Note: Trout, Paltrineri, and Domenig, above, were also WIA.

350TH SQDN...CREW, AS ABOVE, JOINED THE 100TH ON October 15, 1943

A/C "Big Stoop" #941 (flew last 4-5 missions on this plane), A/C Alice from Dallas II (flew 15 plus missions).

Crew spent Dec 44 doing practice missions. C.O. wanted each man to have at least 50 hours of practice missions before going into combat. (Lt McKay march 2001)

Crew completed tour, Officers were given new assignments in the States but the enlisted men volunteered for five more missions.

Lt McKay felt the enlisted men should have taken a leave before starting a second tour. Lt McKay ended up in the hospital after his last mission with Pneumonia and was moved to a private hospital near High Wycombe.

Naming the Plane: "The radio operator Sgt Paltrineri named the plane. During the war Milton Caniff had a cartoon in Stars and Stripes called Steve Canyon. One of his girlfriends was called Delta and her bodyguard was called "Big Stoop" and he would rescue her and protect her from danger. Sgt Paltrineri thought that would make a good name for the plane because the Plane would always bring the crew home from danger. This was never painted on the plane." Lt Edward McKay March 2001 (mpf)

01) 19/11/44 GELSENKIRCHEN -flying with Lt. Herb Devore Crew w/Col. Chick Harding as command pilot
02) 14/01/44 NO-BALL-FRANCE
03) 21/01/44 NO-BALL-FRANCE
04) 24/01/44 FRANKFURT
05) 3/02/44 WILHELMSHAVEN
06) 5/02/44 ROMILLY sur SEINE
07) 13/02/44 NO-BALL-LIVOSSART
08) 24/02/44 ROSTOCK & POSEN
09) 25/02/44 REGENSBURG -(ROG stitched the tail of the horizontal stabilizer)
10) 28/02/44 NO-BALL-FRANCE
11) 2/03/44 CHARTES
12) 3/03/44 BERLIN-weather recall
13) 4/03/44 BERLIN-recall
14) 6/03/44 BERLIN-100TH BG LOST 15 B-17'S
15) 15/03/44 BRUNSWICK
16) 16/03/44 AUGSBURG
17) 18/03/44 MUNICH
18) 19/03/44 NO-BALL-FRANCE
19) 23/03/44 BRUNSWICK
20) 27/O3/44 BORDEAUX
21) 28/03/44 CHATEAUDUN
--- FLAK LEAVE ---
22) 11/04/44 POSEN & ROSTOCK
23) 12/04/44 LEIPZIG
24) 18/04/44 BERLIN
25) 19/04/44 LIPPSTADT
26) 20/04/44 MARQUENVILLE
27) 25/04/44 DIJON

Lt McKay says that his Lucky Bastard Certificate has him completing 26 missions but it was actually 27.

350th Sqdn) On 24/5/44 this was the lead ship of the Group formation. Major Fitzgerald was C.O. of the 350th and Capt Geary was a pilot who had completed a tour of operations with the 390th Bomb Group and then been assigned to the 100th. Lt. A. J.Harris, as pilot of his own crew had been interned in Sweden on 20/2/44 with his crew but apparently had gotten back to Thorpe Abbotts by some means. It seems most unusual that he would have been allowed to fly over Europe again because ,for security reasons, Evadees & Internees were invariably sent back to the U.S.A.

This crew bailed out over Ludwigslust, Germany and all were captured.

The 100th lost nine aircraft this day. MIGHTY EIGHTH WAR DIARY (p.249) says "Opposed by some 200 E/A,100BG became separated from bomber stream by weather and contrails and were subjected to heavy attack."