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| USAAF 10th AF ICWATC EQS EAST SEO Section Search Squadron  ICWATC May 12, 1943 |
Pilot Captain John L. Porter, O-420397 (MIA / KIA) Marysville, OH Co-Pilot 2nd Lt. James F. Spain, O-1698906 (survived) Radio SSgt Walter R. Oswalt, 35265754 (MIA / KIA) Ansonia, OH Engineer Sgt Harold W. Neibler, 15331418 (MIA / KIA) Columbus, OH Gunner SSgt Harry D. Tucker, 17014288 (MIA / KIA) Palmyra, AR Passenger Major Ralph L. Dewsnup, O-346962 (MIA / KIA) Salt Lake City, UT Crashed December 10, 1943 at roughly 12:30pm MACR 1700 Aircraft History Built by North American Aviation (NAA). Constructors Number 87-8527. Delivered to the U.S. Army Air Force (USAAF) as B-25D-15 Mitchell serial number 41-30362. Wartime History Assigned to the India-Chia Wing Air Transport Command (ICWATC), 10th AF, EQS EAST SEO, Section Search Squadron. Nicknamed "Blackie's Gang" after assigned pilot Captain John L. "Blackie" Porter with the nose art of a swan with a halo playing a trumpet. When lost, engines serial number (left) 41-29267 and (right) 41-29414. Mission History On December 10, 1943 took off from Chabua Airfield in India piloted by Captain John L. Porter on a search mission. During the flight, this B-25 was attacked by Japanese fighters the caused damage. The right engine overheated and caught fire and the propeller was feathered with enemy fighters in pursuit. From the rear, a fighter pulled up from 7 o'clock and hit the left engine and caused a fire. Aboard, Porter ordered the entire crew to bail out but none of the crew had their parachutes ready aside from Spain who became stuck in the top hatch but was pushed out by Porter. No one else aboard managed to bail out. As Spain fell away, he observed the entire bomber on fire and when he pulled his ripcord, the B-25 crashed and exploded when it impacted the side of a mountain. When this aircraft failed to return it was officially declared Missing In Action (MIA). Fate of the Crew Sole survivor Spain bailed out and broke his leg when he landed. Afterwards, he was found by locals and aided back to safety. Wreckage On November 9, 2011 the crash site was located by Clayton Kuhles / MIA Recoveries to the northeast of Gandhigram on a mountains at an elevation of 9,007' in Arunachal Pradesh in India. The crash site is a debris field that extends roughly 300 yards down a ravine. At the crash site, he located and recovered artifacts including the dog tag of Harry D. Tucker, 17014288, a dead reckoning computer, dataplate from radio compass and M1991 .40 caliber pistol. After learning of the discovery, a family group asked him to return to the site and recover the remains of the crew and personal artifacts. During early November 2019, Clayton Kuhles / MIA Recoveries led an expedition back to the crash site to perform a recovery mission on behalf of the family. At the site, excavation was performed to a depth of 3' and human remains and personal effects were found and recovered roughly 50' downhill from the point of impact. Among the items found was bomber's overhead hatch that Lt. Spain bailed out from with work completed on December 30, 2019 when snowfall began. Memorials The five Missing In Action (MIA) crew members were officially declared dead the day of the mission. All four are memorialized at Manila American Cemetery on the tablets of the missing. Porter earned the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC), Air Medal and Purple Heart, posthumously. He also has a memorial marker at Oakdale Cemetery in Marysville, OH at section M lot 138-SE¼. Oswalt earned the Soldier's Medal, Air Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster and Purple Heart, posthumously. Neibler earned the Purple Heart, posthumously. He also has a memorial marker at Arlington National Cemetery at section MD, site 50. Tucker earned the Purple Heart, posthumously. He also has a memorial marker at Hickory Grove Cemetery in Lincoln County, AR. Dewsnup earned the Soldier's