Memorial

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John Long was the oldest of 13 and a grid star at Duquesne High School. He worked for the Duquesne Light Company and attended Carnegie Tech. night school.

He was commisioned an earned his wings in March 1943 at an Army Flying School near Columbus, Mississippi.

The airplane absorbed a flak hit which set the #1 engine ablaze and knocked the aircraft out of formation. Capt. Long forced his aircraft back into formation for the second bomb run by straining his three remaining engines. Just after the bombs were released, another flak burst tore the #3 engine and propeller off the plane, throwing it completely out of control. It flipped over on its back and went down in a dive. It pulled out of this dive and almost immediately went into another. Four parachutes were spotted, but the aircraft was lost in the haze as it went down and was not seen to hit the ground.

Three crew members survived and were taken prisoner. Eight men were killed.