8th Air Force
Eighth Air Force Bomber Command became the Eighth Air Force on February 1944, it oversaw bombardment of strategic targets in Europe until 1945.
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42-8409
P-47 Thunderbolt
Assigned to 335FS, 4FG, 8AF USAAF. Transferred 514FS, 306FG, 9AF USAAF. Failed to return, shot down by Bf109 on armed recon to St Lo Area, crashed Argentan, pilot 2nd Lt Merlin Earl Isbell wounded, bailed out at a low altitude, captured and died the following day from his wounds. KIA. 10-Jun-44. MACR 6217.
Service
Units
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406th Fighter Group
Group
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4th Fighter Group
Group
Some of the pilots of the 4th Fighter Group had seen many hours of combat by the time they joined the 4th Fighter Group as they had volunteered with the Royal Canadian Air Force and the Royal Air Force. The three 'Eagle Squadrons' of RAF Fighter... -
335th Fighter Squadron
Squadron
The 335th Fighter Squadron was the offspring of No. 121 (Eagle) Squadron RAF. Formed on 21 May 1941, No. 121 was the second of the three Eagle Squadrons composed of American volunteers flying out of England. They were known as the "Chiefs" and were... -
514th Fighter Squadron
Squadron
People
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Merlin Isbell
Military | Second Lieutenant | Fighter Pilot | 406th Fighter Group
Assigned to 514FS, 406FG, 9AF USAAF. Failed to return, shot down in P-47D 42-8409 by Bf109 on armed recon to St Lo Area, crashed Argentan, Isbell was wounded, bailed out at a low altitude, was captured and died the following day from his wounds. KIA....
Places
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Ashford
Military site : airfield
Built as an Advanced Landing Ground for the RAF in 1942-1943, Ashford was improved and made ready for the Ninth Air Force in 1944. The 406th Fighter Group operated from the airfield in 1944, before the airfield was returned to RAF use and returned to... -
Debden
Military site : airfield
RAF Debden, construction of which began in 1935, is perhaps most famous as a Battle of Britain fighter airfield, partly responsible for the defence of London in 1940. In 1942 it was also home to three RAF 'Eagle Squadrons’ of volunteer American pilots...
Events
| Event | Location | Date |
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| Crashed | 61200 Argentan, France | 10 June 1944 – 10 June 1944 |
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Failed to return, shot down by Bf109 on armed recon to St Lo Area, crashed Argentan, pilot 2nd Lt Merlin Earl Isbell wounded, bailed out at a low altitude, captured and died the following day from his wounds. KIA. 10-Jun-44. MACR 6217. |
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Revisions
| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 13 April 2016 09:16:16 | Al_Skiff | Changes to production block number, description, events, unit associations and place associations |
| Sources | ||
http://www.littlefriends.co.uk/search.php?searchString=8409&Submit=Search |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 27 September 2014 18:41:07 | AAM | AAM ingest |
| Sources | ||
MACR 6217 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database |
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