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Category Archives: MACR9753

Next of Kin List Released

March 12, 2014 7:00 AM / 2 Comments on Next of Kin List Released

The day after Christmas 1944, at ninety days missing in action, the US Army Air Forces wrote to the Buslee crew’s next of kin and enclosed a list of the names of the crew members on the Lead Banana on September 28 and also included the names and addresses of next of kin in case the families wanted to communicate with each other.

December 26, 1944
Headquarters, Army Air Forces
Washington

Attention:  AFPPA-8
(9753) Farrar, George E.
14119873

Mrs. Raleigh Mae Farrar,
79 EastLake Terrace Northeast,
Atlanta, Georgia.

Dear Mrs. Farrar:

For reasons of military security it has been necessary to withhold the names of the air crew members who were serving with your son at the time he was reported missing.

Since it is now permissible to release this information, we are inclosing a complete list of names of the crew members.

The names and addresses of the next of kin of the men are also given in the belief that you may desire to correspond with them.

Sincerely,

Clyde V. Finter
Colonel, Air Corps
Chief, Personal Affairs Division
Assistant Chief of Air Staff, Personnel

1 Incl
List of crew members & names
& addresses of next of kin
5-2032, AF

1st. Lt. John O. Buslee
Mr. John Buslee, (Father)
411 North Wisner Avenue,
Park Ridge, Illinois.

1st. Lt. William A. Henson, II
Mrs. Harriet W. Henson, (Wife)
Summerville, Georgia.

1st. Lt. Robert S. Stearns
Mr. Carey S. Stearns, (Father)
Post Office Box 113,
Lapine, Oregon.

2nd. Lt. David F. Albrecht
Reverand Louis M. Albrecht, (Father)
Scribner, Nebraska.

S/Sgt. Sebastiano J. Peluso
Mrs. Antonetta Peluso, (Mother)
2963 West 24th Street,
Brooklyn, New York.

S/Sgt. Lenard L. Bryant
Mrs. Ruby M. Bryant, (Wife)
Route Number Two,
Littlefield, Texas.

S/Sgt. Gerald L. Andersen
Mrs. Esther E. Coolen Andersen, (Wife)
Box Number 282,
Stromburg, Nebraska.

S/Sgt. George E. Farrar
Mrs. Raleigh Mae Farrar, (Mother)
79 East Lake Terrace Northeast,
Atlanta, Georgia.

Sgt. George F. McMann
Mr. George F. McMann, (Father)
354 West Avenue,
Bridgeport, Connecticut.

The above list is also a part of MACR (Missing Air Crew Report) 9753.  For a diagram and list of each man’s position on the Lead Banana on September 28, 1944, click here.

The Brodie crew’s next of kin must have gotten the same letter and a list of those on the Lazy Daisy.  The following list is attached to MACR9366.  For a diagram and list of each man’s position on the Lazy Daisy on September 28, 1944, click here.

1st Lt. James J. Brodie
Mrs. Mary E. Brodie, (Wife)
4436 North Kostner Avenue
Chicago, Illinois.

2nd Lt. Lloyd O. Vevle
Mr. Oliver E. Vevle, (Father)
240 Sixth Avenue, North
Fort Dodge, Iowa.

2nd Lt. George M. Hawkins, Jr.
Mr. George M. Hawkins, Sr., (Father)
52 Marchard Street
Fords, New Jersey

T/Sgt. Donald W. Dooley
Mr. Guy T. Dooley, (Father)
711 South Rogers Street
Bloomington, Indiana.

S/Sgt. Byron L. Atkins
Mr. Verne Atkins, (Father)
Route Number Two
Lebanon, Indiana.

Sgt. Robert D. Crumpton
Mrs. Stella M. Parks, (Mother)
Route Number One
Ennis, Texas

Sgt. Gordon E. Hetu
Mr. Raymond J. Hetu, (Father)
3821 Webb Street
Detroit, Michigan.

S/Sgt. Wilfred F. Miller
Mrs. Mary Miller, (Mother)
Rural Free Delivery Number One
Newton, Wisconsin.

