Carl Edward Owen
Military ROLL OF HONOURBack row, left to right:
Unknown, unknown, unknown, Harold Dyment
Front row, left to right:
Unknown, unknown, Carl E Owner, Benjamin Bromley, Patrick Kerns, unknown, unknown
Added the names of identified airmen to the image caption.
Patrick Kerns was identified by his niece Colleen Kerns.
B-24 #42-40598 failed to return from to St. Eval from 'Musketry' patrol. An SOS was received but searchers couldn't find crew or plane.
T/Sgt Carl E. Owen, Aerial Engineer, crew member of the "Sea Hawk", was lost along with all crew members on July 20, 1943 in the Bay of Biscay. The "Sea Hawk" was a B-24D, stationed at St. Eval and operating under the U.S. 479th Antisubmarine Group. The 479th served under the U.S. Eighth Army Air Corps for administrative purposes but was attached for operational purposes to the Royal Air Force's Coastal Command.
The "Sea Hawk", lost with all hands on July 20, 1943, was attacking U-558, which was transiting the Bay in route to the North Atlantic, having left the sub pens located near the border of France and Spain. Per later interrogation of U-558 survivors by the British, the sub was reported by surviving crew to have been sunk on 20 July 1943 in the Bay of Biscay by a plane with markings of the 19th ASW Squadron. Timing of the attack and the last known location of the Sea Hawk suggest it was the attacking B-24.
German U-boat records are consistent with this suggestion, recording that U-558 was sunk July 20, 1943 by a "Liberator" bearing tail markings of the 19th A/S Squadron, U.S. Army Air Corps.
This same air crew, flying a B-17 previously out of Newfoundland, Canada, had provided anti-submarine duty for Atlantic convoys. The crew transferred to a B-24D outfitted for ASW duty in late Winter of 1943 and transferred to England, St.Eval, with operations beginning there in June, 1943.
Carl E. Owen was born in Dekalb county, Alabama. He entered the Army Air Corps in September of 1940 and was the senior enlisted man of the Sea Hawk's crew, serving as Aerial Engineer and Top Turret gunner.
Connections
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Units served with
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Combat organisation
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: B-24 Liberator
- Nicknames: The Sea Hawk
- Unit: 479th Anti-Submarine Group 19th Anti-Submarine Squadron
Places
- Site type: Airfield
Events
Event | Location | Date | Description |
---|---|---|---|
Other Killed in action |
20 July 1943 | Killed in Action (KIA). B24 42-40598 failed to return from to St. Eval from 'Musketry' patrol. An SOS was received but searchers couldn't find crew or plane. The crew was assigned to an antisubmarine group. |
Revisions
NARA file verified AM w/2 Oak Leaf Clusters. He earned at least one bronze star device on the EAME Campaign Medal.
Added a "-" to the A/C type in the "Summary biography" to aid clarity & consistency.
Merged with duplicate entry to include details from:
- he records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia ;
- Losses of the 8th & 9th AFs Vol. I by Bishop & Hey p.186 ABMC;
- MACR 0136
Awards letter signed by order of Major General Baker; number reference 14024763; letter to his father from "Headquarters of 8th Air Force", dated Oct 4, 1943. Specifies identified awards specifically plus mentions his receipt of "additional Army Awards" not articulated.
Family history, Missing Air Crew Report, Eighth Air Force historical documents, German U-boat records, British POW interrogation records
Family history and Missing Air Crew Report #14024783. Last known location of plane was 45-30N 09-45W, Bay of Biscay.
Carl E. Owen, Technical Sergeant; Eighth Air Force, Plane Crew of Combat Unit assigned to 19th Squadron; 25th Anti-Submarine Wing. Date of Missing in Action: July 20, 1943.