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WWII POW group to AAF Pilot shot down with RAF - 622 Squadron


KASTAUFFER
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Here is an unusual AAF Air Medal I just acquired . 1st Lt. Braithwaite was captured June 1, 1944 on a mission to France with 622 Squadron. He was the pilot of an Avro Lancaster number LL782. The rest of the crew were members of the RAF. He was captured, however some of the crew evaded. 3 were KIA. He was sent to Stalag Luft III and eventually was liberated from Stalag 7A.

 

Obviously more research needs to be done on this one!

 

 

MVC_001L.JPG

 

MVC_002L.JPG

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Great find, Kurt. Keep us posted. He may have been an American in the RAF who had transferred to the USAAF and was finishing his RAF tour when he went in the bag.

Congrats.....Bob

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  • 1 year later...

Finally found some more info about him!

 

He was a RCAF pilot before joining the AAF. He must have stayed with his original squadron to complete his tour.

 

 

 

 

braithwaite.jpg

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  • 2 years later...

An amazing thing happened this week. I purchased this medal quite a few years ago. Recently a friend of mine called me from a flea market in California and began to describe a bunch of POW paperwork and mail that was for sale. It just happened to be all the paperwork that went with the medal I already had!

 

Here is a sample of what was there:

 

POW Barracks card from Stalag Luft 3

 

b3.jpg

 

In his RCAF uniform

 

 

b4.jpg

 

Crew Photos

 

b1.jpg

 

b2.jpg

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1st Piece of mail he sent home from Dulag Luft, which was the interrogation center.

 

b16.jpg

 

b17.jpg

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This is a letter from one of the surviving crewman who evaded, was captured, but was liberated in France. He describes in detail how the plane was lost.

 

b13.jpg

 

b14.jpg

 

b15.jpg

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Liberation Day

 

b18.jpg

 

 

In memory of the three crewman who paid with their lives.

 

 

brait.png

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WOW!!!!!

 

Some of that paper is amazing! I love the photo of him in his USAAF uniform with his RCAF crew! This is some of the best paper I've seen in a long time.

 

Congrats Kurt!!

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Wow! The medal itself was cool, but that paperwork with it makes it fantastic. One of the cooler medal groups I've seen in a while. What are the odds of finding it all at a flea market! I hope you are going to get your friend a big steak dinner! Haha

 

JD

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Howard Hughes

What a great find! As a family member was killed on that flight, I was extremely interested to read about how the aircraft was shot down!

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Kurt - OUTSTANDING! What a great story. Congrats on miraculously reuniting it. Keep us posted on any further developments. Bob

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A wonderful follow up. Thanks for sharing this with us. Putting a face and a story to the medal makes it so much more :)

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Moonlight Gecko

I can only echo the previous comments, but a Super find. Thanks for letting us read the personal history behind the medal.

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Incredible luck that it was all reunited! If I heard this story from someone else I wouldn't believe it just incredible. Geez Kurt buy a lottery ticket will ya lol. Congrats on a stunning group!

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  • 3 weeks later...

I felt incredibly lucky to have put this back together. Supposedly there may be more out there.

 

Kurt

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  • 1 year later...

I think based on the type of aircraft he trained in and was flying that he was given the option of continuing with his crew,

 

Kurt

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