Operation: Vunakanau, Aerodrome, New Britain

Date: 26th June 1943 (Saturday)

Unit No: 65th Bombardment Squadron (H), 43rd Bombardment Group (H), 5th Air Force

Type: B-17E ‘Naughty But Nice’

Serial: 41-2430

Code: Unknown

Base: Dobodura #7 Aerodrome, New Guinea

Location: About 22 miles south of Vunakanau, Aerodrome

Pilot: 1st Lt. William Joseph Sarsfield Jr. SSM, DFC, O-791243 AAF Age 25. KiA (1)

Co-Pilot: 2nd Lt. Charles Edward Trimingham DSC, SSM, DFC, O-727282 AAF Age 23. KiA

Navigator: 1st Lt. Jose Luz Holguin SSM (OLC), DFC, O-728388 AAF Age 22. PoW * (2)

Bombardier: 1st Lt. Francis Gerard Peattie SSM (OLC), DFC, O-727655 AAF Age 24. KiA

Asst Bombardier: 2nd Lt. Herman Henry Knott DFC, O-669320 AAF Age 24. KiA

Engineer: T/Sgt. Robert Lee Christopherson SSM, DFC, 17017152 AAF Age 21. KiA

Asst Engineer: S/Sgt. Henry Garcia SSM (OLC), DFC, 19080310 AAF Age 29. KiA

Radio Operator: T/Sgt. Leonard Alphonse Gionet SSM, DFC, 11009541 AAF Age 30. KiA

Ball Turret Gunner: S/Sgt. Robert Eugene Griebel SSM, DFC, 37139583 AAF Age 24. KiA

Gunner: S/Sgt. Pace Perrian Payne SSM, DFC, 18081362 AAF Age 20. KiA (3)

* Tunnel Hill PoW Camp, Rabaul, New Britain

Above: Crew from B-17E 41-2430 ‘Naughty But Nice’.

Standing left to right: 1st Lt. Jose L. Holguin, 1st Lt. Hal Cawood Winfrey, 2nd Lt. Charles E. Trimingham, 1st Lt. Francis G. Peattie;

Front left to right: S/Sgt. Henry Griebel, T/Sgt. Leonard A. Gionet, T/Sgt. Robert L. Christopherson, S/Sgt. Pace P. Payne, S/Sgt. Henry Garcia. (Courtesy of Curt Holguin and Ref 2. p.41)

Above: 1st Lt. William J. Sarsfield Jr. (Courtesy of the West Philadelphia High School Year Book 1935)

REASON FOR LOSS:

At 01:45 hrs on the 26th June 1943 B-17E 41-2430 and its crew of ten (10) took-off from Dobodura #7 Airfield as one of three (3) B-17s that made up a force of thirteen (13) bombers on a mission to bomb the Japanese Vunakanau, Aerodrome on New Britain.

Dobodura #7 or Kenny Airfield was constructed and named in honour of the 5th Air Force commander Gen. George Kenny. Today known as Guirua Airport.

After leaving the target area B-17E 41-2430 was attacked from below by a Japanese night-fighter using its upward firing 20mm cannons which heavily damaged the bomber and set it ablaze.

The ‘Naughty But Nice’ was the second of two bombers claimed by Senior Flight Petty Officer (Kaigun-Ittōheisō) KUDO Shigetoshi and his observer, Sub-Lt (Kaigun-chūi) SUGAWARA Akira flying a Nakajima J1N1-S Gekkō(Moonlight). (WW2db and C. Peter Chen).

KUDO ended the war with nine (9) claimed victories. He died in 1960 from the long term effects of injuries suffered in a 1945 landing accident.

Note: The Japanese word Kaigun preceding a rank indicates that it relates to the Navy.

His first claim this night bomber was 403rd Bombardment Squadron (H), B-17E ‘Taxpayer’s Pride’ 41-24448 flown by 1st Lt. Donald D. McEachran (9 KiA, 1 PoW).

B-17E 41-2430 ‘Naughty But Nice’ was later found to have crashed north of Wusing village in the Baining Mountains, some 22 miles south of Vunakanau, Aerodrome.

