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| Click the camera for the Photo Album! |
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Enlisted August 8, 1942
in Butte, Montana
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| Click the camera for the Photo Album! |
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The plane, flying in the #3 position of the
2nd element was making a second pass on the target, Istres Le Tube A/D (airdrome) when flames were seen in the cockpit and
along the #3 engine. The plane momentarily held course then dropped down to the right. The plane had been hit
by flak. It was observed to crash into a lake. No parachutes were observed.
Another witness states the flak hit in/near the right front side of bomb bay setting it on fire. As the plane
turned out of formation he could see the entire area from the left side of the bomb bay out to the #3 engine on the right
wing was on fire. Again, no chutes were seen. When the plane hit the lake (Lake Berre) all he could see
was a mass of flames. The target airfield was located next to Lake Berre.
The MACR contains no other statements about what happened. The crew list in the MACR has the entire crew KIA
except for SSgt. Kenneth O. Eslick.
The MACR can be seen by
clicking on the camera link for the Photo Album.
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Grandad
really didn't like talking about the war. But here's what is known from various accounts from the family. The 'Angel' was
on its 17th sortie and was making a second pass over the bombing target, by the second pass, the flak guns had dialed them
in. When his plane was hit he remembered they went into a power spin. The centrifugal force pinned him against the fuselage
so hard, he couldn't move his arms. Somehow he was able to reach lanyards to the door hinges and it popped open and shot him
outside. He pulled his chute and all he could see below him was water. He maneuvered himself until he could see ground and
landed. He said he didn't even have time to fold up his chute before he had a Luger in his back and was captured.
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Crash
of B-17 Fortress 42-3147
"Homesick
Angel" |
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Date |
Nation |
Department |
Unit |
Macr |
Mission |
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16-11-1943 |
USA |
Bouches-du-Rhône |
97eBG/341eBS/15eAF |
1195 |
Airfield Istres-le-Tubé |
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Location |
Pond Lavalduc - 4 km SSW Istres |
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Circumstances |
Shot down by flak at 13:50 (engine # 3) |
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Comments |
Off Depienne, Tunisia - Crash observed by 2Lt Norman F. Wagner and S / Sgt Samuel H. Jones - The wreck was allegedly
abducted by U.S. authorities in the 70s, which may explain the common grave. |
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Sources |
Footnote
NARA / www.abmc.gov / Gravelocator / ArmyAirForces.com / JL Delattre (source: www.findagrave.com) / Larry Eslick |
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Dern
Change |
09.04.2013
= Add link newspaper article 08.06.2013 = Add link Aérostèles |
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Grade |
Surname |
Name |
Post |
Body |
State |
Place of Burial |
Comments |
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S / Sgt |
Charles D Jr |
Atkins |
MITV |
USAAF |
Deceased |
Zachary Taylor Nat Cem.C1079 Louisville, Kentucky * |
12128318
- Brooklyn, New York USA |
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2Lt |
Leon E Jr |
Case |
Bomb |
USAAF |
Deceased |
Zachary Taylor Nat Cem.C1079 Louisville, Kentucky * |
O-728033
- Iron Mountain, Michigan USA - For Gravelocator, date of death: 24/04/52, but common grave |
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2Lt |
Daniel E |
Dustin |
Nav |
USAAF |
Deceased |
Zachary Taylor Nat Cem.C1079 Louisville, Kentucky / Sheridan Cam. Auburn, Nebraska USA * |
O-671404
- Wichita, Kansas USA |
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S / Sgt |
James M 'Jimmy' |
Elliott |
Mita |
USAAF |
Deceased |
Fairview Cem. Phillipsburg, Kansas USA - 1.3.33.2 * |
19102558
- 21 years - Born 28/08/1922 - McMinnville, Oregon USA - Son of Robert and Leora C. Elliott Elliott Gibson - Body found on
07/21/1944 |
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S / Sgt |
Kenneth O |
Eslick |
Mitg |
USAAF |
Prisoner |
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39609670
- Born 30/11/1918 - Creston, Montana USA - Son of Paul H Eslick and Myrtle Carpenter-Eslick; husband of Lavina Rost-Eslick
- shrapnel during his parachute descent - Stalag 17B Braunau Gneikendorf - Died in 1998 (Lone Pine Cem) |
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T / Sgt |
Leo F |
Garrity |
Guy |
USAAF |
Deceased |
Zachary Taylor Nat Cem.C1079 Louisville, Kentucky * |
33329686
- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA - Bones found in August and identity plate 44 |
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T / Sgt |
Melvin E |
Hertel |
Rad |
USAAF |
Deceased |
Cim Am Draguignan (83) A.1.13 * |
38143522
- AM + OLC - Schulenburg, Texas USA - Body found on 08/12/1944 |
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S / Sgt |
Earl W |
Large |
MITD |
USAAF |
Deceased |
Cim Am Draguignan (83) C.3.6 * |
19086054
- AM 2 OLC - Oakland, California USA - Body found on 08/01/1944 |
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1Lt |
Richard A Jr |
Packard |
Pil |
USAAF |
Deceased |
Zachary Taylor Nat Cem.C1079 Louisville, Kentucky * |
O-735440
- Dayton, Ohio USA |
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2Lt |
William D |
Waters |
CoP |
USAAF |
Deceased |
Cim Am Draguignan (83) A.1.17 * |
O-684585
- PH - Bridgeport, Ohio USA |
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In the middle of the beautiful Austrian countryside of rolling
hills and thick forest stood an ugly place—the notorious den of misery known as Stalag Luft 17-B.
