Leonard Byster
Military | Sergeant (Technician Fourth Grade) | Ball Turret Gunner/Radar Jammer | 388th Bomb Group
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Manuel Anthony Head
Military
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1st Lt Manuel A Head 562BS, 388BG, 8AF seen here in the hot seat of a C-47.
Assigned to 562BS, 388BG, 8AF USAAF. 39 x missions. Also flew 2 x 'Chowhound' missions to Holland, as well as flying military VIP's from Paris to England for Gen Eisenhower.
Awards: DFC, AM (2OLC), WWII Victory, EAME.
Post war: Consultant engineer for Westinghouse Electric Co. during the design and construction of the Nautilus and the Seawolf nuclear powered submarines. Also flew military aircraft for the Air National Guard, training in C-47 transport and P-51 fighter airplanes, and was promoted to Captain in the Air Force Reserves.
Service
People
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Eugene Crossin
Military | Technical Sergeant | Top Turret Gunner | 388th Bomb Group
Assigned to 562BS, 388BG, 8AF USAAF. Mission to Brux, Czech 12-May-44 in B-17 42-97184 'Lady Godiva', attacked by Me410 'Black 13' of of II./ZG26 piloted by Lt Paul Kaschuba. T/Sgt Crossin got hits on the target from his top turret as 'Black 13' banked...
Units served with
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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. ... -
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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42-97184 'Lady Godiva'
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 4/2/44; Gr Island 19/2/44; Presque Is 12/3/44; Assigned 562BS/388BG [K] Knettishall 11/3/44; with Bob Scales, Co-pilot: Frank Spangenberg, Navigator: Delmar E Linder, Bombardier: Howard Rohman, Waist gunner: George W Whetstone (5RTD,...
Missions
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353
12 May 1944
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 |
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| Born | New Orleans, LA, USA | 18 September 1922 |
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Son of Llewellyn Dearing and Ethel Maria [Martinez] Head. |
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| Enlisted | Jackson, MS, USA | 14 June 1941 |
| Based | Knettishall | 1944 – 1945 |
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Assigned to 562BS, 388BG, 8AF USAAF. |
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| Crash landed | Honington, Bury Saint Edmunds IP31 1QZ, UK | 12 June 1944 |
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Crash landed at 1 Strategic Air Depot 12-Jun-44. |
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| Died | Palo Alto, CA, USA | 14 February 2014 |
| Buried | Oak Hill Funeral Home & Memorial Park, 300 Curtner Ave, San Jose, CA 95125, USA | March 2014 |
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Oak Hill Memorial Park |
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Revisions
| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 03 April 2018 19:21:36 | Al_Skiff | Changes to middlename, service number, biography, awards, events, unit associations, place associations, aircraft associations and mission associations |
| Sources | ||
https://www.fold3.com/page/83981835-manuel-a-head/facts |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 27 September 2014 18:19:33 | 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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