Verdis Barton Pryor
MilitaryUSAAF official photos
Verdis Pryor enlisted in January 1942 and was sent overseas. Assigned to the 303rd Bomb Group / 359th Squadron, he was a photographer on board B-17 "Augerhead" of the 358th Squadron when it was shot down on the 31 August 1943 mission to the Amiens/Glisy airfield, France. Missing Air Crew Report - MACR 470 - Verdis' Escape & Evasion Report is E&E 377. Pryor landed in a tree, suspended about 10m from the ground. A Frenchman threw him a knife so he could cut the cords. He learned later that he had parachuted near Beauvais and, helped on his way by French citizens, he walked all the way through Beauvais, Amblainville, Paris, Etampes, Orléans, Vierzon. From there he took a train to Narbonne, another one to Port Bou near Perpignan and reached Cerbère on the Franco-Spanish border on 21 December 1943. He arrived in Spain on the 23rd, went to the US Consulate in Barcelona, stayed about 3 weeks in a hotel in that city while all necessary arrangements could be made for his repatriation to England. He reached Gibraltar on 3 February 1944 and left from there by air, arriving at Prestwick Scotland on 5 February 1944.
Awards: WWII Victory, EAME.
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: 303rd Bomb Group 358th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 17063132 / O-735354
- Highest Rank: Major
- Role/Job: Co-Pilot / Pilot
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 303rd Bomb Group 358th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 11040361
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: Ball Turret Gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 303rd Bomb Group 358th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 11095636
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: Waist Gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 303rd Bomb Group 358th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 35043171
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: Top Turret Gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 303rd Bomb Group 358th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: O-734678
- Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Bombardier
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Nicknames: Augerhead
- Unit: 303rd Bomb Group 358th Bomb Squadron
Missions
- Date: 31 August 1943
Places
- Site type: Airfield
Events
Event | Location | Date | Description |
---|---|---|---|
Born |
Robbins, TN | 25 March 1912 | the son of Edward and Nellie Pryor |
Enlisted |
Riverside, California, United States | 12 January 1942 | |
Other Evaded |
France | 31 August 1943 | Managed to evade capture, travelling mostly on foot across France. Got over the Franco-Spanish border near Cerbère and reached Spain on 23 December 1943. Back in England 5 February 1944. Escape & Evasion Report E&E 377. |
Other Baled out EVD |
Dieppe, France | 31 August 1943 | Failed to Return (FTR) mission to Amiens-Glisy, France in B-17 42-29635 'Augerhead' on 31-Aug-43; Flak hits slowed ship down then enemy aircraft struck. Crashed Northeast of Dieppe, France. EVD MACR 470 |
Died |
Contra Costa County, California, United States | 23 November 1968 | |
Oakland, Alameda County, United States | |||
Based |
Molesworth | 31 August 1943 | Assigned to 358BS, 303BG, 8AF USAAF. |