John Cooper Posted October 22, 2007 Share #1 Posted October 22, 2007 Hi all wanted to test my camera out and decided to put my observers wings together. I also included a very special ID bracelet... see the history on this POW. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Cooper Posted October 22, 2007 Author Share #2 Posted October 22, 2007 Omar Gonzales Enlisted 1943 POW - Stalag Luft 1 Barth-Vogelsang Prussia 54-12 ------------------------------------------------- The floowing if from the 100th BG website: Five Headquarters B-17s flew overseas and four of them had ATC Navigators. The 5th aircraft was navigated by Omar Gonzales and piloted by Col. Howard Turner Operations Report says: "Plane was hit in #1 engine after bombs away. All crew members except Pilot and Co-pilot bailed out, on orders, over the target area. " Flesh and Gossage managed to fly the ship back to England. NOVEMBER 1943. MISSION GILSENKIRCHEN. "SQUAWKIN HAWK" PILOTED BY WILLIAM FLESH AND CO-PILOTED BY JOHN GOSSAGE, LOST IT'S CREW, INCLUDING OMAR GONZALES, 'ONCE GROUP NAVIGATOR' WHEN AFTER SUSTAINING HEAVY BATTLE DAMAGE, THEY WERE ORDERED TI BAIL OUT AND EVERYBODY EXCEPT THE PILOTS JUMPED. ON RECOVERING CONTROL, LIEUTENANT FLESH AND GOSSAGE BROUGHT THE SHATTERED PLANE BACK, TO LAND AT TANGMERE IN KENT. UNFORTUNATELY, THE RADIO OPERATOR, CONNOR BREWSTER WAS KILLED WHEN HIS PARACHUTE FAILED TO OPEN. THE ENGINEER HAROLD POPE AVOIDED CAPTURE AND AIDED BY THE UNDERGROUND MANAGED TO GET BACK TO ENGLAND. WAIST GUNNER GEORGE GINEIKIS ALSO BECAME AN EVADEE. THE REST WERE TAKEN PRISONER OF WAR. THIS FORTRESS WAS REPAIRED AND RETURNED TO COMBAT STATUS. THE BADLY DAMAGED "SQUAWKIN HAWK" WAS REPAIRED AND RESTORED TO OPERATIONS. SHE BECAME THE FIRST 100TH AIRCRAFT TO COMPLETE 50 MISSIONS. WITH HER SKIN AUTOGRAPHED BY THE MEN OF THE 100TH, SHE WAS FLOWN BACK TO THE STATES FOR A WAR BOND TOUR Mission: Gelsenkirchen (Date: 5 Nov 1943 - 349th Sqdn.) William R. Flesh P CPT XFR to 482nd Bomb Group at Alconbury John G. Gossage CP POW Mar. 3, 1944 BERLIN Omar Gonzales NAV POW (Group Navigator) James J. Lux BOM POW -- Conner D. Brewster ROG KIA (From S. Reeder crew) Harold L. Pope TTE EVADEE (From S. Reeder crew) Francis G. Dolsen BTG POW (From S. Reeder crew) George P. Gineikis WG EVADEE (From G. Van Noy crew) Leon E. McDonald WG EVADEE -- James Marasco TG POW (From S. Reeder crew) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Cooper Posted October 22, 2007 Author Share #3 Posted October 22, 2007 Here are some close ups. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Cooper Posted October 22, 2007 Author Share #4 Posted October 22, 2007 I hope you enjoyed the photos and the short history... BTW the wings I collected seperatly... PS - Now the thing I have not been able to fully figure out is how he rated the Observer... as he was a Navigator... thoughts anyone.. I recall reaing on some website the reason but I have yet to find it since... Regards, John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobgee Posted October 22, 2007 Share #5 Posted October 22, 2007 I hope you enjoyed the photos and the short history... BTW the wings I collected seperatly... PS - Now the thing I have not been able to fully figure out is how he rated the Observer... as he was a Navigator... thoughts anyone.. I recall reaing on some website the reason but I have yet to find it since... Regards, John FYI ---I had an old friend at work named Joe Fowler who was a Navigator with the 367th BS, 306th BG late 1943-mid-44. I used to 'pick his brain'. He told me that he wore the Observer Wing rather than the Navigator wing because he liked it better. I think the Navigator qualification overlapped the Observer rating but I'm not sure. Bobgee Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pconrad02 Posted October 22, 2007 Share #6 Posted October 22, 2007 John, As always GREAT stuff! Love the senior observer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Cooper Posted October 23, 2007 Author Share #7 Posted October 23, 2007 FYI ---I had an old friend at work named Joe Fowler who was a Navigator with the 367th BS, 306th BG late 1943-mid-44. I used to 'pick his brain'. He told me that he wore the Observer Wing rather than the Navigator wing because he liked it better. I think the Navigator qualification overlapped the Observer rating but I'm not sure.Bobgee That is an interesting bit of info for sure... I wonder if anyone happens to have one of those Gard books from the 43 time frame from a navigator school that may have some photos... Anyone? John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Cooper Posted October 23, 2007 Author Share #8 Posted October 23, 2007 Some fine feathers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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