ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 200044
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| Date: | Tuesday 10 April 1945 |
| Time: | |
| Type: |  Republic P-47D Thunderbolt |
| Owner/operator: | 507th FSqn /404th FGp USAAF |
| Registration: | 42-27248 |
| MSN: | |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Hellefeld, Nordrhein-Westfalen -
 Germany
|
| Phase: | Combat |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | Fritzlar, Germany |
| Kelz, Germany |
On 10 April 1945 a Flakvierling gun crew claimed three Thunderbolts shot down near Hellefeld the same day. And indeed, three P-47s were shot down by Flak in this area this day, one of 404th FG and two of 36th FG.
The 404th Fighter Group was operating from Y-54 airfield at Kelz, Germany, since April 5th to support First Army troops on the eastern flank of the Ruhr pocket but had already received to move to a new base, Site Y-86, deep in the heart of Germany at Fritzlar, some 15 miles south of Kassel.
To make the trip, Group convoys had to swing southeast, curving well below the line of the Sieg River, due east of Cologne, held by the encircled Ruhr defenders. Fritzlar was a tiny, picturesque town on a small rise of ground overlooking the Eder River. It was some 85 miles east of Kelz by air, but more than twice that distance by the roads the Group’s motor transport was forced to travel because of the tactical situation.
In direct flight, 404th planes had to pass over enemy forward positions between Kelz and Fritzlar, and this situation led to a tragic loss April 10th. With the Group still based at Kelz. Lieut. Col. Moon and his three squadron commanders-Lieut. Col. Garrigan of the 508th, Major Peterson of the 506th, and Major’ John A. Marshall, newly-designated C. O. of the 507th-flew east in a four-ship formation on a non-operational mission to inspect the facilities at Y-86.
On the return flight they observed some tempting targets in a valley between some low hills about 30 miles west of Fritzlar. Down they went to strafe-and caught a hail of flak that riddled Major Marshall’s P-47D-27-RE 42-27248 and sent the other three zooming back for altitude. Helplessly they watched as Marshall’s craft slid toward the side of a hill bordering the valley. At the last second the white of a parachute trailed out behind the Thunderbolt - and plane and parachute hit almost simultaneously on the hillside a short distance apart (MACR 14373).
Two days later with the area of the crash cleared by our troops and most of the 404th personnel moved to Y-86, a sad search-party led by Group Surgeon Jett O. Scott recovered Major Marshall’s body where it had fallen-the still unopened parachute strung out on the ground behind him. They said it appeared he might have made a safe jump had he been over the valley, 1,000 feet lower than the hill where he struck.
Sources:
https://bunker-nrw.de/php/viewtopic.php?f=30&t=845&start=15
http://p-47.database.pagesperso-orange.fr/Database/42-2xxxx.htm
http://www.winkton.net/Leap%20Off/LeapOffPdf3.pdf
http://www.maplandia.com/germany/nordrhein-westfalen/arnsberg/hochsauerlandkreis/hellefeld/
Images:
Map places Planes chrased
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 30-Sep-2017 14:56 | Laurent Rizzotti | Added |
| 13-Feb-2020 19:06 | Iwosh | Updated [Operator, Operator] |
| 29-Mar-2020 09:56 | Reno Raines | Updated [Operator, Operator] |
| 19-Jun-2020 17:33 | Gunther Dudda | Updated [Photo] |
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