351st Sqdn. Crew, as above, joined the 100th Group on 9/1/45. Original Bombardier on the crew was 2nd Lt Joe Zamison. Cpl Williams was originally a WG. Reduced to 9 man crew before going overseas and Leon Williams became the Toggelier/Nose Gunner on the Crew.

Missions:

EYEWITNESS: "A/C #812 thought to have been hit by flak at 1428 hours 5034N 0745E. The right wing crumpled and A/C went into a spin then leveled off for a moment then went into another spin. A/C exploded on impact. No fire or smoke seen. No chutes seen. "

Guardino, Davis, Keefrey, Tudor and Chudy buried at Jefferson Barracks, Mo. Probably this a "common" grave. Smithhart buried Cal. ; Pennock buried Minn. ; Williams buried Pa.

A/C#43 37812 "PATRIOTIC PATTY"
MACR#l3604 Microfiche #4973

Unna, the primary target, was successfully attacked by the first 3 squadrons. The 351st squadron, with Captain Lilinquist as command pilot, Carl Hellerich as lead pilot and Leroy Duncan as lead navigator, was the fourth squadron. (see a copy of the actual Lead Navigator's log) The command pilot decided to bomb the secondary target, Marburg. Immediately after dropping the bombs, the squadron made sharp descending turn to the right. While in the turn, the squadron took at least 3 flak bursts; one hit Larry Guardino, who was flying in the 2nd element, and as the plane fell, his right horizontal stabilizer hit our (Lazzari's) left wing and bent downward, 8 to 10 feet of the wing tip. With the tremendous drag that this damage caused, the Lazzari plane flipped on its back, or nearly on its back, and left the formation in a steep dive to the left. At this point, memories that are 49 years old trigger different pictures of that tense scene. Lazzari said, "I've always second guessed what might have happened had I reacted quicker and helped Gene maneuver away from Guardino--but everything happened so fast and we were in such close formation our options were limited. I often regret that I didn't contact Guardino's family after returning to the USA. " Greenwood has carried with him for 49 years, the memory of flying the plane at the time of the collision, and postulating many times. the "what if scenario. " "What if I had positioned our plane 10 or 20 feet to the right, as Guardino went down, his tail would have missed our left wing tip. However, if I had positioned the plane to the right, then our plane would have taken the flak hit that Jim Lantz took, and since I was on the right side of the plane, I would have been wounded, and not Jim Lantz. " …. GENE GREEWOOD CP, LAZZARI CREW

UNAME = Guiher Gene Greenwood
CONNECTION = I am a 100th veteran
COMMENTS = Your crew history has the Alphonso Guardino crew shot down on Unna mission wrong; Unna was primary; they were shot down over Marburg 23 March 1945; came down on Lazzari; bent left wing down; Lazzaari fell 5000 to10000 feet and recovered.

See Lazzari Crew history written by Guiher Gene Greenwood, Colonel USAF Retired, Lazzari's co-pilot.

Also Page 191, CENTURY BOMBERS. Jim Lantz will verify this; he was on our right wing and took a hit and was wounded, but he witnessed the whole episode