Memorial

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2nd Lt Leigh J. Monson graduated from Fargo Central High School in 1937. He also graduated from North Dakota Agricultural College in 1942.

The mission was to bomb the marshalling yard of Hamm but the city was covered by heavy clouds. Three of the four B-17 groups attacked the marshalling yard, port area and industry of Emden instead.

Coy D. Martin, the radio operator, who survived the mission, stated after the war:
'The weather was very bad and we passed over Hamm without dropping our bomb laod. We then went over the secondary target without dropping bombs. Somewhere between Osnabruck an Emden an enemy fighter plane crashed into our right wing and knocked it off almost even with the right outboard engine.

After talking with the boys who where ahead of us in formation it seemed that our ship was considerably shot up in the front part of the airplane. The windshield was knocked out and considerable damage was done but as th the fate of the pilot, co-pilot and top gunner I do not know if they were killed by gun fire or not. After we were rammed I heard the pilot say: "Hold it, hold it". Those were the last words I heard from anyone up front as we almost immediately fell off on the right wing into a spin.

As for myself I could not move while in the spin, and although trying desperately to get out of the aircraft, could not move until the plane broke into near where I was and I dived out head first. As I was falling directley under the ship and made a long delayed jump I saw the aircraft break into thousands of small pieces and some large ones of course.

Although I and the three crew members captured with me were not allowed to view te wreckage, which landed near me, there can be little doubt of the fate of the rest of the crew.'

Four crew members survived and were taken prisoner, six men were killed.

The bodies of the killed crew members were first buried at the New Cemetery of Bad Zwischenahn-Oldenburg.