Williamson crew listed in book with New Crews Assigned to Snetterton December 1943.
Information I have on aircraft "The Saint" (AC 42-37985) is that it received serious trouble due to enemy fighter attacks and left formation with a smoking engine and headed for Sweden. Where the crew became Internees. Statement by the pilot Oscar Williamson says that he returned to England in some type of Internee Exchange in July 1944. The plane was later repaired and returned after hostilities in 1945.
Information on mission is that it was a two target mission. And the weather was bad with heavy cloud cover. The 96th was divided into three formations. A Group leading the 45CBW and also the entire 3AD. Seven others of the 96th flew with the 388th forming a composite group and three others flew with the 452nd and eventually abandoned it's mission.
When the Composite Group reached Denmark the weather cleared and they bombed Rostock and returned with no E/A sighted.
A Group was eventually was ordered to joint the 1AD and fly north on it's designated route. This resulted in no fighter cover. Although many groups had received calls the A Group battled its way through clouds until it finally hit Poznan. It was reported that Enemy Aircraft made a sustained attack on the group for 60 minutes. Which resulted in AC 42-40051 of the 339th being shot down. And 42-37985 left formation and headed toward Sweden. The rest of the group returned greeting the ground crew with a lot of red flares and it was obvious it had seen plenty of action.
Other information on the aircraft 42-37985. On the 2/25/44 mission to Regensburg Germany it was flown by Pilot Bob Arstingstall. The navigator Stan Peterson stated that the Co-pilot Curt Mosier was KIA during and E/A attack.
Berk
<message edited by xdod on 06/29/2008 09:25:10 PM >