Email to Ron Leigh from Glen Van Noy regarding A/C 42-30002 WAAC
Hunter (Oct. 2000 mpf)
From: Glen Van Noy gvannoy@risecom.net
To: Ron Leigh go4B17@leigh24.freeserve.co.uk
Sent: 29 10 2000 05:24
Subject: WAAC HUNTER 230002
Ron:
230002 was the number of the B-17 I flew to England in June of 1943,
landing at Thorpe Abbotts. I was one of the first pilots in the 349th
Squadron. I didn't have a name on the airplane. I flew seven missions (
the first seven the 100th made) and on my eighth, 002 was out of
commission, so I flew another. We had three engines shot out over
Regensburg on August 17, 1943, lost a lot of fuel, and ran out of gas
about 70 miles north of Sicily trying to make it to Africa. The
Mediterranean is a not recommended for landing B-17s. They sink. So
somebody else inherited 002 and gave it the WAAC HUNTER name. I have no
idea who. Since all the other original 349th pilots except one named Sammy
Barr and the squadron commander went down before the Regensburg mission, I
hardly knew the new replacement crews . I appreciate your interest in
things of that era.
Sincerely,
Glen S. Van Noy
1/10/2005
Aug. 17, 1943 Lt Charles Thompsen’s recollections
Re: John Justice's report, I have no idea where we were at this time
when we were hit by enemy fire, it could well been in the vicinity of
Nurnburg, I know that while I was in the cockpit we were too busy trying
to keep control of the plane to do such a stupid thing as lower the
landing gear. I don't believe that the gear was ever lowered or the gear
was ever down. I had a clear view of the underside of the plane as I was
falling until it exploded in a big ball of fire. Until I read Justice’s
report I was going by what Lloyd Fields, our flight engineer and top
turret gunner reported, shouting from his position that the vertical
tail was shot off, I again met him in the Obermassfeld P O W hospital,
and he again said that it was shot off. I wish that I had been more
specific about the details since reading Justice’s report that " a big
strip out of the vertical stabilizer" Shotland and I were busy fighting
to recover from a peel off to the right and being knocked out of our
formation position by a Me 109 cannon shell that hit this tail position.
We did recover and by the use of throttles were able to keep the plane
level and get back in position when we were hit again, the top turret
elevating mechanism was jammed, smoke filled the cockpit and bomb bay
and in # 2 engine, interphone and radios out, we tried to salvo our
bombs but couldn’t open the bomb bay doors or release the bombs, it was
time to get out. Shotland held the plane while I notified the crew to
bail out, We were just approaching the Rhine River south of Manheim, the
men in the rear of the plane went out through the right gunners window
and landed west of the river while the four of us in the front section
bailed out through the front hatch and landed east of the Rhine river.
After about a week of getting acquainted with new maps and procedures at
Bovingdon our crew arrived at Diss by train and then trucked to the
100th Bomb Group on July 24th 1943, the same day the 100th bombed
Trondheim in Norway.
1/11/2005
Aug. 17, 1943 Lt Charles Thompsen’s recollections
I would like you to know more about the situation of Interphone and
what I remember, On this mission Lt. Shotland was on interphone and for
crew control and coordination I was to stay on the radio in case we were
recalled or any other message, we wore our head phones with the ear
toward each other uncovered so we could talk to each other. Except for
talking to Shotland and Fields I never heard a word of what went on
during this mission. I heard Shotland try to get Lt. Harrison to open
the bomb bay doors and get rid of our incendiary bombs as we had a fire
some where and wanted to dump our fire bombs, he couldn't make contact
or drop the bombs any other way, so we decided to bail out, I gave
Shotland his chute and he snapped it on and told me to inform the crew
since he had no contact. I alerted Sgt Fields and we threw a hand full
of shells back through the bomb bay hitting Sgt Kussmann on the leg and
when he looked our way I motioned to dive, he gave me the OK sign then
he calmly stowed his gun and started back, then I crawled through the
tunnel to the nose section and interrupted their shooting to tell them
to bail out. I well remember the jolt we took when Sgt. Fields shouted
down to us that the vertical tail was shot off. I have described it like
driving down the highway then running off the road and through a ditch.
About Capdeville claim to having shot down a fighter, either you, Roy,
or Sgt Fields told me about it, and I remember Fields shouting to me
that he had shot down one and wanted me to confirm his claim, I did see
the plane fall and nearly go through our group formation, but I can't
say I saw his firing hit the plane and I am sure others were also
shooting at it but I would back his claim. Then later in the POW
hospital He told me about some twin-engine planes following our group
and shooting rockets at us and he was convinced that it was a rocket
that hit our plane and got the tail. I never seen any evidence of rocket
firing but from my seat I couldn't see anything to the rear.
1/10/2005
Aug. 17, 1943 S/Sgt Roy Butler, Waist Gunner recollections
There are things we will never know, but I think our plane was hit
by something bigger than a twenty mm shell because I was jolted almost
off my feet. I don't know if the tail moved up, then down violently, or
down and then up. I remember hearing Field say he thought it may have
been a rocket shell from one of the twin fighters. By the way, Charles,
did you know that Capdeville claimed a fighter? He said that he was
firing as the pilot bailed out and he might have killed him before he
could stop firing......Roy Butler
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