Operation: Mulhouse (Mission #350), France

Date: 11th May 1944 (Thursday)

Unit No: 506th Bombardment Squadron (H), 44th Bombardment Group (H), 2nd Air Division, 8th Air Force

Type: B-24H

Serial No: 42-94999

Code: GJ:?

Location: Gaubert 27 km (17 mls) NW of Orléans, France.

Base: Shipdham (Station #115), Norfolk, England

Pilot: 2nd Lt. James Henry Walsh Jr. O-663211 AAF Age 23. Evader (1)

Co Pilot: FO. Warren Floyd Bauder T-001748 AAF Age 22. Id No. 78196 *, PoW No 8932 ** (2)

Navigator: 2nd Lt. Emery Richard Lundy O-752878 AAF Age 20. PoW ** (3)

Bombardier: 2nd Lt. Peter O’Shanick O-689542 AAF Age 23. PoW **

Engineer: S/Sgt. Joseph Oscar Peloquin 11097446 AAF Age 20. Evader (4)

Radio Operator: S/Sgt. Donald Ray Martin 37240513 AAF Age 26. PoW *** (5)

Ball Turret Gnr: Sgt. Sydney Roper 32768378 AAF Age 21. PoW ***

Left Waist Gnr: Sgt. Lawrence C. Richards 33487589 AAF Age 21. Evader (4)

Right Waist Gnr: Sgt. Edwin Andrew Puksta 13115875 AAF Age 22. PoW ****

Tail Gnr: Sgt. Thomas Joseph Fanara 32584939 AAF Age 22. PoW ***

* Buchenwald concentration camp established on Ettersberg hill near Weimar, Germany in July 1937.

** Stalag Luft 3, Sagan-Silesia, Germany, now Żagań in Poland. (Moved to Nuremberg-Langwasser, Bavaria).

*** Stalag Luft 4 Groß-Tychow, Pomerania, Prussia now Tychowo, Poland (Moved from Stalag Luft 6 Heydekrug on 28th May 1944. Moved to Wöbbelin near Ludwigslust and then to Usedom near Swinemünde).

**** Dulag Luft 12 Groß-Tychow Pomerania, Prussia now Tychowo, Poland.

REASON FOR LOSS:

B-24H 42-94999 took off from Shipdham to join a force of B-24s tasked with bombing four marshalling yards in NE France. Before reaching the target the aircraft was attacked by Bf109s resulting in #4 engine being blown to pieces, #3 engine losing power, #2 engine being set ablaze which could not be extinguished and the hydraulic system was shot out.

All of the crew baled out and landed in the vicinity of Patay in France about 22 km (14 mls) NE of Orléans, France. German reports record that the aircraft crashed at 14:45 hrs near Gaubert 7 km (4½ mls) NE of Patay. However, in his Escape & Evasion report 2nd Lt. Walsh Jr. recorded the time of the crash nearer to 14:15 hrs.

The Oberkommando der Luftwaffe (OKL) (German Air Force High Command) fighter claims for the Reich, West & Südfront lists three German fighter claims for B-24s on this day with one in the vicinity of Orléans and a second more that 50 km (31 mls) NE of Orléans.

However, it is probable that the claim in the vicinity of Orléans relates to this B-24, albeit the time does not correlate with the German reported time that it crashed but does with the time reported by 2nd Lt. Walsh Jr. The claim was by Fahnenjunker (Officer Cadet) Waldemar Büsch from Stab II 8./JG2, his 3rd Abschuss, in the location of Orléans at 5000 m. at approximately 14:13 hrs, which was confirmed by the OKL.

2nd Lt. Lundy, 2nd Lt. O’Shanick, Sgt. Roper, Sgt. Puksta and Sgt. Fanara were captured at 15:00 hrs that same day about 2 km (1¼ mls) west of the Saint-Péravy-la-Colombe to Patay railway line. 2nd Lt. Lundy and Sgt. Puksta were taken to the Luftwaffe Lazarett (o) 4/XII (Hospital) at Orléans for treatment to their wounds.

