WWII POW group + Medals 96th BG , 8th AAF - STALAG LUFT I

[KASTAUFFER]

I acquired this group at the Show of Shows last February, but have not been able to get it posted up on the forum until now.

 

This is a nice early AAF group to co-pilot with the 96th Bomb Group who saw some of the ugliest missions the 8th AAF had against the Germans between Nov 1943 and March 1944. He was shot down on the Big B mission of March 8, 1944.His crew almost didn't make it home from the Bremen mission earlier.

 

After he was shot down he spent the rest of the war in Stalag Luft 1 in Barth Germany.

 

Once of the most interesting parts of this group is a cassette tape with over an hour of him discussing his entire AAF career, training, missions, and being a POW.

 

I have not photographed everything, but what I did take pictures of tells his story.

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His Crew with the 96th Bomb Group .

 

 

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An article about his narrow escape on the Bremen raid.

 

 

 

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This is a Short Snorter signed in Stalag Luft 1 by members of his crew and other POWs including Col. Byerly.

 

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Here is my favorite part of the group. An interview on cassette tape he did in the 1980's.

 

 

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That's all for now!

[Wharfmaster]

Fantastic complete group. Like the dog tags, to include the small town tag & POW. Great paperwork too.

 

 

You could have posted this in the " I Hate My Name ! " thread also.

 

 

W

[ghost]

Kurt, thanks for sharing this great group. I really like the fact that the short snorter is on a silver certificate!

[JDK]

What a great group! It's got everything in it a guy could want. Nice provenance, photos, POW mail, German camp tags, named medals... That's a beauty! Congrats.

 

JD

[KASTAUFFER]

Fantastic complete group. Like the dog tags, to include the small town tag & POW. Great paperwork too.

 

 

You could have posted this in the " I Hate My Name ! " thread also.

 

 

W

It's better than it being Butterworth!

 

Kurt

[Wharfmaster]

It's better than it being Butterworth!

 

Kurt

 

True.

 

 

W

 

[pchepurko]

Very nice. The 96th BG was known as the Snetherton Falcons. My uncle flew with them. They do have a unit history which is very hard to find.

[james127]

Holy smokes! What a cool grouping. You've really got something significant there. Thanks for sharing!