S/Sgt. Harry A. Liniger
Mrs. Estelle P. Liniger, (Mother)
Box Number 251
Gatesville, North Carolina

If the US Army Air Forces had told the families of the two crews what actually happened to their sons’ aircraft and provided the lists of both crews to the families, the families of the two pilots, Buslee and Brodie, would have discovered that they lived only seven and a half miles apart in Chicago, Illinois.  These families would most likely have been very interested in communicating if they had been made aware of each other.

© Cindy Farrar Bryan and The Arrowhead Club, 2014

October 21, 1944 Telegram Form

February 17, 2014 7:00 AM / Leave a comment

Twenty-three days after the mid-air collision between the Lazy Daisy and Lead Banana, a Telegram Form dated October 21, 1944 reported the fate of one more of the crew from the two planes, and provided the identification of four of the previously unidentified.   It reported “one more dead has been found:  Byron L. Atkins.”  The newly identified men were identified as:

  • John Buslee (identified on the form as Jon Busslee)
  • David F. Albrecht
  • Lloyd Vevle (identified on the form as LLoyd Ovevle)
  • Lenard Bryant (identified on the form as Lenhard J. Eyret)

Atkins and Vevle were from the Brodie crew aboard Lazy Daisy.  Buslee, Albrecht, and Bryant were from the Buslee crew aboard Lead Banana.  Atkins was probably located away from both crash sites as he was carried away with the nose of the Lazy Daisy during the initial impact of the collision.

In determination of the fate of the two crews, eighteen total men, this report updates the count to fourteen (14) recovered dead, with twelve (12) identified, and four (4) P.O.W.s.

MACR9753 does not include any more Telegram Forms or Reports of Captured Aircraft and does not provide any information on the identifications of Sebastiano Joseph Peluso aboard Lead Banana or James Joseph Brodie aboard Lazy Daisy.

Buslee Crew List:

  • Pilot – John Oliver Buslee    Reported dead on October 21, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Co-Pilot – David Franklin Albrecht    Reported dead on October 21, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Navigator – William Alvin Henson II    Reported dead on September 30, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Bombardier – Robert Sumner Stearns    Reported dead on September 30, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Radio Operator/Gunner – Sebastiano Joseph Peluso
  • Engineer/Top Turret Gunner – Lenard Leroy Bryant    Reported dead on October 21, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Ball Turret Gunner – George Francis McMann, Jr.    Reported dead on October 1, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Tail Gunner – Gerald Lee Andersen    Reported dead on October 1, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Waist Gunner – George Edwin Farrar (my dad)    Reported P.O.W. on October 1, 1944 Telegram Form

Brodie Crew List:

  • Pilot – James Joseph Brodie
  • Co-Pilot – Lloyd Oliver Vevle     Reported dead on October 21, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Navigator – George Marshall Hawkins, Jr.    Reported P.O.W. on October 6, 1944 Report on Captured Aircraft
  • Togglier – Byron Laverne Atkins     Reported dead on October 21, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Radio Operator/Gunner – Donald William Dooley    Reported dead on October 1, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Engineer/Top Turret Gunner – Robert Doyle Crumpton    Reported dead on September 30, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Ball Turret Gunner – Gordon Eugene Hetu    Reported dead on September 30, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Tail Gunner – Wilfred Frank Miller    Reported P.O.W. on October 4, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Waist Gunner – Harry Allen Liniger    Reported P.O.W. on October 4, 1944 Telegram Form

The October 21 Telegram Form notes also:

  • Time:  0925
  • From:  L L E N
  • Remarks:  SSD L B K M 157     19 Oct.44   -1740-

This information can be found on pages 18 of MACR9753.  MACR stands for Missing Air Crew Report.

