Harold Alfred Kraft

Military
media-37118.jpeg UPL 37118 "Lt Campbell and crew of the 359th Bomb Squadron, 303rd Bomb Group, beside the Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortress" 'The Old Squaw'. England, 17 July 1943."

Rear L-R: Lt Claude W Campbell, 1Lt Arthur W. Miller, 1Lt George McGregor Ririe Jr, 1Lt Winston Earl Boutelle

Front L-R: T/Sgt Howard E Hernan, T/Sgt Benton F Wilson, T/Sgt George D Quick, T/Sgt Harold A Kraft, T/Sgt Kurt W Bachert

Object Number - UPL 37118 - "Lt Campbell and crew of the 359th Bomb Squadron, 303rd Bomb Group, beside the Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortress" 'The Old Squaw'. England, 17 July...

Assigned to 359BS, 303BG, 8AF USAAF. Claude Campbell crew. Failed to Return (FTR) Gelsenkirchen in B-17 41-24565 'The Rambling Wreck'; shot down 5-Nov-43, Prisoner of War (POW). MACR 1157.



Awards: POW, WWII Victory, EAME.

Connections

See how this entry relates to other items in the archive by exploring the connections below.

Units served with

Official emblem of the 303rd Bomb Group approved 7 November 1942.
  • Unit Hierarchy: Group
  • Air Force: Eighth Air Force
  • Type Category: Bombardment

People

  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 303rd Bomb Group 359th Bomb Squadron
  • Service Numbers: 18057056 / O-724591
  • Highest Rank: Colonel
  • Role/Job: Pilot

Aircraft

Corporal Murray S. Pearl, of the 303rd Bomb Group, with a B-17 Flying Fortress (serial number 41-24565) nicknamed "Idaho Potato Peeler". Image stamped on reverse: ‘Copyright Current Affairs Ltd.’ [stamp], ‘Passed for Publication 28 Jan 1943. [stamp] and ‘245656.’ [Censor no.] Printed caption on reverse: 'Cpl. Murray S. Pearl, serving with the U.S.A.A.F in a bomber squadron, appreciates the heavy fur-lined jerkin issued to him, for, in private life, he was a fur manufacturer at 222 West 28th Stre
  • Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
  • Nicknames: The Ramblin' Wreck : Idaho Potato Peeler
  • Unit: 303rd Bomb Group 359th Bomb Squadron
  • Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
  • Nicknames: The Old Squaw
  • Unit: 303rd Bomb Group 359th Bomb Squadron

Places

  • 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

Events

Event Location Date Description

Born

Dunn County, WI 27 November 1910 Son of Conrad Jane and Mildred A Flick Kraft.

Enlisted

Fort Sheridan, IL 16 March 1942 Fort Sheridan, Illinois

Other

Prisoner of War (POW)

Zagan, Poland 5 November 1943 Prisoner of War (POW). Stalag Luft III.

Other

Baled out

Gelsenkirchen, Germany 5 November 1943 Failed to Return (FTR) Gelsenkirchen in B-17 41-24565 'The Rambling Wreck'; shot down 5-Nov-43, POW MACR 1157

Died

Green Bay, WI 18 January 1969

Buried

Evergreen Cemetery Manitowoc, Manitowoc County, WI 21 January 1969 Evergreen Cemetery Manitowoc, Manitowoc County, Wisconsin

Based

Molesworth 5 November 1943 Assigned to 359BS, 303BG, 8AF USAAF.

Revisions

Date
ContributorAl_Skiff
Changes
Date
Contributorjmoore43
Changes
Sources

Added POW Camp info to the POW event from WW2 POW records at the National Archives (NARA).

Date
Contributorjmoore43
Changes
Sources

Added punctuation in the "Summary biography" to aid readability.

Date
Contributorjmoore43
Changes
Sources

Added a "-" to the A/C serial # in the "Summary biography" to aid clarity & consistency.

Date
Contributorjmoore43
Changes
Sources

Added POW camp info from POW records at the National Archives. Added a "Summary biography" copied from another of his crew.

Date
ContributorAl_Skiff
Changes
Sources

Key Image ID.

Date
ContributorAAM
Changes
Sources

MACR 1157 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database

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