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| USAAF 5th AF 312th BG 388th BS Former Assignments 3rd BG 90th BS  Davidson c1944  25th LS April 17, 1944  Nick Sayer 1984  RAAF 1986  Michael Claringbould 1996  Justin Taylan 2000 |
Pilot 2nd Lt. Charles Davidson (survived) Houma, LA Gunner Sgt John L. McKenna, 6644681 (WIA, survived) Yongstown, OH Force Landed April 16, 1944 "Black Sunday" at 5:15pm MACR none Aircraft History Built by Douglas Aircraft Company at Long Beach. On September 1, 1943 delivered to the U.S. Army Air Force (USAAF) as A-20G-20-DO Havoc serial number 42-86786. Disassembled and shipped overseas to Australia and reassembled in Melbourne During November or December 1943 flown northward to Port Moresby. Wartime History Assigned to the 5th Air Force (5th AF), 3rd Bombardment Group (3rd BG), 90th Bombardment Squadron (90th BS) at 17 Mile Drome near Port Moresby. Nicknamed "Louisiana Belle" with the a shark tooth motif on the nose. During February 1944, assigned to the 312th Bombardment Group (312th BG) "Roarin' 20's", 388th Bombardment Squadron (388th BS). Assigned to pilot Lt. William Mathison who renamed it "Gloria", but the plane required repairs and servicing. On March 21, 1944 flown to Gusap Airfield. Next, assigned to pilot 2nd Lt. Charles Davidson. Nicknamed "The Hell'N Pelican II" with the nose art of a pelican with wings spread with a bomb under the right wing atop a light blue outline. Previously, his first aircraft P-40N "The Hell'N Pelican". Assigned to crew chief "Fudgie" Figuerido choose tail letter "F" as the first letter of his surname. The rear fuselage had the squadron motif a playing card suit heart in white. On March 29, 1944 flew its first combat mission on a low level strike over Bunabun Harbor. Mission History On April 16, 1944 took off from Gusap Airfield piloted by 2nd Lt. Charles Davidson and gunner Sgt John L. McKenna on a low level strike against Hollandia. On the return flight, the formation ran into bad weather and "The Hell'N Pelican" ran low on fuel to the west of Madang. Davidson offered McKenna the chance to bail out, but he responded "Lieutenant what are you going to do?" Davidson said "I'm going in with the ship." and McKenna said in reply "Let's go." Lowering the flaps, at 5:15pm this A-20 successfully force landed in kunai grass near Amaimon and skidded roughly 300 meters before it came to a stop. During the landing the propellers were bent backward and the leading edge of the left wing was damaged when it impacted small trees. Both crew were unhurt in the landing and spent the night with the plane. Although both were alive, they had landed behind enemy lines and their families were notified by the U.S. Army that they were Missing In Action (MIA). Afterwards, the mission was dubbed "Black Sunday" and was the largest operational loss suffered by the U.S. Army Air Force (USAAF) during World War II. Fates of the Crew On April 17, 1944 in the morning, the A-20 and crew were spotted by a P-47D Thunderbolt, which dropped them a message, but it landed too far away to retrieve. Later, a flight of six A-20s flew overhead and dropped notes, but again they were unable to be found. Next, a single A-20 dropped a note that read "Food on the way", plus a radio, rations, lifeboat and first aid kit. Everything was recovered except for the radio. Later at 4:00pm, a Stinson L-5 from the 25th Liaison Squadron "Guinea Short Lines" arrived and photographed the A-20 at low level. The plane also dropped a note with a map indicating their location and instructing them to to walk towards the crash site of A-20G "Lady Constance" 43-9628. In the late afternoon, the pair started walking southward with improvised backpacks made from their parachutes. Overnight while camping, a rain storm flooded the area, fouled their weapons and ruined their compass. On April 18, 1944 in the morning a Japanese Army patrol of ten soldiers passed nearby. After waiting for them to pass, they returned to the A-20, and camped at the edge of the jungle near the plane. On April 19, 1944 a pair of Japanese planes strafed the wreck once and departed. That same day, they were dropped another note and instructed to clear a runway in the kunai grass for a L-5 to land to rescue them. For the rest of the day, they worked in shifts to cut kunai and clear vegetation. On April 20, 1944 again, a pair of Japanese planes strafed the plane. To help clear the kunai grass, an L-5 dropped a incendiary bomb, but it failed to ignite and rains put out fires they tried to start. On April 22, 1944 a P-40 Warhawk dropped an incendiary, but the ground was too wet to burn. On April 22, 1944 after the Australian Army captured Madang, a note was dropped instructing them to walk to the Gogol River roughly 1.5km away. Before departing, Davidson removed the Douglas Aircraft Company logo from the control yoke. Walking in dense vegetation, it took the pair days to reach the Gogol River and they deployed their life raft to float downstream and passed many crocodiles. Overhead, their progress was monitored by an L-5. On May 1, 1944 they spotted the HMAS Matafele and were taken aboard and transported to Madang Airfield. An L-5 arrived to transport both to Gusap Airfield, returning both to duty. Davidson had grown a beard after two weeks in the jungle. Afterwards, Davidson was assigned another A-20 which he did not give a nickname. McKenna died October 11, 1944 as a passenger aboard B-25D "Five Minutes To Midnight" 41-30525 in New Guinea and remains listed as Missing In Action (MIA). Wreckage The intact A-20 was clearly visible from the air. Sometimes, it was used as a navigation reference by pilots from the 