© Cindy Farrar Bryan and The Arrowhead Club, 2014

October 6, 1944 Report on Captured Aircraft

January 24, 2014 7:00 AM / Leave a comment

Eight days after the mid-air collision between the Lazy Daisy and Lead Banana, a Report on Captured Aircraft dated October 6, 1944 reported the fate of one more of the crew from the two planes.  It reported an additional prisoner of war.  The prisoner was identified as George Hawkins.  Hawkins was from the Brodie crew aboard Lazy Daisy.

In determination of the fate of the two crews, eighteen total men, this report updates the count to thirteen (13) recovered dead, with only seven (7) identified, and four (4) P.O.W.s.

Buslee Crew List:

  • Pilot – John Oliver Buslee
  • Co-Pilot – David Franklin Albrecht
  • Navigator – William Alvin Henson II    Reported dead on September 30, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Bombardier – Robert Sumner Stearns    Reported dead on September 30, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Radio Operator/Gunner – Sebastiano Joseph Peluso
  • Engineer/Top Turret Gunner – Lenard Leroy Bryant
  • Ball Turret Gunner – George Francis McMann, Jr.    Reported dead on October 1, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Tail Gunner – Gerald Lee Andersen    Reported dead on October 1, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Waist Gunner – George Edwin Farrar (my dad)    Reported P.O.W. on October 1, 1944 Telegram Form

Brodie Crew List:

  • Pilot – James Joseph Brodie
  • Co-Pilot – Lloyd Oliver Vevle
  • Navigator – George Marshall Hawkins, Jr.    Reported P.O.W. on October 6, 1944 Report on Captured Aircraft
  • Togglier – Byron Laverne Atkins
  • Radio Operator/Gunner – Donald William Dooley    Reported dead on October 1, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Engineer/Top Turret Gunner – Robert Doyle Crumpton    Reported dead on September 30, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Ball Turret Gunner – Gordon Eugene Hetu    Reported dead on September 30, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Tail Gunner – Wilfred Frank Miller    Reported P.O.W. on October 4, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Waist Gunner – Harry Allen Liniger    Reported P.O.W. on October 4, 1944 Telegram Form

This information can be found on page 14 of MACR9753.  MACR stands for Missing Air Crew Report.

© Cindy Farrar Bryan and The Arrowhead Club, 2014

October 5, 1944 File Notice

January 22, 2014 7:00 AM / Leave a comment

One week after the mid-air collision between the Lazy Daisy and Lead Banana, a File Notice dated October 5, 1944 reported the death of four men.  One of them, Robert D. Crumpton, had previously been reported dead on the September 30, 1944 Telegram Form.  Another, Gerald Andersen, had previously been reported dead on the October 1, 1944 Telegram Form.  The other two were identified by Identification and Ration cards from September 23, 1944, 545 Sqd., 384 Group:

  • Sgt. Robert W. Wagner, 32381177
  • T/Sgt. James E. Flynn, 16126771

The only problem with this identification, though, was that neither Wagner nor Flynn were aboard the Lazy Daisy or Lead Banana on September 28, 1944.  Neither one flew that day at all.  Wagner was an Engineer/Top Turret Gunner with the 545th at the time, but missed that day’s mission.  Flynn was a Radio Operator/Gunner with the 545th, but had completed his tour in May 1944 and returned home.

For a time, it seems that this mis-identification probably added to the confusion of determining the fate of the men on board.

In determination of the fate of the two crews, eighteen total men, this report does not change any information previously reported except to add the names of two men who were not involved in the mid-air collision.  The actual count remains at thirteen (13) recovered dead, with only seven (7) identified, and three (3) P.O.W.s.

Buslee Crew List:

  • Pilot – John Oliver Buslee
  • Co-Pilot – David Franklin Albrecht
  • Navigator – William Alvin Henson II    Reported dead on September 30, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Bombardier – Robert Sumner Stearns    Reported dead on September 30, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Radio Operator/Gunner – Sebastiano Joseph Peluso
  • Engineer/Top Turret Gunner – Lenard Leroy Bryant
  • Ball Turret Gunner – George Francis McMann, Jr.    Reported dead on October 1, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Tail Gunner – Gerald Lee Andersen    Reported dead on October 1, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Waist Gunner – George Edwin Farrar (my dad)    Reported P.O.W. on October 1, 1944 Telegram Form

