My Grandfather, John Murray Green, was part of the 15th Air Force
and pilot #1092 of a Liberator.


He arrived in Italy 28 Nov 1944, and was flying bombing missions until Jan 20 1945 when he was shot down near Gospic Croatia.

Can you please provide information on:

Missions of his unit.
- Particularly the one of Jan 20 when he was shot down
Information on the Squadron he was attached to (I don't even know which it was).

Thank you very much for your help on this matter.


Mike Hartner
Grandson
Family Historian

Mike...you are going to have to come up with more information....there were FIFTEEN    (15)  B-24 bomb groups in the 15th AF....all you have told us so far, is that he flew with the 15th on a B-24, as a pilot.
 
Is there any other information that will hep us help you ?
 
Is there any paperwork that would show what Bomb Group he was assigned to ?  Does anyone have an old letter from him, as the return address would be on the envelope ?
 
Please do not leave ANYTHING out, however insignificant it may seem to you.
 
We are here to assist you, but we do need more information than you have given so far.
 
I checked the MACR Data Base at the top of this  page....with the following losses for Jan 20, 1945....
 
15th AAF B-24
 
454 BG    4
459 BG    1
460 BG    1
461 BG    2
464 BG    1
484 BG    1
485 BG    2
 
Total 12
 
You will have to check each Bomb Group for information unless someone just happens to find it in the meantime.
 
Good Luck....and please tell us EVERYTHING you know.
 
Jim :-)
 
 
 

James S. Peters Sr. T/Sgt
B-17 Flt Engr, 27 missions
99 BG, 348BS, 5th Wing, 15th AAF
Tortorella, (Foggia#2), Italy
My Tour was from 12/03/44-06/19/45
M/Sgt USAF (Retired)

Jim:

Thank you for your prompt reply.

The digging I have been doing since posting has finally brought a few numbers that may be of help to both of us:

304th B. Wing
454th B. Group
739th B. Squadron

Shot down on Mission to Linz, Austria, over Gospic Croatia.

What exactly is a "Marshalling Yard"?

POW arrived Nurenberglangwasser - new camp called Stalag Luft III (Jan 20 1945)

Any inforation you can give me on:

the wing, group, squadron, and stalag would be VERY greatly appreciated.

Jim: A Few other things I do not quite understand:

POW Liberated Project "R"
Can you tell me what Project R means - (without my getting shot? (:)))


EAME Theatre Ribbon with 4 Battle Star:

Air Combat Balkans Sec 1 WD Cir 195, 1944
Northern Apennines Sec 1 WD Cir 195, 1944
Rhineland Sec 1 WD Cir 195, 1944
Ardennes Sec 1 WD Cir 195, 1944

Auth one (1) SErvice Bar for 6 mos. (13 Nov 44 / 8 Jun 45)

Can you please explain these. I believe the ribbon European, African, Middle East
What does SEc 1 WD Cir 195, 1944 refer to?

And how do I found out about these flights?

OK, 454th Bomb Group lost 4 B-24's on Jan. 20, 1945

42-78210,  738th Bomb Squadron, pilot Lt. Paul S. Cash  MACR 11274 ........ we can eliminate this one

44-49343       Squadron and pilot not found online search, MACR 11536 .......  possibility

42-99773        Squadron and pilot not found online search, MACR 11537 ......... possibility


42-51370         739th Squadron   nick-name " Silver Shark "     MACR 11751         Picture on B24Bestweb link below.  Only has 4 enlisted members in photo, does not list pilot .......... GOOD possibility.   The radio operator of this plane, Alvin Sholl, contributed the picture, and there is a link to email him,  might email and find out if your granddad  was his pilot.

http://www.b24bestweb.com/silvershark.htm

 
454th Bomb Group Association website has a mission listing page, and you might contact them for more info, membership, etc.
 
http://www.bombgroup.com/


A marshalling yard is where trains are made up.  A train going to Berlin from Rome might have 10 freight cars in it that are going to Paris. It would drop those 10 cars off in the Linz marshalling yard on a siderail and continue on to Berlin, and another train coming from Vienna going to Paris would come through Linz a few days later and hook onto those 10 cars.  These yards were valuable military targets because so much equipment might be sitting on the siderails in the yards, as well as the fact that they were hubs, and if you could tear up the tracks in the yards, you could slow down or halt a lot of military movement.

Sec 1 WD Cir 1944 is    Section 1, War Department Circular 1944.
General policy and orders were set out in WD Circulars. Not absolutely sure, but from the awards of the Battle Stars, it appears Section 1 dealt with defining the geographical area and time period to qualify for award of that specific Star.