Stalag 17B was situated 100 meters northwest of the village of Gniexendorf. This village
is located six kilometers northwest of Krems, Austria.
Double rows of barbed-wire fencing surrounded the prison barracks and a dirt compound.
Helmeted Nazi guards with machine guns manned towers at the edges, waiting to shoot dead
any prisoner who crossed the warning wire that ran a few feet inside the fencing.
He was signed into Stalag 17B with others then divided up to prospective outfits (army with army, air corps with air
corps) for barrack assignments. During his internment these are some of the stories he told some of the family when he felt
like talking about it. No timeline to them, just what was remembered.
During the war, rations were tight on both sides the guards didn't really eat any better than the prisoners. Trading
with the guards for any extras was common practice. The soldiers had an upper hand on this because they received Red Cross
parcels. Cigarettes, canned goods, and chocolate were hot items. Even though Germans had superior chocolate they couldn't
get it, so Hershey bars were good trading stock. Another thing desired was a canned milk called 'Klim' (milk backwards) even
tougher to scrounge because all canned goods were bayoneted at the chance to prevent hoarding for escape attempts.
He and a buddy were able to scrounge up some bread and potatoes and were in the process of cooking the 'spuds' up when
an air raid siren went off. Everybody scrambled out the back door into a downpour and dove into the air-raid trench. But Grandad
and his buddy decided, even with the real possibility they may be bombed, if they were 'gonna go, they were gonna go with
something in their belly.' So they stayed and finished cooking, then enjoyed their bread and spuds while their shivering ,
wet comrades watched from the trench through the still open back door.
The food they were allowed to have, barely fit that description. He remembered 'soup' water with maybe a cabbage leaf
or mysterious discarded animal parts; 'meat'. The bread they were given was a really dense, brown bread. It was so hard, he
recalled the knife would 'squeak' as it cut through it. Some of the prisoners had lost teeth and become, as he put it, 'smooth-bores'
and couldn't gnaw through it. Strangely, he actually grew to like it, he thinks because it may been the only thing to eat
with any real nutritional value to it.
Some
memories weren't as pleasant. Across the compound the Russian prisoners were treated terribly. The Germans would occasionally
get a hold of live chickens. After butchering them, they would toss the offal (heads, feet and guts) over the barbed wire
to the starving Russians for fun. Then they would watch them; some would grovel
and thank them for this bounty and others would be reduced to animals, fighting among each other for scraps of entrails.
In April of 1945, the Allies grew closer. The prisoners were then forced to march out
on the run. They were caught up to and liberated, he thinks on April 17th. Grandad said
the number 17 stuck with him through the whole ordeal. He flew in a B-17, signed into camp Nov 17th, and liberated April 17th.
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He was assigned a brief stint in Gowan Air
Force Base, down the road a bit from me, in Boise where they put the flight crews together. He remembered seeing Jimmy Stewart
there. When the crew was formed they all became close friends. Being given nine new brothers, it must have devastated
him to lose this new family in one swoop. It must have been so painful. And then be a prisoner adding salt to those raw wounds.
