447th Bomb Group Newsletter Spring 2011 Newsletter Spring 2011 (FINAL) 16... · 2011-03-22 · 447th BG NEWSLETTER J 4 J 2011 SPRING ISSUE 447th BG NEWSLETTER J 5 J 2011 SPRING ISSUE

447th Bomb Group Newsletter Spring 2011

Insidethis issue President’s Letter ......................2447th Directory..........................2Footlocker..................................3Memorable Missions .............4-5Contributions .............................6New Members...........................6Membership Application ..........7Reunion Form (England) ..........8Taps......................................9-11Up Close .................................10Family Fun Stuff ......................11Reunion Form (France) ..........12France Trip Details ............13-14Nerd Notes..............................15Dues Notice.............................15Check Six ................................16

n The 447th Bomb Groupnewsletter is published quarterlyby the 447th Bomb Group, Inc., a 501(c)4 non-profitorganization.

They’ve probably beenstored safely in a shoeboxon the top shelf of thecloset. Or in envelopesbound by a rubber band inthe desk drawer that noone opens any more.

The photos and journalsof our WWII vets thatcapture the essence of anera when B-17s roared tolife at Rattlesden.

If you have photos orother memorabilia, pleasehelp honor our vets andshare these keepsakes withour 447th family throughthe website or newsletter.

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4 4 7 t h B G N E W S L E T T E R J 3 J 2 0 1 1 S P R I N G I S S U E

Ladies and Gentlemen of the Nex-Gen’s of the 447th BG:

I have been monitoring your websitefor about four years now and finally ahistorian is updating it with information,stories and photos that are today in thehands of NexGen’s like me.

My father was Clarence A. Perkins,Pilot of the Century ship Dead Man’sHand (42-31188), which he and his crewnamed and flew from the US to the UKon Sept. 29, 1943.

The history of Dead Man’s Hand iswell documented and chronicled on pageone of the “Aircraft” link on your web-site, including a list of Lt. Perkins’ entirecrew.

Dad learned to fly as a teenager in thelate 1930s before he enlisted. He learnedto fly old biplanes at a flying school op-erating out of the Rancho Oro Verde Fly-Inn Dude Ranch in California’s Mojavedesert that was owned and operated bythe colorful and now legendary pioneeraviatrix Florence “Pancho” Barnes .

The featured attraction at the duderanch was “The Happy Bottom RidingClub”, a storied “watering hole” andrestaurant owned by Pancho that cateredto airmen at the nearby airfield (later tobecome Edwards AFB) as well as hermany Hollywood friends.

Dad had many stories to tell aboutPancho and his exploits at “Happy Bot-tom” and Pancho’s story is well worthreading

I am pleased to include a photo of Lt.Perkins and his crew, taken in front ofanother plane Moonbeam (42-32071)which he and his crew named and flewoften, probably from Foggia, Italy in

early 1944. I also have enclosed some of the

newspaper articles I am fortunate to haveabout Dad’s flying history. Sorry thecopies are not better.

Other memorabilia includes the receiptgiven to him and probably to each crewmember upon acceptance of the aircraftthat they flew to Rattlesden from the USand a list of his 51 missions. Note that itwas provided from his last assignmentwith the 99th BG, 416th squadron, whichoperated out of Tortorelia in the Foggiaplains in Italy.

Moonbeam was the plane he flew inItaly, including during the OperationFrantic raid on Debrecen, Hungary, onJune 2, 1944. That flight wound them upon Russian soil for the first time.

Lt. Perkins was credited with havingflown 52 combat missions over an 11-

month period.He was a “Lucky Bastard” and piloted

other aircraft listed on your website, in-cluding Big Stoop and another Centuryship Scheherazade.

He was awarded the Air Medal fivetimes.

After his service in the European andPacific theatres, he returned to the US totrain new pilots to fly B-17s and B-29suntil the war ended.

Dad passed away in 2005 at the age of84.

I will be joining the NexGen and I amcurrently planning to visit Rattlesden.Keep up the good work, and thank youfor this now outstanding and historicwebsite.

I only wish I had discovered it beforeDad passed away. He would have lovedit!

Best regards, Gary A. Perkins

n A note of Thanks: I’d like to thankGary Perkins for finding us, and for writ-ing about his father. Lt. Clarence A.Perkins is a member of the GreatestGeneration, and I would have liked tohave known him.

Like so many, our loved ones didn’talways talk about the war. They didn’tthink we’d understand, and now wewant to learn everything that we can.

The Footlocker is just that – a placefor NexGens to share such stories.

As Dad always says “Keep’em Flyin”[email protected]

FOOTLOCKERS T O R I E S F R O M T H E G R E A T E S T G E N E R A T I O N

This photo of Lt. Clarence Perkins

accompanied a newspaper article about

his 50th mission. That and other items will

be posted on the 447th BG website.