SHAEF1944 American Veterans Museum

Jim:


two documents that have surface over the last hour:

Doc 1:

" Record of Service:
...
29 Nov 44 20 Jan 45 739 B Sq 454 b Gp (H) Italy 15 AF USAAFMTO
Pilot B-24 4 cbt miss, 30 cbt hrs 49 hrs total
Left Control US 20 Jan 45; German POW Liberated Project "R"
returned 29 Apr 45
30 Apr 45-29 May 45 GP Lucky Strike France Casual Awaiting return to US
30 May-45 1 Sept 45 AAFRS #2 MB/ FLA Return to US TDY for R&R Processing UNK RR

(Signed) Arthur N. Caldwell, Major, A.G.D"

Doc2:

"Subject: Missing Air Crew

1.. a: Type of Mission: Combat Bombing
b: Crew Positon: CO-Pilot
c: Type of Aircraft: B-24J

2. 2nd Lt Green was the co-pilot of the crew of a B-24 J Airplane Number 370 piloted by 2nd LT Frederick K. Vosper, ON a combat mission over Linz, Austria, on 20 Jan 1945. The circumstance that led to the loss of ship #370 and crew members are unknown.

Ship #370 was flying number 7 position in A box from the initial point until shortly before Bombs away. At this time, under no obvious difficulty ship #370 fell back from A Box to C Box and Below the formation. C Box was unable to drop their bombs because of malfunction and peeled away from the bomb run to the right. Ship #370 remained on Bomb run trailing A Box. This was when Ship 370 was last seen and further interrogation of combat crews from other boxes revealed no additional information."

Both heady documents. They bring up the following questions:

1. Is there any way to contact 2LT Vosper?
2. Can I found out the names of other crew members?

3. What was Lucky Strike France?

A Third report : Casualty report Remarks: AG 704 (11 May 45)

indicates that he was liberated from Moosburg Camp, and returned to HQ 3rd US Army ETO

Is Moosburg Camp Stalag Luft III? Or a different Location?

POWs from several of the Stalag Lufts (located in Poland) were force marched south and west to avoid the Russians.   Terms to search for "Death March", "Long March", "Long Walk."   There's a good bit of information on the web and several books on the subject.  
 
Moosburg was the location for Stalag VII-A in Southern Germany toward the Austrian border area.   The end of the march. 

Scott Burris, 381st BGMA LTM
ArmyAirForces.com

Stalag Luft III was Sagan (Zagan,Poland).POW's were moved to Mosburg on january 15 1945.( according to Lt David Wolter,co-pilot, B17 42-31565, 95th BG,335thBs who was a POW at Sagan)
 
Phil

Phil in Belgium

See my post above, A/C  42-51370 almost certainly the plane your grandfather was co-pilot of due to your just found document stating he was co-pilot of B-24J Airplane Number 370.
 
 
Camp Lucky Strike started out as a replacement depot in France for guys going to the continent in 1944. It was turned into a camp for liberated POW's later.  Read about it at the following link
 
http://www.indianamilitary.org/106ID/Units/590FA/HousePete_590A.htm

SHAEF1944 American Veterans Museum

http://www.b24.net/pow/march.htm
 
Just a reminder those experienced frostbite are eligible for award the Purple Heart.
 
Robert

Thank you all for your help and information.

An internet link to a book has quoted one plane as landing at SG airfield, and then driving to HQ in BARI.
A second link show SG airfield more central in Italy

Can someone please clarify where in Italy San Giovanni Airfield was located?

Thank you

Mike Hartner

The San Giovanni air base was 6 miles from the city of Cerignola.  Cerignola is about 25 miles inland from Margherieta di Savoia on the Adriatic coastlne.

Hi, I am new to this web site and to the research. My father in law Simon Holzschuh, was I believe, the pilot of the B 24 the "Silver Shark" - (we have a photo of him waving from the window at the pilot seat) showing the nose are and the name. He died 20 yrs ago without ever speaking about the war to any of the "Kids", but we believe he was sent to italy in Dec 44 and was shot down very shortly thereafter perhaps late Jan. 45. According to my mother in law, he was captured by the russians and kept in a box car for several months till a prisoner swap was arranged maybe july 45. We have recently found his war diary and pilot log books and are trying to develope a better picture of what happened. I would be glad to correspond with anyone having similar interest and share info.
 
wayne Mauro wemo101@aol.com