Second World War.
Every record is a doorway to a larger story. Explore Back to Normandy to discover more, or visit Fred Vogels' personal website to learn about the person and the projects behind it.