Any way to trace this ship's serial number by its tail markings? Reports passed down through the years are that my uncle (and namesake) was a crew member on a plane took off from Luzon on June 6, 1945 and disappeared. I have no idea if this B-24 is the plane that he was on. Records indicate that he was with the 400 Squadron (Black Pirates). Walter Van McCarty was a T/Sgt. at his death.
B-24 in Philippines
- Thread starter vanmac
- Start date
Ad: This forum contains affiliate links to products on Amazon and eBay. More information in Terms and rules
Any way to trace this ship's serial number by its tail markings? Reports passed down through the years are that my uncle (and namesake) was a crew member on a plane took off from Luzon on June 6, 1945 and disappeared. I have no idea if this B-24 is the plane that he was on. Records indicate that he was with the 400 Squadron (Black Pirates). Walter Van McCarty was a T/Sgt. at his death.
vikingBerserker
Lieutenant General
I can only find 2 x B-24's lost on that day. One in Puerto Rica and the other in England. How sure are you of the date?
- Thread starter
- #3
FLYBOYJ
"THE GREAT GAZOO"
vikingBerserker
Lieutenant General
Based on what I have been able to find, the plane in the picture is actually with the 319th BS. If so the dark area around the skull and crossbones would be blue. The 400th BS was black except the top 1/3rd of it was white.
On Jun 6, 1945 the FEAF (which included the 5th Airforce) did the following:
"SOUTHWEST PACIFIC AREA [SWPA, Far East Air Force (FEAF)]: On Luzon Island,
A-20s and fighter-bombers blast bridges in Cagayan Valley and other fighter-
bombers pound the Balete Pass area. On Borneo, B-24s, B-25s, and fighter-
bombers hit Labuan Island supply areas, support troops on Tarakan Island, and
bomb Kota Waringin and Pontianak Airfields, areas along the Belait River,
around Brunei, and strike Miri, Jesselton, Kudat, and Beaufort. Bad weather
cancels all missions against Formosan targets."
from http://paul.rutgers.edu/~mcgrew/wwii/usaf/html/Jun.45.html
Last edited:
vikingBerserker
Lieutenant General
Think I got it:
DATE.....................450606
AIRCRAFT...................B-25
SERIAL................ 44-41482
UNIT.............................90
LOCATION........South Pacific
MACR.......................14608
from Accident-Report.com - Missing Air Crew Reports Index
With the MARC number, you should be able to find all the info you need.
DATE.....................450606
AIRCRAFT...................B-25
SERIAL................ 44-41482
UNIT.............................90
LOCATION........South Pacific
MACR.......................14608
from Accident-Report.com - Missing Air Crew Reports Index
With the MARC number, you should be able to find all the info you need.
Last edited:
- Thread starter
- #8
Thanks everyone for your help. Especially vB for ID'ing the plane in the photo as belonging to another squadron.
From the MACR I discovered several items:
The B-24J that went down with my uncle was 44-41482.
41482 (90th BG, 400th BS) missing on flight from McGuire Fleld, Mindoro to Clark Field, Luzon June 6, 1945. A search was begun on June 7th and abandoned on June 11th. 24 MIA. MACR 14608.
It was called a "Routine" flight. For the first time I realized there were other passengers on board. I had it in my mind that they were on a combat mission and only the crew was lost -- not so. Another strange note is that one of the officers aboard was also a "McCarty", no relationship.
From the MACR I discovered several items:
The B-24J that went down with my uncle was 44-41482.
41482 (90th BG, 400th BS) missing on flight from McGuire Fleld, Mindoro to Clark Field, Luzon June 6, 1945. A search was begun on June 7th and abandoned on June 11th. 24 MIA. MACR 14608.
It was called a "Routine" flight. For the first time I realized there were other passengers on board. I had it in my mind that they were on a combat mission and only the crew was lost -- not so. Another strange note is that one of the officers aboard was also a "McCarty", no relationship.
- Thread starter
- #10
I think you will enjoy this interesting history lesson. Please feel free to move to a more appropriate thread. Thanks.
For those who live outside of Michigan, Willow Run is near Bellville, Canton and Ypsilanti, MI.
It's amazing that one B-24 (built with over 1.25 million parts) came off the assembly line every 55 minutes
Take a few minutes to watch this snapshot of history.
http://xa.yimg.com/kq/groups/15654030/1604819366/name/bomber_plant.wmv
For those who live outside of Michigan, Willow Run is near Bellville, Canton and Ypsilanti, MI.
It's amazing that one B-24 (built with over 1.25 million parts) came off the assembly line every 55 minutes
Take a few minutes to watch this snapshot of history.
http://xa.yimg.com/kq/groups/15654030/1604819366/name/bomber_plant.wmv
