| Date: 1944 Mar 08/08 | A/C Type: B-24 H Liberator | SN: 42-99975 | Code: | A/C Nickname: Yankee-Rebel Harmony |  |
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| File: 245 | Airforce: USAAF | Sqn/Unit: 389 BG - 564 BS | Mission/Raid: Berlin | |||||||
| 1 | Pilot | F/O John M. Kendrick WIA/POW/Repatr. | 9 | RWG | S/Sgt James C. Graham evd. POW Antw. | |||||
| 2 | Co-pilot | 2Lt. Steven P. Judd KIA. Buried Wartena | 10 | TG | S/Sgt Anthony J. De Benedictus evd. POW Antw. | |||||
| 3 | Nav. | 2Lt. Allen E. Seamans evd. POW Belgium | 11 | |||||||
| 4 | B | 2Lt. Robert H. Owen evd. POW Belgium | 12 | |||||||
| 5 | E | T/Sgt John W. Owens evd. POW Belgium? | 13 | |||||||
| 6 | RO | T/Sgt Stanley F. Stancziewicz Friesland | 14 | |||||||
| 7 | BTG | S/Sgt William E. Mineer Friesland | 15 | |||||||
| 8 | LWG | S/Sgt Robert R. Sherman Friesland | 16 | |||||||
On return from Berlin flew on two engines, but petrol tanks were punctured and aircraft had to bellyland southeast Leeuwarden at Eernewoude. Alongside Prinses Margriet Canal at Wartena. Crew of 11 men. |
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Pilot selected an empty meadow for the belly landing, but unfortunally hit an 'American wind motor' during the slide (image below). This severly damaged the cockpit and wounded both pilots. Co-pilot 2Lt. Steven P. Judd died within an hour underway to hospital. Pilot John Kendrick had both legs amputated. The other crew were helped underground by the resistance. First they stayed in Drachten. It seems that three men remained in hiding in Friesland (Zuidwesthoek) until the end of the war in this area, end of April 1945. These three were sergeants Stancziewicz, Mineer and Sherman.
The others did not make it to Brussels, the start of the Comete-line, but were arrested in Antwerp and northern Belgium around 11 August 1944. The evadees do not appear on the Kingma-list, the Peter van den Hurk-list (Meppel), not on the Otten Family-list (Erp) and not on the Poels Family-list (Zwarte Plak, America).
Three pictures of the crash:
Website B24-bestweb:
- http://www.b24bestweb.com/yankeerebelharmony1.htm
- http://www.b24bestweb.com/yankeerebelharmony2.htm
- http://www.b24bestweb.com/yankeerebelharmony3.htm
© ZZairwar (Zuyder Zee Air War)
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