1st Walter J. Goodman - DNB 9 May 1945

[Leendert]

I refer to a 2007 thread on this forum: http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/showthread.php?t=8890 ("Mystery USAAF Lieutenant").

Story is that there was an American lieutenant among the victims in the crash of Lancaster RF230 on 9 May 1945. Apparently he was not on the passenger list.

On 4 September 1944 Lt Walter J. Goodman (O-1311761) and PFC James Bentis (30 ID, 119 INF) unwittingly rode their Jeep into the town of Kortrijk (Courtrai), Belgium, thereby becoming liberators of sorts of that city. In fact, they had lost their way and their destination was Tournai instead, but the people of Courtrai were just as glad to see these two Allied soldiers.

I wonder if the Lt. Goodman of Lancaster RF230 (if indeed so established) is the Lt. of Courtrai?

(PFC Bentis was KIA on 23 Nov 1944. Pilot Lt Walter J. Goodman from Ohio mentioned in the 2007 thread was killed in a P-39N air crash in Panama on 27 Sep 1943).

Info welcome, thanks.


Regards,


Leendert

[Leendert]

I just read in the online book "A Blood-Dimmed Tide: The Battle of the Bulge by the Men Who Fought It" by Gerald Astor that the Lt Walter J. Goodman of Courtrai was killed in a car accident in Paris just after the war...



So if there was a US passenger in the Lancaster, then another person.


Regards,


Leendert

[edwest2]

Here is a possible match.


Goodman, Walter J., Rank: 1ST LT, Branch: US ARMY, War: WORLD WAR II, was born 27 November 1914, died 9 May 1945, and was buried in Section 7, Site 2200 in Mobile National Cemetery in Mobile, Alabama, United States of America. 63,594,566
Check the source file (free) and then check Archives for Walter J. Goodman.

[Leendert]

Yes, I had become aware that Lt Goodman of Courtrai is the one of Paris. And this brings us back to the original thread of 2007...


Regards,
Leendert

[RSwank]

Leendert,

The prior (original 2007) thread you mentioned also had another name, "J L Acton". I think it is possible that the name was actually Ivan Lee Acton, a Lt in the 9th Air Force who was injured near Frankfurt and died in Paris a few days later, on 2 May, 1945.

He body was returned to the US and his funeral was Oct 31, 1948. The Oklahoma newspapers don't give any details of how he was injured.

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/...ivan-lee-acton

So both Acton and Goodman were most likely buried originally in the same French cemetery in May 1945.

If you search for 'Lancaster RF230' now you get several sites which describe the crash and give complete lists of those killed. None of them mention anything about an unlisted American. I think it most likely the "original" (2007) reference was in error.


This link https://www.baaa-acro.com/crash/cras...roye-30-killed
gives a possible cause for the accident.

"It appears that several of the passengers moved from their allotted places in the aircraft, causing center of gravity problems and the pilot had already used 8 divisions of elevator trim to keep the aircraft in balance. However, the application of full flap caused loss of control."