This was probably one of many reasons he rarely talked about the war. I can't even fathom what he felt.
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Here is also a interesting story that my uncle told
me while I was in the process of doing this with you. Please refer to attached photo. The rifle, an M-1 Carbine, was purchased by a retired police officer
at a gun show in Chicago, IL. He is a WWII history buff, when he got home he researched the name on the rifle and came up
with My uncles name. He called him up and after talking and hearing my grandfathers story, he felt strongly that the rifle
needed to come home and actions were took to get it there. The mystery is how it got from Tunisia, Africa
to a gun show in Chicago, IL. Speculation is that after the plane and crew was presumed lost, somebody lifted the rifle before
it could return back to Montana with what was left of my grandfather's personal effects. Grandad put his name on it so nobody
would take it. Ironic, Ha!
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| Sgt Eslick and Lavina newlyweds |
Sgt Eslick was married after the war in May 1948
to Lavina. They had five kids. Lavina was a strong, beautiful woman and the love of his life. He passed away just shy
of their 50th wedding anniversay.
He bought a tract of land up on a mountain and
built a home. I guess he was cramped with too many people for too long and was just escaping bad memories.
He worked as a logger and in saw mills. Even rebuilt
and restored a working sawmill from memory with no plans, just parts. This was for his own use and enjoyment. He was an amazing
"tinkerer!" He restored a couple Model-T Fords, truck and roadster.
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This is notice of Sgt Eslick's death on May 18, 1998 as it appeared in the
Missoula, Montana newspaper, The Missoulian.
Kenneth O. Eslick, 79, died Monday, May 18, at Kalispell Regional Medical Center.
He is survived by his wife, Lavina Eslick of the family home in Bigfork; three
sons, Larry Eslick of Polson, Paul and Kathy Eslick of Bigfork and Bryant and Diane Eslick of Marion; two daughters, Rebekah
Eslick of Kalispell and Kathleen and Todd Harvey of Bigfork; 12 grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
Funeral services are at 2 p.m. Friday, May 22, at the First Baptist Church
of Bigfork. Burial follows at the Lonepine Cemetery in Bigfork. Visitation is from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday, May 21 and Friday
9 a.m. to noon.
Arrangements are by the Johnson Mortuary and Crematory.
These two Headstones are located at Sgt Eslick's gravesite at the Lone Pine Cemetery,
Bigfork, Flathead County, Montana. One was placed by Sgt Eslick's family and the other by the military.
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S/Sgt.
Kenneth O. Eslick was a waist gunner on the B-17 42-3147 'Homesick Angel' shot down over Istres, France on November 16, 1943.
He was the only survivor but captured immediately and held Prisoner of War at Stalag 17b for over 18 months. A
Memorial to the crew was erected last year in Istres.
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| Istres, France Crew Memorial |
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| The Crew Memorial at Istres, France |
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| The Crew Memorial at Istres, France |
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My long shot paid off! I got a response from
the author of the book! His name is Steve Birdsall, a prolific writer and film maker of WWII military aviation and strangely,
Australian!
His response: "Happy to help. The photo turned
up in the Australian War Memorial with no details about place or date. From the look of it, the B-17 landed at an advanced
Allied air base in Italy – that’s a B-24’s wing in the foreground and a C-47 on the right. This is the one
and only photo of 42-3147 in the collection."
He
sent me a crystal clear version of the picture I was wondering about. I'm 1000% sure I'm romanticizing this but, the guy in
profile beneath the wing, in my mind, resembles my Grandad. Maybe... :)
Just
wanted to share in my excitement,
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A nephew of one of the crew passed along this conversation he had with Grandad.
"Ken
introduced himself as "Old man Eslick" and we talked for 15 minutes about his
experiences, and he did not want to talk about some things. When he asked "Why"
I was so interested in the crew, I responded that Leo Garrity was my uncle. I
could hear him issue an audible sigh. Ken said "OK, I'll tell you this...." and
with a slight moan he said "Leo was my best friend in the Army. We did
everything together." "I miss him to this day...."
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If more information becomes known about this plane and crew members, please contact Sgt Eslick's
Family at this email address: lkeeslick@gmail.com
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I would like to thank Sgt Eslick's grandson, Ken, for providing this biographical
information about his grandfather.
Frank Grube
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