Personnel

CREW



2ND LT COY I. "MONTY" MONTGOMERY P KIA    6 MAR 44  BERLIN

2ND LT ROBERT F. CONNAWAY           CP POW  6 MAR 44  BERLIN

2ND LT FRANK C LAVER                   NAV POW   6 MAR 44  BERLIN

2ND LT JAMES D. FULTON               BOM POW   6 MAR 44  BERLIN

T/SGT GEORGE W. BURTON             TTE POW   6 MAR 44 BERLIN (SEE NOTE BELOW)

 S/SGT LOLA D. FLORIDA                 TTE POW   4 FEB 44  FRANKFURT (with Lt John Brown Crew)

 S/SGT  LOUIS P. SAVELL                 BTG POW   6 MAR 44 BERLIN

 S/SGT GEORGE D. TOOMEY, JR.      ROG POW    4 FEB 44  FRANKFURT (with Lt John Brown Crew)

S/SGT W.I. TREMBLEY                    ROG POW   6 MAR 44 BERLIN (FROM LT STOUT CREW)  

    SGT JOHN A. MILLER                    WG CPT    17 JUL 44 MONTGOURNEY (NO-BALL)

    SGT EARL W. RITTER                    TG POW   6 MAR 44  BERLIN

    SGT JUNIOR L. BUCHER                 WG POW   6 MAR 44 BERLIN



349th Sqdn.  Crew, as above, joined the 100th Group on 6 Jan 44  (Crew #40)

S/Sgt Richard Brady (Lt Brown Crew) took over as ROG on Montgomery crew when S/Sgt  Florida was shot down with Lt Browns Crew. Brady was in hospital on March 6th when crew was shot down.  



S/Sgt Billy Joe Bates is pictured with this crew and listed as LWG.  On the way overseas (yet still Stateside), he decided he did not want to fly and refused to go overseas with the crew. John A Miller was dispatched from his own crew (a B-24) crew on their way to Theater and told to grab his gear and was assigned to Montgomery Crew on the spot.  John had neve flown on a B-17 up to this point.





Missions of Lt Montgomery from Bill Thompsons MACR reports:

 

Jan 21, 1944-No Ball

Jan 30, 1944-Brunswick

Feb 3,  1944-Wilhelmshaven

Feb 13,1944-No Ball

Feb 20,1944-Posen

Feb 21,1944-Brunswick

Feb 25,1944-Regensburg

Mar 3, 1944-Berlin (RECALL, GOT CREDIT)

Mar 4, 1944-Berlin

Mar 6, 1944-Berlin (shot Down)



For 6 Mar 44 mission see MACR #3014, Microfiche #1019.  They were flying A/C #42-30170 "PRIDE OF THE CENTURY"  which had flown under three names: Torchy 2nd, HOT SPIT, and MISS CARRIAGE.



On 6 Mar 44, Lt Frank C. Laver was the Navigator and a POW; Sgt Wilbur Trembley, (from Lt Stout Crew) was the ROG and a POW; T/Sgt George W. Burton was the TTE and a POW; S/Sgt Anthony Ruda was the RWG and a POW, and S/Sgt Louis P. Savell was the BTG and a POW



Eyewitness Account:  "At 1215 hours just north of Hanover an A/c believed to be #170 was atttacked by enemy fighters & was shot down. Four or five chutes were seen. I.D. of this aircraft is not positive, it may have been #051."



Lt. Chadwick





The Germans buried Lt Montgomery (Coy I.) on 10 Mar 1944, noting the cause of death as crash/ burns...



