Latest news with #B-17G
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Utah family prepares to bury WWII pilot who was MIA for 80 years
PARK CITY, Utah () — A Utah family is getting ready to lay to rest U.S. Army Air Forces 1st Lt. George Frank Wilson on the 81st anniversary of his plane being shot down over France during WWII. Lt. Wilson, the pilot of a B-17G 'Flying Fortress' bomber, was killed when his plane crashed in northern France after being hit by anti-aircraft fire on July 8, 1944. For 80 years, he was considered missing in action. Now, his family has some closure. Brian Frank Wilson, who shares the same middle name as his grandfather, told that even though he never met his grandfather, he feels close to him, especially now that the family knows what happened and is preparing to bury him on the 81st anniversary of his death and disappearance. 'It's like the stars are aligning, you know, it's crazy,' Brian Wilson said. 'I feel his soul. I feel there is a purpose to all of it.' Like the tides of war, a turning point is bringing relief to 1st Lt. George F. Wilson's descendants. Santaquin Police Department remembers Sgt. Bill Hooser's legacy one year later 'When he fell out of formation, and everyone was bailing out, one of his closest friends, the engineer, lost his parachute,' Brian Wilson stated. 'I guess Frank (Lt. Wilson) was still alive and gave him his parachute, the last one, and told him to get out.' Brian Wilson told that this happened on July 8, 1944. His grandfather, a young 22-year-old pilot, saved his crew after taking enemy fire. 'They were certain he went down with the plane. It exploded. It was on fire, and that was the last of it,' he added. Then radio silence. In 1951, Wilson was declared non-recoverable. In 2018, the family would start to get some answers as to what happened to Lt. Wilson. 'Eric Bornemeier, who we owe a ton of gratitude towards, married my cousin years ago,' Brian Wilson stated. 'He's in the military. He thought this was a cool story, and he went out and spearheaded a search to find George in this field in northern France. Lo and behold, they found him.' At least, they hoped it was him. 'In July 2018, a member of Wilson's family provided DPAA with new information about a potential crash site for Wilson's aircraft,' explained the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency. 'One of Wilson's family then traveled to Monchy-Cayeux and met three witnesses who remembered the crash.' The DPAA added: 'In 2019, a DPAA investigation team visited Monchy-Cayeux and discovered a concentration of wreckage consistent with a B-17 at the site, which they then recommended for excavation.' It would take a few more years for all the questions to be answered. 'From Aug. 6-30, 2021, DPAA partner Colorado State University excavated the site and accessioned all recovered evidence into the DPAA laboratory,' DPAA explained. 'They returned to the site for another excavation from July 25 to Aug. 13, 2022, finding additional evidence which was also accessioned into the DPAA laboratory.' Then, in 2024, the government reached out to Brian Wilson requesting a sample of his DNA. 'To identify Wilson's remains, scientists from DPAA used anthropological analysis, as well as material evidence,' DPAA stated. 'Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA, Y-chromosome DNA, and autosomal DNA analysis.' It was a match. 'They said there's a one in 84 billion chance it's not him,' added Brian Wilson. 'So pretty positive match it's him, they said.' Lt. Wilson was considered accounted for on Nov. 21, 2024. 'Wilson's name is recorded on the Walls of the Missing at Normandy American Cemetery, in Colleville-sur-Mer, France, along with others still missing from WWII,' stated DPAA. 'A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.' The family got a full government briefing about what happened to Lt. Wilson on May 15, 2025. At that time, Brian Wilson accepted medals, including a Purple Heart, on his grandfather's behalf. 'I just feel an immense amount of pride being his grandson,' he said. 'After seeing and receiving those medals and reading the whole accounting, I'm just totally blown away.' On July 8, 2025, George F. Wilson will finally be laid to rest in Bountiful next to family. 'To have this all come around 81 years to the day, there's something, there's a higher source that's in control,' Brian Wilson stated. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
19-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Nine killed in WW2 bomber crash remembered
