Continued from Crewmates, Part 1 of 2…

Photos of my dad, George Edwin Farrar, and the 32 airmen he flew missions with on B-17’s in WWII

Albrecht, David Franklin

Co-Pilot
Killed in Action, September 28, 1944

David Franklin Albrecht

Andersen, Gerald Lee

Tail Gunner
Killed in Action, September 28, 1944

Gerald Lee Andersen

Bryant, Lenard Leroy

Top Turret Gunner
Killed in Action, September 28, 1944

Lenard Leroy Bryant

Buslee, John Oliver

Pilot
Killed in Action, September 28, 1944

John Oliver “Jay” Buslee

Davis, James Buford

Bombardier
Completed Tour

James Buford Davis, second bombardier of the John Buslee crew

Fairfield, William Adelbert

Commander
Completed Tour

William A. Fairfield

Farrar, George Edwin (my dad)

Waist Gunner
Prisoner of War – Stalag Luft IV, September 28, 1944

George Edwin Farrar

Foster, Erwin Vernon

Ball Turret Gunner
Completed Tour

Erwin Vernon Foster

Fryden, Marvin

Bombardier
Killed in Action, August 5, 1944

Possibly Marvin Fryden

Galloway, Leonard (NMI)

Navigator
Completed Tour

Leonard Galloway

Henson, William Alvin

Navigator
Killed in Action, September 28, 1944

William Alvin Henson II

Jacobs, Edward Gregory

Navigator
Prisoner of War, November 16, 1944
Edward Gregory Jacobs was part of the Dale McKinney crew and is likely in this photo, but unidentified. Individual photo unavailable. If you have one to share, please contact me.

Dale M McKinney Crew. All unidentified except:
Albert Richard Macuch (flexible gunner): second row, second from left.
Donald George Springsted (co-pilot): first row second from left.

Jacobson, George John

Navigator
Completed Tour

George John Jacobson

La Chine, Lloyd Earl

Tail Gunner
Completed Tour

LLoyd E. La Chine

Leschak, Nickolas

Togglier
Completed Tour

Nickolas (or Nicholas) Leschak

Lord, Kenneth Smith

Navigator
Completed Tour

Kenneth S. Lord

Lucynski, Eugene Daniel

Tail Gunner
Wounded in Action, September 19, 1944

Eugene Daniel Lucynski

Macuch, Albert Richard

Tail Gunner
Wounded in Action, November 16, 1944

Albert Richard Macuch

McMann, George Francis

Ball Turret Gunner
Killed in Action, September 28, 1944
Photo unavailable.  If you have one to share, please contact me.

Meyer, Melvin J

Radio Operator
Completed Tour
Melvin J Meyer was part of the Dale McKinney crew and is likely in the crew photo above, but unidentified. Individual photo unavailable. If you have one to share, please contact me.

Miller, Irving L

Ball Turret Gunner
Completed Tour

Irving L. Miller

Mitchell, Robert McKinley

Ball Turret Gunner
Completed Tour

Robert McKinley Mitchell

Murphy, William C

Top Turret Gunner
Killed in Action, November 16, 1944
William C Murphy was part of the Dale McKinney crew and is likely in the crew photo above, but unidentified. Individual photo unavailable. If you have one to share, please contact me.

Peluso, Sebastiano Joseph

Radio Operator
Killed in Action, September 28, 1944

Sebastiano Joseph Peluso, Radio Operator/Gunner for the Buslee Crew

Reed, William M

Pilot
Completed Tour

William Reed

Rybarczyk, Chester Anthony

Navigator
Completed Tour

Chester Anthony Rybarczyk

Seeley, Clarence Benjamin

Top Turret Gunner
Completed Tour

Clarence Benjamin “Ben” Seeley

Sherriff, Albert Keith

Radio Operator
Completed Tour

Albert K. Sherriff

Shwery, Arthur J

Pilot/Training Mission
Completed Tour

Arthur Shwery

Springsted, Donald George

Co-Pilot
Completed Tour
Donald George Springsted was part of the Dale McKinney crew and is identified in the crew photo above. Otherwise, individual photo unavailable. If you have one to share, please contact me.

