Leif Robert Ostnes
MilitaryLt. Leif R. Ostnes files by his daughter Jeanne Ostnes
Leif R. Ostnes was born in Discovery Otter in the Iditarod country of the Territory of Alaska December 28, 1918. Discovery Otter is named for the discovery of gold December 25, 1908 on Otter Creek. The area has other nearby prominent mining areas, Flat Creek and Willow Creek. Iditarod City was the commercial port and largest community. The Iditarod strike was the 4th largest gold strike in Alaska.
Leif had finished one year at the University of Washington and was mining when WWII called. He was already a pilot so entered the Army Air Corps. He was in Marfa Texas for training in 1943. He was then sent to Oklahoma as a B-17 pilot instructor. He was assigned to the 384th Bomb Group 546th Bomb Squadron on AAF Station 106 in January 1945. He flew 19 missions in various B-17s with two landings on the continent due to mechanical problems. He was Co-Pilot to William G. Gregg on his first mission on 9 February 1945 on Satan's Playmate (42-97510). Among the other Fortresses he himself piloted, he remembers Swamp Angel (42-98027), Terrible Ute, Buckeye Belle (44-8541) and Baby Judy as some of his aircraft. The B-17 he piloted on most missions (8) was 43-39197 (School Marm). His 18th and last mission with the 384th was the 20 April 1945 one to Brandenburg. He flew free French back from Morocco after the war ended.
He returned to his wife and two children, relocated to Fairbanks, Alaska and had three more children. All were raised from his salary as a miner or heavy duty mechanic. He flew a Fairchild 24 for many years and a Cunningham Hall. Because of his love of the "little friends" to the B-17s, he built a 1/2 scale P-47 which he added a Continental 200 engine. He painted the plane in 384th Bomb Group, 546th Bomb Squadron colors by making the cowling red. Soon after speed testing the plane he had a stroke and died in September of 1989. The P47 plane now resides in the Aviation Museum in Fairbanks, Alaska.
Leif is buried in Washelli Cemetery in Seattle Washington. Included on his stone is a plane in remembrance of his love of flying.
Service Awards
03/02/45 Awarded Air Medal
04/24/45 Awarded 2 Oak Leaf Clusters
05/08/45 Unconditional Surrender from Axis Powers
American Theater Services Medal World War II
Victory Medal European, African, Middle Eastern Services Medal with 3 Bronze Stars
A set of 2 Captain Bars made of material instead of metal were in his possession so they may have been given in the field and not ever recognized in the records.
Lt. Leif R. Ostnes Missions
01/21/45 Arrive 106 APO 557 8th Air Force, 1st division, 41st Wing, 384th Bomb Group (H) 546th Squadron
02/09/45 Mission 1 Merseberg, Germany Co-Pilot B-17G 42-97510
Target: Synthetic Oil Plant Target Type: Oil Industry Lützkendorf, Germany
Lt. Leif R. Ostnes Co-Pilot to Lt. William Grieg in B-17 aircraft numbered 42-97510. It was model 17G-15-VE with the markings of BK*A. The plane had a nickname of “Satan’s Playmate”. “Satan's Playmate” completed the war and transferred out on May 27, 1945. Note the old style painted finish. The first mission of any pilot was as a co-pilot.
02/14/45 Mission 2 Dresden, Germany Command Pilot B-17G 44-6476
Target: Railroad Marshalling Yards Target Type: Transportation
Dresden, Germany. Engine feathered lands on P-47 airstrip Étain -
Rouvres
02/24/45 Mission 3 Hamberg, Germany Command Pilot B-17G 43-39203
Target: Submarine Construction Shipyard Target Type: Shipyards
Hamburg, Germany
02/25/45 Mission 4 Fredrichshafen, Germany Command Pilot B-17G 43-38766
Target: Tank & Submarine Engine FactoryTarget Type: Industry
Friedrichshafen, Germany
02/27/45 Mission 5 Leipzig, Germany Command Pilot B-17G 43-39197
Target: Railroad Marshalling Yards Target Type: Transportation
Wahren (Leipzig area), Germany
02/28/45 Mission 6 Hagen, Germany Command Pilot B-17G 43-39197
Target: Railroad Marshalling Yards Target Type: Transportation
Hagen, Germany
03/02/45 Mission 7 Rositz, Germany Command Pilot B-17G 43-39060
Target: Low Temperature Carbonization Plant and Refinery of
Deutsche Petroleum A.G.Target Type: Oil Industry
03/02/45 Awarded the Air Medal
03/11/45 Mission aborted Weather Aircraft Bremen Germany Pilot B-17G
44-6909 Target: Vacuum Oil PlantTarget Type: Oil Industry Bremen,
Germany
03/19/45 Mission 8 Plauen, Germany Command Pilot B-17G 43-39197
Target: Braunkohle-Benzin Synthetic Oil Plant Target Type: Oil
Industry Bohlen, Germany
03/20/45 Mission 9 Hamberg, Germany Command Pilot B-17G 43-39197
Target: Deutsche Werft Submarine Shipyard Target Type: Submarine
Facility Hamburg, Germany