(1) For this operation 1st Lt. Sarsfield Jr. stood in for 1st Lt. Hal Cawood Winfrey O-659783 who was the normal pilot for this crew as he was grounded recovering from wounds. 1st Lt. Winfrey survived the war and was awarded the Silver Star Medal (SSM), Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) and an Air Medal (AM).

The Siver Star Medal (SSM) citation for 2nd Lt. Sarsfield Jr. reads: "For gallantry in action over Hansa Bay, New Guinea, on April 14, 1943".

On the 24th May 1943 1st Lt. Sarsfield Jr. was the co-pilot of B-17E ‘Gypsy Rose’ #41-9193 on an operation bombing Rabaul. The aircraft ran out of petrol homebound and ditched off Duvira Mission on the north coast of New Guinea. The crew were uninjured and returned to operations.

(2) A description of events was provided by 1st Lt. Holguin after he was released from captivity:

“On the 25th June 1943, just before midnight [sic], nine crew members and myself took off from Dobodura Airstrip, New Guinea, in B-17E flying Fortress, #41-2430, for the purpose of destroying enemy aircraft at Vunukanau Airdrome at Rabaul, New Britain.

Despite thunderstorms the target was reached, and bombs were dropped at approximately 03:00 hrs on the 26th June 1943. One of our other aircraft, just ahead of us on the bombing run, was hit by enemy fire and began to burn and lose altitude. We could not tell, because of enemy action, whether the plane returned to its base. Enemy resistance seemed extraordinarily intense. Our ship, however, made its bombing run without suffering hits by anti-aircraft. After the bombing run, 7 or perhaps 9 enemy aircraft were seen burning by the whole crew as a result of our bombs. The nature of the enemy resistance prompted the officers of the airplane to remain in the target area for the purpose of confusing the enemy's radar and anti-aircraft fire, and their decision was approved by the Sergeant gunners. By doing this we hoped to enable other units following us to make their bombing runs without such intense enemy resistance. This action was successful; we saw three of our aircraft make their runs with only light anti-aircraft fire. We remained in that area for about a half hour.

We had just turned in the direction of our base when, seemingly out of nowhere, our aircraft received a direct hit on No. 1 engine, causing it to burn. No.2 engine was not functioning properly. The fire was extinguished while we were on our course home, but we continued to lose altitude gradually. In this attack I was wounded in the jaw by .30 cal. shells which momentarily rendered me dizzy. In the next minute or two I regained my full senses and found that my bombardier, 1st Lt. Peattie, was tying a scarf around my jaw to stop the bleeding. He told me that he believed we were being attacked by Japanese night fighters. He had released the escape hatch in order to throw out extra weight.

About ten minutes later we were attacked again. 1st Lt. Sarsfield, copilot [sic], was killed. I was wounded on the left leg. This time we were certain that we were being attacked by night fighters, for we could see no tracers, and we were too far away for ground positions. The order was given at this time for all, crew members to leave the airplane. We could not manoeuvre out of the range of the night fighters because of our bad engines. We were between Rabaul and Jaquinot Bay over some high mountains and losing altitude all the time. After the first attack we had withheld our fire for fear that we might give away our position to the enemy. After the second attack, however, we realized that we could not manoeuvre out of the way and therefore could not hope to escape the range of the night fighters. We then opened fire, hoping that by chance we might hit something, but to no avail.

About five minutes after the second attack we received direct hits on our left wing gas tanks, and the whole wing was burning fiercely. At this time I was looking out through one of my windows and saw directly underneath us a Jap plane (twin-engine, tapering leading edge and trailing edge, thin long fuselage, twin vertical fins). Simultaneously, ball turret gunner Robert Griebel opened fire on the night fighter, causing it to start burning. It appeared that our pilot, [sic] 2nd Lt. Trimingham, had been killed during this last attack, for the radio communication between us was suddenly broken. I decided to go to the flight deck to see exactly how things were, but I was thrown to the floor as our plane began falling off on its right wing with all control over it gone. 1st Lt. Peattie was behind me and appeared to be wounded in both legs. He was on his stomach and was trying to crawl to the door that was in front of me a little to the left. I could not straighten up because of the centrifugal force, but I reached down and grabbed 1st Lt. Peattie's parachute strap, trying to help him reach the area of the door. Everything in the plane seemed to be falling ammunition boxes, extra guns, navigation equipment, etc.