Eighty years after nine airmen lost their lives in a bomber crash in Surrey, a service to commemorate them has been held. An American Air Force B-17G flying fortress bomber crashed during bad weather in Reigate while returning from a mission over Germany on 19 March 1945. On Wednesday, a service took place at the crash site on Reigate Hill. Tim Richardson, an RAF veteran and historian for the National Trust in Surrey, said: "The aircraft flew over Reigate, startled a bus queue, disappeared into the clouds covering the hill. A huge crash, silence and that was it." Flying in formation, the American crew had been told to split up to avoid collision and to make their way back to base after the weather "closed in" at the English Channel, he added. Mr Richardson said the reaction at the time was one of "horror". "The impact was so severe that all nine men died almost instantly," he told BBC Radio Surrey, adding that one crewman was found half a mile (0.8km) away from the plane wreck. The crash site is now marked by a pair of carved wing tips and cared for by the National Trust. Sculptor Roger Day completed the memorial on the North Downs Way for the 70th anniversary of the crash. It replicates the size of the destroyed aircraft and includes fuselage aluminium from the crash. He told Secret Surrey: "It's so tragic, because of their bravery obviously. But also being so near the end of the war, they could have been home, free." The service featured a wreath-laying ceremony, including one presented by US Air Attaché Lt Col Dan Benson, and the head boy and head girl of The Royal Alexandra and Albert School. HM Lord-Lieutenant of Surrey, Michael More-Molyneux, said Lt Col Dan Benson's attendance was a "powerful testament to our shared history". He added: "The presence of our cadets and scouts at the ceremony brought a sense of reverence and the passing on of history from one generation to the next." Follow BBC Surrey on Facebook, and on X. Send your story ideas to southeasttoday@ or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250. D-Day nurse remembered 80 years after death The abseiling cleaners who dust off old RAF planes Funeral held for 'last' WW2 RAF bomber pilot
Yahoo
19-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Nine killed in WW2 bomber crash remembered
Eighty years after nine airmen lost their lives in a bomber crash in Surrey, a service to commemorate them has been held. An American Air Force B-17G flying fortress bomber crashed during bad weather in Reigate while returning from a mission over Germany on 19 March 1945. On Wednesday, a service took place at the crash site on Reigate Hill. Tim Richardson, an RAF veteran and historian for the National Trust in Surrey, said: "The aircraft flew over Reigate, startled a bus queue, disappeared into the clouds covering the hill. A huge crash, silence and that was it." Flying in formation, the American crew had been told to split up to avoid collision and to make their way back to base after the weather "closed in" at the English Channel, he added. Mr Richardson said the reaction at the time was one of "horror". "The impact was so severe that all nine men died almost instantly," he told BBC Radio Surrey, adding that one crewman was found half a mile (0.8km) away from the plane wreck. The crash site is now marked by a pair of carved wing tips and cared for by the National Trust. Sculptor Roger Day completed the memorial on the North Downs Way for the 70th anniversary of the crash. It replicates the size of the destroyed aircraft and includes fuselage aluminium from the crash. He told Secret Surrey: "It's so tragic, because of their bravery obviously. But also being so near the end of the war, they could have been home, free." The service featured a wreath-laying ceremony, including one presented by US Air Attaché Lt Col Dan Benson, and the head boy and head girl of The Royal Alexandra and Albert School. HM Lord-Lieutenant of Surrey, Michael More-Molyneux, said Lt Col Dan Benson's attendance was a "powerful testament to our shared history". He added: "The presence of our cadets and scouts at the ceremony brought a sense of reverence and the passing on of history from one generation to the next." Follow BBC Surrey on Facebook, and on X. Send your story ideas to southeasttoday@ or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250. D-Day nurse remembered 80 years after death The abseiling cleaners who dust off old RAF planes Funeral held for 'last' WW2 RAF bomber pilot
BBC News
19-03-2025
- General
- BBC News
Nine killed in WW2 bomber crash on Reigate Hill remembered
