John Howard Emch
Military
Brian E. Goodwin (Grandson)
Object Number - UPL 56895
Assigned to 613BS, 401BG, 8AF USAAF. Failed to Return (FTR) Hamburg in B-17 42-107009 'Lady Jane' 6-Nov-44; crashed near Medenblick. Prisoner of War (POW) MACR 10349
"I am the grandson of the best friend that I ever had, Lt. Col. John H. Emch. He flew 21 missions in B-17s as a Co-Pilot with the 401st bomb group, 613th squadron. He was shot down on 6-Nov-44 (mission 167) over occupied Holland in B-17 42-107009 'Lady Jane”'. He was held as a POW at Stalag Luft III until being liberated by Gen. Patton & his men. He served as a pilot in the Air Force until retirement in 1966. He passed away from lung cancer in 1985 but there is not a day that goes by that I don’t think of him with fond memories."
- Brian E. Goodwin
Awards: DFC, AM (3OLC), WWII Victory, EAME (2 x Battle Stars), UN and Korea medals.
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: 401st Bomb Group 613th Bomb Squadron
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: Ball Turret Gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 401st Bomb Group 613th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: O-723575
- Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Navigator
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 401st Bomb Group 613th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 15077353
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: waist gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 401st Bomb Group 613th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 20443010
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: Top Turret Gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 401st Bomb Group 613th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 6954370
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: Tail Gunner
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Nicknames: Lady Jane
- Unit: 401st Bomb Group 613th Bomb Squadron
Missions
Places
- Site type: Airfield
- Known as: Benefield
- Site type: Prisoner of war camp
- Known as: Dulag Luft Grosstychow Dulag 12
- Site type: Prisoner of war camp
- Known as: Stalag Luft III, Sagan, Germany
- Site type: Prisoner of war camp
- Known as: Stalag 7a, Moosburg
Events
| Event | Location | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Born |
Spokane, Washington, USA | 15 March 1921 | Son of John Jack and Virgie Leora [Main] Emch. |
|
Enlisted |
Seattle, WA | 13 August 1942 | Seattle, Washington |
|
Other Prisoner of War (POW) |
Zagan, Poland | 6 November 1944 | Prisoner of War (POW). Stalag Luft III. |
|
Other Forced landing |
Medenblick, Netherlands | 6 November 1944 | Personal accounts from John H. Emch & Fred L. Campbell (Navigator), Lt. Emch was the pilot in control of the aircraft during the gear-up, dead stick landing in a sugar beet field near Medenblick, Holland. |
|
Died |
23 May 1985 | ||
|
Buried |
Moran Cemetery Spokane, Spokane County, WA | 26 May 1985 | Moran Cemetery Spokane, Spokane County, Washington |
|
Based |
Deenethorpe | 6 November 1944 | Assigned to 613BS, 401BG, 8AF USAAF. |
Revisions
Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / MACR 10349 / MACR 10349, http://www.401bg.org/Main/History/Members/Details.aspx?ID=1987 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database
