Ashton Blanchard Geren Jr
MilitaryMy father, who will be 94 years old in April 2016, was lead navigator in a B-17, flying missions over Germany out of RAF Glatton. He has many amazing memories of the war, but probably the most terrifying one is of his aircraft being involved in a mid-air collision with another B-17 while flying in formation (I believe returning from a mission). The other plane spiraled into the North Sea, and everyone perished. (My father always mentions that the pilot was 19 years old.) My father's aircraft was badly damaged, and the crew were preparing to bail out into the North Sea, but they discovered that the ball turret gunner was severely injured, so they decided to attempt to get back to England. They did so, found an airstrip, and crash landed. The entire crew survived. Lt Ashton B Geren flew 30 missions in both the 748th and 749th Bomb Squadrons.
Connections
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Units served with
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
People
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Service Numbers: O-588714
- Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
Aircraft
Places
- Site type: Airfield
- Known as: Connington
Events
Event | Location | Date | Description |
---|---|---|---|
Born |
Shreveport, LA | 9 April 1922 | Son of Ashton Blanchard Sr and Mae K [Simmons] Geren. |
Died |
Farmington, NM | 6 June 2016 | |
Based |
Glatton | Assigned to 748BS, 457BG, 8AF USAAF. |
Revisions
Obituary Ashton Geren, Farmington, New Mexico, June , 2016. 457th Bomb Group Web page.
I'm sorry, but I do not understand what "source message" means. The source OF the message is my father, Ashton B. Geren, Jr., through me, James B. Geren.
1993 457th BGA Roster / Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia