Agay's B-24 Liberator , Var, France
Pilot : second lieutenant William O. Trotter
 
Mission
Date
May 25, 1944, MACR 5055
Base
Gioia del Colle, Italy
 
Target
Bombardment of Givors's railway junction
Zone of crash
Esterel's mount, Agay, Var, France
Plane
Type
B-24H-15-CF

Serial
41-29382 "Lucky Lady"
Squadron
15th AF, 55th BW, 464th BG, 777 Squadron
Crew
1
Pilot
S/Lt
 
Killed, FranceCliquer pour agrandir
2
Copilot
Capt
Robert F. Mc Carty
Killed, USACliquer pour agrandir
3
Navigator
 
Harry E. Lovelle
 
Killed, France
4
Bomber
S/Lt
Leonard L. Meyer
 
Killed, USACliquer pour agrandir
5
Radio
 
Robert A. Jenior
 
Killed, France
6
Gunner-mechanician
T/Sgt
Robert T. Grissett
 
Killed, USACliquer pour agrandir
7
Gunner
S/Sgt
Oakley E. Casey
 
Killed, USACliquer pour agrandir
8
Gunner
S/Sgt
John E. Beck
 
Killed, USACliquer pour agrandir
9
Nose gunner
S/Sgt

Dale W. Jones

 
Killed, USACliquer pour agrandir
10 Gunner   Paul J. Hamlin   Killed, USA

Thursday may 25, 1944. During the allied air operations who had to destroy communication complex of the german occupant in the French south. 2 groups of B-24 Liberator from the 15th Air Force, 55th Bomber-Wing, the 464th and 465th Bomber-Group, had to drop bombs on Givors's railway junction, city located at 13 miles in the south of Lyon, Rhône's valley.

Four B-24 Liberator from the 464th BG will be very seriously damaged, 3 will not return at their temporary base of Gioia-del-Colle, in the Italian's Pouilles. The groups of American bombers had been hardly attacked on their return flight, by the Flak and the Luftwaffe, with Messerchmitt 109 and Focke Wulf 190 based in Istres, Salon-de-Provence and Channoines.

The 1rst B-24 shot down this day serial 41-29382, whose principal tanks had been hit, crashed in the Estérel's mountain less than 1.5miles south of a Messeschmitt 109 shot down few seconds before!

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Paradoxaly, this plane was nicknamed by his crew : "Lucky Lady"....

Only 4 forms had been seen ejecting from the plane which was not any more that one terrible flying ball of fire, according to several witnesses, and inhabitants of the Grenouillet's farm, in Agay.

On the four men who blow out from the plane, only the pilot second lieutenant William O Trotter, lands living close to the viaduct of Anthéor. He was immediately made prisoner, but, too seriously burned, he was directed to Draguignan by the occupying forces. And then, this man was moved in a Dijonaise's area hospital, where he die of septicaemia, August 25, 1944...

On the three other men, one will be found only during 1945 spring by loggers, at the state of skeleton, always rolled up in its parachute which had not opened!


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