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.
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Cornelius Andrew Engel
Military
Volunteer Pilot of B-17 41-24639 'Careful Virgin' on "Aphrodite" flying bomb mission to Mimoyecques, France. Bailed out safely of A/C over UK.
Awards: DFC, AM (3OLC), WWII Victory, EAME.
Service
Units served with
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385th Bomb Group
Group
The 385th Bomb Group, who took the nickname "Van's Valiants" after their first Commanding Officer Col. Elliot Vandevanter, flew B-17s from Great Ashfield, Suffolk. The Group led the famous attack on the Focke-Wolfe aircraft factory at Marienburg on 9...
Aircraft
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41-24639 'Careful Virgin'
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 9/9/42; Boise 16/9/42; wrecked on landing with broken crankshaft, rep; Cheyenne 11/10/42; Assigned 323BS/91BG [OR-W] Bassingbourn 29/1/43 and first in group to have AFCE fitted at 2 SAD Lt Staughton 8/3/44; transferred 7/5/44 50+m...
Missions
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515
4 August 1944
Associated Place
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Bassingbourn
Military site : airfield
Now home to a museum all about the aifield and its USAAF residents (http://www.towermuseumbassingbourn.co.uk/) , Bassingbourn opened in 1938 as part of the RAF's pre-war expansion programme. The RAF continued to use it until late in 1942 when its long...
Events
| Event | Location | Date |
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| Born | Chicago, IL | 9 June 1921 |
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Son of Andrew and Johanna Engel. |
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| Enlisted | Chicago, IL, USA | 30 June 1942 |
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Chicago, Illinois |
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| Aphrodite Mission | Mimoyecques, 62250, France | 4 August 1944 |
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Pilot of B-17 41-24639 'Careful Virgin' on flying bomb mission to Mimoyecques, France. Baled out of A/C over UK. |
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| Died | Michigan, USA | 1 April 1969 |
| Buried | Hastings, MI 49058, USA | 5 April 1969 |
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Yankee Springs Cemetery |
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Revisions
| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 10 March 2020 13:26:42 | Al_Skiff | Changes to middlename, service number, highest rank, biography and events |
| Sources | ||
https://www.fold3.com/image/96325106 |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 10 March 2020 02:46:45 | jmoore43 | Changes to biography |
| Sources | ||
Added a "#" to the A/C serial number in the "Summary biography" to aid clarity. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 22 December 2015 14:19:05 | Al_Skiff | Changes to unit associations |
| Sources | ||
Liberator: The Consolidated B-24 By Graham Simons. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 22 December 2015 14:17:54 | Al_Skiff | Created entry with surname, middlename, firstname, nationality, service number, highest rank, role, biography, events, unit associations, place associations, aircraft associations and mission associations |
| Sources | ||
Liberator: The Consolidated B-24 By Graham Simons. |
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