EXECUTIVE BOARDOF DIRECTORS President

Arnold Kushner 2110 Shannondale Drive Audubon PA 19403 (610) 382-2092 E-mail: [email protected]

Vice-President

Norman Bussel 1739 Horton Road Mohegan Lake, NY 10547 (914) 528-7147E-mail: [email protected]

Treasurer/Membership Chairperson

Dean Sassaman 201 Jackpine Drive Michigan City, IN 46360-2713 (219) 874-5117E-mail: [email protected]

Secretary

Melanie Bussel1739 Horton RoadMohegan Lake, NY 10547 (914) 528-7147E-mail: [email protected]

DIRECTORS Director

Russell Chase3147-D Via VistaLaguna Woods, CA 92637-8812(949) 837-8453E-mail: [email protected]

Director/PX/Reunion Coordinator

George R. Hoidra6504 Old Sandy Spring RoadLaurel, MD 20707-2954 (301) 953-2813 E-mail: [email protected]

Director Emeritus

Murray Codman 4341 Redwood Avenue Marina Del Rey, CA 90292-6427 (310) 827- 7277 E-mail: [email protected]

Honorary Board Member

Roger Watts (UK) Phone: 011-44-144-973-6687

COMMUNICATIONS & ARCHIVES Newsletter Editor

Steve Heeb 1718 24th Ave Ct SE Puyallup, WA 98374 (253) 222-6400 E-mail: [email protected]

Webmaster/Historical Archives

Joseph Ferris, Jr. 5046 Happy Hollow Drive Manchester, MI 48158 (734) 428-0357 E-mail: [email protected]

NexGen Representative

Debra Wetherald PO Box 1976 Fallbrook, CA 92088-1976 (909) 561-6776 E-mail: [email protected]

447th Association (UK)

Ernest Osborne 3 Oliver Road Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk IP 33 3JH United Kingdom Phone: 011-44-128-476-2899

447th Bomb Group Directory

FLIGHTPLAN4 4 7 T H B O M B G R O U P P R E S I D E N T ’ S M E S S A G E

Greetings 447th BG Vets, 2nd Gensand friends.

This is the year of our return to Rat-tlesden. Our UK contingent has lookedforward to this and planned it from themoment we left in 2009. My 2nd Gengroup (three children and seven grand-children) are all looking forward to thislasting experience. For some it will betheir first trip abroad. Several took partin the reunion in Tucson and madeemail buddies with other 447 2nd Gens.

This foretells a lasting legacy for us. Inaddition to our visit to Rattlesden weare going to Wissou, France, site of one447th crew’s courageous saving thetown by guiding the B-17 to nearbyfield. A monument to their bravery waserected and we will participate in a cel-ebration. Eagle Tours, who planned thegreat reunion in 2009 will again do thehonors. Registration forms are on pages8 and 12 of this issue.

From our web site we have received

several inquiries and information from2nd Gens asking or giving informationpertinent to our group and is included inthis newsletter. We welcome all corre-spondence and will respond promptly.

I look forward to greeting many (Ihope) that will join me in this event.

As they say in the UK: “Raise a pintand say Cheers!”

Arnold Kushner

President, 447th Bomb Group

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4 4 7 t h B G N E W S L E T T E R J 5 J 2 0 1 1 S P R I N G I S S U E4 4 7 t h B G N E W S L E T T E R J 4 J 2 0 1 1 S P R I N G I S S U E

447th returns to WissousField Order #149

Mission 15 for the 447th BG

Briefing was at 0500 hours. Thetarget was again the Air Depot atRomilly-sur-Seine, France.

The weather was predicted to besatisfactory so there was no PFF crewpresent.

Captain William W. Brown, 709thSquadron was assigned to lead themission flying with Eastman’s crew(#42-31530).

The other pilots, crews and theiraircraft number were as follows:

K.A. Johnson (#42-31144)

Finfinger (#42-31563)

Kaffun (#42-31160)

Davis (#42-39865)

Marcey (#42-31169)

Chardi (#42-31191)

Keller (#42-31206)

Duke (#42-31155)

Leigh (#42-97501)

Hodges (#42-37497)

Huckins (#42-37842)

Jellinson (#42-31124)

Harris (#42-31186)

Ralston (#42-39874)

Stenvig (#42-39886)

Hopla (#42-31165)

Reed (#42-31145)

Socolofsky (#42-31185)

Widstrom (#42-37866)

We were assigned to bombfrom 19,000 feet with 500lbGP bombs. Take off was at

0722 hours. Group, Wing and Division assembly

was uneventful. The Group flew lowgroup in the 4th CBW.

On approaching the target we found itobscured so the decision was made to hitthe airfield at Evreux/Fauville. Resultsof bombing was judged to be “Good”.