388th Bombardment Squadron (388th BS). Later during 1944, the aircraft was visited by a patrol officer (kiap) from Australia New Guinea Administrative Unit (ANGAU) noted the markings on the wings and fuselage were still visible including tail letter "F" and serial number "286786" (42-86786), red spinners and on the left side of the nose was "Louisiana Belle" (the prior nickname) with the names "pilot C. H. Davidson" and "crew chief S/Sgt Figuerido". On the right side of the nose was "Gloria" and "pilot Lt. W. L. Mathison". Inside the aircraft the radios appeared to be in good condition and all the machine guns were in good order. Nearby were roughly a dozen containers for message drops including one with the note still inside and empty food tins. The local people reported the air crew were rescued. By the 1950, vegetation had largely overgrown the plane. During the 1960's, Chinese youths from Madang removed several of the nose machine guns, one of the top turrets machine guns and cockpit instruments. The nose art faded off, revealing the previous markings of "Gloria" and "Louisiana Belle" and the shark tooth markings. During August 1979, Michael Claringbould learned about the wreck from a kiap (patrol officer) at Bogia. Trekking to Amaimon with two locals, Claringbould walked to the crash site and noted the serial number. Writing to the USAF Historical Section at Maxwell AFB, the details of the crash were confirmed. With the help of Russell Sturzebecker, he was put into contact with former pilot, Charles Davidson, who he met in 1985 at the 312th Bombardment Group (312th BG) association reunion in Niagara Falls, New York. Salvage The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) and Royal Australian Navy (RAN) planned a training exercise "Operation Venture One" to salvage an A-20 wreck as a training exercise, using a CH-47 Chinook from No. 12 Squadron with assistance from Michael Claringbould. Assembling at Amberley Airfield on September 11, 1984 the team departed for PNG. 1 Air Depot (1 AD) C. O. Tom Kelly was tasked with disassembly of the wreck. Departing on September 14, the team flew to Daru Airfield then to Jackson Airport. On September 17, the CH-47 took off with passengers S/L Rick Lunburg, Michael Claringbould and Bruce Hoy, curator of modern history PNG Museum to relocate the crash site from the air. On September 18, 1984 five team members were landed to disassemble the aircraft. When it proved too heavy to lift, the engines were removed. On October 1, the fuselage was flown to Madang Airport and on a second trip returned to pickup the ground crew and engines. Next, loaded aboard the HMAS Tarakan and transported to Brisbane arriving in November 1984. Afterwards, moved to Amberley Airfield for storage and restoration. Restoration This aircraft was restored by the RAAF at Amberley Restoration Facility by a team led by Denis Doggett between 1984-1996. The restoration also used parts salvaged from other A-20G Havoc wrecks salvaged from Papua New Guinea. The aircraft was meticulously restored to static condition. During 1985 312th Bombardment Group (312th BG) reunion, Michael Claringbould presented former pilot Davidson the original flight yoke from the aircraft as a gift. On September 12, 1996, during a ceremony at Amberley Airfield, the restored A-20 was officially hadned back to the government of Papua New Guinea (PNG). In attendance was former pilot Charles Davidson and his wife Thelma Davidson and Michael Claringbould. Display Since 1996, the A-20 is stored in a hanger at Amberley Airfield pending the completion of suitable display facilities for the National Museum & Art Gallery (NMAG) in Port Moresby. It is viewable by appointment or special occasions at the RAAF Amberley Aviation Heritage Centre. Memorials McKenna died October 11, 1944 as a passenger aboard B-25D "Five Minutes To Midnight" 41-30525 in New Guinea and remains listed as Missing In Action (MIA). He is memorialized at Manila American Cemetery on the tablets of the missing. Davidson passed away on July 7, 2011 at age 90. He is buried at Saint Francis de Sales Cemetery #2 in Houma, LA. Relatives Thelma Marie Daigle Davidson (wife of Davidson passed away September 14, 2011) Diana McKenna Dusa (daughter of McKenna) "I was thrilled beyond belief to discover all the info available about the loss of the plane on Pacific Wrecks." References USAF Serial Number Search Results - A-20G-20-DO Havoc 42-86786 ANGAU Report "Crashed Aircraft" 5 August 1944 "Location: Ref Amaimon Sheet 1 inch - 1 mile Prov. Ser. 268349. It was lying in a long flat stretch of kunai grass approximately 2 1/2 hrs walking time NNW from Amaimon, across the Gogol River." Aerospace Historian (AH) "Gloria" by Mark Clayton Volume 35, No. 4, Winter/December 1988 cover (artwork of A-20G Havoc) pages 225-242 AEROSPACE HISTORIAN VOLUME 35, NUMBER 4, WINTER/DECEMBER 1988 Helluva Pelican (1995) by Michael Claringbould covers the history of this aircraft, rediscovery and restoration Black Sunday (2000) by Michael Claringbould pages 7, 32, 54, 77-78, 91, 96 Pacific Ghosts CD-ROM (2002) photos, video and history Rampage of the Roarin' 20's (2009) pages 106-108. 201, 361, 382-383 RAAF Amberley Aviation Heritage Centre - Boston Bomber (USAF) FindAGrave - Charles Henry Davidson (photo, grave photo) FindAGrave - SGT John J McKenna (photo, tablets of the missing) Thanks to Charles Davidson, Michael Claringbould and Denis Doggett for additional information Contribute Information Are you a relative or associated with any person mentioned? Do you have photos or additional information to add? Last Updated
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