B-17E "Texas #6" Serial Number 41-9207

B-17E "Texas #6" Serial Number 41-9207

USAAF
5th AF
43rd BG
64th BS

Brian Bennett 1987

Mark Reichman 2007

Pilot 1/Lt. Ernest A. Naumann, O-427762 POW/KIA Baldwin, NY
Co-Pilot 1/Lt Winslow G. Gardner, O-728853 KIA Ogden, UT
Bombardier 2/Lt Oliver R. Alvin, O-669943 KIA/MIA North Branch, MN
Navigator 2/Lt. Charles H. Lewis, O-791838 KIA/MIA Brooklyn, NY
Engineer TSgt Thomas H Fox, 6977438 POW/MIA Mechanicsville, NY
Radio SSgt Paul J. Cascio, Jr., 13072715 POW survived B'more, MD
Ball Turret S/Sgt Virgil E. DeVoss, 6917104 KIA Danville, OH
Gunner Sgt Bruno R. Bukalski, 15082036 KIA Kouts, IN
Radio Sgt Albert Smith, 13028645 KIA Philadelphia, PA
Tail Pfc Charles H. Green, Jr., 12011992 POW / Ex Morgantown, WV
Shot down June 1, 1943
MACR none

Mission History
Departed 7-Mile Drome at 10:10 for an armed reconnaissance over north and south coast of New Britain. At 1410, after six hours in flight, they were attacked by a reported twelve Japanese fighters. The last radio message received was from the Wide Bay area. Hit in a gas tank near #2 engine, which caused a fire and explosion. Several crew members were blown free and parachuted. Several crew members went down with the wreckage and amazingly at least two survived. The bomber crashed into the summit of Hong Kong Mountain. This mountain is is on the east aspect of Waterfall Bay which is up the coast from the Pomio area.

Fates of the Crew
Fox, Green, Smith, Bukalski and DeVoss went down with the bomber. Naumann, Cascio, Lewis, Alvin and probably Gardner were blown from the B-17 by the explosion, but only Naumann and Cascio were wearing parachutes and both landed safely.

Fox and Green also survived the crash. Fox was badly burned while Green had only two minor wounds in his left knee which eventually became gangrenous over the next week.

The bodies of Lewis, Alvin, De Voss, Bukalski and Smith were located and identified by the survivors no trace of Lt. Gardner was ever found.\ Locals assisted the crew, but they were eventually led to a Japanese patrol near a coastal village where all four were captured on June 8, 1943.

Naumann and Cascio were taken to the Japanese Navy POW camp. The Japanese said that Green and Fox were taken to a hospital at Gasmata and neither were seen again. [ RAAF Searcher S/L Rundle states that they were both executed at Mal Mal. ] Cascio was sent to Japan with a group of POWs, possibly on November 12, 1943. He was the only member of the crew to survive the war.

All of the prisoners were interned a at the Navy POW camp and Rabaul. They were tortured for information and denied food and medical care.

Naumann and eleven other prisoners were taken away from the camp on November 25, 1943. Civilians who were interned at the same camp included the Rev. Joseph Lamarre. They were told by the guards that the twelve airmen were being taken to Japan. Two weeks later a group of Indian POWs informed Rev. Lamarre that the twelve had been beheaded on the outskirts of Rabaul. Executed with Nauman were five other 43rd BG B-17 crew members (Neuman, Burnside, Mulligan & George of B-17E 41-9011 and Curry of B-17E "Honi Kuu Okole" 41-9244).

S/Sgt Paul J. Cascio, Jr. would later report:
"We were attacked by twelve Japanese fighter planes. They hit our gas tank, which caused out plane to catch on fire. The fire could not be controlled. Lieutenant Naumann, our pilot, ordered us to abandon the plane, but before we could do so the plane blew up approximately a minute an a half after it was hit. I was thrown out by the explosion. ...There were only two members of the crew who came down in parachutes. Lieutenant Naumann was one and I was the other. We landed in the jungle and were with the natives for six days. On the seventh day, while pretending to take us to New Guinea in a small boat, they led us to a coastal village where the Japanese were waiting for us."

Wreckage
The crash site was investigated RAAF search party led by Sq/Ldr Rundle on March 12, 1946. The wreckage was found at the summit of Hong Kong mountain, two and a half hours walk from the village of Rem. The team recovered the remains of at least three crew members along with a ring with the first two of three initials being A. H.

The site was revisited by US Army CILHI in 1987.

Brian Bennett recalls the 1987 investigation:
"I recall fondly the CILHI team on that mission led by a Captain Benny Woodard who was a true officer and a gentleman. We humped in for two days and the last about 600 feet straight up. I was the scout with one local and i carried the 090 Stihl Chainsaw up with 36 inch bar plus the oil and gas. I cut the LZ and only then did the Huey turn up.

The wreckage is widely scattered. The wing tip is away from the two main areas of wreckage and the wing tip was used as shelter for a night by the crew before the locals took them down to a place called Ram village [not on the map as was moved to the coast back in the 1950's. Look for Tokai-Ram.

At 41-9207 I found the data plate in the tail, and recovered the external emergency life raft release cover. It is essential to get duplicate serial numbers or stencils from elsewhere on the aircraft. Four survived mid air explosion of aircraft but all later captured by Japanese after being turned in by local "Polis boi". Two late sent back to Japan and two wounded executed at Palmalmal. There were two local men at that time [1987] that had been in the party of locals that had gone to the crash site.

Should not forget that there are still crew missing from this aircraft and that the area was never grided and swept by metal detector. Still crew missing on this one as two had "candled" when the ship blew up in the air. The two large pieces of ball turret were dug out by CILHI back in 1987. We found the navigator Gardener only. Janice Olson visited this site briefly years ago. She would only have seen the wreckage where the ball turret is."

References
Thanks to Brian Bennett and Edward Rogers for additional info
Note: 43rd Bomb Group official history incorrectly notes this aircraft as a B-24.

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