Paul Bensel
Military | Captain | Pilot | 388th Bomb Group
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Leander Alois Haschke
Military
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Paul Bensel Crew 388th BG - 562nd BS Standing Left to Right: Robert B. Leventhal (N), Paul P. Bensel (P), Phillip H. Pick (B), Glenn E. Kofoed (CP) Kneeling Left to Right: Glinford E. Walls (LWG), Victor J. Stackniewicz (BTG), Leander A. Haschke (FE), Bonnie Skloss (WG), Kenneth R. Willis (R/O), James H. Cruchon (TG) Lieutenant Paul Bensel and his crew of the 388th Bomb Group stand with a bomb, personally addressed to Hitler, and their B-17 Flying Fortress (serial number 42-5954) nicknamed "Mister Yank II" before the Regensburg Raid, August 1943. A B-17 nicknamed "Homesick Angel" is visible in the background.
Service
People
Units served with
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388th Bomb Group
Group
The 388th Bomb Group flew strategic bombing mission from Knettishall, Suffolk from June 1943 to the end of the war. During this time, though, detachments were sent to Fersfield, Norfolk to conduct Aphrodite missions. In these Aphrodite missions veteran... -
562nd Bomb Squadron
Squadron
Aircraft
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42-30212 Quarterback
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 29/4/43; Sioux City 14/5/43; Smoky Hill 11/6/43; Dow Fd 16/6/43; Assigned 562BS/388BG Knettishall 17/6/43; transferred Aphrodite project, Missing in Action V-sites, Watten 6/8/44 with Lt Joeseph P Andrecheck & T/Sgt Raymond Healy (2... -
42-30213 Lil' One
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 29/4/43; Gore 9/5/43; Sioux City 10/5/43; Smoky Hill 11/6/43; Dow Fd 15/6/43; Assigned 562BS/388BG Knettishall 1/6/43; crashed on take off for Bremen after encountering mechanical problems 13/11/43 with Bob Simons, Co-pilot: Alvin... -
42-30230 Homesick Angel
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 30/4/43; Sioux City 13/5/43; Smoky Hill 11/6/43; Dow Fd 15/6/43; Assigned 562BS/388BG Knettishall 17/6/43; following Regensburg shuttle mission suffered battle damaged over Bordeaux on return trip to base 24/8/43, with Lloyd... -
42-5954 Mister Yank II
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Long Beach 30/5/43; Kearney 10/6/43; Dow Fd 7/7/43; Assigned 562BS/388BG Knettishall 11/7/43; Returned to the USA 30/3/44. Salvaged 4/1/46. MR YANK II.
Missions
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VIII Bomber Command 75
24 July 1943
Three targets in Norway are the primary targets for this first mission flown by 8th AIr Force to Norway. They are the nitrate works at Heroya and the port areas at Trondheim and Bergen. The first element is a combined force of 180 B-17s from: 91BG (22)... -
VIII Bomber Command 76
25 July 1943
This mission was composed of three elements. The primary targets were the diesel engine works at Hamburg, Germany; the shipyards at Kiel, Germany and the aircraft industries at Warnemude, Germany, but weather frustrated the effort. The first element... -
VIII Bomber Command 78
28 July 1943
The German aircraft industry at Kassel (Fieseler works) and Oscherleben, Germany are the primary targets of this mission. 182 B-17s from: 91BG (20); 92BG (17); 303BG (20); 305BG (21); 306BG (24); 351BG (21); 379BG (19); 381BG (20); and 384BG (20) are... -
VIII Bomber Command 79
29 July 1943
The primary targets for this mission are the port facilities at Kiel, Germany and the Heinkel aircraft factories at Warnemunde, Germany. A combined force of 168 B-17s from: 91BG (18); 92BG (14 these included 1 Y-B40 gunship); 305BG (19); 306BG (18);... -
VIII Bomber Command 80
30 July 1943
The aircraft factories at Kassel, Germany are the primary targets for this mission. The mission is flown by two elements of B-17s which attack 15 minutes apart. The firts element is a combined force of 119 B-17s from: 91BG (20); 303BG (23); 351BG (21);... -
VIII Bomber Command 81
12 August 1943
This mission is separated into two elements. The first element is a combined force of 183 B-17s from 1st Bomb Division: 91BG (22); 92BG (19); 303BG (20); 305BG (20); 306BG (20); 351BG (21); 379BG (21); 381BG (20); and 384BG (20) are dispatched to bomb... -
VIII Bomber Command 82
15 August 1943
German airfields in Holland and France are the targets for this mission. All of the attacks were made late in the afternoon just prior to sunset. The mission is composed of two elements. The first element is a combined force of 180 B-17s from: 91BG (20... -
VIII Bomber Command 84
17 August 1943
The mission flown on 17-Aug-43, the 1st anniversary of the 1st mission flown by the 8th Air Force, is probably the most written about mission of the war. This is the famous Schweinfurt/Regensburg mission on which 60 B-17s are lost. It has been dubbed ... -
VIII Bomber Command 86
24 August 1943
The 8th Air Force is intent on dishing out some "pay back" to the Luftwaffe for the toll it took on bombers of the 17-Aug-43 mission to Schweinfurt/Regensburg. So, This mission has three attack elements and a diversion element. The attack elements are... -
VIII Bomber Command 88
31 August 1943
This mission is composed of two elements. The first element is composed of 170 B-17s from: 91BG (16); 92BG (19); 303BG (20); 305BG (18); 306BG (18); 351BG (21); 379BG (21); 381BG (19); and 384BG (18). The primary target for this element is German...
Associated Place
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Knettishall
Military site : airfield
Knettishall was built to Class A standard for an American Bomb Group that would be bringing up to forty heavy bombers with them in three or four Squadrons. The 388th Bomb Group, which stayed at Knettishall for their entire service in the ETO, flew B-17...
Events
| Event | Location | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Born | Cedar Rapids, Nebraska | 14 July 1920 |
| Lived in | Umbarger, TX | 16 February 1942 |
| 388th BG Combat Tour | Knettishall, UK | 24 July 1943 – 26 September 1943 |
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15 Combat Missions |
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| Died | Amarillo, TX | 28 November 2003 |
| Buried | Umbarger, TX | 1 December 2003 |
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Saint Mary's Cemetery |
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Revisions
| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 29 September 2020 01:07:26 | 466thHistorian | Changes to middlename, nickname, service number, role, events, person associations, place associations, aircraft associations and mission associations |
| Sources | ||
https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/2238/images/44040_02_00... |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 27 September 2014 18:18:21 | AAM | AAM ingest |
| Sources | ||
Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / www.388bg.info/Personnel.html |
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