USAAF
5th AF
43rd BG
64th BS
John Douglas 1999
Justin Taylan 2005
Pilot F/O Carl
A. Nelson (Emporia,
KS)
Co-Pilot 2nd Lt. John H. Pfieffer (Cunberland,
MD)
Navigator 2nd Lt. Alexander E. Nagy
Bombardier 2nd Lt. Wilbert Alwedt
Gunner TSgt Troy W. Selvey
Gunner TSgt Lucian I. Oliver, 14070201
Gunner SSgt Warren Brooks
Gunner SSgt Anthony Cantazaro
Gunner TSgt Paul Barbus
Crashed October
18, 1943
Aircraft History
Built for a cost of $297,627. Received by the USAAF on May
26, 1943. This aircraft arrived in Australia on July 14, 1943.
Mission History
Took off from Jackson
(7-Mile) in Port
Moresby. Part of a
10 B-24 raid to Rabaul's
Vunakanau Airfield.
Instead, it bombed the alternate target at Cape
Hoskins, with 100lbs bombs. Damage was noted as one small lugger
sunk in harbor and a large column of smoke and a fire in target area.
On the way back to base, it was lost over the northern New Guinea.
The pilot ordered his crew to bail out, while
he and the co-pilot force landed the Liberator into a flat grassy
area west of Gona.
Pilot Carl
A. Nelson noted in his flight log:
"Bombed Hoskin strip. Crash landed 6 miles N.W. Gona
Wreach (sp),
8 men bailed out all ok. 2 men with ship ok".
Rescue
The next day, they were air-dropped
supplies by three B-24's (2 of the 64h BS, one of 63rd BS). With the help of local people, all of the
crew re-grouped and were rescued and returned to base. The
mission cost five Liberators, including B-24D "Mitsu
Butcher" 41-24043, B-24D
42-40670, B-24D 42-40885, B-24D
41-41088 and B-24D "Mission Belle" 42-40389.
Nelson next flew a combat mission on October 29th. On a sadly ironic
note, TSgt Lucian
I. Oliver later went MIA on November 21, 1943 with B-24D
42-0886 (the
next B-24 in production line) on a night radar search of the Wewak area.
Wartime Salvage
A week after the crash, a landing craft arrived at the coast
and an American salvage team recovered the four engines, landing gear,
guns and turrets from the bomber.
John Douglas observed in his 2000 visit:
"The villagers
remember the plane crashed, including the fact that the pilot was named Nelson and the other crew member was
a redhead."
Justin Taylan visited the site September
4, 2005:
"Locals told the story of how thier fathers: Clive Burau, Hayward Geroya
and Copland Vigaba were gardening in the area near where the bomber force
landed. They
witnessed the eight men bailing out, and the crash.
One of the men, Copland Vigaba was given a note by the pilot and ran
down to Yamboro where Australian soldiers were camped. He then led the
Australians to the crash site to rescue the bomber's crew."
References
Thanks to Carl Nelson's nephew, Robert Nelson for photos and log book
entry. After the war, John Pfeiffer wrote an account of the incident. Are you a member or relative of this bomber's crew? Contact
Us
B-24
