Personnel

CREW



2ND LT EDWARD N. McKAY         P CPT 25 APRIL 44 DIJON, FRANCE  SN#O-745717

2ND LT THOMAS H. MULLEN      CP CPT 25 APRIL 44 DIJON, FRANCE

2ND LT JACK A. YOUNG          NAV CPT 25 APRIL 44 DIJON, FRANCE

2ND LT STUART W. McFEELY  BOM CPT 25 APRIL 44 DIJON, FRANCE                                TAPS: FEB 1988

S/SGT JOHN E. TROUT           RWG POW/WIA 24 MAY 44 BERLIN /WITH J.R. GEARY CREW  TAPS: 14 APR 1980)

SGT LOUIS P. PALTRINERI       ROG POW/WIA 24 MAY 44 BERLIN /WITH J.R. GEARY CREW

SGT FRANCIS ACKER               TTE POW         24 MAY 44 BERLIN /WITH J.R. GEARY CREW  TAPS: 18 OCT 1971

SGT CARL F. SCHUSTER           BTG POW         24 MAY 44 BERLIN /WITH J.R. GEARY CREW

SGT JACK W. DOMENIG           LWG POW/WIA 24 MAY 44 BERLIN /WITH J.R. GEARY CREW  TAPS 27 SEP 1971

SGT RALPH T. GRAHAM              TG CPT 29 JUNE 44 BOHLEN



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 5 additional missions.

Lt McKay felt the enlisted men should have taken a leave before doing the additional 5 missions.  Lt McKay ended up in the hospital after his last mission with Pneumonia and was moved to a private hospital near High Wycombe.  



On the McKay crew. The enlisted men didn't volunteer for another tour of 25 missions. They agreed to fly another FIVE missions (amounting to another OLC). Lou Paltrineri has told me this several times. The latest time was in June (06) Jack O'Leary. 



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)



  List of Missions for 2nd Lt Edward McKay (mpf 2001)



1. 19/11/43 GELSENKIRCHEN -flying with Lt. Herb Devore Crew w/Col. Chick Harding as command pilot

2. 14/01/44 NO-BALL-FRANCE

3. 21/01/44 NO-BALL-FRANCE

4. 24/01/44 FRANKFURT

5.   3/02/44 WILHELMSHAVEN

6.   5/02/44 ROMILLY sur SEINE

7. 13/02/44 NO-BALL-LIVOSSART

8. 24/02/44 ROSTOCK & POSEN

9. 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 Cirtificate has him completing 26 missions but it was actually 27.



CREW



Capt James R.Geary                       P   POW        24/5/44 BERLIN

Major  Maurice J.Fitzgerald       COM P   POW       24/5/44 BERLIN

1st Lt Arthur J.Harris                    CP    POW      24/5/44 BERLIN    (Flying as Formation Officer in the Tail)

1st Lt A.Edwin Stern,Jr.            BOM    POW       24/5/44 BERLIN

2nd Lt Dort B.Payne                  NAV   POW       24/5/44 BERLIN

 T/Sgt Louis Paltrineri                 ROG   POW(WIA) 24/5/44 BERLIN   (From the E.McKay crew)

 T/Sgt Francis Acker                   TTE   POW        24/5/44 BERLIN   (From the E.McKay crew) 

 S/Sgt Carl F.Schuster                 BTG   POW        24/5/44 BERLIN   (From the E.McKay crew)

 S/Sgt John E.Trout                  RWG   POW(WIA)  24/5/44 BERLIN   (From the E.McKay crew)

 S/Sgt Jack W.Domenig              LWG  POW(WIA)  24/5/44 BERLIN    (From the E.McKay crew) 



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.