William K Coon

Military
First Lieutenant William K. Coon, First Lieutenant James M. Morris and First Lieutenant Evan J. Machen of the 20th Fighter Group consul a map (censored) at Kings Cliffe air base, October 1943. Printed caption attached to print: 'Lightnings Attack Northern France. Versatile P-38 Lightnings, flashing their power across the English Channel for the first time in a combat role, bring new serial phase into the European Theatre of Operations. Well-trained pilots - some of them already experienced in the other th media-376966.jpg FRE 72 First Lieutenant William K. Coon, First Lieutenant James M. Morris and First Lieutenant Evan J. Machen of the 20th Fighter Group consul a map (censored) at Kings Cliffe air base, October 1943. Printed caption attached to print: 'Lightnings Attack Northern France. Versatile P-38 Lightnings, flashing their power across the English Channel for the first time in a combat role, bring new serial phase into the European Theatre of Operations. Well-trained pilots - some of them already experienced in the other theatres of war - and ground crews swear by their ships. From briefing room to flying line, from runways to skyways and contest with the enemy, each mission represents expert planning by Operations and Intelligence and the brains and sweat of every man who prepares an order or tightens a screw on a prop. Photo shows:- 1st Lt. William K. Coon, Compton, California,1st. Lt. James M. Morris, Detroit, Michigan and 1st. Lt. Evan J. Machen, San Bernadino, California. U.S. Pool/SG/H. Keystone 85.' Roger Freeman Collection

IWM, Roger Freeman Collection

Object Number - FRE 72 - First Lieutenant William K. Coon, First Lieutenant James M. Morris and First Lieutenant Evan J. Machen of the 20th Fighter Group consul a map...

Assigned to 77FS, 20FG, 8AF USAAF. Failed to Return (FTR), crashed near Kiel on 22-May-44 in P-38J 43-28270. Prisoner of War (POW) MACR 4974.



Awards: DFC, AM (4OLC), WWII Victory, EAME.

Connections

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Units served with

Aircraft

43-28270

  • Aircraft Type: P-38 Lightning
  • Unit: 20th Fighter Group 77th Fighter Squadron

Places

Stalag Luft III

  • Site type: Prisoner of war camp
  • Known as: Stalag Luft III, Sagan, Germany

Events

Event Location Date Description

Enlisted

Los Angeles, CA, USA 27 January 1942

Other

Crashed

2 miles NW March Air Reserve Base, CA, USA 15 May 1943 Crashed Engine Failure 2 Miles NW March Field, CA Cat 4 damage Lt William K Coon, 15-May-44. RP-38E 41-2172 - 77FS 20FG

Other

Promotion

King's Cliffe, Peterborough PE8, UK 26 April 1944 Promoted to 1st Lieutenant.

Other

Baled out

Kiel, Germany 22 May 1944 Failed to Return (FTR), crashed near Kiel on 22-May-44 in P-38J 43-28270. Prisoner of War (POW) MACR 4974.

Other

Prisoner of War (POW)

Zagan, Poland 22 May 1944 Prisoner of War (POW). Stalag Luft III.
Compton, California

Based

Kings Cliffe 22 May 1944 Assigned to 77FS, 20FG, 8AF USAAF.

Revisions

Date
ContributorAl_Skiff
Changes
Sources

http://www.geocities.ws/jackilfrey/pows.html
http://www.littlefriends.co.uk/search/
https://www.fold3.com/record/84973444-william-k-coon
https://www.fold3.com/image/28715395
https://www.fold3.com/image/28715356
http://aviationarchaeology.com/src/dbapi.asp?Pilot=Coon%2C+William+K&Su…
http://aviationarchaeology.com/src/dbmsn.asp?SN=43-28270&Submit6=Go

Date
ContributorAAM
Changes
Sources

Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / MACR 4974, King's Cliffe Memorial Edition

William K Coon: Gallery (1 items)

First Lieutenant William K. Coon, First Lieutenant James M. Morris and First Lieutenant Evan J. Machen of the 20th Fighter Group consul a map (censored) at Kings Cliffe air base, October 1943. Printed caption attached to print: 'Lightnings Attack Northern France. Versatile P-38 Lightnings, flashing their power across the English Channel for the first time in a combat role, bring new serial phase into the European Theatre of Operations. Well-trained pilots - some of them already experienced in the other th

Object number: FRE 72 - First Lieutenant William K. Coon, First Lieutenant...