Medal and Purple Heart, posthumously. He also has a memorial marker at Memory Grove Memorial in Salt Lake City, UT. Spain survived World War II and later joined the U.S. Air Force (USAF) and retired with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel (LTC) and retired to Mesa, AZ and was a member of the Hump Pilots Association, Staff Sgt. Pilots Association and AZ Model Airplane Association. He passed away on November 27, 1998 at age 78 in Mesa, AZ. He was cremated, location of ashes unknown. References When lost, Captain Porter, had more than 2,250 flight hours and established a permanent search and rescue squadron for missing air crews over the "Hump". Previously on August 2, 1943 Sgt Walter R. Oswlt bailed out of C-46 41-1420 on a flight bound for China and trekked back to safety NARA World War II Army Enlistment Records - John L. Porter NARA World War II Army Enlistment Records - Walter R. Oswalt NARA World War II Army Enlistment Records - Harold W. Neibler NARA World War II Army Enlistment Records - Harry D. Tucker USAF Serial Number Search Results - B-25D Mitchell 41-30362 "30362 (Sector Search Squadron) shot down by Japanese fighter in India Dec 10, 1943, India. MACR 1700. 5 KIA, 1 returned" MACR 1700 (MACR 1700) created December 11, 1943 Marysville Ohio Tribune "Capt. Porter and Sgt. Neibler Listed As Missing In Action" December 15, 1943 pages 1-2 American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) - John L. Porter American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) - Walter R. Oswalt American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) - Harold W. Neibler American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) - Harry D. Tucker American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) - Ralph L. Dewsnup FindAGrave - Virtual Cemetery: B-25D #41-30362 'Blackie's Gang' Lt Porter MIA-KIA - FOUND! FindAGrave - Capt John Lawrence “Blackie” Porter, III (news, tablets of the missing photo) FindAGrave - Capt John Lawrence “Blackie” Porter, III (photo, memorial marker) FindAGrave - SSgt Walter R Oswalt (tablets of the missing, news) FindAGrave - Sgt Harold W Neibler (news, tablets of the missing photo) FindAGrave - Harold W Neibler (memorial marker photo) Arlington National Cemetery (AMC Explorer) Harold W. Neibler FindAGrave - SSgt Harry Derwood Tucker (photo, tablets of the missing photo) FindAGrave - SSGT Harry Derwood Tucker (photo, memorial marker photo) FindAGrave - Maj Ralph LeRoy Dewsnup (tablets of the missing) FindAGrave - Maj Ralph L Dewsnup (memorial marker) FindAGrave - LTC James Fontaine Spain (obituary, news) The Aluminum Trail China-Bura-India World War II 1942-1945 How & Where They Died (1989) page 73 Flying the Hump: In Original World War II Color (1995) includes the account of Spain's escape and rescue MIA Recoveries - Crash Site Discoveries - B-25D #41-30362 Recovered Nov-Dec 2019 MIA Recoveries - Expedition Photo Galleries - B-25D #41-30362 Recovery Expedition Photo Gallery MIA Recoveries - Crashed Aircraft Site Report - B-25D 41-30362, November 9, 2011 [PDF] MIA Recoveries - Crashed Aircraft Recovery Report - B-25D 41-30362, November 2-December 30, 2019 [PDF] YouTube - "Blackie's Gang" crash site discovery – MIA Recoveries" January 7, 2019 ABC6 Columbus News "Effort underway to return remains of missing WWII airmen to Marysville" May 21, 2019 The Daily Record "Mountaineer searching India for WWII crash returns with remains, questions" March 3, 2020 "The Marysville community raised $44,000 last year to help pay for a mountaineer to trek to a World War II crash site in the Himalaya Mountains in hopes of recovering the remains of the B-25′s crew. But after Clayton Kuhles didn’t take along an Ohio State University professor and her archaeologist husband as they felt they had been promised, questions about the mission arose. A federal investigation is underway." 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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