Of the 642 heavies dispatched by the8th AF only 206 dropped their bomb onair fields as targets of opportunity.

The heavies lost four B-17s but ac-counted for three German fighters. Oneof the losses was Lt. A.S. Reed, 708thSquadron. (see story below)

The Eighth and Ninth Air Forces pro-vided 638 P-38s, P-47s and P-51s for es-cort. The fighters lost one each P-38 andP-47 while destroying 11 Luftwaffeplanes in the air and two more on theground.

The Group started landing at 1335hours. After de-briefing the crews madetheir way back to their barracks for somesack time.

Edmund L. Ketvirtis shared this

story of Lt. Reed’s crew.

Before bombs away the plane was hitwith flak, injuring or killing 1st Lt.Allen S. Reed and the Navigator, 2ndLt. James A. Campbell.

The Co-pilot, 2nd Lt.Arthur L Clark, was flyingthe airplane as they ap-proached the French townof Wissous, 12 miles southof Paris.

On command of Lt.Clark, the Bombardier, 2ndLt. Thomas G. Wilkins; theEngineer, T/Sgt. William F.Davidge; the Radioman,T/Sgt. Edmund G. Harms;Waist Gunners, S/Sgts.Robert T Russ and Ben-jamin A. Denny; Ball Tur-

rett Gunner, S/Sgt. James W. Alexan-der; and the Tail Gunner, S/Sgt. GeorgeM. Schneider bailed out.

Lt. Clark pulled the airplane up toavoid hitting the town, but crashed at1130 in a grove of trees beyond the

town. Lt. Wilkins’ parachute was riddled

with bullets. He was killed by groundfire or when he hit the ground.

All six of the Gunners survived.On 13 May 1984, the town of Wis-

sous dedicated a monumentto the four officers. Mon-sieur Rene Moulin, presi-dent emeritus of Comité desAnciens Élèves de Wissous(CAEW) provided thedrawing of the monument(inset at left) and his draw-ing depicting Lt. ArthurClark, Co-Pilot of Lt. AllenS. Reed’s crew, as he flewover the town of Wissousavoiding a crash into thetown (above). A park at thesite of the crash has beennamed for Arthur Clark.

As you will read in the following ex-cerpt from Doyle Shields’ History of the447th Bomb Group, on the morning ofFeb. 6, 1944, the fleet of Fortresses fromRattlesden joined up with other bombgroups of the 8th Air Force and headedfor France.

This summer, more than 67 years later,veterans of the 447th and their familieswill return to the French town of Wis-sous, where 2nd Lt. Arthur L. Clark tookthe controls of a flak-damaged B-17 andmanaged to safely avert the town beforecrashing.

n Those who are attending the 2011reunion at Rattlesden this July can extendtheir trip to include a visit to Wissous.Separate registration forms for bothgatherings are included on pages 8 and12 of this newsletter.

Sunday, 6 Feb. 1944

Strike photo for Feb. 6, 1944; St. Aubin Air Field.

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Monsieur Rene Moulin’s drawing depicting Clark avoiding a crash into the town of Wissous, France.

MEMORABLEMISSIONSF R O M T H E A R C H I V E S O F T H E 4 4 7 T H B G

447th returns to Wissous

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From History of 447th BG (Shields)

4 4 7 t h B G N E W S L E T T E R J 6 J 2 0 1 1 S P R I N G I S S U E 4 4 7 t h B G N E W S L E T T E R J 7 J 2 0 1 1 S P R I N G I S S U E

Give a friend orfamily memberthe gift of 447th

membership!Purchase an annual

membership to the

447th Bomb Group for a

family member or friend

today! Form on page 7.

NEWMEMBERSG R O W I N G T H E 4 4 7 T H B G A S S O C I A T I O N

MEMORIESCONTRIBUTIONSS U P P O R T I N G T H E 4 4 7 T H B G A S S O C I A T I O N A N D O U R V E T E R A N S

Name Connection Home State

Collier II, Donald E. 2nd Gen FL

Kidder, John R. 2nd Gen IN

Wolcott, Noreen Ferris 2nd Gen MI

Wood, Galen 3rd Gen KS

Wood, Lucinda 2nd Gen KS

Wood, Maxey 3rd Gen KS

In memory ofBates, Patricia L. ...............................In memory of Warren F. Bates

Dingivan, Edward D. ...................In memory of Edward A. Dingivan

Palko, Laverne M. .......................................In memory of Gilbert D.

Van Every, Drexel W. .....................In memory of Harold Van Every

General ContributionsBeste, William H.

Blecha, Milo K.

DeSalvo, Guido

Dingivan, Lawrence R.

Farson, M. W.

Flaherty, William F.

Flemming, Dana L.

Flemming, Dean S.

Gannon, Rosemary

Halvorson, Harold S.

Hoagland, Jean H.

Kanpp, Doland S.