Brodie Crew List:

  • Pilot – James Joseph Brodie
  • Co-Pilot – Lloyd Oliver Vevle
  • Navigator – George Marshall Hawkins, Jr.
  • Togglier – Byron Laverne Atkins
  • Radio Operator/Gunner – Donald William Dooley    Reported dead on October 1, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Engineer/Top Turret Gunner – Robert Doyle Crumpton    Reported dead on September 30, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Ball Turret Gunner – Gordon Eugene Hetu    Reported dead on September 30, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Tail Gunner – Wilfred Frank Miller    Reported P.O.W. on October 4, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Waist Gunner – Harry Allen Liniger    Reported P.O.W. on October 4, 1944 Telegram Form

This information can be found on pages 17 and 19 of MACR9753.  MACR stands for Missing Air Crew Report.

© Cindy Farrar Bryan and The Arrowhead Club, 2014

October 4, 1944 Telegram Form

January 17, 2014 7:00 AM / Leave a comment

Six days after the mid-air collision between the Lazy Daisy and Lead Banana, a Telegram Form dated October 4, 1944 reported the fate of two more of the crew from the two planes.  It reported two additional prisoners of war.  The two were identified as:

  • Wilfred F. Miller (incorrectly identified on the report as Wilfred Z. Miller)
  • Harry A. Liniger (incorrectly identified on the report as Harry A. Lininger)

Miller and Liniger were both from the Brodie crew aboard Lazy Daisy.

In determination of the fate of the two crews, eighteen total men, this report updates the count to thirteen (13) recovered dead, with only seven (7) identified, and three (3) P.O.W.s.

Buslee Crew List:

  • Pilot – John Oliver Buslee
  • Co-Pilot – David Franklin Albrecht
  • Navigator – William Alvin Henson II    Reported dead on September 30, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Bombardier – Robert Sumner Stearns    Reported dead on September 30, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Radio Operator/Gunner – Sebastiano Joseph Peluso
  • Engineer/Top Turret Gunner – Lenard Leroy Bryant
  • Ball Turret Gunner – George Francis McMann, Jr.    Reported dead on October 1, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Tail Gunner – Gerald Lee Andersen    Reported dead on October 1, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Waist Gunner – George Edwin Farrar (my dad)    Reported P.O.W. on October 1, 1944 Telegram Form

Brodie Crew List:

  • Pilot – James Joseph Brodie
  • Co-Pilot – Lloyd Oliver Vevle
  • Navigator – George Marshall Hawkins, Jr.
  • Togglier – Byron Laverne Atkins
  • Radio Operator/Gunner – Donald William Dooley    Reported dead on October 1, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Engineer/Top Turret Gunner – Robert Doyle Crumpton    Reported dead on September 30, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Ball Turret Gunner – Gordon Eugene Hetu    Reported dead on September 30, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Tail Gunner – Wilfred Frank Miller    Reported P.O.W. on October 4, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Waist Gunner – Harry Allen Liniger    Reported P.O.W. on October 4, 1944 Telegram Form

An October 6, 1944 Captured Aircraft Report conveys the same information.

The October 4 Telegram Form notes also:

  • Time:  1140
  • From:  L S E B
  • Through:  Frank
  • Remarks:  SSD L B K M 18     3 Oct.44   -1815-

This information can be found on pages 14 and 15 of MACR9753.  MACR stands for Missing Air Crew Report.

© Cindy Farrar Bryan and The Arrowhead Club, 2014

October 1, 1944 Telegram Form

January 15, 2014 7:00 AM / Leave a comment

Three days after the mid-air collision between the Lazy Daisy and Lead Banana, a Telegram Form dated October 1, 1944 reported the fate of six more of the crew from the two planes.  It reported five men dead.  Only three of the five men were identified:

  • Donald Dooley (incorrectly identified on the report as Donald Dodlei)
  • Gerald Andersen (incorrectly identified on the report as Gerald Ladersen)
  • George McMann (incorrectly identified on the report as George Macman)

Dooley was from the Brodie crew aboard Lazy Daisy.  Andersen and McMann were from the Buslee crew aboard Lead Banana.  The other two dead were unidentified because, as the report states, they were “completely burnt.”

George Farrar was listed on the report as a P.O.W.  There is an indication on the report that there were other P.O.W.s from the two planes, but no number is indicated and “The names of the other P.O.W. are still unknown.”

In determination of the fate of the two crews, eighteen total men, this report updates the count to thirteen (13) recovered dead, with only seven (7) identified, and one (1) P.O.W.

Buslee Crew List:

  • Pilot – John Oliver Buslee
  • Co-Pilot – David Franklin Albrecht
  • Navigator – William Alvin Henson II    Reported dead on September 30, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Bombardier – Robert Sumner Stearns    Reported dead on September 30, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Radio Operator/Gunner – Sebastiano Joseph Peluso
  • Engineer/Top Turret Gunner – Lenard Leroy Bryant
  • Ball Turret Gunner – George Francis McMann, Jr.    Reported dead on October 1, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Tail Gunner – Gerald Lee Andersen    Reported dead on October 1, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Waist Gunner – George Edwin Farrar (my dad)    Reported P.O.W. on October 1, 1944 Telegram Form

Brodie Crew List:

  • Pilot – James Joseph Brodie
  • Co-Pilot – Lloyd Oliver Vevle
  • Navigator – George Marshall Hawkins, Jr.
  • Togglier – Byron Laverne Atkins
  • Radio Operator/Gunner – Donald William Dooley    Reported dead on October 1, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Engineer/Top Turret Gunner – Robert Doyle Crumpton    Reported dead on September 30, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Ball Turret Gunner – Gordon Eugene Hetu    Reported dead on September 30, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Tail Gunner – Wilfred Frank Miller
  • Waist Gunner – Harry Allen Liniger

An October 6, 1944 Captured Aircraft Report conveys the same information.

The October 1 Telegram Form notes also:

  • Time:  1350
  • From:  L S E B
  • Through:  Paul?
  • Remarks:  SSD L B K M 321     29 Sept.44   -2130-
  • The aircraft was identified as P 231222 D, the Lazy Daisy

This information can be found on pages 14 and 16 of MACR9753.  MACR stands for Missing Air Crew Report.

© Cindy Farrar Bryan and The Arrowhead Club, 2014

September 30, 1944 Telegram Form

January 13, 2014 7:00 AM / Leave a comment

Two days after the mid-air collision between the Lazy Daisy and Lead Banana, a Telegram Form dated September 30, 1944 reported the fate of eight of the crew from the two planes.  It reported eight men dead, all buried on September 30, 1944 at the Ostingersleben Cemetery (the report identified it as the Osteringersleben Cemetery).  Only four of the eight men were identified:

  • William A. Henson II (listed incorrectly on the report as William A. Hedson II)
  • Robert S. Stearns
  • Gordon Hetu (listed incorrectly on the report as Gorden Heu)
  • Robert D. Crumpton

Henson and Stearns were from the Buslee crew aboard Lead Banana.  Hetu and Crumpton were from the Brodie crew aboard Lazy Daisy.  The other four were unidentified because, as the report states, they were “completely burned” and the “crews were mixed together.”

In determination of the fate of the two crews, eighteen total men, this report starts the count at eight (8) recovered dead, with only four (4) identified.

