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Originally Posted by Alex Smart
Hi,
The pilot, 2Lt. Eldon E. Coulson was indeed credited with the shooting down of an axis P51 on the 29th October 1944.
This turned out to be his one and only kill (as far as I can find out).
Further to which I see that he was killed in action on the 7th November 1944 MACR 9696 (Anyone got a copy they can scan and send to me please ?).
The date 7th November 1944 is not however laid down in stone.
For the AFHRA and NARA sites has his date of death as being Thursday 8th November 1945.
This date on their sites (and on their documents possibly ) cannot be correct as the war in Europe was long ended by November of 1945.
MACR date KIA 7-11-1944.
Coulson was not a POW nor wounded AFAIK, so how do they arrive at 1945?
All for now
Alex
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The official date of death in American databases is often not the true death date. Most of the times it is one year and one day after the date the man went MIA. I have found numerous cases of this both for aircrews and ship crews (more of the latter).
Crews of missing submarines were often declared dead only after the war, when they can't be found in Japanese POW camps.
So this pilot went MIA on 7 Nov 1944 and as no trace of him was found and no proof that he died on this day he was declared dead one year and a day after the date: 8 Nov 1945