03/22/45 Mission 10 Westerholt, Germany Command Pilot B-17G 43-39197
Target: German Hutted Camps (Barracks) at 51°36'N,7°06'E Target
Type: Military Westerholt, Germany
03/26/45 Mission 11 Meinden, Germany Command Pilot B-17G 43-39197
Target: Synthetic Oil Plant Target Type: Oil Industry Zeitz, Germany
03/28/45 Mission 12 Berlin, Germany Command Pilot B-17G 43-39197
Target: Berlin/Spandau Motor Transport Works Target Type: Industry
Spandau (Berlin), Germany
03/30/45 Mission 13 Bremen, Germany Command Pilot B-17G 44-8541
Target: Deutsche Schiff- u. Maschinenbau A.G. (DESCHIMAG)
Submarine and Warship Yard Machine Shop Target Type: Submarine
Facility Bremen, Germany U-Boat Pens U-430 VIIC Mar 30 1945 Near
Bremen US bombs U-870 IXC/40 Mar 30 1945 Bremen US bombs
04/05/45 Mission 14 Ingolstadt, Germany Command Pilot B-17G 43-39197
Target: Ordnance DepotTarget Type: Military Ingolstadt, Germany
04/10/45 Mission 15 Oranienberg, Germany Command Pilot B-17G 44-8211
Target: Ordnance Depot Workshop AreaTarget Type: Military
Oranienburg, Germany
04/12/45 Mission 16 Regensburg, Germany Pilot B-17G 42-98027 (Mission list
shows 44-8789 JD-X) Target:Railroad Marshalling Years Target Type:
Transportation Regensburg Germany
04/14/45 Mission 17 Bordeaux, France Command Pilot B-17G
Target: Gun BatteryTarget Type: Military Royan (Bordeaux), France
Flew Lead Group with Col. Theodore Milton (41st A Group) Pop
Dolan was on board as the Staff Officer, Intelligence (Istres, France)
Pop Dolan missed the bombing initial point and Leif Ostnes had to
take the whole group around and return to bomb site again. Other
Bomb Groups had flown through and when A Group got back on
track the smoke trailing looked like Elise Ostnes’s lace curtains.
04/15/45 Mission 18 Royan, France Command Pilot B-17G 42-98027
Target: Flak guns at Pointe de Suzac Target Type: Military Royan,
France
04/16/45 Mission 19 Regensburg, Germany Pilot B-17G 42-98027 Target
Railroad Marshalling Yards
04/20/45 Mission 20 Seddin, Germany Command Pilot B-17G 44-8211
Target: Railroad Marshalling Yards Target Type: Transportation
Seddin, Germany
Connections
See how this entry relates to other items in the archive by exploring the connections below.
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: 384th Bomb Group 546th Bomb Squadron
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 384th Bomb Group 493rd Bomb Group 546th Bomb Squadron 863rd Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 38546978
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: Tail Gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 384th Bomb Group 546th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 37730498
- Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Pilot
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 384th Bomb Group
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 384th Bomb Group
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Nicknames: Satan's Playmate
- Unit: 384th Bomb Group 546th Bomb Squadron
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Nicknames: Swamp Angel
- Unit: 351st Bomb Group 384th Bomb Group 544th Bomb Squadron 547th Bomb Squadron
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Nicknames: Tu Yung Tu
- Unit: 410th Bomb Squadron 94th Bomb Group 384th Bomb Group 546th Bomb Squadron
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Nicknames: The Terrible Ute
- Unit: 487th Bomb Group 384th Bomb Group 546th Bomb Squadron
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Nicknames: Baby Judy : School Marm
- Unit: 384th Bomb Group 544th Bomb Squadron 546th Bomb Squadron
Missions
- Date: 20 April 1945
- Date: 15 April 1945
- Date: 14 April 1945
- Date: 10 April 1945
- Date: 5 April 1945
Places
- Site type: Airfield
- Known as: Grafton Undermud
Events
Event | Location | Date | Description |
---|---|---|---|
Born |
28 December 1918 | Discovery Otter, Iditarod, Alaska, the son of Norwegian-born Lars R. and Elise A. (Rudi) Ostnes | |
Enlisted |
7 March 1942 | as a Private in the Air Corps, in Seattle, Washington | |
Died |
26 August 1989 | Rohnert Park, California | |
Fortuna Ledge, Alaska | |||
Buried |
Leif Ostnes rests at the Washelli Cemetery in Seattle, Washington |
Revisions
Merged with duplicate entry to include details from:
- the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia ;
- http://384thbombgroup.com/_content/_pages/PersonnelSearch.php?LastName=o...;
- Daughter, Jeanne Ostnes
Added details to military service in his biography (missions, planes' nicknames and Serial numbers)
NARA WWII Enlistment records
WWII Draft Cards for Alaska
His page at www.384thbombgroup.com
SSDI Death Index