About 1000 feet from the ground the plane began to spin, and as it did so, I was thrown out through the door. My grip on 1st Lt. Peattie was broken, and I could not help him further. My left leg had been burned just previous to this. When I found myself in the air, I opened my parachute and started to float down. The whole sky seemed to be illuminated. The first thing I noticed was a small ball of fire falling and then reaching the ground with a fierce explosion. I believe this was the Japanese night fighter, which had been hit by our turret gunner, S/Sgt. Griebel. Immediately afterward, I noticed the second but larger ball of fire falling just underneath me as it approached from the right. It hit the ground and exploded. I was so near the ground that the flames caused by this explosion ascended and burned parts of my body (back of the hand, hair, etc.) and my parachute. It collapsed just above the treetops, and I fell to earth, fracturing my back.

I was unable to move for two days, but on the third day I crawled to the wreckage. I found most of the gunners still in their respective positions, which led me to believe that they had decided to stay with the ship for a chance to fire on the Japanese night fighter. Those that were not burned were mangled to death.

I remained in the jungle three weeks with no food and only water. At the end of three weeks I met some natives. They gave me shelter, but disarmed me while I was sleeping. The next day they turned me over the native spies working for the Japanese who tied me to a make-shift stretcher and carried me for two days and two nights through the jungles until we a arrived at the Japanese outposts. There, on the 20th July 1943, I was turned over to the Japanese military police. I remained a Prisoner of War at Rabaul for 27 months until I was released by the Australians on the 7th September 1945. No medial treatment was given to me by the Japanese. My wounds healed by themselves, by the grace of God”.

He was held at the Tunnel Hill Cave PoW Camp in a mountain pass named Tanoura on Tunnel Hill road, which was about 2½ miles from Rabaul City and between Rabaul and Pilapila.

In his affidavit, and those of the surviving PoWs, he described that on the 3rd March 1944 Japanese guards arrived at the cave and read off the names of twenty (20) men. They were blindfolded, handcuffed, tied together and taken away. The remaining PoWs could not see how they were taken away because a blanket had been suspended across the entrance to the cave. The remaining thirty-three (33) PoWs were still so congested that it was still impossible to sit down even in a squatting position. The following day at about 09:00 hrs the names of another twenty (20) men were read out and were removed from the cave in a similar manner as the first twenty (20).

He did not know where they were taken or what their fate was as no official announcement was made, although, some of the Japanese guards implied that those PoWs who were removed were safe at another camp. However, some of the Japanese guards allowed it to leak out that all forty (40) of the prisoners had been killed by American air strikes during an evacuation attempt.

Although the affidavits of the surviving PoWs all claimed that forty (40) PoWs were transported to the beach the names of only thirty-one (31) PoWs were established through records kept by Japanese officers and a statement by Capt. Murphy.

The description of the circumstances leading to the deaths of the forty (40), albeit only the names of thirty-one (31) PoWs were established, can be read in the report Talili Bay Massacre, New Britain (Insert link when complete)

1st Lt. Holguin was one of only eight (8) PoWs who survived and released from the Tunnel Hill PoW camp on the 7th September 1945 to Australian forces after the Japanese surrender:

1st Lt. James A. McMurria O-372644 USAAF;
2nd Lt. Alphones D. Quinones O-748875 USAAF;
S/Sgt. Escoe E. Palmer 34269270 USAAF;
Lt(Jg). Joseph G. Nason 117057 USNR;
AR2c. John B. Kepchia 65228343 USNR;
WO. Ronald C. Warren 425959 RNZAF;
Capt. John J. Murphy NGX310 AIF.

He was one (1) of a party of twenty-eight (28) Service personnel that boarded HMAS Vendetta at Rabaul and brought to Jacquinot Bay on the south coast of New Britain. They were then taken by RNZAF Air-Sea Rescue boat to the Australian Army 2/8th General Hospital at Jacquinot Bay for assessment and treatment.

After approximately three (3) weeks at Jacquinot Bay and Finschafen Hospital, he was turned over to the American authorities at Leyte and left for the United States by sea on the 26th September 1945.

1st Lt. Holguin remained in the service and served in Korea. He retired from the USAF as a Lt Col.

Jose Luz Holguin was born on the 1st February 1921 in California. Jose passed away on the 22nd March 1994 in Los Angeles, California.

Above: Courtesy of The Town Talk, dated 28th March 1994.

(3) Sgt. Payne was injured during a mission in April 1943 and suffered shrapnel wounds to his left thigh. He was returned to duty after treatment and was awarded his first Purple Heart (PH).

Recovery of MiA:

Above: A casket with remains representing nine (9) WW II Army Airmen being carried at a burial ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery on Wednesday, 21st September 2011.

The following narrative is derived from the article accompanying the above image.

The burial brought to a close of the remarkable story of the ‘Naughty but Nice’. The lone survivor, 1st Lt. Jose Holguin, after returning to the United States made it his mission after the war to find his lost colleagues. After retiring from the USAF in 1963 he entered into education. During the summer of 1981 he made the first of two trips to New Britain, where he collected maps, spoke with knowledgeable local people and researched old government records. The following summer he return to New Britain and this time with the aid of local natives, found the wreckage of the aircraft but no signs of any remains of the crew.

In the old files of the New Guinea government he found a 1949 record from the United States (US) Army 30th Engineer Battalion that reported human remains had been found at the site of the wreckage but could not be identified. Consequently the remains had been interred at the National Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu. He then researched records of "Unknowns" and discovered where the remains had been placed. In 1985 the Defense PoW/MiA Accounting Agency (DPAA) exhumed the remains and carried out tests which positively identified remains of the following five (5) crew members:

2nd Lt. Herman H. Knott;
2nd Lt. Francis G. Peattie;
S/Sgt. Henry Garcia;
S/Sgt. Robert E. Griebel;
S/Sgt. Pace P. Payne.

The DPAA did further excavations at and near the crash site in 2001 and found additional human remains. More advanced tests were carried out, but could not conclusively link those remains to any of the following four (4) from the ‘Naughty but Nice’:

1st Lt. William Sarsfield;
2nd Lt. Charles E. Trimingham;
T/Sgt. Robert L. Christopherson;
T/Sgt. Leonard A. Gionet.

Note: When an individual's remains have been accounted for by the US Department of Defense, a rosette is placed next to the name on the Wall/Tablet/Court of the Missing to mark that the person now rests in a known gravesite.

Burial details:

1st Lt. William Joseph Sarsfield Jr. Silver Star Medal (SSM), Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC), Purple Heart (PH). Manila American Cemetery, Wall of the Missing. His recovered remains were laid to rest in a group burial for all 9 (nine) crew at the Arlington National Cemetery, Section 60, Grave 9742, Virginia. Born on the 18th September 1917 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Son of William J. and Katherine T. Sarsfield of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Husband of Constance Elizabeth (née Sawisk) Sarsfield of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.

2nd Lt. Charles Edward Trimingham. Distinguished Service Cross (DSC), Silver Star Medal (SSM), Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC), Purple Heart (PH), Air Medal (AM). Manila American Cemetery, Wall of the Missing. His recovered remains were laid to rest in a group burial for the 9 (nine) crew at the Arlington National Cemetery, Section 60, Grave 9742, Virginia. Born on the 1st October 1919 in Martinez, Contra Costa, California. Son of Charles Augustus Sr. and Bertha Lee (née Greene) Trimingham. His mother passed away 14 days after his birth and his father on the last day of 1926.

Above: grave marker for 1st Lt. Francis G. Peattie (Courtesy of Doug-FindAGrave)

1st Lt. Francis Gerard Peattie. Silver Star Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster (SSM (OLC)), Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC), Purple Heart (PH), Air Medal (AM). Manila American Cemetery, Wall of the Missing. He was laid to rest at the Old Saint Joachim’s Cemetery, Beacon, Duchess Country, New York on the 27th April 1985. Born on the 19th November 1918 in Beacon, New York. Son of Charles Leo and Frances A. (née Foley) of Beacon, New York. Husband to Helen (née Du-Betsky) Peattie of Beacon, New York, USA.

