Francis Leon Eastham

Military

Francis Eastham was Top Turret gunner on B-17 #42-5431 "Lil Abner", shot down 5 April 1943. Crew bailed out and saw their plane explode. Landing in the Antwerp area, in and around a factory, most of them were quickly gathered by Germans. Prisoner of War (POW). Interned at Stalag, near Krems, Austria. Prisoner of War (POW).

Connections

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Units served with

306th Bomb Group

Unit Hierarchy: Group
Air Force: Eighth Air Force
Type Category: Bombardment

367th Bomb Squadron

Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
Air Force: Eighth Air Force
Type Category: Bombardment

People

Henry Bruce Compton

Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
Nationality: American
Unit: 306th Bomb Group 367th Bomb Squadron
Service Numbers: 33121634
Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
Role/Job: Radio Operator

Joseph Edwin Consolmago

Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
Nationality: American
Unit: 306th Bomb Group 367th Bomb Squadron
Service Numbers: 11044073 at enlistment, then O-724020
Highest Rank: Captain
Role/Job: Navigator

James William Crouch

Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
Nationality: American
Unit: 306th Bomb Group 367th Bomb Squadron
Service Numbers: 18060772 at enlistment, then O-726196
Highest Rank: First Lieutenant
Role/Job: Co-Pilot

Clarence Eugene Fischer

Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
Nationality: American
Unit: 306th Bomb Group 367th Bomb Squadron
Service Numbers: 18057854 at enlistment, then O-726216
Highest Rank: First Lieutenant
Role/Job: Pilot

Walter Richard Kuczynski

Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
Nationality: American
Unit: 306th Bomb Group 367th Bomb Squadron
Service Numbers: 16009590
Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
Role/Job: Ball Turret Gunner

Aircraft

42-5431

Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
Nicknames: L'il Abner
Unit: 306th Bomb Group 368th Bomb Squadron

Missions

VIII Bomber Command 50

Date: 5 April 1943

Places

A bomber crew of the 306th Bomb Group wave to Picture Post Girls in front of a B-17 Flying Fortress (serial number 41-24471) nicknamed "Four of a Kind" at Thurleigh in December 1942. Image stamped on reverse: '"Picture Post" [stamp], 'Passed for Publication 11 Dec 1942.' [stamp], '238038.' [Censor no.] Handwritten in censor's blue pencil on reverse: 'American Flying Fortress crew are introduced to the girls they will meet at Picture Post Xmas Party.'

Thurleigh

Site type: Airfield
Known as: Bedford

Events

Event	Location	Date	Description
Born	Wildorado, Oldham County, Texas, United States	10 October 1919
Enlisted		21 November 1941	Fort Bliss, El Paso, Texas
Other Prisoner of War (POW)		5 April 1943	Interned at Stalag XVIIB in Braunau, Austria. Returned to Military Control 8 June 1945.
Died		26 December 1998	San Antonio, Texas
			El Paso, Texas

Revisions

Date12 Jun 2020 12:24:18

ContributorED-BB

Changes

Sources

SSDI (Social Security Death Index)

Date12 Jun 2020 10:09:38

ContributorED-BB

Changes

Sources

NARA WWII Enlistment records

Date12 Jun 2020 10:08:04

ContributorED-BB

Changes

Sources

NARA WWII Enlistment records
WWII Draft Card

Date12 Jun 2020 07:49:34

ContributorED-BB

Changes

Sources

NARA WWII POW records

Date1 Apr 2020 01:33:39

Contributorjmoore43

Changes

Sources

Added a "-" to the A/C serial # in the "Summary biography" to aid clarity & consistency.

Date27 Sep 2014 18:09:49

ContributorAAM

Changes

Sources

306th BG Association Directory, 1 September 1999 Edition; Roll of Honor, , Losses of the 8th & 9th AFs Vol. 1 by Bishop and Hey p. 100, First Over Germany by Russell Strong pp 81. / Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia