B-17G " Penny's Thunderhead " 42-31098 614th
11 December 1943 Mission #4 Target: Emden
11 December 43 , 0805 hours , engines are on.
22 planes are off on mission #4 , target today is the shipping center, port of Emden, Niedersachsen, Germany.
Missing Air Crew Report : 8711
1. Organization : AAF Sta 128.
Command : 8th Air Force.
Group : 401st.
Squadron : 614th.
2. Place of depature : AAF Station 128.
Course : South West.
Target : Returned from Emden, Germany.
Type of mission: Operational Bombing.
3. Weather conditions when last sighted : 7/10ths - 8/10ths.
4. Last know date : 11 dec 1943
time : 13:20
location : Over Beerta, Netherlands, SW of Emden , Germany.
5. Aircraft believed to have been lost as a result of : Aircraft returned , portion of crew only missing.
6. Aircraft type : B-17G
serial no. : 42-31098
7. Nickname of aircraft : " Penny's Thunderhead ".
8. Engines : R-1820-97.
10. Persons listed below listed as : Battle Casualties.
11. Persons on board : Crew : 10 , 8 MIA.
12. List crew position , name , rank , serial no. and current status :
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Mission to Ludwigshafen, crashed at Zierolshofen, Germany
Missing Air Crew Report by Captain Ken W. Dauble.
Lt. Kaufman, who flew No. 2 pos. in the 2nd element of the Lead Squadron, bombed the target as briefed
and then came with the formation on the way out.
At 13:12, just over the Dutch border, his aircraft was hit by flak and No.3 engine went out.
Engine could not be feathered, was windmilling 3,000 RPM, vibrating the entire A/C tremendously.
A few seconds later No.1 engine also was hit and the ship started to lose altitude.
Subsequent flak hits destroyed the bomb bay doors and shattered the nose of the plane.
Thinking his aircraft was doomed, Lt Kaufman ordered the crew to bail out, and jumping over what was
believed to be Holland from 18000 feet.
All man jumped except for Lt. Kaufman and bombardier Lt. Fitzgerald who had difficulty getting his chute
adjusted.
Then one of the runaway props frose and it was then that Lt. Kaufman and he decided to "ride it down".
Straggling along by themselves, these two Officers flew the aircraft across the North Sea and landed it at
Lindholm RAF base, England.
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Captain Kaufman's first crew.
L to R Back Row: Capt. Kaufman , Lt. F. B. Robinson , Lt. R. C. Fitzgerald , Lt. J. A. Barrett
Front Row: Sgt. F. R. Cope , Sgt. H. A. Shaw , Sgt. D. H. Carlson , Sgt. T. R. Nielson , Sgt. H. L. Bangfrede , Sgt.E. W. Masterman
Photo Courtesy of Rick Kaufman.
NE = Netherlands, Margraten CA = Camebridge , England
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