Above: grave marker for 2nd Lt. Herman H. Knott (Courtesy of XCHIEF-FindAGrave)

2nd Lt. Herman Henry Knott. Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC), Purple Heart (PH), Air Medal (AM). Manila American Cemetery, Wall of the Missing. He was laid to rest at the Long Island National Cemetery, East Farmington, Suffolk County, New York on the 22nd April 1985. Born on the 14th April 1919 in Astoria, Queens, New York City. Son of Hermann and Lillian Cecilia (née Weber) Knott of Queens, New York City, New York, USA.

T/Sgt. Robert Lee Christopherson. Silver Star Medal (SSM), Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC), Purple Heart (PH), Air Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster (AM (OLC)). Manila American Cemetery, Wall of the Missing. His recovered remains were laid to rest in a group burial for all 9 (nine) crew at the Arlington National Cemetery, Section 60, Grave 9742, Virginia. Born on the 20th July 1921 in Minnesota. Son of Leonard Emanual and Clara Christopherson of Plainview, Minnesota. Husband to Hazel Jennia (née Denney) Christopherson of Blue Erath, Faribault County, Minnesota, USA.

S/Sgt. Henry Garcia. Silver Star Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster (SSM (OLC)), Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC), Purple Heart with Oak Leaf Cluster (PH (OLC)), Air Medal (AM). Manila American Cemetery, Wall of the Missing. He was laid to rest at the Rose Hills Memorial Park, Whittier, Los Angeles County, California on the 24th May 1985.Born on the 26th July 1913 in Mexico.Son of Joe Garcia and Martina (née Bustillo) Garcia.Husband to Evelyn (née Lucero) Garcia of North Fort Morgan, Morgan County, Colorado, USA.

T/Sgt. Leonard Alphonse Gionet. Silver Star Medal (SSM), Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC), Purple Heart with Oak Leaf Cluster (PH (OLC)), Air Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster (AM (OLC)). Manila American Cemetery, Wall of the Missing. His recovered remains were laid to rest in a group burial for all 9 (nine) crew at the Arlington National Cemetery, Section 60, Grave 9742, Virginia. Born on the 19th March 1913 in Shirley, Middlesex County, Massachusetts. Son of Guillaume Michel and Ursule Marie Gionet of Shirley. Husband to Della Louise (née Burke) Gionet of Redding, Shasta County, California, USA.

S/Sgt. Robert Eugene Griebel. Silver Star Medal (SSM), Distinguished Flying Cross with Oak Leaf Cluster (DFC (OLC)), Purple Heart (PH), Air Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster (AM (OLC)). Manila American Cemetery, Wall of the Missing. He was laid to rest at the Mountain View Cemetery, Riverton, Fremont County, Wyoming on the 30th March 1985. Born on the 28th August 1918 in Sargent, Custer County, Nebraska. Son of Lawrence Peter and Pear Edith (née Dewey) Griebel of Fremont, Wyoming, USA.

S/Sgt. Pace Perrian Payne. Silver Star Medal (SSM), Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC), Purple Heart with Oak Leaf Cluster (PH (OLC)), Air Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster (AM (OLC)). Manila American Cemetery, Wall of the Missing. He was laid to rest at Oakwood Cemetery, Corsicana, Navarro County, Texas on the 24th May 1985. Born on the 9th July 1922 in Texas. Son of Ethridge Elem and Emma (née Medlin) Payne of Navarro County, Texas, USA.

Researched by Ralph Snape for Aircrew Remembered and dedicated to the crew and their relatives (Mar 2026)

Other sources listed below:

References(s):

1. Investigation File: NAA: 336/1/1345 Part 6

2. The Siege of Rabaul by Henry Sakaida – ISBN 1-8838809-09-6

Those who have long enjoyed such privileges as we enjoy forget in time that men have died to win them. Franklin Delano Roosevelt