Floyd Stanley Ernst
Military ROLL OF HONOUR487th FS / 352nd FG Pvt. Floyd S. Ernst
I am the cousin of Pvt. Floyd Ernst.
Private Floyd Stanley Ernst was born and raised in Tomahawk, WI. He joined the Army Air Corps on 11 September 1942, and was stationed in England from July 1943 to his death on 28 January 1944.
On 28 Jan 1944 on a local training flight, an explosion in B-24J #42-100001 'Drawers' caused smoke to fill the cabin and crew was ordered to abandon ship. Pvt. Ernst and four others perished in the crash. Died, Non-Battle (DNB).
Pvt. Ernst and Sgt. Joseph Rubin were assisting Major Nathan Hylan conduct tests on improvements Dr. Hylan made to the high altitude escape system to improve the crew's survive rate during bailouts. The three men were assigned to the 352nd Fighter Group and were passengers aboard the aircraft.
Crew members T/Sgt. Donald Sherman and 1st Lt. Lon Byram were overcome during the initial explosion and smoke that filled the cabin. Sgt. Rubin and Pvt. Ernst failed to bail out, dying in the crash; and Maj. Hylan's parachute ripped away during deployment, causing him to fall to his death.
Connections
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Units served with
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Fighter
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Fighter
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
People
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 389th Bomb Group 565th Bomb Squadron
- Highest Rank: First Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Bombardier
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 389th Bomb Group 565th Bomb Squadron
- Highest Rank: Captain
- Role/Job: Co-Pilot
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 389th Bomb Group 565th Bomb Squadron
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: Assistant Radio Operator
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 389th Bomb Group 565th Bomb Squadron
- Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Co-Pilot
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 352nd Fighter Group 389th Bomb Group 565th Bomb Squadron Headquarters (352nd Fighter Group)
- Service Numbers: O-418229
- Highest Rank: Major
- Role/Job: Flight Surgeon
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: B-24 Liberator
- Nicknames: Drawers
- Unit: 389th Bomb Group 565th Bomb Squadron
Events
Event | Location | Date | Description |
---|---|---|---|
Died |
Stowlangtoft, Bury Saint Edmunds IP31, UK | 28 January 1944 | |
Buried |
Wisconsin | 16 July 1948 | Tomahawk Greenwood Cemetery in Tomahawk, Wisconsin. Reburied stateside from temporary grave at Cambridge American Cemetery |
Revisions
Added Floyd S Ernst's name to the digital Roll of Honour in the American Air Museum at IWM Duxford.
8th AF Losses / Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia