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name
GARDNER, Cleo Harold - Date of
birth
6 September 1920 -
Age
22 - Place of
birth
Underwood, Clark County, Indiana -
Hometown
Marion County, Indiana
Personal info
Military service
- Service
number
15105615 -
Rank
Staff Sergeant -
Function
Left Waist Gunner -
Unit
335th Bombardment Squadron,
95th Bombardment Group, Heavy
-
Awards
Purple Heart,
Air Medal
Death
-
Status
Killed in Action - Date of
death
12 August 1943 - Place of
death
Kattenbos, three miles south of Lommel, Belgium
Grave
-
Cemetery
American War Cemetery Ardennes
| Plot | Row | Grave |
|---|---|---|
| A | 36 | 19 |
Immediate family
-
Members
Frank Gardner (father)
Lola (Dismore) Gardner (mother)
Oliver J. Sharon (stepfather)
Plane data
- Serial
number
42-30194 -
Data
Type: B-17F
Nickname: We Ain't Scared
Destination: Wesseling, Germany
Mission: Bombing of the oil refinery
MACR: 253
More information
S/Sgt Cleo H. Gardner graduated from Arsenal Technical High School. He was employed by the Coca-Cola Bottling Company.He volunteered for the Army of the United States at Fort Benjamin Harrison, Indiana on 3 August 1942.
Statement by 1st Lt David E. Olsson, Asst Operations Officer:
"B-17F 42-30194, piloted by Capt Clifford B. Hamilton, was observed to have a windmilling propeller and about 51 degrees 8'N and 5 degrees 7 'E, he left the information and went down to ground level to head back to the English Coast".
Enemy aircraft shot out the #4 engine. The airplane went out of control into a spin, and the left wing exploded. Of the 10-man crew, 5 were killed. They were initially buried at the cemetery of the airdrome of St. Trond, Belgium on 14 August 1943.
It is believed that Cleo H. Gardner was killed before the crash.
Source of information: Luc van de Sterren, Raf Dyckmans, Terry Hirsch, www.wwiimemorial.com, www.archives.gov, www.fold3.com - MACR, www.8thafhs.com, www.newspapers.com - The Indianapolis Star, WWII Draft Card
Photo source: Peter Schouteten, www.newspapers.com - The Indianapolis News, www.ancestry.com - Arsenal Technical High School Yearbook 1938