CREW

2ND LT   JOHN W.BROWN  P EVADEE 4 FEB 44 FRANKFURT

2ND LT   ALBERT F. FITZPATRICK CP POW  4 FEB 44 FRANKFURT

2ND LT   THEODORE H. KLEINMAN NAV EVADEE 4 FEB 44 FRANKFURT

2ND LT   LAWSON W. CLEMENTS BOM POW  4 FEB 44 FRANKFURT

 S/SGT   CHARLES R. AMBRUST WG NOC

 S/SGT   RICHARD F. BRADY  ROG NOC

 S/SGT   LAWRENCE M. PRATT TTE NOC 

    SGT    MILTON GRABEL             TG KIA  25 MAY 44 BERLIN

    SGT   GORDON F. KEON  BTG POW  4 FEB 44 FRANKFURT

   SGT     OWEN D. STOCKTON  WG POW  6 MAR 44 BERLIN





349th Sqdn. Crew joined the 100th Gp on 28 Nov 1943.. Sgt Gordon Keon was the only enlisted man of this crew

 to particiapte in the Frankfurt mission of 4 FEB 44.  Other aboard for this mission and their fate is a follows:

 

 S/SGT GEORGE E. TOOMEY  ROG POW (FROM C.I. MONTGOMERY CREW)

 S/SGT LOLA D. FLORIDA  TTE POW (FROM C.I. MONTGOMERY CREW)

 S/SGT WILLIAM F. KEMP  WG KIA    (FIRST MISSION)

 S/SGT HAROLD F. JANDERUP  WG POW ( TAPS 25 SEP 69)

 S/SGT RICHARD A. TANGRADI  TG POW 



 Ship suffered severe flak damage and had three engines out over the German-Belgian border. The crew

 with the exception of William Kemp, who was apparently badly wounded, bailed out safely. Gordon Keon had

 a flak wound in one arm.

  

 A statement by Theodore Kleinman after his return say the bail-out occured about 10 miles SSE of Turnhout,

 Belgium and continues:  "After contacting an underground unit I was placed in a house in Turnhout. Several days

 later I was told something in French concerning the rest of the crew. With my meagre understaning of French, Kemp

 was unable to leave th ship due to severe wounds and he went down with the plane. A man was found by the

 Germans in the rear half of the ship with his head badly battered, but alive. I later recieved a report the man with the

 battered head died."



 German records in the MACR file confirm a badly wounded man found in the ship died in the hospital the following day.







Subj: Louis P. Savell  

Date: 12/6/2002 5:22:00 PM Pacific Standard Time 

From: PattySavell@simplecom.net 

To: MPFaley@aol.com 

Sent from the Internet (Details) 

 

Hello,

I hope I am able to help you. I am quite the novice with this type of information and as I said my father died before I was born.

The photos I have are

1. The name of the plane is "Redmond Annie"

The crew is listed as

Pilot: 1st Lt. D.W. Thompson from N.Y.

Co Pilot: 2nd L. J. R. Morrow from Pa.

Nav: 2nd Lt. E.E. Doll

Bombidier: 2nd Lt. L.E. Heard

Eng. Gunner T/Sgt. C.F. Busher from N.Y.

Asst. Eng. Gunner: S/Sgt. J.P. Traynor from Texas

Radio Gunner: T/Sgt. W.L. Bronson from Fla.

Asst. Radio Gunner: S/Sgt. M.A. Barr from Pa.

Armorer Gunner: S/Sgt. L.P. Savell (my father) from Al.

Asst. Armorer Gunner: S/Sgt. R.J. Schatterman from Ill.

 

2. I have another photo of most of this group standing in front of barracks, no date.

 

3. The thir photo is the crew standing in front of a place named "Caught in the Draft"

The signatures of most of the crew are written across the chest portion of the photo. It is difficult to read these at the present time, perhaps with a magnifiying glass I could read the names. James Fulton is one name clearly seen. I will try to discern the others if you are interested.

 

I have several letters sent to an aunt from my father during the time of his imprisonment in Germany.

 

I hope this information is of some help to you. I apologize for my lack of knowledge. I had very little contact with my father's family as I grew up and my mother has passed away. He has several siblings who are still living. They may have information. 

 

Again, I apologize for my lack of knowledge regarding my father's service time. I have two brothers who are very interested in obtaining information as well.

 

Thanks so much for your e-mail. If I can help in any way, please let me know.

 

Patty Savell Parrish

Died in Crash