(1) After baling out between 8000 and 5000 feet 2nd Lt. Walsh Jr. delayed his jump before opening his parachute resulting in a heavy landing on the seat of his pants in the vicinity of Patay. Winded but otherwise uninjured he headed south and briefly met with another member of his crew before they separated and went their separate ways as recommended during their lectures on Escape and Evasion.

From the way he described the encounter was probably S/Sgt. Donald R. Martin and not his Co-Pilot FO. Bauder.

His own Escape and Evasion report describes his personal experiences and encounters but does not give any specific details of his journey as he wended his way across France to Bordeaux, a journey of some 400 km (250 mls).

From here his journey was organised by the French resistance. At Pau, some 172 km (107 mls) to the south, he met with a S/Sgt. Charles Hoyes and their final part of the journey to Spain was organised by the French resistance. They crossed the border on the 26th May where they we arrested by the Spanish police. After a period of time in Spain on the 19th June a Col. Clarke from the US Embassy in Madrid escorted them to Gibraltar from where they flew to the UK on the 23rd June 1944.

Note: S/Sgt. Charles Hoyes 3322778 was the Radio Operator from B-17G 42-31110 'Pacific’s Dream' (332 BS/94 BG) shot down by flak on a mission to Cognac on the 31st December 1943. (4 PoW, 6 Evd)

(2) FO. Bauder made his way SW to Loir-et-Cher, some 46 km (29 mls) of Patay, where he was hidden by two families for 10 days from the 13th May until 23rd May. Here he was in contact with the local underground movement. He was then moved some 39 km (24 mls) NE to La Chapelle-Saint-Mesmin, where he remained for a month until the 29th June.

He was betrayed to the Gestapo whilst being hidden at a house in Orgères-en-Beauce, which is some 32 km (20 mls) NW of Orléans.

He was then taken to the Fresnes prison located to the south of Paris. This was where French political prisoners were held and ordinarily Allied airmen, after questioning, were moved to a PoW Camp. In the summer of 1944, with the Allies having liberated Paris and closing in, the Gestapo guards started reducing the prison population by execution, and then relocating surviving prisoners to various concentration camps east of France. On the 15th August 1944 the was amongst 169 Allied PoWs and hundreds of French men and women who were packed into a freight train and transported to Buchenwald concentration camp on a journey lasting five days. Buchenwald was located 8 km (5 mls) north of Weimar, in the German province of Thüringen. It was established and administered by the Schutzstaffel (SS).

Fg Off. Joel Mathews ‘Tex’ Stevenson C27788 RCAF, the pilot of 419 (Moose) Squadron, RCAF Lancaster X KB727 VR:H escaped from the train and successfully evaded.

Sqn Ldr. Lamason and Fg Off. Chapman succeeded in getting all but two of the Allied PoWs transferred to Stalag Luft 3. Two airmen, 1st Lt. Levitt Clinton Beck Jr. O-736945, US AAF and Fg Off. Philip Derek Hemmens, 152583, RAFVR died in the sick barrack.

Recognition:

For decades the International Red Cross (IRC) had stated that there were no military personnel in Buchenwald despite the overwhelming documentary and anecdotal evidence. It was not until 1988 that the IRC eventually confirmed the airmen were illegally held at Buchenwald.

The Australian, New Zealand and Canadian governments also consistently denied that any of their service personnel were ever held in concentration camps and refused to investigate the claims made by a 'mere’ handful of men.

Reparations were made to the British airmen who had been illegally held at Buchenwald in 1965. Eventually in 1988 the Australian, New Zealand and it is believed the Canadian governments acknowledged that their airmen had been illegally held in concentration camps.

American airmen were among those who received compensation and the US Air force have acknowledged the Buchenwald airmen with an exhibit at the Air Force Museum, albeit the airmen are shown in uniform rather than in civilian attire. Furthermore, there is no mention of decades-long denial of their experiences by other branches of the government.