Donald George Springstead

Stearns, Robert Sumner

Bombardier
Killed in Action, September 28, 1944
Military era photo unavailable. If you have one to share, please contact me.

(Possibly) Robert Sumner Stearns

Ward, Donald L

Bombardier
Completed Tour

Donald L. Ward

Watson, Paul Leland

Ball Turret Gunner
Prisoner of War – Stalag Luft IV, November 16, 1944
Military era photo unavailable. If you have one to share, please contact me.

Paul Leland Watson Washington Iowa HS 1941 Yearbook Photo (Freshman)

Photos courtesy of George Edwin Farrar’s personal collection and that of the 384th Bomb Group photo gallery.

© Cindy Farrar Bryan and The Arrowhead Club, 2020

My dad, George Edwin Farrar, was a waist gunner on a B-17 crew based in England during WWII. I have written extensively about his bomb group, the 384th of the 8th Army Air Force, his base in Grafton Underwood, and his crew piloted by John Oliver “Jay” Buslee.

While many people are familiar with the makeup of a B-17 crew, many are unaware that by the time that Daddy was flying his missions, a B-17 crew was generally made up of nine airmen instead of ten. The crew positions were:

1. Pilot
2. Co-pilot
3. Navigator
4. Bombardier
5. Radio Operator
6. Engineer/Top Turret Gunner
7. Ball Turret Gunner
8. Tail Gunner
9. Waist Gunner (originally two were assigned to each crew, but during Daddy’s time, the crews flew with only one)

And the crews on each mission were not always made up of the same original crew members that were trained together and assigned to the group together. In fact, on the sixteen missions my father completed before becoming a POW, he served with thirty-two different crewmates.

I have written about them before, so today will be a recap, a list only, of who they were. I’ll follow up next week with Part 2 which will include a photo of each man.

6 Crewmates who served in the cockpit of the B-17:  Commanders, Pilots, and Co-Pilots

• Buslee, John Oliver, 15 missions
• Albrecht, David Franklin, 13 missions
• Fairfield, William Adelbert, 1 mission
• Reed, William M, 1 mission
• Shwery, Arthur J, 1 mission
• Springsted, Donald George, 1 mission

11 Crewmates who served in the nose of the B-17:  Navigators, Bombardiers, and Toggliers

• Davis, James Buford, 11 missions
• Rybarczyk, Chester Anthony, 9 missions
• Henson, William Alvin, 3 missions
• Stearns, Robert Sumner, 2 missions
• Fryden, Marvin, 1 mission
• Galloway, Leonard (NMI), 1 mission
• Jacobs, Edward Gregory, 1 mission
• Jacobson, George John, 1 mission
• Leschak, Nickolas, 1 mission
• Lord, Kenneth Smith, 1 mission
• Ward, Donald L, 1 mission

3 Crewmates who served in the radio room of the B-17: Radio Operators

• Peluso, Sebastiano Joseph, 14 missions
• Meyer, Melvin J, 1 mission
• Sherriff, Albert Keith, 1 mission

3 Crewmates who served in the top turret just behind the pilots of the B-17:  Engineers/Top Turret Gunners

• Bryant, Lenard Leroy, 14 missions
• Murphy, William C, 1 mission
• Seeley, Clarence Benjamin, 1 mission

5 Crewmates who served in the ball turret of the B-17: Ball Turret Gunners

• Foster, Erwin Vernon, 6 missions
• Miller, Irving L, 5 missions
• Mitchell, Robert McKinley, 2 missions
• Watson, Paul Leland, 2 missions
• McMann, George Francis, 1 mission

4 Crewmates who served in the tail of the B-17: Tail Gunners

• Lucynski, Eugene Daniel, 11 missions
• Andersen, Gerald Lee, 3 missions
• La Chine, Lloyd Earl, 1 mission
• Macuch, Albert Richard, 1 mission

To be continued next week…

© Cindy Farrar Bryan and The Arrowhead Club, 2020