joker_86z28
Airman
- 80
- Dec 1, 2012
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I recently found out a family member of mine was a gunner and radio operator on a Ford-built B24H, S/N 42-94791 from the 831st Sdn, 485th Bomb Group, 15th Air Force is "Rough Deal Lucille during WW2. I was wondering if I could maybe commission someone to build it?Here is what I have. His name was Wallace R Bellonger (sometimes misspelled as Bellanger).
View attachment 439085
View attachment 439086
color was olive drab, another nickname for the bird was "red G" as is the pic the red 'g' on the waist.
Would you happen to have any history on this crew?
You can search the 485th BG website:Would you happen to have any history on this crew?
I recently found out a family member of mine was a gunner and radio operator on a Ford-built B24H, S/N 42-94791 from the 831st Sdn, 485th Bomb Group, 15th Air Force is "Rough Deal Lucille during WW2. I was wondering if I could maybe commission someone to build it?Here is what I have. His name was Wallace R Bellonger (sometimes misspelled as Bellanger).
View attachment 439085
View attachment 439086
color was olive drab, another nickname for the bird was "red G" as is the pic the red 'g' on the waist.
Thank you for your reply, your interest, and the kind words! I love your avatar; I watched that show first-run in the US in the mid '60s.Great post, BRGSmith! Thanks for posting. It's nice seeing threads reborn and your post was wonderful to read.
Funny, we were just discussing that.Thank you for your reply, your interest, and the kind words! I love your avatar; I watched that show first-run in the US in the mid '60s.
B.
Funny, we were just discussing that.
Thankscfor sharing.I realize this thread is old, but I'd like to add some information regarding the aircraft and crew. Capt. Chester Ballengee was the pilot of 42-94791. The radioman and waist gunner was in fact my late uncle, TSgt (E6) Gerald Howard. My uncle "pulled the short straw" to name the aircraft when the crew picked it up, and he named it "Rough Deal Lucille" after his sister, my late mother, Lucille (Howard) Smith. Uncle Gerald became a union welder after the war, mostly working out of the Chicago local, married my aunt Linda and had two daughters, now both nurses. Gerald Howard passed away at age 94 in 2017. Aunt Linda survives at age 79.
My mother Lucille was a commercial subjects high school teacher and passed away at age 90 in 2015. Mom taught typing and shorthand during the 1943, 44, and 45 school years on an emergency certificate upon graduation from high school herself in June, 1943. After that, she got her degree, then worked in a secretarial pool, had me and my sister, and then started teaching in the 1963 school year, retiring in 1989.
I have attached a photo of the original Ballengee crew with crew names, and the replacement Barnholt crew who took over after the Ballengee crew served their 50 missions. I've also included another photo of the nose art and two crew members. Finally, there's a photo of Mom and Uncle Gerald on leave at their parents' home in Johnsonburg, PA shortly after his Advanced Training when he was an E4 and prior to deployment to Italy.
Brian Smith
I've just watched the first two episodes of "Masters of the Air" and then seen your post. After reading the notes your grandfather wrote, it brings home the reality of what I have just watched. Thanks for sharing.Hello! I'm sorry I'm just finding this post after researching my grandfather, Paul Obrien who was the navigator on rough deal Lucille's first crew. Attached is his flight journal for anyone interested in reading - it's an amazing record. Thanks!
Sean