78th Fighter Group
78th Fighter Group
Personal pictures, stories and web "links" submitted by 78th Fighter Group veterans, family and friends.
_Sgt. John P. Hartman, 82nd Fighter Squadron, Killed on duty, 5-27-44
On May 27, 1944, Sgt. John P. Hartman, an armorer assigned to the 82nd Fighter Squadron, 78th Fighter Group, was bicycling back to his old bomber squadron to check on his pay records. Approximately 6 miles southeast of Duxford he witnessed a mid air collision with a P-51 Mustang and an A-20 light bomber of the 409th Bomb Group taking off from their base at Little Walden. Sgt. Hartman ran to the crash site and with the help of a passing nurse rescued one of the crewmen. They went back to the burning aircraft to help more of the crew and at that moment, the plane's bombload exploded, throwing Hartman and the nurse for over forty feet in the air. The nurse was killed instantly. Sgt. Hartman succumbed to his woumds seven hours later in the hospital.
Sgt. John P. Hartman was posthumously awarded the the Soldiers Medal for heroism.
Station #165, Little Walden, Cambridgeshire. This was the home base of the 409th Bombardment Group from March 7, 1944 to September, 1944. This field was located just southeast of Duxford and was the scene of the incident involving the mid-air collision and Sgt John Hartman on May 27, 1944. ( Source Credit: 409th Bomb Group Archives ).
In a narrative of the events that occured on May 27, 1944, the 409th Bombardment Group records report(1):
"There were two missions that day, both against the marshaling yard at Amiens."
"Taking off at 1903 hours, the lead ship, piloted by Capt. Dunbar, was hit by the last ship in a formation of P-51's passing over the field, and both ships crashed and burst into flames. Accounts by the first arrivals on the scene of the crash vary, and the sole survivor of the accident, S/Sgt. Mattei, Capt. Dunbar's turret gunner, is confused about what happened after the crash. He was badly burned while attempting to get Captain Dunbar out of the cockpit of the flaming plane. It is believed that Capt. Dunbar, his bombagator, Lt. Merrill, and Lt. Jones, the Group Photographic Officer, who was flying as tunnel gunner, were killed by the crash. Mrs. Elizabeth Ann Everitt, housewife from nearby Paddle Wharf Farm, and a passing cyclist, Sgt. John P. Hartman of the 78th Fighter Group, were killed in the explosion of bombs in the wreckage as they sought to extricate members of the crew".
"The next day, the Group undertook to raise a trust fund for four-year-old Tony Everitt, orphaned son of the woman who had lost her life in the gallant effort to aid the 409th crash victims".
Constituted as the 409th Bombardment Group (Light) on June 1, 1943 and was activated the same day. The group trained with A-20's in preparing for duty overseas. They wrere deployed to England, Feb-Mar 1944, stationed at Little Walden, Cambridgeshire and were assigned to 9th Air Force. They bombed coastal defenses, V-weapon sites, airdromes, and other targets in France, Apr-Jun 1944, in preparation for the invasion of Normandy. They supported ground forces during the Normandy campaign by hitting gun batteries, rail lines, bridges, communications, and other objectives. During Jul y, 1944, they aided the Allied offensive at Caen and the breakthrough at St Lo with attacks on enemy troops, flak positions, fortified villages, and supply dumps. Also they provided support for Patton's Third Army's advance toward Germany, Aug-Nov 1944, operating from bases in France beginning in September. They converted to A-26 aircraft in December, 1944 and participated in the Battle of the Bulge (Dec 1944 - Jan 1945) by attacking lines of communication and supply. They continued to operate against targets in Germany until May, 1945. The last mission was flown on May 3, 1945, attacking an ammunition dump in Czechoslovakia. The Group returned to the US, Jun-Aug, 1945. and inactivated on November 7, 1945.
9th Air Force A-20s on a bomb run over the ETO. The A-20 Havoc was a mid-wing, twin-engine, three-place medium bomber that earned a reputation for getting its crews home, even when both crew and aircraft suffered crippling battle damage. It was called the "Boston" when it was built for the Royal Air Force. (Source Credit: Unknown)
Webmaster's Notes:
(1) - Source Credit - History of Headquarters, 409th Bomb Group(L), May, 1944, Narrative ( Web-Birds Internet Site )
This page was last revised on 8 / 14 / 04
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