John Peter Chopelas

Military

Assigned to 728BS, 452BG, 8AF USAAF. 33 x combat missions. Ended Tour Duty (ETD).





Awards: DFC, AM (2OLC), PH, WWII Victory, EAME (3 battle stars).

Connections

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Units served with

The insignia of the 452nd Bomb Group.
  • Unit Hierarchy: Group
  • Air Force: Eighth Air Force
  • Type Category: Bombardment

People

  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 452nd Bomb Group 728th Bomb Squadron
  • Service Numbers: 31038286 / O-?
  • Highest Rank: Major
  • Role/Job: Pilot

Aircraft

  • Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
  • Nicknames: Forbidden Fruit II
  • Unit: 729th Bomb Squadron 728th Bomb Squadron 452nd Bomb Group
Airmen inspect a battle damaged B-17 Flying Fortress (serial number 42-10791) of the 452nd Bomb Group. Official caption printed on image: 'ISAD-9-May-44-1011 (WPU, Crash Battle Damage, B17G-42-107091, Rattlesden) FA.' Image stamped on reverse: 'Official Photograph US Photographic section.' [stamp]
  • Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
  • Nicknames: Forbidden Fruit
  • Unit: 452nd Bomb Group 728th Bomb Squadron
  • Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
  • Nicknames: Ramblin Wreck
  • Unit: 452nd Bomb Group 728th Bomb Squadron

Places

Events

Event Location Date Description

Born

Dallas, TX, USA 10 October 1923 Son of Pete and Olga [Vastures] Chopelas.

Enlisted

Lubbock, TX, USA 1 January 1942

Other

Combat Mission/Battle Damage/Crash Landing

Deopham Green, Wymondham, Norfolk NR18, UK 8 May 1944 On May 8th we had flown as a spare on the Berlin mission, but at the English coast we turned back because no other aircraft dropped out. I was looking forward to a day of leisure, but as soon as we landed we were alerted for a rare afternoon mission. AT briefing we were told it should be a "milk run." It was a short flight to northern France to bomb a "crossbow" target at La Glacerie. All was going along fine until we got near the target at which time the tail gunner called on the intercom and said "flak at 6 o'clock level." A few seconds later he reported "flak at 6 o'clock level and tracking." Those were the last words he spoke. There was a sudden explosion in the tail section. I bent down to look aft and all I saw was smoke and debris. I barely had time to think about this when the Fort shuddered again; this time from a flak burst in the bomb bay behind me. We started losing oxygen so the pilot dove to a lower altitude. After we leveled out, we assessed the damage and learned that the tail gunner had been killed and the co-pilot and I had been wounded. Structural damage consisted of severed rudder controls and loss of hydraulic fluid. Skurka (the pilot) passed the work that any of us could bail out that wanted but he was going to try to make it back to base. We all chose to stick with him. We made it back to base late that evening. Skurka was able to line up the B-17 with the runway , but as soon as we landed, with no brakes or rudder control, we began skidding and then collided with a crash truck, killing the driver. The so called "milk run" turned out to be a rather traumatic mission.. The B-17 was salvaged, parts of it being used to patch up other damaged aircraft. - John Chopelas

Other

Discharged USAAF

San Antonio, TX 78234, USA 30 September 1945 Honourably discharged 30-Sep-45,Fort Sam Houston, TX.

Died

Dallas, Texas 14 February 2019

Buried

Immanuel Lutheran Church CemeteryKilleen, Bell County, TX 17 February 2019 Immanuel Lutheran Church Cemetery Killeen, Bell County, Texas

Born

Hockley County, TX, USA

Born

Killeen, TX, USA

Other

Training

1810 J Ave, Sheppard AFB, TX 76311, USA Basic training - Sheppard Field, Wichita Falls, TX.

Other

Training

763 Seibert Rd, Scott AFB, IL 62225, USA Radio-operator school - Scott Field, IL. 6 month duration.

Other

Pilot training

Kelly St, Montgomery, AL 36112, USA Pre-flight Pilot Cadet training - Maxwell Field, AL.

Other

Pilot training

Union City, TN 38261, USA Primary Flight training at Union City, TN. - Soloed in PT-17 prior to 'washing out'.

Other

Gunnery training

Las Vegas, NV, USA Gunnery school in Las Vegas, NV.

Other

Joined crew

Salt Lake City, UT, USA Crewed up - Salt Lake City, UT.

Other

Combat training

Pyote AFB, TX, USA Combat phase training - Rattlesnake Field, Pyote, TX.

Other

Returned ZI

New Jersey, USA Returned to USA Sep-44, aboard the Queen Mary.

Based

Deopham Green Assigned to 728BS, 452BG, 8AF USAAF.

Revisions

Date
ContributorLiz Papineau
Changes
Sources

www.dignitymemorials.com 

Search John Chopelas

John was my uncle. He held the middle name Peter. It was tradition for all Greek siblings to take their father's first name as their middle name. 

Please change his middle name to Peter in this archive. 

Date
Changes
Sources

8th AF NEWS - Vol 19 No. 3 - September 2019.

Date
ContributorTennyBelle
Changes
Sources

added connection to Pyote AAF

Date
Contributor466thHistorian
Changes
Sources

Letter from John Chopelas to Chris Brassfield - 18 June 1997

Date
ContributorAAM
Changes
Sources

1999 Unit Roster / Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia