COMMENTS & NOTES
MEMO 1:
CREW
A/C # 42-31987 "SHILAYEE"
2ND LT MARK V. WILSON P POW 5 JUN 44 BOULOGNE
2ND LT CHARLES E. ADAMS CP CPT WITH STANLEY CLARK CREW
2ND LT JOHN T. JOHNSTON NAV KIA 5 JUN 44 BOULOGNE
2ND LT RALPH A. KROENKE BOM KIA 5 JUN 44 BOULOGNE
S/SGT EUGENE V. SWEENEY ROG POW 5 JUN 44 BOULOGNE
S/SGT JOHN W. McAULIFFE TTE POW 5 JUN 44 BOULOGNE
SGT DONALD M. ROHASEK BTG POW 5 JUN 44 BOULOGNE
SGT WILLIAM E. MORELAND RWG POW 5 JUN 44 BOULOGNE
SGT GEORGE B. DONAHUE LWG CPT 12 JUL 44 MUNICH (WITH LT STREED CREW)
SGT CECIL G. DAVIS TG POW 5 JUN 44 BOULOGNE
349th Sqdn. Crew, as above, joined the 100th Group on 21 Feb 1944.
On 5 Jun 1944, Lt. Donald Roth, CP on the F.J. Herres crew, was flying in place of C.E.Adams and was KIA. S/Sgt Glover Nall, from the J.A. Harrison crew, was flying in place of G.B.Donhoue and became a POW. On 5 Jun 1944 the Wilson crew was flying a brand new silver B-17G 42-107095, XR-F since they were now a lead Crew. shilaylee was Lt Wilsons aircraft prior to receiving this new plane.
See MACR #5384; Microfiche # 1957
For most of the crew this was their 25th to 28th mission. This according to "Completion of Sorties" record.
Mark V. Wilson died 1 Apr 1982 at Ocala, Florida..
Cecil Davis writing in the Fall 1989 Splasher Six.
"Shilayee was no ordinary airplane, Early on our pilot, Mark Wilson, had the ground crew paint white side walls on the tires. Mark said he wanted the plane "to look sharp" and it did. Ernest Lovato painted the Irish name on the nose and the crew's flight jackets because Wilson counted six or seven Irishmen on his crew. Its number was 2317, it's call letter, 'A" for Able'. On the fuselage was 'XR' for the 349th Squadron.
It was in February, 1944, as a replacement crew in the 349th Squadron, that we first met Shilaylee. We flew our first mission in her on February 29th to Brunswick, but it was the missions to Berlin on March 3, 4, 6, and 8 that really broke us in. We got hit so often that the ground crew were grateful for our white side walls. If Mark dropped the wheels down early, it was a sign we were in trouble. The ground crew saw the white wheels and got ready in advance for a lot of work. Shilaylee was a great plane; it brought us back 20 times.
On May 24, we did not fly in Shilaylee because it had a mechanical failure. We flew to Berlin in 'Hard Luck' or 'old 413', the ground crew called it, and on that mission I earned my Purple Heart. After I got out of the hospital our crew was reassembled, and since we were near the end of our tour, we were given a new plane.
On June 5, when we were over Boulogne in our new plane, the aircraft on our right wing was hit by flak and drifted into us. In the crash we lost our co-pilot, navigator, and bombardier. Mark Wilson and I ended up as POWs in Moosburg Stalag VII until Patton liberated us on April 29, 1945
MISSION LOG
29 FEB 44 BRUNSWICK
02 MAR 44 CHARTRES, FR
03 MAR 44 BERLIN
04 MAR 44 BERLIN
06 MAR 44 BERLIN
08 MAR 44 BERLIN
15 MAR 44 BRUNSWICK
19 MAR 44 MARQUISE
22 MAR 44 ORANIENBURG
27 MAR 44 BORDEAUX
28 MAR 44 CHATEAUDUN, FR
08 APR 44 QUACKENBRUCK, GER
10 APR 44 MALDEGEM
11 APR 44 ROSTOCK
12 APR 44 SCHKEUDITZ
13 APR 44 AUGSBURG
22 APR 44 SOEST
24 APR 44 FRIEDRICHSHAFEN
28 APR 44 SOTTEVAST
29 APR 44 BERLIN (last mission flying shilaylee)
24 MAY 44 BERLIN
02 JUN 44 PARIS
04 JUN 44 BOULOGNE
05 JUN 44 BOULOGNE (DOWNED ON THIS MISSION)
CREW
F/O CHARLES L. PETERSON P KIA 05 JUN 44 BOULOGNE
2ND LT JAMES D. KEEFFE CP KIA 05 JUN 44 BOULOGNE
2ND LT ELMER H. VISHION NAV KIA 05 JUN 44 BOULOGNE
1ST LT JAMES F. JONES BOM KIA 05 JUN 44 BOULOGNE
SGT PAUL ZIMA ROG KIA 05 JUN 44 BOULOGNE
SGT CARL J. PHILLIPS TTG KIA 05 JUN 44 BOULOGNE
SGT JAMES L. HELLER BTG KIA 05 JUN 44 BOULOGNE
SGT ANDREW L. ADDISION WG POW 05 JUN 44 BOULOGNE
SGT RICHARD J. SAWAYA WG KIA 05 JUN 44 BOULOGNE
SGT CORWIN E. ALSPACH TG KIA 05 JUN 44 BOULOGNE
349th Sqdn.. Crew, as above, joined the 100th on 26 may 44
This was the second mission for the above crew; EYEWITNESS REPORT: A/C #591 (Peterson) was flying right wing on A/C # 095 when 095 (Wilson) was hit by a ground rocket and collided with # 591. The nose section of # 095 was sheared off, but it appeared to remain under control and peeled out of the formation. Five chutes were seen from # 095 as it "SSS" back toward the channel. A/C #591 was last sighted about three miles south of Boulogne at 1015 hours.