Keating, George A.

Killpack, John J.

Kuhnz, Arnold H.

Kuhnz, Arthur H.

Leferink, Albert

Moon, Arthur H.

Parker, M.S.

Pauling, Howard S.

Rago, Julius J.

Strunk, Melvin J.

Theurer, Harry A.

Wood, Colin D.

Young, Rachel

Thankyou!Thankyou!

Excerpt from thread posted on477th BG online message board

Steve Heeb: It’s been a couple weeksbut I still can’t get enough of browsingthrough the “Pictorial History of the

447 Bombardment Group (H)” thatwe bought after Hal Kiena brought tomy attention. It is truly atreasure. The leather (-like)cover is in great shape with alittle fading on the exposedspine. The pages are crisp andthe binding seems as good asa 1946-vintage book could be.Wonder how long it was on astore shelf before it turned uponline.

My copy came from abookstore in England and has a littlesticker in front referring to Beaumont’sAviation Book Store. Tucked in the backpages is a nice newspaper clipping from

a local paper (articles mention Hamp-shire, Southampton, Nottingham, Wilt-shire and more.) It has a big photo of EdLeighty holding a belt of .50-cal at aWWII memorabilia exhibition in theRattlesden village hall. There is a hand-written date of 5-12-88 on the clipping.

I’ve been poring over themany (many, many) photosin the book and am prettysure that one of the betterparty shots shows mygrandfather Loran Heebposing at a table with somelocal children. I was look-ing at all the faces in the711th squadron parade pho-tos but they are hard to

make out except the front row. There’sno way I am going to try and lay thebook flat to scan a photo.

Anyway, it is a real treasure. I hope all

of the 2nd/3rd gen folks treat their fam-ily copies with the respect they deserve.I just wanted to share how nice it is toadd a copy to our 447th collection.

James Burke: I gave this book to myfather, it was a treasure trove of informa-tion that we have used in our research ofTuxedo Tomie and her air crews. In-cluding answering a nagging questionabout the OD/Gray color codes. No onehad been able to provide a color photo-graph of the OD/Gray 477th scheme thatprovided the detail that a person buildinga model would need. Same colorscheme as the more popularly pho-tographed silver planes, basically over-lay the OD/Gray over the silver and youhave the 477th planes.

I guess cammo isnt much of an issuewhen flying huge numbers of loud air-craft leaving massive contrails.

Vintage 447th book great addition to personal collection

447th Bomb Group Membership ApplicationYour name:____________________________ Spouse: ____________________

Address:__________________________________________________________

City: _______________________ State: _______ ZIP ____________________

Telephone Number: (______)_____________________

Email: _______________________________________

Relation to 447th : Veteran [__] Spouse [__] NexGen [___] ______________

Which Squadron: 708 [__] 709 [__] 710 [__] 711 [__] Your job:___________

DUES are $20.00 per year. Please make checks payable to: 447th Bomb GroupTreasurer Dean Sassaman, 201 Jackpine Drive, Michigan City IN 46360-2713 • (219) 874-5117 [email protected]

Bob (Robert Adams) was amember of the 447th from No-vember, 44 through April, 45.

He flew his 35 missions and was amember of the “Lucky Bastard’s Club”#711. Bob was a good friend and onhelping his family dispose of Bob’sHam radio gear I ran across a note-book Bob had kept of his missions in asmall spiral notebook. I copied thenotes and typed them up to share withBob’s friends. Doing some research onhis missions I ran across your websiteand am taking it upon myself to sendyou Bob’s obituary.

Regards,Dale Lathrop

Robert V. AdamsFuneral Mass for Robert V. Adams, 88,

of Harrington, took place Thursday

morning, Dec. 23, at St. Francis Catholic

Church in Harrington. Rosary service was

the previous evening. Father Pat

MacMahon officiated at both services.

Mr. Adams died Dec. 19 in Davenport.

He was born June 11, 1922, in Spokane to

Wade and Johanna Adams – 45 minutes

behind his twin brother Jack. He attended

St. Francis Assisi and St Augustine

schools, West Valley High School and

Gonzaga Prep, all in Spokane, and

graduated in 1940 from Harrington High

School, after the family moved to the

Rocklyn area. He completed courses

needed for college at Harrington, then

studied mechanics engineering at Gonzaga

University.

When the U.S. declared war on Japan he

enlisted in the aviation cadet program at

Geiger Field, took classes at Montana

State College in Bozeman, Mont., and was

stationed in Nebraska, California, Nevada

and Florida. During a 30-day leave, he

returned to Harrington and became

engaged to Marie Timm. They were

married June 14, 1945 shortly before his

honorable discharge.

He was a B-17 pilot and flew across

various locations in Canada, Europe and

the U.S., and recalled a flight in April 1945

to view war damage in Germany during

which the plane never got higher than 500

feet.