FO. Bauder was too weak to join the others when the airmen were evacuated from Buchenwald resulting in his transfer to Stalag Luft 3 being delayed until the 28th November 1944.

On the night of the 27th January 1945, with Soviet troops only 26 km (16 mls) away, orders were received to evacuate the PoWs to Spremberg which is to the West in Germany. The PoW’s were informed of the evacuation, which was on foot, at about 22:00 hrs the same night and were given 30 mins to pack and prepare everything for the March. The weather conditions were very difficult, with freezing temperatures, and it was snowing accompanied by strong winds. There was 15 cm (6 in) of snow and 2000 PoWs were assigned to clear the road ahead of the main groups.

The first groups of American PoW’s set out from the South Compound with the last PoW leaving at 23:00 hrs. The next group of American PoWs set out from the West Compound. At 03:45 hrs the North Compound left, followed by the Centre Compound. At 06:00 hrs the East Compound left. All the groups were accompanied by guards.

After a 55 km (34 mls) march, the PoWs arrived in Bad Muskau where they rested for 30 hours. The PoWs were then marched the remaining 26 km (16 mls) to Spremberg where they were housed in empty garages, storerooms and in military barracks. There they were provided with warm soup and bread.

During next days, PoWs were divided up according to Compounds, and they were led to railway sidings and loaded into tightly packed carriages.

On the 31st January, the South Compound prisoners plus 200 men from the West Compound were sent to Stalag 7A at Moosburg followed by the Centre Compound prisoners on the 7th February.

The camp was liberated on the 29th April 1945 by units of the 14th Armoured Division from Patton’s 3rd Army.

(3) After a period of time in treatment 2nd Lt. Lundy was transferred to Stalag Luft 3. After being liberated and returning to the United States he continued his service with the newly formed USAF and served in the Korean conflict.

On the 30th April 1957 Capt. Lundy flying as the Navigator aboard a Martin B-57B Canberra, from the 345th Bombardment Wing, was killed in an mid-air collision with another B-57B at Langley AFB in Virginia.

The two aircraft were part of a formation flypast of the Tactical Air Command (TAC) bombers before the Secretary of Defense. Whilst breaking into the landing pattern the two aircraft collided at an altitude of 1500 ft at the east end of the AFB. The starboard wing of Capt. Lundy’s B-57B was sheared off and the aircraft crashed in the shallow waters of the Chesapeake Bay. His pilot Col. Albert W. ‘Pappy’ Satterwhite, the Commanding Officer of the Wing, ejected immediately but Capt. Lundy was unable to do so and was killed.

Maj. Marvin L.W. Peters successfully landed his damaged B-57B at Langley. Both he and his Navigator, Capt. Kenneth Patten, were uninjured.

Note: As a 2nd Lt. Marvin L.W. Peters O-2056206 was awarded the Silver Star Medal (SSM) on the 25th June 1945.

Above: The damaged B-57B that successfully landed at Langley AFB, Virginia. (Courtesy of the Daily Press dated 1st March 1957)

Emery Richard Lundy: 26th August 1923 - 30th April 1957

(4) S/Sgt. Peloquin and Sgt. Richards eventually came under the protection of the French Resistance and were taken to a camp situated in the Fréteval Forest in France.

This camp was part of ‘Operation Marathon’ which was a plan to hide evading Allied airmen in secret camps in France and Belgium. The Fréteval Forest camp was code named ‘Operation Sherwood’ and eventually held more than 130 Allied airmen. The camp was liberated on the 11th August 1944. S/Sgt. Peloquin and Sgt. Richards were interviewed on the 15th August 1944 and were returned to their unit.

(5) S/Sgt. Martin managed to evade the enemy until the 16th June 1944 when he was captured near Chartres at 17:00 hrs.

Burial details:

None – All survived the War

Researched by Ralph Snape for Aircrew Remembered and dedicated to the relatives of this crew (Jun 2023). Update to include forced-march information (Jun 2024).

Other sources listed below:

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