Pictured below is Private 1st. Class Alexander Boris. He was stationed at Attlebridge England during the same time frame as my Dad, 2nd. LT. J. Wm. Smith. They were in the same unit and Alexander Boris' son Ron is trying to unravel some of his Dads' service history. Ron has sent me the photos in this post. They were all taken by his father. Ron's dad never spoke much about his service years so there is some missing information.
This newspaper clipping speaks of Alexander Boris' service with the 8th Air Force in Attlebridge.
This newspaper clipping speaks of Alexander Boris' service with the 8th Air Force in Attlebridge.This photo is interesting due to some of the names shown on the huts walls. The names of aircraft "Jamaica" and "Times - A - Wastin" are on the right. One of the planes my Dad flew on was "Times-A-Wastin." The names "Bailey", "Richards", "Boris", and "Jackson", are on the door. On one mission which my Dad was a part of , a raid on Onsabruech Germany, Oct, 12th, 1944, he witnessed the aircraft "Off Limits Again" take an anti-aircraft hit and go down with all on board killed. With the help of the Aviation Archaelogical Investigation & Research (AAIR)Organization, I obtained the Official Missing Air Crew Report # 9486 for that particular crew. The Pilots name was "Quinton E. Bailey" from Galveston Texas. No way to know if it is the same "Bailey" that was on the wall. The little "bubble" windows on the hut are actually B-24 navigators Plexiglas side windows, probably salvaged.
Ron Boris identified his Dad, Alexander as the one on the far right wearing the sailors hat. The other mens identities are unknown.
photo below. Behind and to the right of the snow covered B-24 is a hut exactly like the one photographed above. I can't tell if it is the same hut. This hut was likely a maintenance building / shelter for the ground crews.
Alexander Boris on the left (below) in flight jacket. Ron believed his Dad was on board the aircraft "Jamaica" when it was lost on a fuel hauling mission on Sept. 25th, 1944. Through the AAIR, I was able to obtain the Official Missing Air Crew Report (MACR) #9575 for the "Jamaica". The plane was last seen leaving Attlebridge flying to France with a load of fuel. The aircraft was piloted by 2nd. Lt. Joseph F. E. Diamni, of Donora, Pennsylvania. The crash of the aircraft was not witnessed by any U.S. personnel. The MACR lists all 6 crewman aboard as killed in action. The names, ranks and next of kin is shown in the MACR documents. Pvt. 1st. Class Alexander Boris was not among them. There was no listing of aircrew personal items recovered or burial by the German Authorities. The loss of the "Jamaica" and its' fate is somewhat of a mystery other than the crew were all listed as Killed in Action.
One thing I've found is that all flying crew members who were enlisted men (not officers) were automatically promoted to the rank of Sargent. This way they were given better treatment if captured by the Germans. Whether Ground Crew members were allowed to fly on any missions is not known to me. I know for a fact that my Dad snuck his older Brother, Claude, on a training mission over Scotland at one time. His Brother was an Army Artillery Sargent and was visiting him in England.
A photo of Alexander Boris & "Jamaica" with her full nose art. The names on the aircraft were probably the original crew who flew into Attlebridge. My Dad told me that they would fly many different aircraft , depending on ships under repair or maintenance. No one crew flew just one particular aircraft on every mission.
My father was Lt. Paul Bishop from Wisconsin... I have many more photos of the plane and the original crew whose names are on the plane. I am working to get them in a searchable place...the files are large. Marnie Bishop Hess
ReplyDeletemarnie.hess@gmail.com
The names my Dad listed for his crew in Hethel, England, in July 1944, for Jamaica: Bothwell, Peter (Paul) Bishop (my dad), Delorme, Beggs, Burke, Booth (pilot), Duvall, Herbst, Campbell, Doolittle, Corrar, Given. That was 389th BG, 564th sqd.
ReplyDeleteThey also flew out of Attlebridge in May 1944, that was the 466th BG, 785th sqd. The 466th called themselves the 'Sharpies'.
Campbell is my grandfather, he was the belly gunner
DeleteCampbell is my grandfather, he was the belly gunner
DeleteThe Hut belonged to the Ground Crew, who lived next to the plane. The Flight Crews lived in Barracks a couple of miles away. The Ground Crew built their huts from what ever they could lay their hands on.
ReplyDeleteThe names on the Hut probably are for John Bailey - Crew Chief, Wallace Richards and Alexander Boris - Assistant Crew Chiefs. Ralph Jackson was a Technical Advisor, all in the 785th Squadron. Ground Crew did sometimes fly unofficially on gasoline supply missions because they were not thought to be dangerous. The Group lost two planes and 12 men, one of them was an assistant Crew Chief. If you have a copy of the Attlebridge Arsenal, go to page 285. There is the same hut.It has the silouette of a penguin on it, the symbol of the aircraft "Damifino".
my dad was george corrar, bottom ball turret gunner. i remember as a kid (mid 60's) going to ohio to visit one of the crew he flew with i couldn't remember much but the type and the name of his plane, jamaica?. i also remember seeing a picture of his plane which was good to see here, thanks. dad passed in 99 and i was thinking of him today. i'm glad i did a little searching. geocorrar@yahoo.com
ReplyDelete