“We flew so low over Paris, France, that

I looked up at the Eiffel tower as we

circled it and saw the Arc of Triumph, flew

down the Rhine in Germany and saw all

the castles built there,” he wrote.

After the war, he worked as a machinist

in Spokane for about five years before

beginning to farm about 320 acres in the

Harrington area purchased by his father-

in-law in 1950, while continuing to work

in Spokane as a television serviceman, tool

and die maker for Columbia Electric and

as an electrician for the Mead aluminum

plant, where he helped build new pot-lines.

Harrington became the family’s permanent

home in 1964.

He was a member of the St. Francis

Catholic Church, Ham Radio Operators

(W70HI), Harrington Lions Club and Gun

Club and the Lincoln County Emergency

Ham Radio Response Team. He enjoyed

traveling to Hawaii, Mexico and Canada.

He was preceded in death by his parents,

sister Marguerite Brown, and twin brother

Dr. Jack Adams. Besides his wife of 65

years, he leaves two children, Mary Louise

(and Guy) Rutherford of Spokane Valley,

and John Adams of Harrington; four

grandchildren, Kelley and Andy Boyd and

Jacob Adams, all of Coulee City, Joshua

Adams of Harrington and Jennifer Adams

of Spokane; three great-grandchildren,

Brayton, Adyson and Haydon; a brother,

Joe Adams of Portland, Ore.; and

numerous nieces and nephews.


Regi

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447thTAPS

“We flew so low over Paris, France,

that I looked up at theEiffel tower as we circled

it and saw the Arc of Triumph,

flew down the Rhine inGermany and saw all the

castles built there.”— Written by Robert Adams

describing low-level flight to surveywar damage in April 1945

Robert Adams served as

co-pilot on the Baker crew,

which flew missions on several

planes, including B-17

42-97392 Mona’s Marauders

which was one of the 447th

BG’s “Century” ships having

logged 110 combat missions.

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Continued on pages 10-11


Jasper L. Anderson served withthe 447th bomb group, 709thsquadron, as the tail gunner in

Joesph Horton’s crew. I am enclosinghis obituary to be posted in the “Taps”section of your website. My fatherand I had long discussions about histime at Rattlesden and it would honorhim and myself to have this posted.

Sincerely Kerry L. Anderson, 2nd gen!

Jasper Lee “Jack” Anderson ROANOKE, Va. Jasper Lee “Jack”

Anderson, 90, was called away from his

loving family on Tuesday, Oct. 19, 2010.

Born in Virgie, Ky., he was the son of Marion

and Garnet Anderson. He is survived by his

daughter, Jacque Kitts and husband Warren,

of Roanoke; sons, Jimmie and wife Pat of

Manakin-Sabot, Va., Ken and wife Donna of

Augusta, Ga., and Kerry and wife Kandi, of

Mechanicsville, Va.; grandchildren, Dana

Kitts Lane and husband Jeff, Kelly Kitts

Dooley and husband Tim, Megan and

Matthew Anderson, and Ross and Jeremy

Anderson; step- grandchildren, Heather,

Chase, and Amanda Aldridge; and great-

granddaughter, Noel Dooley. Mr. Anderson is

also survived by two brothers, Frank and wife

Margie and Raymond and wife Joyce; one

sister, Pauline Loustenau; as well as several

nieces and nephews. He was preceded in

death by his parents; his wife of 63 years,

Anita Sykes Anderson; brother, George

Anderson; and sister, Helen Anderson Turner.

Mr. Anderson enjoyed a diverse career over

his lifetime, which included positions as a

railroad brakeman, coal miner, and machinist

until he retired in 1971.

He was a proud member of the Greatest

Generation, a decorated veteran of both

World War II and the Korean conflict. He was

the last surviving crew member of his B-17

Bomber, “Double Trouble”, assigned to the

8th Air Force where he contributed to 35

successful bombing missions over Germany.

He survived two crash landings in Lille, and

Chantilly, France. He remained in the U.S.

Air Force until 1961.

Mr. Anderson was always known for his

keen sense of humor and as an outstanding

story teller with a witty saying for any

occasion. He was further known as kind-

hearted with a special kindness for children.

He led a long life full of friends, family, and

accomplish-ments.

His memory will be cherished. In lieu of

flowers, the family requests donations be

made in his name to any veteran’s

organization of their choice. Funeral services

will be at Oakeys South Chapel with Rev. C.

Nelson Harris officiating. Entombment will

follow in The Chapel of Light Mausoleum at

Evergreen Burial Park.

UPCLOSEI N S I D E A F O R T R E S S

Standing, from left:

Jasper L. Anderson (TG);

Edward Walsh (ROG);

Joseph Horton (P);

Doran E. Swartzmiller (CP);

John Bushik (WG).

