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| USAAF 5th AF 19th BG 93rd BS  USAAF 1942 |
Pilot Captain Clyde H. Webb, Jr., O-22999 (MIA / KIA) Webster County, KY Co-Pilot Major Harold Willsie, O-373836 (MIA / KIA) Asher, OK Bombardier 1st Lt. Seth A. Ford, O-440331 (MIA / KIA) Washita County, OK Navigator 2nd Lt Philip P. Reece Jr., O-789813 (MIA / KIA) Ogden, IA Engineer Sgt Carl T. Robarts, 6999228 (MIA / KIA) Screven County, GA Radio Sgt John Kominicki, 11011456 (MIA / KIA) Providence, RI Gunner Cpl Ferris J. Antone, 17034700 (MIA / KIA) Jackson County, MO Gunner Pvt Harold W. Davis, 39020775 (MIA / KIA) Los Angeles, CA Gunner Pvt Raymond B. Weeks, 18061857 (MIA / KIA) Sabine County, TX MIA August 26, 1942 MACR 16099 Aircraft History Built by Boeing at Seattle. Constructors Number 3039. Delivered to the U.S. Army Air Force (USAAF) as B-17F-1-BO Flying Fortress serial number 41-24354. Ferried overseas via Hickam Field then across the Pacific to Australia. Wartime History Assigned to the 5th Air Force (5th AF), 19th Bombardment Group (19th BG), 93rd Bombardment Squadron (93rd BS). No known nose art or nickname. When lost, engine and weapon serial numbers unknown. Mission History On August 26, 1942 at 4:00am took off from Mareeba Airfield piloted by Captain Clyde H. Webb Jr. as one of eight B-17s on a bombing mission against a Japanese convoy off Milne Bay. This B-17 was part of the second flight of three bombers. Weather inbound to the target was horrible with a ceiling of only 2,000' or less. Between 6:30am to 7:45am, the formation bombed from roughly 1,500' and experienced accurate anti-aircraft fire from the ships. At the start of the bomb run, this B-17 suffered a direct hit from anti-aircraft fire in the No. 2 engine and fuel tank setting it on fire. Immediately, the bomber nosed over upside down and crashed into Milne Bay with the loss of the entire crew. No parachutes were observed. Before sinking, the B-17 skidded along the surface leaving behind a trail of burning fuel in the sea. This bomber was the first B-17 F model lost in the Pacific War. Memorials The entire crew was declared dead on the day of the mission. All are memorialized on the tablets of the missing at Manila American Cemetery. Webb earned the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC), Silver Star with Oak Leaf Cluster, Air Medal and Purple Heart, posthumously. An exhibit with photos and letters from Webb is part of the Evansville Wartime Museum in Evansville, IN. Willsie earned the Silver Star and Purple Heart, posthumously. He also has a memorial marker at Tecumseh Cemetery in Tecumseh, OK. Ford earned the Silver Star and and Purple Heart, posthumously. Reece earned the earned the Silver Star and and Purple Heart, posthumously. He also has a memorial marker in Oakland Cemetery and Mausoleum in Indiana, PA. Robarts earned the Silver Star and and Purple Heart, posthumously. He also has a memorial marker at Arlington National Cemetery in section MF, site 25-2. He also has a memorial marker at Union Baptist Church Cemetery in Newington, GA. Kominicki earned the Silver Star and and Purple Heart, posthumously. Antone earned the Silver Star and and Purple Heart, posthumously. Davis earned the Silver Star and and Purple Heart, posthumously. Weeks earned the Air Medal and Purple Heart, posthumously. He also has a memorial marker at Ryan Chapel Cemetery in Diboll, TX. References NARA World War II Army Enlistment Records - Seth A. Ford NARA World War II Army Enlistment Records - Philip P. Reece Jr. NARA World War II Army Enlistment Records - John Kominicki NARA World War II Army Enlistment Records- Ferris J. Antone NARA World War II Army Enlistment Records - Harold W. Davis NARA World War II Army Enlistment Records - Raymond B. Weeks USAF Serial Number Search Results - B-17F-1-BO Flying Fortress 41-24354 "24354 (19th BS, 93rd BS) shot down by IJN AAA off Milne Bay, PNG Aug 26, 1942. All crew killed." Missing Air Crew Report 16099 (MACR 16099) was created retroactively circa 1945-1946 American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) - Clyde H. Webb Jr. FindAGrave - Capt Clyde Henry Webb, Jr (photos, tablets of the missing photo) USMA Library Digital Collection - Assembly Association of Graduates of U.S.M.A. April 1946 page 66 (photo Webb) American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) - Harold Willsie FindAGrave - Maj Harold Willsie, Jr (memorial marker photo) American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) - Seth A. Ford FindAGrave - 1LT Seth Allen Ford (photos, tablets of the missing photo) American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) - Philip P. Reece Jr. FindAGrave - 2Lt Philip Paul Reece Jr. (tablets of the missing) FindAGrave - 2Lt. Philip Paul Reece (photo, memorial marker photo) American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) - Carl T. Robarts FindAGrave - Sgt Carl Theodore Robarts (tablets of the missing photo) FindAGrave - Carl T. Robarts Jr. (memorial marker photo) Arlington National Cemetery (ANC Explorer) - Carl T. Robarts (ANC memorial marker photos) FindAGrave - SGT Carl Theodore Robarts Jr. (ANC memorial marker photo) American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) - John Kominicki FindAGrave - SGT John Kominicki (photo, tablets of the missing photo) American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) - Ferris J. Antone FindAGrave - Corp Ferris J Antone (photo, news, tablets of the missing) American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) - Harold W. Davis FindAGrave - PVT Harold W Davis (tablets of the missing photo) American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) - Raymond B. Weeks FindAGrave - Raymond Brewer Weeks (photo, memorial marker, photo) PNG Museum Aircraft Status Card - B-17E Flying Fortress 41-24354 Pride of Seattle (1998) page 6 (41-24354) Fortress Against The Sun (2001) pages 240-241, 390, 431 footnote 53 Ken's Men Against The Empire Volume I (2016) page 57, 390 (41-24354) Contribute Information Are you a relative or associated with any person mentioned? Do you have photos or additional information to add? Last Updated August 27, 2026 |
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