389.BG loss, 07.05.1945

[Heuser]

Gentlemen,
on 07.05.1945 a B-24 of 389.BG was lost during a so called "trolley flight". The a/c crashed into the Rhine river during a low level flight near the Engers railroad bridge, AFAIK 19 men died in this accident.

Is there anything known about this a/c and the crew/passengers?

Heuser

[Leendert]

Heuser,

Joe Baugher's website says that B-24J 44-10620 crashed near Cologne/Köln on 7 May 1945 during a Trolley flight. No unit is given.


Regards,

Leendert

[Leendert]

Heuser,

Four names of crew or more likely passengers: Sgt Elbert J. Ravenscraft, Sgt Ronald F. Maier, Sgt Stanley A. Andersen and SSgt Lilbern D. Daly, all of 406th Air Service Group, 832nd Squadron.

On site www.abmc.gov you can search for other 389th BG members who died on 7 May 1945. Found at least a dozen names. Use search "by unit".

Regards,

Leendert

[Heuser]

Hi Leendert,
thank you very much again!

Best regards

Heuser

[Horst Weber]

Good evening, Heuser !

Was this accident more in the Cologne/Köln area participated or more in the Neuwied-Engers area. ?

Thanks for an answer,,

All the best,,

Horst Weber

[Leendert]

Heuser and/or Horst,

You'll probably more knowledgeable about the locations, but what's remarkable about the victims, is that most of them are commemorated on "tablets of the missing" at various cemeteries. Perhaps the B-24 came down in the Rhine itself and most bodies were never recovered?

Regards,

Leendert

[Heuser]

Hi all,
a friend of mine found an eyewitness report (in German language) regarding this crash:

www.bendorf-geschichte.de/bdf-0159.htm

According to this Link, the a/c (given as B-17 on 8th of May) crashed upon the collapsed Engers bridge. So some of the crew and/or passengers could have been thrown into the Rhine.

Using Google, I found an interesting entry on the 392.BG webside (subject: trolley missions):

"On 7 May, a 389th BG crashed into the Engers Bridge over the Rhine near Cologne, killing 19 men. On 10 May, a B-17 was lost during an air collision over the UK with no known survivors."

Sounds like Engers was really a suburb of Cologne...

Thank you very much for your replies,

A. Heuser

[FrankieS]

Hi !

location =

http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=50.42...20833,7.526389