Gerald Winston Johnston

Military ROLL OF HONOUR
media-42098.png UPL 42098 The Johnston crew, Framlingham, 22 November 1944. 390th Bomb Group / 568th Bomb Squadron (Official USAAF photo).
Top row, from left to right :
1st Lt Gerald W. Johnston; 1st Lt Matthew R. Robinson, Co-Pilot; 1st Lt Donald L. Lash, Navigator; 1st Lt Frank D. O’Neill, Bombardier.
Front row, left to right : T/Sgt Russell P. Hardy, Top Turret Gunner; T/sgt William J. Parks, Radio Operator; S/Sgt Ben Marshall, Ball Turret Gunner; S/Sgt Dayton C. Kelly, Waist Gunner and S/Sgt James S. Lawman, Tail Gunner.

NARA WWII Air Force photos - B-71195A.C.

Object Number - UPL 42098 - The Johnston crew, Framlingham, 22 November 1944. 390th Bomb Group / 568th Bomb Squadron (Official USAAF photo). Top row, from left to right : 1st...

Gerald Johnston was Pilot of B-17 "Bob Tail Battler" #42-102677. Crashed at Garlitz, Germany on 14 January 1945. Killed In Action (KIA).

Connections

See how this entry relates to other items in the archive by exploring the connections below.

Units served with

The insignia of the 390th Bomb Group.
  • Unit Hierarchy: Group
  • Air Force: Eighth Air Force
  • Type Category: Bombardment

People

  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 390th Bomb Group 568th Bomb Squadron
  • Service Numbers: 35790365
  • Highest Rank: Technical Sergeant
  • Role/Job: Top Turret Gunner
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 390th Bomb Group 568th Bomb Squadron
  • Service Numbers: 18124447
  • Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
  • Role/Job: Waist Gunner
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 390th Bomb Group 568th Bomb Squadron
  • Service Numbers: 19151210 at enlistment, then O-723383
  • Highest Rank: Lieutenant
  • Role/Job: Navigator
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 390th Bomb Group 568th Bomb Squadron
  • Service Numbers: 35752433
  • Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
  • Role/Job: Tail Gunner
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 390th Bomb Group 568th Bomb Squadron
  • Service Numbers: 18135419
  • Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
  • Role/Job: Ball Turret Gunner

Aircraft

  • Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
  • Nicknames: Mississippi Mission, Bob Tail Battler
  • Unit: 390th Bomb Group 568th Bomb Squadron

Missions

  • Date: 14 January 1945

Places

Events

Event Location Date Description

Born

3 May 1923 Mobile, Mobile County, Alabama, United States

Enlisted

19 September 1942 Jackson, Mississippi

Other

Killed In Action (KIA)

14 January 1945 near Garlitz, 15km North of Brandenburg, Germany, in the crash of B-17 #42-102677

Buried

17 January 1945 Garlitz cemetery, 15km NE of Brandeburg, Germany
Summit, Pike County, Mississippi

Buried

after the war, his remains were brought back to the USA. Gerald Johnston rests at the Mobile National Cemetery, Mobile, Alabama (Section 7, Site 2212)

Revisions

Date
ContributorED-BB
Changes
Sources

MACR 11725
NARA WWII Enlistment records
WWII Draft card
NARA - German captured documents : KU-3569 at https://catalog.archives.gov/id/147911915
VA Gravesite Locator

Date
ContributorED-BB
Changes
Sources

MACR 11725

Date
Contributorjmoore43
Changes
Sources

Added birth info to the Born event per Find-a-grave Memorial ID 59330453.
Added a Buried event per Find-a-grave Memorial ID 59330453.

Date
Contributorjmoore43
Changes
Sources

Changed the "Summary biography" to reflect the fact that he was KIA and not taken POW (See Find-a-grave Memorial ID 59330453).

Date
Contributorjmoore43
Changes
Sources

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

Date
ContributorAAM
Changes
Sources

Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / MACR 11725 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database

Gerald Winston Johnston: Gallery (1 items)