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Luis B Coppola

Military

Service

People

  • Stanley Fritz

    Military | 388th Bomb Group

  • Robert Hadorn

    Military | Staff Sergeant | Tail Gunner | 379th Bomb Group

  • David Kaufman

    Military | 379th Bomb Group

  • Larry Messinger

    Military | Second Lieutenant | Pilot | 379th Bomb Group
    Shot down in A/C #297163 on 13 September 1944 on Merseburg synthetic oil mission. Plane received permission to land in France after 2 engins were out nad a 3rd was running erratic. Returned to duty.

  • Harry Motsinger

    Military | Technical Sergeant | Radio Operator | 379th Bomb Group
    35 fun-filled missions (Jan-April 1945) 6 Air Medals

  • Dale Zimmerman

    Military | Sergeant | Top Turret Gunner | 452nd Bomb Group
    Assigned to 731BS, 452BG, 8AF USAAF. Shot down 17-Jan-45 in B-17 43-37745 'Lacka Shaky. ' Interned in Sweden. Awards: WWII Victory, EAME.

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Units served with

  • 8th Air Force

    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. ...

  • 379th Bomb Group

    379th Bomb Group

    Group
    The 379th Bomb Group (H) (heavy), based at Kimbolton, flew more sorties than any other Bomb Group in the Eighth Air Force and dropped a greater bomb tonnage than any other Group. The B-17 Flying Fortress Group was awarded two Distinguished Unit...

  • 526th Bomb Squadron

    526th Bomb Squadron

    Squadron

Aircraft

  • 42-102689 Lady Luck

    B-17 Flying Fortress
    Delivered Cheyenne 26/3/44; Kearney 15/4/44; Grenier 7/5/44; Assigned 379BG Kimbolton 10/5/44;

  • 42-102974 Hellcat Agnes

    B-17 Flying Fortress
    Delivered Cheyenne 24/4/44; Hunter 4/5/44; Dow Fd 17/5/44; Assigned 338BS/96BG Snetterton 19/6/44; transferred 379BG Kimbolton 26/5/44; Returned to the USA Bradley 3/7/45; 4168 Base Unit, South Plains, Texas 28/8/45; Reconstruction Finance Corporation ...

  • 42-39968

    B-17 Flying Fortress
    Delivered Long Beach 21/10/43; Assigned 562BS/388BG Knettishall 15/12/43; transferred 303BG Molesworth 9/4/44; then to 525BS/379BG [FR-A] Kimbolton 3/2/45; retUS 121 BU Bradley 4/7/45; 4168 Base Unit, South Plains, Texas 7/7/45; 237 BU Kirtland 19/12...

  • 43-37743

    B-17 Flying Fortress
    Delivered Cheyenne 17/5/44; Kearney 27/5/44; Grenier 7/6/44; Assigned 379BG Kimbolton 19/6/44; Returned to the USA Bradley 29/6/45; 4168 Base Unit, South Plains, Texas 2/7/45; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Kingman 5...

  • 43-38679

    B-17 Flying Fortress
    Delivered Cheyenne 1/9/44; Hunter 19/9/44; Dow Fd 25/9/44; Assigned 379BG Kimbolton 28/10/44; Returned to the USA Bradley 13/7/45; 4185 BU Independence 19/7/45; 4136 BU Tinker 31/12/45; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA)...

  • 43-38724

    B-17 Flying Fortress
    Delivered Lincoln 12/9/44; Dow Fd 25/9/44; Assigned 568BS/390BG [BI-Q] Framlingham 25/9/44; Returned to the USA Bradley 11/7/45; 4168 Base Unit, South Plains, Texas 12/7/45; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Kingman 19/11...

  • 43-38745 Tag-a-Long

    B-17 Flying Fortress
    Delivered Lincoln 16/9/44; Grenier 27/9/44; Assigned 379BG Kimbolton 14/10/44; battle damaged Plauen 23/2/45 with Vernon Olson, crash landed (?continent/Ipswich?)o; Salvaged.

  • 43-39094

    B-17 Flying Fortress
    Delivered Lincoln 30/11/44; Dow Fd 18/12/44; Assigned 379BG Kimbolton 11/4/45; Returned to the USA Bradley 30/6/45; 4168 Base Unit, South Plains, Texas 4/7/45; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Kingman 28/11/45.

  • 43-39212

    B-17 Flying Fortress
    Delivered Hunter 9/1/45; Dow Fd 19/1/45; Assigned 525BS/379BG [FR-F] Kimbolton 1/2/45; Returned to the USA Bradley 9/7/45; 4168 Base Unit, South Plains, Texas 11/7/45; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Kingman 19/11/45.

  • 44-6119 WHITE LIGHTENING

    B-17 Flying Fortress
    Delivered Tulsa 6/5/44; Hunter 15/5/44; Grenier 25/5/44; Assigned 526BS/379BG [LF-A] Kimbolton 4/6/44; Missing in Action Lutzkendorf 9/2/45 with Herb Pearlman, John O’Neill, Chas Francescani, Ray Maloney, Alva Bryant, Paul Kondravy, Wesley Wells, Fred...

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Missions

  • 805

    22 January 1945

  • 809

    28 January 1945

  • 811

    29 January 1945

  • 814

    1 February 1945

  • 821

    6 February 1945

  • 8AF 830

    14 February 1945

  • 835

    19 February 1945
    1,100 Heavies Hit Nazi Rails ...

  • 836

    20 February 1945
    "Continuing their offensive against the Nazi communications, 900 Fortresses of the 8th Air Force, attacking in two giant waves, thundered over Nuremberg yesterday to shower the cities huge railway yards and locomotive repair shops with more than 11,000...

  • 839

    21 February 1945

  • 843

    23 February 1945

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Associated Place

  • Kimbolton

    Military site : airfield
    Planned for RAF use, Kimbolton airfield was built by W and C French Ltd. in 1941. The airfield was increased in size to accommodate a full US heavy Bomb Group, and the first such unit to us it was the 91st Bomb Group, who arrived in September 1942....

Events

Event Location Date
Nationality
American
Nickname
Not yet known
Service numbers
39849255
Highest rank
Captain
Role/job
Pilot on B-17
Awards
  • Air Medal with 6 oak leaf clusters (1 silver, 1 bronze)

Revisions

Date Contributor Update
05 June 2017 21:04:38 jancheta Changes to mission associations
Sources

Update
Date Contributor Update
05 June 2017 20:56:35 jancheta Changes to mission associations
Sources

Update
Date Contributor Update
05 June 2017 20:53:57 jancheta Changes to mission associations
Sources

Update
Date Contributor Update
05 June 2017 20:51:30 jancheta Changes to mission associations
Sources

Update
Date Contributor Update
05 June 2017 19:46:51 jancheta Changes to aircraft associations
Sources

Update
Date Contributor Update
05 June 2017 19:32:04 jancheta Changes to unit associations and media associations
Sources

Arizona's Hispanic Flyboys 1941-1945
Date Contributor Update
05 June 2017 18:42:17 jancheta Created entry with surname, middlename, firstname, nationality, service number, highest rank, role, person associations, unit associations, place associations and aircraft associations
Sources

The National Archives

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