Kneeling, from left:

Leo Conlin (BTG);

Clyde Bateman (ENG);

George Dolan (N);

Jacob Goldman (B).

The catwalk in Liberty Belle’s bomb bay,

looking forward to the cockpit.

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n Not to be morbid about it, but

we’ve all lost friends over the last

few years. The tales of World

War II are being buried every

day.

It’s your responsibility to make

sure that your legacy is not lost

forever. One way to do this is to

grab a grandchild with a

computer videocam or camera

and re-count your 447th exploits.

Or get an old-fashioned tape

recorder and record your stories.

You’d be amazed at what your

wife and kids don’t

know about what you

did.

Copies can be

sent to the

Veterans’ History

Project at the

Library of Congress

or the 8th Air Force

Museum in Savannah.

Do it NOW!

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Edward A. Dingivan Edward A. Dingivan, 90, of

Londonderry, NH, died Dec. 2, 2010 at the

Parkland Medical Center, following a fall

at his home. He was born on Dec. 8, 1919

in New York, NY, a son of the late Edward

F. and Frances A. (Wallace) Dingivan.

He was a resident of Londonderry for 16

years, formerly living in Camp Springs,

MD. Mr. Dingivan was employed as a NY

State Police officer and was assigned to

President Roosevelt’s estate in Hyde Park.

He later joined the US Air Force where

he became a pilot with the Eighth Air

Force 447th Bomb Group during World

War II.

After his retirement from the Air Force,

he went on to become a Vice President of

NACA, National Air Carriers Association,

negotiating civil air rights throughout the

world. He later became Vice President in

charge of public relations for Republic

Airlines, later known as Northwest and

now known as Delta.

He is survived by his wife Priscilla T.

(Truesdale) Dingivan of Londonderry, two

daughters Carole Armbruster,

Albuquerque, NM, and Maureen

Lewandowski, Upper Marlboro, MD; five

sons Edward D. Dingivan, San Antonio,

TX, Lawrence Dingivan, Salt Lake City,

UT, Dennis Dingivan, Peachtree City, GA,

Terence W. Dingivan, Annandale, VA,

Brian Dingivan, Peachtree City, GA, four

step-daughters, Sandra Gillis, Brockton,

MA, Cynthia Kosidlak, Hernando, FL,

Cheryl Demeule, Raymond, NH, Allyson

Lee, Millis, MA, 19 grandchildren, nine

great grandchildren, one step-sister Gloria

Turko, Londonderry. He was predeceased

by his first wife, Julia F. Dingivan in 1993.

A Mass of Christian burial was

celebrated Dec. 6 at St. Jude Parish in

Londonderry. Following cremation, Mr.

Dingivan was placed in the columbarium

at the Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum in

Pooler, GA.

Memorial contributions may be made to

the St. Jude Parish Building Fund or to The

Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum.

HATS OFF TO EVAMeet Eva(ngeline) the

Katrina-rescued

Rottweiler adopted by

Norm and Melanie Bussel

five years ago. When

they got her she was

skinny, sick, unspayed

and unhousebroken. She

had been on her own

and feral for 3-4 months.

Family fun stuffFamily fun stuff

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THE DINGIVAN CREW: Standing, from left: Lt. George Moore, Capt. Elwyn Warfle,

Capt. Charles W. Jackson, Capt. Edward A. Dingivan, Lt. Michael Walsh and Capt. Homer

Stranger. Kneeling, from left: M/Sgt Frank Rumola, T/Sgt Barney Langdon, T/Sgt Leon

Butler and T/Sgt Samuel Catton.

From

the

447

th B

G a

rchi

ves

That’s Mitchell Rattlesden Heeb (yes, his real name) in the arms of your

newsletter editor Steve Heeb during Fuddy Duddy’s visit to Seattle in

June 2005. Mitchell is the great-grandson of 447th veteran Loran Heeb.

Phot

o by

Mic

helle

Hee

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Optionaltrip toFrance


Day 1 Tuesday July 19thMorning departure from the Ramada

Hotel, Bury St Edmunds by coach toPortsmouth. From there we take theferry to Cherbourg, Normandy. Janetyour tour guide, the coach and luggagetravels with us.

On the ferry there will be a reservedarea for the group with reclining seats.The crossing takes four hours. Onboard are bars, restaurants, film the-atre, sun deck area and onboard shop-ping.

On arrival in France we drive southto the town of St Lo, one of the keycities to the opening of the FalaiseGap.

Overnight and breakfast at MercureHotel in central St Lo.

Day 2 Wednesday July 20th

Today we explore the US sector ofthe Normandy Landing Beaches. Vis-its will include Utah Beach, St MereEglise, Colleville American Cemetery,Pointe du Hoc and Omaha Beach.

Return to St Lo for evening atleisure. You will enjoy exploring thetown and the chance to try out theFrench cuisine. The hotel’s diningroom offers interesting menus.

