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Personal info

Full name
HANLON, Ernest Edward
Date of birth
3 March 1921
Age
23
Place of birth
Ellensburg, Kittitas County, Washington
Hometown
Seattle, King County, Washington

Military service

Service number
O-760836
Rank
Second Lieutenant
Function
Pilot
Unit
546th Bombardment Squadron,
384th Bombardment Group, Heavy
Awards
Purple Heart,
Air Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster

Death

Status
Killed in Action
Date of death
12 September 1944
Place of death
Grünfelde, west of Kyritz, Germany

Grave

Cemetery
American War Cemetery Ardennes
Plot Row Grave
B 34 30

Immediate family

Members
Ernest Hanlon (father)
Violet Hanlon (mother)
Clyde D. Hanlon (brother)
Dorothy Hanlon (sister)
Roseanna (Marinich) Hanlon (wife)

Plane data

Serial number
42-97142
Data
Type: B-17G
Nickname: Thor, God of Thunder
Destination: Brux, Czechoslovakia
Mission: Bombing of the synthetic oil refinery
MACR: 8901

More information

2nd Lt. Ernest E. Hanlon was a secretary before he joined the Air Corps of the U.S. Army Reserve in Santa Ana, California on 22 February 1943.

The airplane was hit by German figthers at 11:05 in the #3 engine near Wittenburg, Germany. The airplane could not climb back in formation and continuously drifted behind until it was lost out of sight. The right wing fell off at 11:09 and the airplane went down on fire in a steep glide.

Three crew members were taken prisoner, six men were killed.

Lt Hanlon was initially buried at the cemetery of Drewen, Germany on 13 September 1944.

His brother, Pfc Clyde D. Hanlon, is also buried at Ardennes American cemetery.

Lt Ernest E. Hanlon is remembered with a memorial marker at Sunset Memorial Park Cemetery in Minneapolis, Hennepin County, Minnesota.

Source of information: Terry Hirsch, Raf Dyckmans, www.384thbombgroup.com, www.archives.gov, www.findagrave.com, WWII Draft Card

Photo source: Jac Engels, www.findagave.com - Jaci, Eric Lewis and Linda Britton Trygstad