I received my first reply from Robert Freeman, the son of William N Freeman.
Robert.Freeman@mccombs.utexas.edu
I will post his response below:
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Lt William Noel Freeman is my father.
Several years ago a fairly large piece of the wing of his plane was found by workers clearing a hedge row near Toulouse. The French presented the piece of wing to the Air Force museum in Midland Texas. Several crew and family members attended the ceremony. The French gave each family member a small piece of the wing (box framed) and a framed print of a painting of the plane and crew. I am looking at them now. They hang in my study. I’ll send you a photo.
My dad told me that his clothes and parachute strap were burning when he jumped. All but one crew member survived. They were quickly captured by the Germans and taken to the local Luftwaffe headquarters (Chateau du Ferradou near Cornebarrieu) where they were held in the cellar for several days and interrogated by the SS. The three officers were imprisoned Stalag Luft 3 & 7A, and the rest of the crew were sent to Stalag Luft 4.
You can read about a 2001 event to honor the crew, details of Mission 441 (including a description of the crash), etc. in Volume 6-N8 of “Airshow” published by the Confederate Air Force - French Supporter Squadron in August 2001. If you would like a copy of this publication, you could contact Jeff Wood at the American Airpower Heritage Museum, 9600 Wright Drive, P.O. Box 62000, Midland, Texas 79711. Phone 432-567-3009.
Robert