Overnight and breakfast at MercureHotel in central St Lo.

Day 3 Thursday July 21stThis morning we travel east to visit

Arromanches. The town overlooks thesurviving Mulberry harbour and is im-portant in the understanding of the op-erations that followed 6th June 1944.The American artificial harbour builtoff Omaha no longer survives.

We continue to the medieval town ofBayeux. Time to explore this historicaltown with its magnificent cathedraland of course the famous Bayeux Tap-estry. After lunch in the town the coachwill head south towards Paris..

Evening at leisure.Overnight and breakfast at Hilton

Hotel, Orly.

Day 4 Friday July 22nd

Day in Paris, Janet will make sureyou see the highlights of this romanticcity. Your panoramic tour will includethe Louvre, Notre-Dame, Place de laConcorde, Champs Elysées and theArc de Triomphe. Cross Alexander IIIBridge with its wonderful views of theSeine, to see Les Invalides and iconicEiffel Tower. Climb the steps from theartist area of Montmarte to whitedomed basilica, the Sacre Coeur. Fromhere see all of Paris spread below you.

Overnight and breakfast at HiltonHotel, Orly.

Day 5 Saturday July 23rdToday we will join the mayor and

townspeople of Wissous at the memo-rial to Lts Campbell, Clark, Reed andWilkins in the park ‘L’Espace ArthurClark’ and pay our respects to thesebrave men who on February 6th 1944showed selfless bravery by crashlanding in order to avoid the town.

Time will then be spent in Wissouswith friends of the 447th who alwayswelcome back veterans and their fami-lies with great affection.

Overnight and breakfast at HiltonHotel, Orly.

Day 6 Sunday July 24th

Early morning departure for ParisCharles de Gaulle Airport for returnflights to the USA.

End of Eagle Tour services.

Option

The onward journey for the coach isto return to Bury St Edmunds. There isan option for you take advantage ofthis should you wish to fly home fromthe UK. The coach can drop at LondonGatwick airport (there are connectionsto Heathrow and central London fromhere). Please note this will require anadditional night’s accommodation tolink up with flights to the USA onMonday July 25th. Do NOT book

flights from London for July 24th.

447th Reunion 2011447th Reunion 2011Wissous celebration and D-Day Beaches

Tuesday July 19th – Sunday July 24th 2011

Price and more informationon back of this page


Please rememberto pay your duesevery yearDear Comrade-in-Arms,

I can recall when my calendar wasmarked by more social events thanmedical appointments. Now, it’s justthe opposite and I sometimes forgetto keep up-to-date on other mattersthat are very important to me.

Like my dues for the 447th BombGroup. If I don’t send in my check assoon as I receive my notice, it simplyslips my mind. I’m sure that’s whathappened to you this year. You setaside your notice and forgot that youintended to send in your dues.

Our service with the 8th Air Forceduring WW II helped to achieve oneof the greatest victories in ourcountry’s history. This is an honorthat we want to perpetuate, and weare so fortunate that many of oursons and daughters have steppedforward to help run the 447thorganization as we get older and ourenergies wane.

It’s really not expensive to keep ourgroup active, but we do need yourdues in order to keep sending you the447th newsletter and pay some ofthe costs of our reunions, both in theU.S. and in England.

Please send in your dues of $20.00now, while you have this request inhand. No one knows better than I,how easy it is to forget. Help us tokeep alive the memory of all thosewho flew with us, “into the wild blueyonder.”

With warmest personal regards,Dean SassamanTreasurer, 447th Bomb Group

NERDNOTEST I M E T O G E T Y O U R G E E K O N

n Melanie Bussel Computers! I spend a lot of time

swearing at mine, but still they’re in-dispensable in this instant-communication age.Even though I have mycell phone pro-grammed to not re-ceive or send textmessages, I still use e-mail to contact friendsand family, and to sendout instant alerts to variousgroups I’m associated with.

It would be very helpful if everyone

who has access to the Internet providesa current e-mail address to the 447th.

It can be one of your kids or grand-kids, if you don’t use a

computer.Please send your e-

mail address to DeanSasseman by snailmail or e-mail to:

Dean Sassaman

201 Jackpine DrivePottawattomie Park IN

[email protected]

There have been several PX requestsover the past few years for both 447thGroup and Squadron patches.We ran out of theoriginal repro-ductions severalyears ago and itwas deemed notcost effective toreproduce a newbatch.

There arepatches for saleon e-bay at outra-geous prices and it

should be noted that 99 percent ofthem are “knock-offs” or cheap inac-

curate copies.You may want to

warn the mem-bers of this be-fore they gospending $55 foran incorrectpatch that weused to sell (thecorrect version)

in the PX for $6.Just a thought.

George Hoidra

447th patches for sale onlinemost likely to be knock offs

Be aware that 447th BG group and squadron patches

found on on-line auctions may or may not be authentic.


