This B-24, 42-95023, was assigned to the 577^th Squadron of the 392^nd Bomb Group. The crew was killed on August 12, 1944 and buried on April 26, 1949 in Section E 37 at the Zachary Taylor Nat’l Cemetery.  

T/Sgt John H Holling,  Radio Operator

T/Sgt Stanley F, Jankowski, Engineer

S/Sgt William C McGinley, Gunner

2nd Lt John D.Ellis, Pilot, Buried at Cambridge American Cemetery

F/O Samuel C. Stalsby, Copilot, Buried at Alexandria National Cemetery, La.
2nd Lt  Robert B. Cox, Navigator,  Buried at Cambridge American Cemetery
S/Sgt Clare W. Hultengren, Bombardier, Buried at Fort Snelling Nat’l Cemetery
S/Sgt. Frank Minick, Jr, Gunner, . Buried at Cambridge American Cemetery
Sgt Jay V. Cable, Gunner, Unknown burial location.
S/Sgt Jack O. Shaeffer, Gunner, Unknown burial location.

This mission scheduled against the Juvicour Air Field in France had a rocky beginning due to very bad weather in the Group's formation assembly area. Six aircrews had to abort this mission and return to Wendling due to this poor weather while the other 29 planes managed to form up and carry out the raid. One of the aborting crews was piloted by 2/Lt Ellis in aircraft #42-95023, a B24H Model, Call Letter "Y," no nickname. It is believed that the Ellis plane collided with B17 #42-107191, Tomahawk Warrior, from the 398th Bomb Group. The B17 crashed near Lude Farm, Loudwater, while Ellis's ship crashed-landed close to the villages of Cheshunt and Waltham Cross in Hertfordshire. Everyone in both planes perished. It was widely believed in Cheshunt that pilot Ellis deliberately steered the ship away from the town.

In gratitude, townspeople erected a Memorial Plaque on the wall of an administration building at CAMBRIDGE American Cemetery with an identical plaque in the library at Cheshunt. The plaques say, "To these gallant American airmen who on August 12, 1944, sacrificed their lives to prevent their aircraft from crashing on our homes. The residents of Cheshunt and Waltham Cross in the County of Hertfordshire dedicate this plaque in grateful memory." The names of the ten men on the Ellis crew are then inscribed. Three of these crewmen are interred at CAMBRIDGE: 2/Lt Ellis in grave E-1-98 whose home state was California; his awards included an Air Medal with two Oak Leaf Clusters but a Purple Heart citation is not recorded. 2/Lt Cox is in grave E-6-88 from home state Ohio having been awarded an Air Medal with Oak Leaf cluster, posthumously, but there is no record of a Purple Heart citation. S/Sgt Minick is in grave E-3-778 with home state of New Jersey with awards of an Air Medal and the Purple Heart. T/Sgt Jankowski, T/Sgt Holling, and S/Sgt McGinley are interred at Zachary Taylor National Cemetery, Section E Site 37. S/St Hultengren is interred at Fort Snelling National Cemetery, Section C-25 Site 14268.

The B-24, 42-40077, “Yankee Doodle Dandy” was assigned to the 319^th Squadron of the 90^th Bomb Group. They were shot down on April 12, 1944. Most of the crew was buried on February 20, 1950 in Section E 292-293 of the Zachary Taylor Nat’l Cemetery

1/Lt Howard L. Golden, Pilot, Captured and beheaded 

2/Lt John R. Jennings – Copilot, Captured

2/Lt Bernard M. Donahue, Captured and beheaded

2/Lt George A. Sparks – Buried at Zachary Taylor Nat’l Cemetery

T/Sgt Edward N. Stachowiak – Buried at Zachary Taylor Nat’l Cemetery

T/Sgt Allen D. Toppert  – Buried at Zachary Taylor Nat’l Cemetery

S/Sgt  Eugene A. Ivers – Believed drowned.

Sgt Joseph C. Minnich – Buried at Zachary Taylor Nat’l Cemetery

Sgt Allen W. Pearson – Buried at Zachary Taylor Nat’l Cemetery

S/Sgt Fred J. Shroad – Buried at Zachary Taylor Nat’l Cemetery

    These three men were passengers and not part of the crew.

S/Sgt Guy A. Bule, Photographer – Buried at Zachary Taylor Nat’l Cemetery

Sgt William D. Ballou, Observer from V Bomber Command – Buried at Zachary Taylor

Sgt David S. Ingerman, 5^th Air Force Combat Camera Unit – Buried at Zachary Taylor

Lt Golden was captured and beheaded.

Lt Donohue was captured and beheaded.

Lt Jennings . – A Japanese man remembers Lt Jennings being brought to his home and turned over to Japanese authorities. He heard rumors that Lt Jennings was executed. .

S/Sgt Ivers was found on the bank of a lake and buried by villagers still in his parachute.

The plane and crew were lost on April 12, 1944 while on a bombing mission to Hollandia, Dutch New Guinea.

A report from another squadron stated. “A plane from 319th Bomb Squadron became separated from the squadron and tried to attach itself to our squadron. However, this plane dropped behind the formation, reason was not known. When enemy fighters attacked this plane was 2,000 yards behind our formation. The Tony's and Hamp continued their dive through our formation and pressed their attack on the straggling plane. Many strikes were seen registering on it and knocking out at least two engines and probably scoring hits on the cockpit, with 20mm shells. The plane was seen to smoke and went into a flat spiral, crashing with a terrific explosion. Two parachutes were seen but fighters strafed them before they reached the ground."