Marvin Lee Lutes
Military
This photo comes from my private collection of Lutes family photos.
Object Number - UPL 48790 - Part of Marvin Lee Lutes' wedding photo from 11th Dec. 1944.
"Sgt. Lutes Gets Oak Leaf Cluster"
"An Eighth Air Force Bomber Station [RAF Sudbury, Sudbury, Suffolk], England - Technical Sergeant Marvin L. Lutes, of Edinburg, Indiana, 22 year old engineer of a B-17 flying fortress, has been awarded an oak leaf cluster to the air medal for 'meritorious achievement' while participating in eighth air force bombing attacks on military and industrial targets in Germany and Nazi held territories.
"The award was presented by his base commander, Lieutenant Colonel P. Overing, of Orange. Mass. Sergeant Lutes entered the army air forces in February of 1943 and previously was an airplane mechanic at Wright Field, Dayton, Ohio.
"He is now a member of the famous third bombardment division, recently cited by the President [Oct. 1944] for its now historic England-Africa shuttle attack on the Messerschmitt factories at Regensburg, Germany.
"The Edinburg airman is the son of Mr. and Mrs. John R. Lutes [John Ralph & Verna Essa Jones Lutes] of 303 South Walnut Street. He earned his wings in the AAF in May of 1943."
(From 'The Edinburg Daily Courier' (Edinburg, Indiana), 23 Oct. 1944. Clipped from Newspapers.com on 7 Jul. 2021.)
Under pilot, Lt. George 'Hunter' Smith, and co-pilot, Lt. John R. Mason, Tech. Sgt. Lutes and crew flew missions from their base of operations in Royal Air Force Base Sudbury, Sudbury, Suffolk, England, into enemy occupied Europe. Their first mission was on the 7th May, 1944, with the target of Liege, Belgium, in bomber B24H #42-52716. Lutes’ last mission with Lt. George Smith and his crew was on the 15th August, 1944, in bomber B17G #43-37983, nicknamed ‘Umbriago.’ Lutes acted as the flight engineer, as well as pulling 'gunner' duties during these flights.
The rest of Lt. George Smith’s crew performed five more missions from R.A.F. Sudbury, their last being on the 10th September, 1944, flying the Umbriago to the target at Giebelstadt, Germany, and 36 missions to their credit. The crew flew in B-24(H) Liberators up to 18th July, 1944, and then in B-17(G) Flying Fortresses beginning on 1st August, 1944. Lt. George ‘Hunter’ Smith never lost any aircraft or crew members during his crew’s tour-of-duty.
T/Sgt. Lutes was sent back to the US Army Air Base in Miami Florida in early October 1944, for some rest and re-evaluation, and then was sent on to Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, Mississippi, for ‘refresher’ courses. While at Keesler, Lutes marries one Josephine Baricer of Biloxi, Mississippi, in early December of 1944. The couple then go on a honeymoon, “…along the coast…” and, sometime in January of 1945, Lutes was shipped back to England and to the Royal Air Force Base (RAF) Sudbury, in Suffolk, to again fly with the 486th Bombardment Group, and some of its other squadrons; one example is the 30th of March, 1945, bombing mission to Hamburg flown with Pilot Lt. Willis P. Smith's 834th Bomb. Sq. crew.
In all likelihood, T/Sgt. Marvin Lee Lutes stayed with the 486th in England until the end of its WWII assignment in late July of 1945, and come August, returned with one of the bomber crews back to Drew Army Air Field in Florida, USA. All squadrons were reassembled at this airfield by September. The 486th Bombardment Group, and its accompanying Squadrons, 832nd, 833rd, 834th, and the 835th, were ‘inactivated’ on the 7th of November, 1945.
Tech. Sgt. Lutes would end the war with 31 missions to his credit, and was awarded three Oak Leaf Clusters on his Air Medal; the Distinguished Flying Cross; the Presidential Unit Citation; four Battle Stars; and three Theatre Ribbons (Normandy, Northern France, Rhineland). Marvin Lee Lutes was honourably discharged from the United States Army Air Force on 21st October 1945.
He had two older brothers that also fought for the United States Army in World War II. Oldest brother, Lyman Curtis Lutes, served in the Army Air Force's 5th Air Force, 19th Bombardment Group, in the Pacific Theatre from 1941 until his honourable discharge in October 1945. Second oldest brother, Wendell Ralph Lutes, served in the European Theatre in the United States Army's 3rd Army, 80th Infantry Division, 176th Field Artillery Battalion, and ended the war in the HQ and HQ Detachment, 93rd Replacement Battalion. His service was from 1943, until his honourable discharge in November 1945.
