332 FG, October 12, 1944

[HGabor]

Hi Folks,
Does anybody have the mission report of 332 FG for October 12, 1944? Particulary interested in the list of the 11 Mustang pilots, who were sweeping in the Bia-Dunabogdány-Börzsöny mountains-Drégelypalánk area after 14:30.
Thanks,
Gabor

[Alex Smart]

Hello Gabor,
The Bucholtz book has the story of the event, but gives the date as 11th October.
Followed by the 13th to Blechhammer oil refineries.
63 Mustangs set out for the area between Budapest and Bratislava.
14 a/c of the 99th attacked Kaposvar airfield.
302nd Capt. Wendell PRUITT's flight attacked another landing field.
Lee Archer landed on Vis.
The 100th and 301st went to their assigned targets.
The 100th attacked a railway siding and a factory, damaging three locomotives, three passenger carriages, 30 goods wagons, 25 trucks on a nearby highway and the factory which was surrounded by three parking lots filled with additional 45 trucks.
The 301st with 18 a/c attacked 50 oil barges on the Danube, sinking three and damaging 11 others

Hope this is a help.
Alex


In short, 1Lt. McCREARY, Walter L. O-798950 was hit by flak while strafing and bailed out over Kaspovar,becoming a pow spending the rest of the was in Stalag luft 3 Sagan-Silesia, Bavaria, (moved to Stalag Luft IVA, Nuremberg-Langwasser)
MACR 9084 - 43-24881

[Col Bruggy]

Hello,

The "Bucholtz book"*, has got it wrong. The mission (Mission # 92**) took place on 12 October, 1944.

12 October 1944.

The 332nd Fighter Group strafed railroad traffic from Budapest to Bratislava for a second day in a row. (332nd Fighter Group Mission report # 92). Six members of the 332nd Fighter Group's 302nd Fighter Squadron shot down a total of 9 enemy airplanes. 1 Lt Lee Archer shot down 3 Me-109s, bringing his total aerial victories score to 4. Capt Wendell O. Pruitt shot down 2 enemy airplanes that day, including an He-111 and an Me-109. Other victors included Capt Milton R. Brooks, 1st Lts William W. Green, Jr, Roger Romine, and Luther H. Smith, Jr. (Fifteenth Air Force General Order 4287 and 4604, dated 1 Nov 1944 and 21 Nov 1944, respectively). Enemy anti-aircraft artillery shot down 1st Lt Walter L. McCreary of the 100th Fighter Squadron that day about 25 miles southeast of Lake Balaton, Hungary, at approximately 2 p.m. (Missing Air Crew Report 9084).

For their heroic actions this day, the following nine pilots of the 332nd Fighter Group each earned the Distinguished Flying Cross:

1st Lt. Lee Archer (302nd Fighter Squadron).
Capt. Milton R. Brooks (302nd Fighter Squadron).
1st Lt. Frank E. Roberts (100th Fighter Squadron).
1st Lt. Spurgeon N, Ellington (100th Fighter Squadron).
1st Lt. Leonard E.Turner (301st Fighter Squadron).
Capt. Armour G. McDaniel (301st Fighter Squadron).
Capt. Stanley L. Harris (301st Fighter Squadron).
1st Lt Marion R. Rodgers (99th Fighter Squadron).
1st Lt. Quitman C. Walker (99th Fighter Squadron).

Fifteenth Air Force General Order 4876 dated 5 Dec 1944.
Fifteenth Air Force General Order 255 dated 16 Jan 1945.
Fifteenth Air Force General Order 287 dated 19 Jan 1945.
Fifteenth Air Force General Order 449 dated 31 Jan 1945.
Fifteenth Air Force General Order 836 dated 21 Feb 1945.
Fifteenth Air Force General Order 1430 dated 15 Mar 1945.
Fifteenth Air Force General Order 1811 dated 27 Mar 1945.
Fifteenth Air Force General Order 3484 dated 29 May 1945.

*
332nd Fighter Group - Tuskegee Airmen (Aviation Elite Units No.24).
Bucholtz,Chris.
Oxford:Osprey Publishing,2007.
pp.81-4. (Date in picture captions on pp.81-83, incorrect, as well.).

**
http://tuskegeeairmen.org/wp-content...2_Missions.pdf

See:
The Tuskegee Airmen Chronology A Detailed Timeline of the Red Tails and other Black Pilots of World War II.
Haulman,Daniel L.
Montgomery:NewSouth Books,2017.
pp.106-7.

Col.

[Zoran Petek]

Hello all,
I found some originals (send to me long ago by Marko or Janusz, tks)

[HGabor]

Gents, THANK YOU to all! Reading the names... Still talked to McCreary in 2004 about his loss. (P-51B, 43-24881, #25*) Quitman C. Walker (MIA on November 19, 1944) was found in Lake Balaton, still in the cockpit of his disintegrated P-51D (44-14448, #A?*?) at 1.5 km west of Balatonaliga, 4 m underwater. Identified by one of his machine guns in his MACR. Recovered by Türr Ferenc and Holtz István military divers and Maj. Lawrence Mitzen (U.S. rep.) on/after November 21, 1947, etc...
Gabor

[HGabor]

McREARY parachuted in a vegetable garden/backyard in Somogybabod, Kaposvár-N, where he was captured immediately. (In fact it is much closer to Lake Balaton than to Kaposvár.) His crashing plane set 3 buildings on fire in the village.

Gabor