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I know the tragic story of Mi Amigo and her crew. really sad. But they saved lifes.

interned in Switzerland

Thank you for suggestion. I have added this B-17 to my todo-list (long list). No sure 2 minutes are ok. I would say ca. 5 minutes required. Asvestos' E&E report has 39 pages and McClain's has 61pages. A lot of to read. But I like it. :)

@@B17FlyingFortress Believe both are hand-written in Lt Emmersons semi-steno style. Takes effort to become familar with it (6 hrs?) but the info is all a pure 'Gem'. Asvestos is captured immediately . . . but escapes the very next day in a scene right out of an 'action movie', from the hands of the Officer in Command of the area 'Flak' Batteries defending a local V-1 launch site - a significant clue in understanding the success of McClians evasion after his own immediate capture and his success in reaching Paris a few days afterwards - with the assistance, half of the way there, of the Germans who had initially captured him. The German Sgt leading that detail was 'Anglo' friendly. He had spent some time in England and asked McClain to pass on a message to a girl whose family he stayed with. Traced this ladys son down in England through research friends there - then the 'panic-demic' hit and put a stop to it all. Haven't picked up on it till now - inspired by your work and dedication. The AA battery was schedueled to leave for Italy in few days. Don't know if the Sgt survived the war or not. Hoped the ladys son might know because it was obvious she and 'Heer He' were close friends. Ain't life a marvel of contradictions when it comes to human nature and individuals ? McClain became the active president of his BG Association for many years. He never once mentioned this part of his evasion to his peers. His BG was amazed and suprized when I shared data with them. His file is a must read because of the dept of US intelligence interest in it to calculate German moral. Then, they 'buried it', judt like McClain did in his later life. It's an astonishing human story.

@@user-qs7gx7rp7m yes, handwritten. Good to read, but didn't read yet. So, thank you for sharing an excerpt. Hope the German Sgt. survived the war. Italian frontline sounds "better" than Easter frontlines.

@@B17FlyingFortress whatever his fate, I'm sure you will agree this story flys in the face of the 'Good Guy' vs 'Bad Guy' norm. It is very special. Perhaps that is why it was 'suppressed' by McClain himself.

@@user-qs7gx7rp7m totally agree. In my videos, I am neutral and only tell the stories that I find during my research. I do not judge the people in the videos, whether good or bad.

I know the story of B-17F “Hell's Angels” (#41-24577) to complete 25 combat missions before "Memphis Belle". It's possible that B-17F "Delta Rebel 2" (#42-5077) became the first heavy bomber to complete 25 combat missions. See: www.303rdbg.com/first-to-25.html I did not researched in that part of B-17's history. I heard that from others as well.

yes, navigator Raymond Joseph LeDoux was only slightly injured and survived.

​@@B17FlyingFortress Has to be one of THE worst battle-damaged B17s that made it back! Lucky crew! RIP to George Abbott.

Hello, possible B-17 42-3330: b17flyingfortress.de/en/b17/42-3330/

The map is my own work. But still in progress. I guess, approx. 2000 B-17 are not on the map yet. You can find the map on my web site: b17flyingfortress.de/en/map-b17-crash-sites/

@@B17FlyingFortress I just checked it out, that is amazing work!

@@ald1144 Thank you! :)

I wish I could tell you more. But I couldn't find any more interesting information. I also didn't want to drag out the video unnecessarily with uninteresting information.

easy to say

Wow! That's great! Can you send me a copy? You can see my email-address in my profile.

Bailing out over water and not being found or rescued due to weather, faulty information about the location, close proximity to the enemy, or some combination of factors was a common fate during the war.

@@dpeasehead Yep, very true.

yes, MACR description says 5 to 7 chutes observed. If the aircraft exploded mid air, crew men blow out. Some had their chutes. some not. Landing in water you need luck that the Air-Sea-Rescue can find you.

Burtonwood also was the primary maintenance facility for the Berlin Airlift. After that it was the distribution center for American goods going to all USA bases that came from the point of entry in Liverpool . I learned to drive with the Big Red " L" plates on the runways in a 1964 Pontiac. Warrington was a nice little town . I always wonder what happened to the base after the center was transfered to the docks in London Cheers from the Pacific Northwest USA.

@@c123bthunderpig wow , hiya , the entire site is now an industrial area , not a trace left , very warmest regards from wigan , lancs

@@tracya4087 so glad you caught my comment, great to meet you. It's like I still have a connection to the base that generated so many wonderful memories in my youth. At least it is still serving a productive purpose. It had such huge hangers, so I can see how they could convert it to industrial park, however there were miles of runways, they must have turned into roads. We arrived at RAF Mildenhal and drove the M1 . The officer driving was doing about 85 mph, my father thought he was speeding :-) Arrived close to midnight and it was still like daylike and my mother picked roses. One of the most unusual first experiences was having our milk delivered. I picked the bottles up from the porch and all the metal seals were punctured , we discovered that the birds liked the cream at the top and pecked holes in the caps to get to it. So many new experiences and a wonderful introduction to the UK. Once again thank you for reaching out to say hello. I hope you are doing well, it was such a beautiful place. Cheers, Bob

Thank you for sharing, Tracy. I read your comment to "Flak Stop" on my web site too. And did you noticed the replies?

Tracy, my Father was Co-pilot Alan Willis. He stayed in touch with your great Uncle Clyde. I spoke with Clyde by phone but never had the honor of meeting him. My Dad passed away in 1991. I am going to Holland and Belgium in August to visit the memorial at the crash site in Staaphorst and to visit Charlie Wagner’s grave at Margratten. Wagner stayed at the controls so the others could bail out. By the time the surviving crew made it out, Flakstop was too low to jump. Wagner attempted a crash landing in the field so that the plane would not crash into the village. His sacrifice saved the lives of the 5 surviving crewmen, who went on to lead productive lives. Two of the guides who escorted my Dad and bombardier Hank Gladys across the Meusse River at Maastricht were captured and executed by the Nazis. Joke Folmer, who was given the presidential Freedom medal by President Truman for her work in the Dutch Resistance, escorted your great uncle and my Dad from Meppel to Roermond. She was captured and sent to a concentration camp but survived and lived a long and distinguished life. Sgt Freemans survived captivity, including the infamous “long march” of allied PoWs in 1945 as the war ended. All 4 remaining crewmen were part of “operation marathon” which established secret camps in the Belgian Ardennes for allied flyers. My Dad and Hank were repatriated on Sept 6 1944 by elements of the American Army as they moved through southern Belgium - exactly 6 months to the day that they were shot down. My Dad held the Dutch people in very high regard. The bravest on earth. I owe my life and my family to them and to Lt. Charles Wagner.

@@B17FlyingFortress you have a website? Please post the address. Thank you so much for doing this video.

Enemy at the Gate