Buslee Crew List:

  • Pilot – John Oliver Buslee
  • Co-Pilot – David Franklin Albrecht
  • Navigator – William Alvin Henson II    Reported dead on September 30, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Bombardier – Robert Sumner Stearns    Reported dead on September 30, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Radio Operator/Gunner – Sebastiano Joseph Peluso
  • Engineer/Top Turret Gunner – Lenard Leroy Bryant
  • Ball Turret Gunner – George Francis McMann, Jr.
  • Tail Gunner – Gerald Lee Andersen
  • Waist Gunner – George Edwin Farrar (my dad)

Brodie Crew List:

  • Pilot – James Joseph Brodie
  • Co-Pilot – Lloyd Oliver Vevle
  • Navigator – George Marshall Hawkins, Jr.
  • Togglier – Byron Laverne Atkins
  • Radio Operator/Gunner – Donald William Dooley
  • Engineer/Top Turret Gunner – Robert Doyle Crumpton    Reported dead on September 30, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Ball Turret Gunner – Gordon Eugene Hetu    Reported dead on September 30, 1944 Telegram Form
  • Tail Gunner – Wilfred Frank Miller
  • Waist Gunner – Harry Allen Liniger

An October 7, 1944 Captured Aircraft Report conveys the same information.

The September 30 Telegram Form notes also:

  • Time:  1215
  • From:  L S E B
  • Through:  F R P
  • Remarks:  SSD L B K M 322     29 Sept.44   -2130-
  • The aircraft could not be identified as the fire destroyed all markings, but it must have been Lead Banana as Lazy Daisy was identified through the tail number on the October 1, 1944 Telegram Form.

Questions:

  • What does the date of September 30, 1944 signify?
  • Was this information received by the US Army Air Forces on this date?  From who?
  • What do the abbreviations in the “From,” “Through,” and “Remarks” sections stand for?

This information can be found on pages 12 and 13 of MACR9753.  MACR stands for Missing Air Crew Report.

© Cindy Farrar Bryan and The Arrowhead Club, 2014

George Edwin Farrar – September 28, 1944

January 6, 2014 7:00 AM / Leave a comment

George Edwin Farrar, my dad, and the only survivor on the Lead Banana in the mid-air collision with the Lazy Daisy on September 28, 1944, wrote what he knew of the accident after he returned home from the war in late 1945.  His account, as follows, is included in MACR9753:

Am very sorry I can’t give more information, but our ship was hit by another B-17 from our group.  The other ship must have hit right in the center of our ship, as we were knocked half in-to.  At the time we were struck I was knocked unconscious, and fell about 25,000 feet, before I knew I was even out of the ship.  Never saw any of the other boys.  I received a little rough treatment from the Germans when I hit the ground, and was unable to tell where I was.

Any information you can find out about the boys I would appreciate hearing very much.

Please pardon this not being typed, but am out of my town, and have tried, with no luck to obtain one (typewriter), but can’t.

May you have luck on the mission of finding what did happen to the boys.

George E. Farrar

© Cindy Farrar Bryan and The Arrowhead Club, 2014

William F. Combs Crew – September 28, 1944

January 1, 2014 7:00 AM / Leave a comment

As on the Sortie Report for the Blankenmeyer crew on September 28, 1944, the Sortie Report for the William F. Combs crew aboard aircraft 42-102661, Big Dog, also notes “Left formation after target for unknown reasons, but returned to base.”  The Combs crew also was attempting to learn the fate of the Buslee crew aboard Lead Banana and the Brodie crew aboard Lazy Daisy.

In MACR9753, Missing Air Crew Report 9753, several members of the Combs crew are listed as witnesses to the collision:  William F. Combs (Pilot), Merlin L. Flower (Waist Gunner), Raymond Ciaccio (Ball Turret Gunner), and John S. Fadda (Tail Gunner).

In MACR9753, the Combs crew described enemy opposition as “No enemy Aircraft,” and “Moderate-accurate flak at the target.”

Their description to the extent of damage to the Lead Banana was “Pieces of tail and wings falling off.  Plane in flames from engines.”

In response to “If aircraft was out of control describe appearance,” they wrote, “Going down in flames spinning into the clouds.”

And their response to “Number of parachutes seen” was “None.”

Note:  The Combs crew names were not all listed properly on MACR9753.  Merlin Flower was listed as Merlin Flowers, Raymond Ciaccio was listed as Raymond Cesccio, and John Fadda was listed correctly on one page, but as John Gadda on another.

© Cindy Farrar Bryan and The Arrowhead Club, 2014