Eighty years after nine airmen lost their lives in a bomber crash in Surrey, a service to commemorate them has been American Air Force B-17G flying fortress bomber crashed during bad weather in Reigate while returning from a mission over Germany on 19 March Wednesday, a service took place at the crash site on Reigate Richardson, an RAF veteran and historian for the National Trust in Surrey, said: "The aircraft flew over Reigate, startled a bus queue, disappeared into the clouds covering the hill. A huge crash, silence and that was it." Flying in formation, the American crew had been told to split up to avoid collision and to make their way back to base after the weather "closed in" at the English Channel, he Richardson said the reaction at the time was one of "horror"."The impact was so severe that all nine men died almost instantly," he told BBC Radio Surrey, adding that one crewman was found half a mile (0.8km) away from the plane crash site is now marked by a pair of carved wing tips and cared for by the National Trust. Sculptor Roger Day completed the memorial on the North Downs Way for the 70th anniversary of the replicates the size of the destroyed aircraft and includes fuselage aluminium from the told Secret Surrey: "It's so tragic, because of their bravery obviously. But also being so near the end of the war, they could have been home, free." 'Powerful testament to shared history' The service featured a wreath-laying ceremony, including one presented by US Air Attaché Lt Col Dan Benson, and the head boy and head girl of The Royal Alexandra and Albert Lord-Lieutenant of Surrey, Michael More-Molyneux, said Lt Col Dan Benson's attendance was a "powerful testament to our shared history".He added: "The presence of our cadets and scouts at the ceremony brought a sense of reverence and the passing on of history from one generation to the next."
Yahoo
12-02-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Sister Finally Gets to Say Goodbye to Her Brother 80 Years After He Went Missing During WWII
More than 80 years after her brother went missing during World War II, a San Francisco woman was finally able to say goodbye. On Friday, Feb. 7, Staff Sergeant Yuen Hop was laid to rest at Golden Gate National Cemetery in San Bruno, according to local outlet KABC-TV. It was the first time since 1943 that the serviceman — who went missing after his plane was shot down by enemy fire — was able to return home to California. 'It took a long time, but we have closure now,' Sergeant Hop's sister Margery Hop Wong, 94, told The New York Times. Sergeant Hop, who served as waist gunner for the U.S. Air Force, was just 20 years old when the B-17G he and his fellow servicemen were flying was gunned down during a mission in Germany in 1944, according to the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency. The crew was able to parachute to safety, but some were taken as prisoners of war by the Germans. Three men, including Sergeant Hop, went missing, according to the agency. Related: Cameras Captured Deadly Crash of Private Jet Owned by Motley Crüe's Vince Neil, Authorities Blame Landing Gear 'None of us really knew what was going on,' Margery told KABC-TV. She was just a teen when her brother died. Throughout the course of her life, her parents and her five surviving siblings didn't often talk about her lost brother, the Times reported. After six years of investigation, the three men who went missing were declared 'non-recoverable,' according to the Defense POW agency. Sergeant Hop was posthumously awarded a number of medals, including a Purple Heart. In 2013, American and German researchers started digging into Sergeant Hop's case again. Eventually, Nicole Eilers, a historian with the Department of Defense, and others investigating the case learned that the three missing airmen were captured by German SS troops and were killed on their way to a P.O.W. camp, according to the Times. Remains were found in a cemetery in Kamp-Bornhofen, allowing Eilers to confirm that Sergeant Hop had been buried there. Related: Photographer Captures Moving Portraits of Last WWII Veterans and Learns Their Survival Stories 'It's an incredible moment,' said Eilers of solving such a case, according to the newspaper. 'I'm not going to give up on these guys ever.' Margery told KABC-TV that she and her husband were 'shocked' to get the news of her brother's location after so many years had passed. Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. The funeral was a special moment with her extended family. They were finally able to say farewell. 'Keep looking and keep asking,' Margery told the outlet about others looking for answers. 'I don't think they should give up hope… because you never know.' Read the original article on People
