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| USAAF 5th AF 35th FG 40th FS |
Pilot 2nd Lt. William P. Plain (KIA, BR) Cleveland, OH Crashed May 18, 1942 MACR none Aircraft History Built by Bell in Buffalo, New York. This Airacobra was either an early model P-39 Airacobra or a P-400 Airacobra. Delivered to the U.S. Army, serial number unknown. Disassembled and shipped overseas to Australia and reassembled. Wartime History Assigned to the 5th Air Force (5th AF), 35th Fighter Group (35th FG), 40th Fighter Squadron (40th FS). No known nose art or nickname. Mission History On May 18, 1942 took off from Antil Plains Airfield near Townsville pilot 2nd Lt. William P. Plain on a flight and crashed into the sea and was killed in the crash. Recovery of Remains On May 24, 1942 his body washed ashore near Townsville and was recovered. Memorials Plain was officially declared dead the day of the mission. After his remains were recovered, he was buried on May 25, 1942 at the U.S. Military Cemetery at Townsville. Postwar, he was transported to the United States for permanent burial on March 10, 1948 at Arlington National Cemetery at section 12, site 5089. Plain also has a memorial marker at Lake View Cemetery in Cleveland, OH at section 1, Shaw Memorial. References Note some sources incorrectly state Plain was lost over Port Moresby. News-Journal (Mansfield, Ohio) "Killed in plane crash [Plain]" June 8, 1942, page 7 "Killed in plane crash: Cleveland (INS) Mr. and Mrs. J. A. Plain today mourned the death of their son, Second Lieutenant William P. Plain, 23, who was reported killed in an airplane accident in Australia." Oz@War - US Military Cemetery Townsville Located at Belgian Gardens, Townsville FindAGrave - William Paul Plain (grave photo) FindAGrave - William Plain (memorial marker) 40th Fighter / Flight Test Squadron Associate "WWII Honor Roll" via Wayback Machine July 23, 2008 Eagles of the Southern Sky (2012) pages 140 incorrectly states this aircraft was lost over Port Moresby Kokoda Air Strikes (2014) page 257 repeats error Plain lost over Port Moresby citing Eagles of the Southern Sky Thanks to Edward Rogers for research and analysis 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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