Gerald Bright Bump
MilitaryHe flew on Lloyd Johns crew. Reported to ETO on 13 Apr 1944.
Crashed at Ammendorf on 9/13/44 in B-17 Duration Plus 42-31726. POW at Stalag 9C Bad Sulza Saxe-Weimar 51-11.
Awards: AM, PH, POW, EAME, WWII Victory.
Bump was shot down in B-17 Flying Fortress 42-31726 "Duration Plus" whilst flying on a mission to Mersberg. The aircraft was hit by flak and set ablaze instantly. The pilot, Clayton A Nattier gave to order to bail out immedeately, but Bump remained in the cockpit with Nattier to try to extinguish the blaze. Bump and Nattier attempted to bail out, shortly after but encountered the Co-Pilot, Bombardier and Navigator at the front hatch, who signalled that bailing out was not possible. Bump returned to the cockpit with Nattier, in an attempt to stabalise the aircraft, and bailed out shortly after through the bomb bay. Flames had engulfed the front hatch and they could no longer access it, or tell if the other members of the crew had bailed out.
Bump landed near a Luftwaffe School near Halle, and was immediately captured. He was loaded into a vehicle with Nattier and driven to a nearby jail where he was given medical attention, as he had broken his ankle. Nattier reported that the medic did a good job. and Bump's injury caused him no further problems once healed.
Connections
See how this entry relates to other items in the archive by exploring the connections below.
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
People
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 306th Bomb Group 369th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: O-753914
- Highest Rank: First Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Pilot
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Nicknames: Duration Plus
- Unit: 306th Bomb Group 367th Bomb Squadron
Places
- Site type: Prisoner of war camp
- Known as: Dulag Luft Grosstychow Dulag 12
- Site type: Prisoner of war camp
- Known as: Stalag 9C
- Site type: Airfield
- Known as: Bedford
Events
Event | Location | Date | Description |
---|---|---|---|
Enlisted |
Fort Benjamin Harrison Indiana | 29 October 1942 | EnlistedFort Benjamin Harrison Indiana |
Other Shot Down |
13 September 1944 | ||
Prisoner of war Prisoner of War (POW) |
Stalag IXc, Bad Sulza | 13 September 1944 - 1 May 1945 | Stalag IXc, Bad Sulza |
Other Discharged |
31 October 1945 | ||
Died |
Westerville, Ohio | 26 May 2002 | DiedWesterville, Ohio |
Buried |
Saint Johns Cemetery Marysville, Ohio | 27 May 2002 | InterredSaint Johns CemeteryMarysville, Ohio |
Born |
Champaign, Ohio | BornChampaign, Ohio |
Revisions
https://www.fold3.com/image/680777282
https://www.fold3.com/record/34290960/gerald-b-bump-us-social-security-death-index
https://www.fold3.com/record/712273063/bump-gerald-b-us-veterans-gravesites-ca1775-2019
https://www.fold3.com/record/84294780/gerald-b-bump-us-wwii-army-enlistment-records-1938-1946
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/155966418/gerald-b-bump
https://catalog.archives.gov/id/138716910?objectPage=371
Combined information from duplicate record.
Additional information from : MACR 8829 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database
I interviewed Gerald Bump's pilot Clayton Nattier on 15 June 2015, when he visited IWM Duxford, Nattier's interview can be found in full on his page, but I have re-written Bump's experiences based on what I was told by Nattier here.
306th BG Association Directory, 1 September 1999 Edition, MACR 8829, 306th BGA Collection, Russell Strong Index Cards, First Over Germany pg. 279, / Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / http://www.306bg.org/crewphotos/Crew%20Pictures%20Adam-Rector/Crew%20Pi…