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name
CRICKENBERGER, Lawrence Henkel Jr - Date of
birth
18 September 1923 -
Age
21 - Place of
birth
unknown -
Hometown
Frederick County, Maryland
Personal info
Military service
- Service
number
O-712514 -
Rank
Second Lieutenant -
Function
Navigator -
Unit
614th Bombardment Squadron,
401st Bombardment Group, Heavy
-
Awards
Purple Heart,
Air Medal with 2 Oak Leaf Clusters
Death
-
Status
Missing in Action - Date of
death
7 October 1944 - Place of
death
Stettin, Germany
Grave
-
Cemetery
American War Cemetery Margraten - Walls of the Missing
Immediate family
-
Members
Lawrence Crickenberger H Sr. (father)
Margaret Crickenberger (mother)
Anne Crickenberger (sister)
Jean Crickenberger (sister)
Jane Crickenberger (sister)
Plane data
- Serial
number
44-6145 -
Data
Type: B-17G
Nickname: Cover Girl
Destination: Politz, Germany
MACR: 9756
More information
Charles H. Crickenberger graduated from Frederick High School in 1940. He assisted his father at farming for some time before taking employment at the Glenn L. Martin Company, Baltimore.He was on his twenty-second bombing mission when his plane was destroyed.
Flak on the bomb run from Stettin to Politz was intense and accurate. As a result, the 401st lost five aircraft, and the Wing lost 17 of the 142 aircraft which attacked Politz. He flew his 20th mission. The airplane received a direct burst in the right wing root, adjacent to the bomb bay. The right wing caught fire; the airplane went down, the right wing came off, and is believed to have exploded.
Source of information: WWIIMemorial.com, Footnote.com MACR / WWII Registration Card, 401bg.org, www.newspapers.com - The News
Photo source: Peter Schouteten, www.newspaperarchive.com - The Frederick Post