For the 30th March, 1945 crew picture of Pilot Willis P. Smith's crew, taken after a bombing mission to Hamburg in the B17G #44-8453, please visit the 486th Bombardment Group web page at this address:
http://www.486th.org/Photos/Crew2/SmithWP.htm
(Tech. Sgt. Lutes is kneeling in the front row of this picture, second from the left [with the wedge cap] as you look at the photo)
For a brief 'History' and the 'Mission Logs' of the 486th, visit the 486th Bomb. Group web page at this address: https://486th.org/Mssn/Prologue.htm
For a list of Lt. George 'Hunter' Smith's crew, and a full list of aircraft flown in, and the specific 1944 missions that Tech. Sgt. Lutes participated in, and then compare these missions to the details in the above 'Mission Log' list, see the 'Mission Info' also on the 486th web page, but at this address: https://486th.org/BS835/SmithG.htm
More pictures and information about Lutes' military service can be found on his Fold3.com profile at this web address: https://www.fold3.com/page/623333816/marvin-lutes-1922/facts
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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
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
People
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 486th Bomb Group 835th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 16092205
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: Top Turret Gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 486th Bomb Group 834th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 34403449
- Highest Rank: Sergeant (RAF)
- Role/Job: Flight Engineer & Top T. Gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 486th Bomb Group 835th Bomb Squadron
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: Nose Gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 486th Bomb Group 835th Bomb Squadron
- Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Navigator
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 486th Bomb Group 835th Bomb Squadron
- Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Co-pilot
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: B-24 Liberator
- Nicknames: The Bold Sea Rover
- Unit: 453rd Bomb Group 486th Bomb Group 733rd Bomb Squadron 835th Bomb Squadron
- Aircraft Type: B-24 Liberator
- Nicknames: Gunga Din
- Unit: 486th Bomb Group 833rd Bomb Squadron 835th Bomb Squadron 857th Bomb Squadron 492nd Bomb Group
- Aircraft Type: B-24 Liberator
- Unit: 486th Bomb Group 835th Bomb Squadron
- Aircraft Type: B-24 Liberator
- Unit: 486th Bomb Group 835th Bomb Squadron
- Aircraft Type: B-24 Liberator
- Nicknames: Paper Doll (?)
- Unit: 486th Bomb Group 835th Bomb Squadron
Missions
- Date: 30 March 1945
- Date: 15 August 1944
- Date: 14 August 1944
- Date: 9 August 1944
- Date: 8 August 1944
Places
- Site type: Airfield
- Known as: Acton
Revisions
See the official crew list of Pilot Lt. Willis P. Smith at the 486th Bomb. Group web page at: http://www.486th.org/Photos/Crew2/SmithWP.htm
Due to new information, I've updated the biography, and added to the missions, personnel, and aircraft that my Uncle Marvin is associated with. hv
From the 'Consolidated Loading List' for Tech. Sgt. Marvin Lee Lutes, a copy of which was sent to me by the Historian/Webmaster of the official website of the 486th Bombardment Group. hv
See the official web page of the 486th Bomb. Group at: https://486th.org/# , and specifically G.Smith's bomber crew and mission log page: https://486th.org/BS835/SmithG.htm , and the complete missions of the 486th Bomb. Group and its four squadrons at: https://486th.org/Mssn/Prologue.htm
See the official web page of the 486th Bomb. Group at: https://486th.org/# , and specifically G.Smith's bomber crew and mission log page: https://486th.org/BS835/SmithG.htm , and the complete missions of the 486th Bomb. Group and its four squadrons at: https://486th.org/Mssn/Prologue.htm
Information updated, and biography cleaned up and reorganized. See also G. Smith's crew and mission page at the official website of the 486th Bomb. Group web page, 835th Bomb. Squadron section: https://486th.org/BS835/SmithG.htm
This information from the official web page of the 486th Bomb. Group, and specifically, the crew and mission page of Lt. G. Smith of the 835th Bomb. Sq. at: https://486th.org/BS835/SmithG.htm
All updated information comes from the official web page of the 486th Bombardment Group: https://486th.org/
Updated biographical details as new details were discovered by the Historian/Webmaster of the 486th Bomb. Group/835th Bomb Squadron official web pages. hv
Sorry, Murphy's Law says that, after making previous changes and corrections, and then printing out the hard copies, that I would discover another mistake. I changed the date of the first bombardment mission from the 11th to the 7th of May, and the target from France to Belgium. I would also like to add web addresses for the 'Official Websites' of the 835th Bombardment Squadron and the 486th Bombardment Group, so the interested reader might view information on these sites as well.
