Victor Alfred McMenamin

Military
media-14538.jpeg UPL 14538 Liberator B-24D, 4240172, Lynn Bari II, in the 506th Bomb Squadron, the 44th Bomb Group, "The Flying 8 Balls", in the 8th Air Force, TDY to the 9th Air Force. Flown on the low level Ploesti mission by the crew in the photo, returning safely to Benghazi, Libya. 1 Aug 1943.

Rear - L to R : SSgt. George E Hartney - Lt. Ronald S. Allen - Capt William N Anderson - Lt. Stanley F. Olson - Lt. Charles M. Shaw - Cpl. Victor A. McMenamin.

Front - L to R : Cpl. Clifford C. Hurst - SSgt Oscar Ferkauff - TSgt. Walter N. Goodson - Sgt. J. R. Bell - SSgt. Allie T. Hearne Jr.

Removed punctuation from aircraft name for clarity, uniformity, and readability. - Kickapoo

Object Number - UPL 14538 - Liberator B-24D, 4240172, Lynn Bari II, in the 506th Bomb Squadron, the 44th Bomb Group, "The Flying 8 Balls", in the 8th Air Force, TDY to the 9th...

SSgt. Victor A. McMenamin was assigned to the 506th Bomb Squadron, the 44th Bomb Group, in the 8th Air Force, USAAF. Later, he was attached (TDY) to the 9th Air Force, USAAF, in North Africa. He took part in Operation Tidal Wave, the large bombing mission on Ploesti, flying the B-24D Liberator, 42-40172, Lynn Bari II, and returned to base (RTB). 1 Aug 43,



Later, after returning to the U.K., on a mission over Weiner Neustadt, Germany, Sgt. McMenamin's B-24D, 42-72857, Star Spangled Hell, was attacked and shot up by German fighters. The airplane caught on fire, exploded and crashed 10 miles north of his target. Sgt. Menamin bailed out successfully and was captured. Failed to Return (FTR). Prisoner of War (POW). 1 Oct 43. MACR 51251



Award: DFC, AM (2OLC), POW, WWII Victory, EAME.

Connections

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Units served with

The insignia of the 44th Bomb Group.
  • Unit Hierarchy: Group
  • Air Force: Eighth Air Force
  • Type Category: Bombardment

People

  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 44th Bomb Group 506th Bomb Squadron 67th Bomb Squadron
  • Service Numbers: 16040136 / O-411678
  • Highest Rank: Major
  • Role/Job: Pilot
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 44th Bomb Group 506th Bomb Squadron
  • Service Numbers: 19032975 / O-730588
  • Highest Rank: First Lieutenant
  • Role/Job: Pilot

Aircraft

  • Aircraft Type: B-24 Liberator
  • Nicknames: - Lynn Bari II
  • Unit: 44th Bomb Group 492nd Bomb Group 506th Bomb Squadron 856th Bomb Squadron
  • Aircraft Type: B-24 Liberator
  • Nicknames: - Star Spangled Hell
  • Unit: 44th Bomb Group 506th Bomb Squadron

Missions

Places

  • Site type: Airfield
  • Known as: Soluch Airfield
  • Site type: Prisoner of war camp
  • Known as: Dulag Luft Grosstychow Dulag 12
  • Site type: Prisoner of war camp
  • Known as: Stalag 17b, Krems an der Donau, Austria

Events

Event Location Date Description

Born

DeKalb, Illinois 11 October 1915 Son of John Henry and Martha Madeline [McCormick] McMenamin.

Enlisted

Chicago, IL 3 January 1942 Chicago, Illinois

Other

Baled out POW

Weiner Neustadt, Austria 1 October 1943 Failed to Return (FTR) Weiner Neustadt in B-24 42-72857 'Star Spangled Hell'; mauled by fighters, A/C exploded 10 miles north of target. 1-Oct-43 POW MACR 51251

Other

Prisoner of War (POW)

Krems an der Donau, Austria 1 October 1943 Prisoner of War (POW). Stalag XVIIb.

Other

Discharged USAAF

6 October 1945 Honourable discharge.

Died

DeKalb, IL 14 October 1996

Buried

Saint Mary's Cemetery, De Kalb, DeKalb County, IL 17 October 1996 Saint Mary's Cemetery De Kalb, DeKalb County, Illinois

Based

Prisoner of war

Shipdham Assigned to 506BS, 44BG, 8AF USAAF.

Based

Benina 1 October 1943 Attached to 9AF USAAF, TDY in North Africa.

Revisions

Date
ContributorKickapoo
Changes
Sources

Removed punctuation from aircraft names for uniformity, clarity and readability. - Kickapoo

Date
Changes
Date
ContributorAl_Skiff
Changes
Sources

Key Image ID.

Date
ContributorAAM
Changes
Sources

44th BG Roll of Honor and Casualties by Will Lundy p. 136-138, Losses of the 8th and 9th AFs Vol. I by Bishop and Hey p. 299 / Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia

Victor Alfred McMenamin: Gallery (1 items)