Land Price

US$1390.00 pp sharing a twin/dou-ble room

Your tour price includes:

• 2 nights in Mercure Hotel, St Loincluding breakfast.

• 3 nights in Hilton Hotel, Orly in-cluding breakfast.

• Ferry crossing.• English Tour Director, French

speaking accompanies you each day.• Daily travel in an air-conditioned

coach.• Porterage for ONE LARGE SUIT-

CASE ONLY.

Your tour price does not include:

• Entrances to museums.• Hotel accommodation on Sunday

July 24th if returning to USA on July25th.

• Tips to guides and drivers.• Tips to hotel staff.

WE STRONGLY ADVISE THATYOU TAKE TRIP CANCELLATIONINSURANCE.

For further information:

E-mail: [email protected]: Brigid Goodson 0044 1628 526581Jo Stevenson 0044 1628 520563

Contact Address:

The Compasses Wooburn CommonBuckinghamshire HP10 0JSUK

Reservations

A deposit of $500 per person shallbe payable to Eagle Tours by March31, 2011. Final payment of the balanceis due by 15th May 2011.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

CANCELLATION INSURANCE:

Eagle Tours strongly recommend thatour tour participants purchase trip can-cellation and trip interruption insurancein the amount of the land cost of thetour.

CHANGES BY EAGLE TOURS:

At the time of publication all informa-tion in our brochure has been checkedand is, to the best of our knowledge,correct. However for reasons beyondour control changes may need to bemade to hotels, venues and pro-grammes.

CANCELLATION BY EAGLE

TOURS: Eagle Tours reserves the rightto cancel any tour prior to departure forany reason, including insufficient num-bers. Should this happen full refundswill be made without obligation al-though Eagle Tours cannot be held re-sponsible for any additional costs al-ready incurred by participants.

The tour price is based on a number ofpeople travelling together. If the book-ing falls below the minimum required,passengers will be advised of any addi-tional costs for that departure date andasked if they wish to pay this amount orcancel, upon which any deposits andpayments will be fully refunded.

CANCELLATION BY CUS-

TOMERS: If a participant cancels, thefollowing refunds will be available onlyupon written notice of cancellation toEagle Tours:

More than 6 weeks before tour depar-ture, an administration charge of $90 perperson will be retained.

Within 6 weeks of departure, the fol-lowing cancellation charges apply:

6 weeks to 1 month before departure:

25% of the tour price. 1month to 2 weeks before the tour de-

parture: 75% of the tour price. Less than 2 weeks before departure:

no refund.There is no refund for ‘no shows’.Refunds cannot be made to any pas-

senger who does not complete the tour.No refunds shall be issued for occa-

sional missed meals, sightseeing toursor any unused services.

RESPONSIBILITY: The responsi-bility of Eagle Tours and/or their agentsis limited. Eagle Tours act only asagents for the suppliers of tour trans-portation, sightseeing, hotel accommo-dation and other services related to thistour programme. Eagle Tours does notown, manage, control or operate anytransportation vehicle, any hotel orrestaurant or any other supplier of serv-ices related to this programme. All tick-ets, receipts, coupons and vouchers areissued subject to the terms and condi-tions specified by the supplier. By ac-cepting the coupons and tickets or utilis-ing the services, tour participants agreethat Eagle Tours accepts no responsibil-ity for losses, injury, damage or addi-tional expenses to the tour participantsor their belongings or otherwise in con-nection with any accommodation, trans-portation or other services resulting di-rectly or indirectly from any occur-rences beyond the control of EagleTours including breakdown of equip-ment, sickness, weather, strikes, theft, orother causes. All such losses or expenseswill be borne by the tour participant.Eagle Tours reserve the right to substi-tute hotels or restaurants or sites wherevisits are scheduled and to alter the itin-erary or reverse the order of the visits.Eagle Tours are neither responsible norliable for defaults of those not directlyunder the control of Eagle Tours.

That’s seven beautiful

plexi noses all in a row –

with yet another B-17

flying a sortie over the

airfield at the time – as a

total of eight flying B-17s

(and a ninth still under

construction) converged

on the historic Willows

Run Airport for the

Gathering of Fortresses air

show last August.

447TH BOMB GROUP, INC.

Membership ChairmanDean Sassaman201 Jackpine DriveMichigan City, IN 46360-2713

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

CHECKSIXF I N A L P H O T O F O R T H E M O N T H

Nose jobsPhot

o by

Ste

ve H

eeb

Documents

447th Bomb Group Newsletter Spring 2011 Newsletter Spring 2011 (FINAL) 16... · 2011-03-22 · 447th BG NEWSLETTER J 4 J 2011 SPRING ISSUE 447th BG NEWSLETTER J 5 J 2011 SPRING ISSUE