As stated before, just cleaning up the biography, and most of the information is from the 486th's official web page at: https://486th.org/#
Last minute correction - Sorry! - it always happens when you have a pile of papers in front of you, and you've got to sort out what's what. Again, the primary source of information on Tech. Sgt. Lutes bomber crew comes from the official web page of the 486th Bombardment Group (Heavy), at this address: https://486th.org/#
I was adding additional biographical information on my uncle Marvin Lee Lutes' military career, as well as appending appropriate web addresses for 'quick links' to even more information for the interested reader. The page the reader is directed to is the official web page of the 486th Bombardment Group (Heavy) at: https://486th.org/#
See the above biography for the other quick links within the 486th web page. hv
See the 486th Bomb Group Association web page, and in particular, the 'pilot page' for pilot, G. [George] Smith's bomber crew and mission list, at: https://486th.org/BS835/SmithG.htm
Information about Marvin Lee Lutes awards can be found at: "Sgt. Lutes Gets Oak Leaf Cluster," from 'The Edinburg Daily Courier,' 23 Oct. 1944, clipped from Newspapers.com on 7 Jul. 2021. Also see "Marvin Lutes Receives Discharge," from 'The Edinburg Daily Courier,' 5 Nov. 1945, clipped from Newspapers.com on 10 Jan. 2021.
See the 486th Bomb Group Association web page, and in particular, the 'pilot page' for pilot, G. [George] Smith's bomber crew and mission list, at: https://486th.org/BS835/SmithG.htm
Information about Marvin Lee Lutes awards can be found at: "Sgt. Lutes Gets Oak Leaf Cluster," from 'The Edinburg Daily Courier,' 23 Oct. 1944, clipped from Newspapers.com on 7 Jul. 2021. Also see "Marvin Lutes Receives Discharge," from 'The Edinburg Daily Courier,' 5 Nov. 1945, clipped from Newspapers.com on 10 Jan. 2021.
This newspaper article from: 'The Edinburg Daily Courier' (Edinburg, Indiana), 23 Oct. 1944. Clipped from Newspapers.com on 7 Jul. 2021.
This information taken from the "Mission Information" of George Smith's Crew sheet, available at the 486th Bomb Group Association page: https://486th.org/BS835/SmithG.htm
See the official web page of the 835th Bombardment Squadron, and specifically, the 'Assigned Aircrews' list, then look for 'G. Smith's Crew,' at this link: https://486th.org/BS835/SmithG.htm
Some of the latest details for Marvin L. Lutes has come from the "Loading List for Mission 057, 8th Aug. 1944," from the official webpage of the 486th Bombardment Group, at: https://www.486th.org/Mssn/M051t100/CList/CL057.htm
Marvin Lee Lutes information about his air crew was obtained from the official web page of the '486th Bomb Group Association' (https://486th.org/#), and can be found on the 'Assigned Aircrews' page, and specifically under 'G. Smith's Crew.' All other information was obtained either from his niece, Kitturah Beatrice Lutes Westenhouser, or from newspaper articles from the 'Edinburg Daily Courier,' from the mid-1940's. hv
This portrait of Marvin Lee Lutes is from the personal collection of his niece, Mrs. Kitturah Beatrice Lutes Westenhouser.
This is a portrait of Marvin Lee Lutes, circ. 1940's, and is from the personal collection of his niece, Mrs. Kitturah Beatrice Lutes Westenhouser.
This is confirmed through a newspaper article from the "Edinburg Daily Courier" (Edinburg, Indiana), 5 Nov 1945, entitled, "Marvin Lutes Receives Discharge."
Some of Marvin L. Lutes military information comes from a newspaper article from, "The Edinburg Daily Courier," (Edinburg, Indiana), 5 Nov 1945, entitled, "Marvin Lutes Receives Discharge." The other 'Awards' mentioned in the article, and which Marvin Lutes received for his service with the 835th Bombardment Squadron, was the 'Presidential Unit Citation', 4 Battle Stars; and 3 Theatre Ribbons.
Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / WWW.486th.org roster
