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name
LEVE, Franklin - Date of
birth
18 February 1917 -
Age
26 - Place of
birth
Jersey City, Hudson County, New Jersey -
Hometown
Bayonne, Hudson County, New Jersey -
Religion
Jewish
Personal info
Military service
- Service
number
O-797564 -
Rank
First Lieutenant -
Function
Pilot -
Unit
427th Bombardment Squadron,
303rd Bombardment Group, Heavy
-
Awards
Purple Heart,
Air Medal
Death
-
Status
Killed in Action - Date of
death
20 December 1943 - Place of
death
Near Bremen, Germany
Grave
-
Cemetery
American War Cemetery Margraten
| Plot | Row | Grave |
|---|---|---|
| M | 5 | 15 |
Immediate family
-
Members
Paul Leve (father)
Fanny (George) Leve (mother)
Alice Leve (sister)
Edith Leve (sister)
Jerome Leve (brother)
Norman Leve (brother)
Robert Leve (brother)
Ruth (Kur) Leve (wife)
Plane data
- Serial
number
42-31233 -
Data
Type: B-17G
Destination: Bremen, Germany
Mission: Bombing of the port
MACR: 1707
More information
1st Lt Franklin Leve was a salesman.He enlisted in Newark, New Jersey on 6 May 1941.
A Me-110 came within 50 feet of the airplane and fired two rockets which entered the aircraft between the ball turret and the tail. The ball turret gunner, S/Sgt E.W. Drees, managed to hit the Me-110 in the left wing, breaking it off and sending it down. Bursts from another enemy aircraft entered the ball turret causing two bright flashes. The no 2 and no 3 engines were smoking heavily. S/Sgt Drees still fired after the burst, but no flame was seen. The pilot, Lt Leve, peeled off to the right, fell about 6,000 feet in a straight dive, then leveled off before hitting cloud cover.
Two crew members survived and were taken prisoner, eight were killed.
Source of information: Raf Dyckmans, Terry Hirsch, 303rd Bomb Group, www.fold3.com - MACR, www.ancestry.com - Jewish Servicemen Card / 1930 Census / Family Tree, WWII Draft Card
Photo source: www.findagrave.com, Steven P. Gruenberg, www.303rdbg.com