Irvin W Smith
Military ROLL OF HONOURBTG, Pry crew. 381st BG, 532nd BS. Shot down 8 October 1943 in B-17 #42-30009 'Feather Merchant'. Mission #36 to the shipyards at Bremen, Germany. MACR 1397. Killed in Action (KIA). The aircraft took multiple hits to the underside by 20mm cannon fire, flak and possibly a rocket. The ball turret may have been jammed. S/Sgt Smith was known to wear his parachute inside the ball turret. It is unknown if he bailed out of the aircraft. Only one body was found inside the aircraft by the Germans. It possibly was S/Sgt Johnson (LWG) whose parachute opened inside the aircraft and was observed to freeze about bailing out.
Wisconsin
Connections
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Units served with
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
People
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 381st Bomb Group 532nd Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 39535449
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: Waist Gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 381st Bomb Group 532nd Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 37227087
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: Tail Gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 381st Bomb Group 532nd Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: O-674138
- Highest Rank: First Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Navigator
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 381st Bomb Group 532nd Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 35333697
- Highest Rank: Technical Sergeant
- Role/Job: Radio Operator
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 381st Bomb Group 532nd Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 12127068
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: Waist Gunner
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Nicknames: Feather Merchant
- Unit: 381st Bomb Group 532nd Bomb Squadron
Missions
- Date: 8 October 1943
Events
| Event | Location | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Enlisted |
Detroit, MI, USA | 4 June 1941 | |
|
Died |
8 October 1943 | ||
|
Buried |
Lime Ridge, WI, USA | 9 October 1943 | Originally interned in the Memorial Cemetery at Diepholz, Germany. Grave 1. |
|
Born |
Wisconsin, USA | ||
| Sauk County, WI, USA |
Revisions
Added Irvin W Smith to the Roll of Honour in the American Air Museum.
MACR 1397 https://www.fold3.com/image/1/28699418
Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / www.381st.org/UnitHistory/Data/Roster.aspx