A/C # 43-37591 MACR #5383, Microfiche # 1957
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Mission list for Lt Mark V Wilson
Date Crew Nbr Mission Nbr Last Name Initial Rank Position Aircraft Nbr Target
2/29/1944 04 WILSON M.V. LT P BRUNSWICK
3/2/1944 04 WILSON M.V. LT P CHARTRES, FR
3/3/1944 04 122 WILSON M.V. LT P 170 BERLIN
3/4/1944 04 123 WILSON M.V. LT P 31534 BERLIN
3/6/1944 04 124 WILSON M.V. LT P 31534 BERLIN
3/7/1944 04 125 WILSON M.V. LT P 31534 WERL (SCRUBBED)
3/8/1944 04 126 WILSON M.V. LT P 710 BERLIN / ERKNER PLANT
3/13/1944 04 128 WILSON M.V. LT P 31534 NOBALL/ 11 (SCRUBBED)
3/15/1944 04 129 WILSON M.V. LT P 31534 BRUNSWICK
3/19/1944 04 133 WILSON M.V. LT P 710 MARQUIS, MIMMOYEQUES
3/22/1944 04 134 WILSON M.V. LT P 127 ORANIENBURG (BERLIN)
3/26/1944 04 136 WILSON M.V. LT P 987 SCHKEUDITZ/JU-88 PLANT
3/27/1944 04 137 WILSON M.V. LT P 987 BORDEAUX/ MERIGNAC
3/27/1944 04 139 WILSON M.V. LT P 987 LUDWIGSHAFEN /RECALLED
4/1/1944 04 140 WILSON M.V. LT P 987 LUDWIGSHAFEN
4/7/1944 04 141 WILSON M.V. LT P 987 QUACKENBRUCK (SCRB)
4/8/1944 04 142 WILSON M.V. LT P 987 QUACKENBRUCK
4/9/1944 04 143 WILSON M.V. LT P 987 KRZESINKI (POSEN)
4/10/1944 04 144 WILSON M.V. LT P 987 RHEIMS/ CHAMPAGNE
4/11/1944 04 145 WILSON M.V. LT P 987 POSEN / ROSTOCK T.O.
4/12/1944 04 146 WILSON M.V. LT P 191 SCHEUDITZ (RECALL)
4/13/1944 04 147 WILSON M.V. LT P 987 AUGSBURG
4/22/1944 04 WILSON M.V. LT P SOEST
4/24/1944 04 WILSOM M.V. LT P FRIEDRICHSHAFEN
4/28/1944 04 WILSON M.V. LT P SOTTEVAST
4/29/1944 04 WILSON M.V. LT P 987 BERLIN (last mission flying shilaylee)
5/19/1944 04 118 WILSON M.V. LT P 31981 BERLIN
5/24/1944 04 121 WILSON M.V. LT P 30152 BERLIN
5/29/1944 04 125 WILSON M.V. LT P 107096 LEIPZIG
5/30/1944 04 126 WILSON M.V. LT P 107095 TROYES
6/4/1944 04 130 WILSON M.V. LT P 97806 BOULOGNE
6/5/1944 04 131 WILSON M.V. LT P 107095 BOULOGNE(CHG)
MEMO 2: